Three of the top six Power teams lost this week, so there was definitely some shake-up in the rankings. Cleveland is proving they are no fluke, and Houston finally found their mojo. The week ended on a rare Tuesday night game, where the Bills utterly collapsed in a surprisingly messy performance.
NFL Team Power Rankings [Last week's position]
1. Baltimore Ravens (4-1) [3] : The Ravens returned to the top with another dominating performance, this time completely shutting down the offense of the Bengals. Despite their loss to the Chiefs, this might be the strongest team in the AFC.
2. Green Bay Packers (4-0) [1] : A bye week came early to the Pack. That might be poorly scheduled, as they had avoided significant injuries so far. They might want that bye later in the season.
3. Seattle Seahawks (5-0) [5] : Even though they only mustered a thin one-point win over the Vikings, they survived a week which saw many of the top Power teams lose. Maintaining your strength when others around you falter is also an indication of strength.
4. Los Angeles Rams (4-1) [10] : The Rams followed up their slaughter of the Giants with an equally impressive dismantling of NFC East Washington. The Rams seem to have found their groove, as one NFL.com analyst now places them at the top of the Power Rankings. That might be premature, because their best wins have been against weak NFC East teams, but this week will really measure their power.
5. Tennessee Titans (4-0) [11] : They slaughtered the previously unbeaten Bills, showing that their defense might be the most disruptive in the league.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-0) [7] : Another nice win for the Steelers where both the offense and defense shined, although the offense had more moments this week.
7. Kansas City Chiefs (4-1) [2] : Tough loss to the Raiders exposed that their offense takes a few too many risks.
8. Indianapolis Colts (3-2) [4] : The Browns beat them handily and showed that the Colts defense still needs some work.
9. Tampa Bay Bucs (3-2) [8] : Returning to Chicago was not good for the Bucs, as the Bears defense shut them down in the second half. There is still some work to be done among Brady and his receivers, and they need to strength their running game.
10. Arizona Cardinals (3-2) [NR] : A big win over the Jets helped their resume, and they were also assisted by a poor week among the previous Power teams. Whether they can stay among the top Power teams will be determined by how well they stretch this winning streak. A game against Dallas this week likely helps.
11. Cleveland Browns (4-1) [NR] : A strong victory over the Colts pushed this team into the upper levels of the Power Rankings, quite a feat. This is showing that, after years of hype, the Browns might actually be a contender this year.
12. Chicago Bears (4-1) [12] : Another stirring comeback shows that this team makes excellent halftime corrections. Let's see if they can do a little better in the first half of games.
And, due to the large fluctuations of the Power Rankings, and the proposed extended playoff rules to allow 14 teams in the playoffs, I extend my Power Rankings to 16 positions.
13. Miami Dolphins (2-3) [NR] : While I am normally adverse to ranking teams with losing records, you cannot ignore the impressive performance against the 49ers, and it shows that Miami may be catching fire.
14. New Orleans Saints (3-2) [16] : They came from behind to force overtime, and then held back the Chargers after they could only muster a field goal. The Saints are still not as impressive as they started the season, but their defense is starting to spark. A little more consistency in the offense would be nice.
15. New England Patriots (2-2) [13] : They sat out this week due to COVID, so there's not much to say about them.
16. Carolina Panthers (3-2) [18] : Nice win over Atlanta, although it was expected. The Panthers need to show up stronger in their games.
17. Buffalo Bills (4-1) [6] : What a fall! Historically one of the largest single-week power drops I have every charted, the Bills looked absolutely atrocious against the Titans. Granted, Tennessee has a strong defense, but Josh Allen looked as bad as he did when he was a rookie. Let's hope the Bills can figure out what went wrong and get Buffalo back on track. Sometimes, an unexpected blowout like this can so demoralize a team that they never recover.
NFL Divisional Power Rankings
1. NFC West [1] : Although now longer consisting of nothing but winning teams (the 49ers are 2-3), they are still the only division where all of their teams have positive point differentials. They are also the only division with three teams in the Top Ten Power Rankings.
