Disclaimer: I realize power rankings are practically worthless, but it’s fun to debate them.
The Redskins continue to be one of the more surprising teams in the NFL so far this season. Many “experts,” including our friend Mike Florio over at ProFootballTalk, didn’t think much of the ‘Skins before the season. He gave them a flattering 31st out of 32 preseason ranking.
Now the Redskins are 3-1 and atop the NFC East. Their defense, highlighted by linebackers Brian Orakpo, Ryan Kerrigan, and London Fletcher, and standout safety Laron Landry, is being hailed as one of the better defenses in the league.
Brian Orakpo was awarded NFC Defensive Player of the Week.
Ryan Kerrigan got NFC Defensive Rookie of the Month.
So yeah, things are going pretty well.
Sure, Rex Grossman is still Rex Grossman. But the defense is good enough to keep them in the game, regardless of who they play. On top of that, power running back Ryan Torain aggressively reintroduced himself to the league this week.
Since Mike Florio’s disrespectful 31st ranking of the Redskins, they’re number has gone up week to week, on his list as well as in the other national power rankings.
Florio continues his Redskins hating this week, once again coming in with the lowest ranking of all the lists.
He’s got the Redskins at 17, the lowest ranked 3-1 team, behind four 2-2 teams (Atlanta, Oakland, Pittsburgh, and Chicago). At least he finally has them ahead of the Cowboys and Eagles (19 and 22 respectively).
They could probably win the Super Bowl and he’d still have them behind the Packers.
Maybe he’s heard my recent criticisms of him because he provided this little nugget as a reason for putting the Redskins where he did:
“Don’t complain, Redskins fans, about going up only one spot. Beating the Rams by only seven could be regarded as a reason to fall five.”
What an idiotic comment. A win is a win, regardless of who you beat. The ninth ranked Giants barely beat (with the help of a controversial call) a bad Cardinals team. The sixteenth ranked Falcons LOST to a terrible Seahawks team. The eighth ranked Bucs only “won by 7″ against the Colts. I can go on and on.
Why does his theory only apply the Redskins? I’ll tell you why. Because Mike Florio is a hater! Plain and simple.
Anyway, on to more credible sports media organizations.
SB Nation has a nice list of a few of the national power rankings.
CBS Sports had them at 8.
ESPN has them at 12.
FOX Sports has them at 10.
SBNation has them at 11.
(ProFootballtalk has them at 17)
Which one of these things is not like the other?
I have no doubt that their ranking will probably drop this week while they’re on the Bye. Other teams will rise and fall, and the Redskins will fall victim to some shuffling. That’s okay.
They come off the Bye with a home game against Mike Vick and a desperate Eagles team. If they can pull off a victory then, even Mike Florio won’t be able to ignore the Redskins anymore.
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