The NFL was filled with a ton of intense action in Week 6. Let's turn our attention to our latest power rankings as we now approach Week 7. Don't look now, but Week 7 is now firmly in view. The latest NFL action brought forth a ton of top storylines that we'll be taking about all this week.
Perhaps most notably, Caleb Williams threw for four touchdown passes as the Chicago Bears blew out the Jacksonville Jaguars in London, moving them to 4-2 on the season. Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers also took care of business on Thursday Night Football against the Seattle Seahawks.
Let's try to make heads and tails of all this action in our latest NFL
NFL Power Rankings, Week 7: Biggest risers and fallers after Week 6
32. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-5)
There are almost no words for just how bad the Jacksonville Jaguars are. They got blown out in London in Week 6 and actually play next week in London as well. It's an odd situation for the team to be in, as it's clear that Doug Pederson has not only lost the locker room, but is probably also done as a coach in the NFL if you ask me.
Are the Jaguars going to have enough oomph in that front office to make a head coaching chance while across the pond? It's desperately needed. This team is way too talented to be 1-5. But they are, and major changes are surely on the horizon.
31. Cleveland Browns (1-5)
The 1-5 Cleveland Browns may have a path to 1-8 at this point. They're going to be sellers at the 2024 NFL Trade Deadline at this point, and you'd have to think that Deshaun Watson gets sent to the bench. Nothing is working for the Browns, but making a QB change could actually temporarily fix a good bit.
The Browns managed to make the playoffs last year with a very similar roster. Joe Flacco was able to push them across the edge, so that kind of tells you just what the issue is, but the Browns have no contractual way to move on from Deshaun Watson for years now. This is just a huge mess for Cleveland and it's not getting better anytime soon.
30. New England Patriots (1-5)
The New England Patriots were never going to win in Week 6, but there does seem to be some to like from Drake Maye in his first NFL start. The Patriots are clearly in a rebuilding move and may have the worst offensive personnel group in the entire NFL. Their one dominant offensive line is among the worst in the NFL and is dealing with injuries.
The playmakers are just not at an NFL level, and I am not sure they have the correct coaching staff in place if you ask me, but now that the Pats have gone to Maye, they can at least use the rest of the 2024 NFL Season to see what they have in the QB. He's going to get, at least, all of 2024 and perhaps the entire 2025 NFL Season to prove that he can be a starter in this league.
The franchise simply needs to bring some more talent on offense to get a fair reading on Drake Maye. It's so bad that some people in the NFL world were even questioning the Patriots throwing him out there. It's almost at a point where it just isn't safe for him to be starting.
29. Carolina Panthers (1-5)
The Carolina Panthers drop to 1-5 on the 2024 NFL Season after yet another loss, and this time it comes at the hands of the Atlanta Falcons, who are now 4-2 and feel like the best team in the NFC South. The Falcons actually have already beaten the 4-2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so they will retake the first place slot in the NFC South with this latest win.
The Panthers are again likely headed toward a rebuild in 2025, and you have to wonder if we’ll end up seeing second-year QB Bryce Young at some point later on in the season. The Panthers just do not have much going for them on either side of the ball and again need some major changes.
28. Las Vegas Raiders (2-4)
The Las Vegas Raiders are a dumpster fire and are now 2-4 on the season after a tough loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Raiders did not come away with a QB in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, so this year was kind of a lost year coming into the season. It was odd that the Raiders didn’t make more of an effort to take a QB.
They’ve already benched Gardner Minshew in favor of Aidan O’Connell, and with neither QB the long-term answer, I would expect Raiders’ GM Tom Telesco to take some type of swing next offseason. To be fair to Telesco, he was the one who drafted Justin Herbert back when he was with the Los Angeles Chargers, so there is some hope for Raiders’ fans that Telesco can make the right move and perhaps instill a franchise QB for the long-term.
The Raiders are going nowhere in the 2024 NFL Season and will consistently appear this low in our NFL power rankings.
