The first month of the NFL season absolutely flew by, and provided us with some intriguing twists and turns. As much as you can prepare yourself and expect the unexpected in the NFL, sometimes you've just got to sit back and enjoy the ride. Our latest NFL Power Rankings ahead of Week 5 of the season reflect the wild ride that was the month of September in the NFL, but we're going to go ahead and recap the month that was for every team and every division so far.
As we look to the month of October with the festivities kicking off on Thursday night with a matchup between the Buccaneers and Falcons, where does every team in the league stand?
Which teams and divisions have been the strongest this season?
2024 NFL Power Rankings: Every team and division ranked heading into October
8. AFC South
4. Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 5 ranking: 32nd
The Jaguars are looking early on this season like they might easily be the worst team in the NFL. Doug Pederson is on the hot seat going into October and Trevor Lawrence is looking like he might be a bust of a big contract quarterback. As always in a situation like this, blame the coaching first, right?
3. Tennessee Titans
Week 5 ranking: 31st
The AFC South finishes dead last on this list because they have arguably the two worst teams in all of football in their division right now. And if it weren’t for the Jaguars being 0-4 at this point, the Titans might very well take the last overall spot on the list. Will Levis hasn’t yet proven that he can be a viable QB of the future for this Titans team.
2. Indianapolis Colts
Week 5 ranking: 15th
It’s taking a long time for Anthony Richardson to shake off some of the rust from missing most of last year. The Colts have a lot of very interesting pieces on both sides of the ball, and while the development of Richardson is the most important aspect of this season, the offense was kind of humming with Joe Flacco out there playing as his injury replacement. Are we going to go through another year of backup QB play in Indy?
1. Houston Texans
Week 5 ranking: 3rd
The Houston Texans are 3-1 which is nothing to scoff at, but I don’t think this team has been all that impressive through the first month of the season. The 3rd overall ranking (from our own Lou Scataglia) is a very generous ranking based largely upon Houston’s record, but they got smoked against the Vikings and have had to scrape and claw their way to the other wins they’ve got.
7. AFC West
4. Las Vegas Raiders
Week 5 ranking: 23rd
The first month of the season for the Las Vegas Raiders could not be more confusing. Can’t this team just be 0-4 and make things a little more clear for us all? To the Raiders’ credit, they have rushed the QB extremely well and went on the road to beat the Baltimore Ravens a couple of weeks ago. Another win last week against the Browns has this team at 2-2, but a number of off-field issues – namely the trade request of Davante Adams – looms as a dark cloud over this team’s immediate future.
3. Los Angeles Chargers
Week 5 ranking: 16th
The first two weeks of the season for the Los Angeles Chargers were outstanding. They beat up on the Raiders and Panthers to start 2-0, and it seemed like Jim Harbaugh’s culture was really rubbing off on everyone in that organization. Two weeks and two losses later, the Chargers are looking like a team on the decline. Justin Herbert has not thrown the ball a ton this season, and injuries are starting to mount for the Chargers.
2. Denver Broncos
Week 5 ranking: 13th
The Denver Broncos have been failing forward on offense with rookie quarterback Bo Nix, who has shown the team some glimpses that he might be their franchise QB going forward. But the shining star of this team is very clearly the defense. The Broncos have had one of the best and most dominant defenses in the league through the first four weeks of the season with maybe the best overall pass rush.
1. Kansas City Chiefs
Week 5 ranking: 4th
You’ve got to give the Kansas City Chiefs credit for starting the year 4-0. This team has a target on its back, and everyone is going to give them their best possible game. The Chiefs are dealing with a lot of injuries to their offensive skill players, but they’ve been able to endure. There’s no way you can discount this team as a Super Bowl contender no matter what happens in the regular season.
6. NFC East
4. New York Giants
Week 5 ranking: 30th
The New York Giants may have found the ticket to success this season with their pass rush and rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers. Feeding Nabers is potentially also the way Daniel Jones is going to keep his job in New York beyond this season. The Giants seem to have one of the thinnest margins for error of any team in the NFL right now, however. They just don’t look like a viable threat in the NFC East.
3. Philadelphia Eagles
Week 5 ranking: 24th
I was a little surprised to see the Philadelphia Eagles as low as 24th in Lou’s latest NFL power rankings, but it’s not without merit. The Eagles have given up some serious duds this season defensively and Jalen Hurts has been a turnover merchant on offense. Nick Sirianni might be one of the biggest names on the head coach hot seat early this year, and if the Eagles can’t start putting something together quickly, he’s going to be the first head to roll.
2. Dallas Cowboys
Week 5 ranking: 17th
The Dallas Cowboys are 2-2 to start this season, but the injuries they suffered in last Thursday’s win over the Giants could send this team into early irrelevance. Losing Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence on the defensive front was huge, but Dak Prescott is now going to have to deal without Brandin Cooks out there. The Cowboys didn’t have many viable threats at receiver besides CeeDee Lamb to begin with. This Cowboys team needs to start overachieving quickly.
