| Rnk | LW | Team | Record | Comments |
| 1. | 1. | Indianapolis Colts | 8-0 | Exorcised their demons in Foxboro. |
| 2. | 2. | Pittsburgh Steelers | 6-2 | Escaped Lambeau Field with a victory due to Staley making plays when needed and the defense taking advantage of mistakes. Things looked especially bleak during a 12 minute stretch spanning the second and third quarters when Green Bay ran 33 plays interrupted only by a Batch kneel down to end the half. Luckily the Packers only managed 7 points in that span thanks to a missed field goal. Something definitely seems to be missing in the last 2 weeks. Offensively the value of Roethlisberger has never been more evident even though Batch did a credible job of managing the game despite being understandably rusty. Defensively the problems are less easily definable. The lack of sustained pressure in passing situations has definitely hurt. Perhaps Haggans came back from his injury too soon and things will improve as he rounds back into form. |
| 3. | 3. | Denver Broncos | 6-2 | Need to break their recent tendency to collapse in the second half of the season. |
| 4. | 4. | New York Giants | 6-2 | Manning the younger continued to progress by winning for the first time as a starter on the road. |
| 5. | 5. | Atlanta Falcons | 6-2 | Vick topped 200 yards passing last week for the first time this season. |
| 6. | 7. | Cincinnati Bengals | 7-2 | Have 2 weeks to prepare for a visit from the Colts. |
| 7. | 8. | Seattle Seahawks | 6-2 | Top ranked offense led by Alexander, the NFL rushing leading leader and a legitimate MVP candidate. |
| 8. | 9. | Carolina Panthers | 6-2 | Win at Tampa Bay is their only victory this season against a team that currently has a winning record. |
| 9. | 6. | New England Patriots | 4-4 | Should still be able to cruise to the AFC East title due to a lack of competition. |
| 10. | 10. | Dallas Cowboys | 5-3 | Parcells and Cortez will probably not be getting together to reminisce before this week's game. |
| 11. | 12. | San Diego Chargers | 5-4 | Tomlinson found the endzone 4 times after being held scoreless for 2 consecutive weeks. |
| 12. | 14. | Jacksonville Jaguars | 5-3 | Still have to be worried about playing down to the competition after needing 2 fourth quarter touchdowns to come back and beat the Texans. |
| 13. | 15. | Kansas City Chiefs | 5-3 | Played to win when down by 3 with only 5 seconds remaining and no time outs by handing the ball to Johnson up the middle from the 1 yard line. The gamble paid off. |
| 14. | 16. | Chicago Bears | 5-3 | A 4 game winning streak has given them a 2 game lead in the NFC North. |
| 15. | 19. | Washington Redskins | 5-3 | Travelled to Philadelphia at the right time after having to go to the swamps of Jersey at the wrong time. |
| 16. | 11. | Philadelphia Eagles | 4-4 | Said goodbye to TO. Probably also said goodbye to the playoffs although they really didn't have much choice. |
| 17. | 17. | St. Louis Rams | 4-4 | Vitt's reliance on Jackson has gotten them back on track. The imminent return of Bulger, Holt and Bruce should help as long as they don't forget about Jackson. |
| 18. | 13. | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5-3 | Not the same since the injury to Griese. |
| 19. | 18. | Oakland Raiders | 3-5 | The only team in the AFC West with a losing record. Let down by the defense after Collins led an impressive 4th quarter comeback. |
| 20. | 20. | Miami Dolphins | 3-5 | A victory at home over the Patriots would get them into a tie for the division lead. |
| 21. | 26. | Minnesota Vikings | 3-5 | A different team in the friendly confines of the Metrodome. Johnson playing mistake free football certainly didn't hurt. |
| 22. | 22. | Buffalo Bills | 3-5 | Find themselves tied for second place and only a game out of first because no one in the AFC East has a winning record. |
| 23. | 21. | Detriot Lions | 3-5 | Probably didn't envision Pollard and Vines being their leading receivers after using 3 straight top 10 picks on wideouts. |
| 24. | 23. | Baltimore Ravens | 2-6 | Will the return of Boller help or make things worse? |
| 25. | 30. | Cleveland Browns | 3-5 | Finally scored their first rushing touchdown of the season leaving the Cardinals as the only remaining team that hasn't gotten into the endzone on the ground. |
| 26. | 24. | New York Jets | 2-6 | Bollinger led a furious rally in relief of Testeverde that fell just short. The decision to give Bollinger a start next week given their current situation was really a no brainer. |
| 27. | 25. | Arizona Cardinals | 2-6 | Unable to overcome the complete lack of a running game. |
| 28. | 27. | San Fransisco 49ers | 2-6 | Better hope that Smith starts to develop once he returns from injury. |
| 29. | 28. | Tennessee Titans | 2-7 | How much more physical punishment will McNair be willing to take? |
| 30. | 29. | Houston Texans | 1-7 | Receiver corps was bolstered by the return of Johnson. |
| 31. | 31. | New Orleans Saints | 2-7 | Can definitely use the week off. |
| 32. | 32. | Green Bay Packers | 1-7 | Have somehow managed to outscore their opponents despite only winning a single game. |