Just when you think you know how good or bad every team in the NFL is after Week 1, everything gets thrown out the window with more unpredictability in Week 2. There was a mix of big upsets, rebound victories, and narrow escapes to reset the early standings.
There are a slew of surprising teams on both sides, as well as the 1-1 muddled middle that can go in any direction.
Here's trying to make sense of the league's hierarchy with the latest look at how all 32 teams stack up against each after two games.
MORE: Week 3 NFL picks | Week 3 NFL picks against the spread
NFL Power Rankings Week 3
1. Kansas City Chiefs 2-0 (previous ranking: 1)
The Chiefs outlasted the Bengals at home thanks to a relentless passing game with Patrick Mahomes, even on a bad day. Kansas City seems to be tougher than ever to beat in close games in the clutch.
MORE: Late pass interference helps Chiefs vs. Bengals | IPacheco injury update
WEEK 3 FANTASY RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
2. Houston Texans 2-0 (5)
The Texans got sloppy with penalties and their offense hit some snags against a good Bears defense, but they dug deep with their own defense to prove they can win in many ways with all their talent for DeMeco Ryans.
MORE: Texans sack Caleb Williams 7 times | Joe Mixon injury update
3. Buffalo Bills 2-0 (7)
The Bills have come out asserting their will on teams — not just with the talent of Josh Allen but with their defense and running game, too. Between Joe Brady and Sean McDermott, Buffalo has a more comfortable, consistent physical identity that can produce a different kind of great results.
MORE: James Cook powers Bills running game with 3 first-half TDs vs. Dolphins
4. Pittsburgh Steelers 2-0 (9)
The Steelers have won plenty with defense and special teams, opening with statement wins in Atlanta and Denver before facing a higher degree of difficulty at home in Week 3 vs. the 2-0 Chargers. Justin Fields is making the formula work by protecting the ball and leaning well on a complementary running game.
5. Los Angeles Chargers 2-0 (10)
The Chargers smashed the Raiders and Panthers in similar fashion: Controlling both lines of scrimmage, stopping the run, running the ball, and then teeing off on the pass rush. The influence of Jim Harbaugh is totally back and here to stay. Their 395 combined rushing yards are not a fluke, even when considering the weak opponents.
6. San Francisco 49ers 1-1 (2)
Minnesota continues to be a house of horrors for San Francisco. Brock Purdy won't want to return there for a while, and the defense had a few too many early lapses. Christian McCaffrey has been a manageable loss so far, however.
MORE: Christian McCaffrey injury recovery timeline
7. Philadelphia Eagles 1-1 (4)
The Eagles couldn't finish off the Falcons on Monday as the defense is still trying to come together well for Vic Fangio. The offense kept humming but lost a little juice for Jalen Hurts without A.J. Brown.
8. Detroit Lions 1-1 (3)
The Lions got Aidan Hutchinson and the defense going vs. the Bucs, but Jared Goff, after his new contract, has been shaky to start with a pair of anomalous poor home games. Now, Detroit needs to deal with some key injuries to the receiving corps when health was mostly on their side in 2023.
MORE: Amon-Ra St. Brown injury update
9. Baltimore Ravens 0-2 (6)
What was that? The Ravens started slowly and finished poorly against the Raiders, pushing them down to a tough 0-2. Penalties and third-down execution were huge culprits. Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry, and the offense look fine, but the Ravens now face an almost must-win game in Dallas in Week 3.
MORE: Ravens loss knocks out nearly a third of NFL survivor pool entries
10. Green Bay Packers 1-1 (12)
The Packers used the power of Matt LaFleur's play-calling to survive and even thrive with Malik Willis filling in for Jordan Love, pivoting to a necessary run-heavy attack in the right matchup to do so vs. the Colts. They can make it work again against the Titans, Willis' former team, in Week 3.
MORE: Malik Willis forced to change play after center vomits on ball
11. New York Jets 1-1 (13)
The Jets went into Tennessee and went about their business as expected, with Aaron Rodgers becoming a steady complementary piece to the dedicated running game and dominant defense. Now, they'll have to prove they are readier for prime time with the Patriots next on a short week.
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2-0 (16)
The Buccaneers' offense and defense have adjusted well to respective big schematic changes, as Todd Bowles continues to be as underrated as a head coach and Baker Mayfield remains an underrated starting QB. They don't want to give up the NFC South anytime soon.
13. Minnesota Vikings 2-0 (19)
The Vikings have an awesome attack playmaking defense under Brian Flores. That has made things easier for an offense in major transition with Sam Darnold at QB and some key injuries developing in the receiver corps. It will be difficult to sustain this, but doing it to the 49ers again made it a lot more legitimate.
MORE: Justin Jefferson injury update
14. New Orleans Saints 2-0 (20)
The Saints marched into Dallas and took control with big-play passing from Derek Carr and dynamic playmaking from Alvin Kamara. That made things so much easier for a still-solid Dennis Allen defense.
MORE: Saints OC Klint Kubiak has offense off to historic start | How Saints blew out Cowboys in Week 2
15. Seattle Seahawks 2-0 (17)
The Seahawks maintained their road trip moxie with Mike Macdonald, as their defense traveled well to contain the Patriots in key situations and their offense adjusted from run-dominant to big pass-play fun.
