2013 NFL Power Rankings: Week 4
Updated: September 24, 2013, 3:04 PM ET
ESPN.com
Week:
The Seahawks, No. 1 here for the third time in four weeks, improved to 3-0 in Week 3 and own a two-game lead in the NFC West.
OK, you likely saw that coming. But what about the Dolphins being 3-0? Or the Chiefs? Or even the Bears? Yeah, didn't think so.
In all, there are still seven perfect teams, and our voters (John Clayton, Ashley Fox, Dan Graziano, Jamison Hensley, Mike Sando and Kevin Seifert) hold all seven in high regard. Miami and Kansas City (as well as the 2-1 Colts) made their first jump into the top 10, supplanting Green Bay, Houston and Atlanta. Denver is an overwhelming No. 2, while New Orleans, Chicago and New England round out our top five.
The list of undefeated teams will be reduced by at least one in Week 4, as Miami and New Orleans face off in a Monday night showdown. Will anyone else taste defeat for the first time? Maybe. The Patriots face a Falcons team smarting from a tough Week 3 loss, and Chicago travels to NFC North rival Detroit (2-1) -- so more changes could be store.
Not that we're jumping to conclusions. As we've learned during the first three weeks, this isn't the easiest sport to forecast.
Note: The comments below are provided by ESPN Stats & Information.
• Reporters' analysis | Bears' offense catching up | Rank 'Em | Vegas rankings 
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| Team Power Rankings charts since 2002
| 2013 Power Rankings: Week 4 | ||||
| RANK | TEAM / RECORD | TRENDING | COMMENTS | |
| 1 |  | -- Last Week: 1 | The Seahawks' pass defense leads the league with a minus-4 TD-Int differential. Only 12 teams even have four interceptions this year. Good road challenges await in Houston and Indy. | |
| 2 |  | -- Last Week: 2 | Four Broncos have at least 190 receiving yards through three games. The Packers are the only other team with even three of those receivers. How do you stop that? | |
| 3 |  | 5 Last Week: 8 | The Saints' defense has held all three opponents this season to 17 points or fewer. New Orleans allowed 17 points or fewer in three games all last season. | |
| 4 |  | 5 Last Week: 9 | The Bears' defense has three touchdowns this year, as many as the Buccaneers and Jaguars' offenses. Chicago's defense has scored on 1.6 percent of snaps, higher than Jacksonville's offense. | |
| 5 |  | 2 Last Week: 7 | The offense looked better Sunday, with Kenbrell Thompkins scoring twice and Aaron Dobson converting all three targets on third or fourth down. Just in time, as the Falcons are next. | |
| 6 |  | 4 Last Week: 10 | Andy Dalton has more than doubled his Total QBR against added pressure this year. His 73 QBR is the 10th best in the league, one year after ranking 26th. | |
| 7 |  | 5 Last Week: 12 | Ryan Tannehill converted on a career-best 70 percent of his third-down passes against the Falcons. The Saints provide the next challenge on Monday night in a battle of 3-0 teams. | |
| 8 |  | 5 Last Week: 13 | The Chiefs have disrupted a league-high 33 drop-backs, or 24 percent of drop-backs they've faced this year (sack, pass defended or interception). No team has finished above 22 percent since 2008. | |
| 9 |  | 5 Last Week: 14 | Trent Richardson got the headlines, but Ahmad Bradshaw got the yards on Sunday. Bradshaw finished with 5.5 yards per rush inside the tackles, more than doubling Richardson's average. | |
| 10 |  | 7 Last Week: 3 | Colin Kaepernick was 1-for-6 on passes deeper than 10 yards downfield Sunday without Vernon Davis, who caught three of those passes for 69 yards and a touchdown in Week 1. | |
| 11 |  | -- Last Week: 11 | Though Peyton dismantled them in the season opener, the Ravens quietly rebounded well. Baltimore is one of three defenses to not allow a passing touchdown in the past two weeks. | |
| 12 |  | 7 Last Week: 5 | Aaron Rodgers had three passes batted down in the final two minutes Sunday. Rodgers had one game in the past five years with three batted passes before Sunday. | |
| 13 |  | 9 Last Week: 4 | Since the start of 2012, Houston's special teams have cost the team 56.9 expected points, 12 points worse than anyone else. They allowed a punt return TD Sunday. | |
