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Week 13 NFL Power Rankings

The Week 13 NFL Power Rankings have movement all over the place! The Patriots and Lions stay put as the best and worst teams this week, respectively. But, so many other teams are moving significantly from where they were in last week’s power rankings.

32. Detroit Lions (0-10-1)

Last Week: 32

I apologize to all the Detroit Lions fans out there. But, I’m rooting for 0-16-1 at this point. It’s a feat that I’m not sure we’ll ever see happen again. For an NFL team to be good enough to come so close to winning so many times and fail to do so every single time is just… special. It’s a rough life.

But, hey, I’ll give you this: The Lions are currently 1-9-1 in my eyes. The refs failed to penalize the Baltimore Ravens with a delay of game penalty at the end of the Week 3 game. It would have knocked the Ravens out of even Justin Tucker’s inhuman field goal range. You can always hang your hats on that.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-9)

Last week: 30

The Jacksonville Jaguars are so bad they can’t even complete a comeback attempt over the Falcons. Obviously I’m poking a bit of fun at the Falcons with that comment. But, I guess my question is, where the hell was that effort the rest of the game? The Jags looked as snake-bitten as they’ve ever looked with turnovers on back to back drives in the second quarter.

They basically set the Falcons up with a 14-3 lead at halftime. The thought process was… hey, if the Jags can stop making killer mistakes, they could always turn this game around. The Falcons haven’t exactly fully earned their halftime lead. The problem is you still have to push the ball down the field, and the Jags were unable to do that.

30. Houston Texans (2-9)

Last Week: 27

Chin up, Texans fans! The only other teams to lose to the Jets this year were the Bengals and Titans and look where both of those teams are right now! Although, it’s a little different because the Texans’ offense was completely inept. Tyrod Taylor accounted for nearly 200 yards of total offense on his own, but nobody else could accomplish anything.

The Jets’ defense has been notoriously awful this season, so what does that say about the Texans’ offense? The Texans have some fundamental issues holding their football team back right now, hence their tumble in the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings.

29. New York Jets (3-8)

Last Week: 31

The much awaited return of Zach Wilson happened this week and… well, it wasn’t pretty. But, the Jets won. It was largely due to a running game that tallied 157 yards on the day. But, that doesn’t change the fact that the Jets’ air game failed to take flight all day. Wilson finished with 145 yards and an interception.

Thank god, for his sake, Mike White and Joe Flacco didn’t play any better. I can’t put them too high in the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings. But, I’ll give them a nice little boost for eclipsing their 2020 win total.

28. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-5-1)

Last Week: 23

Speaking of misleading records, how the hell is this Steelers team 5-5-1? Like the Falcons, you’d be forgiven for thinking they’re average because they have a .500 record. But, this team couldn’t beat the Lions. The refs handed them a win over the Bears. They struggled to put 15 points up on a very injured Browns team. They lucked out against Geno Smith and got a Bills team that wasn’t ready to go in Week 1.

In my opinion, they’ve only had one convincing win all season against the Denver Broncos. So, losing 41-10 to the Bengals is honestly about what we should expect. Do you honestly expect them to beat the Ravens, Vikings, Titans, Chiefs, or Browns? The Steelers are very close to visiting the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings’ basement.

27. Seattle Seahawks (3-8)

Last Week: 24

What can I even say at this point? Russell Wilson came back and this team is still hot doodoo garbage. This week might have been Seattle’s last chance to turn this season into something relevant or interesting. If only to build momentum for next year. But, now, it’s looking like it’s almost time to blow the whole thing up and start over.

26. Atlanta Falcons (5-6)

Last Week: 29

The Atlanta Falcons’ 5-6 record is a bit misleading. You’d be forgiven for thinking they’re an average football team right now if you only looked at that number. But, dive a little deeper, and you’ll see so many blown opportunities that you’d never trust this team ever again for the rest of your life. They almost had another one against the Jaguars this week. But, they prevented a fall in the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings by holding Trevor Lawrence’s heroic comeback attempt off.

25. New York Giants (4-7)

Last Week: 26

You have to give credit to the Giants’ defense. Considering the offensive production we saw, I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t have won this game without it. Three interceptions on Jalen Hurts put a bowtie on this pig of a game for Giants fans. Saquon Barkley was ineffective, Daniel Jones was uninspiring, and nobody had an answer for Hurts’ legs.

But, they found a way to get the job done. I don’t think it saves Joe Judge’s job. But, it’s the kind of hard-fought division win the locker room can hang their hat on.

24. Chicago Bears (4-7)

Last Week: 25

Wow. Um. Good job, Bears? You sure showed the Lions you could… score 16 points against them. Look, to be fair, the Bears got a win this week. It doesn’t matter in the final standings that it came against a Lions team that hasn’t won a game since Week 13 of last year (against the Bears, by the way).

Andy Dalton looked like Andy Dalton. But, hey, Darnell Mooney had a nice game! Maybe you’ve got a nice piece to build that receiving corps with?

23. Carolina Panthers (5-7)

Last Week: 21

So much for Cam Newton coming home to save the Panthers’ season, huh? Cam’s 5.8 passer rating this week was worse than anything the Panthers have ever seen out of Sam Darnold. He only completed five of his 21 passing attempts and threw it to the other team twice.

Then, perhaps even more insanely, the Panthers benched him for PJ Walker and he was sacked FOUR TIMES! The man only played two drives. I think there might be something fundamentally wrong with the Panthers, rather than their quarterbacks.

22. New Orleans Saints (5-6)

Last Week: 18

Life without Jameis Winston is tough in New Orleans. They were absolutely decimated by the Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving this week. They didn’t even sniff the end-zone until the fourth quarter. And, if that wasn’t enough, they couldn’t even convert the two-point conversion after the fact.

The Saints’ defense did pretty well through most of the first half, but the whole team fell apart in the second half. If they’re not careful, the Saints could find themselves out of the playoff race when they looked like shoo-ins a few weeks ago.

21. Miami Dolphins (5-7)

Last Week: 27

Don’t look now, but the Miami Dolphins are only a single game out of the playoff race. It seems like they’re starting to get more comfortable with the idea of letting Tua take over in a more balanced offense. It’s not exactly the prettiest way to win games. But, it is one they could be successful with. It might seem crazy, but Brian Flores could potentially save his job if he learns to trust the quarterback the team spent a No. 5 overall pick on.

20. Denver Broncos (6-5)

Last Week: 22

Rumors of the Broncos’ demise have been greatly exaggerated. Patrick Surtain showed why he was worth a high draft pick this week by essentially putting the final nails in the Chargers’ coffin with a pick six. The Broncos’ offense was largely unspectacular, but it was efficient. Teddy Bridgewater avoided any major mistakes and finished with a 101.4 passer rating. This is the formula for winning, Broncos. I could see them right back in the playoff picture if they keep riding this strategy.

19. Philadelphia Eagles (5-7)

Last Week: 16

It’s pretty difficult to win a game when Jalen Hurts throws three interceptions like that. The Eagles are running out of breathing room in the playoff race. If they’re not careful, they could be out of it entirely in a few weeks. Dropping games to the lowly Giants is not going to help at all. Maybe they should run the ball more? After all, they did record 208 yards rushing on the day. They sure couldn’t accomplish anything through the air.

18. Cleveland Browns (6-6)

Last Week: 15

The Browns are currently in the AFC North’s basement when they could have been back in control of a playoff spot with even a modicum of offensive competence. Baker Mayfield’s case to remain the future of the Browns’ quarterback position took a massive hit this week. He mostly looked lost and totally out of sync with his receivers this week.

