PurplePTSD: NFL Week 4 Power Rankings

Eagan MN

28 September, 2021

2:23 PM

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Press release from the PurplePTSD: Josh Frey 2021-09-28 This is a week of major movement throughout the rankings. There weren't really any normal football games this week, and it led to a whopping 10 teams move four or more spots from their previous spot on the list. We even had a team break double digits this week, so stay tuned to see which team managed that feat! 1. Buffalo Bills         Last Week: 43-21 win vs WSH         Trending: +2         This Week: 10/3 vs HOU The Bills were the only team that you can really argue did what they were supposed to do this week. Josh Allen was in MVP form throughout the day, and the defense did a good job of holding Washington in check. If both sides of the ball are going to play this well, there aren't a lot of teams that can hang with Buffalo. 2. Los Angeles Rams         Last Week: 34-24 win vs TB         Trending: +2         This Week: 10/3 vs ARI The new-look Rams got their first real challenge as the reigning Super Bowl champs came to LA. Matthew Stafford did not look like the moment was too big for him at all, and he had a fabulous day while outperforming Tom Brady. A divisional rival awaits them next week in a battle of the undefeated with Arizona. 3. Cleveland Browns         Last Week: 26-6 win vs CHI         Trending: +2         This Week: 10/3 @ MIN Cleveland took full advantage of Chicago's offensive line struggles. They put 26 points on the board, but the story of the day belonged to their defensive front which racked up nine sacks during Justin Fields' first career start. Having a rushing total of over 200 yards certainly helped as well. The Browns have another NFC North opponent this week, but the Vikings should put up a much bigger fight. 4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers         Last Week: 24-34 loss @ LAR         Trending: -3         This Week: 10/3 @ NE Tom Brady's passing totals continue to be ridiculous, but the offense cannot continue to force him to do this much. The duo of Ronald Jones and Leonard Fournette rushed for a combined 19 yards against the Rams, making the offense very predictable down the stretch of the game. They will need to find a way to establish the run game as Tom Brady plays his first game in Foxborough since joining the Buccaneers. 5. Green Bay Packers         Last Week: 30-28 win @ SF         Trending: +4         This Week: 10/3 vs PIT This game really shouldn't have been this close to begin with as San Francisco got bailed out with a few very questionable calls. However, that only makes it more impressive that Green Bay was able to go on the road and win this game in the final seconds. Aaron Rodgers does appear to still be the Aaron Rodgers of old, and that should be enough to win once again against Pittsburgh. 6. Kansas City Chiefs         Last Week: 24-30 loss vs LAC         Trending: -4          This Week: 10/3 @ PHI The Chiefs played a pretty sloppy game on both sides of the ball. Their defense is clearly an issue after another game of giving up 30 points. When Patrick Mahomes is throwing bad interceptions, that only makes matters worse. I wanted to wait and see if last week's game against Baltimore was fluky, but the Chiefs are clearly beatable.  7. Baltimore Ravens         Last Week: 19-17 win @ DET         Trending: -1         This Week: 10/3 @ DEN Even if it was on the road, having to rely on an NFL record breaking field goal to beat the Lions isn't a good look for the Ravens. Obviously, they're coming off an emotional win against the Chiefs, but Baltimore won't beat Denver playing the way they did this past weekend.  8. Las Vegas Raiders         Last Week: 31-28 win vs MIA         Trending: +4         This Week: 10/4 @ LAC The Raiders got off to a slow start, but things quickly changed when their defense was able to force a safety. Las Vegas scored 25 consecutive points after falling down by 14, and their defense put continuous pressure on Jacoby Brissett. This is a game that the Raiders would have lost a couple years ago. 9. Arizona Cardinals         Last Week: 31-19 win @ JAX         Trending: +4         This Week: 10/3 @ LAR Adversity can either make or break a team. This week, the Cardinals were able to respond to a 19-10 deficit late in the third quarter, and they scored 21 unanswered points to complete a comeback. Kyler Murray played much better down the stretch, and the defense made some big plays to finish off Jacksonville.  