NFL Power Rankings: Week 10
16 – Chicago Bears (5-3) (PR: 15)
LW – Win over Cincinnati Bengals 47-42
Don’t we all love an old-fashioned shootout? This game was so fun to watch with both offenses firing on all cylinders. Defense was atrocious on both sides but we’re here for the drama and the action. A couple weeks ago I hinted that it might be a running back by committee with the emergence of Kyle Monangai. With D’Andre Swift injured, Monangai took the reins and had 198 total yards on the day. If you ask me, he definitely earned more playing time. Not only is his last name fun to say, he’s a talented back too.
15 – Jacksonville Jaguars (5-3) (PR: 14)
LW – Win over Las Vegas Raiders 30-29 (OT)
The Jags won, but barely in an overtime thriller against a sorry Raiders squad. The Jags are very hurt at the WR position – Brian Thomas Jr got banged up again, Travis Hunter is on IR which leaves Parker Washington as their main guy. Who is Parker Washington? Beats me. Good thing the Jags got Jakobi Meyers from the Raiders at the trade deadline. He should make an instant impact as long as Trevor Lawrence’s long hair doesn’t get in the way of his eyes.
14 – Green Bay Packers (5-2-1) (PR: 9)
LW – Loss against Carolina Panthers 16-13
Last week I talked about how inconsistent the Packers’ defense is. It showed this week. Rico Dowdle alone ran for 130 yards on the ground against them. Their Micah Parsons led D-Line only had 1 sack on little Bryce Young. The offense was just as bad. They were 1-5 in the redzone. It’s a tough, tough look when you got into a game as a 13.5-point favorite and lose by 3 points.
13 – Los Angeles Chargers (6-3) (PR: 12)
LW – Win over Tennessee Titans 27-20
Justin Herbert’s interceptions are becoming an issue. He just threw his 8th of the season. The decision making is questionable but maybe that might improve if he had more time in the pocket. Too bad he’ll probably have even less time now since LT Joe Alt got injured in the game. Alt is a gamechanger. When he plays all game, the Chargers are 4-0 but when he doesn’t, they’re 2-3.
12 – San Francisco 49ers (6-3) (PR: 16)
LW – Win over New York Giants 34-24
I’m happy again. I will admit I did have a bit of a crash out after the first drive but the 9ers quelled all my doubts from that point on. The final score doesn’t depict the dominance the 9ers had over the Giants. It is the Giants though so take everything with a pinch of salt but there were so many positives in this game. CMC dominated the game once again with 173 total yards. Brock Purdy should be back this week and I’m so excited for that.
11 – Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3) (PR: 13)
LW – Win over the Indianapolis Colts 27-20
Definitely the biggest upset of the week and there were quite a few of them. Over the last couple weeks, I’ve been talking about how poor the Steelers’ defense was performing. They had a big game against the Colts. 5 sacks and 6 takeaways. I struggle to figure out if the Colts just had a bad day or if the Steelers’ defense is back. I guess only time will tell but this is a good starting point.
10 – Seattle Seahawks (6-2) (PR: 11)
LW – Win over Washington Commanders 38-14
Okay Seattle, I see you. Yet another dominant offensive performance by Sam Darnold and JSN. Stacking these two together is a cheat code. Darnold is averaging 260 yards per game along with 16 TD on the year while JSN almost has 1000 yards receiving through 8 games. That work rate is incredible. The only issue is the WR with the next most yards is Cooper Kupp with 293. Can this 2-man crew continue being successful? Or will defenses eventually figure it out?
9 – Kansas City Chiefs (5-4) (PR: 4)
LW – Loss against the Buffalo Bills 21-28
The Chiefs were on a steady climb up my power rankings…until this week. It feels like the defense’s biggest flaw was exposed – they can’t cover TEs. The Bills’ TEs combined for 7 receptions, 131 yards and a TD. There were times when the Chiefs’ offense needed to slow the game down, but they couldn’t because their run game is so poor. 6 Kansas City rushers combined for 79 yards. For context, the Bills’ James Cook had 114 yards on his own.