It reminded me a lot of the connection between Baker and OBJ, but this was every receiver on his team. Even Jarvis Landry missed a connection with Baker multiple times, despite finishing with 111 yards on the day. This Browns team is going to be back under .500 this year if their offense keeps playing like this.

17. Washington Football Team (5-6)

Last Week: 20

Astoundingly, the Washington Football Team is in control of a playoff spot! How crazy would that be, by the way, if WFT could make it into the playoffs as a Wild Card team with a losing record? I doubt that would happen, but it seems so fitting of a team that made it that way last year by winning the division. I’m not sure what’s gotten into them lately, but let’s see if it keeps up now that the schedule is about to get a lot harder.

16. Minnesota Vikings (5-6)

Last Week: 12

Welp, believing in the Vikings was fun while it lasted. I feel like I’ve been saying that a lot this year. But, they fall back down to dead-middle in the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings due to following up a huge win over a division rival with a flattening loss to a team they’re competing with for a Wild Card spot.

Plus, now Dalvin Cook is going to be out for a few weeks with a dislocated shoulder. Luckily, they draw the Lions, Steelers, and Bears over the next three weeks so he should have plenty of time to heal up before the Rams come to town in week 16.

15. Indianapolis Colts (6-6)

Last Week: 14

What a shame. The Colts had the Bucs right where they wanted them. Every Titan fan in the country was starting to sweat. Then, Carson Wentz imploded. They even pushed the ball down field late in the game to tie things up. But, the defense had no answer for Leonard Fournette. One somewhat predictable Carson Wentz interception later and the big statement upset had completely slipped out of their grasp, along with control of a playoff seed.

14. San Francisco 49ers (6-5)

Last Week: 17

Winners of four of their last five games, the 49ers are coming. It seems like not too long ago many of us were wondering how long Kyle Shanahan can keep resting on injury excuses to keep his job. Well, I think this recent run of form has bought him a bit of time. This was a key win the 49ers absolutely needed against the Vikings, considering the playoff implications.

They snatched that opportunity by forcing Minnesota to make key mistakes. They’re currently the No. 6 seed in the NFC. I probably don’t have them high enough in the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings. But, give it a week or two. I’m sure they’ll be up higher soon the way they’ve been playing.

13. Las Vegas Raiders (6-5)

Last Week: 19

That’s more like it, Raiders! After looking absolutely dead in the water the past few weeks, the Raiders reminded everyone that they’re still a very talented football team in Dallas. Unfortunately, they’re just barely on the outside of the playoff race looking in due to losing to the Chargers earlier this year.

But, if they can at least keep pace, they’ll get another shot at them in Week 18. Vegas has a lot of winnable games against teams competing for a wild card spot down the stretch. So, we’ll learn if they are built to last or not.

12. Los Angeles Chargers (6-5)

Last Week: 11

The Chargers have not exactly been lighting the world on fire lately. Since their bye week, they’ve only won two of five. In fact, they almost choked one away to the Steelers. It could have easily been only one of the last five. The key factor in a lot of these losses has been Justin Herbert’s erratic, inconsistent play.

Yes, he’s an extremely talented individual. I’m not trying to suggest he isn’t a generational talent. But, he’s thrown seven interceptions in his last six games and taken 12 sacks. That’s a big reason why it looks like the wheels are starting to come off.

11. Los Angeles Rams (7-4)

Last Week: 9

Speaking of teams who have been presenting worry trends lately, the Los Angeles Rams haven’t won since October. There has to be something in the water in LA, right? Why else would BOTH Los Angeles teams be suddenly collapsing after such promising starts?

It’s actually, once again, a quarterback issue. Matt Stafford was inefficient most of the day and threw an absolutely crushing pick six just ahead of their comeback attempt. Reverse that play and the Rams have a legit opportunity to pull this one off at the end.

10. Buffalo Bills (7-4)

Last Week: 14

The Buffalo Bills got back to form this week with a total domination of a reeling Saints team. It was a good look, but not quite enough to wipe losing to the Jaguars and being dominated by the Colts out of my memory. They’ll have an opportunity to prove themselves with a couple games against the Patriots left on their schedule. But, I’m still not sure if I’m ready to bring the Bills back into the top echelon of the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings.

9. Baltimore Ravens (8-3)

Last Week: 10

Well… the Ravens won. I guess. It was about as ugly of a win as you could manage. But, it was a win. Lamar Jackson really needs to clean up the sloppy play and the turnovers if this Ravens team wants to make noise in the playoffs. At this point, I’d be shocked if they fell off and missed entirely. Although, the NFL is weird. So, I almost wouldn’t be shocked. Almost. Especially considering the rough schedule they have coming up.

8. Dallas Cowboys (7-4)

Last Week: 6

Are the Cowboys starting to turn into pretenders? Maybe, maybe not. But, you can’t spin the recent run of form in any way that’s positive. The Raiders looked like the much better team for almost the entire contest this week. Dak was efficient, but the Cowboys couldn’t run the ball.

The defense just got absolutely worked all game. Thank god the Eagles lost, right? That was almost under consideration for being an issue there for a minute! But, if the Cowboys have higher ambitions than a division championship, they’ll need to turn things around.

7. Tennessee Titans (8-4)

Last Week: 5

The Bucs ended their two-game losing streak on Monday night against the Giants. Tom Brady doesn’t typically deal well with being embarrassed, which is usually bad news for the next team up. He made the Giants pay for the sins of the Football Team and Saints with 307 yards and two touchdowns on the night.

There was a really ugly interception thrown deep in Bucs territory early in the second quarter that led to a game-tying touchdown. But, the mistake was compartmentalized and it was basically a slaughter from that point forward.

6. Cincinnati Bengals (7-4)

Last Week: 8

Back on track. The Bengals stumbled a little with back-to-back alarming games against the Jets and Browns. Had they held onto that 11-point lead in the fourth quarter over the Jets, I don’t think the pushback after the Browns game would have been as strong. But, it happened, and now everyone who dismissed the Bengals (including myself) looks pretty stupid. The Cincinnati Bengals are a bona fide contender in 2021 and you can’t convince me otherwise.

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-3)

Last Week: 7

It’s kind of nuts to think about the fact that Leonard Fournette might be having a better career as a rotational player in Tampa Bay than he ever had as the feature back with the team that drafted him No. 4 overall.

He was absolutely electrifying in Indianapolis this week, and a huge reason the Bucs came from behind to keep their playoff seeding bid intact. Because, that’s pretty much what they’re playing for at this point, right? They have a 3-game lead in the division with six games left to go. So, I’d say probably.

4. Kansas City Chiefs (7-4)

Last Week: 3

I know it’s weird to knock a team down in the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings after a bye week. But the Chiefs are in sole possession of the AFC West after their rough start you say! Only good things happened during the bye week! What even is this trash article!

Well, sorry, but that’s part of the deal with being up this high. When you don’t do anything for a week, teams with big wins like the Packers could move you out of the way. Don’t take it as anything other than logistics.

3. Arizona Cardinals (9-2)

Last Week: 2

Same deal here. The Cardinals saw the Rams fall two games behind them on their bye week. So, how are they falling in the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings, you ask? Keep reading to find out.

