🏈 NFL Power Rankings: Week 6

1) Detroit Lions (+1)

After a rough opener, the Lions have been dominant on both sides of the ball over their last four wins and Jared Goff leads the NFL in EPA per dropback. Their injured secondary is going to be tested in the next few weeks.

2) Philadelphia Eagles (-1)

While they finally got caught playing “not to lose” rather than playing to win, the Eagles are well-positioned to compete again this year since their top-tier defense will give Jalen Hurts and his new OC Kevin Patullo time to hit their stride.

3) Buffalo Bills (-1)

The Bills defense has been awful with interior force Ed Oliver and Matt Milano (pec) suffered another injury during a Week 5 loss to the Patriots. Josh Allen is still the best QB in football and the deserved MVP favorite.

4) Kansas City Chiefs (+0)

Patrick Mahomes is cooking right now aside from a ghastly Pick-6 that flipped the script on Monday Night. The Chiefs defensive front has taken a massive step back and they’re making uncharacteristic mistakes on special teams.

5) Green Bay Packers (+1)

The Packers should get two of their three starting offensive lineman back after a Week 5 bye and they have a few cupcakes on their upcoming schedule.

6) Indianapolis Colts (+3)

Are the Colts a wagon? Or the beneficiaries of a very easy schedule thus far? They have another soft three-game stretch coming up against the Cardinals, Chargers, and Titans.

7) Los Angeles Rams (-2)

Matthew Stafford has been money all season and his receivers should be licking their chops at the prospect of facing Baltimore’s injury-ravaged defense next week.

8) Washington Commanders (+0)

Jayden Daniels (knee) knocked off the rust after a shaky first quarter and led Washington to a decisive road win with Jacoby Croskey-Merritt (14 carries, 111 yards, 2 TD) breaking out.

9) Denver Broncos (+2)

Even if his stat line wasn't pretty, Bo Nix finally scored a win over a title contender. The Broncos are tied with the Chargers (+175) as AFC West favorites and certainly have a better injury situation than the Bolts.

10) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+0)

Another week, another insanely clutch performance from Baker Mayfield, who became the first QB with 375-plus passing yards and fewer than five incompletions in a game, and he did against the top defense by EPA.

11) Seattle Seahawks (+1)

Sam Darnold is rocking a 133.5 rating with a 76.9% completion rate while averaging 267 passing yards per game over his last three outings. The Vikings might regret letting him walk.

12) Jacksonville Jaguars (+2)

Jacksonville’s defense cooled off a red-hot Mahomes and gave Trevor Lawrence enough opportunities to pull out a primetime win. Anthony Campanile’s defense is buying time for Lawrence and Liam Coen to get on the same page.

13) Houston Texans (+8)

Grade Houston’s performance on a curve since they were facing Baltimore’s backups, but C.J. Stroud and company get some credit for getting on track to complement their elite defense.

14) San Francisco 49ers (+1)

The Niners proved their organizational competency by grinding out a win at the Rams despite a multitude of injuries. They’ll only get healthier going forward with George Kittle (hamstring) expected back by Week 7.

15) New England Patriots (+7)

Drake Maye was nearly perfect in the second half to beat Josh Allen and the Bills. Mike Vrabel continues to stick with Rhamondre Stevenson in key situations despite his rampant ball security problems.

16) Atlanta Falcons (+3)

Atlanta’s defense is rock solid and Bijan Robinson might be the best back in football. Michael Penix Jr. and Raheem Morris are the biggest reasons to doubt this team going forward.

17) Pittsburgh Steelers (+0)

Did the Steelers rediscover their physicality in a smashmouth win over the Vikings in Dublin? We’ll find out when they face two AFC North foes in a five-day span starting with the Browns Sunday.

18) Minnesota Vikings (+0)

The Vikings split their games in Europe and return home at 3-2, but it wouldn’t be surprising if they lose their next three against the Eagles, Chargers, and Lions.

19) Chicago Bears (+1)

Apparently Ben Johnson can't coach defense. The Bears are giving up a league-high 6.1 YPC along with the most yards and points per play. Secondary injuries have played a role in those poor numbers.

20) Dallas Cowboys (+3)

If the Cowboys can get serviceable play from their defense, Dak Prescott looks capable of keeping them competitive against any opponent.

21) Los Angeles Chargers (-8)

Joe Alt (ankle) and Omarion Hampton (ankle) are out and now Mekhi Becton (hand) and Trey Pipkins (knee) could join them in street clothes as the Chargers try to stay afloat with a patchwork offensive line.

22) Arizona Cardinals (-6)

What can you say about Arizona’s ridiculous collapse against the Titans? This franchise hasn’t been trustworthy for years and the throughline is Kyler Murray’s leadership, even though he had nothing to do with the two flukey fumbles that flipped their Week 5 result.

23) Baltimore Ravens (-16)

We have no choice but to drop the Ravens a massive number (-16) in the rankings after they failed to show any fight with 10-plus starters out or hobbled in a blowout loss to the Texans. They’ll probably punt their Week 6 matchup before heading into their bye.

24) Cleveland Browns (+2)

Dillon Gabriel is a clear upgrade for the Browns and their defense is going to give Aaron Rodgers problems in Week 6.

25) Las Vegas Raiders (-1)

Brock Bowers (PCL) finally took a week off to heal up and the rest of the Raiders followed suit with another no-show performance on the road.

26) New Orleans Saints (+3)

The Saints have rushed for 277 yards over their last two outings and were able to capitalize on a slew of Giants turnovers to snap their eight-game losing streak.

27) New York Giants (-2)

Jaxson Dart showed his lack of experience with three turnovers in New Orleans. The Giants pass rush pressured Spencer Rattler consistently, but their secondary couldn’t hold up on the back end.

28) Carolina Panthers (+2)

Now 12-16 at home since the start of 2023, the Panthers defense has been markedly better with a home crowd at their back. Bryce Young should be on the hot seat after yet another multi-turnover game.

29) Miami Dolphins (-2)

The Dolphins defense still can’t stop anyone and their offense can’t run the ball with any consistency. This team might be close to quitting on Mike McDaniel, if they haven’t already.

30) Cincinnati Bengals (+1)

Jake Browning and Ja’Marr Chase put up some numbers in garbage time and the Bengals defense showed some fight against Detroit, but after a third straight blowout loss, trade rumors are starting to swirl.

31) New York Jets (-3)

Failing to score outside of garbage time against a Cowboys defense that is allowing the most yards per game (412) is an indictment of the Jets coaching staff all the way down to Justin Fields.

32) Tennessee Titans (+0)

Cam Ward capitalized on a few dreadful mistakes by the Cardinals to score a flukey win in Arizona.