2026 NFL Power Rankings Week 7: Are The Packers For Real? Are The Rams Frauds?

For most of the offseason and summer and heading into Week 1, the Los Angeles Rams were the top team in these rankings, and it was hard to envision a time when they’d fall out of the top 10. It turns out that time is now. And now it’s hard to figure out how they can claw their way back in. That’s been the wildest change here, other than the Cleveland Browns, who were ranked 31st after their Week 1 loss, and now are 4-2 and tied atop the AFC North. It’s just another sign that the NFL is wild and the swings can be even wilder. If you don’t believe me, just check out how my NFL Power Rankings shook out heading into Week 7. *Super Bowl odds courtesy of DraftKings Super Bowl odds: +100000 (tied for 31st-best) Hopefully the Dolphins enjoyed their bye week, because they return to action as the worst team in football (once again) and one of just two winless teams. Now the big question on their season becomes: Where can they get their first (and possibly only) win? Four games stand out as possibilities, including two against the Jets, one of which comes this Sunday in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Dolphins aren’t better than the Jets, but when has that really mattered? Also, they are running the ball well, averaging 126.6 rushing yards for the season. The Jets, meanwhile, are giving up 123 rushing yards per game. So maybe, just maybe, it’s the Dolphins’ time! Next game: @ Jets (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Dolphins are one of two winless teams remaining in the NFL after Week 6. Super Bowl odds: +100000 (tied for 31st-best) The Titans is so bad that they played one good half of football on Sunday and it prompted the Colts to fire GM Chris Ballard. And honestly, it wasn’t even that good of a half by the Titans. They gained 158 yards on five possessions, scoring one touchdown and settling for four field goals. Two of those field goals came on drives they started inside the Colts’ 33. Tennessee did force two third-quarter turnovers and returned a blocked punt for a TD, so give the club credit where it’s due. But the Titans had 186 total yards of offense and QB Cam Ward had yet another stinker (11 for 22, 102 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT). Next game: vs. Browns (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: Sunday’s win against the Colts was the Titans first win since Week 16 of last season, snapping a seven-game losing streak. Super Bowl odds: +50000 (tied for 29th-best) It feels like the firing squad is lining up for offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel as the Chargers head into their bye week at 0-6, after another bad performance by QB Justin Herbert and after they failed to gain 350 yards for a sixth straight game. It’s just bad. It’s all bad. It’s so bad that it feels like if Jim Harbaugh does fire McDaniel, it’ll be a last-ditch effort to save his own job. And it’s so bad that it’s fair to wonder if the Chargers want to move on from Herbert — assuming he doesn’t try to move on from them first. Next game: BYE Stat To Know: The Chargers now have 14 giveaways this season, which is the most in the NFL. Justin Herbert is now the only QB since 2020 with an interception in each of the first six games of a season. Herbert leads the NFL with eight INTs this season. Super Bowl odds: +12500 (tied for 22nd-best) In three games without Baker Mayfield, the Buccaneers lost by a field goal to the Packers, beat the Cowboys in Dallas, and pushed the Steelers into overtime. That’s not nothing, but it’s not much in a season that is all but over at 1-5. Todd Bowles’ defense keeps them competitive — he’s always been a heck of a defensive coordinator — but his offense is crying out for a new direction. Bowles is no longer the odds-on favorite to be the first head coach fired. The Commanders’ Dan Quinn has taken over that spot. But the Week 10 bye sure looms large for Bowles. He may need to find a way to beat either the Panthers, the Falcons or the Bears before then to survive. Next game: @ Panthers (Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Bucs’ last 12 games have all been decided by eight points or fewer, the longest such streak in franchise history. Super Bowl odds: +50000 (tied for 29th-best) Another week where the Jets play competitive football. Another week where they lose to a better team. Another week where Aaron Glenn has a head-scratching moment. This time it was his confusion in a halftime interview when he said his team was getting the ball to start the second half, but they actually weren’t. That’s not really a big deal in and of itself, but all this stuff keeps piling up in what looks like yet another lost season. The good news is it hasn’t turned ugly yet. You want to see ugly? Watch what happens Sunday if the Miami Dolphins show up at MetLife Stadium and beat the Jets. Next game: vs. Dolphins (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: Through Week 6, the Jets rank fifth in the NFL in yards allowed per play (4.80) and are tied for fifth in turnover margin (+4), with eight takeaways and four giveaways. Super Bowl odds: +12500 (tied for 22nd-best) Jayden Daniels looks closer to his old, magical self, but it all came too late