A week of interesting football and CAMania has not only changed my outlook on the Panthers's season, but also has made some drastic changes to the power rankings.
Power Rankings - Week 1
[Previous Rank in brackets]
1. Rainbow Warriors (1-0, 118.68 pts) [2] - Jeff still has a really good team. Vincent Jackson and Holmes didn't perform like they should, but Tom Brady is definitely a force to be reckoned with. He single-handedly scored over a third of Jeff's points this week. While some might consider that a weakness, I think Brady has a good enough track record to be able to put those kinds of numbers up consistently enough to keep Jeff the team to beat - especially if his WRs start bringing it.
2. JUSTINA OWNS (1-0, 131.80 pts) [7] - Ok, so I totally underestimated Justina's team. While I don't think week 1 was a total fluke, there is still a hole or two on her team that prevents her from being #1 - mainly her QB situation, which needs working on (definitely pick up another QB somehow - Bradford's a sinking ship). But the rest of her team showed up in week 1, and is definitely looking like they're ready to put up numbers the whole season. I'm starting to like Brandon Marshall a lot, Calvin Johnson has always been a top WR (as long as Stafford can keep healthy, he'll keep putting up big numbers), but I'm not sold on Britt yet. Even so, with Green and Burleson on the bench, Justina's got pretty good depth at that position. Same with her RBs, but maybe not as deep.
3. JohnKasay#1 (1-0, 110.30 pts) [3] - There was no reason for me to bump Eric up or down. His team is still solid, and I think he's got pretty good depth at his RB spot and (now) at QB. His 3rd WR still will be of concern, but I think he's got enough firepower on the rest of his team to carry it. I'm not convinced his defense can put up 20+ points each week to take him to victory, so he'll need to tap in to the talent in his other spots to consistently put up big numbers and stay up in the rankings.
4. Spider Pig (0-1, 110.78 pts) [1] - I guess technically, since he lost, he should have dropped further. But I'm not sure he deserves to. He put up a good number of points, but was just unlucky with his matchup this week. On any given Sunday, I think he could still beat the rest of the teams below him on this list. Even though Colston will be a question mark, Luke's got #89 to easily fill in the 3rd WR spot. He might struggle with the 2nd RB position, though - seeing as how Denver's run may come to no fruition this year, and his other options are unreliable. So there are definitely some weaknesses, but not enough to bump him too far down.
5. what's poppin slime (1-0, 101.48 pts) [4] - Even though he won, he was 7th in the number of points this week, hence a slight bump down. Steven Jackson is a big question mark now, and I think he might have a hard time figuring out who to start at RB each week. His WRs underperformed week 1, but I don't think that will be a trend. If they pick it up (and I think they will - plus, Henderson will be a nice option until the Saints's WRs get healthier), expect David's team to become a threat.
6. Terrific Tortoises (0-1, 105.96 pts) [6] - Tough loss for the Tortoises - like Luke, David's team put up the points, but just had bad luck. All of his QBs looked really good week 1, but unfortunately, he can only start 1 QB each week. WRs will continue to give him problems unless he upgrades, and I'm not sold on his RBs yet - to me, they're all just mediocre (including Chris Johnson.. for now). And similar to Eric's team, Baltimore has a good defense, but don't expect them to put up those numbers consistently. If I were you, David, I'd try and trade one of my QBs for an upgrade at RB or WR. But good luck trying to deal with these stingy people.
7. odoyle RULES (1-0, 118.26 pts) [9] - I may be a little unfair to myself giving myself such a low ranking, but I'm still not 100% sold on my team being able to put up those numbers every week. Kolb looked good, but I hardly have anyone worth backing him up. I'm happy about my RB situation (as long as Jones-Drew can stay standing), but my WRs are what worry me. I was super surprised when Wallace and Bryant put up those numbers. I'm not doubting my team, but I'll just wait and see before I bump my team up any further. Like I mentioned with Luke - on any given Sunday, the 6 teams in front of me would outscore me. Hence, my ranking.
8. Relient K (0-1, 85.02 pts) [8] - Wow, who knew Tolbert would blow up like he did. Even so, Laura still needs a more reliable QB and WRs - her bench doesn't offer much help. She can blame the Panthers for Fitzgerald's low numbers. RAWR.
9. THE Pain Train (0-1, 90.18 pts) [10] - I'm still not sold on Tony Romo, but McFadden put up some good numbers, as did Johnson. The rest of his team? Eh. The only reason he got promoted was because there was a team that deserved to be lower.
10. aaronisyourdaddy (0-1, 68.20 pts) [5] - So while I underestimated Justina's team, I clearly overestimated Aaron's. Granted, he still has Arian Foster, but he won't be any good on the bench. And as long as he's on the bench, Aaron's team looks dismal. Nicks may be out for a while, which gives Aaron a further blow. He'll be playing the waiting game until he can find some healthy players.
YAYAYAYAYAYAY
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