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NFL Power Rankings Week 6: Latest 2016 Standings and Reaction for All 32 Teams
October 11, 2016
Another wild week of NFL football is in the books, and this one featured multiple surprising upsets.
Thanks to a few underdogs pulling off victories, we're now down to just one undefeated team—which makes things a little easier to sort out at the top of this week's power rankings.
This early in the season, win-loss records can be significantly influenced by strength of schedule, which is an issue that will sort itself out by season's end. But due to some unfairly easy and difficult schedules, the Week 6 power rankings don't necessarily match up well with records.
There are a number of teams with losing records that should still be taken seriously, and some with winning records that might come crashing down.
Here's a look at the latest power rankings, followed by a closer look at a few top teams:
| NFL Power Rankings | ||
| Rank | Team | W-L |
| 1 | Minnesota Vikings | 5-0 |
| 2 | New England Patriots | 4-1 |
| 3 | Dallas Cowboys | 4-1 |
| 4 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 4-1 |
| 5 | Atlanta Falcons | 4-1 |
| 6 | Denver Broncos | 4-1 |
| 7 | Seattle Seahawks | 3-1 |
| 8 | Green Bay Packers | 3-1 |
| 9 | Oakland Raiders | 4-1 |
| 10 | Philadelphia Eagles | 3-1 |
| 11 | Baltimore Ravens | 3-2 |
| 12 | Kansas City Chiefs | 2-2 |
| 13 | Washington Redskins | 3-2 |
| 14 | Cincinnati Bengals | 2-3 |
| 15 | Arizona Cardinals | 2-3 |
| 16 | Buffalo Bills | 3-2 |
| 17 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2-3 |
| 18 | Carolina Panthers | 1-4 |
| 19 | New York Jets | 1-4 |
| 20 | Los Angeles Rams | 3-2 |
| 21 | New York Giants | 2-3 |
| 22 | Houston Texans | 3-2 |
| 23 | Tennessee Titans | 2-3 |
| 24 | Indianapolis Colts | 2-3 |
| 25 | Detroit Lions | 2-3 |
| 26 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 1-3 |
| 27 | San Diego Chargers | 1-4 |
| 28 | New Orleans Saints | 1-3 |
| 29 | San Francisco 49ers | 1-4 |
| 30 | Chicago Bears | 1-4 |
| 31 | Miami Dolphins | 1-4 |
| 32 | Cleveland Browns | 0-5 |
1. Minnesota Vikings
It's rare for a team's placement in a power ranking to be considered indisputable, but hopefully fans of all 32 teams can agree the Minnesota Vikings deserve the top spot.
Not only are the Vikings the only remaining undefeated team, but four of their five victories have been by a touchdown or more, including a 22-10 road win over the Carolina Panthers, the defending NFC champions.
The Vikings now enter their bye, giving head coach Mike Zimmer two weeks to get his defense prepared for the Philadelphia Eagles and rookie quarterback Carson Wentz.
If Minnesota gets by the Eagles, the Vikings could cruise through their next three games against the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Washington Redskins. Sweeping through that stretch would put the Vikings at 8-0 heading into a potentially exciting showdown with the Arizona Cardinals.
3. Dallas Cowboys
It's hard to believe the Dallas Cowboys are 4-1 with a rookie quarterback-running back combo. But if there were any doubts about their staying power in the NFC, they put them to rest with a dominant victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 5.
Although Elliott is a rookie, he certainly hasn't performed like one. Through Week 5, Elliott leads the NFL in rushing, and according to ESPN Stats & Info, he's off to arguably the most impressive start to a career in Cowboys history.
Ezekiel Elliott has rushed for 546 yards and 5 TD in his first 5 career games. It stacks up pretty well against other @dallascowboys greats pic.twitter.com/U2LQkz6t34
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) October 9, 2016
As much as Cowboys fans are enjoying the hot start, there's still a serious question looming over their heads: Will Tony Romo take over when he returns?
It would be tough to bench Dak Prescott while he's leading one of the hottest teams in the NFL. During each of the Cowboys' four victories, Prescott has posted a total quarterback rating of over 80, according to ESPN.
After this hot start, it's hard to envision how the Cowboys offense could be more efficient under Romo. Through Week 5, 47.9 percent of the Cowboys' drives have resulted in an offensive score—the fourth-best rate in the NFL.
Based on these numbers under Prescott, if Romo does return, he'll certainly have a short leash.
6. Denver Broncos
Trevor Siemian probably doesn't have to worry about losing his job to Paxton Lynch anytime soon.
Sharon Katz and Jacob Nitzberg of ESPN Stats & Info identified Lynch as one of the three worst quarterbacks of the week, thanks to his 11.3 total QBR.
One of the major flaws in Lynch's game seems to be his downfield passing. According to Katz and Nitzberg, Lynch completed just one pass thrown over 20 yards downfield.
Fortunately for the Broncos, Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post reported the Broncos hope to have Siemian back under center for their game against the San Diego Chargers on Thursday night.
With Siemian back in the huddle, the Broncos offense should return to form. Under Siemian's leadership in the first four games of the season, Denver scored over 21 points and racked up at least 300 yards of total offense in each game. They failed to meet any of those benchmarks with Lynch on Sunday.
Despite the loss to the Atlanta Falcons, a healthy Broncos team still looks like a contender in the AFC.