Crazy week for NFL Power Rankings.
This was supposed to be a week where there were two matchups involving teams from the top-six of the Week 4 NFL Power Rankings.
Instead, the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers postponed their game due to a COVID and it put a black cloud of the NFL as a whole. Luckily, there was plenty of football today and hopefully, the rest of the league takes this seriously and this is only a small bump in the road (please).
Without that game, let’s look at who moved up and who moved down in the power rankings starting with some familiar names.
32. New York Jets (+0)
The Jets defense had three interceptions, but that really speaks more to how bad the Broncos played instead of how good the defense was. After scoring 37 points on the Jets defense, you would think that New York would have had a chance to put up some points or big plays in garbage time or in a shootout.
Technically you are right, but the only offensive touchdown of the day came from Sam Darnold’s legs and there isn’t anything that should make fans overthink an offseason where Darnold should be sold to the highest bidder and the Jets should go after a new GM/HC/QB trio.
31. New York Giants (+0)
It was a credit to the New York Giants players that they were able to keep the game against the L.A. Rams close for as long as they did. If they had a better quarterback then this team could be one of the most interesting teams in the NFL going forward.
At this point, this entire season is going to be dedicated to finding out if Daniel Jones is the answer, and after New York goes 2-14 we will know the answer is “no” but the good news is that this will be the second new quarterback in New York this upcoming offseason and it could be a very fun ride after that. Either way, it is time to start that rebuild.
30. Washington (+0)
I’m not going to ding Washington for losing to an angry Baltimore Ravens team that was trying to prove themselves. Maybe in a different world, they have Chase Young on the field and they get to see him wreak havoc on the Ravens and their offensive game plan, but that wasn’t the case.
One positive note for Washington is that even though they were not a real threat in this game, the young players really looked good. Terry McLaurin and Antonio Gibson are going to make for the core of a fun offensive skill group next year.
29. Jacksonville Jaguars (-2)
The Jaguars are a fun team to watch because Garnder Minshew and D.J. Chark can hook up for some really fun plays, and if you want to include James Robinson as the third side of that triangle then fine.
However, the big problem is with the defense who has allowed 30+ points in three straight games, and without Josh Allen, I think this team would be in the bottom-5 in the NFL easily.
Where this whole thing falls apart is that the identity of the Jaguars is a team that wants to run the ball and play defense, then pop you with some big plays in the passing game. But if you need to score a touchdown every drive then you are going to ask Minshew to do too much and you are going to be disappointed.
28. Atlanta Falcons (+0)
The Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers play on Monday night along with the New England Patriots and the Kansas City Chiefs, so their spots in the ranking will not change.
27. Miami Dolphins (-2)
The Miami Dolphins are incredibly frustrating and fun, which is the tagline for every Ryan Fitzpatrick team over the last decade.
On one hand, none of this matters and this is all just an extended preseason for the Miami Dolphins for a few reasons. First and foremost, this is the calm before the Tua Tagovailoa storm and this coaching staff just wants to make sure they know the best way to use him once he is ready to go.
The other big thing for this franchise is that they own the Houston Texans’ 1st round pick this year and right now that means that they have a top-3 pick in the draft and they are scheduled to draft 10th themselves.
So when they are competitive with one of the best teams in the NFL, but the quarterback throws two interceptions, you feel like even though they aren’t quite there yet they could be in for a huge bounce back soon.
26. Houston Texans (-2)
The Houston Texans aren’t one of the worst rosters in the NFL, but they are one of the worst teams in the NFL today and they lost in a battle between 0-3 teams today.
Some people are going to tell you that the 4th down reversal of a catch from Will Fuller was the difference in this game. Those people are not your friends and they didn’t watch a game where the Vikings overpowered the Texans for the better part of three and a half quarters until finally letting the Texans back in it late.
There feels like a lack of direction and leadership on this team and they look poised for a huge fall considering that they don’t have their 1st or 2nd round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
25. Cincinnati Bengals (+4)
Congratulations on the first win of the Joe Burrow era, and don’t let anyone tell you that it counts any less because it was against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The bad news is that I really don’t know if A.J. Green is ever going to get back into “above average” territory at wide receiver, but the good news is that Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins is not a bad tandem to have in place. Also, when you have a running back as potentially explosive as Joe Mixon, it makes it much easier to make good receivers look great.
Defensively this team is still missing Geno Atkins and maybe he makes this whole unit look better, but this season is about Joe Burrow and Joe Burrow looked good.
