NFL Power Rankings: Week Seven

If you, like me, enjoy tuning in to as many games as possible every week, you were destined to be disappointed last weekend. One of the worst weeks of this season is over, at least, and we can get back to what we love: Actual, entertaining NFL games. Before we do that, we need to know where we stand. Welcome back to The Sports Wave’s NFL Power Rankings for Week Seven.

(1) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1

Why does Tampa deserve to sit back on top of this list, you ask? I’ll tell you. No other team played as complete a game on Sunday, as they shut down the Bears in every single way. Side Note: The fan who gave back Tom Brady’s 600th touchdown ball has to be either the biggest idiot or best person on the planet, and we believe it’s the former.

(2) Buffalo Bills 1

After a long rest, Buffalo looks to get going again against the Miami Dolphins this week. (Bye Week)

(3) Los Angeles Rams 

They got caught sleeping a lot by the Lions, but it’s a testament to their incredibly talented roster that they still won by two scores. Cooper Kupp has truly developed into an elite WR1 with a consistent QB under centre, and the Rams won’t be beaten by tricky play calls.

(4) Green Bay Packers 

Does Green Bay finally have an actual red-zone defense, or did they just get lucky? They’d allowed 14/14 touchdowns from within 20 this season going into this game, but stopped Washington short consistently. The Packers finally face top-level quarterback competition over the next two weeks, as they visit Kyler Murray and Patrick Mahomes in back-to-back road games.

(5) Dallas Cowboys

Dallas fans can’t go trick-or-treating next week, as they visit the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday Night Football. (Bye Week)

(6) Arizona Cardinals 2

Strangely, Arizona might feel disappointed with this win. Despite a big play by Zach Ertz justifying their trade cost, the Cardinals couldn’t get their offense going early, and it took far too many mistakes by the Texans to get Arizona into this game. Kyler Murray was just fine, but his mistakes were major, and most other teams would have made they pay for it. They’re undefeated though, and in that category they still stand alone.

(7) Los Angeles Chargers

They needed a break after what happened against the Ravens in week six. They host New England next weekend. (Bye Week)

(8) Tennessee Titans 2

Well, the Titans might actually be contenders. The impressive part of Sunday’s slaughter wasn’t scoring all over the K.C. defense; That part is child’s play. Tennessee limited the Chiefs to their worst scoring game since they were last shutout, way back in 2012, despite a heavily depleted secondary of their own.

(9) Baltimore Ravens 3

Despite his incredible passing game two weeks ago, you can expect the ‘Lamar can’t pass’ storyline to rear it’s head after an ugly loss to the Bengals and his second straight ugly performance from the pocket. The pass defense was a liability and their inability to tackle in the open field allowed Cincinnati to pass all over them.

(10) Cleveland Browns 1

It wasn’t particularly impressive, but these banged up Browns seem to be able to win games against inferior opposition even without their quarterback. Or either of their star running backs. Or their top receivers at full health. If Baker Mayfield plans to play through a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder, postponing mandatory surgery until the offseason, he’s going to need those guys back, as soon as possible.

(11) Indianapolis Colts 2

Indianapolis delivered pain in the rain on Sunday Night Football, persevering with their knack for completing passes in the rain and drawing interference calls. The calls were legitimate, and the Colts defense took advantage of the poor weather to force a handful of crucial turnovers. Great game, and Wentz put it all on the line without hesitation when necessary.

(12) New Orleans Saints

The name of the game on a wet Monday night in Seattle was defense, and it worked out great for the Saints. They dissected, disrupted, and dominated all night on that side of the ball; If their WRs could only remember how to catch, they might have blown out the Seahawks, instead of a the low-scoring nail-biter we received instead.

(13) Las Vegas Raiders 1

The Raiders seem to be just fine, winning both their games as they were supposed to be reeling following the loss of Jon Gruden. Derek Carr went 31/34 for 323 yards passing, dissecting the Eagles with ease. Defensively, they’re strict to their effective scheme, and they continue to do enough week in and week out as they sit comfortably at 5-2, first in the AFC West with a half game over the Chargers.

(14) Kansas City Chiefs 5

We were hesitant to hit the panic button for Kansas City, considering the reigning two-time AFC champions have a knack for coming back, but things look bleak. Mahomes took a nasty hit near the end of the game, but he was still having arguably the worst game of his career before getting removed. They’d had to lean on the offense to outscore opponents to balance their swiss-cheese secondary, but if the offense can’t find the end-zone either their playoff hopes will go straight down the drain, let alone dreams of another Superbowl.

(15) Cincinnati Bengals 2

Oct 24, 2021; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (1) jumps over Baltimore Ravens cornerback Anthony Averett (23) in the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

It’s time to put some respect on the Bengals. I’ll admit I was wrong about them; I had doubts about Burrow after his injury, and thought Ja’Marr Chase was a reach in this year’s draft. Clearly, I was wrong, and this duo are terrifying. Chase put up 201 yards on eight catches with a touchdown.

(16) Pittsburgh Steelers

A quality divisional game awaits the Steelers as they host the Browns after a rest. (Bye Week)

(17) San Francisco 49ers 2

The 49ers simply aren’t that good any more. Their fourth-consecutive loss has them dumpster-diving in the NFC, and this secondary looks nothing like the well-oiled machine we saw from Robert Saleh’s men in 2020. This ship seems rudderless. With a QB controversy and a host of issues across the board, they’re still not the worst team in their division.

