NFL Week 9 Power Rankings: Patriots Fall, 49ers Claim Top Spot

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Last week’s edition of the 'NFL Power Rankings' did so well that we are going to make it a weekly segment here on this website. This week saw the previously, number one-ranked New England patriots fall to the Baltimore Ravens; as well as the last-ranked Miami Dolphins win their first game of the season. There were a ton of big movers 1-32 this week. The wait is over, here are this week's power rankings:

1. [2.] San Francisco 49ers (8-0)

W 28-25 vs. Arizona

The only undefeated team left in the league is the… 49ers? Who would have thought coming into the season that phrase would be uttered 9 weeks in? Well it is true, after eight games San Francisco is the league’s lone undefeated team after defeating the Cardinals Thursday night. Which moves them up to the number one spot in these rankings.

2. [3.] New Orleans Saints (7-1)

Bye Week

The Saints are in serious contention for the best team in the NFL. They have played the majority of their games without Drew Brees and the last two without Alvin Kamara, yet they are still 7-1. New Orleans had a bye, giving Brees and Kamara an added week of rest, but return to the field against Atlanta this Sunday.

3. [5.] Baltimore Ravens (6-2)

W 37-20 vs. New England

Wow, what an amazing few weeks it has been for Baltimore fans. First, they trade a bag of chips for Marcus Peters, then they beat Seattle and New England by fourteen and seventeen points, respectively. This team is the real deal and if teams cannot figure out how to slow down their league-leading offensive attack, it could get even scarier.

4. [6.] Seattle Seahawks (7-2)

W 40-34 vs. Tampa Bay

This Seattle squad just keeps barely winning games, no matter who it is against. If it were not for the heroics of MVP favorite, Russell Wilson, this team could easily be at the bottom of these rankings. But, yet again Dangeruss Wilson took over, throwing five touchdown and leading the Seahawks to victory, a win is a win.

5. [1.] New England Patriots (8-1)

L 20-37 vs Baltimore

It seems that all the criticism of the Patriots’ early season schedule was warranted. In their first game against a top team in the Baltimore Ravens, they got quite literally punched in the mouth. Their record-setting defense, besides two fumble recoveries, was nowhere to be found. Their offense was not terrible, but it also was not great. We will know the real New England Patriots in the coming weeks, as they have a very tough schedule.

6. [8.] Kansas City Chiefs (6-3)

W 26-23 vs. Minnesota

The Chiefs are hardly missing a beat without Patrick Mahomes. They hardly lost to Green Bay last week, and then beat Minnesota this week. Their defense also played good for one of the first times all season. Once Mahomes gets back, they will be hard to beat.

7. [4.] Green Bay Packers (7-2)

L 11-26 vs. Los Angeles Chargers

Yikes. After looking like arguably the best team in the league to start the season, Green Bay put forth an atrocious outing against a team that has struggled in the Chargers. Green Bay could not get anythingon offense, and they could not stop the run or the pass. Hopefully this was just an off game for the Pack.

8. [9.] Los Angeles Rams (5-3)

Bye Week

The Rams had a bye week and move up in the power rankings, but they are still losers this week. Both San Francisco and Seattle, who are numbers one and two in the division, won their games. The Rams better continue their play before they had a bye if they wish to keep race in this ultra-competitive NFC West.

9. [10.] Dallas Cowboys (5-3)

W 37-18 vs. New York Giants

Dallas ended up beating down on the Giants, but it did not start out that way. They were leading by just one measly point going into halftime. This team is borderline elite but, if they want to be serious contenders, they cannot continue to start the game off so slow.

10. [12.] Houston Texans (6-3)

W 26-3 vs. Jacksonville

Playing in their first game this year without JJ Watt, the Texans defense absolutely shutdown the Jaguars offense. Deshaun Watson had an outstanding game once again, despite a gnarly looking swollen eye. If Houston can continue putting together complete outings like this, the AFC South is theirs’ to lose.

11. [7.] Minnesota Vikings (6-3)

L 23-26 vs. Kansas City

The Minnesota Vikings lost a close one this week versus the Chiefs after winning four straight contests. This one kind of stings for Minnesota as Kansas City was without their MVP, Patrick Mahomes, but this loss changes nothing about how the Vikings are viewed. They are a good team that can play like a great team or can play like a bad team; any given Sunday.

12. [13.] Philadelphia Eagles (5-4)

W 22-14 vs. Chicago

Philadelphia’s defense was absolutely phenomenal on Sunday, holding Chicago to 187 total yards of offense. That same defense has been the downfall of the Eagles’ before Sunday. If they can replicate anywhere near that same level of dominance on D, they can truly contend for a Super Bowl.

13. [12.] Buffalo Bills (6-2)

W 24-9 vs. Washington

The Bills beat Washington, of course. They did not play great, but they did what was necessary. Josh Allen has continued to look better and better following his dreadful performance versus New England in week 4. As long as he does not turn the ball over, the Bills’ defense and rushing attack will keep them in every game.

14. [11.] Indianapolis Colts (5-3)

L 24-26 vs. Pittsburgh

A missed game-winning field goal for the Colts is what cost them this one. Their starting quarterback, Jacoby Brissett, went down in the first quarter with a knee injury and backup, Brian Hoyer, played masterfully in his absence. Indy has Miami next week, but if Brissett misses time beyond that, the Colts could be in trouble.

15. [16.] Carolina Panthers (5-3)

W 30-20 vs. Tennessee

The good news is that Kyle Allen and the Carolina Panthers got back to their winning ways after getting thrashed by the 49ers two weeks ago. The bad news is that it is increasingly likely that Cam Newton does not play this year. Kyle Allen is not good enough right now to lead this Panthers team deep into the playoffs, but he can certainly get them there.

