NFL Power Rankings: Week 9
16 – Los Angeles Rams (3-4)
PR – 13
For a half there, I thought that the Rams had figured out their offense and were going to beat the 49ers. They masked their offensive line insufficiencies with a multitude of screen and quick passes but that can only take you so far. When the 2nd half hit, the 49ers adjusted and the Rams looked bad once again. CB Jalen Ramsey continues to talk trash while getting consistently burned and missing tackles but keep doing you. Huge matchup against the Bucs coming up with the loser pretty much getting eliminated from the playoff race.
15 – Los Angeles Chargers (4-3)
PR – 15
The Chargers had a BYE week which came at the best possible time for them. There are injuries aplenty for this team but hopefully the BYE week brings them that much closer to being able to play. The extra week also gave WR Keenan Allen another week to reintegrate himself in the offense. Or so we thought. A new report has Allen further hurting his hamstring during the BYE. Uh oh Chargers.
14 – New England Patriots (4-4)
PR – NR
Glad that the pseudo QB controversy is now over. It’s the Mac Jones show in New England and it will be for a long time. Jones still looks like he is shaking off some rust from his 3-game absence but given his entire year of work last year, there is no doubt that he will get back to better decision making. It certainly helps to have RB Rhamondre Stevenson in the backfield. That guy is a tank.
13 – New York Jets (5-3)
PR – 9
Yes, I know that the Patriots beat the Jets last week but the Jets are still ranked higher than the Patriots because the Jets have the better record. A couple weeks ago I talked about how the Jets are winning because they did not have to rely on QB Zach Wilson to throw as much. Well, since RB Breece Hall tore his ACL and RB James Robinson has only been there for a week, Wilson had to put the team on his back and throw a lot. It wasn’t pretty. The guy had 3 interceptions. They play much tougher competition in the Buffalo Bills next. I don’t expect the Jets to win but maybe they can start to get RB James Robinson more involved.
12 – Cincinnati Bengals (4-4)
PR – 5
The loss of WR Ja’Marr Chase had a much bigger impact than I thought. The other playmakers on the team just couldn’t get it going and it showed. The Bengals didn’t put up any points until the 4th quarter. The defense also struggled mightily allowing the Browns to rush for 172 yards. I get that RB Nick Chubb is a monster but you just can’t let a team run on you for 172 yards and expect to win.
11 – Seattle Seahawks (5-3)
PR – 12
Week 9 and the Seahawks are still atop the NFC West. Their defense did a phenomenal job stuffing a normally strong Giants rushing attack and held RB Saquon Barkley to 53 yards on 20 carries. QB Geno Smith and the offense played well but the Seahawks’ Special Teams unit played even better, forcing 2 takeaways.
10 – San Francisco 49ers (4-4)
PR – 14
Christian McCaffery is good at football. That is all. Send tweet.
9 – New York Giants (6-2)
PR – 6
And their luck has finally run out! I have been waiting for this moment for 5 weeks. The Giants are not that good and when they faced off against a decent team in the Seahawks, they lost by 14 points! But in all honestly, the Giants’ success lies in their run game. Daniel Jones is not a good enough QB to carry them through without RB help.
8 – Miami Dolphins (5-3)
PR – 11
The Dolphins are all in. They made a big move in acquiring OLB Bradley Chubb from the Broncos and immediately signing him to a long-term deal and then also getting RB “My Name is Jeff” Jeff Wilson Jr. from the 49ers. Wilson gets to join RB Raheem Mostert in a RB room that looks a lot like the 49ers RB room from last year. The Dolphins are in win now mode and it is very exciting to see.
7 – Tennessee Titans (5-2)
PR – 10
QB Ryan Tannehill was out with an ankle injury last week but it didn’t matter. RB Derrick Henry, who will inevitably rush for at least 100 yards a game, went bonkers and ran for 219 yards. The passing offense for the Titans literally passed for 55 yards but they are showing they don’t need to pass to win. Honestly, any team with Derrick Henry could probably run the ball every play and still be competitive.
6 – Baltimore Ravens (5-3)
PR – 8
The Ravens know what their strength is and they need to learn how to stick with it. They are a ground and pound running team through and through. In the first half against the Bucs, they threw the ball 30 times but only scored 3 points. In the second half, they ran the ball 26 times and scored 24 points. “RUN THE BALL” – Richard Sherman. It certainly doesn’t help the passing game when TE Mark Andrews leaves the game due to injury and WR Rashod Bateman plays literally 5 snaps due to injury but still, run the ball.
5 – Minnesota Vikings (6-1)
PR – 7
A very sneaky 6-1 team. The Vikings pretty much need all 4 quarters to win the game. They are never truly dominant at any point but they still get wins and are well constructed. If one facet of their game underperforms, another steps up which is why this team is 6-1.
4 – Dallas Cowboys (6-2)
PR – 4
It was truly fascinating to watch this elite defensive group get carved up by Justin Fields and the Bears rushing offense to the tune of 240 yards. Mishaps like this usually hurt you but it was the Bears so the Cowboys ultimately came out victorious. RB Tony Pollard was very fun to watch though. It was nice to see speed off the edge and explosiveness after being accustomed to watching Zeke’s downhill rushing style. When Zeke does get back, the contrast of their rushing style can push the offense to greatness.
3 – Kansas City Chiefs (5-2)
PR – 3
It was a BYE week for the Chiefs. Not much to really say here except for the intrigue that is their backfield and the acquisition of WR Kadarius Toney. Right before their BYE, 7th round rookie RB Isaiah Pacheco was named the starting RB over RB Clyde Edwards Helaire. It will be interesting to see which back will get more work moving forward. On the WR side, Toney is a huge downfield weapon if he can stay healthy and that is a big if.
2 – Buffalo Bills (6-1)
PR – 2
The QB Josh Allen to WR Stefon Diggs connection is as strong as ever. Sunday’s game against the Packers marked the 3rd straight game where Diggs had 100+ yards receiving yards and a touchdown. I talk consistently about how Titans’ Derrick Henry will always have 100+ rushing yards but is it now time to talk about how Stefon Diggs will always have 100+ receiving yards?
1 – Philadelphia Eagles (7-0)
PR – 1
Another week, another win. We all know how good the Eagles run game is but they just showcased how good they can be passing too. QB Jalen Hurts threw a career high 4 TD passes while WR AJ Brown came down with 3 TD receptions along with 156 yards. This Eagles team can pretty much win every single way offensively. My question from last week still rings true – how long until this Eagles team suffers their first loss?