8 – Denver Broncos (7-2) (PR: 7)
LW – Win over Houston Texans 18-15
I am so confused by this team. Some weeks they dominate. Other weeks they squeak away with a win against a team who is playing their back up QB. If CJ Stroud wasn’t knocked out (literally) from this game, the outcome might be completely different. Bo Nix had a shocker of a game. Coming off the heels of his 247 yard, 4 TD performance, he only managed 171 yards, 2 TDs and an INT against the Texans. Consistency is key for this young QB, and it just isn’t there yet.
7 – New England Patriots (7-2) (PR: 10)
LW – Win over Atlanta Falcons 24-23
The Patriots’ offensive line issues are becoming apparent. Drake Maye has been sacked 12 times in the last 2 weeks. This issue would be even bigger if Drake Maye wasn’t Drake Maye. Maye has shown that he can overcome any adversity that comes his way. He responded to his 6 sacks this week with 259 yards through the air against the league’s #1 pass defense. I personally cannot get enough of Maye. This guy is good. Plain and simple.
6 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-2) (PR: 6)
LW – BYE
The BYE came at a good time for the Bucs. It gave all those injuries time to rest and recover. There is a chance that Bucky Irving and Chris Godwin are back this week. Those are some much needed reinforcements for Baker Mayfield and the Bucs’ offense.
5 – Los Angeles Rams (6-2) (PR: 8)
LW – Win over New Orleans Saints 34-10
Offense is firing on all cylinders. Matthew Stafford is throwing bombs. Kyren Williams making explosive runs. Puka Nacua is back and dominant. Davante Adams is still elite. Is there a weakness on this team? Yes, special teams. Josh Karty missed another 2 kicks on Sunday.
4 – Detroit Lions (5-3) (PR: 2)
LW – Loss against Minnesota Vikings 24-27
The Lions’ offense has been struggling as of late. I use struggling relatively as the offense has failed to reach 300+ yards for the last 3 weeks which is a far cry from what we have all come to expect. The offense we’re used to puts up 300 yards through the air, 100 on the ground and is a fantasy goldmine. The O-Line needs to toughen up and not let Jared Goff get sacked 5 times. Speaking of sacks, Lu’s favorite player, Aiden Hutchensen had another sack and 3 QB hits. This dude wreaks opposing offenses.
3 – Philadelphia Eagles (6-2) (PR: 5)
LW – BYE
The Eagles got better over the BYE thanks to some trades. The Eagles now have former All Pro CB Jaire Alexander and explosive EDGE rusher Jaelen Phillips at their disposal. That defense that was already good just got a whole lot better. Oh, and Saquon’s groin injury isn’t that serious after all. He should be back in the lineup this week. Let’s hope he doesn’t turn into a ghost again.
2 – Indianapolis Colts (7-2) (PR: 1)
LW – Loss against Pittsburgh Steelers 20-27
A day where everything went wrong. Teams are allowed to have a game like this over the long and grueling season. Fear not Matty, this is just a one game thing. The Colts are still one of the best teams in the league. The issue against the Steelers was that the entire O-Line woke up on the wrong side of the bed. They had a tough time protecting Daniel Jones (leading to 5 turnovers) and creating holes for Jonathan Taylor. They’ve had 8 games where they’ve been great and 1 game where they haven’t. I’m betting heavily that O-Line greatness comes to play this week.
1 – Buffalo Bills (6-2) (PR: 3)
LW – Win over Kansas City Chiefs 28-21
The Bills just took down a fast-rising Chiefs squad. The offense was extremely balanced. Josh Allen only had 1 incompletion in the first half and James Cook had yet another 100+ yards on the ground. For weeks I’ve been talking about how they need a WR to help Allen out. Maybe I was wrong. If their TEs can continue to dominate as they did against Chiefs, who needs a big name WR? The Bills certainly don’t.