NFL Week 6 Powre Rankings

NFL Week 6 Powre Rankings
M.D. Wright
10.13.09

The separation continues. Bad losses by a couple of teams are going to drop them, and a couple of teams are going to experience meteoric rises this week as well. As always, this is not a prediction of where teams will FINISH in 2009, nor arguing statistics developed over a 5 game stretch. It is solely a barometer (and an OBJECTIVE one; not subjective) of where teams lie at the moment.

1. New York Football Giants.
Still the best team in football. Even fans of arch rival teams must admit: the Giants, top to bottom, are the best team in the NFL. Best offensive line, best defensive line and overall defense and 2nd best offense.

2. Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts keep trucking, even when some people were picking them to lose to Tennessee, they steamroll them with ease. Unlike ESPN, I don't put them ahead of the Giants. Colts still have questions defensively when they're actually playing a decent offense.

3. New Orleans Saints.
They've earned this. How long will it last, however? They are riding the wave of their defensive play under new defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, but they face their first test Sunday.

4. Minnesota Vikings.
Doing everything they would've done regardless of the QB to this point -- aside from the 49er game's ending. When will Favre kill them?

5. Cincinnati Bengals.
One loss was to the team following them in the ratings, but they shut Denver down. "Winning" on a fluke play doesn't make Denver better.

6. Denver Broncos.
Deserve some respect for beating the Patriots straight up, but I feel like the other shoe is going to drop for Orton when they play the actual GOOD teams in the NFC East.

7. Atlanta Falcons.
Destroyed SF at home. Not expected.

8. New York Jets.
Fluky loss late at Miami, however they have Edwards now -- a receiver who can produce since Laveranues Coles in his youth. Defense gave up a few big plays against a virtual rookie QB, but Kris Jenkins is a MAN - leading the Jets' defense.

9. Philadelphia Eagles.
Still waiting to see if they can do it on both sides of the ball, they gave up 45 to the Saints -- McNabb or NOT.

10. Baltimore Ravens.
Two last second losses, both aided by referees -- albeit the Patriot game's referreeing was horrible, the calls vs. Cincinnati Week 5 were legit, and a dropped pass from being 5-0.

11. New England Patriots.
I still just think of them as a run-of-the-mill 10-6, 11-5 team that won't go far in the playoffs. They're 3-2 and could/should very well be 1-4. Monumental collapse (not "win" for NE) by Buffalo and ref-aided "win" vs. Baltimore Week 5. Could not stop KYLE ORTON. Thomas isn't invincible anymore, either.

12. Chicago Bears.

13. San Francisco 49ers.
Horrible loss, but let's not read too much into it. There was a torrent vs. Atlanta Week 5 and their other loss was a miraculous throw by Brett Favre in the last seconds of Week 3. They're still a good team. Dre Bly needs to stop trying to imitate PRIME after all these years. He's 32 years old and lost 5 steps DEAR GOD.

14. Pittsburgh Steelers.
Uninspiring and even though they looked great Week 1, I don't think they'll be all that good once Polamalu does come back. Mendenhall CAN be stopped.

15. Green Bay Packers.
Need to fix their offensive line woes ASAP.

16. Dallas Cowboys.
Fluky play for the win late vs. a notoriously poor-tackling Kansas City team saved them from being 2-3.

17. San Diego Chargers.
Is it me, or was I right about LaDainian Tomlinson ultimately regretting signing that extension with San Diego a few years back -- and getting to this point (losing 2 steps, cutting ability, explosiveness, etc.) only to realize he played in relative obscurity as Chuck Muncie did once upon a team in San Diego -- when he could've had the money AND a Super Bowl ring by now had he left when he had the chance? Rivers can pass for 400 every other game (which he actually seems to do) but they can't stop anyone.

18. Arizona Cardinals.
Let Houston back into a blowout. A win is a win, but as Kurt is starting to come around and Hightower gets things done, their defense is woefully underachieving. Too many athletes and flat out studs at each level (Dockett, Hayes, DRC, Rolle, Wilson) to be such poor tacklers (Hayes GOOD HEAVENS you have to wrap Andre up no homo), take such poor angles (Rolle, frequently) and gamble needlessly (DRC).

19. Miami Dolphins.
Gutty (lucky) win using the Wildcat 25% of their plays on Monday Night. Henne may be better for them than weak-armed Chad after all.

20. Houston Texans.
They need to fix their defense or they are going to be hovering around .500 the rest of the way.

21. Seattle Seahawks.
Hard to figure this team out. They play better with Wallace in the game most of the time, it seems. But Hasselbeck is better. Go figure. They have a blowout for the ages against a team that just had one against a team that was picked by some to beat the 2009 Colts the week before (Tennessee). Doesn't make sense.

22. Detroit Lions.
They will learn how to close games. They would be 3-2 right now if they could at the moment.

23. Carolina Panthers.
UGH.

24. Jacksonville Jaguars.
UGLY TEAM.

25. Washington Redskins.
UGH. REMIX.

26. Buffalo Bills.
6-3 loss? TO EDWARDS-LESS CLEVELAND? *BARFS*

27. Cleveland Browns.
They finally "win" a game by scoring 6 pts and their starting QB completing 2 passes for less than 30 yards?

............................................

28. Tennessee Titans.
I had them 6-10, 7-9 this year and Vince coming in to fix the mess like teams always do with the Black player/coach (putting him in when there's nothing else to lose, he has little or no chance to succeed, then he'll get ripped out of there right as the team is on the precipice of success -- Tampa Tony Dungy, Prime Example). Vince can't win in Tennessee. He's better for them, and they may finish 10-6 this year -- but he'll probably be outta there either way and they'll bring someone like David Carr or Brady Quinn in, win 11 or 12 next year and get all the credit. This is for sure: Kerry Collins needs to retire. He could never run, and definitely can't now at age 37.

29. Kansas City Chiefs.
They can't tackle to save their lives and can't stop anyone on defense despite having a ton of 1st round picks. They're not as bad as this 0-5 record, but they can't get many more "wait, they're gonna improve" comments before (as Bill Parcells famously said in the 1980s about the Giants) "ya'are what ya'are".

30. Oakland Raiders
Finally watched an entire game of theirs. Russell missed a couple of receivers by a mile, but he didn't throw an INT (completely unexpected against the league's best defense) but otherwise, their major problem is no blocking whatsoever in the run/pass offense and their defense being unable to get to the QB at all. Asomugha is the 2nd best CB in the NFL (Revis) but even he can't cover the likes of Steve Smith and Hakeem Nicks (who burned him twice) all day.

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
No heart = weekly annihilation in the NFL.

32. St. Louis Rams.
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