NFL POWER RANKINGS: WEEK 5

BY ADAM GREENE

It’s time once again to heap praise and deliver scorn in the only way we can to NFL franchises worth hundreds of millions of dollars; the Power Rankings.

Our new No. 1 last week didn’t make it past Sunday so the team that beat them now takes the top spot. The Top 10 remains the same, though the order has shaken out differently. The real movement is at the end of the rankings as teams are in a pitched battle to be named the worst franchise in the league.

1. ARIZONA CARDINALS (4-0)

Thanks to a dominating defensive performance and Kyler Murray taking over the NFL MVP race, the Cardinals are the only remaining undefeated team in the NFL. They have a great chance to stay that way, facing a San Francisco 49ers team possibly starting rookie Trey Lance at QB or an injured Jimmy Garoppolo Sunday. Last week: No. 4

2. BUFFALO BILLS (3-1)

That opening week loss at home to the Pittsburgh Steelers looks worse by the day, but Buffalo righted the ship in a hurry and now looks like the team that stormed all the way to the AFC Championship last season. Last week: No. 3

3. LOS ANGELES RAMS (3-1)

While the Rams unquestionably won September, unfortunately last Sunday’s game was played in October. Hot starts are fine, but it’s a long season and the Rams have work to do, especially on defense. No one expected the Rams to be No. 1 in defense again with Raheem Morris, but they’re currently ranked No. 27. Matthew Stafford didn’t do much last week, but he can’t be the guy that does it all. That’s what he ran away from in Detroit. Last week: No. 1

4. TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (3-1)

No team cost bettors more money than the Bucs last week when they failed to cover in Tom Brady’s return to Foxboro to face his former team, the New England Patriots. All Tampa should care about is the win, but eking out a tight victory over a severely overmatched Pats squad should be a concern. Last week: No. 2

5. GREEN BAY PACKERS (3-1)

Like the Bills, the Packers entered 2021 with a huge stumble, but caught their footing and now look like a team angling for a spot in the NFL’s final four. Since throwing two picks in the season opening loss to the New Orleans Saints, Aaron Rodgers has kept his stat sheet clean, tossing six touchdowns in the process. Last week: No. 6

6. LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (3-1)

A week after delivering the biggest win of his young career, Justin Herbert solidified his position as a young elite passer, knocking off an undefeated Las Vegas Raiders team on Monday night to claim first place in the AFC West. Last week: No. 10

7. LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (3-1)

Las Vegas’ offense showed up for a quarter Monday night, but unfortunately for them, the game requires four. Derek Carr didn’t even hit 200 yards, half his September per game output. A QB shouldn’t have to throw for 400 yards to win, the but Raiders are gonna Raider. Last week: No. 5

8. SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (2-2)

While they were favorites hosting the Seahawks last week, Russell Wilson owns the 49ers like they’re one of Future’s kids. DangerRuss is now 16-4 all time against the Niners, regardless of who they’re being coached or quarterbacked by. File that little nugget away for next time. Last week: No. 7

9. KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (2-2)

It’s nice to get a win, but this defense is still a set of saloon doors. Kansas City has given up at least 29 points in every game this season. You can’t compete for a Super Bowl if you constantly need to put up college basketball scores. It’s unsustainable. Last week: No. 8

10. CLEVELAND BROWNS (3-1)

Cleveland is gutting out wins, but this season Baker Mayfield has thrown for a total of 935 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Are we sure he’s still on the team? Maybe he should stop focusing on who’s pulling their kids out of tennis and actually instead start finding a receiver in the end zone. Last week: No. 9

11. BALTIMORE RAVENS (3-1)

Here’s what’s exciting about Baltimore’s win over the Denver Broncos to me. Lamar Jackson faced a Vic Fangio defense, designed to keep him from running all over them, and he passed all over them instead. Jackson was 22 of 37 for 316 yards and a touchdown and only rushed seven times for 28 yards. The Ravens won by 16. Keep doing that, Greg Roman. Last week: No. 11

12. DALLAS COWBOYS (3-1)

Dak Prescott is playing at an MVP level thanks to Kellen Moore calling the plays and Mike McCarthy getting distracted by a Buffalo Wild Wings menu. Moore is likely getting serious head coaching looks already, so Dak better make the most of this while he can before McCarthy tosses aside the Applebee’s To-Go flyer and thinks he can start calling an NFL level offense again. Last week: No. 14

13. SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (2-2)

Wilson’s paternity of the entire 49ers franchise isn’t in doubt, but just to rub it in, he posted a picture of him throwing San Fran a birthday party on his Instagram. Last week: No. 16

14. DENVER BRONCOS (3-1)

Once Teddy Bridgewater entered the concussion protocol, the game against the Ravens was over. They can get back on track at the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday, but a win doesn’t ease the criticism that they haven’t beaten anybody that matters. Last week: No. 12

15. TENNESSEE TITANS (2-2)

It doesn’t matter that Julio Jones and A.J. Brown were both out. There was no excuse to go to overtime against the New York Jets, let alone lose. The defense alone created Zach Wilson’s only highlight reel of the season. Last week: No. 13

