* Power Rankings : No. 15 Dallas Cowboys

A weekly examination of the Cowboys’ [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]Preseason: 20| Last week: 15 | [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

A 31-7 dismantling of the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] did nothing to change the minds of the ESPN.com voters in this week’s Power Rankings. The [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] remain at No. 15 for the second straight week.

But even by staying the same the Cowboys’ lead over their NFC East brethren increased, with the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] dropping to No. 23, the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] to No. 27 and the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] to No. 29.

Dan Graziano gave the Cowboys their highest ranking at No. 11, and Kevin Seifert had the lowest at No. 19, just one spot above where he had them after their 17-16 loss to the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] in Week 2. The Chiefs now check in at No. 8 in the rankings, by the way.

Up this week is a trip to San Diego and the 19th-ranked Chargers. Is it too early to think about an undefeated [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] bringing the No. 2-ranked [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] to AT&T Stadium on Oct. 6? Probably, but it will only happen if the Cowboys take care of business against San Diego.

The Cowboys certainly can't think of Manning yet, even if fans and media can. This is a team that has been 8-8 over the past two years and has to prove it can handle prosperity.