Week 2 of the 2024 NFL season was an interesting one, with plenty of upsets and last-second wins. Heading into our Week 3 NFL Power Rankings, you probably will see a lot of movement for your favorite team, with how volatile this past week of football was.
Come along as we provide in-depth analysis every week on how each team fared in the NFL, important stats/takeaways from each contest, and storylines to follow heading into the following games. Which team are you the most excited to follow this year?
1. Kansas City Chiefs (no change)
It may have taken a late-game penalty and a last-second field goal to go their way, but the Kansas City Chiefs remain at the top of our Week 3 NFL Power Rankings. Squeaking by the Cincinnati Bengals helps keep the Chiefs undefeated, as their 2-0 record ties for the lead in the AFC West.
It was an ugly game from Patrick Mahomes, who only threw for 151 yards and found the end zone twice (Rashee Rice & Wanya Morris), but threw two costly interceptions in the win. The injury status of running back Isiah Pacheco received a disappointing update Monday morning, meaning the Chiefs will likely need to look externally for a replacement for their workhorse back.
2. Houston Texans (+4)
It was a low-scoring affair on Sunday Night Football for the Houston Texans, as they only put up 19 points in their win over the Chicago Bears. A home game for Houston that felt easier than their Week 1 win over the Indianapolis Colts, C.J. Stroud found Nico Collins for Houston’s lone TD on the night.
Houston’s defense did the job too, holding Caleb Williams to only 174 passing yards, picking him off twice. Chicago wasn’t able to get anything going in the ground game, likely an area of emphasis for the Texans coming into the week.
3. Buffalo Bills (+5)
It was exactly the commanding win that the Buffalo Bills were looking for in their Week 2 matchup against the Miami Dolphins. A less-than-sparkling showing from Josh Allen was easily overshadowed by James Cook finding the end zone three times.
While Miami led the way in most player stat categories, the Bills had a deep offensive attack, highlighted by Cook’s two rushing scores and a receiving TD. The defense also got in on the fun, intercepting Tua Tagovailoa three times and taking one back to the house.
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+5)
It isn’t an every-week occurrence for a team to head into Ford Field and command Detroit’s respect, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers did just that in their Week 2 win. The offensive attack didn’t go all that deep, as only five players recorded a reception, but Chris Godwin led the way, hauling in seven receptions for 117 yards and a score.
The Buccaneers did just enough on defense to earn the win, holding the Lions scoreless in the fourth quarter. Standing strong as Detroit came knocking on their door late in the game, Tampa Bay kept everything in front of them and did a solid job corralling Detroit’s playmakers.
5. Seattle Seahawks (+5)
It took overtime, but the first year of Mike Maconald’s head-coaching stint with the Seattle Seahawks is still undefeated. A 2-0 start, compounded with Seattle’s overtime win over the scrappy New England Patriots, showed that this team might really be buying in to its new head coach.
DK Metcalf (10/129/1) and Jaxon Smith-Njigba (12/117) helped lead the offense, which also saw Geno Smith throw for 327 yards and a score with a 78 percent completion percentage.
6. Minnesota Vikings (+7)
It certainly feels like the Minnesota Vikings are enjoying their underdog mentality to start out the 2024 NFL campaign, and their Week 2 upset win over the San Francisco 49ers was not an outcome many expected.
A 97-yard scoring connection from Sam Darnold to Justin Jefferson helped pace the offense, which also received a receiving TD from Jalen Nailor and three field goals from rookie kicker Will Reichard.
7. Los Angeles Chargers (+4)
The 2024 NFL season was not expected to be a positive one for the Los Angeles Chargers, and it still might turn into a sub-.500 campaign. But through their first two games, Jim Harbaugh and the new regime seems to have righted the ship.
With their Week 2 win over the Carolina Panthers, the Chargers relied on the ground game to get the win. Another strong JK Dobbins game helped propel LAC to the win, and two touchdowns from Justin Herbert to Quentin Johnston helped lead the passing attack.
