2022 NFL Power Rankings Week 2: Chiefs and Bills make a statement, Cowboys fall on their face

The Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills made a statement and the Dallas Cowboys fell flat, which alters the 2022 NFL Power Rankings heading into Week 2

Week 1 started with a bang as the Buffalo Bills headed to Southern California and got a huge win over the Los Angeles Rams. Another statement win came courtesy of the Kansas City Chiefs, who proved they can throw it all over the field even without Tyreek Hill.

While they both proved they’re even better than they were a year ago, another playoff team from 2021 went in the complete opposite direction. The Dallas Cowboys had a chance to prove they belonged as they hosted the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but their offensive struggles left them reeling as they fell flat on their faces.

See how all the action shakes up the Week 2 edition of the 2022 NFL Power Rankings.

2022 NFL Power Rankings Week 2

32. New York Jets

Joe Flacco started against his former team and no one really cared. Flacco might have brought the Ravens a Super Bowl back in his heyday but right now, he’s just a dude trying to hold things down until Zach Wilson is healthy. On Sunday, he managed 307 yards passing but the New York Jets lost 24-9.

Head coach Robert Saleh is still trying to get things figured out. He’s proven to be a great defensive mind as a coordinator — and they did a good job keeping the Baltimore offense from going off — but their offense continues to be an issue. Wilson returning should help, but the question is how much.

31. Detroit Lions

Close just isn’t good enough. On Sunday, the Detroit Lions fought back from a 31-14 deficit only to lose 38-35. Head coach Dan Campbell said the fact they fought back was a positive but he wasn’t happy with that.

Jared Goff was a little more direct in saying they were able to move the ball but shot themselves in the foot far too many times in their loss to the Eagles.

"“We could have scored 50 out there,”” said Goff, who made some difficult throws and missed some open receivers. “”That’s a really good team, give them credit, but we shot ourselves in the foot all day.” — ESPN.com"

D’Andre Swift ran for 144 yards but the defense had no answers for the Eagles’ offense. They gave up 96 yards to Miles Sanders on the ground and 90 to Jalen Hurts. As if that wasn’t enough, A.J. Brown went for 155 yards through the air. It could be another long season in Detroit.

30. Houston Texans

There’s nothing less satisfying than a tie, but that’s what the Houston Texans managed on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts. It was a frustrating finish as they entered the fourth quarter with a 20-3 lead bit then forgot they were supposed to stop the other team from scoring.

After several awful drives in the fourth, they managed just 19-yards in the extra period. The only reason they didn’t lose was that Rodrigo Blankenship missed a 42-yard field goal. Otherwise, they would be 0-1 right now.

In the end, that might have been better since the only thing they should be trying to win is the No. 1 pick next year to attempt to fix this roster.

29. Atlanta Falcons

It was nearly an upset for the Atlanta Falcons who were up 26-10 against the New Orleans Saints, but as we’ve become used to seeing, they completely fell apart in the final 15 minutes. New Orleans had 17 unanswered points and hit a 51-yarder with 19 seconds to go to secure a one-point win.

Atlanta gave them all they had, which included picking up 201 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. The problem is their defense couldn’t buy a stop when they needed it. Next week, they head to Los Angeles to face a frustrated Rams team that had a few extra days to prepare. This season could start out rough for them.

28. Jacksonville Jaguars

They didn’t get the win but in Doug Pederson’s first game as the Jacksonville Jaguars head coach, they did look much better than at any time during Urban Meyer’s tenure. Trevor Lawrence had 275 yards passing and Christian Kirk pulled in six receptions for 117 yards. They also weren’t afraid to actually use James Robinson, who had a touchdown on the ground and as a receiver.

Where they fell short was on defense. Jacksonville surrendered 14 points in the final 10 minutes to watch their 22-14 lead slip away. They’re still looking to put it all together but there were some positives to take in this one.

27. Chicago Bears

It wasn’t surprising to see the field nasty for a Chicago Bears game because that’s often the case. Before their showdown with the San Francisco 49ers, the grounds crew was practically shoveling water off the turf. That led to one of the uglier games of the weekend, but the Bears should still be satisfied since they secured an upset win.