| 14 |  | 8 Last Week: 6 | Miami held Matt Ryan to 1-of-9 passing and an interception at least 15 yards downfield in Sunday's loss. Last year, Atlanta didn't lose a second game until Week 14. | |
| 15 |  | -- Last Week: 15 | DeMarco Murray loves the Rams. Murray rushed for 175 yards and a touchdown Sunday against St. Louis. His only other career 140-yard game came against the Rams (Week 7, 2011). | |
| 16 |  | 2 Last Week: 18 | After starting 1-for-8 on throws at least 15 yards downfield, Matthew Stafford woke up Sunday. Stafford was 7-of-9 on deep balls against the Vikings. Can he repeat against the Bears? | |
| 17 |  | 5 Last Week: 22 | The Titans and Chiefs are the only offenses without a turnover yet. Imagine what they could do if Chris Johnson got going (3.7 yards per rush, 25th in NFL)? | |
| 18 |  | 10 Last Week: 28 | The Titans and Jets meet in a battle of surprising 2-1 teams. Geno Smith threw for 331 yards Sunday, a total Jake Locker has reached once in his 14-start career. | |
| 19 |  | 3 Last Week: 16 | Is Philip Rivers good or not? Only Peyton Manning has more passing touchdowns, one year after Rivers' 42 Total QBR ranked 30th among qualified quarterbacks. Hosting Dallas is a good test. | |
| 20 |  | 3 Last Week: 17 | Sam Bradford was 6-of-7 targeting Tavon Austin Sunday, all within 5 yards downfield. Bradford went 5-of-17 targeting other wide receivers, averaging 14 yards downfield per target. | |
| 21 |  | 6 Last Week: 27 | Vertical passing returned in Sunday's rout. Cam Newton connected on his last five attempts at least 15 yards downfield for three touchdowns, a welcome development heading into the bye week. | |
| 22 |  | 1 Last Week: 21 | Carson Palmer converted 3 of 11 third-down drop-backs Sunday, targeting Larry Fitzgerald once (dropped pass). Sunday was the second straight week Fitzgerald was targeted only once on third down. | |
| 23 |  | 4 Last Week: 19 | Early returns are positive on offense, as only the Packers and Broncos have more offensive touchdowns than the Eagles. But can Philly can run its track-meet offense at Mile High? | |
| 24 |  | 2 Last Week: 26 | The league's fastest offense isn't in Philadelphia. The Bills are averaging 21.4 seconds per play, six seconds faster than the league average. | |
| 25 |  | 6 Last Week: 31 | Josh Gordon made a real impact with 10 catches for 146 yards and a touchdown Sunday. Who gets the rushes, though? No Brown had more than eight carries or 34 yards. | |
| 26 |  | 3 Last Week: 23 | Minnesota's pass defense is a mess. No one has allowed as many passing touchdowns as the Vikings (nine). Worse yet, Brian Hoyer threw for 321 yards in Sunday's Browns victory. | |
| 27 |  | 3 Last Week: 24 | A one-dimensional offense doesn't suit Washington. RG III dropped back to pass on at least three-quarters of snaps in each game this season after posting the second-lowest drop-back percentage last year. | |
| 28 |  | 3 Last Week: 25 | Could the Steelers really start 0-4? If they protect the ball this poorly (nine turnovers, third most in the NFL), it's a distinct possibility. Luckily, the Vikings have even more (10). | |
| 29 |  | 9 Last Week: 20 | The Panthers sacked Eli Manning seven times Sunday, third most in Eli's career. New York's 13 turnovers lead the league, a total it didn't hit until Week 10 last year. | |
| 30 |  | 1 Last Week: 29 | Terrelle Pryor has posted a Total QBR above 55 in two of his three games this season, something Colin Kaepernick, Matt Schaub, Eli Manning and Andy Dalton can't say. | |
| 31 |  | 1 Last Week: 30 | Add rush defense to the list of problems? The Patriots gained 3.5 yards before contact per rush Sunday, well above Tampa's league-leading 1.9-yard average since the start of last year. | |
| 32 |  | -- Last Week: 32 | Hosting divisional rival Indy doesn't look good after the way the Colts played Sunday. Maybe the Jags will have a shot in Week 5, traveling to St. Louis. Maybe. | |
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| Glossary |
| The rankings were determined by ESPN's Power Panel, a group of more than 80 writers, editors and television personalities. |
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