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The Kansas City Chiefs finished last out of 32 teams in the final edition of last season’s ESPN.com NFL Power Rankings and the Tennessee Titans finished 26th.

The two teams meet in Tennessee this weekend, so one of their respective rises up to fifth and 13th in the Power Rankings this season will be put on hold

Each team's vast improvements on defense, however, could ensure that any fall may be short-lived.

Chiefs Defense – Best Pass Rush in the NFL
Not only have the Chiefs recorded the most sacks this season (18), they’ve sacked quarterbacks at the highest rate in the NFL (10 percent of dropbacks).

Although Justin Houston is tied for the league-lead with 7.5 sacks this season, nose tackle Dontari Poe may be having just as big of an impact.

Poe has recorded 3.5 sacks this season, best among interior defensive linemen. He had zero sacks last season despite playing 75 percent of the Chiefs’ defensive snaps.

Poe’s production this season is even more impressive when you compare him to nose tackles in 3-4 defenses in recent years.

Since the start of 2008, there have been only five instances of a nose tackle recording as many as four sacks in an entire season, and none have posted more than 7.5

Poe’s pressure from the interior makes it harder for offensive lines to account for the rest of the Chiefs’ pass rush.

Eight Kansas City defenders have at least a half sack this season. Last season, they had six defenders record at least half a sack.

Titans Defense – More Pass Rushers, Bigger Impact
The Titans allowed a league-worst 29.4 points per game last season, but have shaved 12 points off that average this year.

One of the keys to the turnaround has been a strategical shift on defense.

The Titans had good production when pass rushing five or more defenders last season. The problem was they used such pressure on only a quarter of opponent dropbacks.

Tennessee allowed a league-worst 70 percent of passes to be completed when rushing four or fewer last season, but were a Top-10 defense when sending extra rushers (54 percent).

The Titans defense has allowed similar numbers this season, but the big difference is that the Titans are sending at least five pass rushers on 44 percent of opponent dropbacks, the third highest rate in the NFL.

The increased number of pass rushers may be the influence of Gregg Williams, now a senior assistant with the Titans’ defense.

Williams was the New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator from 2009 to 2011. During that stretch, the Saints sent five or more pass rushers exactly half the time. No other team did that more than 43 percent of the time.

A weekly examination of the Chiefs' ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 19 | Last Week: 9 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

The Kansas City Chiefs continue their climb up the ESPN NFL Power Rankings. The 4-0 Chiefs, one of five remaining undefeated teams, are at No. 5, up from No. 9 last week.

I see no argument that supports putting any of the one-loss teams above the Chiefs in the rankings. Likewise, I see no argument that supports putting the Chiefs in the top two spots, currently occupied by Denver and Seattle.

But do the Chiefs deserve to be ranked No. 3 or 4? Maybe. Those spots are occupied by New Orleans and New England. The Saints have played three of their four games at home, with their only road game against winless Tampa Bay. They will get tested the next two weeks with road games against Chicago and New England.

The Patriots have road victories against Buffalo and Atlanta. That’s more impressive than the Chiefs, who have road wins against Jacksonville and Philadelphia. But the Chiefs have a point differential of plus-61, as opposed to plus-32 for New England.

My rankings would have the Chiefs at No. 4, behind the Patriots but ahead of the Saints.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It’s possible the careers of tight end Sean McGrath and cornerback Marcus Cooper have peaked and the two will never play as well for the Kansas City Chiefs as they did in Sunday’ 31-7 win over the New York Giants.

If that’s the case, the Chiefs still received something for their investment in McGrath and Cooper. The Chiefs claimed them off waivers shortly before the start of the regular season, McGrath from Seattle and Cooper from San Francisco.

But McGrath and Cooper, forced into the lineup by injuries, might have staying power. McGrath, who inherited the starting spot because Anthony Fasano and Travis Kelce were unable to play, caught five passes and scored the Chiefs’ first touchdown.

Cooper, a rookie drafted by the 49ers in the seventh round, started in place of Brandon Flowers, who has a sore knee. Cooper played well enough that he should be able to keep a role once Flowers returns.

Credit general manager John Dorsey for acquiring both players. They were low-risk moves, two of the seven players the Chiefs claimed off waivers at the start of the season to help them improve the bottom of their depth chart.

