NFL Power Rankings 2014: Analyzing League Hierarchy Heading into Week 6

With NFL teams either four games or five games into their 2014 seasons, some trends are beginning to emerge. The cream is rising to the top, while the anchors are sinking to the bottom.

Of course, with no teams left unbeaten, the difference between the haves and the have-nots isn't really all that great. A bunch of teams are right in the middle of the pack at 3-2 or 2-3.

Making sense of the league isn't easy, and ask 10 fans their opinions on the NFL hierarchy, and you'll probably get 11 different opinions—somebody will immediately change his or her mind.

Below is a rough outline for the league's power structure. The teams underlined aren't considered among the top of the class, but their fortunes should trend upward in the coming weeks.

32. Oakland Raiders (0-4)

Nothing is certain in this world other than death, taxes and the Oakland Raiders being really bad at football. The Raiders are just the worst, and with games against the San Diego Chargers, Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks ahead, things aren't going to get better anytime soon.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-5)

Can anybody say he or she is surprised by the Jacksonville Jaguars' struggles? It was pretty clear in the offseason that this team has a ton of holes, and Blake Bortles can only do so much. Bortles arguably being ahead of schedule in terms of his career progression is at least a positive so far.

30. New York Jets (1-4)

The Chargers had as many third-down conversions as the New York Jets had passing completions (12) between Geno Smith and Michael Vick. It's doubtful that things will get all that much better with Vick under center, especially considering the Jets have the Denver Broncos, New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills over their next three games.

29. Tennessee Titans (1-4)

It doesn't matter whom you're playing; dropping a 25-point lead in the NFL is completely unacceptable. The Cleveland Browns might be somewhat resurgent, but for them to score 26 unanswered points on the road is about as damning an indictment as you could find for the Tennessee Titans.

28. St. Louis Rams (1-3)

Give credit where credit's due. Even if you don't believe in moral victories, losing to the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles by a combined nine points isn't all that bad if you're the St. Louis Rams.

Plus, Austin Davis threw for 375 yards and three touchdowns. Even if some of them came in garbage time, it's still a legitimate question as to whether or not he's a better option than Sam Bradford, as Pro Football Talk's Michael David Smith wonders:

27. Washington Redskins (1-4)

Considering Thursday Night Football's propensity for creating lopsided scores, the Washington Redskins were bound to regress to the mean against the Seattle Seahawks. Losing to the defending world champions isn't damning by any means, but Washington still doesn't look like a particularly good team.

26. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-4)

Bill Haber/Associated Press

Mike Glennon's last two games really make you wonder why the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ever opted for Josh McCown in the first place. Glennon's not putting up Peyton Manning-like numbers this year (57-98, 672 YDS, 5 TDs, 2 INTs), but he's putting the team in a position to win.

Bucs head coach Lovie Smith said that the second-year QB will likely start in Week 6 but refused to look beyond that, per Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com:

At this point, why go back to McCown if Glennon's healthy? Glennon has a higher ceiling. The team might as well truly give Glennon a shot at being the franchise guy.

Who knows? The NFC South is a complete mess. Maybe the Bucs can finish strong at 9-7 and somehow sneak into the playoffs. Does anybody believe a healthy McCown could make that happen?

25. Atlanta Falcons (2-3)

The Atlanta Falcons had an opportunity to make a statement against the New York Giants. Instead, they coughed up a 10-point lead and allowed the Giants to score 20 unanswered points in the second half.

Two things must improve for the Falcons to be a threat in the NFC South: a defense that's giving up 407.2 yards a game (29th) and an offense that's given the ball away 11 times (31st).

24. Minnesota Vikings (2-3)

The return of Teddy Bridgewater will make the Minnesota Vikings better, but expectations should be tempered somewhat. The offensive line ranks 31st in pass protection, according to Football Outsiders, and Adrian Peterson isn't coming back for the foreseeable future.

23. Miami Dolphins (2-2)

Maybe I'm underselling them, but the Miami Dolphins feel like one of those teams whose ceiling is 8-8. With the Green Bay Packers coming to town, the Dolphins have a chance to prove otherwise, but until then, the skepticism about Ryan Tannehill supersedes everything.