8. New Orleans Saints (+4)
Week 2 is far too early for a statement win, but with how the New Orleans Saints looked against the Dallas Cowboys, this matchup could be circled in red as the season progresses. The star of the show was Alvin Kamara, who put up a four-TD showing reminiscent of his six-TD Christmas performance a few years back.
Derek Carr looked strong once again, connecting with Rashid Shaheed on a deep score, and the defense only allowed 19 points to a strong Dallas offense in their win.
9. Pittsburgh Steelers (+6)
Defense is what is going to carry this Pittsburgh Steelers to success yet again this year, and so far through the first two games, that has absolutely been the case.
While a sub-par performance from Justin Fields (144 total yards, one passing TD) didn’t do much for the offense, the defense forced rookie Bo Nix into two interceptions and held the Denver offense to 64 rushing yards, as the Steelers round out the top 10 of our Week 3 NFL Power Rankings.
10. San Francisco 49ers (-8)
It was a surprising struggle all day for the San Francisco 49ers, dropping a surprising road matchup with the Minnesota Vikings. While the offense had its usual case of suspects show up, they weren’t able to really string anything together all day.
It was evident that the 49ers really missed Christian McCaffrey today, even though Jordan Mason’s second start resulted in 104 total yards and a touchdown on 21 touches. This team lacked explosiveness and, barring their 10-point fourth quarter, struggled to find a rhythm that they needed to play winning football.
11. Detroit Lions (-7)
A scoreless fourth quarter between the Detroit Lions and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn’t provide many theatrics, but it also shows the struggles Detroit had in their Week 2 loss. The Lions certainly did not struggle on offense, racking up ovr 460 yards of total offense, but they struggled to turn those yards into points.
The Buccaneers relied on a bend-don’t-break defensive approach on Sunday, and Detroit, who now have their eyes on the injury prognosis for star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, didn’t do a good job incorporating their stars into their offensive attack.
12. Philadelphia Eagles (-9)
Puzzling red-zone decisions and a sputtering offense doomed the Philadelphia Eagles, as they dropped their Monday Night Football affair with the Atlanta Falcons.
Only getting 183 passing yards from Jalen Hurts, even on a night without A.J. Brown, is going to be tough to win with. Plus, the defense buckled late in the fourth quarter, allowing a 70-yard drive with under two minutes left, showing that this team has a lot to figure out still.
13. Arizona Cardinals (+6)
Arizona’s Week 1 matchup against the Bills was a disappointing loss, something that easily put in the rear view mirror with their Week 2 handling of the Los Angeles Rams. The Kyler Murray-Marvin Harrison Jr. connection finally found its footing, connecting for two scores and over 125 yards on the day.
This showing by Arizona looked like a well-oiled machine, as they easily kept the Rams at bay Sunday. Needing a bounceback performance to even their record, the Cardinals put up video-game numbers on the way to their win, earning the 13th spot in our Week 3 NFL Power Rankings.
14. Dallas Cowboys (-7)
It wasn’t much of a contest for the Dallas Cowboys, as they were facing a 35-16 deficit heading into halftime. A stagnant offense and a porous defense led to a rare home loss for Dallas, a loss that ended their home winning streak at 16 consecutive games.
Nothing really seemed to click for the Cowboys, who only got four field goals from Brandon Aubrey and a long touchdown to CeeDee Lamb. While a comfortable Week 1 win for Dallas showed some positive signs, their Week 2 drubbing may have exposed more of what this team really is.
15. Miami Dolphins (-10)
Miami’s Thursday Night Football matchup was a tough outcome for the home team, as their offense struggled to get anything going. Combined with the loss of Tua Tagovailoa to another concussion, and you can hear the train coming off the tracks for the Dolphins.
The return timeline for Tagovailoa isn’t known at this time, nor is that the biggest storyline from Thursday’s game. With a checkered concussion history for Tagovailoa, it remains to be seen if he will step foot on an NFL field again, and if he should potentially jeopardize his long-term health.
16. New York Jets (+1)
You can finally say that Aaron Rodgers has finally won a game with the New York Jets, it just took a full season longer than expected. Throwing for only 176 yards (but two TDs), Rodgers didn’t show a lot as the offense struggled at times.
