32. Indianapolis Colts (0-5) Last Week: 32
The Colts look better with Painter under center than Collins. But they are still the front runners to win the Andrew Luck award. If they lose to Cincy this week, look out! They could easily be 0-16, but they would have to be swept by Jacksonville.
31. St. Louis Rams (0-4) LW: 31
A bye week could help the Rams get on track. But with their next three being against the Packers, Cowboys, and Saints, they will likely be 0-7 before their schedule gets more manageable.
30. Miami Dolphins (0-4) LW: 30
The Matt Moore era gets underway in New York on Monday night against the Jets. Tall order, but the Jets are not playing well right now. After that game, they host Denver, which is a very winnable game.
29. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-4) LW: 26
The Jaguars may be the worst offense in the NFL, but their defense keeps them out of the bottom three spots for now. Pittsburgh, Baltimore, and Houston are looming and looking like they will send the Jags to their bye week at 1-7.
28. Arizona Cardinals (1-4) LW: 23
Kevin Kolb has not gotten it done so far this year, and the Cardinals defense is terrible. Getting blown out 34-10 by the Vikings shows how bad this team is. Beanie Wells and Larry Fitzgerald has been bright spots in a very disappointing season.
27. Denver Broncos (1-4) LW: 25
The Broncos will start Tim Tebow at QB after their bye week. Brady Quinn should start warming up; he may be coming in soon.
26. Minnesota Vikings (1-4) LW: 29
Another lackluster second half performance was masked by an awesome first quarter performance that took the fight out of the Cardinals. The Vikings travel to Chicago this week to play another must win game. It's time to shelve McNabb and see what Christian Ponder can do.
25. Cleveland Browns (2-2) LW: 24
After their bye, the Browns travel to Oakland to take on the Raiders. Their best hope may be to catch the Raiders on an emotional low, because the Browns defense will struggle to shut the Oakland running game down. Colt McCoy and Peyton Hillis need to be better. Greg Little breaking out at WR wouldn't hurt either.
24. Kansas City Chiefs (2-3) LW: 28
Kansas City has won two straight, albeit over winless Minnesota and Indianapolis. Matt Cassel and Dwayne Bowe are playing well, and Jackie Battle has emerged as a backfield threat for the Chiefs. They are one of the few teams that probably doesn't want their bye this week, since they have been playing well.
23. Carolina Panthers (1-4) LW: 21
Yes, the Panthers are 1-4, but their losses have been close games where they had a chance to win. And three of those games were against the Bears, Saints, and Packers. Carolina travels to Atlanta this week to play a Falcons team that they can beat.
22. Seattle Seahawks (2-3) LW: 27
The Seahawks are playing well for Pete Carroll, and they are coming off of a shocking 36-25 win over the Giants in New York. Tarvaris Jackson has been better and Marshawn Lynch is finally running well. Their defense is actually pretty good. The Seahawks are going to pull some upsets this year.
21. Philadelphia Eagles (1-4) LW: 19
The Eagles are a poster child for signing players that fit your identity. They went out and signed a bunch of high priced and coveted free agents in the offseason, and those players are underperforming in a new scheme. Maybe they will play better later in the season, but for now the Eagles look like a bust.
20. Atlanta Falcons (2-3) LW: 20
Atlanta's defense has been a disappointment this year and for that matter, so has their offense. They are dangerously close to becoming a bad football team. This week's game against the Panthers has a must win feel about it. A home loss may cause a team that went 13-3 last year to panic.
19. Cincinnati Bengals (3-2) LW: 22
The Bengals survived to beat Jacksonville 30-20 last week in a game they easily could have lost. They have been the recipient of one of the easiest schedules in the league so far, and they play the Colts and Seahawks in the next two weeks. A.J. Green and Andy Dalton have good rapport and they are playing much better than expected this year. But it is their defense that is winning for them.
18. Chicago Bears (2-3) LW: 18
Jay Cutler throws everything off of his back foot, but so far it hasn't really hurt him. The Bears offensive line is terrible, and may keep this team out of the playoffs. Urlacher and the defense have been excellent so far.