2. Green Bay Packers (9-3)

Last Week: 4

A massive victory this week for the Green Bay Packers this week. They absolutely came to play against a Los Angeles Rams team that needed a big win to keep up in the division race. But, Aaron Rodgers was efficient, clinical, and hard to keep in check. AJ Dillon was the baaaad man this week with 90 all purpose yards and a rather photogenic touchdown.

All in all, you should be scared of this Packers team right now. They’re clearly the class of the NFC. In fact, they’re only half a game behind the No. 1 seeded Cardinals, whom they hold a head-to-head tiebreaker over.

1. New England Patriots (8-4)

Last Week: 1

The Patriots spanked the Titans this week, proving they’re worthy of the No. 1 spot. How crazy is it that Bill Belichick seems to be building a third championship caliber era Patriots team with a completely new quarterback? There isn’t any question that Tom Brady was a big part of winning six Super Bowls back in the day. But, perhaps we’ve been too easy to forget the man who made Tom Brady who he is today. The Patriots are back.

NFL Power Rankings: Week 7

The NFL Power Rankings Week 7 are seeing quite a bit of movement. Basement teams are shuffling around, the top 10 is shuffling around, and we even have a new No. 1 this week! The Detroit Lions had the biggest fall this week all the way down to the bottom spot in the NFL. The Las Vegas Raiders saw the biggest climb after overcoming their head coach drama to put away the struggling Broncos.

32. Detroit Lions (0-6)

Last Week: 29

The bottom fell out. The Detroit Lions are the last winless team in the NFL and they got there in absolutely embarrassing fashion this week. They were completely shut out in their own home stadium against the Cincinnati Bengals. That is, until the Bengals started playing prevent defense and allowed the Lions to march down the field and put 11 garbage time points up against their backups. Dan Campbell is no longer crying for his players. Now he’s just disappointed in them. That hurts worse, and that’s why they’re now at the bottom of the NFL Power Rankings.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-5)

Last week: 32

The Jacksonville Jaguars finally snapped their 20-game losing streak. It figures it would happen in London, their second home, where they’ve played more than any other team. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still worried about how this locker room feels about Urban Meyer. But, for this week, they got the job done and earned a bit of credit on the NFL Power Rankings.

30. Houston Texans (1-5)

Last Week: 31

Trust me, I don’t feel good elevating the Houston Texans a spot after being blown out 31-3 by a team that came in with the same record as them. Unfortunately, that’s how things go sometimes when you’re down this deep in the Power Rankings. Sometimes you get dropped for looking awful, and sometimes the ineptitude of your peers makes you look slightly better.

29. Miami Dolphins (1-5)

Last Week: 27

Currently, I don’t believe the Miami Dolphins are a fundamentally more flawed team than the Jacksonville Jaguars. Miami’s quarterback situation is a mess and their defense couldn’t stop a nosebleed. But, Brian Flores still has to be a better coach than Urban Meyer, right? Flores’ fall from grace has been spectacular. But, at least his players still respect him. I think.

28. New York Giants (1-5)

Last Week: 28

Hey. They had a lead through the end of the first quarter. That’s progress right? Nevermind the fact that they let the Rams score 38 unanswered points after a pretty good start. I’m joking, of course. They’ve been absolutely spanked both of the last two weeks. You thought they were making progress when they upset the Saints after two close losses. But, it’s starting to feel a bit hopeless in Jersey.

27. New York Jets (1-4)

Last Week: 30

Sometimes one of the best things you can do is nothing. That’s what the Jets did this week on their bye week. In the process, they capitalized on an opportunity to not embarrass themselves, as they’ve done quite a few times this season. Luckily for them, a bunch of their peers on this end of the NFL Power Rankings had really bad weeks. So, the Jets end up with a large climb due to simply not looking worse than teams like the Dolphins, Texans, and Lions.

26. Atlanta Falcons (2-3)

Last Week: 26

The Falcons don’t get quite as lucky as the Jets on their bye week. Unfortunately for them, nobody in their area of the Power Rankings embarrassed themselves as badly as the teams in the bottom five. They’ll have an opportunity to get back to .500 against the lowly Dolphins next week, but for now they stay put.

25. Washington Football Team (2-4)

Last Week: 25

That was an admirable performance by Washington. They bullied Patrick Mahomes and went into halftime with a lead. Unfortunately, Mahomes decided to stand up for himself. Washington allowed the Chiefs to score three touchdowns on three drives after a missed field goal. Taylor Heinicke completed the meltdown with an interception thrown late in the fourth quarter. The game was probably already out of hand at that point, but that sealed it.

24. Philadelphia Eagles (2-4)

Last Week: 23

For a brief time, the Eagles turned a stinker of a Thursday Night Football game into a briefly watchable affair. They weren’t able to finish out the comeback due to a completely dead looking defense on the Buccaneers’ final drive. But, Jalen Hurts looked great on those final three drives.

23. Indianapolis Colts (2-4)

Last Week: 24

After nearly upsetting the Ravens last week, the Colts showed they’re still a dangerous team this week. They did it with a 31-3 drubbing of the struggling Houston Texans. Running back Jonathan Taylor exploded for 145 yards and two touchdowns. He was matched by Carson Wentz in the air, who had a very efficient night. When the Colts play like this, it makes you think they could do something exciting. The problem is, games like this have been few and far between in Indy this year.

22. Denver Broncos (3-3)

Last Week: 19

RIP to that much talked about 3-0 start. The Broncos have gone from one of the most hyped teams in NFL Power Rankings to a “bad” team. In theory, they had a devastated Raiders team delivered, like lambs, to the slaughter. In reality, the Broncos were completely outclassed by a far more talented Raiders team that looked motivated to overcome their coaching woes.

21. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-3)

Last Week: 22

I can’t say I’m exactly impressed after the Steelers ground out wins against a hilariously overrated Broncos team and the Geno Smith Seahawks. But, a win is a win, no matter how ugly. And boy, was that an ugly win. The Steelers subjected America to an overtime nobody wanted. They pulled it off in the end, but this Steelers team still has way more questions than answers.

20. New England Patriots (2-4)

Last Week: 20

You have to give it to the Patriots: They played the Cowboys much closer than any other team has since Week 1 when Tom Brady beat them. It seems like ol’ Bill Belichick is inching this team closer and closer to contention every week. But, they had a tough task against Dak Prescott and the Cowboys this week. Still, they had a lead late and almost broke it in overtime. Patriots fans have to feel like they’re right there.

19. Chicago Bears (3-3)

Last Week: 18

As a fan of a team that has been owned by a hall of fame quarterback for the last decade or so, I feel for Bears fans. They won’t stop hearing “I still own you!” all week and possibly all year. They seem like they’re good enough to turn their season around and make the playoffs. But, they did this one to themselves. They’re going to have to get out of their own way if they want to play with the big boys.

18. Las Vegas Raiders (4-2)

Last Week: 21

I did not see that coming. Last week, the Bears were absolutely mauled by the Chicago Bears in the midst of the Jon Gruden fiasco. This week, they managed to put the drama behind them and play mostly flawless football en route to a huge win. It proved they are not pretenders of the same kind as the Broncos. Was it real, or was it an emotional reaction to their awful week? Their next three games are against the Eagles, Giants, and Chiefs. So, they could easily work their way back into the top 14 if they take advantage.

17. Seattle Seahawks (2-4)

Last Week: 15

Thank God Russell Wilson is coming back eventually. They aren’t going to do much winning with Geno Smith at quarterback. He almost brought them back at the end, but it was clearly a struggle to get there. Then, he fumbled the ball away at the critical moment. Just like the interception last week. Is this what Jets fans had to deal with? Poor suckers.

