2022 NFL Power Rankings Week 4: Dolphins and Eagles take top spots
By Randy Gurzi
. Previous: 17th. New Orleans Saints. 20. team. 15.
20. New Orleans Saints
Losing Sean Payton was always going to be hard on the New Orleans Saints but sticking with Dennis Allen might have been a mistake. The Saints already saw back in 2012 while Payton was suspended that simply keeping his assistants wasn’t the same as having him. They had multiple double-digit winning seasons, then went 7-9 without him, only to have another double-digit campaign when he returned.
So far this season, their offense has looked nothing like it did when he was there and they had a terrible outing against the Panthers that included two picks and a lost fumble. Jameis Winston also looks nothing like the player we saw in seven games last season before his ACL tear.
New Orleans probably should have turned the page this offseason and might need to ahead of 2023 to keep from staying in the basement.
team. 47. . . Previous: 14th. New England Patriots. 19
19. New England Patriots
It’s not like a Bill Belichick team to struggle to protect the football but that was the case in Week 3. Mac Jones threw three picks and Nelson Agholor lost a fumble as well as they lost to the Baltimore Ravens.
New England was in it at the half but a 17-point fourth quarter where Lamar Jackson threw two of his four touchdowns helped put this one out of reach. Making matters worse for Belichick, is how impressive the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills have looked.
Buffalo was clearly the favorite in the division but they fell to 2-1 as Miami improved to 3-0 with a two-point win over the Bills. Gone are the days of New England dominating the East, and they might be struggling to compete for a playoff spot this season.