to pull off the upset in San Francisco Monday night, and it might be too late to save the season in Washington. It might be too late for Dan Quinn too, since, for the second week in a row, his game management skills were exposed as … well, something. This time he was caught on camera seemingly surprised that the Commanders’ last play was a fourth-down play, as he tried to send the field goal unit on. Add that to last week’s clock disaster and Washington’s 1-4-1 record, and Quinn might not still be the Commanders coach anymore when they return from their bye. Next game: BYE Stat To Know: The Commanders have a 30.9% offensive success rate on third down, the second-lowest mark in the NFL ahead of only the Browns Super Bowl odds: +40000 (28th-best) I don’t care how much the Rams are struggling right now. This young, flawed Cardinals team going into Los Angeles and beating a much more talented team, and having to come from behind for a last-second field goal to do it, is seriously impressive. It doesn’t necessarily change my overall opinion of the Cards, nor does it alter their brutal schedule over the next seven weeks. But it’s a nice cornerstone win for new coach Mike LaFleur. That memory can keep him warm in late winter when he’s busy trying to figure out which quarterback he wants in the 2027 draft. Next game: vs. Broncos (Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Cardinals won outright as 12.5-point underdogs, marking the largest upset by point spread this season and tying for the third-largest since 2023. Super Bowl odds: +3500 (16th-best) Well, at least the Cowboys’ defense finally looked good on Sunday night against the Packers. They even stopped the Green Bay rushing attack. But that’s two weeks in a row now that Dallas’ offense looked out of sync and failed to even hit 17 points. Dak Prescott is throwing for a lot of yards, but they’re mostly empty. And the Cowboys have run for a total of 98 yards over the past two games. They knew they had to fix their defensive problems. If they have to fix their offense, too, then they can forget this season. The Eagles, Cardinals and Colts are up next, so there’s an opportunity here. But honestly, does anyone have faith in the Cowboys anymore to actually get this right? Next game: @ Eagles (Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: Dak Prescott is now 1-6-1 against the Packers, including 0-2 in the playoffs, tied for the most losses Prescott has suffered against any single opponent in his career. Super Bowl odds: +15000 (25th-best) Kellen Moore held off what might have been his own Waterloo when his Saints held on by their fingernails to beat the Giants on Sunday. Before that, they had lost three straight, and that seemed to have Saints owner Gayle Benson fuming. Now they’ll all head to Paris for a game against the Steelers, feeling at least a little better about things. A win there would give them a nice boost heading into their bye week. But the way their defense nearly threw away the game against the Giants, I wouldn’t count on that. Next game: vs. Steelers (Sunday, 9:30 a.m. ET) Stat To Know: With the win vs. the Giants, this is the first time the Saints have defeated the same non-division opponent in four straight seasons since 1990-93 (Cardinals). Super Bowl odds: +12000 (tied for 20th-best) Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon officially waved the white flag on the Colts’ season on Monday when she fired GM Chris Ballard. That’s a pretty clear signal that they’re heading for a rebuild and a new vision next season, which means coach Shane Steichen is probably next to go, and QB Daniel Jones shouldn’t get too comfortable either. Indy’s embarrassing loss to the Titans at home on Sunday said everything about where this team is headed. The Titans — yes, the previously winless Titans — scored on all five of their second-half possessions and added a touchdown on a blocked punt. Next game: @ Vikings (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Colts loss snapped their six-game winning streak against the Titans, which was previously their longest active streak against any opponent. Super Bowl odds: +20000 (tied for 26th-best) The Eagles’ season took a dark and scary turn on Monday morning when it was revealed that QB Jalen Hurts had multiple blood clots in his lungs, ending his 2026 season. And though I’ve been saying it for weeks, that has to be the signal that this is now a rebuilding team. Anything that’s not tied down to a long and expensive contract must go as the Eagles restock for a run in 2027. Don’t worry about the bad division or their soft schedule or all the injured players who might soon get healthy. They’ve lost four straight and things aren’t going to turn around under backup QB Tanner McKee. GM Howie Roseman needs to keep his eyes on the prize, which is now the 2027 NFL Draft. Next game: vs. Cowboys (Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: This is the first time in franchise history that the Eagles have started 2-0 and then lost their next four games. Super Bowl odds: +12500 (tied for 22nd-best) The Giants are not a good team and they showed it for 48 minutes on Sunday, falling into a 34-10 hole at home against the Saints. Then QB J.J. McCarthy took over for Jameis Winston and nearly pulled