16. San Francisco 49ers (2-3)

Last Week: 17

The 49ers are probably happy that the Seattle Seahawks fell just short of a victory this week. The season is still early, so you could easily see their 2-3 start flip to 4-3 with games against the Colts and Bears coming up. Then again, they could easily plummet in the power rankings if they fail to win those games.

15. New Orleans Saints (3-2)

Last Week: 16

The New Orleans Saints also benefit from Geno Smith’s ineptitude on their bye week. Then again, this is two positive results in a row for the Saints. That seems pretty unsustainable considering their run of form this year. Is that a bad omen for their matchup with the Seattle Seahawks this coming week?

14. Carolina Panthers (3-3)

Last Week: 12

Broncos fans are probably looking at this list thinking I’m an idiot for putting them so low and the Panthers, who also blew a 3-0 start, still in playoff range. Rest assured, if the Panthers put up another bad performance next week, they will be plummeting down these Power Rankings. The difference, however, is the Broncos dominated three awful opponents then got exposed when they played real teams. The Panthers at least beat the Saints and have made each of their losses interesting. Sam Darnold is starting to fall back down to earth, but they still managed to force overtime against the Vikings. They didn’t even get the ball in overtime, but you feel like they might have won the game if their offense got the ball first.

13. Minnesota Vikings (3-3)

Last Week: 14

The Vikings’ luck in their 1-3 start was absolutely brutal. But, two solid wins since have brought them back to .500. Their schedule is absolutely brutal the next four weeks as they play the Cowboys, Ravens, Chargers, and Packers. But, they’ve proven they can hang with anyone. If they can even go 2-2 in that stretch, you have to feel good about their playoff chances.

12. Tennessee Titans (3-2)

Last Week: 13

The Titans beat the team that I considered to be the most dangerous in football, so you can’t deny they look like a bona fide playoff team. Their offense is still heavily reliant on Derrick Henry continuing to be an absolute force. But, Ryan Tannehill came up clutch down the stretch too. He kept the Titans driving late in the game, allowing Derrick Henry to save his angry runs for big situations.

11. Cleveland Browns (3-3)

Last Week: 9

The last two weeks haven’t been great for the Browns. You could sort of look past that loss to the Chargers. Herbert’s gonna Herbert, but at least Baker Mayfield and the offense kept up and participated in a wild shootout. This week, Baker Mayfield couldn’t stop turning the ball over and the Browns’ offense simply could not keep up with the Cardinals. The Browns turn around on a short week to host the sputtering Broncos before getting 10 days of rest to host the Steelers. Hopefully that’s enough to shake off a rocky couple of weeks, because they need it.

10. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2)

Last Week: 11

The Cincinnati Bengals are a top-10 team in the NFL through six weeks, just like we all expected. Ok but seriously, did anyone see this coming? Granted, it’s not like the Steelers, Jaguars, and Lions are exactly difficult outs. But, they’ve been beating the teams they’re supposed to beat and that’s not nothing. Hell, they would have beaten the Packers if one of those field goals went in. They proved themselves this week by dismantling the Lions. Maybe not as efficiently as you’d hope, but it was still a blowout.

9. Kansas City Chiefs (3-3)

Last Week: 10

I was ready to move the Chiefs out of the top 14 after halftime. The Chiefs were sloppy in that first half and looked to be confirming the doubts of many with their play. But, they turned things around in the second half to the tune of a 21-0 shutout on the road. This is why I never moved the Chiefs out of the top 10. Because they’re still capable of stuff like this.

8. Los Angeles Chargers (4-2)

Last Week: 6

That was a bad loss. The Los Angeles Chargers’ vaunted offense was completely shut out in the second half and most of the first half. The missed extra point on their lone touchdown near the end of the second quarter perfectly encapsulated a day where almost nothing went right for the Chargers. The Chargers have had some close calls this year against less-than-stellar competition. But, this is also the same team that dropped 47 points on the Cleveland Browns last week. So, I’m not ready to demote them to pretenders in the NFL Power Rankings just yet. We’ll see how they respond to this setback.

7. Green Bay Packers (5-1)

Last Week: 7

Do your victory lap, Aaron Rodgers. When you’re 22-5 against an opponent, I think you have every right to claim you own them. For the most part, the Packers played pretty average football against the Chicago Bears. They held Justin Fields under 200 yards passing, but they allowed 140 yards on the ground. However, Mason Crosby hit all of his kicks and Aaron Rodgers personally scored all three of the Packers’ touchdowns against a Bears team that looked like it was turning a corner.

6. Baltimore Ravens (5-1)

Last Week: 8

How many times is Lamar Jackson going to overcome being super reckless with the football and end up looking good by the end of it? He had a bad day (167 yards passing, one touchdown, two interceptions). The Ravens STILL blew out a Chargers team many consider to be dark horse Super Bowl contenders. When they’re firing on all cylinders like this, Lamar can afford to be less than perfect. The Ravens look as tough as anybody right now despite some close games against bad teams earlier in the year.

5. Los Angeles Rams (5-1)

Last Week: 5

The Rams went into New Jersey to face off against a Giants team missing all of their legitimate offensive weapons. I can’t say this is the most legitimizing win of all time, considering many already consider the Rams to be Super Bowl contenders. But, they got the job done against an obviously inferior opponent and they absolutely deserve credit for that. There’s not much room to move around this high in the power rankings. Especially, when everyone else up here also won their games. But, Matthew Stafford and Aaron Donald both showed exactly why many value them so highly.

4. Dallas Cowboys (5-1)

Last Week: 4

It was getting tense there for a minute in Foxborough. The Cowboys came in against a below average Patriots and almost fell victim to what could be argued as a trap game and a plunge in the NFL Power Rankings. But, Dak was electrifying as ever. He overcame a boneheaded interception where he tried to force a touchdown pass into really tight coverage to wind up throwing for 445 yards and three touchdowns.

3. Buffalo Bills (4-2)

Last Week: 1

Don’t feel bad, Buffalo. Everyone struggles against Derrick Henry. The Bills ended their run of dominance this week that had me claiming them as the best team in football despite the Week 1 loss. Josh Allen tried his hardest with 379 yards of total offense, three touchdowns, and only one interception. The problem is, his bowling ball style of scrambling couldn’t get the job done on a questionable 4th and one call. I get the Bills were trying to go for the win, but you could have lived to see overtime. I imagine they’ll take their frustrations out on the Dolphins after their bye week. But, another stumble and they could see a sharp fall in the NFL Power Rankings.

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-1)

Last Week: 3

If you turned the Thursday Night Football game after halftime, no one could blame you. The Bucs were dominating the Eagles through the first half after the Eagles’ first drive. If you kept watching, you saw the Bucs somehow let the Eagles back into the game, even after extending their lead to 28-7 in the third quarter. A missed Eagles field goal takes away from just how close the Eagles were to breaking through. But, the Bucs got their act together on the final drive and ran the clock out. Overall, it was a pretty solid win that shouldn’t have been a game.

1. Arizona Cardinals (6-0)

Last Week: 2

The Arizona Cardinals continued to make their case as the best team in the NFL Power Rankings as they dominated the Cleveland Browns from start to finish. A second quarter rally by the Browns gave them a fighting chance, but the Cardinals completely shut the door in the second half. Coffin nails were arguably achieved late in the third quarter when Deandre Hopkins reeled in a touchdown pass from Kyler Murray to make it 30-14. But, all hope was extinguished when AJ Green went in the endzone against his familiar foe with just under five minutes left in the game.