Justin Fields had two touchdown passes, which was just enough since the defense held Trey Lance and the 49ers to 10 points. Even with the win, there are still concerns since Fields was just 8-of-17 passing and the ground game mustered 99 yards on 37 carries.

But a win is a win and hardly anyone saw them winning this one. So that counts for something.

26. Seattle Seahawks

Plays on Monday Night Football against Denver Broncos

As fate would have it (or the NFL schedulers in this case), the Seattle Seahawks will kick the season off at home against the Denver Broncos who will be bringing Russell Wilson back to his former team.

Wilson and the Seahawks won a title following the 2013 season against Denver, and now Wilson returns as the enemy. Seattle would love to send him home with a loss but the truth is, this Seahawks team could be pretty bad this season. Geno Smith has had more chances than any other quarterback and he’s never done anything positive with those chances. It won’t change in 2022.

25. Carolina Panthers

Baker Mayfield was far too amped up in the first half for the Carolina Panthers. He was erratic and left too many plays on the field. Then, he settled down and put up 17-points in the fourth quarter to give his team a 24-23 lead over the Browns with just over a minute to go.

Unfortunately for them, Cleveland moved it down the field and won on a 58-yard field goal. The Panthers did get hit with an unbelievably bad roughing the passer call which helped set up the kick, but they still allowed Jacoby Brissett to make a couple of throws in the clutch.

Matt Rhule’s seat continues to heat up and after giving a healthy Christian McCaffrey just 10 rushes and four passing targets, he deserves to be questioned.

24. New York Giants

Brian Daboll made an impression in his debut with the New York Giants. The former Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator guided his team back from a 13-0 hole at halftime and had a shot to tie the game up with just over one minute to play.

After Daniel Jones hit Chris Myarick from one-yard out to make it 20-19, Daboll went for the win against Tennessee. That proved to be the right call as Jones hit Saquon Barkley with a shovel pass on the two-point conversion. That capped off a huge night from Barkley who had nearly 200 yards of offense.

It might not be sustainable but there’s already more faith in Daboll after one game than there was in Joe Judge throughout his whole tenure. Although, that might not have been a compliment.

23. Arizona Cardinals

Kyler Murray was given a massive contract in the offseason, but it was followed up with some controversy. The Arizona Cardinals put a study clause into the deal, telling Murray he needed to do some independent studying throughout the week.

They ended up taking the clause out after being criticized, but it showed what they really thought about Murray’s preparation for games. The questions will only grow now that the Cards were throttled by the Chiefs, showing they might not be ready to contend with some of the better teams in the NFL.

Arizona had a chance to make a statement after the Rams lost on Thursday night, but instead.

22. Washington Commanders

This organization is the gift that keeps on giving.

Even when the Washington Commanders win, they find a way to lose. On Sunday, it was reported that the same franchise that got their own Super Bowl years wrong on their new logo was selling a coffee mug with the wrong state silhouetted behind their logo.

"“The Commanders offered coffee mugs with their team logo against a silhouette of Washington state. Of course, the Commanders represent the District of Columbia and play their home games in Maryland. The state of Washington lies about 2,500 miles west of the team’s footprint.” — Thomas Neumann, SI.com"

Washington barely escaped the Jaguars this weekend, winning 28-22, and needed a big fourth quarter to do so. That’s not the most encouraging win, but hey, it’s a win.

21. Tennessee Titans

Somehow, the Tennessee Titans managed to lock up the No. 1 seed a year ago, but they never seemed like a team to believe in. That remains the case this season after they traded away A.J. Brown and now have very few weapons at wide receiver.

Even with that being the case, they had a winnable game against the New York Giants and started out with a 13-0 lead at the half. They were then outscored 21-7 in the second half and surrendered a two-point conversion at the end to lose by one.

Next up for them is a road trip to Buffalo and after the way the Bills looked against the Rams, this could be a rough start for Mike Vrabel and his squad.

20. Indianapolis Colts

Facing one of the worst teams in the NFL, the Indianapolis Colts were able to rack up the yards. Running back Jonathan Taylor had 161 yards on 31 carries and Matt Ryan tossed 352 yards in his debut with the Colts. And what do they have to show for that — absolutely nothing.

