NFL Power Rankings: Week 7

Wow, my power rankings look mighty different this week than they did just seven days ago. It’s as if someone took all the teams and put them into a cement mixer, turned it on as fast as it could go and let the teams spill out all over the sidewalk. As Elvis would say, my rankings are “all shook up.”

After six weeks, the Titans are the only undefeated team left, thanks in large part to the fact that they had a bye this week. The previously undefeated and formerly #1 New York Giants fell to the Browns on Monday night 35-14. The Texans and Rams got their first wins of the season, defeating the Dolphins and Redskins respectively. A last minute field goal by the Vikings’ Ryan Longwell kept the Lions winless, and Cincy fell to Brett Favre and the Jets 26-14 to stay out of the win column as well.

Last week’s rankings in parentheses.

1. (2) Tennessee Titans (5-0): Bye week, only undefeated team left. Vince Young is still holding the clipboard.

2. (1) New York Giants (4-1): Unlucky team to play the Browns at their most desperate.

3. (6) Pittsburgh Steelers (4-1): The Steelers offense hasn’t been that great so far (26th), but their defense has been spectacular. 2nd overall, 2nd against the run, 3rd against the pass and 2nd in points allowed.

4. (3) Dallas Cowboys (4-2): Tony Romo is out four plus weeks with a broken digit. Will Brad Johnson be able to feed Terrell Owens the ball now that Roy Williams (the wideout) has joined them from Detroit?

5. (4) Carolina Panthers (4-2): 34-0 pasting of Kansas City in week five followed by a 27-3 shellacking at the hands of the Saints. Would the real Panthers please stand up?

6. (8) Buffalo Bills (4-1): The Bills got healthy during the bye week. Trent Edwards, Ko Simpson and Roscoe Parrish should all be ready to go in a big home game against San Deegs.

7. (5) Washington Redskins (4-2): The ‘Skins are in the top ten in both offense and defense and Jason Campbell still hasn’t been picked off. How did they lose to the Rams?

8. (7) Chicago Bears (3-3): The Bears are the epitome of no name offense, yet they are getting it done. They have five players with 190 plus yards receiving.

9. (9) Denver Broncos (4-2): The Broncos have scored 166 points, but they have given up 154. The only AFC team that has given up more points is Houston.

10. (10) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-2): They are a heckuva lot better with Jeff Garcia starting instead of Brian Griese.

11. (12) Arizona Cardinals (4-2): Huge win over Dallas has the Cards sitting pretty in arguably the worst division in the NFL.

12. (22) Atlanta Falcons (4-2): Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood have combined for 877 yards through the first six games. That’ll take some pressure off a rookie QB.

13. (14) New Orleans Saints (3-3): Wow, the NFC south is just plain nasty. Every team looks like they have a chance to take it, even the last place (barely) Saints.

14. (20) Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3): The Jaguars have played a rough schedule so far and have managed three wins. After their bye, they have Cleveland, Cincy, and Detroit. They should be 6-3 heading into the home stretch.

15. (15) Indianapolis Colts (3-2): The Colts have put up 31 points two weeks in a row and Peyton Manning looks like he’s getting into a rhythm. That’s bad news for the wide open AFC.

16. (16) Philadelphia Eagles (3-3): The Eagles are a strange group of birds. They have the 5th ranked defense and the 9th ranked offense yet they are 3-3. DeSean Jackson is looking like a steal of a second round pick.

17. (24) Minnesota Vikings (3-3): If they can learn how to protect Gus Frerotte, they might be a playoff team.

18. (17) Green Bay Packers (3-3): Aaron Rodgers really likes to throw the ball to Greg Jennings (653 receiving yards).

19. (18) San Diego Chargers (3-3): Big win over the Patriots on Sunday night, but their defense will need to continue to play better against a hungry Bills team fresh off a bye.

20. (11) New England Patriots (3-2): Another blowout loss; Tom Brady is looking more and more like the greatest player in NFL history.

21. (19) New York Jets (3-2): Brett Favre looked old against the winless Bengals, but the Jets still won.

22. (25) Cleveland Browns (2-3): Ginormous (yes, it’s really a word) win over the Super Bowl Champion Giants. Maybe the fans chanting “Brady! Brady!” will quiet down for a little while.

23. (13) Baltimore Ravens (2-3): Baltimore still has the top ranked defense; there’s not much happening on offense though.

24. (21) San Francisco 49ers (2-4): Apparently Isaac Bruce still plays in the NFL and is somehow leading the Niners in receiving yards and touchdowns. Who knew?

25. (23) Miami Dolphins (2-3): Tough loss to Houston reminds us that the ‘Fins only won one game last season.

26. (32) Houston Texans (1-4): Steve Slaton was a third round pick. Anyone could have had him.

27. (27) Oakland Raiders (1-4): Oakland is chocked full of young players who can mature into stars. Too bad for the fans; that won’t happen for a few years.

28. (28) Kansas City Chiefs (1-4): Remember when Arrowhead stadium was the hardest venue to play in as an away team? Yea, neither do I.

29. (32) St. Louis Rams (1-4): How the Rams beat the Redskins I’ll never know. Maybe they lulled the ‘Skins to sleep by playing David Blaine’s “Dive of Death” on the jumbotron.

30. (26) Seattle Seahawks (1-4): Cheer Cheer for old Notre Dame! The Seahawks leading rusher and receiver are Golden Domers. Too bad they don’t have Brady Quinn and Chicago Cub Jeff Samardzija.

31. (32) Cincinnati Bengals (0-6): Every Cincinnati sports team is awful. The city hasn’t looked this bad since Jerry Springer was Mayor.

32. (32) Detroit Lions (0-5): Oh man, season ending injury for Jon Kitna and the team traded away their best receiver in the same day? Let’s go Red Wings!

Chris Osburn is a 26 year old freelance writer and The Father Life‘s resident beer columnist. On top of that, he writes about professional lacrosse for insidelacrosse.com. He’s also written for Genesee Valley Parenting Magazine, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, and ESPN.com. “Osburn on Tap” appears monthly in THE FATHER LIFE. For questions, comments, or if you have a story idea for Chris, visit his website http://www.chrisosburnwrites.com.

Article image by: Paige Foster, SXC