1. Washington Commanders
Week 5 ranking: 6th
The Washington Commanders have been one of the best stories in the entire NFL early this season. There haven’t been many quarterbacks playing as well as rookie Jayden Daniels, the Heisman Trophy winner and 2nd overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Commanders ended the month of September with three straight wins and Dan Quinn has his team playing outstanding complementary football. Can it continue into October?
5. AFC East
4. New England Patriots
Week 5 ranking: 29th
When you look at the teams across the NFL, the New England Patriots might have the worst overall roster right now with the least number of valuable pieces at critical positions. We don’t yet know what the Patriots have in Drake Maye, but they at least believe they have a franchise QB there. The Patriots don’t have a building block at receiver that we know of yet. They don’t have the left tackle position figured out. They are missing their premiere interior pass rusher (Christian Barmore). This team needs pieces to emerge.
3. Miami Dolphins
Week 5 ranking: 25th
I think you could easily say the Miami Dolphins are the worst team in the NFL right now without Tua Tagovailoa, but will we see him return to the field in October? With a heathy Tua Tagovailoa, the Dolphins are probably a top-12 team at the very least. They have so many weapons and Tua knows how to get them the ball. Mike McDaniel received a contract extension and the Dolphins are having to deal without their top two quarterbacks. If Tagovailoa isn’t going to play this year, then they might need to swing a trade for someone like Russell Wilson, Jarrett Stidham, or Zach Wilson.
2. New York Jets
Week 5 ranking: 18th
The New York Jets looked like a top-5 NFL team against the New England Patriots a couple of weeks ago. Even though they were battling the elements against Denver on Sunday, the script was completely flipped. The Jets couldn’t block for Aaron Rodgers. Breece Hall couldn’t hardly run past the line of scrimmage. The Jets dropped to 2-2 in September and are now hoping a trade for Davante Adams can keep their Super Bowl window open.
1. Buffalo Bills
Week 5 ranking: 2nd
I thought the Buffalo Bills might be the very best team in the NFL this season after what we saw in the first three weeks. Josh Allen was an unstoppable force. Then the Bills ran into Baltimore and ran right into a meat grinder. The Bills suffered a bad loss on the road against Lamar Jackson and the Ravens, but this Bills team can still contend in the AFC this year and will give the Chiefs fits in January.
4. NFC West
4. Arizona Cardinals
Week 5 ranking: 28th
I was really hopeful for the Arizona Cardinals after we saw them get a dominant win early in the season, but this team just doesn’t seem to have the talent on its roster yet to contend with some of the best teams in the NFL. This team’s best shot at making a run in October is if Kyler Murray and Marvin Harrison Jr. start taking over games. We saw signs of that being possible in September, but not on a consistent basis.
3. Los Angeles Rams
Week 5 ranking: 21st
The Los Angeles Rams were resilient in their first (and only) win of the season against the San Francisco 49ers, but this team has simply had to endure too much in the injury department this season. Add in the fact that Aaron Donald retired this offseason on top of it all, and you have a recipe for total disaster in Los Angeles. I still really like the Rams, but too many of their pieces are on the injured list.
2. Seattle Seahawks
Week 5 ranking: 9th
The Seattle Seahawks have one of the most exciting offenses in the NFL with playmakers galore and balance in both the run and pass game. The Seattle defense under Mike Macdonald has been great at times this season, and the team is 3-1 heading into the month of October. Albeit, they enter the month of October on a bit of a sour note after getting demolished by the Detroit Lions in a game where Jared Goff didn’t throw a single incomplete pass.
1. San Francisco 49ers
Week 5 ranking: 8th
The San Francisco 49ers are another team that is dealing with a lot of injuries right now, namely to their MVP candidate Christian McCaffrey. Brock Purdy is taking more of the responsibility on his shoulders and the 49ers are making due however they can. This team is 2-2 after September but I would consider them one of the most dangerous teams in the NFL heading into the month of October, even without McCaffrey.
3. NFC South
4. Carolina Panthers
Week 5 ranking: 26th
The Carolina Panthers were borderline unwatchable when Bryce Young was the quarterback of this team. And it’s unbelievable in hindsight that this team deliberately kept him off the field in the preseason, as though he didn’t need every possible rep to try and get better. But with Andy Dalton out there, the Panthers have at least been competent offensively, and that may give them a fighting chance moving forward.
