NFL Week 3 Impressions

Here's what I learned after another exciting week of the NFL Season...

Week 3 Impressions...

1. The Raiders are not very good. Especially JaMarcus Russell. He can throw the ball further than Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite but he can't throw it to anybody in silver and black. Throwing for 61 yards at home against Denver's defense is probably not what 167 year-old Al Davis pictured wearing his leather jacket when he drafted Russell #1 overall in 2007.

2. The Browns and Buccaneers are not very good. Especially fill in the blank. The Browns managed 3 points against the Ravens and the Bucs mustered up all of a goose egg at home against the Giants. Both teams are playing multiple QB's but the problem is very simple, none of them are any good. I know the Ravens and Giants have good teams, but I think it is pretty clear for fans in Cleveland and Tampa Bay that they are in for a long season.

3. The Colts are pretty good. Especially Peyton Manning. Mr. Endorsement showcased his skills to the country in back to back prime time games. He picked apart the Cardinals defense last night throwing for 4 TDs and over 300 yards. Maybe Al Davis hoped that his #1 pick (Russell) would turn out like this #1 pick (Manning).

4. Maybe the Steelers do miss Troy Polamalu. The Steelers hadn't lost at Cincinnati since 2001, so long ago that Chad Ochocinco was still Chad Johnson. So long ago that the Steelers coach was Bill Cowher, not Omar Epps. The Bengals only had 273 yards of total offense, but the Steel Curtain could not force a turnover or make the big stop late in the game. Who would have thought by week 3 that Cincy would be 2-1 (should be 3-0 if not for the luckiest play of all-time by the Broncos in week 1) and the Steelers would be 1-2. But it's still early.

5. The 49ers are much improved. Singletary's bunch went into the Twin cities and had that game won if not for a miraculous throw from Favre (who got smoked on the play) and a great catch by Greg Lewis. The Niners lost all-pro running back Frank Gore in the first quarter and still fought hard enough to almost steal a win on the road. Look for the NFC West race between San Francisco and Arizona to be very interesting this season.

Jake's Power Rankings through Week 3

1. New York Giants

2. Baltimore Ravens

3. Indianapolis Colts

4. Minnesota Vikings

5. New Orleans Saints

6. New York Jets

7. Philadelphia Eagles

8. SAN DIEGO CHARGERS

9. New England Patriots

10. San Francisco 49ers

Jake's Bottom of the Barrel Rankings

29. Miami Dolphins

30. Kansas City Chiefs

31. Cleveland Browns

32. St. Louis Rams

**Note: The Detroit Lions are not listed here.

That's it for Week 3...

--J