NFL Power Rankings: A New No. 1 Emerges While the 49ers, Bucs Tumble

Welcome back to the NFL Power Rankings. 

Just in case you have wondered about the state of NFL tanking, last year, we had the Giants ripping off victories with Tommy “Cutlets” amid a non-existent race to the bottom for Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels. The Patriots won two of their last five games. The Raiders won three of their final four games. The Titans won their season finale, all while a potentially (and, boy does it look legit) generational quarterback class waited atop the board. 

Now, we have a major swath of unwatchable football teams who are timing their awfulness, well, awfully. I suspect the Browns are up to something but Carolina, Tennessee, Las Vegas, the Giants and the Saints are all too banged up, too poorly constructed or too unlucky to find themselves in the win column—all at a time when this year’s prize could wind up being … Jalen Milroe? Cam Ward?

It’s not quite Williams-Daniels-Maye-Penix-Nix-McCarthy, is all I’m saying. At least not yet. And it’s proof that trying to orchestrate something of this magnitude never goes how you think it’s going to. 

Onward!   

Last week’s ranking: No. 2
Last week’s result: beat Minnesota, 31–29
This week: vs. Tennessee

A new No. 1 in the Power Rankings this week, which I’m sure no fan base will have any problem with at all. I allowed the stats to break the tie in this one, and while the Chiefs are undefeated, the Lions have a far more efficient offense right now, they just beat one of two lone undefeated teams and are nearly identical to the Chiefs in terms of EPA per play allowed and opponent success rate. Plus, the Lions are racking up style points now and, just like the old NCAA bowl committee, I am attracted to shiny things (and I’m wildly corrupt). 

Last week’s ranking: No. 1
Last week’s result: beat San Francisco, 28–18
This week: at Las Vegas

I would imagine part of the reason I am demoting the Chiefs is simply because their style has become tiresome to me. I hate to admit that but it’s true. And when we’re talking about power, it’s this nebulous concept that can draw from so many different traits a team possesses. Clearly, the combination of Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes is more powerful than any other entity in football. But I would like to see the Lions and Chiefs in a cage match right now. The Chiefs may very well grind it out but the Lions appear so much more intimidating at the moment. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 11
Last week’s result: beat Tennessee, 34–10
This week: at Seattle

I like the addition of Amari Cooper, who won against man coverage in this game and, at least to me, seemed to add another dimension to this offense. Josh Allen looked like he had drives on Sunday where Cooper would be fed on one, then Dalton Kincaid on the next, and Keon Coleman after that. While Coleman had the bulk of his yards on a wide open reception, I was impressed with his ability to body a defender on a back shoulder fade near the end zone that was called back. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 4
Last week’s result: beat Tampa Bay, 41–31
This week: at Cleveland

Lamar Jackson posted his fourth QB rating of 119 or better in a convincing win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and his first passer rating of 150 or above this season. Jackson has pitched three perfect games in his career to this point, though the absolute storming comeback against a good Todd Bowles defense was as convincing as any we’ve seen. Baltimore’s drive chart immediately after the Buccaneers went up 10–0 in this game? Touchdown, touchdown, field goal, field goal, touchdown, touchdown. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 3
Last week’s result: lost to Detroit, 31–29
This week: at Los Angeles Rams

This should not be any disrespect to the Vikings, who, like the Texas Longhorns on Saturday, lost to a great team also at their best and had to take a tiny little slide down the rankings because of it. I did not come out of Sunday any less impressed with Sam Darnold, Brian Flores or Kevin O’Connell. Really, Minnesota’s loss came down to who was holding the ball last and, as a show of respect to Minnesota, Dan Campbell went way out of his way to ensure that didn’t happen. The Lions took a tremendous risk throwing the ball into double coverage to set up a game-winning field goal. If any of that goes haywire, we’re talking about the Vikings being the best team in football on Tuesday morning. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 6
Last week’s result: beat Carolina, 40–7
This week: vs. Chicago