27. Tennessee Titans (1-4)
The Tennessee Titans stink, folks. Will Levis probably is not the long-term answer, and this team does have a brand-new coaching staff and a ton of new faces on both sides of the ball. I am not sure the Titans are going to give Levis the 2025 season. I could see them picking inside the top-5 of the 2025 NFL Draft, which could be a perfect spot for Titans’ GM Ran Carthon to grab his guy.
Brian Callahan is the team’s head coach, and he was just hired this season, so the Titans are probably going to have a major change at QB in 2025. At least Will Levis is good for the occasional meme picture. But the Titans are bad and not at all a threat in the AFC in 2024, and probably won’t be a threat until 2026 at the absolute earliest.
26. Los Angeles Rams (1-4)
The Los Angeles Rams are on their bye week and desperately needed it. They sit at 1-4 on the 2024 NFL Season in a shocking development. The main issue with the Rams is not their roster talent or their coaching, but it’s been the amount of injuries they have dealt with this year. Honestly, I was predicting this team to go quite far in 2024, so I did not see all of these injuries coming.
Frankly, the season is out of reach, so the Rams do need to entertain trading Matthew Stafford. That may sound bold, but Stafford is now in his age-36 season and may not have much more time left, so it’s worth it for the Rams to see if they can get some draft picks back in a trade so they can keep building for the future.
This team does have a good bit of young talent, so they don’t need to rip this thing down to the studs by any means. It’s time for the Los Angeles Rams to embrace a bit of a roster re-tooling.
25. Cincinnati Bengals (1-4)
The Cincinnati Bengals play on Sunday Night Football against the New York Giants and may very well end up at 2-4 when the night is over. As I type these words, the game has not begun yet and the Bengals still stink. It’s not their offense that’s the issue; it’s far from. Their defense has been among the worst in football this year, and it’s a bit of a shock.
They cannot generate consistent pressure and just have flat-out bad play in the secondary. This is likely due to some draft misses over the years for the Bengals’ front office, and they also have not yet been able to extend Ja’Marr Chase or Tee Higgins. Higgins is playing on the franchise tag, but this Bengals’ team is just a total, utter mess.
And it does not feel like things are capable of changing in 2024 unless some type of miracle happens.
24. Arizona Cardinals (2-4)
The Arizona Cardinals have a huge issue on defense, but this team wasn’t quite ready yet. I did pick them to surprise a lot of people this year. I’ve said they’d win about eight games in the 2024 NFL Season, which would be double their win total from 2023. They’re now 2-4 after six games and feel like they are definitely in a better spot than they were last year, but a lot of roster work is still yet to be done.
General Manager Monti Ossenfort most certainly needs at least one more solid offseason to get this defense situated. The offense clearly has some nice pieces to them, but another wide receiver and perhaps another running back would be necessary. The Cardinals are good enough to hang in most games but just do not have the overall roster talent to be a legitimate team. I would not rule them out from being a breakout team in 2024. They lost to the Green Bay Packers in Week 6 one week after beating the San Francisco 49ers in Week 5.
23. New Orleans Saints (2-4)
The New Orleans Saints are cooked, folks. Starting QB Derek Carr is now out for another few weeks with his own injury, so that has paved the way for rookie QB Spencer Rattler to get some time on the field. With the Saints now losers of four in a row and their season slipping away, it may not make a lot of sense for the Saints to turn back to Carr, who can be cut after the 2024 NFL Season.
Rattler at least has some fun upside that the Saints can try to work with. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and Rattler could become a fun combination going forward. Rattler showing something substantive in the coming weeks could end up being the best part of this team going forward. They need it, frankly.
22. Miami Dolphins (2-3)
The Miami Dolphins had their bye in Week 6 and desperately needed it. They sit at 2-3 on the season and could get QB Tua Tagovailoa back in a couple of weeks from his latest concussion. Many honestly thought that Tagovailoa was going to retire, but he’s probably returning to the field for the Dolphins in the coming weeks.
