1 (1)

Bears

6-0

Read the newest, best selling novel by the Bears titled, “how to win when your QB turns the ball over six times.”
It’s a great read, and even comes gift wrapped by Santa himself… You have to love a team that can come back from down 20 points without scoring a single offensive touchdown.

2 (2)

Colts

  5-0  

  After barely surviving against Tennessee, Indianapolis had a bye in week 6. The Colts return to action versus Washington in week 7, to face a team that in a similar situation was unable to hold off the upset minded Titans… It’a the first of three games in a row versus playoff teams from a season ago that also includes matchups at Denver and at New England.

3 (3)

Broncos

  4-1  

  Denver topped Oakland marking the fourth time in five games the Broncos have held their opponent out of the end zone this season.

4 (4)

Patriots

  4-1  

  After winning back to back games over Cincinnati and Miami, New England had bye in week 6. The Patriots visit Buffalo in week 7, looking to make it three straight.

5 (7)

Panthers

  4-2  

  While other power rankings dumped the Panthers into oblivion for starting 0-2, we offered resistance, knowing Carolina would be a different team when Steve Smith returned. And the Panthers certainly are different, winning 4 in a row since the return of their star receiver, including victories over the highly rated Saints (at home) and Ravens (on the road).

Jaguars

  3-2

  After beating the Jets 41-0, Jacksonville had a bye in week 6. The Jaguars travel to Houston in week 7 for the first of two meetings with the Texans in the next four games… This should help improve the record of a Jaguars team that faced one of the toughest opening schedules in the league this season.
Other power rankings must be waiting to see the Jaguars’ record improve playing against some lower ranked teams in 3 of the next 4 weeks before moving them into the top 10 where they clearly already belong.
Note, Jacksonville has a 15-6 record spanning back over the last 21 games (approximately 1 1/4 seasons). And three of those four losses are to the Colts, while one is to the Broncos. So if you read NFL power rankings that don’t already have the Jags in the top 10, you’ll know their rankings probably aren’t very stable. Please tell your friends about our power rankings. We appreciate your support and spreading the word.

7 (9)

Seahawks

  4-1  

  Seattle scored a dramatic last second win in St. Louis that saved them from falling 1 1/2 games behind the Rams. With the win, the Seahawks grabbed the division lead by 1/2 game. Recently acquired Deion Branch hauled in 2 TD’s in the victory.

8 (10)

Saints

5-1

New Orleans improved to 5-1 with a huge win over the Eagles. A bye week is on deck in week 7, after which the Saints will face a difficult five game stretch as follows; Baltimore, at Tampa Bay, at Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, and at Atlanta.
One thing is certain. If the Saints are going to make the playoffs, they’ll have to beat several more solid teams. And the final four games of the season might even be tougher than the above; at Dallas, Washington, at NY Giants, and Carolina.

9 (8)

Eagles

4-2

Are we going to drop Philadelphia for losing a game in New Orleans that came down to the wire?
Not really. According to our methodology, that wouldn’t make sense. And these aren’t knee-jerk reaction rankings like you read at you know who… The Eagles mostly hold their ground in this week’s power rankings, and travel to Tampa Bay in week 7 to face a potentially dangerous Buccaneers team. If they lose that game, then they might fall out of the top 10.

10 (11)

Ravens

  4-2

  Baltimore suffered a home loss to Carolina. And Steve McNair left the game early with a concussion. It was the Ravens second loss in a row to a team ranked in the top 10 of the power ratings… While we were waiting to see if the Ravens would beat a top 10 team before moving them into the top 10, other power rankings had no problem moving them into the top 5 after they crushed the Raiders and barely beat Cleveland… The funny thing is, were moving Baltimore up in the rankings for playing such a close game against the Panthers without their starting QB in the lineup for most of the game. That’s what power rankings are all about. Not only standings, but relative performance.

11 (12)

Chargers

4-1

Crushed the 49ers, and next week are favored to win at Kansas City… It’s rare when a visiting team is favored by NFL odds makers to win in Arrowhead Stadium. Perhaps these Chargers are indeed just that… “A rare team.”
So why don’t we have San Diego ranked in top 10? Consider that the Chargers are 12-9 over their last 21 games. Meanwhile, a team like Jacksonville is 15-6 during that span, with 4 of their 6 losses coming against Indianapolis and Denver… Just a few of the reasons why we think other power rankings have things a bit flip flopped.

12 (17)

Giants

  3-2  

New York got a key road win versus Atlanta, coming back from down 14-3 in the 3rd quarter. The defense sacked Vick 7 times. And Barber rushed for 185 yards while Jacobs chipped in with 53 yards… The Giants were admittedly undervalued in the week 5 power rankings due to a logjam between spots 13-19. This week the G-Men come out on top as they have survived a brutal first 5 games including; Indianapolis, at Philadelphia, at Seattle, Washington, and at Atlanta, with the only losses being to the top 10 ranked Colts and Seahawks. The stakes remain high in week 7, with a trip to Dallas on Monday night.

13 (6)

Bengals

3-2

Cincinnati couldn’t get the running game going in Tampa Bay, leaving just enough time on the clock for the Buccaneers to drive the length of the field for the winning TD with 35 seconds left, thanks to an overturned replay, and a roughing the passer penalty… In the week 5 power rankings we suggested the Bucs could pull the upset with their solid defense, in spite of their 0-4 record… Meanwhile, the Bengals must prepeare to face another tough defense as they play host to the surging Panthers in week 7. A win and it’s back to the top 10.

