PokerFink's 2007 NFC Rankings (Week 4)

PokerFink · #1 10-04-2007, 04:28 AM

Dear loyal readers,

I was on vacation this week and I've been busy since I got back last night, so I haven't really had time to come up with some thoughtful comments for all the teams. Plus I didn't see any games this week besides the Eagles-Giants abomination.

I figured I would post what I have so we can have some NFC discussion, and as I watch the games I have taped on DVR, I'll post more team comments later in the week.

Next week we'll be back to normal.

Disclaimer: My rankings are NOT a traditional power rankings. They are PROJECTIVE, meaning we are ranking based on where teams will finish. Rankings are done based on the playoff guidelines. For a full explanation, please see this post.

 1. DALLAS (4-0) : The Patrick Crayton 2007 Fantasy Sleeper Bandwagon finally started its engines this week, as talented receiver snagged 7 balls for 184 yards and a pair of scores. That Week 6 matchup with New England is looking more enticing by the minute. NEXT: @ Buffalo.

 2. GREEN BAY (4-0) : Congrats to Favre for breaking Marino's touchdown record, which he will enjoy for a few more years before Manning destroys it. In the preseason, I said that Favre was returning to not only break the records but return to the playoffs - so far, so good. NEXT: vs. Chicago.

 3. SEATTLE (3-1) : NEXT: @ Pittsburgh.

 4. TAMPA BAY (3-1) : NEXT: @ Indianapolis.

 5. ARIZONA (2-2) *UP 5* : Conventional wisdom at the start of the season was that San Francisco was the NFC West team ready to make the leap and challenge Seattle, not Arizona. But despite a narrow opening week loss to the Niners, the Cards have been by far the superior team. The rest of the season sets up great for Arizona - their remaining schedule is absurdly easy. The bad news is that catching Seattle will be difficult because the Seahawks own the the league's easiest remaining schedule. NEXT: @ St. Louis.

 6. WASHINGTON (2-1) : Who would have thought that a Week 5 match-up between the Skins and Lions would have huge wildcard implications? In Jason Campbell and Santana Moss, Washington has the personnel to copy half of Philadelphia's gameplan against Detroit: max-protect, play action, throw it deep. Unfortunately, Washington has no copy for the other half: give to Brian Westbrook and let him do the rest. NEXT: vs. Detroit.

 7. DETROIT (3-1) *UP 4* : NEXT: @ Washington.

 8. NEW YORK (2-2) *UP 4* : NEXT: vs. New York Jets.

 9. PHILADELPHIA (1-3) *DOWN 2* : No Brian Dawkins? No problem, as Quintin Mikell has played outstanding in relief. No Lito Sheppard? No problem, as William James has played well. No LJ Smith? No problem with rookie Brent Celek. No Brian Westbrook? No problem, Buckhalter can carry the load. No Tra Thomas? BIG, BIG problems. William Justice put forth the worst performance by an offensive lineman I have ever seen, getting absolutely eviscerated by Osi Umenyiora. Blame should fall on Reid for leaving Justice alone on Osi over and over again with miserable results. The Birds have two weeks to get healthy and remove their collective head from their collective ass to save the season. NEXT: Bye.

 10. CAROLINA (2-2) *DOWN 1* : Aaron Schatz, summing up exactly how I have felt about Carolina for several years now: "At a certain point, the public will come around to the point of view that I have, and that I think Mike (Tanier) you have too, which is 'I'm sick and tired of waiting for Carolina to fulfill their potential, (and) maybe other than Peppers and Smith they really aren’t that good'" NEXT: @ New Orleans.

 11. SAN FRANCISCO (2-2) *DOWN 3* : NEXT: vs. Baltimore.

 12. MINNESOTA (1-3) *UP 1* : NEXT: Bye.

 13. CHICAGO (1-3) *DOWN 8* : NEXT: @ Green Bay.

 14. ATLANTA (1-3) *UP 2* : NEXT: @ Tennessee.

 15. NEW ORLEANS (0-3) *DOWN 1* : NEXT: vs. Carolina.

 16. ST. LOUIS (0-4) *DOWN 1* : NEXT: vs. Arizona.