Mike Blewitt's NFL Power Rankings: Week Six

(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

The ranks of the undefeated held strong in Week Six as the protégé toppled the mentor in Denver. The Bengals and Ravens clashed for the top spot in the AFC North, the Eagles and Falcons soared off of their bye week, and the Browns and Panthers saw a ray of sunshine in an otherwise cloudy season.  Let's run through No. 1 to No. 32...

1.      New York Giants (5-0)—Yet another cupcake opponent in the Raiders for the G-Men but they ended this one as early as possible. Banged-up QB Eli Manning was resting by the second quarter and the Giants are off to their first 5-0 start since 1990, one of their three Super Bowl Championship years.

2.      New Orleans Saints (4-0)—The bye week may be just what the Saints needed to game plan for this week’s showdown with the Giants in a HUGE matchup for Week Six. QB Drew Brees looks to get back on track and will try to get the Superdome rocking in one of the biggest regular season games in the building’s history.

3.      Indianapolis Colts (5-0)—Peyton Manning has five consecutive 300-yard games for the first time in his career and the Colts are looking as efficient as ever on offense. They earned their bye week rest and will see the Rams coming out of it which is almost unfair for St. Louis.

4.      Minnesota Vikings (5-0)—The Vikings made pretty quick and easy work of the Rams as they remained unbeaten. Favre, Peterson, and even defensive end Jared Allen all got in the scoring mix; that flexibility should help when they host the Ravens this week.

5.      Denver Broncos (5-0)—Head coach Josh McDaniels proved he was up to the task as he beat former boss Bill Belichick in an overtime battle in Denver. Despite wearing one of the ugliest uniforms of all-time, Kyle Orton made huge plays including the game-tying throw to Brandon Marshall in the fourth quarter. It’s off to rival San Diego this week to try to keep the streak alive.

6.      Cincinnati Bengals (4-1)—The emotional Bengals managed their third straight last-minute victory over the Ravens and shot up the power rankings board. Cedric Benson became the first rusher to pick up over 100 yards on the Ravens in 40 games and, as the NFL’s leading rusher, is pacing Cincy to this 4-1 start.

7.      Philadelphia Eagles (3-1)—The Eagles came out firing on all cylinders against the Bucs this past Sunday. Donovan McNabb was efficient and the Philly defense forced three turnovers to go along with three sacks. Facing the Raiders in Week Six should continue the easy ramp-up period out of the bye week.

8.      New England Patriots (3-2)—While there is no need to hit the panic button after a road loss in OT, the Pats simply aren’t as sharp as when Brady was under center in 2007. The timing should come back soon but they can’t afford too many more losses while trying to position themselves for a postseason run.

9.      Atlanta Falcons (3-1)—QB Matt Ryan had a career-high 329 passing yards as the Falcons put a hurting on the 49ers in San Francisco. WR Roddy White put up huge numbers and Atlanta forced three turnovers to put them back on track after the bye week.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2)—Ben Roethlisberger has upped his completion percentage to a league-high 73.8 percent and the Steelers have scored eight TDs in their last eight trips to the red zone. Safety Troy Polamalu should be returning in time for them to host the Browns this Sunday.

11. Chicago Bears (3-1)—The Bears will come out of their bye week right into a matchup with the Atlanta Falcons who torched the 49ers for 45 points in Week Five. Perhaps the rest is what they needed.

12. Baltimore Ravens (3-2)

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