The AFC is partying like it's 2015.
Approaching the midway point of the 2025 season, the division leaders are the Indianapolis Colts, the Denver Broncos, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the New England Patriots. Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, and Tom Brady must be proud.
Heading into Week 8 of the season, our latest NFL Power Rankings are going to take a look at the state of the AFC, ranking each team worst to best. The criteria we're using is a combination of how well each team passes the eye test, their overall record (obviously), the entire body of work, their performance lately, and a bit of projecting as far as how good we think they'll be moving forward.
NFL Power Rankings, Week 8: Chiefs on top of the AFC, Colts look like contenders
16. New York Jets (0-7)
The New York Jets are clearly the worst team in football right now, and it's not particularly close. The Jets just benched starting QB Justin Fields in favor of Tyrod Taylor, which sadly might present an upgrade for them over the remainder of the season. More than anything, this team needs the #1 overall pick in next year's draft to hand-select its quarterback of the future instead of taking whatever is left to them on the board. They'll get worse before they get better with the NFL trade deadline looming.
15. Tennessee Titans (1-6)
The Titans are another team that looks like they're going to get worse before they get better. Although, for this roster, saying goodbye to some aging veterans might be addition by subtraction. The Titans need to get younger and more talented. They need to use the remainder of this season to get reps to young guys, fill up next year's NFL Draft war chest, and see improvement from Cam Ward.
14. Miami Dolphins (1-6)
The Dolphins are closing in on the New York Jets for the worst team in the AFC, and that's saying something. Unlike the Jets, who we assumed would have a rough year, the Dolphins had expectations of postseason contention. That's not happening, not at this rate. One more loss will probably push the Dolphins into "sell" mode and give the front office and ownership every reason to move on from Mike McDaniel. Maybe even Tua Tagovailoa after the season...Will wee see Zach Wilson at all for this team?
13. Las Vegas Raiders (2-5)
Whatever Pete Carroll was selling this offseason was nothing more than fool's gold. The Las Vegas Raiders are who we thought they were up to this point, and their flat performance against Kansas City was the most disappointing yet. This team struggles in seemingly every phase, which is not what any of us expected from a Pete Carroll-coached team. The bye week will be a great chance for this team to reflect and refocus before playing two games in four days when they come back to start November.
12. Cleveland Browns (2-5)
The Cleveland Browns have shown on a couple of occasions that they are more competitive than people expected them to be. Even with a roster full of young players, this Browns team has been a tough out for opponents, which is a testament to the job being done by Kevin Stefanski. Beating the Dolphins this past week isn't going to make NFL Films, but the Browns continue to get great performances out of their rookie class, which is a great sign.
11. Baltimore Ravens (1-5)
Although the Baltimore Ravens only have one win so far this season, I think it's fair to say that this is one of the few teams in the AFC that is far better than their record indicates. An injury to Lamar Jackson obviously pushed the Ravens deeper into a hole, but when Lamar comes back, we can expect this team to start humming again. They've got a lot of work to do, even in their own division, but the Steelers left the door open a crack this past week with a loss to the Bengals. It's time for the Ravens to start chipping away, and the margin for error is slim.
10. Houston Texans (2-4)
I hesitated to even put the Houston Texans this high on the list. The Texans got a couple of get-right games against the Lamar Jackson-less Ravens and the Tennessee Titans, but those games ultimately didn't prove anything. They needed a win badly against the Seahawks in Week 7, and even with a little desperation on their side, they couldn't make it happen. the Texans are a team trending down right now, and what's going on with CJ Stroud is a major concern.
9. Cincinnati Bengals (3-4)
Joe Flacco has jolted the Cincinnati Bengals back to life. Who would have thought?
The Bengals simply needed a guy named "Joe" back under center, and all is well, apparently. Flacco completed 86 slant routes against the Steelers and did what any reasonably good veteran quarterback should do. Let the receivers make plays. I don't know what the ceiling is on the Bengals the rest of the way, but they're still in the mix.
8. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-3)
Another team that is trending down right now in the AFC South is the Jacksonville Jaguars, who looked like they might be for real after a surprising win against the Chiefs on Monday Night Football a couple of weeks ago. That win against the Chiefs might have just been the Jaguars peaking, because they struggled to do anything offensively against the Seahawks and then got obliterated by the Rams in London. The arrow is pointing directly down at the moment, and the Jags need to find a way to stop the free fall.
7. Los Angeles Chargers (4-3)
Speaking of teams that are trending down, let's talk about the Los Angeles Chargers. We all know injuries have played a role in this team's current situation, but after starting 3-0 against all AFC West opponents, the Chargers have only managed one win in their past four games, and they were lucky to win that one against the Miami Dolphins. Justin Herbert hasn't played nearly as well as he did the first month of the season, and the Chargers' defense is giving up a ton of points.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2)
Losing to the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football is forgivable for the Steelers, but losing to Joe Flacco when he barely knows the playbook and is running the same plays over and over again? I think the Steelers are proving what we assumed after the first handful of games, which is that they are not nearly as good as their record indicates. But that only matters in the case of NFL Power Rankings. This team doesn't care how it wins games, as long as they keep winning en route to the playoffs. They're not in danger of blowing their lead in the AFC North...yet.
5. Denver Broncos (5-2)
The Denver Broncos are one of the most frustrating teams in the league. This team is simultaneously a couple of unlucky breaks away from being 7-0 while also being one of the most confusing football teams. Are they actually good? Denver's offensive inconsistencies and problems with penalties have been outrageously bad so far this season, but they are doing something they couldn't last year: Finding ways to win tight games.
4. Buffalo Bills (4-2)
The last three games for the Buffalo Bills have been rather disappointing, and they've got to be chomping at the bit to get back on the field with the Patriots now taking a lead in the AFC East. The defense for the Bills has not been great this season, and that's putting it mildly. You've still got the MVP in Josh Allen at quarterback, so you expect this team to be among the top 3 or 4 in the AFC when all is said and done. But are the Patriots going to force them to be road warriors in the postseason? They've got to get it together.
3. New England Patriots (5-2)
With Drake Maye's projected breakout and Mike Vrabel's arrival as the new head coach, the Patriots were the obvious up-and-coming team in the AFC this year. And here they are, in the top three of our latest AFC Power Rankings. I like what we've seen from this team in all phases. It would not shock me if GM Eliot Wolf decided to get aggressive at the NFL Trade Deadline and make a move to push this roster over the top. There's a chance for this team to take the AFC East back from the Bills.
2. Indianapolis Colts (6-1)
The most efficient offense in the NFL so far this season belongs to the Daniel Jones-led Colts. Who would have possibly thought that would be the case? Before the season, we were anticipating a complete clown show with this team given their quarterback situation, but Jones has responded extremely well and looks like the NFL Comeback Player of the Year after his embarrassing exit from New York last season. The Colts are rolling right now, but are they better than the reigning AFC champs?
1. Kansas City Chiefs (4-3)
It's very tough to justify putting a three-loss team in the #1 slot when the Colts are 6-1, but the Kansas City Chiefs look like the #1 team in the NFL over the last month. They haven't been parfect this season, and we do consider the entire body of work for these NFL Power Rankings, but there's also an element of "what have you done for me lately?"
In that regard, the Chiefs have looked like the most complete outfit in the NFL. One of the major question marks for them was their collection of playmakers on offense. Even before the arrival of Rashee Rice, they had been getting everyone involved nicely. The arrival of Rice makes them even scarier.