Twelve teams make the playoffs in this league. That being said, these rankings will feature six teams from each conference. No more. No less. Your team may be a top 12 team in theory, but when push comes to shove, only 12 teams make the playoffs. As they stack up right now, the only teams that have proven anything remain in the NFC East. Bias? I guess one could call it that, but the top two teams in the AFC just haven't beaten anybody, and the rest of the conference is off to a pretty sorry start, considering where they were just a year ago.

1. New York Giants (NFC East division title): The defending Super Bowl champions are in first place in hands down the best division of football. Granted, any team in the NFC East could take the division, but right now, with Dallas hitting a snag, the Giants are undeniably the team to beat. If I sound biased, I really could care less. With what we've seen in the NFL this year, the Giants deserve the #1 spot, especially after a Cowboys loss. Granted, it was week 1 and this Redskins team has gotten better, but the Giants kept Washington out of that game altogether, and the Redskins are proving they are a talented football team. The defending champs are consistent on both sides of the ball, ranked 4th in both total offense and total defense, as well as tied for 2nd in the league in points allowed at 14.3 per game.

2. Washington Redskins (Wildcard): The Washington Redskins are doing what everybody is marveling at the Titans for doing, only they are playing ball-control football against better teams. That's exactly why I had the Redskins picked for an upset in Dallas. Both the Titans and the 'Skins share the league lead with a +6 turnover differential. However, the Redskins have proven they can control the ball against a talented cowboys team, holding onto the ball for over 38 minutes in that game. That's the kind of play that brings home championships.

3. Dallas Cowboys (Wildcard): The biggest cause for concern for the Cowboys is what makes the Washington Redskins a tough football team. Ball control. They have a big-play offense, and the kind of offense that is liable to score on an opposing defense every time it takes the field. That's all fine and good, but twice this year Dallas has had problems in the time of possession battle. Against the Eagles, they were dominated in that regard into the third quarter of play. The Redskins dominated that battle throughout. The Dallas defense is solid, but when put out on the field for twice as long as the offense, they are put into a bad situation. That will wear on this defense and the unit may have problems late in the season if the Dallas offense doesn't manage the clock better.

4. Buffalo Bills (AFC East division title): Sure, Titans fans probably aren't too happy to see their team not in the top two, let alone fall behind the Bills. At the very least, the opponents the Bills have beaten combine for a total of 4-11, which is one game ahead of those that Tennessee has beaten. Their defense is playing well, and their offense is far more explosive than that of Tennessee. If you're looking for a the overlooked mark the Bills have made through the first four that resembles that of a championship squad, look no further than their defense's ability to come up with the stop on third down, with a league leading 19.2%. Granted, this will probably change once they encounter better opponents, but even to force weaker teams punt more than four out of five times is damn good.

5. Tennessee Titans (AFC South Division title): The Titans have yet to beat a legitimate opponent this year, so I'm sorry I'm not sorry for ranking them this low, considering their four opponents have a combined record of 3-12. How this fact has completely escaped the minds of fans and analysts alike is beyond me. They are ranked a whopping 22nd in the league in offense. Now, that being said, I've always said the Titans were a good team, and they are playing good football. They just haven't done anything great yet this year, and a division that was supposed to be the AFC counterpart to the NFC East is a whopping 3-7 outside of Tennessee, while the East is 8-4 outside of the front-running New York Giants.

Plenty of people will draw comparisons between the Titans and championship teams. The difference-maker is that championship teams do what the Titans are doing now to good football teams. I'll believe in the Titans when they grind one out against a team with a winning record.

6. Carolina Panthers (NFC South division title): The Panthers have played well, and winning the first two without Steve Smith was solid. They get the one-up over the Bucs here because they don't turn the ball over so much on offense, even though the Buc's defensive play has made up for that. Still, at 3-1, the Panthers only have outscored opponents by a total of 10 points. What to make of that? Well, they have some resolve, that's for sure. Two wins decided by a field goal or less came against good teams in the Chargers and Bears, without Steve Smith. The loss to the Vikings will go overlooked, for now.

7. Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC North division winner): Yes, the offense has taken a couple of more hits and losing a starting guard is no joke for a line that has already been looking poor. Still, the Steelers defense is one that will win games for them. Surprisingly enough, they are behind only the Redskins and Titans in the turnover differential column, and that's a credit to Big Ben just as much as it is this defense. Despite taking an absolute beating, Roethlisberger has kept a good handle on the ball.They will grind out wins, and with Cleveland looking in poor shape this year, it will be another division title for Pittsburgh.