The Chiefs had nothing to lose and a lot to gain and already those moves look good. Cooper in particular looks like he could help the Chiefs for some time. He’s 6-2, fast and a converted wide receiver who played just two seasons of cornerback in college at Rutgers. If nothing else, he could provide the Chiefs a third cornerback after the starters, Flowers and Sean Smith.

“He’s just starting to learn the position,’’ Dorsey said. “But he has a natural feel for the position. He has that length you like in a cornerback. He’s got the recovery speed you like. There’s still a lot of development left with him. A lot of development.’’

Cooper took the Arrowhead Stadium field Sunday against Eli Manning, who was throwing to a group of receivers that includes Victor Cruz. He wasn’t fazed.

“He sure is competitive,’’ Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “I sure appreciated seeing that. That’s a pretty good receiving group there and he didn’t bow down. He came out and challenged and played good, competitive football.’’

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Andy Reid provided the Kansas City Chiefs a look into his coaching philosophy with one of his decisions in Sunday’s win over the New York Giants. If this is indeed how Reid will coach the Chiefs over the long term, they will benefit.

The decision in question came with 9½ minutes left in the fourth quarter and the Chiefs leading 17-7. Ryan Succop kicked a 53-yard field goal that would have put the Chiefs ahead by 13 points. But a Giants penalty gave Reid the option of taking the points off the board and giving the Chiefs a fresh set of downs. He took the latter.

After some anxious moments -- the Chiefs were penalized 15 yards for clipping on their next play -- they eventually scored a touchdown to go ahead 24-7.

The fact that the decision paid off for Reid isn’t what makes it a good one. It’s that he’s coaching to the strengths of the Chiefs.

Those strengths are a ball-control offense (the Chiefs had possession for almost 36 minutes on Sunday) and a defense capable of controlling games (the Giants took just 10 snaps on Kansas City’s side of the field). Chances were the Chiefs were going to chew more time off the clock and still get points on the drive. If they didn’t, chances were their defense would stifle the Giants.

There was little risk by going against the book under such circumstances, and Reid recognized that. He and the Chiefs were rewarded for it.

“Maybe just a gut feeling that I’ve tried to trust,’’ Reid said. “I can’t tell you I didn’t have a little indigestion on that gut feeling with the [clipping] penalty right there. That bothered me a little bit, but we overcame that and we got rolling.’’

These decisions won’t always work out for Reid. That’s acceptable when there’s little downside to failure. All situations are different, and Reid will have many factors to consider the next time he’s faced with a dilemma.

But over the long haul, the Chiefs will prosper with a coach who not only has a killer instinct, but listens to it.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Chiefs won’t be the team without their starting quarterback on Sunday when they meet the Titans in Nashville, Tenn., but they should have an extensive injury list during preparations this week.

The most pressing issue is the sore knee that caused starting cornerback Brandon Flowers to miss the Chiefs’ 31-7 win over the New York Giants. Coach Andy Reid said Flowers still has inflammation of the knee, so his practice week, at the least, could again be disrupted.

Veteran Dunta Robinson started the game as Flowers’ replacement but he yielded a 69-yard touchdown pass from Eli Manning to Victor Cruz. Rookie Marcus Cooper then replaced Robinson and played well, but over the long haul Flowers is one of the Chiefs’ best defensive players.

Rookie offensive tackle Eric Fisher left the Giants game late in the first half after receiving a concussion. He was replaced by Donald Stephenson. The Chiefs will similarly monitor Fisher’s progress throughout the week.

“When you look at it, he got hit more in the shoulder area than he did the head,’’ Reid said. “He didn’t take that direct blow to the head, which is a good thing. I think that will end up being a plus for him going forward.’’

Among other injured players, running back Jamaal Charles has what Reid called “very extensive” blisters on his feet and punter Dustin Colquitt has a sprained knee. Both players were able to finish the game and should be ready to play in Nashville.

Two other starters, tight end Anthony Fasano (ankle) and guard Jeff Allen (groin), did not play against the Giants and it may be at least another week until either player is ready for a game.

The 3-1 Titans will be without quarterback Jake Locker, who injured his hip in a win over the New York Jets. He will be replaced by veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick.