Indy came back from a 20-3 deficit in the fourth quarter to tie the game up with the Houston Texans but then Rodrigo Blankenship missed a 42-yard field goal in overtime and the final result was a tie. One of the most disheartening feelings in sports is watching a game with no real decision and that’s what we got in this one.

Not an ideal start for either team, but it has to feel worse for the Colts who moved the ball with ease but couldn’t put points on the board.

19. New England Patriots

One of the surprise teams in 2021 was the New England Patriots. They had Mac Jones under center and the rookie quarterback had them contending with the Buffalo Bills. This year, things might be tougher for them after the improvements made by the Miami Dolphins — who happened to be their Week 1 opponent.

New England managed just seven points and they were underwhelming in several facets of the game. Their defense still did well, keeping Miami at just about five yards per play — and seven of the points game on a fumble return.

Now at 0-1, they’ll face the Steelers, Ravens, and Packers over the next three weeks. It could be a rough start for Bill Belichick and his team.

18. San Francisco 49ers

The Trey Lance era is underway but it wasn’t a pretty start. After officially taking over for Jimmy Garoppolo this year, Lance and the San Francisco 49ers headed to Chicago to face the Bears on a wet and nasty field. Lance finished with 164 yards and a pick while completing just 13-of-28 passes on the day. He did add 54 yards on the ground but it was far from an inspiring performance.

More frustrating for the Niners than their offensive woes was the fact that their defense played very well. They allowed barely more than 200 yards but the 10-point output from the offense led to a disappointing 19-10 loss.

17. Las Vegas Raiders

Davante Adams had quite the debut for the Las Vegas Raiders. The former Green Bay Packers star re-joined Derek Carr, who was his quarterback when the two were playing at Fresno State and picked up where they left off.
Adams had 141 yards on 10 receptions and hauled in a three-yard touchdown pass to make it a 24-19 game. They were unable to finish the comeback, turning it over on downs with their last attempt.

Vegas plays in the toughest division in the NFL and lost to one of their rivals, the Los Angeles Chargers. The Raiders could be a very good team this season and still miss the playoffs, which is why it stings to lose a divisional game that they had a shot to steal.

16. Dallas Cowboys

It was a terrible start for the Dallas Cowboys that was only made worse by the loss of Dak Prescott. After playing one of his worst games in recent memory, Prescott had to leave the field when his hand was hit by Shaq Barrett.

After the game, it was announced by Jerry Jones that he would miss several weeks since surgery would be needed.

Even if Prescott wasn’t hurt, it would have been hard to believe in this team going forward. Jerry Jones and his son Stephen continue to be a huge problem. Jerry enables the players to the point that no matter who coaches them, they will always be undisciplined and be among the league leaders in penalties. And Stephen somehow convinced his dad to quit spending money as he keeps all the cash for his favorite player — cap space. This led to them cutting a lot of talent in the offseason, which was evident on Sunday.

This team is tending in the wrong direction and as long as the Jones family is in charge, it won’t change.

15. Cleveland Browns

For the first time since 2004, the Cleveland Browns are 1-0. That’s a huge feat for them, and they even proved they were right in drafting Cade York. The fourth-round pick from LSU was the best kicker entering the league this season and while they were criticized for taking a kicker that high, he was 4-of-4 on field goals and 2-of-2 on extra points.

York also drilled a 58-yarder to give his team the win. Outside of York, the Browns had a lot of positives in their win, including the wideouts getting plenty of separation and the ground game going for 217 yards.

There are some concerns though, mainly Jacoby Brissett. He was 18-of-34 for 147-yards and needed a terrible roughing call to deliver the game-winning drive. For the next 10 games, he’s the starter, so they have to hope he can improve because not every team will be as forgiving as Carolina when so many passes are off target.

14. New Orleans Saints

It looked for a while as though the New Orleans Saints were going to suffer a loss in Week 1. They were down 26-10 in the fourth quarter, but then kicked it into another gear. Michael Thomas caught two touchdowns and then Will Lutz knocked it in from 51-yards out with 19 seconds to play to give them a 27-26 win.

Free agent addition Jarvis Landry was huge with 114 yards in seven receptions and Jameis Winston continued to deliver for New Orleans. They also had a big game from Taysom Hill, who ran a 57-yard touchdown.