8. San Diego Chargers (AFC West division title): San Diego Super Chargers? I'm Ron Burgundy? Well, San Diego came back and beat the Raiders to avoid a 1-3 start. Granted, they haven't been playing great football, but for this team, it was merely the "W" they needed. Much like the Colts need to do in this week upcoming, the Chargers bought some time to get back into a groove. They will, and fortunately for them, the Broncos don't have the defense to make a run at the division crown.

9. Green Bay Packers (NFC North division winner): Aaron Rodgers is currently being limited to handoffs in practice, but it looks as though he is going to start against the Falcons. It was a toss-up between Da Bears and the Pack, but I just can't bank on Kyle Orton to play decent enough week in and week out. We won't have an idea until week 11, and that's one to mark on the calender. The Packers got the guns on offense. Da Bears have the defense. Sure, defense wins championships, but nobody ever said offense couldn't get you there. The Packers defense will settle down and get back to their '07 form, giving them the edge.

10. Indianapolis Colts (Wildcard): The Colts are off to a shaky start and are being dragged down by injuries. They needed that bye week, and all they need to do this week is stay healthy against the Texans and come away with the "W". This is not a statement game for the Colts. They've got three games upcoming before they take on the Titans, and I can certainly see them coming away with two of those to pull to .500. They ought to be quite a bit healthier when they take on the Titans, which will make for an exciting game. The Colts will heal up, and much like the 2006 regular season which ended with a Super Bowl victory, the Colts will be dangerous come playoff time. Perhaps it's even better for this team to not have a chance to rest in the last week of the season, as it surely didn't help them in '07.

11. Arizona Cardinals (NFC West division title): Arizona was brought down to earth in these past couple of weeks, and if I didn't have a crazy wildcard selection to throw at you, they would be in the twelve spot. The Arizona Cardinals are going to be that one team that keeps the fans guessing, "Is there really going to be a 7-9 team in the playoffs this year?" Brought back down to earth via the Redskins and Jets, this Cardinals team will win in the same fashion many thought the Seahawks would earn a playoff berth: keeping their head above water in a very weak division. Good news for the Cardinals though: the Gold Rush is not in fact back, the Seahawks are sending Holmgren off in dramatic fashion, and the Rams are making a case for the #1 draft selection.

12. Miami Dolphins (Wildcard): Call me crazy. Say it again. I'll take two for this one, but in a weak division and conference this year, the Dolphins have the guns to grab that last spot. I just said the Dolphins have the guns to grab that last spot. I did. I said it, and I will take all accountability for saying it. However, seeing as turnovers are the theme of the day, let's throw a number out there: 1. Just one turnover by this Dolphins team this year, and that single turnover was a Pennington interception in the final second of the Dolphins/Jets contest in a situation in which he had to force a pass. But that's not the whole story here.

The one-two punch of Brown/Williams finally got going in full effect last week. With Pennington being the "underrated game manager" that he is, and I wholeheartedly agree with the SRMgenius when he says that, this offense has the pieces to be real good. The defense is young, but not terrible. They will make progress. Most importantly, it's a Bill Parcells team, and everybody knows that he can turn around the league's worst faster than anybody.

An upset over San Diego in week 5 is a viable possibility, especially with the coaching staff's apparent willingness to get creative with the play-calling. The Dolphins went up against a very good receiving core (even without Brady, a tough unit to cover) against New England, and had the bye week to serve as additional preparation. One can imagine that they will throw something interesting out there. A win over San Diego would set the tone for the rest of the season, and would put the Dolphins right there in the mix.

Dark horses:

Philadelphia Eagles: Shame to call this team a dark horse, but right now they seem to be falling back to Philly's old bad habits. They could easily make the top ten on the rankings here, and they could very well make the playoffs with a wildcard berth. With every single game in this NFC East being so critical though, Philly has to be able to close out games. They haven't done that in two big games this year.

Denver Broncos: I'm sorry, but a team that is all offense and absolutely no defense is hard to consider a playoff team, especially if dropping a game to the Kansas City Chiefs is any indication. Definitely got some firepower and could very well pull it together, but I do think this team is poised for an average season, and not a whole lot more.