An examination of four hot issues from the Kansas City Chiefs' 31-7 win against the New York Giants:

Using the tight end: Tight end was a bright spot in the passing game as Sean McGrath and Kevin Brock combined for seven catches, 91 yards and touchdown. It’s critical that the Chiefs get help from all of their receivers because they don’t have a superstar for Alex Smith to throw to. The Chiefs were confident heading into training camp that they would get big receiving numbers from their tight ends, but none of their top three players at the position suited up against the Giants. Tony Moeaki is out for the season, and it might be at least one more week before Anthony Fasano (ankle) or Travis Kelce (knee) will be ready to play. The Chiefs grabbed McGrath off waivers from Seattle when the regular season started, and Brock re-signed only two weeks ago after being released by the Chiefs at the end of camp.

A new formula: The Chiefs proved they can win a game without winning the turnover battle. They were even in turnovers against the Giants, with each team committing three. That’s a positive sign as they head to Tennessee for Sunday’s game against the Titans, the only team in the league yet to commit a turnover. The Chiefs had been thriving through their first three games by winning the turnover battle. Heading into the Giants game, they were plus-nine in turnover differential, which was best in the league.

Streak ends: Smith's streak of 160 passes without an interception is over, but he didn’t appear much at fault with either of the two interceptions he threw against the Giants. Dwayne Bowe was running a slant on one interception and then appeared to cut the route short. Smith’s second interception was deflected by Jamaal Charles to a New York defender. Smith’s streak was second only to Denver’s Peyton Manning. Smith’s three touchdown passes were a career high. He is 23-5-1 over the past four seasons as a starter.

Scoring in every phase: The punt return brought back 89 yards by Dexter McCluster was the third touchdown scored this season by either the special teams or the defense. That equals the Chiefs’ total for the past two seasons. Touchdowns from the defense and special teams will continue to be important for the Chiefs, who don’t have a big-play offense. The Chiefs did a nice job sustaining long drives against the Giants, including one for 98 yards and another for 80 yards that resulted in touchdowns. But the big gains, such as a 69-yard touchdown catch by the Giants' Victor Cruz, have largely been the domain of the opponent.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Chiefs have shown remarkable patience with receiver Dexter McCluster for reasons that were not fully revealed until Sunday. Up to this point, McCluster had been a diminutive underachiever, a tiny bundle of unfulfilled potential.

Turns out his 5-foot-8, 170-pound frame can carry some serious weight. He hoisted the otherwise sluggish Chiefs, battling in a close game with the winless New York Giants, onto his shoulders and delivered them to a 31-7 victory at Arrowhead Stadium. His 89-yard punt return late in the third quarter broke the game open.

The Chiefs led 10-7 at the time. They scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to make the game look like a blowout, but at the point of McCluster’s return the Giants were still hanging around. He not only ended their hopes for an upset victory, but did so in spectacular fashion.

McCluster spun, dipped and darted in a return that was more about his ability than any great job by the blockers. Indeed, the Giants had bodies in place but McCluster made them fail in their tackles.

“Human Joystick, Part 2,” said Dwayne Bowe, invoking the nickname of Dante Hall, perhaps the best return specialist in Chiefs history. “We were actually moving on the sideline with him as he was juking and making defenders miss.”

The great return specialists have that sense of theater, saving their big plays for the biggest moments. McCluster had one such moment in his NFL career, in his first NFL game in 2010 when he returned a punt 94 yards for a touchdown in a Monday night game against San Diego.

That return was so well blocked that any number of adequate returners could have scored. Not so on Sunday’s return, which had so many twists and turns that McCluster couldn’t begin to describe it.

“I was kind of dizzy,” he said. “I was doing so much. But it was a good dizzy.

“Instincts took over. I did some things I don’t remember doing. I’ve been told it was pretty sweet. I can’t wait to go watch it.”

The Chiefs had been eager to watch many such plays from McCluster, but his memorable contributions since that night against the Chargers had been few. His roster spot seemed in jeopardy as recently as last year, when the Chiefs drafted Devon Wylie, another small receiver who was faster than McCluster.

McCluster’s career in Kansas City may have been rescued when the Chiefs hired Andy Reid as their new coach in January. Reid was intrigued by McCluster when he coached the Philadelphia Eagles and McCluster was available in the draft.

The Chiefs beat the Eagles to McCluster that year, but one of Reid’s first declarations after arriving in Kansas City was that he had big intentions for McCluster. He backed up those words by feeding the ball to McCluster often in offseason practice and training camp.

The biggest threat to McCluster’s playing time ended when Wiley was released before the start of the season.

