Thursday, October 29, 2015

NFL Power Rankings - Week 8

Some big changes in the top 10. There are still 5 undefeated teams left heading into Week 7.

1. New England Patriots: 207
Last Week: 2
Notes:  They were able to handle their toughest divisional match-up of the season. The Dolphins are playing their best football right now and should give the Patriots a run for their money, but Brady & Co will win this one as well. 

2. Green Bay Packers: 183
Last Week: 1
Notes:  Rodgers and team will show why this 6-0 team is significantly better than the 6-0 Broncos.

3. Cincinnati Bengals:178
Last Week: 3
Notes: Their next two games are against divisional opponents (Steelers & Browns). If they win those, they're pretty much a lock for the division.

4. Carolina Panthers: 172
Last Week: 5
Notes: They continue to show that they're the real deal. The first place Panthers of 2015 is significantly better than the first place Panthers of 2014.

5. Arizona Cardinals 162
Last Week: 6
Notes: A closer match-up than what was expected against the Ravens. Their defense should have a field day though against the Browns next week.

6. Denver Broncos: 153
Last Week: 4
Notes: 6-0 is 6-0, but they are not as good as their record indicates. Every game, with the exception of the terrible Lions, was decided by 7 points or less. Don't get me wrong, they are a good team, but they are not at the level of the Packers, Patriots, Bengals, and Panthers.


7. Atlanta Falcons: 146
Last Week: 7
Notes: If I were to say the Falcons would be 6-1 at the beginning of this season, you would likely say that's easily good enough for first place in the NFC South. Not this year with how the Panthers are playing. Outside of two Panthers games and possibly the Colts, they have a fairly easy schedule for the rest of the year and should be able to get back into the playoffs.

8. New York Jets: 102
Last Week: 8
Notes: Despite the loss, they continue to look great. The 4-2 Jets are looking more and more like the wild card favorite in the AFC.

9. Minnesota Vikings: 73

Last Week: 11
Notes: This team doesn't get as much respect / credit as the other above .500 teams, likely due to who they've beaten. Outside of their week 1 loss to the 49ers though, they're only loss was by 3 against the undefeated Broncos. With the Falcons looking like the only solid wild card team, they look like the favorite for a 5 or 6 seed.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers: 65
Last Week: 9
Notes: Even with the loss, they're doing better without Ben than they expected. That being said, the longer he's out, the harder it will be for the Steelers to compete for a playoff spot.

11. New York Giants: 47
Last Week: 14
Notes: With how the rest of the NFC East is playing out, they look to be (barely) the favorite to win the division, but they will struggle against anybody they go against in the playoffs if they don't improve their pass rush.

12. Seattle Seahawks: 39
Last Week: 15

Notes: A victim of a brutal schedule, but they're still underperforming with a 3-4 record. All of their losses were against undefeated teams with the exception of the Rams who they always seem to struggle against. They should be able to win against the Romo-less Cowboys, but the following matchup against the Cardinals will be really interesting.

13. Philadelphia Eagles: 30
Last Week: 10
Notes: Easily the Giants biggest competition for the NFC East. They're next four games are against teams with a combined 8-17 record. They need to win 3 or 4 of these games.

14. Miami Dolphins: 23
Last Week: 17

Notes: They're looking ridiculously better these last two weeks under a new head coach.

15. Oakland Raiders: 14
Last Week: 16
Notes:  Fans have to be happy with how the Raiders are playing, even if they don't end up making the playoffs this year.

16. Buffalo Bills: 11
Last Week: 12
Notes: A comeback that still resulted in a loss against a terrible Jaguars team. After looking like a potential wild card threat, they might end up last in the AFC East.

17. St. Louis Rams: 9
Last Week: 19

Notes: The toughest team to rank. Some weeks they look like a playoff-caliber team and other weeks they are at the level of the Jaguars, 49ers, and Lions. 

18. New Orleans Saints: -17
Last Week: 23
Notes: The last two weeks the Saints look more like what we would expect out of Sean Payton / Drew Brees led team. Outside of Packers / Broncos, a game against the Giants might be the most interesting of the week.

19, Washington Redskins: -18
Last Week: 25
Notes: Despite being 3-4 and only one game out of the lead, I can't see this team competing for the NFC East. Even with their struggles, the Giants and Eagles look a lot better.

20. Indianapolis Colts: -24
Last Week: 13
Notes: Andrew Luck is definitely not playing at the level we expect from him. The Colts are lucky to be in the division they are in because of 7-9 should be good enough to win.

21. Kansas City Chiefs: -42
Last Week: 28
Notes: The Chiefs should be able to make it 2 in a row with a game against the Lions.

22. Dallas Cowboys: -50
Last Week: 18
Notes: If it wasn't clear the last two weeks, it's certainly clear now that they will continue to struggle without Romo (even if they looked better with Cassell). 

23. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: -56
Last Week: 22
Notes: They have a very tough matchup ahead against the Falcons.

24. San Diego Chargers: -63
Last Week: 21
Notes:  Rivers is having a career season, but the Chargers are having one of their worst seasons since he joined the team.

25. Cleveland Browns: -69
Last Week: 20
Notes: They are starting to look like the Browns we are all used to.

26. Houston Texans: -73
Last Week: 24
Notes:  The biggest mess of the season. Releasing Mallet had to be done.

27. Tennessee Titans: -73
Last Week: 26
Notes:  Better than their 1-5 record, but not by much. With the way the Colts are playing they do have a shot of at least competing for the rest of the season.

28. Chicago Bears: -76

Last Week: 30
Notes: Hopefully the bye week did this team some good and they can forget about that tough loss against the Lions.

29. Jacksonville Jaguars: -85
Last Week: 32
Notes: They almost blew it London, but hung on for the win. Even allowing the Bills to come back like that just shows how bad this team is. 

30. Baltimore Ravens: -87
Last Week: 27
Notes: Another case of a team that's better than their record, but at this point they're looking like they're done for the season.

31. San Francisco 49ers: -109
Last Week: 29
Notes: Back to 31 after another loss.

32. Detroit Lions: -126
Last Week: 31
Notes: It's crazy to think this was a playoff team last season.


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