Midseason storylines are beginning to emerge, and there is now a clear frontrunner. Teams like Cincinnati, Carolina, and even New Orleans could be in for a second-half run. The X’s and O’s Show breaks down the Power Rankings, the NFL and everything Broncos each Sunday at 9:00am on Mile High Sports Radio.
Check here for last week’s rankings.
1. New England Patriots (1)
The biggest gap between any two teams in this week’s ranking is between the New England Patriots and the Dallas Cowboys (and everybody else, for that matter). They are clearly the best team in the league. At the halfway point of the season, the Pats are the only team not to have thrown a single interception, even though they used second- and third-string quarterbacks for a month.
2. Dallas Cowboys (2)
How ‘bout them Cowboys? The attention has gone to Dak Prescott, but it’s the other rookie in the backfield—running back Ezekiel Elliott—who has most made Dallas into a Super Bowl threat. Elliot had 96 yards rushing Sunday night against a very tough Eagles defense.
3. Denver Broncos (3)
The defense is tied for the league lead in sacks and turnovers caused but is 24th in run defense, giving up 117 yards per game. Most exciting development: Raiders Week matters again!
4. Oakland Raiders (8)
David Carr threw for 514 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions, continuing to make his case that he’s one of the best young throwers in the game. The Raiders are 6-2, tied for first place, and will welcome the Broncos to the Black Hole Sunday night.
5. Atlanta Falcons (9)
The defense still isn’t good enough for the Falcons to join the ranks of the elite teams in the league. But the offense is so good they can beat teams different ways. In a wide open NFC, this team will be scary in the playoffs.
6. Kansas City Chiefs (4)
The good thing about being led by a game-managing quarterback is that if he gets hurt, he’s easy to replace. When the Chiefs lost the nondescript Alex Smith, they wheeled out the even more nondescript Nick Foles and nobody noticed.
7. Philadelphia Eagles (7)
The Eagles easily could have won the game at Dallas, and the Cowboys are suddenly most people’s favorite to win the NFC. Oh, and the teams will rematch in Philadelphia in Week 17. It’s hard to think that game won’t matter.
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (14)
The bye came at the right time for Pittsburgh. It might have even bought enough time for Ben Roethlisberger to return in time to face the Ravens on Sunday. With three of the next four on the road, the Steelers are more than ready to get their quarterback back.
9. Seattle Seahawks (5)
Russell Wilson is not the same quarterback who led the Hawks to two straight Super Bowls. His subpar health has limited his running ability, and behind Seattle’s offensive line, a stationary quarterback is in trouble.
10. Minnesota Vikings (6)
After their first loss a week ago, coach Mike Zimmer blasted his offensive line as “soft.” That didn’t seem to motivate them, because against Chicago they were manhandled all night. This team relied heavily on their defense and special teams to score for the first five weeks. Now that they need their actual offense to get their points, things don’t look so rosy.
11. Houston Texans (15)
The Texans’ net points on the season is -30, which is good enough for first place in the AFC South, where every team has been outscored this year. Only six teams have been outscored by more than Houston has.
12. Green Bay Packers (10)
The loss to the Falcons might have been the most encouraging thing to happen to the Packers this year. They brought their J.V. squad to Atlanta and lost a fantastic shootout by one point. In a conference without a clear frontrunner, the Pack is poised for a second half run.
13. Washington Redskins (18)
A draw in England. Americans think ties are boring, but the Brits probably loved it. Although, even British fans are probably wondering why the Redskins didn’t try to score a touchdown on the final drive instead of just leaving it to the kicker.
14. San Diego Chargers (11)
Every division in the league has at least two teams who have been outscored on the season, except for the AFC West, which has none. The Chargers are the best last-place team in the league, and the AFC West is the NFL’s best division.
15. Arizona Cardinals (16)
The Cardinals were outrushed 141 to 24 in Charlotte and never recovered after falling behind 24-0. It won’t be easy for Bruce Arians to blame this one on the officials. His team was called for just one penalty all day.
