The third week of the 2016 NFL season is almost in the books. After the New Orleans Saints and the Atlanta Falcons do battle on Monday night, every NFL team will have played three full contests.We've learned quite a bit about each of the 32 teams so far this season, even though injuries, unexpected performances and on-field surprises have done their part to cloud the big picture.Injuries have probably been the biggest storyline of the early season, as a number of top-level players are set to miss significant time. The Minnesota Vikings, for example, have already placed starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and star running back Adrian Peterson on injured reserve.However, some of these injuries have allowed us to gain even more insight into the makeup of these teams. Those Vikings added quarterback Sam Bradford after the Bridgewater injury and have followed him to a perfect 3-0 record. Their latest wina 22-10 romp over the defending NFC champion Carolina Panthersshowed just how complete the Vikings are.Likewise, the New England Patriots have proved that setbacks are not going to hold the team back early in 2016. Despite missing starting quarterback Tom Brady, losing backup Jimmy Garoppolo to injury and starting rookie Jacoby Brissett against the Houston Texans, the Patriots managed to produce a stunning 27-0 Week 3 win.The Patriots and Vikings are two of five teams that remain undefeated thus far, but records aren't everything. We're going to take what we've learned so far in the young season and apply it to our power rankings. This is an early look at the Week 4 rankings, so we'll be filling in the blanks with our prediction for Monday night's game. In addition, we'll be examining some notable rankings from our list.Our rankings are based on factors such as team record, on-field performances, opponents played and team health where applicable. Notable Rankings1. Denver BroncosWe won't hold it against you if you think the Denver Broncos don't deserve to be at the top of our rankings. After all, the Patriots could certainly go in the No. 1 slot, especially considering all New England has overcome to get to 3-0.Still, the Broncos are defending Super Bowl champions, and they seem to be getting better as the season wears on. The defense still looks like a championship-caliber unit, and quarterback Trevor Siemian is starting to come into his own.Siemian was one of the most impressive players in Denver's Week 3 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. He passed for 312 yards and four touchdowns in the game, and he looked as good as anyone did under center for the Broncos in 2015.As Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times pointed out, Siemian even made some history on Sunday:If Siemian can continue to grow, this is going to be a difficult team to knock off. Pro Football Focus rates Denver fifth in overall offense and eighth in overall defense through Sunday of Week 3.If you factor in the teams Denver has already knocked offthe Bengals, the Indianapolis Colts and the Panthersit's hard to argue the team's standing as the best in football. 5. Pittsburgh SteelersThrough the first two weeks of the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers looked like one of the best teams in footballand we wouldn't have blamed people who had the team atop their rankings. After witnessing the Steelers get throttled by the Philadelphia Eagles 34-3 on Sunday, though, we have to bump Pittsburgh down a few pegs.The Eagles exploited some holes in Pittsburgh's makeup in Sunday's contest. Speed got the better of Pittsburgh's run defense, while rookie quarterback Carson Wentz301 yards and two touchdownsshowed just how vulnerable the Steelers' pass defense can be when a quarterback has time to throw.Unfortunately, the Steelers just don't have much of a pass rush right now.Pittsburgh's offense couldn't gain traction, and without an explosive offense, the Steelers aren't going to beat many quality teams."We lost just about every element of that matchup," Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said, per Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "It was a poor performance by us. ... I tip my cap to them, but I acknowledge some areas that are showing a pattern of inconsistency or a pattern of undesirable performance."We're still keeping the Steelers in our top five, though, for a couple of reasons. We don't think a lot of teams are going to be able to stonewall Ben Roethlisberger and Co. this seasonespecially since the team should have star running back Le'Veon Bell moving forward.We're also viewing the Eagles as a legitimate contender after three blowout wins to open the season. Philadelphia is a terrific team that the Steelers may have simply underestimatedin a big way. 31. Cleveland Browns & 32. Chicago BearsWe're going to wrap up our notable rankings with a little bit of positive news for fans of the beleaguered Cleveland Browns. While your team remains winless, we're moving them from the bottom of our power rankings.The Browns should have won on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. Cleveland took the game into overtime before losing, but it could have won in regulation had newly signed kicker Cody Parkey made just one of his three (three!) missed field-goal attempts.The Browns have looked pretty competitive over the last couple of weeks. The same cannot be said for the Chicago Bears, who take over the low spot.Chicago has lost all three of its games by at least a touchdown, and it has lost the last two by at least two touchdowns. The team ranks just 30th in scoring (15.0 points per game) and 24th in scoring defense (27.7 points per game allowed).Yes, injuries have played a big part in the Bears' misfortunes so far. Quarterback Jay Cutler is out with a thumb injury, and a number of defensive starters are sidelined.As we mentioned early on, though, great teams find a way to overcome their injuries. The Bears are far from a great team, and they're not playing anything resembling good football right now. The good news for Chicago fans is that the team should have a chance to rise out of the basement as players regain their health.
Click here to read full news..