2. AFC North [2] : Cincy lost, but it was to a divisional opponent, so every team won who could. Cincy is also the only team with a negative point differential, and the only team with a losing record. The gap between the NFC West and AFC North is shrinking.
3. NFC North [4] : Although half of the teams did not play, a nice performance by the Vikings and a thrilling squeaker by the Bears boosted this division into third place by just 1/2 a point. Positions 3-6 are all close, with only a point and a half separating this division from the #6 division.
4. AFC South [5] : Also creeping up after impressive wins by Tennessee and Houston, the fortunes of this division seem on the rise.
5. NFC South [6] : Parity is the key, as the top three teams have the same record (3-2) and similar point differentials. Atlanta is dragging this division down.
6. AFC West [3] : Despite a fall of three positions, not nearly as bad a fall point-wise. Still, the Raiders were the only team to win this week, so it wasn't a good week for the division.
7. AFC East [7] : Miami looked good, but that was it.
8. NFC East [8] : They have now officially scored the LOWEST divisional power ranking since I've been tabulating them -- over nine seasons.
Week 6 picks
Sunday early games
Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings : The Vikings will follow up their "near" win over Seattle with a strong performance against Atlanta. The Vikings defense will allow Atlanta some glimmer of hope, but the ending will be another loss for the faltering Falcons. VIKINGS, 27-23
Baltimore Ravens at Philadelphia Eagles : Another dominant performance for the Ravens. RAVENS, 31-13
Chicago Bears at Carolina Panthers : Ooh, this game could be very close. Of course, most of the Bears games have been very close. I foresee this one starting slowly for both teams, maybe a 10-9 Panthers lead at the half. Then both teams will find ways to improve over halftime. The Bears have been better at this season, so I'll give them the edge. BEARS, 23-20
Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts : The Bengals are struggling on offense, and their defense isn't so hot, either. The Colts still need to iron out some problems, but they are good enough to overpower the Bengals. COLTS, 24-16
Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers : If there was ever a season where I might pick the Browns, it would be this season. However, the Steelers have new life under a rejuvenated Big Ben, so I have to give the edge to them. Watch for an upset, though! STEELERS, 30-27
Denver Broncos at New England Patriots : Still not sure if this game will be played, or possibly be pushed to Tuesday, as the Patriots facility remains closed due to a positive COVID test. Once again, if it is played, see my commentary from last week as to how I see it playing out. PATS, 20-16
Detroit Lions at Jacksonville Jaguars : Here are two teams who are nearly perfectly aligned on paper. In situations like this, I weigh two things: defense, and experience of the team leaders. The Jags win the defensive battle, but Lions QB Matt Stafford has the experience to spot what the Jags defense might do. After early hype, Jags QB Gardner Minshew II is showing why I didn't think much of him in my preview column. LIONS, 27-19
Houston Texans at Tennessee Titans : The Titans defense looks like the Texans defense used to. Nuff said. TITANS, 27-17
Washington No-Names at New York Giants : For the first time, I have to pick the nameless Washington team (I promise to get to that soapbox column! My next one is about the recently fired coaches, though), as they face the second-worst team in the league, and the worst team in the NFC. WASHINGTON, 17-13
Sunday late games
Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers : The 49ers got back some starters last week and still collapsed. They seem to have lost their spark. Perhaps playing their rival Rams will bring back some of that spark, but I still have to favor the Rams here. RAMS, 28-17
Monday afternoon
We had a Tuesday night game last week, and now we have a game starting at 5pm in the afternoon. Weird season.
Kansas City Chiefs at Buffalo Bills : Two teams looking to redeem from less-than-stellar performances last week, the Chiefs have the advantage that they know where to plug the holes. For the Bills, it was just an overall dismal performance on both sides of the ball, and Josh Allen looked like a high school quarterback. They have a much greater distance to rebound. CHIEFS, 41-27
Monday Night Football
Arizona Cardinals at Dallas Cowboys : The Cowboys currently lead the NFC East. If Washington wins, they'll be tied after this game. CARDS, 30-20
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