They could save their season, as them being 2-3 is certainly not them being out of it by any means, but as long as they aren’t starting Tagovailoa, they’re still among the worst teams in the NFL. In Week 7 when they come off of their bye week, they’ll face off against the Indianapolis Colts. They won’t have Tua Tagovailoa for that game, so it may be another week for Tyler Huntley.
Could the Miami Dolphins make a late season push when Tua Tagovailoa returns to the starting lineup?
21. New York Giants (2-3)
The New York Giants are currently dueling with the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday Night Football. I truly believe this could be a game where the Giants eek out the victory, and if we’re being honest, the Giants are the better and more complete team here. People don’t seem to want to rule out the Bengals just yet, but this defense is a mess and they aren’t 1-4 because of some dumb luck.
They’re 1-4 because their defense is terrible, period. The Giants have been a frisky team this year and could end up winning a few more games than we thought. If they can get to 3-3 with a huge win over the Bengals, they’d also stay alive in the NFC East, which is a wild statement I did not think I’d ever make in the 2024 NFL Season.
The New York Giants are where they are because of their coaching. The roster needs more talent, especially on offense, and they also need a franchise QB. Daniel Jones is not fooling anyone.
20. New York Jets (2-3)
Hosting the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football, the New York Jets just went about their business this week and did not make any major headlin- … oh my goodness, they did what?
Firing Robert Saleh in the middle of the week was certainly a choice. It doesn’t make a ton of sense given what has gone on with this team this year. Yet again, their defense is among the very best in the NFL so the surprise of no one. Former HC Robert Saleh simply knows how to coach up a defense and was doing just that.
Their offense has been among the worst in the league, and you won’t guess who is the primary play-caller. Yeah, it’s Nathaniel Hackett. Well, when the Jets fired Saleh, they made defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich the interim head coach, and one of the first things that Ulbrich did was to give Todd Downing playcalling duties, stripping that role from Hackett.
After losing two games in a row, the 2-3 Jets underwent a ton of change this past week.
19. Dallas Cowboys (3-3)
I just have no words for how bad the Dallas Cowboys were in Week 6 and how limp this team is. They’ve got no toughness, no edge about them and are getting taken to the cleaners by the more physical teams in the NFL. They now drop to 3-3 on the season, so it’s not like their season is over, but after watching them get embarrassed by the Detroit Lions in Week 6, it’s hard to think their season isn’t over.
This has nothing to do with Dak Prescott, but more due to them not having a consistent running game and their defense not being able to stop the run at a high level. It’s just a total mess for the Dallas Cowboys. Where does this team go from here?
18. Denver Broncos (3-3)
The Denver Broncos won three games in a row and managed to get to 3-2 on the season, but were about to be blown out by the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6. The Broncos managed to make it a close game down the stretch, but it ended up being a seven-point loss for Denver. Still, though, this team is 3-3 and is in a decent spot with rookie QB Bo Nix, who threw two more touchdown passes on Sunday.
The Broncos’ offense was just dreadful in the first half but managed to put something substantive on the field in the second half, so there is some good to take with them. The main issue here is that the Broncos play on a short week - they face the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football, a team who has now lost four games in a row.
This is also going to be a homecoming from Sean Payton, who coached the team from 2006-2021. Both the Broncos and Saints are going to be hugely desperate for a win to kick off Week 7 in the 2024 NFL Season.
17. Seattle Seahawks (3-3)
The Seattle Seahawks are a fraudulent team, and it’s wild that it took them losing three-straight games to see it. They have a limited ceiling with a rookie defensive head coach and a middling QB in Geno Smith at best. Make no mistake - the Seahawks won’t be going anywhere without a legitimate franchise QB in the building, but this team does have some nice talent on both sides of the ball, especially on defense.
It’s going to be a process for Seattle to draft and develop a QB, but that’s what this team needs to do. They’ll just barely be good enough to win anywhere from 7-9 games in 2024, but that isn’t going to do them much good.
Seattle took a tough loss on Thursday Night Football to the San Francisco 49ers. Seattle is desperate for a win after losing their third game in a row.
