NFL Power Rankings after Week 6 – changes at the top

Week six was a strange one in the NFL, with some of the best teams in the league losing when they probably shouldn't have, causing big changes at the top of our rankings. Other teams have settled in and 'are who we thought they were', so let's take a look at where everyone lands!

There has been some reluctance to put the Panthers at 32 given how many changes they made in the offseason and how low the expectations were. Unfortunately, they're just a bad football team at this point in time. Bryce Young had one of his best games though.

The Bears continue to not be very good, losing 13-19 against the Vikings, another bad team. Justin Fields' good run came to an end, leaving the field injured before Tyson Bagent saw some playing time. Time to start afresh once again in the Windy City.

The Giants were robbed by the refs against the Bills with tight end Darren Waller blatantly held on the final play of the game. Ultimately losing isn't a bad thing for the G-Men with their season already over.

The Broncos swung for the fences twice when they traded for Russell Wilson and then Sean Payton, unfortunately, they looked to be batting .000. Wilson will surely be gone after this season leaving Payton with one hell of a rebuild if he stays.

There are a lot of bad quarterbacks in the league currently, but not many worse than Mac Jones. Nothing is working in Foxborough, as their 1-5 record suggests.

The Cards have played this perfectly, look competent early, win a game so the tank isn't too obvious, then slowly but surely slip to a 1-16 season and draft a franchise QB. Bravo, Cardinals, bravo.

A team with no real expectations at the start of the season, the Raiders are now sitting 3-3, which is admirable. Maxx Crosby is a relentless presence on the outside of their defensive line, outside of that there's not too much talent to shout about. Davante Adams should be pushing for a trade at the deadline.

The Vikings are bad, their one bright spot was All-World wide receiver Justin Jefferson who is now injured for up to six weeks with a hamstring injury. For the sake of his future, is it perhaps worth shutting him down for the year?

We have been effusive in our praise of Mike Vrabel's coaching this season, and despite their poor record, we stand by that. For a roster lacking stars, they keep almost every game close until late, nearly sneaking a win in London against the Ravens.

There's something quite likable about this Commanders team, Sam Howell plays super tough, their defensive line is powerful and relentless and they just seem plucky. They aren't especially good, but 3-3 is a solid enough record at this stage.

We may well have been sucked in by the Packer's first couple of games, ranking them well inside the top half of the league. Since then they've regressed and shown the flawed team that they are. Week six was a bye week in Title Town, so perhaps they can reset and go again.

This season looks more and more of a 'what could've been?' for the week. The defense is everywhere, causing elite QBs to see ghosts and play scared. Zach Wilson and the offense is still a real problem, lacking ideas and quality.

This could honestly be too low for how well the Steelers have been playing. Their limitations are obvious to anyone watching but with their pass-rush and Tomlin's coaching, they are always in the game.

Losing to the Texans isn't the embarrassing loss it could've been this season, but for a team with serious playoff aspirations, it's not good enough.

Gardner Minshew has played enough games now for us to know he is not a starting-caliber NFL QB. He is a solid backup and spot-starter but that's not enough at the highest level.

Speaking of teams being held back by their quarterback play… The Falcons have enough talent to be competitive, they just don't have it at QB. Desmond Ridder is a turnover machine, the one thing you simply cannot do in the NFL.

We've given the Chargers plenty of time to grow into the season, but so far it's just not happening. The Cowboys' defense is a test for anyone, but one the Chargers failed, only putting up 17 points.

Demeco Ryans should win Coach of the Year for the job he's doing in Houston. Many expected this to be a four or five-win team, yet here they are six weeks deep in the hunt for the AFC South crown.

A team due for a regression after unsustainable third-down conversion rates kept them in contests early in the season. Still, this is a really talented group that could well find themselves in the playoffs once again.

Cooper Kupp has not taken long to return to form, catching seven targets for 148 yards and a score against the Cardinals. The Rams are a study in how just a few elite players can raise the talent level of a whole team.

The Jags still need to iron some things out, especially defensively, but they sit at 4-2 atop the AFC South with a playoff berth in their hands. The defense remains a concern and could well hold them back from a deep run, could they be in the market for some reinforcements?

Losing to the Bengals is not something to be overly concerned with at this point of the season, the manner of the loss could be though. Geno Smith is a risk-taker, but sometimes he needs to play the percentages a little more, especially in a low-scoring game.

Relax, Bengals fans, relax, your season is back on track. For some reason, this team seems to need some time to click into gear at the start of the season. They appear to have hit their stride now and will probably be playing football well into January.

Knocking off the consensus number-one team in the NFL with your third-string QB is very impressive. What's more impressive than that is this defense. Jim Schwartz is a genius and Myles Garrett is essentially unstoppable, what more do you need?

There is something unconvincing about this Cowboys team, yet they manage to win more games than they lose and will find themselves in the playoffs once again.

Lamar Jackson hasn't been playing his best football the past few weeks, not to say he's been bad, he hasn't, just not quite the high-flying, MVP-winner we've seen in the past. Still, this is a very good team that will not be fun to play come January.

The Eagles were two minutes away from being the number-one team in the NFL, but an ugly pick from Jalen Hurts knocks them down a few places. There is a big difference between winning ugly and playing ugly and losing, we saw the latter on Sunday from a Philly team that hasn't quite clicked yet.

How do you stop this offense? A question keeping defensive coordinators up all across the league we'd imagine. Perhaps the only way is to try and match them score for score? A SNF matchup against the Eagles should give us a good idea about where these teams really are.

The Niners loss to the Browns was a shock, but it did showcase their biggest weakness, Brock Purdy. The former Mr. Irrelevant is a great story but he isn't an elite QB by any stretch. There are also some injury concerns to key players.

The Lions have slipped under the radar slightly, going 5-1 with the joint-best record in the NFL. Lions fans have something to be excited about for the first time maybe ever as this is a genuinely, properly, undisputedly good football team.

The Bills scrapped by the Giants, not something that would usually see a rise in the rankings, yet winning ugly can often be the sign of a good team. It's no surprise to see the Bills this high with their talented defense and the second-best QB in the league under center.

It's felt impossible to put the Chiefs ahead of undefeated teams in previous weeks, so with the Niners and Eagles losing, we can safely put the Chiefs back at number one. They haven't even been playing amazingly well, it just doesn't matter when you have Mahomes et al.