24. Chicago Bears (-9)
The Bears truly might go 4-12 after starting 3-0. That was one of the most pitiful games I have ever seen from a quarterback that just won the starting job and Nick Foles looked terrified all game.
Defensively the Bears did well against a Colts offense that looked old and slow but dropping two picks was terrible and rookie Jaylon Johnson alternated between looking soft and looking timid.
There isn’t much to say except this was some of the worst offense by any team all year and the defense’s mistakes were too much in a game with no wiggle room.
23. Carolina Panthers (+3)
Alright, Panthers! I’m not sure I would call that a dominant win by the offense, but it did enough with Teddy Bridgewater, Mike Davis, Robby Anderson, and Curtis Samuel all looking really good.
Defensively, this was the best I have seen a team play the Cardinals despite the box score. Talk about a rookie class that has looked very good on one side of the ball, Jeremy Chinn and Derrick Brown look like stalwarts on the defense while Yetur Gross-Matos has gotten more and more time.
Maybe I dismissed this team too quickly and it looks like they might be able to build around this core on both sides of the ball.
22. Detroit Lions (-3)
This is what the Lions are until they prove otherwise. The are a team that is going to have a big day through the air, but who will probably struggle to cosistently dominate on the ground. Ultimately, they are going to be governed by how badly their defense gets beat and even against a limited New Orleans Saints offense the Lions failed to hold a double digit lead and coughed up this game.
At this point I don’t know how you can have the Lions in the “teens” of these rankings and what do you do with them going forward after the inevitable coaching change?
21. Las Vegas Raiders (+1)
The Raiders kept it very close with a Buffalo Bills team that I am really high on, and that is sort of their brand right now. Their two loses have been within a score and they have beaten the New Orleans Saints and a Carolina Panthers team that looks a lot better than I gave them credit for back in Week 1.
Are they a great team? No, but Darren Waller, Henry Ruggs, Josh Jacobs, and Hunter Renfrow are all very good on offense and if they can get three of those guys going in a game it is going to be a long 60 minutes for the defense.
Speaking of defense, Maxx Crosby continues to make his presence felt even when he isn’t getting sacks and they are a couple of pieces away from being a team that challenges the better competition on a weekly basis.
20. L.A. Chargers (+3)
The Chargers are 1-3, but they are a team that would scare me more than most if they were on my schedule. These power rankings aren’t an indication of what the record says, they are an indication of what the tape says and the tape says that this is a dangerous team.
Justin Herbert looks great and he should be getting consideration for rookie of the year, while defensively Joey Bosa is still one of the best young EDGEs in the NFL.
It is awful that Austin Ekeler went down, but it sounds like it won’t end his season, but even despite that injury and despite not having Mike Williams, the Chargers still put up 3 TDs on one of the best defenses in the NFL and they got a pick-6 on Tom Brady.
Not a bad day for a team in a rebuilding year.
19. Arizona Cardinals (-3)
Another rough day for the Cardinals here, and I don’t think the box score does this game justice. Kyler Murray was constantly flustered and under pressure and the Carolina Panthers did a really good job keeping an injured Nuk Hopkins from making any big plays.
With those two fairly bottled up, the rest of the offense really failed to rise to the occasion and for the part of the game that mattered it was the defense keeping the game close and not the offense.
18. Philadelphia Eagles (+3)
It was good for the Eagles to get a win this week, but man Carson Wentz looks broken.
In the pocket he still looks like he is scared to try to step up and through pressure and instead of staying in the pocket and taking a lick while he throws, he gets the pass out too early and that leads to innacuracy and mistakes.
Defensively this team had a nice day, but it got a little too soft at the end when they let the 49ers get in position for a Hail Mary before the clock ran out. Still, it is hard to hold a 49ers defense down at all, so they definitely deserve credit regardless of injuries.
17. Denver Broncos (+3)
Hey, an all good news slide in the power rankings. Nice.
Speaking of good news, I think Bradley Chubb is looking good and so did Jerry Jeudy and Tim Patrick despite having a 3rd string quarterback passing the ball on a short week.
Honestly, I don’t know how much a win against the Jets helps the Broncos case, but I do know that Drew Lock is going to be back at some point and this offense has enough to get excited about where a Lock (or Blake Bortles) led team could be exciting to watch. An exciting offense should lead to more chances for the Broncos playmakers on defense.
16. Dallas Cowboys (-4)
Every week the question is whether you punish the Cowboys for wasting your time for three quarters, or whether you praise them for their ability to instantly flip a switch on both sides of the ball and look like a top-5 team?
