NFL power rankings Week 3: Dallas Cowboys leap after impressive start to 2023 NFL season

Are the Dallas Cowboys the best team in the NFL?

That's up for debate after the first two weeks of the NFL season.

What's not up for debate is the fact that the Cowboys are playing like the best team in the league after two weeks.

In NFL Week 1, Dallas beat the New York Giants on the road, 40-0.

In NFL Week 2, it defeated the New York Jets, 30-10.

The Cowboys' offense, and defense, have been explosive, and impressive.

The impressive start to the season has resulted in Dak Prescott and company making a dramatic leap in our NFL Week 3 power rankings, going all the way from No. 8 to No. 1.

And Mike McCarthy's team deserves it.

No team is off to a more impressive start in the 2023 NFL season.

Check out how we rank the 32 teams in the NFL heading into Week 3, from the lowest (Houston Texans) to the highest (the aforementioned Cowboys), with previous ranking in parenthesis.

NFL Week 3 picks: Giants at 49ers | Colts at Ravens | Titans at Browns | Falcons at Lions | Saints at Packers | Texans at Jaguars | Broncos at Dolphins | Chargers at Vikings | Patriots at Jets | Bills at Commanders | Panthers at Seahawks | Cowboys at Cardinals | Bears at Chiefs | Steelers at Raiders | Eagles at Buccaneers | Rams at Bengals

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32. Houston Texans (32)

Lost to Colts, 31-20. C.J. Stroud showed some positive signs, but the Texans are 0-2 and it could be a very long season in Houston.

31. Chicago Bears (29)

Lost to Buccaneers, 27-17. Many thought Justin Fields would have a breakout season. It hasn't happened two games into the year.

30. Arizona Cardinals (31)

Lost to Giants, 31-28. Arizona has only been outscored by a combined seven points in its two losses, but it's hard to find a win on this team's schedule.

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29. Denver Broncos (26)

Lost to Commanders, 35-33. Yes, the Broncos have only been outscored by three points in their two losses, but both of those losses were at home.

28. Indianapolis Colts (30)

Beat Texans, 31-20. Anthony Richardson looks like a winner in Indianapolis, but had to leave Week 2 with a concussion.

27. Carolina Panthers (24)

Lost to Saints, 20-17. The schedule is tough for the Panthers in the coming weeks with games against the Seahawks, Vikings, Lions and Dolphins before their bye.

26. New England Patriots (17)

Lost to Dolphins, 24-17. Maybe we are too down on the Patriots after an 0-2 start, but we just don't see them overcoming the Bills and Dolphins in the AFC East.

25. New York Jets (14)

Lost to Cowboys, 30-10. We probably had the Jets ranked too high last week after their emotional Week 1 win, but Zach Wilson is obviously not Aaron Rodgers.

24. Las Vegas Raiders (22)

Lost to Bills, 38-10. This team could not move the ball on the Bills. They might not be able to move the ball on a lot of teams this season.

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23. Tennessee Titans (28)

Beat Chargers in overtime, 27-24. Maybe we were too quick to write off Ryan Tannehill and company after a 1-point Week 1 loss to the Saints.

22. Los Angeles Rams (21)

Lost to 49ers, 30-23. This team may not challenge for the NFC West title, but it is a heck of a lot better than it was in 2022.

21. New York Giants (20)

Beat Cardinals, 31-28. The Giants would have plummeted with a loss to the Cardinals. This team has major issues, but showed resiliency in the huge comeback.

20. Green Bay Packers (13)

Lost to Falcons, 25-24. We're probably being too harsh on this team for a 1-point loss in Atlanta, but we're got questions in the post-Aaron Rodgers era.

19. Cleveland Browns (12)

Lost to Steelers, 26-22. The injury to Nick Chubb looms large over this team.

18. Pittsburgh Steelers (19)

Beat Browns, 26-22. T.J. Watt scored his first NFL touchdown in the Steelers' win on Monday Night Football. The defense is great, it's the offense that will decide how well Pittsburgh does this season.

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17. Minnesota Vikings (16)

Lost to Eagles, 34-28. Don't blame Kirk Cousins for this team's 0-2 start. He looked great against the Eagles. This team could still make some noise in 2023.

16. Washington Commanders (27)

Beat Broncos, 35-33. Should the Commanders really be ranked this high? Probably not, but they are 2-0 and we are going to reward them for it.

15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (25)

Beat Bears, 27-17. We are surprised. We really thought this team would be in shambles this season. Baker Mayfield and company are looking good.

14. New Orleans Saints (15)

Beat Panthers, 20-17. The Saints have won their two games by a combined four points. Taysom Hill had nine carries for 75 yards against Carolina.

13. Atlanta Falcons (23)

Beat Packers, 25-24. Wins are wins in the NFL and we're rewarding the Falcons for their 2-0 start. Bijan Robinson could be special.

12. Los Angeles Chargers (10)

Lost to Titans in overtime, 27-24. This team has lost its two games by a combined five points and their head coach might suddenly be on the hot seat for a team with high expectations.

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11. Cincinnati Bengals (7)

Lost to Ravens, 27-24.  For the second straight season, the Bengals are 0-2. They ended up 12-4 last season, so don't write them off just yet.

10. Jacksonville Jaguars (11)

Lost to Chiefs, 17-9. We're a little concerned that the Jaguars couldn't find the end zone against the Chiefs, but this team could feast on the AFC South all season.

9. Detroit Lions (9)

Lost to Seahawks in overtime, 37-31. Could Jared Goff and the Lions actually be the favorite in the NFC North now? Yes, it lost, but this team never backs down and never stops fighting.

8. Seattle Seahawks (18)

Beat Lions in overtime, 37-31. We're not sure what to make of this team. It looks awful, then great. The schedule, however, lines up fairly favorably for them to be in the race all season.

7. Buffalo Bills (6)

Beat Raiders, 38-10. This was the Bills team we thought we would see in Week 1. It's amazing how good they look when Josh Allen doesn't turn the ball over.

6. Miami Dolphins (5)

Beat Patriots, 24-17. This team is going to be very hard to stop on offense if Raheem Mostert plays like he did on Sunday Night Football.

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5. Baltimore Ravens (4)

Beat Bengals, 27-24. The Lamar Jackson to Mark Andrews connections is special, as long as both players can stay healthy for Baltimore.

4. Kansas City Chiefs (3)

Beat Jaguars, 17-9. This team has not looked good through two weeks, but has the Bears and Jets the next two weeks.

3. Philadelphia Eagles (2)

Beat Vikings, 34-28. It hasn't been pretty, but the Eagles are 2-0 and looking like an early Super Bowl contender in the NFC again.

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2. San Francisco 49ers (1)

Beat Rams, 30-23. Is Brock Purdy a good enough quarterback to win the Super Bowl? If he continues to play mistake-free football, the 49ers have a chance

1. Dallas Cowboys (8)

Beat Jets, 30-10. A seven spot rise for Dallas? Yes, we're elevating the Cowboys, who have outscored their two opponents this season by a combined score of 70-10.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: NFL power rankings Week 3: Dallas Cowboys make case as NFL's best team