NFL Power Rankings: Week 6

There’s plenty of movement — and drama — in this week’s edition of the NFL Power Rankings

The NFL power rankings are always a fun exercise. Drama reigns supreme in the 2021 NFL season. You really can’t tell what some teams are going to do on a week-to-week basis. And even beyond the results, some of these games are simply fascinating. The New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans made the biggest jump in the rankings this week at 3 spots. The Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders look like identical teams and have an identical 4-point drop in the rankings. Let’s dig into it.

32. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-5)

Last week: 30

I thought the Jaguars were showing some progress with close games against the Arizona Cardinals and Cincinnati Bengals. But, after the Bengals game head coach Urban Meyer became a massive distraction, embroiling himself in controversy.

Not only was he caught on camera letting a young woman who was not his wife grind on him at a bar. But, it was his own bar in Columbus with a picture of him and his wife on the bar, and he handled the situation like a naughty first grader who just got caught throwing rocks at windows.

His players no longer respect him, he’s lost the confidence of the fanbase, he seems to have lost the confidence of ownership, AND they just got smacked 37-19 by the division rival Tennessee Titans. The Jags are in free fall.

31. Houston Texans (1-4)

Last Week: 32

The Texans did a few things worthy of inspiring the faintest hint of promise this week. First of all, not laying a stinker amid a media firestorm and an inferno of controversy like the Jaguars helps. Second of all, Davis Mills turned in an extremely efficient game against the New England Patriots. They weren’t able to hold on to a 22-9 lead early in the third quarter. But, getting there in the first place shows a bit of progress.

30. New York Jets (1-4)

Last Week: 29

The New York Jets very nearly pulled off a second win in a row this week against the always hilarious Atlanta Falcons. Unfortunately, they had no answer for Matt Ryan and Kyle Pitts and put themselves in a position where they needed to recover an onside kick to win the game. Zach Wilson is still struggling to show why the Jets selected him with the No. 2 overall pick. But, they feel a lot closer to some form of relevancy right now than they did after their 0-3 start.

29. Detroit Lions (0-5)

Last Week: 31

Dan Campbell is a hell of a coach. His passion was evident after the Lions’ last-second loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Unfortunately, this is a bad football team. That was evident when they couldn’t accomplish much of anything through 56 minutes of game time. Jared Goff is a limited quarterback who shows flashes from time to time, but on the whole is holding the Lions back from any sort of real success.

28. New York Giants (1-4)

Last Week: 27

Ouch. The Cowboys have been embarrassing a lot of teams lately, but it’s never fun when it’s your turn. In addition to getting blown out against a division rival, the Giants lost Saquon Barkley, Daniel Jones, and Kenny Golladay to injuries. Hey at least Kadarius Toney finally looks worth that first round pick.

27. Miami Dolphins (1-4)

Last Week: 26

Hopefully Tua Tagovailoa is back this coming week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. But, it’s not going to matter much if the Dolphins keep putting… well… THAT around him. Truth be told, Jacoby Brissett has performed fairly well in Tua’s place. Yeah, he threw a garbage time interception and fumbled the ball late in the first half. But, the real problems for this team are a porous defense and an even worse offensive line. The way this team is trending, I could see them pushing the 30s by the end of the season.

26. Atlanta Falcons (2-3)

Last Week: 28

Those Falcons almost did it again! They put up a strong first half performance against the New York Jets and somehow forgot to continue playing football through the rest of the game. To their credit, they finally managed to (barely) hold onto a lead in the fourth quarter. But, it came against the lowly Jets. So, did you really win?

25. Washington Football Team (2-3)

Last Week: 22

I’ll give WFT this – Taylor Heinicke is fascinating to watch. He scrambles all over the field, knows how to put a drive together, and generally looks like a solid option most of the time. That is, until he starts making mistakes. The Washington Football Team had a genuine chance to be competitive this week against the Saints. But, Heinicke threw a bone headed interception just shy of the endzone on an opportunity for a touchdown. He threw another bad one on their own 26 with only a 4-point margin between the teams. You just can’t win with that.

24. Indianapolis Colts (1-4)

Last Week: 21

Tough break for the Colts. They outplayed the Ravens for the majority of the Monday Night Football game, but fell apart in the fourth quarter. If that wasn’t bad enough, Carson Wentz still managed to drive them down the field for the game winning field goal kick. But, Rodrigo Blankenship pushed it wide left from 47 yards. The Ravens’ offense was on a roll at that point, and they won the coin toss. It was pretty much a wrap from there.

23. Philadelphia Eagles (2-3)

Last Week: 25

From a neutral perspective, the Panthers and Eagles played an ugly game. From an Eagles fan’s perspective, you’re happy to return near .500. And, doing it against a team many recently considered to be one of the best teams in the NFL. However, that blocked punt at the end of the game perfectly encapsulates just the kind of craziness that needs to happen for the Eagles to look competitive right now.

22. Pittsburgh Steelers (2-3)

Last Week: 24

The Steelers finally looked like a competent team this week against a struggling Denver Broncos. Ben Roethlisberger played unspectacular, but mistake-free football. Najee Harris finally looked like the force on the ground the Steelers needed him to be. Losing JuJu Smith-Schuster for the rest of the season hurts too. The result wasn’t certain through the vast majority of the game, but they came away with the win at the end and that’s what matters.

21. Las Vegas Raiders (3-2)

Last Week: 14

I thought the Broncos were the biggest pretenders in the NFL. Boy was I wrong. The Raiders’ sloppiness has been there all season and is starting to get in their way. Their inability to get the two yards necessary for two points after their lone touchdown of the Chargers game exemplifies just how bad this team was at running the ball this week. Then there’s the coaching issue. Four years into a 10-year contract, head coach Jon Gruden is now gone. We don’t need to talk about the controversial aspects of that in this article. But, it is devastating from a football perspective. The Raiders’ season could very well fall off a cliff after this.

20. New England Patriots (2-3)

Last Week: 20

To be clear: the reason why I’m moving the Patriots down a spot is because I wasn’t all that impressed by their win, and teams around them are moving quite a bit. The Patriots looked dead in the water most of this game until a late rally beginning in the middle of the third quarter sparked a last-minute comeback. It was finished off by Nick Folk kicking the go-ahead field goal with 15 seconds left in the fourth quarter. It’s good for Patriots fans, who were staring 1-4 in the face. But, I see more of the ugly side of this one.

19. Denver Broncos (3-2)

Last Week: 15

After being pulverized by the Ravens last week, I called the Broncos pretenders. I’m going to go ahead and double down on that statement this week. They managed to avoid being completely embarrassed this week against a downtrodden Steelers team. But, they showed massive signs of weakness. Like Roethlisberger, Teddy Bridgewater was mostly serviceable if unspectacular this week. He didn’t make too many mistakes until an absolutely gut wrenching interception with 11 seconds left in the game killed any hopes the Broncos had of tying the game and sending it to overtime. It wasn’t even a fluke thing, it was just an awful throw and the Broncos finish things out looking like the biggest pretenders after a promising 3-0 start.

18. Chicago Bears (3-2)

Last Week: 23

You have to give credit to the Bears. Despite all the drama surrounding Matt Nagy’s decision making and Justin Fields’ development, they’ve won three of their last four games. Wins over the Bengals and Lions weren’t exactly easy, but it looked pretty easy against the Raiders this week. Keep an eye on this Bears team. They could sneak their way into the playoff picture if you take your eye off of them.