This week they lost again falling to 1-3, so it felt like a great week to drop them in the rankings.
What is this team? You can’t call them good because they have to claw back into every 4th quarter they play in, but you can’t call them bad because the seem capable of putting up 40 per game on offense.
They are confusing and inconsistent and those two red flags are enough to drop them four spots until new data comes in to tell us what the really are.
15. Indianapolis Colts (+2)
The Colts defense is getting a lot of credit and it deserves a lot…statistically. When you look at it and separate the numbers on the page from the tape, I’m not sure it is that good.
Week 2: Played a Vikings team struggling to learn their offense.
Week 3: Got two pick-sixes off of one of the worst teams in the NFL
Week 4: Beat Nick Foles and the Chicago Bears
That isn’t really a tough slate of games and that doesn’t include losing in week one to Garnder Minshew in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ only win of the season so far…oh yea and he completed 95% of his passes in that game.
This is a good team that isn’t going to beat itself, but let’s calm down on thinking they are more than above average right now.
14. Minnesota Vikings (+4)
I think the Vikings are a really good team, but they took a little bit of time to adjust to a new offense that didn’t understand how to emphasize the strengths of that roster.
There is a chance that the Vikings are going to get to add Danielle Hunter to the pass rush at some point this season, and the cornerbacks are going to get healthy eventually. In the meantime, the past two games have been huge for reminding us what the Vikings might be.
In the last two games, the Vikings “Big 3” have put up these numbers:
Justin Jefferson: 11 receptions, 278 yards, 1 TD
Dalvin Cook: 310 rushing yards, 3 TDs
Adam Thielen: 11 receptions, 143 yards, 2 TDs
That is outstanding and that level of production can still bring this team to the NFL playoffs.
13.San Francisco 49ers (-3)
I was ready to rank the 49ers inside the top-10 again this week, but then Kyle Shanahan made a move to change quarterbacks and it through me for a loop.
See, I thought that Nick Mullens was someone that they trusted and someone that this coaching staff had faith in, so that made me believe that Mullens was going to be a solid option for them. However, they switched to C.J. Beathard with the game on the line and it worked well enough, but it makes me concerned that they aren’t really committed to either guy.
Long term I have no problem with that, but having quarterbacks scared that someone is going to come take their job if they take a risk, isn’t going to yield good results. All of the confidence that I had in the 49ers ability to go .500 without Jimmy G and all of the good will built up from the New York Giants game just went completely out the door.
12. Tampa Bay Bucs (+2)
Tampa Bay looks like the perfect place for Tom Brady to end up.
I have been down on Tom Brady since last year, and I still think that he is fighting his age and it is causing him to make some mistakes (4 pick-sixes in his last 6 games). However, no one can look at his game and think that he isn’t in a great position to succeed.
The Bucs defense is one of the best in the NFL and even though Justin Herbert torched it a little bit today, that doesn’t mean that they are any less talented. This defense is what is helping carry this team into the top-12 of these power rankings and even on a bad day they are enough to support an above average offense like this.
Mike Evans had a nice day, but he needs to stay healthy because without him and without O.J. Howard, the ceiling on this offense drops drastically.
11. New England Patriots (+0)
The Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers play on Monday night along with the New England Patriots and the Kansas City Chiefs, so their spots in the ranking will not change.
10. Cleveland Browns (+3)
Welcome to the party Odell! Talk about a massive day, 3 touchdowns in different in unique ways gives me hope that the Browns are going to find ways to feature one of the best players in the NFL in new and interesting ways.
Even on a day where the Browns lost one of their best players (Nick Chubb), they managed to find another star in the running game now pairing Kareem Hunt with D’Earnest Johnson.
Cleveland got up on the Cowboys so quickly (a 24 point 2nd quarter!) that Baker Mayfield didn’t have to have a huge day, but like I said last week, that is how the Browns need to try to win going forward.
Also, that Myles Garrett kid might just be good. Watch out for him.
9. L.A. Rams (-1)
How can a team as good as the Rams win so unconvincingly against the New York Giants.
It is hard to penalize a team in these power rankings when they win, but when you let the New York Giants take you to the wire and then you get in a fight at midfield, it makes it really hard to embrace you as a major threat in the NFL.
Now that I have gotten that off of my chest, I’ll admit that the Rams defense looked really good and this is the kind of game that I love to see out of a team like L.A.