22. Chicago Bears (2-3)

That comeback win against the San Francisco 49ers is starting to look more and more like an outlier for the Chicago Bears. In the last two weeks, they've committed six turnovers and allowed Cam Newton and Aaron Rodgers to combine for 557 yards through the air. There's also the matter of allowing a patchwork Carolina Panthers backfield to rush for 90 yards last week.

21. Cleveland Browns (2-2)

History tells you not to read anything positive into the Browns' progress this year, but why not start jumping on the bandwagon? Cleveland's four games have been decided by an average of two points, which has to mean something.

The biggest red flag for the Browns is the fact that their defense has largely been woeful this year. Football Outsiders ranks them 31st in defensive DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average).

Brian Hoyer has far and away exceeded expectations this season, per NFL.com's Gregg Rosenthal:

How much longer can that keep happening, though? Considering head coach Mike Pettine was once a defensive coordinator, it's more than a little concerning the defense is so bad.

With that said, let's all just enjoy this time before the Browns go full Browns and finish 2-14 or something. The Pittsburgh Steelers travel to Cleveland on Sunday, which is a great opportunity to see what this Browns team is made of.

20. New Orleans Saints (2-3)

Speaking of bad defenses, less than a year after the New Orleans Saints had one of the better defenses in the league, they're right back to the basement again. While this unit might not be as historically bad as the 2012 Saints defense, it's still holding the team back in a big way.

19. Houston Texans (3-2)

After seemingly being written off, Arian Foster is looking like the best running back in football. The Austin American-Statesman's Cedric Golden compared him to Eric Dickerson over the weekend, which is nearly the highest praise an NFL RB can receive:

Maybe the Houston Texans can spring a surprise on Thursday, a day which has created plenty of outliers already.

18. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2)

Marc Serota/Associated Press

Having one of the worst offensive lines would be a problem for most quarterbacks. Ben Roethlisberger is so adept at side-stepping the pass rush and shrugging off contact that it doesn't matter.

The Pittsburgh Steelers would be wise to add a little bit of balance to the offense, however, especially given the options in the backfield. Per Chris Dokish:

Having a 32-year-old QB on pace to set a personal high for single-season pass attempts might not be sustainable.

With the Cincinnati Bengals' bad loss to the New England Patriots, the AFC North is anybody's to win, so the Steelers could easily climb to the top of the standings. Their defense isn't playing great, but all things considered, it's about where it should be.

Pittsburgh could easily be this year's version of the 2012 Baltimore Ravens.

17. Kansas City Chiefs (2-3)

The Kansas City Chiefs have a week to think about their not-so-good performance against the 49ers. More importantly, they have a week to think about how to involve Jamaal Charles more in the offense. One of the league's best running backs should carry the ball more than 15 times a game.

16. Buffalo Bills (3-2)

The Buffalo Bills are a bit old school in that they're possibly a playoff contender by having a great team but just a marginal QB. The days of Trent Dilfer leading a team to the Super Bowl look to be gone, but maybe Buffalo can break the mold.

15. Detroit Lions (3-2)

Kickers might be inconsequential in fantasy football, but when it comes to real football, they're still pretty important. Of course, Alex Henery's 0-fer against the Buffalo Bills covered up Matthew Stafford's poor game. The Detroit Lions aren't going to win too many games when he goes 18-of-31 for 221 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

14. Carolina Panthers (3-2)

The next five games will decide the Carolina Panthers' season. They get the Bengals, Packers and Eagles on the road and the Saints and Seahawks at home. Anything other than 1-4 or 0-5 during that stretch would keep the Panthers in playoff contention.

13. New York Giants (3-2)

As Ebenezer Samuel of the New York Daily News pointed out, Eli Manning is on pace for one of the best seasons in his career, which actually seems appropriate for somebody who's defied expectations in the way that Manning has.

Giants quarterbacks coach Danny Langsdorf spoke about some of the changes he's helped Manning make:

"

If we have to throw the ball away, then that isn't always the worst play. That might be the best decision on a particular play, because it's the only one he has that's a good option.