Here’s something neat: If you lower the bar to a 40-rep minimum, the two best quarterbacks in the NFL in terms of advanced statistics (a composite of Expected Points Added and Completion Percentage Over Expectation) are Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota. Mariota has the benefit of whipping the Carolina Panthers, of course, but the bottom line is that Kliff Kingsbury is cooking right now. Some inside the industry believe he could throttle himself right back into a head coaching seat after this year if the pace holds. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 5
Last week’s result: beat Houston, 24–22
This week: at Jacksonville

My colleague Albert Breer was a little more spartan on Jordan Love than I was Monday morning and you can listen to our discussion on the MMQB podcast here. Breer liked the idea of Love exploring all parts of the field as he hones his sense of what he can and cannot do. I have seen a few weeks of vacillation, and while the highs are incredible and Love throws one of the most beautiful balls in the league, it also motivates him to take some really interesting chances, or believe he can drive a ball without properly setting his feet all the time. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 10
Last week’s result: beat New York Jets, 37–15
This week: vs. New York Giants

Full thoughts on Pittsburgh here from Sunday night’s column. The gist: This may be the first two-QB system to actually work. Russell Wilson is bought in and Justin Fields was not that much worse over a much larger sample size against some pretty legitimate opponents. What is truly fascinating to me is that many established coaches think they can fix players. Mike Tomlin knew he could get Wilson to abandon this ineffective style of play he was carrying around in Denver for something more useful. As Tomlin said himself, that’s why he’s “well-compensated.” 

Last week’s ranking: No. 7
Last week’s result: lost to Green Bay, 24–22
This week: vs. Indianapolis

Do we at all take the totality of Houston’s season to this point and put it under the microscope? My two thoughts of concern: All of Houston’s wins thus far have been one-score victories save for the Patriots in Drake Maye’s first start. Both of Houston’s losses have come at the expense of amoebic defenses rich with strong role players. Even with a great performance from Joe Mixon on Sunday, C.J. Stroud’s leading receiver did not eclipse 30 yards. He was on the run and he looked uncomfortable. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 17
Last week’s result: beat Atlanta, 34–14
This week: vs. Buffalo

Geno Smith looked special on Sunday against the Falcons and while this may be more indicative of Raheem Morris’s middling defense (middling in the sense that he needs more talent), I think we can no longer keep pushing off the idea that the Seahawks could hang on and win the division. A top-10 quarterback, a top-12 offense and a defense that, if I had to guess, will be in the top-10 conversation by season’s end, is more than good enough to get into the playoffs and start making some noise. I was admittedly dismissive of this team after early, gaffe-filled wins over the Broncos and Patriots but have come to my senses. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 8
Last week’s result: lost to Kansas City Chiefs, 28–18
This week: vs. Dallas

Amari Cooper being moved to Buffalo leaves a significant chip off the table for Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers, though I wonder if the middle part of this season will be more about Shanahan seeing how Brock Purdy can handle the long stretch without many of his top weapons (we say this like George Kittle hasn’t been outstanding this year). While this isn’t anything a 49ers fan is interested in hearing, this team has had regrouping seasons before and it’s best to have a full evaluation on Purdy before pulling the trigger on that $60 million extension. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 12
Last week’s result: bye
This week: at Washington

The Chicago Bears emerge from their bye week fourth in points allowed, sixth in yards allowed, third in forced turnovers and third in first downs allowed. Meanwhile, Caleb Williams is manning the 12th-highest scoring offense in the NFL at a time when he and his coordinator finally seem to be hitting their stride. In many other divisions they would be in first place.  