16. CAROLINA PANTHERS (3-1)

Spirited effort against the Cowboys, who never claimed to have the best defense, but the loss was also a solid measure of where Carolina is as a team. A second tier Wild Card road squad at best. Which, to be honest, is significantly better than I thought they’d be in the preseason. The fact that they hung in there without Christian McCaffrey makes it all the more commendable. Last week: No. 15

17. CINCINNATI BENGALS (3-1)

The team that showed up in the first half of last week’s 24-21 win over the Jacksonville looked a lot like the old Bungles, but the fact that they could shake it off and play up their capabilities in the second half, regardless of the opponent, means the times they are a-changin’ in Cincy. Last week: No. 19

18. WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAM (2-2)

Taylor Heinicke, for the second time this season, pulled off a game winning drive when probably every metric was working against him. Their two losses are to the Chargers and Bills, which basically means they’re the good bad team we thought they were. No. 21

19. CHICAGO BEARS (2-2)

Justin Fields grabs his first win as a starting QB in the NFL and Matt Nagy shut up his hate squad for at least a week. He wasn’t helping himself saying nonsense like, “This is Andy Dalton’s job when he’s healthy,” but fixed that Thursday by announcing the team would ride with Fields the rest of the way. This is what we all wanted to hear, Matt. Last week: No. 26

20. NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (2-2)

So the Saints are a team that’s only going to show up every other week. That might be bad news for the WFT Sunday. You could blame the defense for surrendering 11 points in the final frame to the New York Giants, but Daniel Jones is playing out of his mind right now and no one is noticing. Last week: No. 18

21. PITTSBURGH STEELERS (1-3)

With the Broncos heading to Heinz Sunday, it’s not too early to say the season is on the line. Only one team in NFL history, the 1992 San Diego Chargers, has made the playoffs after starting 1-4. Last week: No. 17

22. MIAMI DOLPHINS (1-3)

If Jacoby Brissett had any questions as to why he’s stuck as an NFL team’s No. 2 QB, just show him last Sunday’s game film in the Dolphins’ 27-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts with Carson Wentz on a walker. Last week: No. 20

23. NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (1-3)

Mac Jones didn’t make a leap Sunday night, but he looked the part of an NFL QB losing to Tom Brady just like all the rest of them have. He did hold his own, though, with an overmatched team in the rain and that’s something. Last week: No. 22

24. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (1-3)

The offense showed up against the Chiefs in a loss Sunday, but every team’s offense has shown up against the Chiefs. I’d still slide in the Houston Texans’ DMs if I were them. Last week: No. 23

25. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (1-3)

Carson Wentz shouldn’t be playing, but the team keeps trotting him out there without feet because he’s their only chance to win games. So we all know what’s about to happen. Wentz will catch COVID-19 because he’s unvaccinated. Last week: No. 27

26. NEW YORK JETS (1-3)

Knocking off the Titans for the first win of the season was huge for Zach Wilson and Robert Saleh both. But it also should show just how hard it is to go winless in an NFL season. Any given Sunday is no lie. Last week: No. 32

27. NEW YORK GIANTS (1-3)

As I mentioned earlier, Daniel Jones is quietly having a solid year, proving he belongs in the NFL. It’d be nice if he could play on a real NFL team. Jones is completing a career high 66.7 percent of his passes for 1,1184 yards, four touchdowns and just one interception. Last week: No. 30

28. MINNESOTA VIKINGS (1-3)

Kirk Cousins fell back down to Earth Sunday and took the Vikings with him. If he doesn’t play perfect, this team can’t compete. So, of course, he is also unvaccinated. Last week: No. 24

29. ATLANTA FALCONS (1-3)

The Falcons are coming up with all new ways to blow leads now. They’re off book, as they say in chess. This is a whole new losing strategy never seen before in professional sports. Last week: No. 25

30. DETROIT LIONS (0-4)

The losses keep coming and it will bear repeating until it changes. Jared Goff is now 0-11 as an NFL quarterback without Sean McVay as his head coach. Last week: No. 29

31. HOUSTON TEXANS (1-3)

The Texans, regardless of their record, are the worst team in the league. But they’re not at the bottom of the rankings because…. Last week: No. 28

32. JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (0-4)

Last week, Urban Meyer’s Jaguars unleashed their best performance of the season. They stood toe-to-toe with a team a year ahead of them in talent and nearly pulled off the victory. Meyer then celebrated by getting drunk and grinding on some co-ed in a Columbus bar. This is the kind of thing that would get a player cut. Hell, it was this kind of thing that got Dwayne Haskins kicked off the Washington Football Team last year and got Jay Gruden fired the year before. Meyer is a grown ass man, not some 22 year old making his first NFL money. I can’t fathom a reason for this to happen at any time, let alone during a pandemic, vaccinated or not. He is an NFL coach for God’s sake. This would get the coach at your local high school shot out the airlock. This is unknown territory in the NFL. I feel like this team is done for the year. Last week: No. 31

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