NFL Power Rankings: ESPN ranks Atlanta Falcons in top 10

In the wake of their season-opening victory over the New Orleans Saints, the Atlanta Falcons have generated a great deal of positive buzz. The general consensus appears to be a buy-in towards vast improvement from the 2013 disaster, and the “worldwide leader in sports” seems to be following that trend, as the latest edition of ESPN’s NFL power rankings place the Falcons comfortably among the top ten teams in the league.

The preseason edition ranked Atlanta as the number 17 team in the league, but after just one week, the Falcons have risen to number eight, and the caption with that rise is as follows:

"Think Matt Ryan is happy everyone’s healthy? Ryan was 9-of-11 for 224 yards on throws at least 15 yards downfield Sunday. Nine completions were a career high."

Matt Ryan was incredible in the opener, but more than that, the offensive line improvement was visible, and the influx of both Julio Jones and Roddy White is always a positive. In addition, the running game produced 123 yards, good for 14th in the league for week one, and that constitutes vast improvement from last year’s putrid ground attack.

What do you think of ESPN’s rankings? Are the Atlanta Falcons ranked too high? Too low? Just right? Tell us in the comments below!