Week Seven Power Ranks

Week Seven has come and gone and Kansas City has vaulted into the top spot with the number one defense.  Also noteworthy is that many of the top young QBs in the league find themselves leading a top ten team at this time.  Two interesting exceptions are Alex Smith and Andy Daulton.  The rest of the top ten QBs are:  Russell Wilson, Andrew Luck, Drew Brees, Rodgers, Kapernick, Cam Newton, Tom Brady and Payton Manning.  Four hall of famers and four of the top talent to enter the league since those hall of famers.

Alex Smith is a fellow with very good physical skills and no sense for the game at the NFL level.  After struggling for years in the coaching wheel of San Francisco he has now worked with two very good coaches and has emerged as a competent game manager and leader.  Certainly he hasn't elevated his game to the point where anyone with any sense would compare him to the rest of the QBs i listed about ten lines up, but he has (for now) shed that horrible reputation he so earned in his earlier years at the position.  Certainly the way KC has started the year makes first year KC coach Andy Reid look like he might be one of the better coaches of his time.  Many coaches can have success once in a situation that is tailor-made for their style; but it is somewhat rare for a coach to have high levels of success with more than one club.  Reid is off to a good start proving his place with this generations greats.  But with a #23 ranked offense, it's really hard to make the case that Alex Smith is the key to the Chiefs success.  It will be interesting to see how the team fares as the schedule becomes more difficult. To this point the team has had the second easiest schedule.

Anyone who has had any sort of NFL conversation with me for more than a few minutes will know that I look for two things to compose a top tier team: (1) Quarterback and (2) Coach.  And yes in that order.  Now most people don't consider Andy Daulton to be in the echelon of great QBs in the league, but I do.  I certainly wouldn't make the case that he has proven to be a hall of famer, nor will I claim that he has proven that he is a great QB.  My opinion is based on what I've seen so far on the field and what I think great QBs play like.  Let's call it a hunch.  I believe that Andy Daulton is easily the best QB in the Queen City since my childhood (ie the tool Boomer Esiason who has become a better than average commentator) and has the potential to be the best to suit up in the horrible black and orange stripes.  And for me Daulton exhibits many of the traits you need to be an elite field general.  In my eyes the problem in Cincinnati is the coaching staff, which should have been replaced years ago.  Marvin Lewis is out coached with regularity and I believe that his system and style is holding back an offense with an incredible amount of talent.  Match up a properly coached offense with a top ten defense and the league would have a powerhouse team in southern Ohio that would terrorize the AFC.  Until then we are stuck with a team that is only better than average because of the talent assembled, but much like the NY Giants, unable to maintain constant and dominating success.

		RANK W/OUT WEIGHT		OFFENSE RANK	DEFENSE RANK		RECORD	SS
1	KANSAS CITY	1		23	1		7-0-0	31
2	SEATTLE	2		6	3		6-1-0	8
3	INDIANAPOLIS	5		9	6		5-2-0	10
4	NEW ORLEANS	3		3	15		5-1-0	24
5	GREEN BAY	6		2	18		4-2-0	11
6	SAN FRANCISCO	8		14	5		5-2-0	3
7	CAROLINA	4		21	2		3-3-0	32
8	NEW ENGLAND	9		16	9		5-2-0	29
9	DENVER	7		1	32		6-1-0	26
10	CINCINNATI	10		17	10		5-2-0	16
11	CHICAGO	11		11	21		4-3-0	28
12	DALLAS	13		18	8		4-3-0	22
13	BALTIMORE	15		20	4		3-4-0	23
14	TENNESSEE	17		15	13		3-4-0	4
15	HOUSTON	16		13	11		2-5-0	1
16	WASHINGTON	21		12	14		2-4-0	9
17	SAN DIEGO	12		7	26		4-3-0	16
18	MIAMI	18		19	22		3-3-0	13
19	DETROIT	14		8	25		4-3-0	20
20	ARIZONA	24		26	16		3-4-0	7
21	PHILADELPHIA	25		5	27		3-4-0	14
22	OAKLAND	27		27	7		2-4-0	4
23	BUFFALO	23		10	24		3-4-0	12
24	NY JETS	20		22	19		4-3-0	26
25	ATLANTA	19		4	30		2-4-0	24
26	PITTSBURGH	22		25	20		2-4-0	21
27	CLEVELAND	26		29	17		3-4-0	16
28	ST LOUIS	28		24	29		3-4-0	15
29	TAMPA BAY	29		30	12		0-6-0	16
30	NY GIANTS	31		31	23		1-6-0	6
31	MINNESOTA	30		28	31		1-5-0	30
32	JACKSONVILLE	32		32	28		0-7-0	2

Unfortunately for us Browns victims, our team took a tank with a miserable loss to a good team in Green Bay.  This moved the men in brown from 21st to 27th and back behind the hated and terrible Steelers. What a kick to the groin.  The Brown offense continues to slide under Weeden's leadership and now the defense is being beat up as well falling out of the top ten this week.  Something has to change because we've seen this team win.  Hopefully this will be the week.