ESPN Bullish on Atlanta Falcons in Week 3 NFL Power Rankings

The Atlanta Falcons went on the road to upset the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday Night Football. The Falcons didn't just beat the Vikings 22-6, they dominated in every phase of the game.

Was it a perfect victory? No? Head coach Raheem Morris lamented the lack of red zone execution that saw his team go 1-5 on touchdowns, with that one being a gimme score at the end of the game, with the Vikings trying to get the ball back.

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As bad as the Falcons made Minnesota look, and to be fair, the Vikings had a hand in looking bad as well, it would be easy to look back with hindsight and not think much of the Falcons win.

But virtually no one picked the Falcons to win the game, including a unanimous ESPN panel, and a nearly unanimous one from NFL Network, with Maurice Jones-Drew being the lone dissenter.

Bring ya *** pic.twitter.com/swEz5l5U8b
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 15, 2025

Last Week, ESPN moved the Falcons up two spots after going toe to toe with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and losing a game they probably thought they should have won. This week, ESPN moves the Falcons up another two spots from No. 17 to No. 15 in their Week 3 NFL Power Rankings.

For the purposes of releasing their power rankings quickly, ESPN doesn't justify its rankings. Instead, they have their team of beat writers write a theme for the week on each franchise. This week, it was the biggest quarterback takeaway.

"Penix would have been the hero in Week 1with two fearless, fourth-quarter scrambles on fourth down, the second of which resulted in a go-ahead touchdown," Raimondi wrote on ESPN. "But the Falcons coughed up the lead on defense, and a missed field goal cost them the game. Penix's stats didn't light the world on fire in Week 2, but he didn't turn the ball over and made key third-down completions when they were needed most in front of a hostile Vikings crowd. The second-year quarterback is ninth in the league in success rate (48.6%)."

The Falcons were ultra-conservative on offense with wide receivers Drake London and Darnell Mooney both battling injury. Penix didn't complete a pass more than 15 yards downfield. Instead, the Falcons leaned on running backs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier, who accounted for 248 of Atlanta's 346 yards from scrimmage.

The Falcons also had the rare luxury of counting on a suffocating defense. Atlanta held the Vikings to six points, 198 yards, and forced four turnovers. Through two games, the Falcons are No. 2 in total defense, No. 2 in scoring defense, No. 2 in turnover differential, and No. 5 in sacks, a far cry from the 2024 wet-noodle version of the Falcons' defense.

After it was all over, we took them in the house and served them pancakeshttps://t.co/4yVnQQtuax pic.twitter.com/LwEqmwfg0w
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 15, 2025

Other teams of note include the Tampa Bay Buccaneers remaining at No. 10 after another impressive road win on Monday night against the Houston Texans. Atlanta faces the Carolina Panthers this week, who check in at No. 31, just ahead of the New Orleans Saints at No. 32.