Week Seven Power Rankings

This week had the best matchups of any week so far in 2024. There was a Super Bowl rematch with both quarterbacks looking irrelevant for large parts of the game. The Vikings and Lions lived up to all the hype built up over the previous six weeks. Even Sunday Night Football, despite being led by 2014’s MVP candidates, was pretty fun with George Pickens finally flashing a smile with Russell Wilson, of all people, prevailing.

Out of Rankings: Atlanta Falcons

Honorable Mentions: Pittsburgh Steelers & Philadelphia Eagles

10. Washington Commanders (Previous ranking: NR)

Do touchdowns count if they are scored against the Panthers? How about if Marcus Mariota throws them in 2024? Sure, that’s all true, but the win over the Panthers isn’t more or less impressive than any of Washington’s other wins. All their other wins have the same or similar tune to them, which should not be a criticism. This is a team that had the second overall pick last year, and luckily, they used it on the right guy. After getting a commanding lead (pun fully intended), Daniels’ injury didn’t mean much with some Twitter doctors discussing Jayden’s touchdown celebration as a sign that he was doing just fine. There is still a long season ahead, but Washington should feel pretty fantastic about where they stand currently.

(AP)

9. Chicago Bears (Previous ranking: 7)

Bye Week (I tried to set the ‘precedence’ of a team not moving whatsoever due to a bye, but it became an impossibility. I apologize. You know what, no I don’t).

8. Houston Texans (Previous ranking: 5)

The Texans finally got got. The Texans played the ridiculously close to the sun for about the opening act of the season, but it simply wasn’t enough against a team on a similar track as them. Losing Nico Collins last week stole some firepower from this offense, but the Texans had their chances in this game. The Texans were the second team to five wins in the AFC which gave them a decent cushion in the AFC South, but the last thing the Texans want to face is a desperate team, which they have plenty of on their schedule between the downright good teams.

7. San Francisco 49ers (Previous ranking: 4)

The Niners showed exactly why they have such harsh critics, particularly of their quarterback. Brock Purdy’s trio of picks emphasized the lack of weapons with the injuries they have. Between McCaffrey, Samuel, Jennings, and Aiyuk, the best fully healthy weapons are a rookie who had a bullet hole in his chest and back this summer and an offensive lineman. The defense tripped into two turnovers, including Mahomes’ second interception to a defensive lineman in as many games, but weren’t great when it mattered the most which is why they keep losing to the Chiefs. Things don’t get easier in the coming weeks for the Niners as they face the desperate Cowboys off a bye and travel across the country for a noon kick off with Tampa.

6. Green Bay Packers (Previous ranking: 10)

Green Bay has an assortment of talent only kin to Forest Gump’s box of chocolates. Name an archetype for a receiver and they have it. Bigger bodies, option runners, and speed merchants fill out the roster for Green Bay, coupled with LaFleur’s strong offensive lineage. Jeff Hafley is finally getting comfortable in the NFL by making CJ Stroud’s life hard for an afternoon. A crowded NFC needs a pure fun team, and the Packers fit that mold almost perfectly. Jordan Love can border on chaotic good, but good, nonetheless. His chaotic good in this one was being elite when trailing and slightly below average whenever the Packers led.

5. Minnesota Vikings (Previous ranking: 2)

Were we all kind of waiting for this one? We all watched the Saints, Seahawks, and even Patriots have their 15 minutes of fame when it came to September-October “contention.” The Vikings lasted the longest because, to me, they are the most legitimate of the early-season surprises, but at some point, even the mightiest warriors fall. Minnesota did everything right from a matchup perspective. As one of the top defenses in pressure statistics, they sent extra rushers toward Jared Goff, who shudders at the thought of a blitzer. Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison had massive plays down the stretch to keep their team in the game. They even scored off a turnover, but lost a close divisional game to the Lions, who are on a clear heater. The Jetta touchdown was pretty sick, though.

4. Buffalo Bills (Previous ranking: 9)

The Bills struggled a bit early with the resurgence of Mason Rudolph and his Titans, but soon remembered who they were and even introduced their new weapon. Amari Cooper getting his touchdown spelled exactly why the Bills are so dangerous moving forward. The AFC’s biggest contenders have some tragic wounds. Cincinnati’s are self-inflicted with their terrible start. Kansas City has gained and lost almost every receiver or back they’ve had in a two-year span. Within the AFC East, the Jets and Dolphins have proven not to be the challengers prognosticators expected them to be. The Bills can seize elite seeding in the better of the two conferences and the Cooper move could make that easier.

3. Baltimore Ravens (Previous ranking: 6)

Lamar Jackson is an elite passer of the football. I know that he is one of, if not the greatest running quarterbacks of all time, too, but was Monday night enough for you people? The Bucs defense isn’t the 1985 Bears, and neither were the Commanders last week, but they are NFL teams that the Ravens have hung at least 30 on. The job has only been made easier with Derrick Henry’s arrival, but every quarterback is better with a great run game. The backdoor is always open with this Ravens team and the dislocation of Chris Godwin’s ankle may have closed a potential comeback by emotionally driving the final nail in the coffin. The only question is: do the Ravens have to score 41 points to beat all decent teams?

2. Detroit Lions (Previous ranking: 3)

Dan Campbell scares me a little bit. I mean, the guy went for a fake punt on 4th & 7 in the first quarter of the game. Sure, divisions are important and winning them is even more important, but those decisions make things tougher especially when the offense struggles to get rolling early. The Vikings are the team to expose the Lions biggest weakness of Jared Goff’s melting against any pressure, but they still won. The Lions haven’t put any hardware on the shelves yet but are proving that a winning franchise can have a handful of critical issues, but still find a way.

1. Kansas City Chiefs (Previous ranking: 1)

Patrick Mahomes has never lost to the San Francisco 49ers. It may feel like more of a rivalry being that they are the only team to meet the Chiefs in the Super Bowl multiple times, but it’s not. Patrick Mahomes’ pair of picks were both strange to say the least, so it is believable that the Chiefs could have won by much more than they did. People may whine about Mahomes’ scrambling near the sideline, but at the end of the day, there is only one guy who can do it the way he does. Tom Brady even said so during the broadcast. The offense was really good in spots but would be completely insufficient if the defense wasn’t as dominant as it was. Steve Spagnuolo and this defense are forcing turnovers which is something that lacked from their strong defense from a year before. With the 49ers out of the way, the hardest part is over for the Chiefs, which should terrify us all.

(A to Z Sports)

Biggest Movers: Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans (fell 3 spots), Buffalo Bills & Green Bay Packers (rose 4 spots)

New Appearances: Washington Commanders