1. Cowboys (2-0, No. 6): Yes, they’ve leapfrogged multiple unbeaten teams. That’s a reflection of how dominant they have been in two games.
2. 49ers (2-0, last week No. 1): In 19 days, they get a chance to settle things on the field against the Cowboys.
3. Dolphins (2-0, No. 2): The Dolphins screwed around with an inferior team and almost had to work overtime for the win.
4. Eagles (2-0, No. 3): Something’s missing.
5. Chiefs (1-1, No. 5): The offense still needs to get back on track.
6. Ravens (2-0, No. 9): It’s pretty good to be winning games while still working out the kinks of a new offense.
7. Bills (1-1, No. 10): The Jenga tower has currently stabilized.
8. Jaguars (1-1, No. 7): Holding the Chiefs to 17 points should be good enough to beat them.
9. Jets (1-1, No. 4): It was closer than the final score suggested, but it gets no easier with a desperate Patriots team up next.
10. Seahawks (1-1, No. 18): They made an impressive recovery from a horrible Week 1 outing.
11. Lions (1-1, No. 8): The blue ski masks are better than paper bags. To avoid the latter, the Lions need to improve defensively.
12. Steelers (1-1, No. 15): Here’s the easiest fix to a beleaguered offense — throw it to George Pickens.
13. Giants (1-1, No. 14): Disaster avoided. Or maybe it’s just disaster delayed.
14. Buccaneers (2-0, No. 19): The post-Tommy Bucs are quickly becoming a great story.
15. Commanders (2-0, No. 20): Eric Bieniemy’s star is rising.
16. Falcons (2-0, No. 26): After a pair of 7-10 seasons, a 2-0 start really isn’t a shock.
17. Browns (1-0, No. 11): Deshaun Watson isn’t the player he was when with the Texans in 2020.
18. Packers (1-1, No. 13): They’re going to regret blowing a game they should have won.
19. Saints (2-0, No. 23): September wins are money in the bank, and the Saints are squirreling away victories that could make a huge difference in January.
20. Titans (1-1, No. 27): They need to coach their quarterback out of his current Jekyll-and-Hyde vibe.
21. Bengals (0-2, No. 12): Yes, they know how to overcome slow starts. The quarterback’s nagging calf injury changes things.
22. Chargers (0-2, No. 16): Coach Brandon Staley got a little salty with reporters after the latest loss. His team and the rest of us need to see that version of him a little more often, if he hopes to make it to 2024.
23. Rams (1-1, No. 17): No, a meaningless field goal to cover the spread does not make a difference for these purposes.
24. Colts (1-1, No. 31): They could become fringe playoff contenders, if they would work out their issues with Jonathan Taylor.
25. Vikings (0-2, No. 21): Last year, the coin always landed heads. This year, tails hasn’t failed.
26. Patriots (0-2, No. 22): It feels like a changing of the guard is happening, even if the old guard isn’t willing to step away.
27. Raiders (1-1, No. 24): The latest visit to Buffalo went better than 51-3, but not by much.
28. Broncos (0-2, No. 25): Sean Payton is already making it subtly clear that, if Russell Wilson doesn’t figure things out, he won’t be back next year.
29. Bears (0-2, No. 28): The clock is ticking on pretty much everyone except ownership and Kevin Warren.
30. Panthers (0-2, No. 29): Did David Tepper pick the wrong quarterback? (And, yes, the owner made the call.)
31. Texans (0-2, No. 30): C.J. Stroud has shown promise. But at some point they need to win a game.
32. Cardinals (0-2, No. 32): Are they getting blown out? No. Still, if you’re at the bottom of the barrel, you don’t climb by losing.