Last week’s ranking: No. 9
Last week’s result: lost to Baltimore, 41–31
This week: vs. Atlanta

The Buccaneers will have some wound-licking to do after this one, though much will depend on the status of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. I have no doubt Liam Coen and Baker Mayfield can make do, though the immediate road ahead will be more challenging. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 13
Last week’s result: beat New York Giants, 28–3
This week: at Cincinnati

A thorough thrashing of the Giants could provide Nick Sirianni and the Eagles with the inverse of their momentum-sapping losses of a year ago that spurred an infamous losing streak and a prolonged period of sleepwalking. A stretch of winnable games upcoming with Cincinnati, Jacksonville and Dallas are the preamble to a clash with the Commanders on Nov. 14 that is, all of a sudden, circled on calendars. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 16
Last week’s result: beat Miami, 16–10
This week: at Houston

I have a good deal of respect for Shane Steichen for shouldering the blame on Anthony Richardson’s recent performance but I think it’s clear to gauge his proficiency when removing Richardson from the equation. This year, Joe Flacco is fourth in EPA and CPOE composite among quarterbacks with a minimum of 125 snaps. Last year, Gardner Minshew had one of the worst completion percentage over expectation ratings (an average of –3.3 per game) and the Colts still outscored the Texans on the season and finished within a game of the playoffs. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 14
Last week’s result: beat Cleveland, 21–14
This week: vs. Philadelphia

There isn’t much to say about the Bengals being an opening act to one of the biggest moments of the NFL season on Sunday when Deshaun Watson ruptured his Achilles tendon and was seen for the last time in uniform during the 2024 season. The defense continues to struggle while the offense has reemerged as one of the league’s more efficient units. Only two teams in the NFL score at a higher clip on each drive, which is kind of impossible to believe about Cincinnati but, why would Pro Football Reference ever lie to us? 

Last week’s ranking: No. 20
Last week’s result: beat the Los Angeles Chargers, 17–15
This week: at Miami

James Conner is just a beast who continues to get better, the antithesis of a power running back approaching his 30th birthday. A big catch-and-run set the table for a game-winning field goal on Monday night that thrusts the Cardinals back into the thick of the weird NFC West. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 18
Last week’s result: lost to Seattle, 34–14
This week: at Tampa Bay

I’m going to sound like the beer-breath Eagles fan who wonders aloud why the Birds don’t run that deep passing play to A.J. Brown on every series in a second, so bare with me. Kirk Cousins’s lack of movement is concerning, but we have seen other quarterbacks like him—Joe Flacco comes to mind—get resurrected thanks to incredible motion concepts around them. And … Bijan Robinson performs really well in situations where he gets the ball with a full head of steam, like tossing plays where he gets the ball with momentum toward the line of scrimmage. Isn’t there a way to combine these two truisms and bolster Atlanta’s offense while taking some pressure off Cousins? 

Last week’s ranking: No. 15
Last week’s result: lost to Arizona, 17–15
This week: vs. New Orleans

Too low? I was impressed with the team’s ability to grind out an eight-plus minute drive to take the lead late in Monday night’s loss to the Cardinals, but Jim Harbaugh is going to have the time and space to build out his weapon set here in Los Angeles … and he’s going to need it. Will Dissly led the way tonight in receiving for the Chargers.

Last week’s ranking: No. 22
Last week’s result: beat New Orleans, 33–10
This week: vs. Carolina

Sean Payton tried to abscond to Miami with Tom Brady, then retired to get out of his Saints contract, then came back to the Superdome to boat race Spencer Rattler out of the building on Drew Brees Night. The NFL is a strange place, man. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 19
Last week’s result: bye
This week: at San Francisco

After getting shellacked by the Lions, the Cowboys owner threatened to fire radio station hosts who dared question his competency (as the longest-running non Super Bowl winning GM in the league). Then, one of Jones’s pals, former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, called Lions head coach Dan Campbell classless on the radio for running the score up on his buddy. Everything is going totally fine as Dallas heads into a prime-time Sunday night matchup against San Francisco. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 21
Last week’s result: beat Last Vegas, 20–15
This week: vs. Minnesota

The Rams-Raiders game was one we’ll soon forget but this was a fantastic defensive performance from one of the youngest rosters in the NFL. I was especially impressed with Quentin Lake, who leveled Brock Bowers on a critical play near the goal line that had massive ramifications. If the Rams end up getting healthy and making a run, remember that moment in particular. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 23
Last week’s result: lost to Pittsburgh, 37–15
This week: at New England

