Week 7 in the NFL was a good one for the NFC heavy hitters, while there were additional changes with the AFC’s best teams.
The Cardinals, Rams and Buccaneers all played in the late afternoon and recorded wins against overwhelmed opponents to keep them on top. The Packers stayed hot during the Sunday morning window. The AFC had knocked out the Bills and Chargers, but a lot changed among the teams that played in the battle for supremacy at this conference.
Here’s how Sporting News sees all 32 teams in the league compete against each other in the latest edition of the Power Leaderboard in Week 8:
MORE: What Big Losses from Chiefs, Ravens mean to AFC playoff picture
NFL power rankings
1. Arizona Cardinals 7-0 (previous rank: 1)
The Cardinals flew past the Texans and gave DeAndre Hopkins and JJ Watt plenty of support against their former team. Kyler Murray and the game in progress did their part as the pass frenzy and coverage were cleaned up to kick off the team’s testimony.
2. Los Angeles Rams 6-1 (2)
The Rams don’t get many Style Points for the survival of vengeful Jared Goff and the sinister but winless Lions. But they did what they had to do, as always, on the offensive and defensive, even if they maybe took off the gas.
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 6-1 (3)
The Buccaneers slashed another limited opponent at home, this time the Bears, and Tom Brady again methodically delivered offensive. They are doing what they can to emerge right behind the only two teams that have consistently been better and remain a strong repeat risk for the Super Bowl.
4. Green Bay Packer 5-1 (5)
Aaron Rodgers has been a man on a mission since Week 1. He always kills smaller enemies with his classic precision. The running game and the defense also helped him a lot.
5. Dallas Cowboys 5-1 (6)
The Cowboys have health on their side this season, especially with Dak Prescott recovering well from ankle and shoulder injuries and working through a minor calf injury. They hope to be even healthier after saying goodbye. Their eclectic offense is hard to stop and their tee defense won’t change as this team continues to forge an identity as Super Bowl contenders.
6. Tennessee Titans 5-2 (12)
The Titans took control of the weaker AFC early on, using their familiar running game formula to build the great passing game with complementary support from the defense. After a slow start, Mike Vrabel has her locked up again, marked by consecutive massive wins against the Bills and Chiefs, each in different ways.
7. Buffalo Bills 4-2 (4)
The Bills butted their toes before parting in Tennessee, with a bit of disappointment after their massive Kansas City win. They should be considered the AFC co-favorites, but week 7 got a lot tighter which means they still have a lot to do to find the top spot.
8. Cincinnati Bengals 5-2 (10)
The Bengals are the biggest surprise climber of the season and are the new favorites in the tough AFC North. The other teams are struggling with problems they are not. Joe Burrow to Ja’Marr Chase is the new best combo in the game, but what about Trey Hendrickson and the redesigned defense?
9. Las Vegas Raiders 5-2 (11)
AFC West’s new leaders remain determined, organized, and focused on maximizing their strengths and minimizing their weaknesses without Jon Gruden. It almost seems like he was a bad influence holding her back.
10. Baltimore Ravens 5-2 (7)
The Ravens defense seemed to sort things out against the Chargers at home in week 6, only to have problems with reporting against the Bengals again in week 7. Lamar Jackson can only do so much, especially when the normally dominant non-Jackson running game doesn’t help the defense.
WEEK 8 FANTASY RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Run back | Wide-angle receiver | Narrow end | D / ST | Kicker
11. Los Angeles Chargers 4-2 (8)
The Chargers said goodbye after a disappointing overall performance in Baltimore. They can do a lot of damage with Justin Herbert leading their passing game and with a solid pass defense, but they have to clean up their worst running defense in the league to keep their playoff chances.
12. Cleveland Browns 4-3 (13)
The Browns impressed with their brave, defensive win over the Broncos on Thursday night, fueled by Supersub, who is bringing back D’Ernest Johnson and led by QB Case Keenum. They’re hoping to be a lot healthier after the mini goodbye before going up against the Steelers on Halloween.
13. Kansas City Chiefs 3-4 (9)
The Chiefs are quickly falling apart as an offensive-minded team that can’t win if the offense breaks down or hurts, as it does now with Patrick Mahomes. Andy Reid is going to have to do some amazing coaching to reverse this and lead KC back on a third straight Super Bowl trip.
MORE: Mahomes takes the blame for the Chiefs’ offensive battles against the Titans
14. Pittsburgh Steelers 3-3 (14)
The Steelers moved to the playoff position in the playoff position after flipping their offense to revolve around rookie feature back Najee Harris, which allows them to play better complementary football for defense. They hope the break will bring a better Ben Roethlisberger for the second half.
15. New Orleans Saints 3-2 (15)
The Saints are hoping to keep marching to a playoff spot without Drew Brees using an approach similar to last season: defense, a strong running game and a few big passing games. You will also hope not to fall into a post-bye trap in Seattle.
