NFL power rankings: 49ers and Bills stay hot entering Week 4

NFL Power Rankings: Nos. 5-1

Win, 31-6 vs. Dolphins

Good teams beat bad teams with ease, and that’s what the Cowboys did to the Dolphins in Week 3.

While quarterback Dak Prescott was fine under center, Dallas’ running game managed to churn out a whopping 235 rush yards, split between tailbacks Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard.

This was a cruise-control game for the Cowboys in every sense of the term.

W, 20-13 @ Browns

The Rams aren’t beating teams up like they were this time a year ago, and for much of last season. But winning on the road in prime time is still no easy feat, although Los Angeles’ Sunday Night Football victory over the Browns wasn’t overly pretty. Especially when L.A. found itself trailing 6-3 at halftime.

Wide receiver Cooper Kupp happened, though, and his two touchdowns in the second half helped propel head coach Sean McVay’s squad to a perfect record. Kupp’s return from an ACL injury last year has been a huge boost, and he helps make quarterback Jared Goff look that much better.

Goff wasn’t perfect, of course, tossing two interceptions to go along with Kupp’s key grabs. But the Rams figured out a way to win on the road, while retaining their hold on the suddenly tough NFC West.

W, 27-16 vs. Broncos

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense may still be trying to figure out and properly implement first-year head coach Matt LaFleur’s system. But when Green Bay’s defense is playing as well as it has been these first few weeks, Rodgers and Co. can afford the luxury.

Rodgers was good, if not great on Sunday, passing for 235 yards with a touchdown. What was more impressive, though, was how well his offensive line held up. The Broncos’ vaunted pass rush managed to put just one quarterback hit on the future Hall of Famer, and Rodgers looked both clean and comfortable within the pocket.

If Green Bay stays dangerous in all these phases, a deep playoff push is the likely outcome.

W, 33-28 vs. Ravens

The Chiefs defense is better in 2019 than it was a year ago, but it’s still far from great. And that point was made apparent by the Ravens’ valiant second-half comeback in Kansas City, which featured two of the best young quarterbacks, Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes, going head to head.

Mahomes got the better end of the results, of course, which is something fans have come to expect. All he did was throw a cool 374 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions, as the Chiefs managed over 500 yards of total offense against a good Ravens defense.

That’ll continue to be the formula for head coach Andy Reid: provide an overpowering offense, while the defense holds just enough.

So far, it’s working to perfection this season.

W, 30-14 vs. Jets

While the majority of the Patriots talk entering Week 3 surrounded now-unemployed wide receiver Antonio Brown, the Pats simply went out and did what they do best: avoid the distractions, put on a clinic and win with ease.

Yes, New England didn’t have much of a challenge by the way of the Jets on Sunday. And the rest of the AFC East, sans the Bills, is going to be a pure pushover for head coach Bill Belichick and Co.

Still, none of that stops the notion the Patriots are the dominant team in the league, still sitting atop NFL power rankings entering Week 4, despite the fact they haven’t faced top-tier competition just yet.

And they couldn’t care less. The workmanlike mentality hasn’t stopped being successful, and Belichick’s squad is still setting the standard for the league, while the remaining 31 teams are trying to catch up.