They should be happy they got the win but they did struggle with an offense that’s not too imposing, so they need to clean a few things up going forward.

13. Pittsburgh Steelers

Mike Tomlin cares not for the predictions. Once again, there were plenty of expectations for the Pittsburgh Steelers to struggle in 2021 after Ben Roethlisberger retired — which didn’t make a lot of sense considering Roethlisberger was a shell of himself the past two seasons. These predictions glossed over Tomlin’s insane resume, which includes 15 years of coaching without a losing record.

On Sunday, he made progress toward yet another positive campaign as they shocked the Cincinnati Bengals with a 23-20 overtime win. The Steelers’ defense forced Joe Burrow to turn it over five times and held the AFC champs to 20 points.

The defense was the key but there’s a serious issue as T.J. Watt suffered an injury that’s feared to have him out for most — if not all — of the season. That would test Tomlin’s coaching ability more than losing Big Ben while past his prime.

12. Green Bay Packers

Maybe ignoring the wide receiver position for roughly the eighth year in a row wasn’t the best strategy. The Green Bay Packers continue to stack up their defense with Round 1 picks but they won’t give Aaron Rodgers many weapons. That was an issue for them in Week 1 with A.J. Dillon — their No. 2 running back — leading the team in receptions (five) and yards (46). Meanwhile, Davante Adams had 10 receptions for 141 yards and a touchdown.

That led to a 23-7 loss for the Packers, who never seemed to have their hearts in this one. What was more concerning though was the defense couldn’t stop Kirk Cousins in this one.

11. Minnesota Vikings

Maybe Kevin O’Connell was the key all along. After winning a Super Bowl as the offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams last year, O’Connell took the head coaching job with the Minnesota Vikings. L.A. struggled in Week 1 whereas the Vikings went off.

Of course, there’s much more to it than that but O’Connell did have a stellar debut as his Vikings took it to the bullies of the NFC North, the Green Bay Packers. They had 395 yards of offense and won 23-7.

Justin Jefferson was the star with nine receptions for 184 yards with two touchdowns. The defense was also great, recording four sacks on Aaron Rodgers while keeping him frustrated all day.

10. Los Angeles Rams

The Los Angeles Rams had their first game as defending NFL Champions on Thursday Night Football, and it couldn’t have gone much worse. Facing the Buffalo Bills, they were able to enter halftime tied at 10 but had it not been for a couple of turnovers by Buffalo, it would have been a huge lead for the road team.

Buffalo then scored another 21 points unanswered finishing with a 31-10 win. Los Angeles had no answers for Josh Allen or Stefon Diggs and never forced a punt the entire game. Even worse was the fact that Matthew Stafford had three picks on the night, and it seemed as though no one outside of Cooper Kupp was ready for this game.

It doesn’t mean their season is over, but they’re going to have to get a few things figured out in order to right the ship.

9. Miami Dolphins

Tyreek Hill delivered in his first game with the Miami Dolphins, pulling in eight receptions for 94 yards. Jaylen Waddle added 69 yards and a touchdown as Mike McDaniel won his first game as a head coach. Their win over New England was huge but the run game left a lot to be desired.

McDaniel comes from the Kyle Shanahan tree so it was expected he could fix this area of concern but their first outing wasn’t great. Chase Edmonds had 25 yards on 12 carries and they finished with 65 on 23 carries as a team.

The defense was still the star of the game, holding the Patriots to just 271 yards and seven points.

8. Philadelphia Eagles

After adding Jordan Davis, Haasan Reddick, Nakobe Dean, and retaining Fletcher Cox, the Philadelphia Eagles defense was supposed to be great. That wasn’t the case in Week 1 as they surrendered 181 yards on the ground to the Detroit Lions. The Lions were also able to put up 35 points, and while the Eagles still won by three, getting gashed by one of the worst offenses in the NFL isn’t good.

What was good was the debut for A.J. Brown. The former Titans wideout had 155 yards on 10 receptions, helping the offense move the chains at ease.

In the end, they got the win, which is what matters most, but they need to be better against Minnesota next week if they want to keep winning.

7. Cincinnati Bengals

All offseason we heard about how the Cincinnati Bengals improved offensive line was going to take the defending AFC champs to new heights. It’s only one game but the early returns are far from encouraging.