16. Indianapolis Colts (3-3)
The Indianapolis Colts are an interesting team. They are much better when Joe Flacco is playing QB for them, but that’s a huge issue if you ask me. Second-year QB Anthony Richardson again did not play, so it’ll be interesting to see what the Colts do going forward. I’d imagine that Richardson is unquestionably their starter for at least the rest of the 2024 NFL Season, but who know if he’d even get 2025 at this rate.
Richardson has been bad in his starts this year for the Colts, and with Indy having a struggling defense, they may be farther away than they perhaps thought heading into the 2024 NFL Season. They feel like a pretty average football team at this point with some nice pieces on both sides of the ball, but they are nothing special.
15. Los Angeles Chargers (3-2)
The Los Angeles Chargers had their bye week and it definitely came in handy. They had a ton of players exist the game with injury but managed to get a huge divisional win against the Denver Broncos, who saw their three-game winning streak come to an end. The Broncos did make it interesting late in the game, but it just was not enough for Denver. The Chargers now move to 3-2 on the season and are above .500. They actually snapped their own two-game losing streak.
Oddly enough, head coach Jim Harbaugh had a small medical episode and had to leave the sidelines for a short time. He did return and managed to finish coaching the game. The Chargers probably aren’t going to be all that special of a team this year; they just do not have a ton of roster talent and need multiple wide receivers and perhaps another running back.
However, in year one of the Jim Harbaugh era, the LA Chargers seem to be heading in a good direction.
14. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2)
I mean the Pittsburgh Steelers are 4-2, so I guess that’s something. Justin Fields again put out an uninspiring performance, as the team is winning in spite of Fields, let’s be honest. Fields is not a good QB, and the Steelers are simply winning games because of their defense and because they are well-coached enough to not shoot themselves in the foot constantly.
The team needs to get their offense going and it’s not going to be Fields who gets it going. However, the downside here is that Russell Wilson is not going to get the offense going either, so I have no idea what the Steelers would even do this year down the stretch. They may again finish with a winning record but probably won’t be able to make any headway in the NFL playoffs.
It’s the same story for the Steelers but they just happen to have different flavors at the QB position this year. Do not put a ton of stock into this team.
13. Philadelphia Eagles (3-2)
The Philadelphia Eagles are not a very good football team, but I just had no idea where to rank them here. They were coming out of their bye week and did notch a close win against the lowly Cleveland Browns. The game being as close as it was was an indictment on just how iffy the Eagles are. But I guess a win is a win, as they move to 3-2 on the season and now settle into second place in the NFC East behind the Washington Commanders.
Jalen Hurts is still a limited QB and I am not sure Nick Sirianni is a good enough head coach, so with questions at coach and QB, the Eagles won’t go anywhere this season. I do truly believe something needs to change for the Eagles in the coming months if they hope to get back to the Super Bowl, a place they got to in the 2022 NFL Season. Perhaps they can beg Shane Steichen to come back.
12. Buffalo Bills (3-2)
The Buffalo Bills have lost two games in a row to two very good teams, so that kind of tells you what team they may be this year. They lost to the Baltimore Ravens in embarrassing fashion and then lost to the Houston Texans in embarrassing fashion. They’ll play the New York Jets on Monday Night Football and could be as desperate as ever for a victory.
Them falling to 3-3 would definitely raise some questions, but the Jets are also going to be quite desperate themselves. I’m not really sure how far the Bills can go, but given just how underwhelming the rest of the AFC East has been this year, the Bills may end up cruising to another division title.
Josh Allen actually hasn’t thrown an interception this year, so he’s cut that down at least, but I am just uncertain about this Bills’ team. It’ll be interesting to see how they perform on Monday Night Football against the New York Jets, who now have an interim head coach.
11. Atlanta Falcons (4-2)
The Atlanta Falcons are coming, folks. They took down the Carolina Panthers in Week 6 and are now 4-2 on the season. Because they have already beaten the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they do hold first place in the NFC South. As I have said before, the Falcons’ ceiling is going to be lower with Cousins at QB, but they are going to win a ton of games this year and will probably host at least one playoff game this year.