16. [18.] Oakland Raiders (4-4)

W 31-24 vs. Detroit

The Oakland Raiders continue to impress. Despite having the most difficult schedule in the league through the first eight weeks of the season, the Raiders are 4-4 and in second place in the AFC West. Their defense is still bad, but it is the only thing holding them back from being a top-ten or so team in the league.

17. [20.] Los Angeles Chargers (4-5)

W 26-11 vs. Green Bay

Here come the Chargers, maybe. It seems LA is finally getting back on track with two straight wins, especially after dominating the Packers on Sunday. Melvin Gordon finally had a decent game and they played remarkable on both sides of the ball. The Chargers can really turn their season around with two divisional games in the next two weeks.

18. [15.] Detroit Lions (3-4-1)

L 24-31 vs. Oakland

Another great Matthew Stafford performance ruined by Detroit’s inability to play any sort of defense. On a weekend that saw every other NFC North team lose, the Lions could have gained serious momentum with a win in Oakland. Instead, they are now just a few losses away from being completely out of contention for the division as well as the playoffs.

19. [17.] Jacksonville Jaguars (4-5)

L 3-26 vs. Houston

One week the Jaguars look legitimate, the next week they look like frauds. This weekend they took on the latter form while scoring only three points and letting the Texans move the ball at ease, through the air as well as on the ground. This season will soon just be about developing Gardner Minshew for the Jags.

20. [23.] Pittsburgh Steelers (4-4)

W 26-24 vs. Indianapolis

When Roethlisberger went down in week two; many people, including myself, thought the Steelers’ season was over. Instead Mike Tomlin has come up with an unconventional; albeit impressive game plan in order to get this team to .500 on the season. Critics calling for Mike Tomlin to be on the hot seat have been silenced and he has truly proven himself to be one of the top-five coaches in the league. The Steelers have a chance at a wild card spot in the AFC.

21. [19.] Tennessee Titans (4-5)

L 20-30 vs. Carolina

This was the Ryan Tannehill we were all expecting to see. He did not play terrible, but he tossed two interceptions while getting sacked four times. The sad part is that Tannehill still played ten times better than Marcus Mariota when he was the starter. Tennessee will finish yet another season right around 8-8.

22. [21.] Chicago Bears (3-5)

L 14-22 vs. Philadelphia

Can things get any worse in Chicago? A week after losing on a missed field goal, the Bears have the worst offensive first half any team has had all season. Trubisky is a flaming piece of garbage and Matt Nagy’s gimmicks are no longer surprising anyone and are not enough to make Trubisky look like even a backup caliber quarterback.

23. [27.] Denver Broncos (3-6)

W 24-19 vs. Cleveland

With Brandon Allen (?) under center; the Denver Broncos were expected to lose big-time, even against the struggling Cleveland Browns. Instead, Brandon Allen played surprisingly well and the Broncos effectively ended the overhyped Browns’ season, good job Denver.

24. [22.] Arizona Cardinals (3-5-1)

L 25-28 vs. San Francisco

The Cardinals have played better than most expected them to thus far into the season. They have given some pretty good teams a scare. But the NFL does not do moral victories and Arizona’s schedule only gets harder from here on out. The end of the season could get rocky for Arizona and Kyler Murray.

25. [24.] New York Giants (2-7)

L 18-37 vs Dallas

After looking very promising once Danny Dimes took over, the Giants have quickly started to look like one of the worst teams this season. That is okay though, it is about the future for Daniel Jones and this Giants’ team. Though it would be nice to see them at least be competitive.

26. [25.] Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-6)

L 34-40 vs. Seattle

After looking like they would be a good team after a solid start to the season, Tampa Bay is now 2-6 and on their way to another top-10 draft pick. This week, like every other week, the Bucs have been able to put up points, but their defense was nonexistent. Things just keep getting worse in Tampa.

27. [26.] Cleveland Browns (2-6)

L 19-24 vs. Denver

Simply put, this team is bad. Cleveland just lost to a quarterback most fans have never heard. They have the talent, but it all starts with the leadership. Freddie Kitchens was never ready to lead a group of men and Baker Mayfield is like a 13-year old child trying to be an army general. These guys do not rally behind Baker because they have no faith in him, and can you blame them? He hands out interceptions and then runs and blames anyone he can find, including the media, for his poor performance.

28. [29.] Atlanta Falcons (1-7)

Bye Week

Another week another loss fo—oh wait, the Falcons did not lose this week because they had a bye. That counts for something, right? Maybe this team can put together a few wins before season’s end, but probably not. Who would like to join my ‘Free Julio’ campaign?

29. [32.] Miami Dolphins (1-7)

W 26-18 vs. New York Jets

Can you believe it? The Miami Dolphins just won a game, like a REAL National Football League regular season game. They are now no longer in contention for the worst team of all-time, but they do ruin their tank job. Luckily for them, they see the Jets once more and they also matchup versus the Bengals in week 16.

30. [ - ] Washington (1-8)

L 9-24 vs. Buffalo

With all the talent they have, Washington still looks horrific and to be honest, this could not be happening to a worse organization. They nearly let Trent Williams die just so he could play football for them, and we all know about their reluctancy to change their very offensive name, thank you football gods!

31. [28.] New York Jets (1-7)

L 18-26 vs. Miami

LOL.

32. [31.] Cincinnati Bengals (0-8)

Bye Week

This bye week will probably be the closest Cincinnati gets to a win all year. Ryan Finley has been named the starter, at least for now. Maybe he will be this year’s version of rookie Baker Mayfield and carry the Bengals to a few wins. That is unlikely considering they have the worst offensive line in the league and Finley will be running for his life.

- Paul Hessing