16. Atlanta Falcons 1-1 (21)
The Falcons dug deeper with better offensive play led by Kirk Cousins to avoid 0-2 on Monday night, especially with the Saints and Buccaneers starting 2-0. Raheem Morris should be happy the team is already living up to some higher defensive expectations.
17. Dallas Cowboys 1-1 (8)
What was that? The Cowboys broke down everywhere against the Saints: Offensive line, defensive line, running game, pass rush, overall defense, and quarterback. The problem is, that's closer to their current profile with Dak Prescott and DC Mike Zimmer than their playoff-level prowess in 2023, especially after returning to home woes to begin 2024.
MORE: 5 worrisome stats that doomed the Cowboys in Week 2 — and possibly beyond
18. Miami Dolphins 1-1 (11)
The Dolphins face uncertainty over quarterback after Tua Tagovailoa's latest concussion, but they have the running game and receivers to survive. The bigger issue is the defense is not living up to expectations despite solid corner play.
MORE: How long is Tua Tagovailoa out? | Tua Tagovailoa concussion history | Best Dolphins QB options
19. Chicago Bears 1-1 (15)
The Bears battled hard with their defense in Houston and couldn't be saved by the offense with Caleb Williams still trying to do too much with a limited running game and consistent pressure. They should feel good about their start with a favorable slate coming up over the next month.
MORE: Caleb Williams sacked 7 times vs. Texans
20. Cincinnati Bengals 0-2 (14)
The Bengals found their true selves by seeing Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs on the other side in Kansas City. Cincinnati just made one more mistake and one less clutch play, dropping to a familiar hole they hope they can dig out of, unlike last season.
MORE: Joe Burrow says Bengals need to improve in terse post-game press conference.
21. Arizona Cardinals 1-1 (26)
The Cardinals got going offensively at home, fully unlocking Marvin Harrison Jr. and Trey McBride for Kyler Murray. The now-veteran QB looks great, and the defense responded for Jonathan Gannon while working with a lead. They now will need to buckle up for the Lions at home.
MORE: Kyler Murray joins exclusive list with perfect QB rating
22. Cleveland Browns 1-1 (23)
The Browns got on the board in Jacksonville with some solid defense and better running, taking the game for the most part out of Deshaun Watson's hands. A run of the Giants-Raiders-Commanders can get them hot going into Week 6.
MORE: News on Deshaun Watson's latest lawsuit | Does Deshaun Watson have burner X account?
23. New England Patriots 1-1 (22)
The Patriots ran like nuts again to push the Seahawks to the brink and nearly get to 2-0 with Jacoby Brissett. However, after stymying the Bengals, Jerod Mayo's defense wilted against the pass badly.
24. Las Vegas Raiders 1-1 (30)
The Raiders played a slightly cleaner game in Baltimore to come away with an improbable needed victory. They're now set up to start 2-1 with the lowly Panthers coming to Las Vegas.
25. Los Angeles Rams 0-2 (18)
The Rams are 0-2 with a load of defensive issues beyond not having Aaron Donald up front. Perhaps they are relying on too many youngsters with not enough experienced glue guys for new defensive coordinator Chris Shula.
MORE: Cooper Kupp injury update
26. Washington Commanders 1-1 (28)
The Commanders aren't pretty on offense yet, but Jayden Daniels' improv has made them impressively gritty for head coach Dan Quinn and OC Kliff Kingsbury. There's enough on both sides for them to keep getting better and potentially make a playoff run.
MORE: Where Austin Seibert's seven FGs in Week 2 ranks on the all-time list
27. Jacksonville Jaguars 0-2 (24)
Trevor Lawrence flashes with his big arm but otherwise can be very shaky. Travis Etienne is sometimes good with his running, sometimes not. The defense is all over the place like that, too. Doug Pederson needs some positive consistency, stat, for his team to avoid dropping hard from 0-2, too.
28. Indianapolis Colts 0-2 (25)
The Colts fell to the Texans and Packers — two very good 2023 playoff teams — for one reason: They gave up 213 yards rushing in Houston, only to give up 261 yards rushing in Green Bay. That won't win many games.
29. Tennessee Titans 0-2 (27)
The Titans are still learning how to win as a rather young team with a lot of change, scheme- and personnel-wise under Brian Callahan. Will Levis and Calvin Ridley are trying to warm things up, but there's more flash than consistency there and on the defense.
MORE: Will Levis has 'WTF' moment vs. Jets
30. New York Giants 0-2 (31)
The Giants showed a lot more needed offensive life with newcomers Malik Nabers and Devin Singletary, lifting Daniel Jones vs. Washington, but there were still key struggles to put up enough points, especially with kicker Graham Gano's injury issues. The defense keeps wilting too easily in key spots, too.
MORE: Daniel Jones tops list of QBs most likely to get benched
31. Denver Broncos 0-2 (29)
The Broncos looked atrocious offensively with Bo Nix against the Steelers' defenses, wasting a strong effort by their defense. For a home opener with some rookie QB buzz, that was rather embarrassing for Sean Payton.
MORE: Russell Wilson's tenure with Broncos, by the numbers
32. Carolina Panthers 0-2 (32)
The Panthers can't run or pass, and they cannot stop the run. They lost their best defensive player, Derrick Brown (knee). Bryce Young and the offense haven't seemed to improve one bit under Dave Canales. Looks like Carolina is headed to be in position to draft Young's replacement at No. 1 again in 2025.
MORE: Panthers QB depth chart