The Chiefs got plenty of use out of McCluster on Sunday. He also caught five passes and three of them allowed the Chiefs to convert on third down and continue drives.

It wasn’t a career offensive day for McCluster, but it may have been his most meaningful, even with the punt return aside. Reid and his offensive coaches seem to be finding a way to get McCluster involved, something previous staffs tried to do but failed.

“They’re giving me a little more opportunity,” McCIuster said. “I think they really trust me. They’re not worried about stature. They’re not worried about what happened in the past. They’re worried [whether] this guy can play and let’s give him the opportunity.

“I pride myself in being able to get open. I was able to do it when my number was called.”

The first three weeks were mostly more of the same old McCluster. He did have a 36-yard punt return against Jacksonville to set up a short touchdown drive. But before Sunday he had only six catches and his signature moment of the season was his fumbled kickoff return in last week’s game in Philadelphia.

Even Reid’s patience had to run out sometime and after three weeks, it was reasonable to think that time might come soon. In that regard, McCluster’s game was just as big for him as it was for the Chiefs, a notion McCluster seemed to agree with.

“It was overdue but you know what?” McCluster asked. “It was right on time.”

In another context, that contradictory comment would make no sense. In this one, it captured the situation perfectly.

Reid also realized the significance of McCluster’s big day.

“He’ll probably sleep [well] tonight,” Reid said. “He’s probably pretty tired after all that work he did today.”

In this, McCluster was also in agreement. But before turning in for the night, he said he had something to do first.

“I might go back,” he said, “and watch that punt return a couple of times.”

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Observed in the locker room after the Kansas City Chiefs' 31-7 win over the New York Giants:

Walking wounded: Pro Bowl punter Dustin Colquitt injured his knee in the first quarter when the Giants deflected one of his kicks. The situation appeared ominous when Ryan Succop, the kicker, began practicing punts into a net along the sideline while Colquitt received medical attention. The Chiefs would have missed Colquitt's deft touch inside the 20. But he stayed in the game and finished with another big game: a 44.6-yard average on five kicks with two downed inside the 20.

Turn of events: A month ago, tight end Sean McGrath was on waivers after being released by the Seattle Seahawks, meaning his career was balanced on the whims of a team claiming him. The Chiefs were that team, fortunately for them because injuries forced Anthony Fasano and Travis Kelce out of their lineup. McGrath tied with Jamaal Charles and Dexter McCluster for the team lead with five catches Sunday and scored Kansas City's first touchdown.

Fisher out: Tackle Eric Fisher, the first pick in this year's NFL draft, received a concussion and didn't play in the second half. Donald Stephenson took his place and the Chiefs didn't lose anything with Fisher out of their lineup.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A few thoughts on the Kansas City Chiefs' 31-7 win over the New York Giants on Sunday:

What it means: The Chiefs went to 4-0 for the first time since 2003, and depending on the outcome of the later game between the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City will be no worse than tied for first place in the AFC West. The Chiefs also showed they could win without dominating the turnover battle for the first time this season. They committed three turnovers, their first three of the season, while the Giants also committed three turnovers.

Stock watch: Dexter McCluster delivered the game's biggest play late in the third quarter when he returned a punt 89 yards for a touchdown to break open what had been a close game. Two players plucked off waivers at the end of the preseason had big contributions. Rookie cornerback Marcus Cooper, who went to camp with the San Francisco 49ers, filled in nicely for the injured Brandon Flowers. Tight end Sean McGrath, who went to camp with the Seattle Seahawks, had five receptions, including one for Kansas City's first touchdown. Veteran cornerback Dunta Robinson, who opened the game replacing Flowers, was burned for a 69-yard touchdown by Victor Cruz before being replaced by Cooper. Robinson stayed in the game but as the nickelback covering the slot receiver.

Killer instinct: The Chiefs for the third straight week showed an ability to put away an opponent in the fourth quarter. Ahead 17-7, the Chiefs went on a 14-play, 80-yard drive that chewed up 9:17 and ended with Alex Smith's 2-yard touchdown pass to Jamaal Charles. The Chiefs later took advantage of a New York turnover to score a final touchdown.

What's next: The Chiefs play the Titans next Sunday in Nashville, Tenn. It's their only road game in October. After returning from Tennessee, the Chiefs will play home games against the Raiders, Texans and Browns. Their next road game after Tennessee will be against the Bills on Nov. 3.