17. San Francisco 49ers (2-3)

Last Week: 16

Trey Lance didn’t look particularly comfortable in his first game as a starter. He couldn’t find the endzone, was sacked twice, and threw a costly interception on his first drive of the game. If he’s to save the quality of the 2021 rookie QB class, he’s going to need to perform much better going forward. But, I will give credit to the 49ers defense. They kept a high-flying Cardinals team to only 17 points this week. Put a decent offense on the field, and this team is a contender.

16. New Orleans Saints (3-2)

Last Week: 19

I’m really starting to get sick of your antics, Saints. Particularly you – Winston. Can you make up your mind if you’re good or not? The Saints looked like a very good football team this week. The defense allowed 373 yards, but only two touchdowns. One of which came late in the fourth quarter when it would have taken a miracle for Washington to come up with the win. Jameis threw for four touchdowns and only one interception. I wonder how they’ll lose next week?

15. Seattle Seahawks (2-3)

Last Week: 13

Russell Wilson’s doctors allegedly believe he has a realistic chance to return to the lineup in four weeks. That’s huge, because I’d have to push this team down farther if they were planning on playing Geno Smith all season. He was good enough to engineer a comeback, but he still did Geno Smith things at the end by killing it with an interception.

14. Minnesota Vikings (2-3)

Last Week: 17

Barely beating the Detroit Lions isn’t necessarily worth jumping three points in the NFL power rankings. However, contextually, the Minnesota Vikings are starting to turn things around. Don’t forget, this is the same team that is literally only a handful of traditionally low-impact plays away from being 5-0 right now.

13. Tennessee Titans (3-2)

Last Week: 18

Derrick Henry. That’s all I really need to say about the Titans. In fairness to Ryan Tannehill, he was very efficient. He even threw a touchdown pass in the second quarter! But, let’s be honest. This game was about Derrick Henry going OFF for 130 yards and 18 of the Titans’ 24 offensive points. It’s just the Jaguars, but Derrick Henry stepping on the scene is never good for the rest of the NFL.

12. Carolina Panthers (3-2)

Last Week: 11

I’m not ready to leave the Panthers behind just yet, but getting beaten by a struggling Eagles team just isn’t a good look. It’s even worse when you see Sam Darnold getting sacked three times and throwing three interceptions. Are the ghosts returning? Let’s see how they do against the Vikings next week.

11. Cincinnati Bengals (3-2)

Last Week: 12

Barely losing a strange game against the very good Green Bay Packers is not something to be terribly worried about. The season is still early and the Bengals showed a lot of fight against a Super Bowl contender. The Bengals can still make an impression with the Ravens and Browns making up two of their next four games. But, if they want to be a top-10 team, they’ll need to figure out more ways to spark the offense beyond simply chucking it deep to Ja’Marr Chase.

10. Kansas City Chiefs (2-3)

Last Week: 10

It seems kind of nuts to me to have a sub .500 team in the top 10 of the NFL power rankings. But, we all know what the Chiefs are capable of when they catch fire. Their three losses (Ravens, Chargers, Bills) have all come against teams ranked higher than them in these power rankings. Not to mention, one of their wins also came against one of those teams (Browns). I have a feeling they’ll get it turned around sooner or later, but they might fall out of the top 10 with another lackluster performance against Washington this week.

9. Cleveland Browns (3-2)

Last Week: 7

I can’t, for the life of me, figure out why people are blaming Baker Mayfield for this loss. What more do you want from him? He threw for over 300 yards, two touchdowns, only took one sack, and was extremely efficient all night. If the Browns didn’t have such a scary backfield, he probably would have thrown for more touchdowns. The defense isn’t quite ready to stop elite quarterbacks like Justin Herbert, but the Browns kept pace. They’re still a top-10 team in my eyes.

8. Baltimore Ravens (4-1)

Last Week: 9

The 1-4 Indianapolis Colts aren’t exactly a juggernaut, but you absolutely have to give it up to the Ravens for that comeback victory. Don’t get it twisted, though. I haven’t forgotten about the slow starts, and I haven’t forgotten that they lost to the Lions. Baltimore gets credit for climbing to 4-1 by climbing in the NFL power rankings, but I’m still skeptical if they can keep this up.

7. Green Bay Packers (4-1)

Last Week: 6

Credit where credit is due: The Packers survived two pivotal missed field goals by Mason Crosby and came out with a very weird win. But, this is a very injured football team. Hopefully Elgton Jenkins and Josh Meyers can return soon to put that offensive line back together. But, they’re still missing Jaire Alexander for a while. They’re still without Zadarius Smith for the rest of the season. When you have Aaron Rodgers you always have a chance, but they’re edging toward the fringes of the Super Bowl contenders.

6. Los Angeles Chargers (4-1)

Last Week: 8

If you’re still not convinced the Los Angeles Chargers are legit, I don’t know what more information you need. Justin Herbert was nearly perfect against the Browns throwing for just under 400 yards, four touchdowns, and no interceptions. He got off to a bit of an up and down start this season, but the last three weeks he has been absolutely automatic.

5. Los Angeles Rams (4-1)

Last Week: 5

The Los Angeles Rams, right now, are a team that feels like they have no holes. The only thing they’ve kind of struggled with this year is pass coverage, and even then they make up for it with well timed interceptions. That’s what they did as Geno Smith marched the Seahawks down the field this week. It was hard to stop the Geno train, but they pulled it off with their fifth pick of the season.

4. Dallas Cowboys (4-1)

Last Week: 4

I’m a sucker for a good ol’ deep pass by a wide receiver. That’s what we got from WR Cedric Wilson this week in the fourth quarter when the Cowboys were already in clear control of this football game. At that point, they were just showboating. But, it was still fun to watch nonetheless. I’m not sure if the Cowboys are benefiting from a weak division this year, but it sure didn’t help them last year. So they must also be really good.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-1)

Last Week: 3

Beating up on the poor Miami Dolphins just doesn’t seem fair. Tom Brady owned them for years in New England and now he’s moved about 200 miles northwest just to add insult to injury. The Bucs absolutely spanked them 45-17 in a game where Brady truly looked like a GOAT. Their only loss so far this season is to the Rams, but I’m confident they could win that game if they see them again in the playoffs.

2. Arizona Cardinals (5-0)

Last Week: 2

Another week, another No. 2 appearance for the only undefeated team left in football. I wasn’t terribly impressed by their 17-10 win over a struggling 49ers team. Kyler Murray was efficient but unspectacular, but their defense did look good against the rookie Trey Lance. I absolutely think they’re a dangerous team, I’m just not sure if they’re the MOST dangerous team.

1. Buffalo Bills (4-1)

Last Week: 1

The Bills ARE the most dangerous team in football right now. Josh Allen is playing lights out in the air, their ground rotation is lethal, and their defense is stifling. Week 1 is a weird stain on their season, considering the loss came to the struggling Steelers. But, I think we can safely say that game was a fluke. In the last four weeks, this Chiefs game was the only one remotely close. And they still won by 18 points.

NFL Power Rankings: Week 5

Credit: (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

It’s Week 5 and we’re getting a bit of a late start on the 2021 NFL Power Rankings, but rest assured this series will continue through at least Week 18 and possibly beyond. The NFL landscape is starting to come into focus as the good teams start to separate themselves from the bad teams. So far, it has been one of the most entertaining NFL seasons in recent memories with nail biters, comebacks, overtimes, and upsets populating the schedule. So far, this is how I see the power structure in the NFL.

