Updated Sept. 8
NFL rules to live by: Don't wear a New York Giants jersey to Philadelphia, don't single cover Larry Fitzgerald, don't blitz Peyton Manning and leave zero coverage and, whatever you do, don't put much stock in the preseason.
Aside from injuries, which do matter, the preseason tells us very little about what might happen in the regular season.
Yet every year we hear the whispers of evaluations based on what happened in the preseason.
It doesn't matter.
So as I sat down to put together our first week's power rankings, I did so by ignoring the preseason. What I didn't ignore were some of the things I picked up on my training camp trips and some of the things scouts and personnel people are saying as we head to the open of the season.
Take the Tennessee Titans. When I set out on my camp tour, I thought I would get to Nashville and see a Titans team ready for a slide. When I left, I thought they were significantly improved.
That's why they are No. 5 in these rankings, up six spots from where I had them in the pre-camp rankings.
The Titans have no holes. If Kerry Collins plays as expected, they will push for the Super Bowl.
The New England Patriots are in the top spot, a perch they've owned since Tom Brady got his knee right. The defending champion Pittsburgh Steelers are second with the Indianapolis Colts in the third spot.
That means three AFC teams at the top and four of the top five come from that conference.
The highest-rated NFC team is the New York Giants at No. 4. I moved them up two spots mainly because the Philadelphia Eagles have had injuries. I did have the Eagles in the third spot of the pre-camp rankings, but losing Stewart Bradley and having injury issues on the offensive line have dropped them down some.
See, injuries matter. The preseason does not. Even for the Oakland Raiders.
| Power Rankings | ||||||||||
| Current | Team | Previous | ||||||||
 | 1 | Saints · Trends | 4 | |||||||
| What is hidden about the Saints is that there are a lot of good, young players on their roster. I can't imagine them taking a big step back. | ||||||||||
 | 2 | Colts · Trends | 1 | |||||||
| Let's not forget they get Anthony Gonzalez back next year, which will make the offense better. They are the team to beat in the AFC again. | ||||||||||
 | 3 | Vikings · Trends | 5 | |||||||
| After blowing a chance to win the NFC title game in regulation, it must have killed the Vikings to see the Saints win the Super Bowl. Now Minnesota has to play the waiting game with Brett Favre. | ||||||||||
 | 4 | Chargers · Trends | 2 | |||||||
| They have a lot of contracts that come up, and they will have to make some tough decisions. There is still a lot of talent on this team, but they have to get over the hump at some point. Losing to the Jets was a big upset. | ||||||||||
 | 5 | Cowboys · Trends | 3 | |||||||
| Wade Phillips comes back for another year, and he has to get this team past the first round of the playoffs again. Tony Romo is in the same situation. | ||||||||||
 | 6 | Eagles · Trends | 6 | |||||||
| Can we stop the Donovan McNabb trade talk? He will be back, and he should be back. Will Brian Westbrook? | ||||||||||
 | 7 | Jets · Trends | 11 | |||||||
| The next step will be letting Mark Sanchez do more. They have to throw it better in 2010. And they will. | ||||||||||
 | 8 | Packers · Trends | 7 | |||||||
| Aaron Rodgers showed he's a star in the making this season. That will make Green Bay a Super threat in 2010. | ||||||||||
 | 9 | Bengals · Trends | 8 | |||||||
| They made big strides to win the division, but they have to improve the passing game. That means getting speed help outside. | ||||||||||
 | 10 | Ravens · Trends | 12 | |||||||
| It's time for Joe Flacco and that passing game to take a big step forward. You have to get big chunks of yardage to win in this league. | ||||||||||
 | 11 | Patriots · Trends | 10 | |||||||
