Talk about some interesting circumstances? Three of the four teams off last week return to action in last place in their respective divisions. While the Miami Dolphins remain winless, the Cincinnati Bengals and Detroit Lions find themselves in fourth place as the three teams above each club all sport winning records as well.
This week, the Bengals, Lions, and Dolphins all face divisional foes, while the Purple Gang hosts the up-and-down Indianapolis Colts.
As for last week’s teams returning from their off week, the Carolina Panthers won at Philadelphia, while the Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Los Angeles Chargers and kept them winless.
2026 NFL Season: Grades for teams coming off Week 6 bye
Cincinnati Bengals (3-2)
Three years ago, the AFC North sent three teams to the playoffs, while the 9-8 Bengals sat home. Zac Taylor’s club hasn’t been to the postseason since losing the 2022 AFC title game at Kansas City. This is a talented team that got off to a 2-0 start, then suffered back-to-back losses to the Steelers and Jaguars before winning at Miami. However, the struggling Dolphins scored a season-high 24 points in that game.
Joe Burrow has been sharp for the most part, hitting on 71.4 percent of his throws for 1,361 yards and 11 TDs, with wideout Ja’Marr Chase and tight end Mike Gesecki each snaring four TD passes. The Bengals’ pass rush has produced 17 sacks via eight different players. With the exception of a 20-6 victory at Houston in Week 2, each of Cincinnati’s other four games have been decided by seven points or less.
Grade: B-
Detroit Lions (3-2)
The last time Dan Campbell’s club took the field, it was toying with the Arizona Cardinals, 45-21, in the desert. The club remains an offensive juggernaut. Veteran Jared Goff has thrown for 1,485 yards and 13 touchdowns and has not committed a turnover. Running back Jahmyr Gibbs has totaled 747 yards from scrimmage, reached the end zone nine times and has the club’s lone turnover this season.
Once again, Detroit’s defense has left a lot to be desired. No team in the league has allowed more total yards and passing yards per game. The Lions have already given up 20 offensive touchdowns—14 through the air. It really starts for Campbell’s club this week, when the Lions are the “home team” in five of their next six games (they host the Patriots in Munich in Week 10) and face their first divisional foe this season.
Grade: B-
Miami Dolphins (0-5)
As has been well-documented, the Dolphins’ last postseason victory came in the 2000 wild card round when they knocked off the Indianapolis Colts—an AFC East division rival at the time—in OT. Now it’s up to general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and new head coach Jeff Hafley to rejuvenate the program. It’s been a rocky start to date, but there have been some slight signs of progress.
Malik Willis has hit on just 56.2 percent of his throws in five outings. He’s thrown for two scores, run for a pair of TDs, been picked off four times, and lost three-of-five fumbles. Pro Bowler De’Von Achane was lost in Week 3, but Ollie Gordon is now the leader of the NFL’s ninth-ranked ground game. Hafley’s defense has been respectable, but an offense that has scored seven TDs in five games simply won’t get it done.
Grade: D+
Minnesota Vikings (5-0)
They remain one of three unbeaten teams after six weeks of play. But while the 6-0 San Francisco 49ers and the 5-0 Kansas City Chiefs are balanced football teams that both rank in the league’s top 10 in both total offense and total defense, Kevin O’Connell’s squad leads the NFC North thanks mainly to Brian Flores’s aggressive defense, a unit that has allowed a mere five offensive touchdowns in as many games.
As for the offense (ranked 27th in the NFL in total yards per game), It hasn’t been pretty but it’s worked to date. O’Connell has already utilized two different starting quarterbacks in Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz. Earlier this month, the Vikings dealt 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy to the Giants. Justin Jefferson has three of the team’s five TD grabs, while Aaron Jones has run for 410 yards and two scores.
Grade: B+
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