All hot takes aside, the Jets are not a cohesive unit at the moment. At all. They are a collection of mercenaries but, worse I fear, a group of people drowning out the budding voices of great young players like Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson. A once holistic build has been covered in gasoline and fired toward the sun. We are seeing the consequences of this in real time. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 25
Last week’s result: lost to Denver, 33–10
This week: at Los Angeles Chargers

While I hate taking 30,000-foot views on many teams, the Saints continue to be a club that bums me out. I mentioned last week that I feel for Dennis Allen, who is basically the head coach of NFL Enron. This team is constantly spiraling into a financial crisis. Allen nailed his offensive coordinator hire, then his quarterback and top deep threat went down along with many other critical injuries. I hear people crying to move on from Allen and my question is—to do what? Moving on from Allen wipes out the staff, which has a lot of promise. And, what coach are you going to get to eagerly come in and take a job where he may have to eat wild amounts of dead cap?

Last week’s ranking: No. 26
Last week’s result: lost to Indianapolis, 16–10
This week: vs. Arizona

The Tua Tagovailoa news brings the Dolphins to a kind of soft and mushy part of their schedule where they face winnable games against the unpredictable (and exhausted, after Monday) Cardinals, awful Raiders, soft Patriots (not my words!) and banged up Rams. I don’t think this season is over by a longshot if Tagovailoa comes back and plays to his average. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 30
Last week’s result: lost to Los Angeles Rams, 20–15
This week: vs. Kansas City

I think this Raiders team is spunky but deserves more flare from the head coaching position, or if you’re Antonio Pierce and you just saw that the team has been internally taken over private equity style by a handful of former Patriots, don’t you realize there’s nothing left to lose anyway? I understand the reasons why they kicked twice in the game’s final minutes while trailing by double-digit points, but I don’t understand why you would prefer that over just letting it rip? 

Last week’s ranking: No. 24
Last week’s result: lost to Philadelphia, 28–3
This week: at Pittsburgh

We have entered a dark phase of the Giants’ season. I know I point this out every week but there’s a world where this team is 4–3 with wins over Joe Burrow and Jayden Daniels and it doesn’t even take a lot of fuzzy math to get there. Alas, we’re now in the QB-change-for-a-spark era which, in the New York market, is a perilous and unenjoyable place to be. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 28
Last week’s result: beat New England, 32–16
This week: vs. Green Bay

Doug Pederson escaped the London pink slip with a 25-point run after starting the game down 10–0 to the bottom-feeding Patriots. Over the last three weeks, Trevor Lawrence has had three of his best four games of the season and two games of a 119 passer rating or better. Pederson will need a lot to salvage this season, but repolishing the franchise quarterback is a big step in the right direction. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 31
Last week’s result: lost to Cincinnati, 21–14
This week: vs. Baltimore

*Thinking Face Emoji*

Last week’s ranking: No. 29
Last week’s result: lost to Jacksonville, 32–16
This week: vs. New York Jets

Jerod Mayo committed one of the great unforced errors by using the word soft in conjunction with his team. While I said the same thing about Antonio Pierce calling out “business decisions” in Las Vegas and the team won a week later, Mayo billed himself as the anti-hardass in the wake of Bill Belichick’s ouster. Taking that back, while also demanding hardass players midseason, is a tough little bit of gymnastics to perform. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 27
Last week’s result: lost to Buffalo, 34–10
This week: at Detroit

I watched this Titans-Bills game in its entirety and if you asked me to describe to you how the team got up to a 10–0 lead before Buffalo unleashed 34 straight points, I don’t think I could do it. This offense makes every movement look incredibly difficult. Even the beloved running back checkdown. 

Last week’s ranking: No. 32
Last week’s result: lost to Washington, 40–7
This week: at Denver

How could you have done this to Andy?