Rich’s Brand-New NFL Power Rankings Heading into Week 4

Chris Brockman thought he knew exactly what was coming. Would Rich really keep the 1-2 Los Angeles Rams in his week four power rankings? Even the magic eight ball said "most likely."

The magic eight ball was wrong. The Rams are out. So are the Eagles and the Bengals, who sat at five, six and seven last week and all lost. "I can't sit here and say a one and two team deserves to be over a three and 0 team or a two and one team that showed some moxie and some grit," Rich said.

Number 10 is a team Rich admitted might be too low: the 3-0 Las Vegas Raiders. "The autumn wind is a damn pirate," he said, and this wind is Kirk Cousins "playing the best he's ever played." Cousins has never started a season with three straight games of three or more touchdown passes, and Rich said he is the first 38-year-old quarterback to ever do it. Ashton Jeanty looks spry. Brock Bowers came off two games on the shelf and caught 10 balls. Maxx Crosby and Nakobe Dean are "killing it" on a defense that forced four takeaways in the fourth quarter alone. That sets up a matchup with the Chiefs Rich cannot wait to watch.

At nine, back on the list, are "your Case Keenum quarterback Chicago Bears." Rich called Monday night possibly their best all-around performance of the year. Week one was a 59-point track meet, week two was ugly, and in week three "they put it all together with Case Keenum," while the defense did the rest.

Number eight, also back, is Jacksonville, heading into a big game against Cincinnati. Rich still could not explain Trevor Lawrence sliding at the one-yard line with eight and a half minutes left. The crew guessed Lawrence lost track of time because the game already felt over.

The Denver Broncos move up two spots to seven. Rich's request is simple: "Can we get the second half team starting the first half?" He said Sean Payton told the show the day before that they are working on it. The run game has not gotten going, and "the line's too good for that run game not to get going." Denver gets the 49ers in a big week four game.

Seattle drops four spots to six, but Rich was not about to knock the Seahawks out for one loss. Jaxon Smith-Njigba is "well on his way to leading this league in receiving again," with another Offensive Player of the Year campaign in reach, and Sam Darnold is back. The defense, after a pick-six did not help, has to go back to the drawing board.

The Baltimore Ravens jump five spots into the top five. The crew pushed back that Baltimore is giving up too many points, but Rich likes what he sees. "How good is Kyle Hamilton?" he asked, adding Hamilton will only get better with Jesse Minter as head coach. One member of the crew pointed out the game-winning kick was a huge moment for the Ravens' kicker, who missed a kick last year that could have won the division and spent the offseason sitting with it. Rich also wondered aloud whether Zay Flowers is the fastest receiver in the league.

Number four, up four spots, is Minnesota. "They're too damn good on defense," Rich said, and now the Dolphins come to town without De'Von Achane.

The Chiefs rise one spot to three. The 49ers rise one spot to two.

And the Buffalo Bills stay at number one. They are 3-0 after what Rich called their worst game of the season, and Josh Allen "accounted for three touchdowns" anyway. Next up are the Patriots.

Rich's logic held together. The Bills, Niners, Chiefs, Vikings, Ravens, Broncos, Jaguars, Bears and Raiders all won. The only team on his list that lost was Seattle, and he chose to keep them.

The last question was about the Raiders. If they played the Lions, who wins? Rich said Las Vegas would have a great chance, depending on where the game is played. His real question is about leadership. With veterans like Crosby and Cousins, "what's going to happen when they're going to be in a crucible in a fourth quarter having lost a lead and trying to bounce back? Who's going to lead?" Or, he wondered, is this a team that figures it out on its own?