10. Seattle Seahawks         Last Week: 17-30 loss @ MIN         Trending: -3         This Week: 10/3 @ SF After a very fast start, the Seahawks offense was tied down for much of the final three quarters. Russell Wilson wasn't very effective outside of the pocket, and Chris on was made irrelevant for the entire second half. Seattle needs to get back on track against San Fran to keep up in a very deep division.  11. Los Angeles Chargers         Last Week: 30-24 win @ KC         Trending: +5         This Week: 10/4 vs LV LA was the beneficiary of a couple very bad turnovers this week, but it's not every day a team is good enough to go into Arrowhead and beat the Chiefs. Justin Herbert helped get the Chargers off to a very good start, and the defense eliminated the Patrick Mahomes deep ball. 12. Dallas Cowboys Last Week: 41-21 win vs PHI Trending: +2 This Week: 10/3 vs CAR  Dak Prescott had a fumble in the end zone early on, but after that point, the Cowboys took full control of this game. The defense made some great plays forcing turnovers as well as keeping Jalen Hurts uncomfortable, and Ezekiel Elliott got going more than he has the previous two weeks.  13. San Francisco 49ers         Last Week: 28-30 loss vs GB         Trending: -3         This Week: 10/3 vs SEA Jimmy Garoppolo wasn't great for much of this game, but he did lead a successful two-minute drill. However, it just wasn't enough with Aaron Rodgers on the other team. The defense was unable to keep Green Bay's offense in check, and it ultimately led to San Fran's first loss.  14. New Orleans Saints         Last Week: 28-13 win @ NE         Trending: +1         This Week: 10/3 vs NYG Similarly to week one, this game was won by New Orleans' dominance in the trenches. Alvin Kamara found running lanes out of the backfield and off of screens, and Jameis Winston had a ton of time in the pocket. On defense, the Saints secondary locked down all of Mac Jones' targets. It's an impressive road win, but excitements are tempered with the latest injury to All-Pro LT Terron Armstead. 15. Denver Broncos         Last Week: 26-0 win vs NYJ         Trending: +2         This Week: 10/3 vs BAL The Broncos offense did some nice things in this one, but their defense suffocated any offense the Jets tried to run. Two interceptions and 162 yards of total offense is all Denver gave up. They've gotten to 3-0 on a very soft schedule to this point, but they finally get a test against Baltimore. 16. New England Patriots         Last Week: 13-28 loss vs NO         Trending: -5         This Week: 10/3 vs TB It was a rough afternoon for Mac Jones. New Orleans had him under pressure for much of the game, and the rookie got tagged with an INT after a pass bounced in and out of Jonnu Smith's hands. On the other side of the ball, New England couldn't generate much pressure of their own and allowed Jameis Winston plenty of time to throw. 17. Minnesota Vikings         Last Week: 30-17 win vs SEA         Trending: +4         This Week: 10/3 vs CLE The Vikings had a very nice bounce back week in their home opener. Kirk Cousins is looking like a different QB than we've seen in previous years, and the defensive front has been one of the best in the league. Alexander Mattison doing his best Dalvin Cook impersonation certainly helped Minnesota get this win too.  18. Pittsburgh Steelers          Last Week: 10-24 loss vs CIN         Trending: -10         This Week: 10/3 @ GB Other than Najee Harris, the Steelers offense looks like a shell of what it used to be. Ben Roethlisberger cannot accurately get a pass downfield, and they may be without both Juju Smith-Schuster and Diontae Johnson. That combined with injuries all over the defense makes the Steelers an average team at best. Things only get harder for them as this was supposed to be one of their easier games on the schedule. 19. Tennessee Titans         Last Week: 25-16 win vs IND         Trending: —         This Week: 10/3 @ NYJ The Titans did not play a very good game, at least offensively. Two interceptions by Tannehill would normally be a disaster with the state of Tennessee's defense, but Indy could not take advantage. At the end of the day, Derrick Henry was once again able to eclipse 100 yards rushing and help carry the team to a win. A.J. Brown's status is something to watch after he strained his hamstring. 20. Miami Dolphins         Last Week: 28-31 loss @ LV         Trending: -2         This Week: 10/3 vs IND The Dolphins took control of this game early on, but their lack of ability to convert on third downs really cost them the lead. Also contributing to the loss were a few questionable no-calls during their overtime drive.  