Week 7 NFL Power Rankings: Titans, Steelers & Seahawks stand alone
By Will Lomas
2. Seattle Seahawks (-1)
The Seattle Seahawks don’t play this week, but their position in the power rankings will be reflected in the next rankings.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers (+5)
Right now, I don’t know how anyone can be ranked of the Steelers for a few reasons. The first reason should be clear, the Steelers once again have one of the best defenses in the NFL.
T.J. Watt, Bud Dupree, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Stephon Tuitt, and Cam Heyward are the faces of one of the best units in the NFL and they continue to notch great performance after great performance. This week they took down the Cleveland Browns in a game where I thought they would get hurt from being over-aggressive.
Instead, they picked apart the Browns who were on a winning steak and it got so bad that they had to bench a banged-up Baker Mayfield.
Secondly, Chase Claypool is a problem but not in the way that you think. Sure, he has been good and teams have struggled to cover him, but what is even more dangerous is that he seems to be making this offense more creative as they try to find ways to feature him.
If there is something that opposing fans don’t want to see, it is a Pittsburgh OC who is completely locked in trying to find a way to get his favorite toy on Sportscenter that night.
Finally, James Conner has quietly bounced back from a less than stellar start to the season and he has touchdowns in four straight games as well as 100 yards in three of the last four. While some of those yards are the product of explosive plays in boom or bust situations, it is becoming less volatile and more consistent.
Knowing that you are combining consistency in the backfield with creativity on the outside and a defense that can cover for them if they get too dependant on either. That is scary and that deserves the top spot in the power rankings.