3. New Orleans Saints
Week 5 ranking: 22nd
The New Orleans Saints had two dominant weeks to start the season followed by two disappointing losses to the Eagles and Falcons. The Eagles and Falcons might be two of the better overall rosters in the NFC right now, and the margin of loss was pretty narrow, but the Saints aren’t striking a lot of fear into folks right now. They are rumored to be one of the favored destinations for Davante Adams in a potential trade, but is that what this team needs to take a big step in October?
2. Atlanta Falcons
Week 5 ranking: 14th
The Atlanta Falcons were a missed call away from potentially beating the Kansas City Chiefs in a prime time matchup just a couple of weeks ago, and if they would have found a way to win that game, they’d be sitting at least at 3-1 right now. This Falcons team is one that I’m thinking is going to just keep getting better and better as the year progresses. Kirk Cousins is starting to build rapport with his receivers and that Falcons defense has ballers in the defensive backfield.
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 5 ranking: 5th
The only rough patch so far this season for the Buccaneers was a tough loss at home in Week 3 against the Denver Broncos (in which the Bucs were absolutely blown out), but this team has otherwise looked like it could be one of the best in the NFC once again this year. We just saw the Bucs absolutely destroy Vic Fangio and the Eagles’ defense, and they have a chance to make another statement on the road with a short week to start October against the Buccaneers.
2. AFC North
4. Cleveland Browns
Week 5 ranking: 27th
The Cleveland Browns won 11 games last year, so expectations were really high going into this season. Unfortunately, Deshaun Watson and that offense have been putrid. The Browns have been so bad offensively so far this season that they might not have a choice at some point. They may need to bench Watson in favor of Jameis Winston. Nick Chubb is set to return here in October and could provide that unit with a big boost.
3. Cincinnati Bengals
Week 5 ranking: 20th
The Cincinnati Bengals have been one of the biggest disappointments in the entire league so far this season. The Bengals are 1-3 to start the year and thankfully had a matchup in Week 4 to “get right” against the Carolina Panthers. They still allowed 24 points to the Panthers in that game and this team just doesn’t look in sync. They are going to need to go at least 3-1 in the month of October to climb back into relevance in the AFC North and AFC as a whole.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 5 ranking: 12th
The Pittsburgh Steelers are 3-1 this season but we haven’t seen Russell Wilson even sniff the field so far. Justin Fields has been the starting QB for the Steelers since Week 1, and he’s done a pretty good job overall. But this team is 3-1 thanks largely to the defense and opportunistic offense, which is a tale as old as time in Pittsburgh these days. The Steelers will proceed with Fields as their QB1 in October and he has a chance to solidify that job not only for the remainder of the season but potentially in 2025 as well.
1. Baltimore Ravens
Week 5 ranking: 11th
If the Ravens would have been able to get a toe in against the Kansas City Chiefs, we’d be talking about a 3-1 team with wins over the Chiefs, Bills, and Cowboys. Not bad. The Ravens’ biggest disappointments early on this season have been kicker Justin Tucker and tight end Mark Andrews, who were previously two of the best and most consistent players on this team. Still, Baltimore looks like a well-oiled machine and Derrick Henry has been arguably the best offseason addition made by any team.
1. NFC North
4. Chicago Bears
Week 5 ranking: 19th
Well, the Chicago Bears have been punting a little bit more than Caleb Williams had hoped, but luckily for Williams, the Bears drafted the guy who might be the best punter in the league – Tory Taylor. The rookie struggles for Williams have been a tough pill for many to swallow but they are also predictable. The Bears’ offensive line has been horrendous, but this team’s defense has kept it afloat at the start of the year in the most brutal division in football right now.
3. Green Bay Packers
Week 5 ranking: 10th
The Green Bay Packers are one of the best overall teams in the NFL, so the fact that they are checking in as the 3rd-best team in the NFC North right now is hysterical. The Packers went 2-2 in September and avoided a disastrous situation with Jordan Love going down in Week 1 with a knee injury. Malik Willis came in and did extremely well, helping lead the Packers to each of their two victories in September. Love has thrown six touchdowns in the Packers’ two losses.
2. Detroit Lions
Week 5 ranking: 7th
Although they lost a tough one at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in September, I don’t know how you could not have the Detroit Lions near the top of your NFC and NFL power rankings after the month we just saw from them. The Lions have been one of the NFL’s best teams offensively as well as one of the NFL’s best teams at applying pressure to the opposing quarterback. They look primed for a deep run this postseason and I think they’ll take care of business in October.
1. Minnesota Vikings
Week 5 ranking: 1st
The Minnesota Vikings are right up there with the Washington Commanders as one of the best overall stories in the NFL so far this season. Sam Darnold has played like an MVP candidate and he’s getting TJ Hockenson back in the near future. The Vikings have been elite defensively in the pass rush department with Brian Flores dialing up pressure seemingly every time the opposing quarterback drops back. The Vikings are 4-0 with a London matchup against the Jets to start off the month of October.