Rookie back Braelon Allen found the end zone twice and Breece Hall caught a TD, but the early-season struggles for Garrett Wilson continue, as the standout receiver only hauled in four receptions in their win.
17. Las Vegas Raiders (+12)
It was an impressive, come-from-behind win for the Las Vegas Raiders, helping them jump up 12 spots in our Week 3 NFL Power Rankings as they marched into Baltimore and pulled off the upset. Holding Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry to below-average games (to their standards) is an impressive feat, something that head coach Antonio Pierce should hang his hat on.
Davante Adams (9/110/1) and rookie Brock Bowers (9/98) led the way respectively on offense, while the defense forced a Jackson interception and held him to only 45 yards rushing on the day.
18. Green Bay Packers (+2)
Things weren’t expected to be smooth for the Green Bay Packers heading into Week 2, which was their first experience without Jordan Love at the helm. With Malik Willis stepping up in Love’s place, the Green Bay offense took quite a run-heavy focus.
Even though the Indianapolis Colts knew what was coming, they still couldn’t stop it, as the Packers racked up over 230 rushing yards. Josh Jacobs was a man on a mission, accounting for over 150 of that himself, as the Packers trudged themselves to their first win of the year.
19. Atlanta Falcons (+7)
While it did take some late-game heroics from Kirk Cousins, the Falcons are finally in the win column after their Week 2 victory over the Eagles.
A poor showing from the offense was redeemed with the game on the line, as Cousins led Atlanta down the field late, as a seven-yard TD to Drake London proved to be enough for the win.
20. Washington Commanders (+4)
The offense was alright and the defense was good enough, but kicker Austin Seibert earned the game ball for the Washington Commanders in securing their first win of the year. Seibert’s seven field goals, including his game winner with three seconds remaining, helped push the Commanders to their first win under Dan Quinn.
Sunday’s win was a strong showing through the air for rookie Jayden Daniels, as he connected on over 79 percent of his passes for 226 yards. Brian Robinson led the way on the ground with 133 scoreless yards, and Zach Ertz enjoyed his best day as a Commander, with 62 yards on four receptions.
21. New England Patriots (-5)
The upstart Patriots took the Seahawks to overtime, eventually falling late but showing signs of tenacity. This outcome should be seen as positive for first-year head coach Jerod Mayo, as the beginning of his tenure has seen his guys truly fight for him.
While quarterback struggles continue to slow down this offense (looking at you, Jacoby Brissett), the run game has been impressive to start the season. With Rhamondre Stevenson looking like a potential bellcow moving forward, this New England team might not just roll over this year.
22. Chicago Bears (-8)
While Chicago’s 2024 primetime debut resulted in a loss to the Texans, there are positive takeaways for Caleb Williams here, even with two turnovers and seven sacks. The offensive line was not doing Williams any favors all night, so he did enough to help keep the offense in it until the end.
It was clear that losing Keenan Allen for this game hurt the Bears offense, as outside of DJ Moore, rookie Rome Odunze and a cast of others weren’t able to string much together. Khalil Herbert vultured a goal-line TD from D’Andre Swift, one of only two carries for Herbert on the night, and the defense held the Houston offense down for the majority of the contest.
23. Cleveland Browns (+4)
The fact that the Cleveland Browns earned their first win of the 2024 NFL campaign by only putting up 18 points shows that this team probably has more issues to fix than Week 1 originally showed.
The offense struggled yet again, Amari Cooper was not as heavily featured in the offense as he should have been, and the running back pecking order looks to be a jumbled mess, and all that still wasn’t enough to hold Cleveland back from getting the win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
24. Baltimore Ravens (-6)
A winless start through their first two games was likely not on the docket for the Baltimore Ravens, but an upset home loss to the Raiders should give this team a real reality check early on.
The offense looked fine, racking up 383 yards, including 151 on the ground. But 11 penalties and putting up no more than seven points in each quarter helped keep the Raiders in the game, ultimately leading to two field goals and a TD from Vegas in the final nine-plus minutes.