(18) Minnesota Vikings 1

Minnesota finally gave their fans a week off after a bevy of close games, but they host Dallas this weekend. (Bye Week)

(19) New England Patriots 1

As a rookie QB, it’s not unreasonable to imagine Mac Jones getting benched at some point this season. We didn’t expect that to be because the Patriots were up by 41. He gained his stats by dropping the ball into screens all day, but Jones continues to be quietly effective. New England has only beaten rookie QBs this season, as the complex looks Bill Belichick serves on defense are consistently confusing.

(20) Seattle Seahawks 2

Seattle can’t get Wilson back soon enough, as they were forced to completely abandon the pass until it was far too late in one of the dullest Monday Night Football games we’ve seen in a long time. Outside of a D.K. Metcalf 84-yard touchdown to open the scoring, Seattle was unable to threaten the Saints, and they hardly targeted Metcalf again all night. Can they keep themselves in the race with Wilson on the sidelines, and what kind of comeback does he need to make to get this team competing again?

(21) Carolina Panthers

There is absolutely no reason the Panthers should have lost this game, but here we are. They don’t seem to know how to run without McCaffrey, despite rookie RB Chuba Hubbard’s ability to make plays, and there’s no quarterback on the roster who’s capable of beating up on opposing secondaries. Expect them to be in the QB market extremely soon, despite owing Sam Darnold $18.9 next season.

(22) Washington Football Team 

Let’s look at the bright side of things, shall we? Washington’s pass-rush, highly touted before the season began, had been thoroughly underperforming, but fixed that against the Packers. In other news, Ryan Fitzpatrick might just get his starting job back when this is over after all.

(23) Miami Dolphins 

He made some costly mistakes, but Tua Tagovailoa looked as good as he ever has at times on Sunday. This loss hurts, as it does any time you lose a close game, but the Dolphins are supposed to be able to rely on their secondary, especially in pass-only situations like the two-minute drill. Unlike last season, where the entire team excelled outside of the QB play, Tua was the lone bright spot last weekend. He’s doing admirably, on and off the field, under massive controversial trade speculation.

(24) Atlanta Falcons 3

Matty Ice might just have ice in his veins after all, engineering an excellent game-winning drive in Hard Rock Stadium. The Falcons finally figured out how to get Kyle Pitts going, and Cordarrelle Patterson is one of the most entertaining players in the league to watch this season. They’re not good, that much is certain, but perhaps they’re good enough to be a problem, on any given Sunday.

(25) Philadelphia Eagles 1

Philadelphia was completely outclassed in the weekend’s late window, and never really posed a threat to the Raiders. They scored on the opening drive, but turned the ball over twice and punted three times on the next six possessions, meanwhile, Vegas put the pain on as the defense struggled to get a stop.

(26) New York Giants3

Danny still has enough dimes in his bag to get it done,  even without many weapons. In fact, he had no weapons at all. Still, he’s making a case this season for a second contract, with a shot at being a long-term answer at the most important position in the game. What an unforgettable catch on the trick play, too.

(27) Denver Broncos1

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Well, maybe not mighty, but decent. Denver wasn’t fooling many people after their 3-0 start, as they drop four straight losses on the table to fall to 3-4, but perhaps they should have won this one against a hobbled Cleveland offense. Von Miller was kept out of the game in caution after a minor injury, and he may have been the difference maker as the Broncos defensive line crumbled against the late-game victory-securing drive by the Browns’ backups.

(28) Chicago Bears3

The Bears were blown out, and the problems with this team seem to go so much deeper than the quarterback. We know Fields needs time, but with the defense getting manhandled and the offense doing exactly nothing through the course of the day, fans need someone to be frustrated at. That someone should be Matt Nagy, who’s team hasn’t passed for 200+ yards in any games this season.

(29) Detroit Lions3

Detroit might have wanted to win this game a little too much, as they pulled out all the stops. They pulled out two fake punts, a first-kickoff onside kick, and a number of other great calls, all of which shockingly worked out. They still lost by two scores, but this was arguably the most entertaining team to watch in week seven.

(30) New York Jets2

Are you a Jets fan? If so, you may be entitled to financial compensation. New England aren’t the dominant tour-de-force that they use to be, but the Jets are still the Jets, making a mediocre offense and underperforming defense look like Superbowl contenders. Zack Wilson’s health should be the only thought on the minds of fans in New Jersey this week.

(31) Jacksonville Jaguars

Jacksonville gets to play the Seahawks next week, and with Russell Wilson out they might stand a chance. (Bye Week)

(32) Houston Texans2

This game looked like it was due to be another major upset early on, as Houston opened the game with an extremely satisfying safety and consistent quality plays. If fell apart quickly though, and the Cardinals ended up dominating on the day, check stats. This loss was disappointing only because of how it happened, and in no way surprising.

Iestyn Harris
One of the owners The Sports Wave, and a Journalist at Buffalo Fanatics, I'm an English immigrant living in Canada. A huge Buffalo Bills fan, I also love my Boston Celtics, Toronto Blue Jays, and Queens Park Rangers.

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