32. Houston Texans (1-3)

I know it’s weird to put the Texans at the bottom of these NFL power rankings, considering they handily defeated the winless Jaguars in the first game of the season. But, the Texans are starting to turn into the team we all assumed they would be at the beginning of the season. They haven’t truly been competitive in a game since the first half of their Week 2 game in Cleveland. This week, they got exposed with a 40-0 beatdown from the red-hot Buffalo Bills. The Bills scored on every possession of the second half until they kneeled to run out the clock on the final drive. Don’t fret too hard, Texans fans. It’s a tear down season. Maybe you’ll get a solid trade package for the MIA Deshaun Watson before too long.

31. Detroit Lions (0-4)

Jared Goff continues to do Jared Goff things. He gives you hope with these impressive touchdown drives late in games. False hope appears to be the theme of the season. Why? Because those late surges almost make you forget about him doing things like fumbling twice in goal-to-go situations in the first half. Combine that with the failed fourth down conversion at the Bears’ 5, and you’ve got a Lions team that seems to thrive on pulverizing the hearts of Lions fans with metal spiked cleats.

30. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-4)

Bad decisions continue to doom the Jaguars’ hopes for a respectable 2021 season. That said, don’t forget this is still the team that has played closely and held a 2-score lead both of the last two weeks against the Cardinals and Bengals, who are a combined 7-1 right now. Throw in a Broncos team they played close in the first half, and that’s a combined 10-2 record for their last three opponents, none of which they looked totally outmatched against.

29. New York Jets (1-3)

You have to give credit to the Jets for coming out with a win this week. Had these NFL power rankings existed last week, they would have been ranked either 31 or 32. That said, the win came against a Titans team that was missing AJ Brown, Julio Jones, Bud Dupree, and Caleb Farley. Even then, they never held a lead until the fourth quarter and still would have finished the game with a tie were it not for a missed 49-yard field goal by Titans kicker Randy Bullock at the end of overtime.

28. Atlanta Falcons (1-3)

The Falcons had their thumb on WFT’s throat. All they needed was one stop against Taylor Heinicke with less than two minutes left in the game. Then again, if you’re a Falcons fan you know no lead is ever certain. Falcons gonna Falcon. Matt Ryan gave it everything he had with 283 yards, four touchdowns, and a 111.5 passer. But, with that defense, you need luck to be on your side too and it definitely has not been all season.

27. New York Giants (1-3)

Have a damn game, Daniel Jones. 402 yards passing and two touchdowns plus four runs for 27 yards is exactly the kind of performance the Giants need from their inconsistent signal caller to make things work. It wasn’t always pretty as the Giants had to claw themselves back from a 21-10 deficit late in the fourth quarter. But, they did, won the coin flip in overtime, and didn’t squander the opportunity. That’s progress.

26. Miami Dolphins (1-3)

It’s been a rough season so far for a Miami Dolphins team that, just last season, looked like a team ready to take the next step toward being a perennial playoff contender. Unfortunately, poor player development and poor coaching decisions are rearing their ugly head. The offensive line stinks. Jacoby Brissett and Myles Gaskin don’t stand a chance back there. This team looked a little better with Tua Tagovailoa behind center, but quarterback play isn’t really the main issue right now. Hopefully a matchup with the Jaguars when he is expected to come back will be what the Dolphins need to get things turned around.

25. Philadelphia Eagles (1-3)

Jalen Hurts is doing his best to give the Eagles and their fans some hope. But, dear god, that defense is terrible. They have allowed 853 yards and 83 points over the past two games. There is still a lot of bad football happening in the NFC East this year, and the Eagles have been responsible for the worst of it over the past three weeks.

24. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-3)

You could probably make the argument the Steelers deserve to be placed lower on this list. Although, I’m not entirely sure the Steelers are as terrible as their 1-3 record and their stats on both sides of the ball indicates. Clearly, their defense has regressed and their offense is a trainwreck. Perhaps taking Najee Harris in the first round instead of any of the talented offensive linemen left on the board wasn’t the smartest move. Perhaps letting Roethlisberger come back for another season wasn’t either. Maybe the Steelers are headed for a lengthy rebuild and they haven’t even scratched the bottom yet. But, they’re not quite there yet and, therefore, not scratching the bottom of these NFL power rankings.

23. Chicago Bears (2-2)

The Bears could easily be 1-3 right now were it not for an inexplicable whiffed tackle by Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson in Week 2. But, they’re not, so you have to give them some credit for having two wins. That is, despite a state of utter chaos seemingly coming from the top down. They essentially dominated the Lions for most of three quarters this week, until a late rally made the final score seem closer than it really was. Still, the poor fourth quarter play in both wins is a bit concerning.

22. Washington Football Team (2-2)

The WFT defense was supposed to be the heart and soul of this team in 2021. Yet, they rank bottom-10 in the NFL in sacks, turnovers, passing touchdowns, passer rating allowed, first down percentage allowed, and completion percentage allowed. Taylor Heinicke is not going to save you from the Falcons every week, so I think it’s safe to say there are some major concerns here.

21. Indianapolis Colts (1-3)

Despite the Colts’ record, they’ve been surprisingly competitive since Week 2. They finally broke through with a win over the struggling Miami Dolphins this week. They let the Dolphins come back a little in the fourth quarter, but this game essentially looked over after they recovered a Jacoby Brissett fumble in Dolphins territory early in the fourth quarter and capitalized to extend the lead to 20-3.

20. New England Patriots (1-3)

It’s still tough to tell whether Mac Jones is good or not. After a solid Week 1, he looked average in Week 2 and bad in Week 3. Week 4 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was back to good. He looked much better than former Patriots’ franchise QB Tom Brady in this game. The problem is the Patriots’ run game was virtually non-existent. WR Nelson Agholor was the only one who had a positive gain on the ground for the Patriots this week, and that run went for four yards.

19. New Orleans Saints (2-2)

The Saints are really hard to get a read on. Are they the contenders who spanked the Green Bay Packers 38-3 in Week 1 and handily defeated the Patriots last week? Or, are they the team that got spanked by the Panthers 26-7 in Week 2 and just lost to the lowly New York Giants? I’ll lead toward pretenders for now, rather than contenders for the sake of these NFL power rankings. Mainly because they couldn’t hold on to an 11-point lead over the Giants with under 7 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

18. Tennessee Titans (2-2)

Had the Titans not been missing so many key players due to injury, I doubt they would have lost to the lowly Jets. But, they did. Power rankings are about how powerful each team looks right now, so the injuries play a factor too. Perhaps if the Titans had someone other than Randy “calf cramps” Bullock as their kicker, they would still be just above .500. But this isn’t about “what ifs”. Once the Titans get healthy I could see them shaking this loss off and climbing back up these NFL power rankings, but for now this is where they reside.

17. Minnesota Vikings (1-3)

The Vikings are literally a fumble, a missed field goal, and a defensive holding call away from being 4-0 right now. They had the Bengals beat in Week 1 before Dalvin Cook fumbled in overtime. K Greg Joseph missed a 37-yard chip shot that would have put the Vikings over the Cardinals as the clock expired. This week, they had the Browns stopped on their only touchdown drive of the game after a failed fourth down attempt, but Eric Kendricks was flagged with defensive holding and Kareem Hunt ran the ball in the endzone three plays later. This team is almost good and could easily turn their season around if they can avoid these critical mistakes.