25. Los Angeles Rams (-3)
Not much went right for the Los Angeles Rams in their Week 2 loss to the Cardinals, and their injury woes at wide receiver keep piling up. With Cooper Kupp leaving Sunday’s game with an ankle injury doesn’t bode well for a group that is already without Puka Nacua for the next three-plus games.
Matthew Stafford was not especially helpful either, throwing for 216 scoreless yards. Being sacked five times certainly doesn’t help, and neither does negative game script forcing Sean McVay to go away from Kyren Williams (12/25/1) in the rushing game either.
26. Cincinnati Bengals (-1)
The Bengals offense looked a tiny bit better against the Chiefs, but 25 points are rarely enough to beat Patrick Mahomes and company, and Joe Burrow should know that.
Falling to 0-2 and to 26th overall in our Week 3 NFL Power Rankings, the Bengals need to try and get their receiver room on track, as Ja’Marr Chase has looked like a shell of himself so far this season. While Joe Burrow (258 yards, two TDs) looked above average, the rushing attack from Chase Brown and Zach Moss left a lot to be desired.
27. Indianapolis Colts (-6)
The 2024 NFL season has been a tale of two games for the Colts, as their Week 1 loss to the Texans showed promise, while their Week 2 loss to the Packers was very disappointing. Given a great opportunity to earn their first win, the Colts instead decided to sleepwalk on offense, allowing the Packers to control the clock.
It wasn’t pretty for Indy, as Anthony Richardson never was able to string together much success on offense. While a late TD pass to Alec Pierce helped keep things interesting, the Colts offense struggled most of the day.
28. Jacksonville Jaguars (-5)
The offense for the Jaguars decided not to show up in their loss on Sunday, struggling to put up 13 points against the Browns. With a subpar showing from the offense as a whole this year, there could be a seat that gets warm for Doug Pederson if these struggles continue.
The Jaguars offense has scored a combined 30 points across their first two games, with Trevor Lawrence only having one passing touchdown to show for. Sunday was another disappointing performance for the former first overall selection, and the offense hasn’t really shown any positive takeaways so far this year.
29. Denver Broncos (-1)
There are still plenty more growing pains to go through for Bo Nix, as the Oregon rookie doesn’t seem to be trusted to handle the whole playbook. With the Denver Broncos dropping their second-consecutive game this year, Nix has shown enough signs to keep the optimism there, but there need to be some changes.
Two interceptions for Nix should be avoidable, as long as the running back room actually contributes to the game plan. But with Nix leading the way with 25 yards rushing, Sean Payton needs to adapt his offense a bit to take some pressure off of Nix’s shoulders.
30. Tennessee Titans (no change)
Head coach Brian Callahn is not having the easiest “Welcome to the NFL” moment as he takes on his first head-coaching gig with the Tennessee Titans. Copious (and avoidable) mistakes from Will Levis has kept this team from earning its first win this year, and they again didn’t look like a super competent team against the Jets.
Levis connected with Calvin Ridley on a nice TD, but outside of that and Ridley’s rushing score, the offense looked pretty stagnant all game.
31. New York Giants (no change)
There comes a time for a struggling team to admit failure and move on, and while the New York Giants have a few people that fit that criteria, they seem to be locked in for at least the foreseeable future.
More struggles from Daniel Jones helped keep the Giants winless, setting some NFL history in the process. The lone highlight from Sunday’s loss is the performance of Malik Nabers, who absolutely looks like the WR1 of the future for this team.
32. Carolina Panthers (no change)
There is no surprise which team helps round out our Week 3 NFL Power Rankings, as the Carolina Panthers yet again rode the struggle bus on Sunday. This time falling to the Chargers, Carolina has shown absolutely no signs of improvement from last season, presenting a real tough case for new head coach Dave Canales to crack.
Needing to find some sort of semblance of positivity moving forward, things need to change on offense. Bryce Young looks to have absolutely zero self-confidence based on his decision making, and Canales needs to do what he can to get Young feeling comfortable again as he tries to showcase what this team is actually capable of.
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