NFL Power Rankings Week 10: Latest 2016 Standings and Reaction for All 32 Teams

The Seattle Seahawks defeated the Buffalo Bills in a thrilling, controversial Monday night contest to wrap up Week 9. Now that the week has reached its official end, it's time to dissect what we've seen and to take a look ahead to Week 10.

Monday night's game was one of those rare contests that managed to make both teams look good. Seattle got yet another victory. Buffalo played well on the road, and depending on how you view the bizarre events that ended the first half, you might even say the Bills deserved to win.

This wasn't the only unexpected result of the week, though. The Detroit Lions bested the Minnesota Vikings to make their claim in the NFC North playoff race. The Baltimore Ravens did the same for their AFC North race with a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Cleveland Browns again failed to win a game, of course, as did the New England Patriots—but only because New England was on bye.

How should all of this affect the way we view the league at large? Well, we're here to figure that out with our Week 10 power rankings.

NFL Power Rankings

Rank	Team	Record
1	New England Patriots	7-1
2	Dallas Cowboys	7-1
3	Oakland Raiders	7-2
4	Kansas City Chiefs	6-2
5	Atlanta Falcons	6-3
6	Denver Broncos	6-3
7	Seattle Seahawks	5-2-1
8	Houston Texans	5-3
9	New York Giants	5-3
10	Washington Redskins	4-3-1
11	Detroit Lions	5-4
12	Minnesota Vikings	5-3
13	Green Bay Packers	4-4
14	Buffalo Bills	4-5
15	Baltimore Ravens	4-4
16	Pittsburgh Steelers	4-4
17	Miami Dolphins	4-4
18	Philadelphia Eagles	4-4
19	New Orleans Saints	4-4
20	Indianapolis Colts	4-5
21	San Diego Chargers	4-5
22	Arizona Cardinals	3-4-1
23	Tennessee Titans	4-5
24	Cincinnati Bengals	3-4-1
25	Carolina Panthers	3-5
26	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	3-5
27	Los Angeles Rams	3-5
28	Chicago Bears	2-6
29	New York Jets	3-5
30	Jacksonville Jaguars	3-5
31	San Francisco 49ers	1-7
32	Cleveland Browns	0-9

Notable Rankings

1. New England Patriots

Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

The Patriots were not in action in Week 9, but this doesn't do anything to diminish what the team has accomplished to this point in the season. Simply put, the Patriots have looked and played like the best team in football, and few teams appear to be on their level.

This is a dangerous and well-rounded team, evidenced by the fact the Patriots managed to go 3-1 without starting quarterback Tom Brady to begin the season. The team was even without star tight end Rob Gronkowski for two of those three games.

However, the Patriots really started looking good once Brady returned from his four-game suspension. The 39-year-old signal-caller is playing perhaps the best football of his entire career, and no opposing defense has had an answer for him.

Through four games, Brady has completed 73.1 percent of his passes for 1,319 yards with 12 touchdowns and zero interceptions. He has New England averaging 27.1 points per game and rated sixth in overall offense by Pro Football Focus.

New England—which is rated fifth in overall defense by Pro Football Focus—is far from a one-dimensional squad. The Patriots have the tools to go up against virtually any foe, offensively or defensively. There's a legitimate chance this team doesn't lose again in the regular season so long as there's something worth playing for.

4. Kansas City Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs might not be as well-rounded as the Patriots are, but they're proving to be a tough team that can handle adversity and talented opponents on the field.

The Chiefs have managed to win four games in a row despite having players like quarterback Alex Smith, receiver Jeremy Maclin and running back Spencer Ware miss time due to injury. The team has also played the season without star pass-rusher Justin Houston, who may return from injury in the near future.

Offensively, the Chiefs are only rated 19th by Pro Football Focus. Yet the team should see improvements on that side of the ball as it gets healthier. Defensively, the Chiefs are allowing just 18.9 points per game (eighth in the NFL), which makes it difficult for opponents to keep pace on the scoreboard.

The Chiefs are 2-0 in divisional play and are set up to make a potential run at an AFC West title. We should have a good idea in Week 12—when the team travels to Denver to take on the Broncos—whether the Chiefs have what it takes to win the division. A win there would mean Kansas City already has a win over each divisional opponent heading into the home stretch.

Oddly enough, the AFC West race could come down to the wire this season and not even involve the defending Super Bowl champions.

6. Denver Broncos

Sunday's loss to the Oakland Raiders isn't enough to knock Denver out of the playoff picture or even the NFL title hunt. However, it did expose the mighty Denver defense—Oakland rushed for more than 200 yards—and it proved just how flawed a team the Broncos can be.

The Broncos have had trouble maintaining consistency on the offensive side of the football all season. Second-year quarterback Trevor Siemian has played well enough to win most games, but he has rarely been able to attack downfield with any sort of consistency.

This means Denver has struggled offensively when the run game isn't working well, and the team has been notoriously slow when it comes to starting games.

"I have to respect the plays that are being called," Broncos running back Devontae Booker said, per Nick Groke of the Denver Post. "We’d like to get in a rhythm (running) early on in the game, but if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen."

Defensively, Denver is still one of the better teams in the NFL—the Broncos are rated third in overall defense by Pro Football Focus. As the Raiders proved on Sunday, though, this defense can be worn down by the run.

If the Broncos cannot figure out how to stay on the field and put up points early in games, they're going to struggle winning against top teams down the stretch.