2. Atlanta (3-0). Mike Smith is going to get hired by those multinational companies that deal with employees getting travel burnout. The Falcons are 6-0 on the West Coast since Smith took the coaching job in 2008. And this one -- 27-3 in San Diego -- was a tour de force game from the opening kick.

3. San Francisco (2-1). Sunday, in Minnesota, was the first real sign that the Niners might be mortal.

4. Arizona (3-0). I am very nearly a believer. I love what Ken Whisenhunt did with the offensive game plan, moving the chains with Kevin Kolb. And giving up 13.3 points per game -- that is one impressive defense. By FOX's count, 20 pressures and hits on Mike Vick.

5. New York Giants (2-1). Sitting in a good position after three weeks. They're the hottest offense in football -- Giants 61, Foes 14 over the last five quarters -- and they now sit back on their mini-bye, three days away from football, while the Eagles wake up after a long trip home from Arizona and a very short night. The Giants will be well-rested when they arrive at the Linc next Sunday night.

6. Green Bay (1-1). Looks like Greg Jennings plays tonight. I'll change the old training-camp saw about injured rookies of "Can't make the club in the tub,'' to something special for the 29-year-old Jennings, who's in the last year of a contract at a quite-low salary of $3.89 million: "Can't make $12 million a year in the tub."

7. Baltimore (2-1). Never heard a manure chant that loud in my life, Al Michael said Sunday night. Imagine

what those fans would have done if the Ravens had lost.

8. New England (1-2). So much for the mothballing of Wes "8 for 142'' Welker.

9. Chicago (2-1). Mayhem turns to fine working order in the span of a week. The Bears held St. Louis to 160 yards, and physically handled the St. Louis offensive line.

10. Minnesota (2-1). Wins over Jacksonville and San Francisco have nearly convinced me, as Christian Ponder tried to do with me late Sunday afternoon, that the Vikings will be a major factor in the NFC North.

11. Seattle (1-1). Barometer game for this franchise tonight. Congrats, by the way, to Trent Dilfer. He'll be the representative of the fans, the 12th man, in raising the flag in the south end zone before the Monday night game against Green Bay. Glad to see the franchise embracing him like that.

12. Cincinnati (2-1). I get it. The defense (34 points per game surrendered) can't hold up. Maybe -- probably -- it can't. But I love the offensive explosiveness, and let's give Carlos Dunlap and Geno Atkins (seven tackles, two sacks, five quarterbacks hits on Robert Griffin III) a chance to play with the relentless Michael Johnson before we say they're going to stink on D all year.

13. San Diego (2-1). Atlanta 27, San Diego 3. Mulligan, Norv said. Looked like an overwhelmingly bad shank to me, but we shall see.

14. Dallas (2-1). I can't figure the Cowboys out. But they beat the Giants on the road, then took all the roundhouses the Bucs could throw and won again.

15. Denver (1-2). For those who'd like to throw Peyton Manning out with the trash, here's a stat for your consideration. Yards per attempt in his last healthy season, 2010: 6.9. Yards per attempt this season: 7.2. Time, people. Time.