The Falcons have a ton of talent on both sides of the ball and appear to be a well-coached team, so as the season progresses, they’ll continue to rack up more wins and will probably end the year as the winner of the NFC South.
Do not rule out the Falcons from rising up these NFL power rankings and them perhaps being a surprise team to make a playoff run in the NFC.
10. San Francisco 49ers (3-3)
Man oh man did the San Francisco 49ers need this win. They took it to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 6. They played on Thursday Night Football and notched a huge divisional victory over the Seahawks. This seems to be another year where the 49ers are dealing with some unfortunate injuries, as we also haven’t been able to see Christian McCaffrey on the field yet, which is a huge blow for their offense.
If the Niners can get healthy as the season processes, this team may end up making a late-season push in their quest to perhaps finally win a Super Bowl in the Kyle Shanahan era.
They’ve lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl in both the 2019 and 2023 NFL Seasons, and they always seem to be a shoo-in to at least make the conference championship game.
9. Washington Commanders (4-2)
The Washington Commanders weren’t going to win this game, period. They just weren’t, but they were going to keep it close, and they did. Jayden Daniels played out of his mind and seemed to truly go blow-for-blow with stud Baltimore Ravens’ QB, Lamar Jackson. This is one of those good losses that happen from time to time in the NFL.
Even with the loss, the Commanders are still first in the NFC East. They are now 4-2 on the season, and the Philadelphia Eagles are 3-2, sitting in second place. The main issue for the Commanders in Week 6 seemed to be them not being able to get their running game going. The Ravens got another big day from Derrick Henry on the ground, so it’s no surprise that they were able to come out victorious.
This loss should really not change what your thoughts are with the Commanders; this team is still very good and very dangerous, they’re just not going to contend this year.
8. Chicago Bears (4-2)
Something has to be said about the Chicago Bears. Caleb Williams and the offense has begun to put things together in the previous few games, and the Bears are now all of a sudden 4-2 on the season after just ripping apart the Jacksonville Jaguars, who may be the worst team in football.
Williams himself has looked very good lately, and the defense is still doing their job at a high level. Each week, Caleb Williams proves why the Bears made the right move to cut ties with Justin Fields, and it’s so insane that some people were saying that the Bears needed to keep Fields.
Anyway, you’d think the Bears would be first in the NFC North given their 4-2 record, but the Detroit Lions are 4-1 and the Minnesota Vikings are 5-0. And oh yeah, the Green Bay Packers are 4-2 as well after their huge Week 6 win. Everything seems to be clicking for the Chicago Bears, and they crack the top-10 in our latest power rankings.
7. Green Bay Packers (4-2)
The Green Bay Packers needed Jordan Love to play out of his mind. It’s not that the Arizona Cardinals have a good defense, but I think the Packers just needed to see one of those 2023 late-season Jordan Love games, and they got it in Week 6. Love threw for four touchdowns and 258 yards.
I don’t think the sophomore slump, if you will, was ever in the cards, and it seems like this team is not only poised to continue growing, but could be a Super Bowl darkhorse team if the young guys can keep growing and developing together.
The Packers may end up being one of the more fun teams in the NFL as the 2024 season goes on.
It’s hard to say if they can win the NFC North given how good it is, but you just never know.
6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-2)
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a fun team, folks. It did seem a bit fish for a while; as the New Orleans Saints were starting rookie QB Spencer Rattler, and the Saints were hanging around for quite a bit, but the Buccaneers figured out just how solid of a team they are and took the game over.
One of the more fun divisional battles as we progress through the 2024 NFL Season is the Buccaneers and the Atlanta Falcons, who both won in Week 6 and who are both 4-2 on the year. The Falcons did beat the Buccaneers a couple of weeks ago, so Atlanta is first in the NFC South. Baker Mayfield and Kirk Cousins are also both very good QBs and are really about even, so I am very interested to see how the NFC South plays out.
