NFL Power Rankings, Week 3: Biggest risers and fallers after Week 2

20. Arizona Cardinals - (1-1)

The Arizona Cardinals are indeed better than you think and just embarrassed the Los Angeles Rams in the 2024 NFL Season.  I mean, this game was not close at all.  Kyler Murray may just earn some MVP votes this season, and the Cardinals are going to flirt with a winning record.  This would set the stage for them to go all-in for 2025 and beyond.  

They aren’t far away from contending once again.  The defense definitely needs some more talent and the offense could use another play-maker, but this team is close and they are fun.  Can the Cardinals continue to play this good of football against what we thought were superior opponents?

Also, can we please give Kyler Murray credit?  He’s one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the NFL and had a perfect 158.3 passer rating in Week 2.  He’s not yet thrown an interception in the 2024 NFL Season and has a 122.9 passer rating.

Kyler Murray tore his ACL during the 2022 NFL Season, so he’s now approaching his second year removed from the major injury.  We should see Murray playing like his old self, and I think during this injury recovery, we all kind of forgot just how good Murray is at the position.

19. Cincinnati Bengals - (0-2)

The Cincinnati Bengals are 0-2.  Where have you heard that before?  I mean, it’s truly amazing that the Bengals can continue to find themselves in these early-season holes year after year.  They’re just awful in the first couple weeks of the season.  They did play quite well against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2 but got Harrison Butker’d and went home with a loss.

The Bengals should be just fine, but it’s just amazing that they are always starting out slow like this, and their inability to get a deal done with Ja’Marr Chase may come back to bite them.