16. Detroit Tigers (10)
The passing game is one of the best in football, even without much help from the running game. But if the Lions continue to play this kind of defense, they will waste yet another of Matt Stafford’s years as an elite quarterback.
17. New York Giants (21)
The Giants are probably eager to get back to football after their bye week was overwhelmed by the fallout from the Josh Brown controversy. They host the Eagles in another fascinating NFC East matchup.
18. New Orleans Saints (27)
Six of the seven Saints games have been decided on the final possession, and New Orleans is now starting to win those nail-biters. For the last month, this team has quietly been playing good football. After they beat the 49ers next week, they will have won 4 of 5 games.
19. Tennessee Titans (24)
Against Jacksonville on Thursday night, the Titans scored 27 points on 354 yards in the first half! They will have to play a non-AFC South team next week next, though, travelling to San Diego. At 4-4, Tennessee is just a game out of first and they have the look of a team that is starting to realize how good they can be.
20. Cincinnati Bengals (25)
As bad as the Bengals have been, they are a half game out of first, and they get Pittsburgh at home in Week 15. With the toughest part of their schedule behind them, they are poised for a run.
21. Miami Dolphins (19)
With a healthy offensive line starting to dominate, and out-of-nowhere sensation Jay Ajayi on a string—yes, a STRING—of 200-yard rushing games, the Dolphins have developed one of the league’s best running games. We will find out just how good when they host the Jets Sunday, who, for all their dysfunction, still have the best rush defense in the NFL.
22. Carolina Panthers (32)
Bill Reffel stated on the X’s and O’s Show that he thought Carolina was on the verge of hot streak and would launch the run with a win against Arizona. The Panthers made Reffel look smart for at least a week, as they tore apart the Cards. Can they keep Cam Newton healthy?
23. Buffalo Bills (13)
Without LeSean McCoy, Buffalo’s offense is anemic. McCoy will be back soon, but the greater concern may be the defense. The last two games they have allowed a running back to rush for 214 yards and a quarterback to throw for four touchdown passes.
24. Baltimore Ravens (24)
Joe Flacco has six interceptions against just five touchdown passes. That is a big reason why they are 25th in total offense, and also why they’re on a four-game losing streak.
25. Los Angeles Rams (25)
Where has Todd Gurley gone? Last year’s Offensive Rookie of the Year is averaging 3.0 yards per carry, and he’s been held under 60 yards in five of the Rams’ seven games. Without more from him, this offense has no chance.
26. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (26)
The offense is 25th in yards and clearly lacks weapons. Jameis Winston continues to play well, but the team could use another receiving threat to take pressure off Mike Evans.
27. Indianapolis Colts (27)
The offensive line surrendered six sacks against the Chiefs, and their top running back gained 36 yards on the ground. On the season, no quarterback has been sacked or hit as many times as Andrew Luck. The Colts are starting two rookies on the o-line, but right now that unit isn’t good enough.
28. Chicago Bears (29)
The Bears dominating win against Minnesota helped them soar all the way up to number 28 in our poll!
29. New York Jets (23)
The Jets will take any win they can get right now, but they were badly outplayed in Cleveland for much of the game. In the first half, Ryan Fitzpatrick was 4-13 for 30 yards, while the defense was surrendering 20 points. Rallying to beat the winless Browns doesn’t take away from how bad the Jets are right now.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (29)
The disappointing Jaguars may have played their worst game yet Thursday night in getting crushed by an average Titans team. They tacked on a couple garbage-time touchdowns to make it look reasonable, but at halftime they were down 27-0 and had all of 60 total yards.
31. San Francisco 49ers (30)
The Chip Kelly go-go offense has had one predictable effect: It has left the defense exhausted. The 49ers are dead last in scoring defense.
32. Cleveland Browns (31)
Part of turning around a losing team is breaking the losing mindset. Cleveland still has a way to go in that department, after blowing a 13-point lead in the second half against a bad Jets team.