The Buccaneers went into New Orleans and got a huge win in Week 6, keeping pace with the Falcons in the hotly-contested NFC South.
5. Baltimore Ravens (4-2)
The Baltimore Ravens were 0-2 to begin the 2024 NFL Season. They’re now 4-2. The team is riding a four-game winning streak and don’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. The Ravens have also beaten some pretty good teams thus far, including beating the Commanders in Week 6 in their stadium.
Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry is turning into the best and most lethal duo that I’m not sure a single defense is going to be able to stop. It’s not crazy to think that not only Henry leads the league in rushing this year, but Jackson wins his third MVP award and second in a row. The Ravens have been that good this year and is just humming.
Their defense is still a bit of an issue, so I am interested to see if they can figure something out there as we approach the halfway point of the 2024 NFL Season. The Ravens crack the top-5 in our latest NFL power rankings.
4. Detroit Lions (4-1)
I mean, my goodness. The Detroit Lions took the Dallas Cowboys to the cleaners on Sunday. It wasn’t close and was never going to be close. The Lions coming off of their bye week clearly helped here. They just dominated in every single aspect of this game. They’re now 4-1 on the season but may have lost stud defensive end Aidan Hutchinson. He left the game on a cart with what appears to be a brutal lower leg injury.
If the injury ends up being the worst-case scenario, the Lions are going to be in rough shape on defense down the stretch, but them being 4-1 is definitely going to at least buy them a game or two if things go south on defense without Hutchinson.
At this point, we need to be putting the Detroit Lions in the Super Bowl bubble. For a while now, I have maintained that the Lions are representing the NFC in the Super Bowl, and they certainly showed why they’re a contender in Week 6.
3. Kansas City Chiefs (5-0)
The Kansas City Chiefs are on their bye week and will play the San Francisco 49ers next Sunday. The 49ers played on Thursday Night Football, so they’ve also got some extra rest up their sleeves. I would not put it past the Chiefs to just dominate the 49ers, as the Chiefs are seemingly always very good coming out of the bye week.
I will say that I do not think the Chiefs are quite as dominant through five games as they have been in previous years. The pass rush is generating pressure but not racking up a lot of sacks, and their offense is missing multiple playmakers. Both Hollywood Brown and Rashee Rice are out for the year, and Isiah Pacheco is also out for the long-term as well.
2. Houston Texans (5-1)
The Houston Texans were going to beat the snot out of the New England Patriots this week. It was simply going to happen. The Texans may be the most complete team in the NFL as far as I’m concerned and could be the best team in the AFC. They’re now a pretty ho-hum 5-1 on the season and seem to be figuring out more and more each week.
My Super Bowl pick for a while now has been the Texans, and I’ve also picked CJ Stroud to win the MVP award, so I am liking my chances right now for my predictions to come true. The team is built the right way and has an excellent coaching staff in place.
The notable story here was the Patriots starting Drake Maye. It was odd to see the Patriots trot Maye out there, but here we are. It was a good win for the Texans and I’m sure they’ll continue to play at a high level in the coming weeks.
1. Minnesota Vikings (5-0)
The Minnesota Vikings won last week and were on their bye this week. They are the only unbeaten team remaining in the NFC and could continue this. Some people have not fully bought into Sam Darnold, but he’s balling out thus far and is very much an MVP candidate through the first six weeks of the 2024 NFL Season.
The team might have the best overall coaching staff in the NFL with Kevin O’Connell as the head coach and their defensive genius Brian Flores as the DC. The Vikings could actually lose Flores this coming cycle to a head coaching job, but for now, they can enjoy this set up. They play the Detroit Lions next Sunday, and this could end up being one of the games of the week in Week 7.
There really isn’t another team to rank no. 1 in our latest NFL power rankings than the Minnesota Vikings. Don’t overthink this here.
There you have it, our latest NFL power rankings. Which teams can make a jump in Week 7? Which teams will take a tumble in Week 7?