| Tom Brady will be a year removed from his knee injury, which means he will be better. The key for the Patriots will be improving their pass rush. | ||||||||||
 | 12 | Cardinals · Trends | 9 | |||||||
| Matt Leinart takes over for the retired Kurt Warner. There are a lot of questions about the former Heisman winner, but the Cardinals staff believes in him. Do his teammates? | ||||||||||
 | 13 | Broncos · Trends | 13 | |||||||
| What do they do with Brandon Marshall? Is he back? Is he traded? They need him, that's for sure. | ||||||||||
 | 14 | Steelers · Trends | 14 | |||||||
| The concerns with this team are on both lines. They have to play better there. Isn't that the Steelers way? | ||||||||||
 | 15 | Texans · Trends | 15 | |||||||
| They had a winning season, but it's time to make the playoffs. They do have an explosive passing game, which gives them a good chance. | ||||||||||
 | 16 | Falcons · Trends | 16 | |||||||
| They played the Saints tough twice with a lot of injuries. That has to give them hope heading into next season. They have to work on fixing that defense. | ||||||||||
 | 17 | Giants · Trends | 20 | |||||||
| There is some talk that Tom Coughlin could be in trouble if he doesn't win next season. I don't buy it. But they do have to improve the defense. | ||||||||||
 | 18 | Titans · Trends | 17 | |||||||
| Vince Young played well when he took over. Now he has to show he can do it again. | ||||||||||
 | 19 | Dolphins · Trends | 18 | |||||||
| I think this is a team to watch in 2010. Chad Henne will give the Dolphins a better chance to get to a Super Bowl. He does need a receiver. | ||||||||||
 | 20 | 49ers · Trends | 19 | |||||||
| The Niners have talent, but they have to throw it better to be a playoff team. I think Alex Smith just might be the answer. The offensive line needs fixing. | ||||||||||
 | 21 | Jaguars · Trends | 21 | |||||||
| Jack Del Rio got another year, which some question. Does his quarterback get the same? | ||||||||||
 | 22 | Panthers · Trends | 22 | |||||||
| They have to decide who plays quarterback. Is it Matt Moore or Jake Delhomme? It should be Moore. What to do with Julius Peppers? | ||||||||||
 | 23 | Redskins · Trends | 23 | |||||||
| Mike Shanahan has to decide if Jason Campbell is his quarterback of choice. I bet he decides that he is. Hiring Jim Haslett was a good move for the defense. | ||||||||||
 | 24 | Bears · Trends | 24 | |||||||
| Lovie Smith has one year to show that he can turn this team around. Hiring Mike Martz as offensive coordinator is a great move. | ||||||||||
 | 25 | Seahawks · Trends | 25 | |||||||
| Pete Carroll has a long way to go to turn this team around. First decision is if Matt Hasselbeck is the right guy at quarterback. | ||||||||||
 | 26 | Bills · Trends | 26 | |||||||
| Is Chan Gailey the right choice? Let's put it this way: His hiring was a surprise. He does know offense. | ||||||||||
 | 27 | Chiefs · Trends | 28 | |||||||
| You can bet the first priority is trying to improve that offensive line. Matt Cassel took a beating. | ||||||||||
 | 28 | Browns · Trends | 27 | |||||||
| Eric Mangini gets another year, and he probably earned it late. Can Mike Holmgren turn this team around? He has a lot of work to do. | ||||||||||
 | 29 | Buccaneers · Trends | 30 | |||||||
| Raheem Morris gets another year and his team should be better just because Josh Freeman will be better. Hey, they did beat the Saints late in the season. | ||||||||||
 | 30 | Raiders · Trends | 29 | |||||||
| Tom Cable is back. Is that a good thing? Who knows? If they don't fix the quarterback position, does it matter? | ||||||||||
 | 31 | Lions · Trends | 31 | |||||||
| It's all about improving the defense. They need pass-rush help in the worst way. They are another year away from competing -- at least. | ||||||||||
 | 32 | Rams · Trends | 32 | |||||||
| They have a huge decision at the top of the draft: Do they take a quarterback or do they solve that by acquiring Michael Vick? We'll see. | ||||||||||