Cincinnati gave up seven sacks and that constant pressure had a lot to do with Joe Burrow throwing four picks and losing a fumble. To be fair, they were facing an elite line with the Steelers and fought back from a 17-3 deficit to force overtime.

They couldn’t close it out, and last year’s superhero kicker Evan McPherson missed a 29-yard field goal that would have set them up with a 1-0 start. They’re still a team to watch but if this offensive line plays the way they did in Week 1 all season, it will be hard to repeat in the AFC.

6. Baltimore Ravens

After an offseason full of negotiations, the Baltimore Ravens and Lamar Jackson decided to let the season play out and then resume discussions next offseason. Jackson didn’t go off in their opener but he led them to a 24-9 win, which was enough to start 1-0 — putting the Bengals all alone in last place in the AFC North.

Of course in Baltimore, it’s always the defense that leads the way. Even when Jackson is playing out of his mind, their defense does its job — and they did it again this weekend. Facing the Jets, who had to start Joe Flacco with Zach Wilson hurt, the Ravens defense gave up just nine points. Keeping teams out of the end zone is a great way to make sure to win games.

5. Denver Broncos

Plays on Monday Night Football against Seattle Seahawks

Russell Wilson will make his debut for the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football and it will happen in a familiar place for him. Denver’s first game is in Seattle, where he will play against the Seahawks, the team that drafted him back in 2012.

The two had some great years, including two Super Bowl trips and one win. However, Wilson is now expected to be the missing piece for a talented Denver roster.

They should be able to get a win in Week 1 since Seattle is looking pretty rough, but they do play in the stacked AFC West, so this season could still be a challenging one.

4. Los Angeles Chargers

For the second season in a row, the Los Angeles Chargers are expected to make a run at the AFC West. Last season, they were in the race for a while but then just missed the playoffs — with their inability to close out games being their biggest issue.

That was nearly a problem again as they saw a 24-10 lead shrink to 24-19 against the Las Vegas Raiders. L.A. responded to the gap being closed with a three-and-out but then the defense held as Khalil Mack recorded his third sack of the drive.

They’re 1-0 now and have a divisional win, which is huge, but they have to hope they can keep this from becoming a trend yet again.

3. Tampa Bay Bucs

Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense didn’t have their best game on Sunday Night Football, but they still got the win. Easily.

They were in control of the game throughout, but they struggled to score touchdowns against the Dallas Cowboys defense, instead settling for five field goal attempts, with one miss.

However, their defense was on fire. They had issues on the opening drive as the Cowboys marched down the field quickly, but then they held them to a field goal. After that, the Cowboys didn’t score again for the rest of the day.

They frustrated Dak Prescott and completely neutralized CeeDee Lamb, proving they’re the best team in the NFC.

2. Kansas City Chiefs

After just missing out on the Super Bowl last year, the Kansas City Chiefs ended up trading Tyreek Hill in the offseason. With a new receiving corps, Patrick Mahomes reminded us all that he’s the reason this offense is so explosive.

Facing the Arizona Cardinals, Mahomes was 30-of-39 for 360 yards with five touchdowns ‚— and he hit four different players for touchdowns. Tight end Travis Kelce also reminded everyone how good he is, recording 121 yards and a touchdown on eight receptions.

Add it all up and they defeated the Arizona Cardinals easily by a score of 44-21. And while that score sounds like a blowout, Arizona had 14 in garbage time, so it was actually even less of a contest than the box score showed.

1. Buffalo Bills

Entering the first week of the season, the Buffalo Bills were already the No. 1 team in our 2022 NFL Power Rankings, and they ended up making a statement in their first game. On the road against the defending champion Los Angeles Rams, Buffalo put on an offensive clinic with a 31-10 win — and it could have been even more lopsided had it not been for a few turnovers by the Bills.

Josh Allen went off in the opener as did Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis. But the real surprise was how great the defense played. They picked off Matthew Stafford three times and sacked him seven times.

Former Ram Von Miller led the way with two sacks while A.J. Epenesa and Jordan Phillips each had 1.5. Should this defensive line continue to play at such a high level, it’s going to be tough to beat this team.