16. San Francisco 49ers (2-2)

It appears I am in the minority of people who were not wildly impressed by Trey Lance’s debut. Sure, he had some really nice looking plays. He helped bring the 49ers back from a 21-7 deficit in the later parts of the third quarter to make it look like a game. But, there were also quite a few bad plays. Missing a wide-open George Kittle and a horribly overthrown pass to Deebo Samuel on his first two pass attempts. Shanahan himself said, “that’s why he was the No. 2 quarterback going into that game.” So, forgive me if I’m a bit skeptical on the 49ers’ current trajectory.

15. Denver Broncos (3-1)

The Broncos are pretenders. Sorry, but that’s my impression after four weeks. Solid wins over the Giants, Jaguars, and Jets were enough to catch the NFL world’s attention through the first three weeks. Unfortunately, as soon as that attention came they had to face off against a real contender in the Baltimore Ravens. Teddy Bridgewater gave the Broncos the early lead at the beginning of the second quarter, but they couldn’t hold that lead and Drew Lock was a clear downgrade after Teddy went out at halftime with a concussion. It was never close after that.

14. Las Vegas Raiders (3-1)

The Raiders looked nothing but sloppy through three undefeated weeks. That sloppiness reared its ugly head again on Monday Night Football in the form of penalties, lack of awareness, a missed field goal, and a game-killing interception. The Raiders had multiple opportunities to go take that game back despite a 21-0 deficit at halftime. But, the Raiders did the Raider thing and fell short of the moment. So, they fall short in these NFL power rankings.

13. Seattle Seahawks (2-2)

I don’t care how injured the 49ers are or how unstable their QB situation looks right now. Going on the road and getting a pretty convincing win over your arch rivals is always a tough ask. The Seahawks have had their struggles the past couple of weeks but they looked like a playoff team in Week 4. It was an all-around team win where nobody looked particularly elite, but also they didn’t turn the ball over and kept their heads in a hostile environment.

12. Cincinnati Bengals (3-1)

Despite Joe Burrow’s ice-cold performance, I think this defense deserves some love. Despite being dominated by the Jaguars through most of the first half, they held strong on a fourth and inches at the goal line with 59 seconds left in the first half and down 14-0. The momentum generated by that play carried over to the second half where they completely flipped the script on the Jags. On the season, the Bengals’ defense is top-10 in interceptions, sacks, first-down rate allowed, passing touchdowns, yards per carry, and scoring allowed. They’ll have a chance to prove they belong in the playoff discussion, and possibly higher in the NFL power rankings, this coming week against the Packers.

11. Carolina Panthers (3-1)

You wonder if Sam Darnold was seeing those pesky ghosts again after a third quarter where he threw two interceptions as the Cowboys racked up 23 unanswered points. Zane Gonzalez’s missed 54-yard field goal at the beginning of the second half didn’t help either. However, you still get the sense that if these two teams meet again in the playoffs it could be a different result.

10. Kansas City Chiefs (2-2)

The Chiefs looked like the Chiefs again beating up on the downtrodden Eagles. Mahomes was masterful going 24/30 for 278 yards and five touchdowns. He did throw one interception that led to an Eagles field goal, but he came back and threw touchdowns on each of the final three meaningful drives. You still worry about their defense, which allowed nearly a 400-yard passing day to Jalen Hurts. But, despite that they still won by double digits. Now, let’s see if they can return to consistent winning, then they can return to the top echelon of the NFL power rankings.

9. Baltimore Ravens (3-1)

I haven’t been shy about not being as impressed by the Ravens as most. But, this week they proved to me they are worthy of a top-10 spot in the NFL power rankings. I’m still skeptical about their loss to the Lions (because that play clock expired dammit). Also, I felt they looked a bit sloppy in their first two games. But, they absolutely took care of business against a Broncos team that was insisting they’re to be taken seriously. The first quarter was a little dicey, but they turned in a strong second quarter and maintained their lead in the second half.

8. Los Angeles Chargers (3-1)

The Chargers look for real. Granted, letting the Raiders back into the game after going up 21-0 at the half doesn’t exactly have the best optics. But, you have to give them credit for gathering themselves and regaining control of the game. With Herbert playing as well as he’s been playing, Austin Eckeler finally getting going, the Chargers look like they have one of the most balanced and effective offenses in the league right now.

7. Cleveland Browns (3-1)

Oof. After three weeks, the Browns looked like Super Bowl contenders. Not so much after one of the ugliest football games I can remember watching against the Minnesota Vikings. The Browns were bailed out after a failed fourth down conversion by Eric Kendricks, who was flagged for defensive holding. The Browns capitalized on the opportunity and a two-point conversion. Without that lucky turn of events, they would have lost 7-6. That doesn’t make them look like a Super Bowl caliber team, and it’s why they’re out of the top-5.

6. Green Bay Packers (3-1)

I’m not yet fully bought in on the Packers. After being absolutely annihilated by the Saints in Week 1, they took a while to get going against the Lions and almost lost to the 49ers. They handily beat the Steelers this week, however. So, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt for now. When Aaron Rodgers is your quarterback and fully locked in, it’s hard to bet against you.

5. Los Angeles Rams (3-1)

Last week, the Rams looked like clearly the best team in the NFL. This week, their elite defense looked a bit more like wet toilet paper. They had absolutely no answer for a Cardinals team that racked up over 200 yards both passing and rushing. Matt Stafford put up a valiant effort, but the game was far out of hand after Sony Michel’s fumble early in the second quarter. Luckily for the Rams, there’s still plenty of time to fix those mistakes and be the Super Bowl team so many expect them to be this year.

4. Dallas Cowboys (3-1)

The Cowboys have beaten two quality opponents in the Los Angeles Chargers and the Carolina Panthers. They also shellacked the Philadelphia Eagles last week on national television and almost took down the Buccaneers in Week 1. Dak Prescott is looking like a top contender for both Comeback Player of the Year and MVP. Against the Panthers, he was nearly perfect (14/22, 188 yards, four touchdowns, no interceptions). Zeke also looked like Zeke, making this Cowboys team look virtually incomparable to the disappointing unit they trotted out in 2020.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1)

Tom Brady joined Brett Favre, Drew Brees, and Peyton Manning as one of only four quarterbacks to beat all 32 teams in the NFL this week. It might be the only reunion he’ll ever get, as I can’t see the Patriots making it to the Super Bowl any time soon, and these teams won’t play each other for another four years. Then again, the way his career has been going, you can’t rule out the possibility of him playing until then. It wasn’t the cleanest game for Tampa, and Tom Brady didn’t play as well as Mac Jones, but a strong running game and a solid defense kept the Bucs on track.

2. Arizona Cardinals (4-0)

The Cardinals are the last undefeated team in the NFL and rightly so. They handily beat a Rams team many expect to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl this year. Two of their other three games were won by decisive margins, and they’ve shown they can sweat out the close ones too against the Vikings. Then again, the Cardinals are 3-1 right now if Greg Joseph hits that field goal. They were down two scores to the Jaguars late in the third quarter. I just need to see a little more consistency to put them at No. 1.

1. Buffalo Bills (3-1)

I know it’s weird to have a team that isn’t undefeated at the top of the rankings. But, I’ve been far more impressed with the Bills’ victories. Yeah, they lost a weird game to the Steelers in Week 1. But, I doubt that game goes that way again if they were to replay it. Since then, they’ve won their games by a combined score of 118-21. And that’s only because the Washington Football Team scored 21. The other two games were shutouts, one of which was on the road. I know the Dolphins and Texans are bad teams right now. But, winning by that margin in the NFL is impressive no matter who you’re playing.