17. Tennessee Titans (3-2) LW: 15
The Titans went into Pittsburgh and got smacked by the Steelers, 38-17. It's hard to know what to expect from this team on a week to week basis. They have looked great in beating the Ravens and Browns, but they have a bad loss to the Jaguars, they squeaked by Denver, and they were whipped by Pittsburgh.
16. New York Giants (3-2) LW: 10
A bad loss at home to Seattle brought the Giants' expectations crashing back to earth. Their defense is still porous, but their offense has been good, Eli Manning's 3 interception performance last week notwithstanding. They host the Bills this week, in what should be a very entertaining game.
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-2) LW: 13
Going into San Francisco and getting whipped 48-3 hasn't been an acceptable result since the 1990s. Was it one awful game, or does this team has some serious problems to address? This week's game against the Saints is a big one. Win, and people will forget what happened last week.
14. New York Jets (2-3) LW: 8
The Jets have lost three straight, all to good teams: the Raiders, Patriots, and Ravens. But this team is still on the verge of having the wheels fall off. Monday night against the Dolphins is a must win. Preferably, a must win big.
13. Washington Redskins (3-1) LW: 17
When do you jump four spots on your bye week? When four teams above you all have bad losses that week! The Redskins host the Eagles this week, knowing that they can deliver a knockout blow with a win. But the Eagles will be desperate, and they will try to force Rex Grossman to beat them.
12. Dallas Cowboys (2-2) LW: 11
The Cowboys have a date with the Patriots after having a bye last week. Tony Romo looked great against Detroit early and then melted down in the second half. If he is more consistent, the Cowboys can win.
11. Houston Texans (3-2) LW: 5
The Texans had no business losing to the Raiders last week after dominating the first half. But the Raiders hung around and took the game away late. This has been the trend in Houston, and this team needs to reverse that trend if they are going to seriously contend in the playoffs.
10. Oakland Raiders (3-2) LW: 14
The Raiders got an emotional 25-20 win over Houston after the passing of Al Davis. This week they host the Browns, who they should thrash, if they can avoid an emotional letdown.
9. San Francisco 49ers (4-1) LW: 16
This week's biggest mover off of a 48-3 win over the Bucs, the 49ers travel to Detroit to take on the undefeated Lions. It should be an excellent barometer for both teams. Alex Smith has been very good. Can he keep it up?
8. Buffalo Bills (4-1) LW: 12
The Bills got an important bounce back victory over the Eagles last week, and they travel to New York to play the Giants this week. Fitzpatrick and Jackson are having stellar seasons.
7. San Diego Chargers (4-1) LW: 7
The Chargers are 4-1, but their four wins came in close games over bottom dwellers, so it's hard to take them seriously. They may be in a dogfight with the Raiders for the division title this year.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2) LW: 9
The Steelers finally clicked in their 38-17 win over the Titans. They host the Jaguars this week, in what should be a blowout win. Mike Tomlin always seems to have this team ready to play.
5. Detroit Lions (5-0) LW: 6
The Lions are 5-0, but they have had to erase two large second half deficits to get there. Matthew Stafford is not as accurate as the stats say, and the team has trouble running the ball consistently. The defense also has holes. They are good, but don't expect them to go 13-3 this year. 11-5 sounds about right.
4. New Orleans Saints (4-1) LW: 4
The Saints escaped with a 30-27 win over Carolina last week, and this week they travel to Tampa in what is a huge bounce back game for the Bucs. Darren Sproles has been the free agent pickup of the year.
3. New England Patriots (4-1) LW: 3
The Patriots are looking like their usual unstoppable selves. They could get a stiff challenge from Romo and the Cowboys this week, however. The Pats defense still stinks.
2. Baltimore Ravens (3-1) LW: 2
The Ravens are coming off of their bye week with a game at home against the suddenly reeling Texans. Their defense needs to shut down Arian Foster.
1. Green Bay Packers (5-0) LW: 1
The Packers are still looking unstoppable right now. And the Rams come to town this week, so that's not likely to change soon.
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