There's definitely been a lot of talk about when we're going to move onto the next receiver on a progression, or whether or not the defense is taking that away. And what do we do next? That's the biggest thing. Do we move onto a receiver, do we have time? Or do we throw the ball away?

"

If Manning continues the way he's going, then New York will be a playoff team.

12. Baltimore Ravens (3-2)

Losing to the Indianapolis Colts on the road isn't all that bad. Imagine if Baltimore hadn't gone 1-of-11 on third downs. The Ravens might have won that game. They've converted 43.1 percent of their third downs for the season, so that figure shouldn't be a cause for concern.

11. Arizona Cardinals (3-1)

The bubble might be bursting for the Arizona Cardinals. Like the Bills, they're doing their best to win despite their bad QB situation. They're great almost everywhere else, but an inconsistent quarterback can drag down even the best teams.

10. New England Patriots (3-2)

The New England Patriots just keep on keeping on. Tom Brady's talents are clearly diminishing, but any lingering doubts about the team's postseason chances should be put to bed.

Nobody's really standing out in the AFC East, so the Pats should make the playoffs. As long as New England can get that far, nobody will count it out as a Super Bowl contender.

9. Green Bay Packers (3-2)

The continued progression of the Packers defense makes this team a Super Bowl contender. Last year, Football Outsiders ranked Green Bay 31st in defensive DVOA. The team's up to 12th so far in 2014.

Although the Packers rank 32nd in rush yards allowed per game, FO places them 23rd against the run, so the unit is much better than some give it credit for.

8. Cincinnati Bengals (3-1)

The Bengals went from maybe one of the best teams in the league to maybe not the best team in their division in the span of a week.

By itself, losing to the Patriots isn't that bad. The totality of Cincinnati's defeat is what makes you think twice about the team's potential. The franchise hasn't made it past the first round of the playoffs since 1990.

7. Dallas Cowboys (4-1)

DeMarco Murray is currently on pace to break the NFL record for single-season rushing yards, per SportsCenter, via ESPN The Magazine:

While the chances of that happening are extremely unlikely, as long as Murray can keep taking some of the pressure off Tony Romo, it's good news for the Dallas Cowboys.

6. San Francisco 49ers (3-2)

The 49ers are doing their best to make everyone forget about their losses to the Bears and Cardinals. Beating the Eagles and Chiefs back-to-back was impressive. San Francisco will get its toughest test to date in 2014 in two weeks when it takes on the Broncos.

5. Indianapolis Colts (3-2)

How good can Andrew Luck be, seriously? He possesses every trait you look for in a passing quarterback, and he's nimble enough to avoid the rush and get positive yards on the ground. Per ESPN Stats & Info:

Once again, the Indianapolis Colts' futures are tied to the success of their franchise quarterback. And Luck looks ready to take the franchise all the way.

4. Philadelphia Eagles (4-1)

Eagles head coach Chip Kelly deserves his fair share of the credit for the Eagles' success this year, but you must also acknowledge how well the offensive line is performing.

Last year, Football Outsiders ranked the unit 31st in pass protection and 25th in run blocking. While Philly's run-blocking unit has regressed to 32nd in 2014, it's up to third in pass protection.

3. Denver Broncos (3-1)

Not much else needs to be said about the Broncos at this point. You know exactly what to expect from the team, and Denver will almost certainly remain near the top of the power rankings throughout the rest of the year.

The Broncos do deserve praise for holding the Cardinals to 215 total yards, which is impressive even if Arizona was throwing Drew Stanton and Logan Thomas out at quarterback.

2. San Diego Chargers (4-1)

Speaking of impressive defensive performances. The Chargers went from being one of the worst teams against the pass last year to holding the Jets to 60 yards through the air. You could make a strong argument that San Diego is the best team in the league right now.

1. Seattle Seahawks (3-1)

Patrick Semansky/Associated Press

The Seahawks had that slight hiccup against the Chargers, but they remain the NFL's best right now. They're the king until someone knocks them off their throne.

The defense isn't at the unbelievable heights it reached last year; some regression was to be expected, and Seattle still boasts a top-five defense.

Russell Wilson is also on pace to have the best year in his short career, which, coupled with Percy Harvin, makes the Seahawks offense that much better.