NFL Power Rankings: San Francisco 49ers and Other Overachievers Who Will Falter

Teams overachieve in the NFL each and every year. Sometimes they overachieve because of their schedule, other times it is because they simply hit a hot streak.

The San Francisco 49ers are one of a few teams who have benefited early in the season because of these circumstances, but they aren't the only ones. 

San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers have certainly overachieved to this point in the season, and are bound to come back to earth eventually.

They are on a bit of a hot streak, but Alex Smith won't be able to limit the turnovers all year.

Their pass defense is one of the worst in the NFL, and they aren't picking up many yards through the air themselves. Their run game struggled early in the season, but has come along well as the year has progressed.

Their next four games are going to be huge tests for this team. They go on the road to take on the Detroit Lions and Washington Redskins, while they welcome the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants.

Those won't be easy wins, and the 49ers will be lucky to come out of that stretch with a 2-2 record.

Luckily for them, they don't have much competition in the NFC West and will easily win the division. 

Buffalo Bills

The Bills are off to an incredible start that has them 4-1, but the time has come for them to come crashing down to earth, too.

Buffalo is not a top-five team, despite their record. At this point, they have to be considered a top-10 team, but they won't be there for long.

This week, they head to the New Meadowlands to take on the New York Giants in a game where the Bills will return to reality.

The Bills defense is creating a ton of turnovers to this point. If it wasn't for that, they would be 1-4 or 2-3.

They have one of the worst overall defenses in the NFL. They give up the 26th-most passing yards per game and the 29th-most rushing yards per game. That's not the sign of a playoff team, and they are about to realize they need to tighten up on defense. 

Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins have knocked off the St. Louis Rams, New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals to this point.

None of those teams have impressed so far this season, which makes the Redskins' victories look a lot less impressive.

The Redskins are bound to fall off a bit, but they still have a terrific shot at making the playoffs due to their soft schedule. Four of their remaining games are against teams who don't stand much of a chance of making the playoffs this year in the Seattle Seahawks, Minnesota Vikings, Carolina Panthers and Miami Dolphins.

If the Redskins win those games, they will find themselves with seven games and only needing three more wins to likely clinch a playoff spot.

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