Cowboys

  3-2  

After trailing the Texans at halftime, the Cowboys finally overcame their letdown from Philadelphia, and rolled off 31 unanswered points in the second half to get the win… Owens caught 3 TD’s. And Tony Romo saw his first regular season action as we suggested would happen in our NFL predictions for this game made way back in the preseason.

15 (14)

Steelers

  2-3

  Pittsburgh got their much needed second win of the season, absolutely crushing the Chiefs. The Steelers’ defense held Larry Johnson to just 26 yards rushing, as we suggested might happen in our weekly free fantasy football tips. Unfortunately, winning by 38 points still only counts as 1 win. To get back to the .500 mark the Steelers will have to win in Atlanta next week.

16 (16)

Vikings

3-2

  After a comeback win over the Lions, Minnesota had a bye in week 6. The Vikings visit Seattle in week 7, and then follow up with the Patriots at home in week 8. To stay above .500 Minnesota will have to win at least one of these next two tough games.

17 (18)

Rams

4-2

  Couldn’t hold a late lead versus Seattle in what would have been a huge divisional home win. Instead it was a huge divisional home loss. But at 4-2, the Rams certainly are still in the hunt.

18 (15)

Falcons

3-2

  Atlanta lost at home to the Giants and the ultra-mobile Vick was sacked 7 times… Two more tough games are on deck. The first is home versus a reenergized Steelers’ team. The next is at Cincinnati.

19 (21)

Jets

3-3

New York got to the .500 mark and grabbed second place in the AFC East with a “close your eyes and hang on” 20-17 win over the Miami Dolphins. Oh, what could have been if the Jets had also hung on to beat the Colts in week 4.

20 (20)

Redskins

  2-4

An injured Redskins’ defensive line surrendered 178 rushing yards to Tennessee’s Travis Henry in perhaps the biggest upset of the year. Of course the Titans almost upset the Colts the week before… The Redskins will have to find a way to go on the road and beat Indianapolis in their final game before a week 8 bye to make up for this loss. Otherwise, Washington will have to endure a record of 2-5 for two weeks.

Buccaneers

1-4

  There’s a reason we didn’t drop Tampa Bay to the bottom of the NFL power rankings like some major media outlets (near #30 in some rankings, they must have been kidding)… After beating Cincinnati, the Buccaneers easily could have been 3-2 considering the near wins over Carolina and at New Orleans (both ranked in the top 10). Like we always say, “power rankings are more than just standings.”
The Eagles come to town in week 7. There’s a lot of history between these two squads, so which Buccaneers’ team will show up?
One that wants to upset the Eagles at all costs? Or one that lets down following the big win, realizing they’re still 1-4 and must win three in a row just to get back to the .500 mark?

Chiefs

2-3

  Kansas City isn’t going to be very competitive if Larry Johnson can only rush for 26 yards. Especially with Trent Green out of the lineup. A must win, potentially break the season game awaits in week 7, at home versus the Chargers.

23 (24)

Cardinals

1-5

  For 3 quarters Arizona played top of the line football in a near upset of the #1 Bears. But it didn’t last as the Cardinals allowed the Bears to surmount a 20 point deficit without scoring an offensive touchdown. We’ll move the Cardinals up one spot for the effort if it’s any consolation… Yeah, we know, it’s not.

24 (22)

Bills

2-4

Buffalo suffered a damaging loss in Detroit… A win would have gotten the Bills back to the .500 mark… Now Buffalo needs to win two in a row just to even up their record. Unfortunately, their next game is versus New England.

25 (25)

Browns

1-4

  After losing at Carolina, Cleveland had a bye in week 6. The Browns return to action at home versus the Broncos in week 7. Shall we say, “good luck getting into the end zone”?

26 (29)

Titans

1-5

The Titans didn’t just come close to pulling off an upset like they did versus the Colts in week 6. They got the win at Washington as a double digit underdog by rushing for 194 yards, thanks to 178 by Travis Henry… Don’t look now but the Titans have moved up in the power rankings two weeks in a row. Unfortunately, they already have 5 losses.

27 (26)

Dolphins

  1-5

  Ronnie Brown had a solid game on the ground but Harrington threw 2 picks, Miami’s defense allowed two fairly long TD passes to Coles, and Mare couldn’t connect on a 51 yard field goal that would have tied the game… Hence the Dolphins continue their fall in the weekly power rankings.

28 (28)

Packers

1-4

  After losing at home to St. Louis, Green Bay had a bye in week 6. The Packers return to action at Miami in week 7, where barring a tie, one of these teams will get its second win.

29 (31)

Lions

1-5

  Kevin Jones and Roy Williams had big games as Detroit grabbed their first win of the season beating Buffalo at home.

30 (27)

49ers

2-4

San Francisco has now given up 34 or more points in four of six games this season… In allowing 48 points at home to the Chargers week 6, it marked the second time 41 or more points were surrendered in just three weeks.

31 (30)

Texans

1-4

  Houston held a halftime lead at Dallas. But that might have had a lot to do with the Cowboys having a letdown after a devastating loss in Philadelphia, as the Texans proceeded to surrender 31 unanswered points in the 2nd half.

32 (32)

Raiders

0-5

  Oakland’s offense was smothered in Denver. On the plus side, the Raiders defense only surrendered 13 points. However, the Broncos’ offense did turn conservative rather early.