21. Carolina Panthers         Last Week: 24-9 win @ HOU         Trending: +2         This Week: 10/3 @ DAL This was another dominant win for the Panthers, but the loss of Christian McCaffrey keeps them from moving up further in the rankings. Sam Darnold has been decent since heading to Carolina, but he hasn't had to go up against any elite QBs yet. That changes this week as he goes head-to-head with Dak Prescott. 22. Washington Football Team         Last Week: 21-43 loss @ BUF         Trending: -2         This Week: 10/3 @ ATL The Bills ran circles around Washington for the entirety of this game. Taylor Heinicke did not have as good a game as he did last week, and his two interceptions really hurt the Football Team. The defense seems to have taken a major step back since last season as well. They need to get that group back on track to keep pace with Dallas. 23. Cincinnati Bengals         Last Week: 24-10 win @ PIT         Trending: +4         This Week: 9/30 vs JAX An early interception by Joe Burrow made it seem like he might have another rough day. However, he bounced back very well this week and threw three TDs instead of three INTs. In addition, the Bengals run defense has continued to dominate, and they forced Roethlisberger to throw 58 times. This week brings a battle of the No. 1 overall picks as Trevor Lawrence and Jacksonville head to Cincy.  24. Indianapolis Colts         Last Week: 16-25 loss @ TEN         Trending: -2         This Week: 10/3 @ MIA The Colts defense didn't play badly in this game. They forced three turnovers, but the offense got very little going. Carson Wentz was very mediocre once again, and with Indy trailing for much of this game, they couldn't really get Jonathan Taylor going.  25. Philadelphia Eagles Last Week: 21-41 loss @ DAL Trending:— This Week: 10/3 vs KC Philly's defense is simply not talented enough to keep up with a high-powered Dallas offense. When Jalen Hurts is still making mistakes and feeling his growing pains, the Eagles had very little chance at winning this game. 26. Chicago Bears         Last Week: 6-26 loss @ CLE Trending: -2 This Week: 10/3 vs DET  In the year 2021, the Bears ended the day with one net passing yard. The Browns generated a ton of pressure on Justin Fields and sacked him nine times. While parts of this was due to terrible offensive line performance, Fields needs to read the field better. Even with the devastating defeat, Chicago can keep up in the NFC North race with a win against Detroit.   27. Detroit Lions         Last Week: 17-19 loss vs BAL         Trending: +2         This Week: 10/3 @ CHI Detroit did an admirable job of containing Lamar Jackson for much of this game. The Lions also had a few nice things happening on the offensive side of the ball. However, it's just not enough when Justin Tucker can hit a 66-yard field goal to win the game.  28. Atlanta Falcons         Last Week: 17-14 win @ NYG         Trending: +3         This Week: 10/3 vs WSH It wasn't a great performance from either team, but Atlanta did just enough to come away with a win. At the end of the day, neither team really deserved to win this game, but the Falcons have gotten rid of their goose egg in the win column. 29. New York Giants         Last Week: 14-17 loss vs ATL         Trending: -1         This Week: 10/3 @ NO The Giants moved the ball decently well in the first half; they just couldn't get the ball in the end zone. The offensive line looked decent against Atlanta's rush, but that's not a big victory when you consider who Atlanta has. The Giants need to be better at finding the goal line, but it may be another tough week as they head to New Orleans.  30. Houston Texans          Last Week: 9-24 loss vs CAR         Trending: -4         This Week: 10/3 @ BUF In the absence of Tyrod Taylor, rookie QB Davis Mills did what he could. He's just clearly not ready to lead an NFL team at this point in time, and nor should he be expected to as he was the seventh QB taken in this year's draft. It's trial by fire for him and much of this Houston roster. 31. Jacksonville Jaguars         Last Week: 19-31 loss vs ARI         Trending: -1         This Week: 9/30 @ CIN It was a solid start for the Jags, but Trevor Lawrence's youth showed down the stretch. It's clear he's got the tools to be a good QB, but an untimely pick and a few other bad throws really hurt Jacksonville's chances. They'll need to cut those out before heading to Cincinnati. 32. New York Jets         Last Week: 0-26 loss @ DEN         Trending: —         This Week: 10/3 vs TEN Zach Wilson has not been great to start the year, and it continued against a stout Denver defense. The running game didn't find any success either, and their defense could not contain Denver's RB duo of Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams. This press release was produced by the PurplePTSD. The views expressed here are the author's own.