Power Rankings: The Big Three and the Flawed 29

Updated Oct. 9

Aside from the Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys, is anybody really any good in the NFL this season?

And after Monday night's razor-thin victory over the Buffalo Bills, some might wonder if the Cowboys are an elite team either.

I'll chalk up Monday night's Tony Romo pick-fest to a team caught looking ahead to their game this week with the Patriots. The Cowboys are still an elite team.

Dallas Clark, Reggie Wayne and the Colts? Hard to argue with the champs. (Getty Images)

As for outside the top three, I've been wondering about the rest of the league for a while. But it really hit me the past two days while compiling the latest batch of CBS Sports.com Power Rankings.

Look at the rest of the teams in the top 10. They all have issues.

In my top 10 is a team (Tennessee Titans) that turned it over five times Sunday and still won, a team (Jacksonville Jaguars) that is averaging 15.7 points per game -- 28th in the league -- and a team (Green Bay Packers) that blew a 10-point fourth-quarter lead at home Sunday night.

We also have the crippled Pittsburgh Steelers, the Baltimore Ravens that struggle way too much to score, the Arizona Cardinals playing rotating quarterbacks until one of them went down with a broken collarbone and the New York Giants, who opened 0-2 and had many pegging their coach for the firing line.

Of that group, do we really know if any of them are really any good? What we do know is the Colts, Patriots and Cowboys are all really good.

The Colts showed that they can win without four key starters. The Patriots continue to blow people out and the Cowboys can score on anybody -- even when Romo isn't playing well. Hey, he did lead them to that late score and winning field goal.

Those three are the three remaining unbeaten teams and by 8 p.m. Sunday we will be down to two since the Cowboys and Patriots meet in Game of the Season/Decade/Century Part I this Sunday at Texas Stadium.

Peeking ahead, the Cowboys learned Monday night, can be a real danger, but somehow they escaped.

The Colts don't play this week, but their unbeaten status will be tested in two weeks on a Monday night at Jacksonville against the Jaguars.

At any rate, it's evident those three are above the rest, making this season's early motto: Three and Out.

We still have a lot of time left to go before the playoffs start, which is why it's too early to jump to conclusions. It's way too simple to pick either the Colts or the Patriots to play the Cowboys in Super Bowl XLII.

We know better.

One of the other top 10 teams -- or maybe even the San Diego Chargers -- might emerge as a real player before we hit November. It will likely be the one that cures its ills first.

That means the Jaguars scoring more points or the Titans taking care of the ball better or the Steelers getting healthy or the Ravens getting Steve McNair to find his old magic and Kurt Warner doing the same in Arizona or the Giants showing the 0-2 start was just a fluke.

Fix it, and you can win it. Don't, and you won't.

For now, we're still left wondering which team can do it, and the obvious question:

Is anybody outside the Big Three any good?

The complete Power Rankings after Week 5:

Power Rankings
Current		Team	Previous
	1	Colts · Trends	1
	They didn't look great against the 49ers, but they found a way. That's what good teams do. It has to be good having Bob Sanders back again.
	2	Saints · Trends	2
	It was a little bit of a struggle against the Falcons, but the schedule is favorable the rest of the way, to say the least. Is an undefeated season possible?
	3	Vikings · Trends	4
	They have a real hold on the division after sweeping the Packers. They really are a balanced team and Brett Favre is coming off a big game. There, I said it. Aside from the Steelers game, he is playing well.
	4	Broncos · Trends	3
	After their first loss, here come the champions. The Pittsburgh Steelers will provide another stiff test for the Broncos. They need to throw it better. Period.
	5	Patriots · Trends	5
	They come off the bye with a chance to take a real hold of the division by beating Miami. You know they'll be ready for the Wildcat.
	6	Bengals · Trends	6
	At 5-2 after their bye, they get a rematch with the Ravens this week. They can throw it better now than when they beat them the first time, which should help.
	7	Steelers · Trends	7
	They can show they are back with a road victory at Denver. The bye week gives them a little edge heading into that one, although Denver will be angry coming off its first loss.
	8	Eagles · Trends	8
	We get Eagles-Cowboys this week for first place in the NFC East. That should be fun. The Eagles are rolling after that Oakland disaster two weeks ago.
	9	Cowboys · Trends	11
	Is it time to stop ripping on Tony Romo? He's playing some of his best football. The defense, which was a problem much of the season, is playing better.
	10	Ravens · Trends	14
	They had to beat Denver to save their season, but now they get a big one against the Bengals on the road. To have a real chance to win the division, they need that one.
	11	Cardinals · Trends	9
	Can anybody figure this team out? They play well on the road and stink it up at home. Good thing they're on the road this week.
	12	Giants · Trends	10
	They are an example of how fast things can go bad in the NFL. If that defense doesn't play better soon, they could be playoff-less.
	13	Texans · Trends	16
	The improvement of the defense to go with that passing game has really helped this team. They do have a lot of premium talent on the defensive side of the ball.
	14	Chargers · Trends	17
	They seemed to right things the past two weeks, but now must head east to play a desperate Giants team. That won't be easy.
	15	Falcons · Trends	12
	They played well at New Orleans, especially in the second half, and the schedule gets easier now. They are a good 4-3 team.
	16	Packers · Trends	13
	Boy that offensive line is bad. If they don't improve there, Aaron Rodgers doesn't stand a chance.
	17	Bears · Trends	19
	Nothing like the Cleveland Browns to provide the perfect potion for all that ails a team. Facing Arizona at home this week won't be as easy.
	18	Dolphins · Trends	22
	That wasn't pretty against the Jets, but they found a way. Now they have to go to New England, with a chance to get back into the race. Playing two consecutive road games is tough.
	19	Jets · Trends	15
	There is no way they should have lost to the Dolphins at home, but at 4-4 they have been way too inconsistent. How about some special-teams work this week?
	20	Jaguars · Trends	18
	They will be a .500 team at best. The defense isn't very good, so they will play a lot of high-scoring games. The good news is they have a winnable game against Kansas City this week.
	21	Panthers · Trends	24
	Was that a job saver for coach John Fox and a season saver last week in Arizona? It was a big win, but those two things are still to be decided.
	22	49ers · Trends	20
	Playing close isn't good enough. They have to start winning those kinds of games. It's hard when they're limited on offense.
	23	Bills · Trends	21
	The run defense is really bad and they don't have the offense to make up for it. Did you ever think they would long to get Trent Edwards back so much?
	24	Seahawks · Trends	23
	They've been a major disappointment in a lot of people's minds. But the injuries have crippled this team. It's a tough first year for Jim Mora Jr.
	25	Raiders · Trends	25
	At least they showed up and competed against the Chargers. It's more than they did the previous week. Wonder how Tom Cable's troubles will affect the team?
	26	Chiefs · Trends	26
	They come off their bye with the Larry Johnson saga hanging over their heads. Something they need more of: Better play from Matt Cassel.
	27	Redskins · Trends	27
	Did they fix things during the bye? Is Jim Zorn safe now that he made it through the week off? Can they turn it around? Doubtful.
	28	Rams · Trends	31
	They won. They won. They won. After 17 consecutive losses, they should celebrate. Steven Jackson is having a good year for a bad team.
	29	Titans · Trends	32
	The move to Vince Young paid off. Yeah, as long as Chris Johnson runs for 228, it paid off. They did show more life coming off their bye in winning for the first time.
	30	Lions · Trends	28
	Losing to the Rams drops them down a few spots. They are competing, which is a good sign for this young team.
	31	Browns · Trends	29
	Does this team need a bye or what? Do they really have to play out the season with that offense?
	32	Buccaneers · Trends	30
	The Josh Freeman Era begins, and it's the right thing to do. They have to get him going for the future. Why wait?