When you should be able to put up points, but can’t, then it is really easy for a defense to play at a middling level and expect the offense to eventually pick up the slack. That isn’t what happened today and the stars of that defense dominated and then the rest of the team stepped up to match that production.
It was relentless effort to keep the Giants under 10 points and going forward it is nice to know that this team isn’t like the Dallas Cowboys or Seattle Seahawks in that they can win game that aren’t shootouts if they need to.
8. Tennessee Titans (-2)
I don’t know what the future holds for the Tennessee Titans, but it would be wonderful to get back to the good old days where I wake up and go to the gym without staring at my phone and refreshing Twitter every minute once I see 8:15 roll around waiting and dreading to see how many players tested positive today.
These power rankings are for evaluating teams and ranking them in the league, but how do you do that with a team that might not play again for a month? Sure, they could have no positive cases for a few days and play again on Sunday but at this point that would be counter to what we have seen for the last week straight and there is no reason to expect that to change.
7. New Orleans Saints (+0)
This was encouraging from the New Orleans Saints, but how much can you take from this considering the Lions are the perfect “get right” team for Drew Brees and Sean Payton.
Still, it is hard to get too high or too low on the Saints who look like a team with an arsenal of weapons on offense and a defense that flashes potential at every level of the field. I still don’t know if I am ready to consider them as anything other than a playoff team with a shot at more, but that is good enough for now. Maybe their demise is overstated.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (-1)
Dropping a spot in these power rankings is not your fault Pittsburgh, but the Ravens are the better team at this point and they deserve the recognition of being a top-5 team while there are still plenty of questions about the Steelers.
You will get too chances to prove that I am wrong, but for now you have to be satisfied with being ranked just outside the top-5 in these power rankings.
5. Baltimore Ravens (-4)
This may seem like a steep drop, but the Ravens are going to have plenty of chances to improve on this ranking as we go forward.
Right now, I think the Ravens are a team that needs to play with a lead and they haven’t shown that they can come from behind. When Lamar Jackson is asked to pick apart a defense, he just doesn’t do it and that is fine when you can make incredible plays with explosiveness and creativity, but he isn’t at the same level as Mahomes.
There isn’t much they can do to improve on this other than keep winning and dominating bad teams while proving that you aren’t a lost cause if you fall behind 10+ points. Otherwise, it is going to be a slow climb back to the top of the power rankings.
4. Buffalo Bills (+5)
The Bills have won one game by more than one score all season and that was against the New York Jets in Week 1. So, how can they be a top-5 team?
Honestly, it is pretty simple and that is because I think that Josh Allen is one of the most fun players to watch in the NFL. It is an overused cliche, but he reminds me of Brett Favre in all the best ways from his ability to create instant power and velocity when he throws, to his habit of doing really stupid things.
I think that fun is infectious too and the undefeated Bills look like a team that is excited to play every single week.
Stefon Diggs and John Brown may be the most dangerous tandem of receivers in the NFL, and every week the coaching staff finds new and unique ways to attack defenses.
This feels like a team poised to win double digit games and take home the AFC East crown and they have earned a high spot in these power rankings until they start to look worried that they might lose a game.
3. Green Bay Packers (+1)
The Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers play on Monday night along with the New England Patriots and the Kansas City Chiefs, so their spots in the ranking will not change…
Or at least that is what I would normally say. The difference this week is that the Baltimore Ravens lost on Monday Night Football against the Kansas City Chiefs after the last rankings went live. That means that the Packers naturally rise one spot.
2. Seattle Seahawks (+1)
The Seattle Seahawks are undefeated and they have scored 30+ in every game this season, which means they have averaged 35.5 points per game despite playing the New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins who are two of the better defenses in the NFL.
There isn’t much to be said about this defense, but despite Tyler Lockett being slowed down today, the Seahawks still had two receivers combine for 7 receptions, 201 yards, and a touchdown (D.K. Metcalf and David Moore). That sort of firepower and consistency are going to be very hard to beat.
1. Kansas City Chiefs (+1)
Maybe it was crazy to have the Chiefs lower than this, but I still maintain that the most difficult matchup in the NFL is Lamar Jackson. However, the best team in the league is the Kansas City Chiefs, and even though I always knew that, it took a visual reminder for me to put it on the page.
Look, it is very easy to say that I have always liked the Chiefs more but I had them #2 in these power rankings. I was wrong, the Kansas City Chiefs are the best team in the NFL until proven differently and they are a few weeks away from going undefeated for a calendar year including the playoffs and the Super Bowl.