16. Minnesota Vikings 3-3 (16)
The Vikings have steered their ship in the right direction based on their own familiar formula – a powerful offensive that sets up a dangerous passing game in the field, backed up by good pressure and cover defense for Mike Zimmer. They will try to be more consistent and not win close games after the bye. The cowboys are a good litmus test that starts right away.
17. New England Patriots 3-4 (23)
The Patriots are all there to beat opponents with limited attacks and weak running defense. That takes a lot of the pressure off Mac Jones and lets him relax and do whatever it takes to win games. It just has to happen more often against better teams that aren’t the Jets.
18. Indianapolis Colts 3-4 (25)
The Colts got paralyzed at the start of the season on a brutal schedule, but things have turned out well for them and they have crept back into the AFC wildcard competition under Frank Reich. Catching the Titans will be very difficult, even with a little on just two, but Carson Wentz gets the offense back on track and has Indianapolis back in the playoff mix.
19. Atlanta Falcons 3-3 (24)
The Falcons fought their way back to 0.500 with victories over the Giants, Jets and Dolphins. While this comes with limited praise as their defense is still a mess, the offense just looks a lot better for Arthur Smith as everything clicks for Matt Ryan.
20.Chicago Bears 3-4 (19)
The Bears could show everyone why they were reluctant to push Justin Fields into action against Andy Dalton because they stand no chance in the playoffs with the worst rookie quarterback game in the league. This offensive ineptitude frustrates defense at all levels. It looks like Matt Nagy is just training the string.
21. Seattle Seahawks 2-4 (17)
The Seahawks are at risk of becoming a losing side for the first time in the Russell-Wilson era because they don’t have Wilson to overcome their defensive problems. Losing the Saints would make it a tough fight just to get 9-8.
22. San Francisco 49ers 2-4 (18)
The 49ers can’t figure out how to operate on the offensive because they are very careful with their staff and have lost Kyle Shanahan’s creative mojo. Even the defense doesn’t seem to be able to cope with anything with a weaker chain of seven.
23. Carolina Panthers 3-4 (20)
The Panthers have freefalled when the real Sam Darnold arrived in full force and Christian McCaffrey is not there to save him. Matt Rhule could go to PJ Walker, but it must be some regret that he didn’t draft a potential franchise QB in the first round last April.
MORE: Why did Panthers Bank have Darnold?
24. Denver Broncos 3-4 (21)
The Broncos received a strong wake-up call last month after exploiting a weak early schedule to make it 3-0. The writing is on the wall for Vic Fangio and his coaching staff as John Elway once again finds himself disappointed by his talented team.
25. Philadelphia Eagles 2-5 (22)
The Eagles feel they should be a much better team considering Jalen Hurts flashes quite a bit at the quarterback. But their ineffectiveness in traditional rush game and their insanely inconsistent defense have grown into bigger problems.
26. Washington soccer team 2-5 (26)
WFT is there with the Eagles as a poorly performing team, especially with the disappointing loaded defense. The offense is doing its best while Taylor Heinicke is in makeshift mode given all the injuries.
MORE: Heinicke’s early goal-line jump costs WFT easy TD
27. New York Giants 2-5 (28)
The Giants got to the Victory Column for a second time by defeating Carolina, weeks after a surprise from New Orleans. That’s still not enough to drag them out of the big cluster to last place in the NFC East, way behind the runaway cowboys.
28. New York Jets 1-5 (27)
The Jets were hoping to play the post-bye portion of their 2021 season in full development and improvement mode for Zach Wilson, but the knee injury he sustained early against the Patriots could derail this, as well as other parts Their offensive for Robert brought Saleh and Mike LaFleur to life.
WEEK 7 QB GRADES: Jones-Wilson 2 a one-sided affair
29. Jacksonville Jaguars 1-5 (31)
The Jaguars had a much-needed and well-deserved week of farewell after gaining their first ever win against the Dolphins in London. They’ll be looking for a better Trevor Lawrence after his first bye, with another winable game at the Seahawks in Week 8.
30. Miami Dolphins 1-6 (29)
Tua Tagovailoa cannot be blamed for this team’s ridiculously poor decline after finishing last season 6-10. Miami has hit its overall losses for 2020 thanks to a gruesome defense that eliminated many of the lightning bolts that the offensive showed. A trade for Deshaun Watson can’t fix what Brian Flores broke.
31. Houston Texans 1-6 (30)
The Texans are playing with a list of remedies at this point, save for a few proud and able veterans. They were lucky enough to get that single win out of the way in Week 1, but they’re no better than the Jaguars.
32.Detroit Lions 0-7 (32)
The Lions jumped into Los Angeles looking like lambs against the Rams, but they just didn’t have enough talent to end another chance of surprise. Eventually Dan Campbell will take a win, but at this rate it might not be until 2022 (should he hold out that long).