off another Miracle at the Meadowlands. He didn’t, but he was impressive, throwing for 243 yards and a touchdown in his short time, and coming within inches of making the comeback complete. The Giants are in first place and might have a clear path to the NFC East title. But they’re still not good. And the injuries are piling up. Maybe they’ll get some more McCarthy Magic over the next few weeks. But honestly, the best thing that can be said about them is that the rest of the division is trash. Next game: @ Texans (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Giants got 50 rushing yards from their quarterbacks and wide receivers, but only got 34 rushing yards from their running backs in the loss to the Saints. Super Bowl odds: +7000 (18th-best) In fairness to the Falcons, they ran into a buzzsaw against the Bears on Sunday with Caleb Williams back. And they did kind of crawl back into the game at the end. I know they’ve lost two straight games now, both at home, but it was against two really good teams (the Ravens were the other). The Falcons’ hopes will probably get dashed next Sunday at home against the 49ers, but there’s no doubt that Kevin Stefanski has this team playing a heck of a lot better over the past month. He also looks like he found a franchise QB in Michael Penix Jr. So let that be a small consolation when Sunday comes and they fall to 2-5. Next game: vs. 49ers (Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Falcons are 0-3 at home this season compared to 2-1 on the road. It’s their worst home start since 2020. Super Bowl odds: +3000 (tied for 14th-best) They’re baaaaaack! Everyone thought the Texans were dead at 0-4. … OK, I thought they were dead, but I wasn’t the only one. But they got right two weeks ago against the awful Titans and stayed right with a terrific 34-31 win in London against the Jaguars. C.J. Stroud finally looks like the franchise QB he was supposed to be. He has plenty of weapons, with the addition of WR Marvin Harrison Jr. But what happened to DeMeco Ryans’ defense? It’s not nearly as dominant as it once was. If the Texans can fix it, they’re a good bet to become the second-ever team to start 0-4 and make the playoffs. Next game: vs. Giants (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: Following today’s win over the Jaguars, the Texans are now 7-1 in their last eight divisional games. Super Bowl odds: +9000 (19th-best) The Raiders are just way better than I thought they were. They had to drop in the rankings this week because they’ve lost three straight, including a humbling blowout in New England. But I haven’t lost sight of the fact that the Raiders’ other two were three-point losses were to the Chiefs and Bills. QB Kirk Cousins is playing great. HC Klint Kubiak has done a masterful job as head coach. If the Raiders could only get more out of RB Ashton Jeanty, they might have something really good there. Next game: vs. Rams (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Raiders have lost each of their last three games after starting the season 3-0, allowing over 30 points in all three losses. Super Bowl odds: +20000 (tied for 26th-best) Following a 13-10 win over the Lamar Jackson-less Ravens on Sunday, HC Todd Monken described his Browns like this: “Our guys are a scrappy group and they play their rear ends off for 60 minutes. And that will always give you a chance to win.” The Browns don’t do a lot of things well, especially offensively. But they have a disruptive defense (19 sacks, second in the NFL) that keeps them hanging around. Then they have a knack for finding ways to win close games (all four of their wins were by four points or less). It’s been an amazing run, except for last week’s inexcusable loss to the Jets. That might be all that’s holding them back from being a top-10 team. Next game: @ Titans (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Browns are in first place in their division in Week 6 or later for the first time since Week 10 of the 2014 season. Super Bowl odds: +1200 (tied for fifth-best) I have now officially lost all faith in the Dream Team. I was willing to write their early struggles off to jet lag and a mostly brutal stretch of opponents in the first five weeks. But their hideous 18-16 loss to the Cardinals this past Sunday broke me. It might have broken the Rams, too. It definitely broke WR Davante Adams, who is now out 6-10 weeks with a ruptured hamstring. Sean McVay looks as lost and frustrated as I’ve ever seen him. And I don’t blame him. The Rams are ranked third in total offense and total defense, but they don’t seem to make big plays on either side of the ball. They look old or tired or maybe both. Mostly, they look very overrated. Next game: @ Raiders (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Rams are the fifth outright preseason Super Bowl favorite with a losing record through six games in the past 50 seasons. Super Bowl odds: +12000 (tied for 20th-best) I feel like I say this every week, but this is the most confusing team in the league for me. The Steelers look great, then they look terrible, and sometimes — like in their 26-19 overtime in Tampa on Sunday against the Baker Mayfield-less Bucs — they alternate between great and terrible within the same game. They were terrible for three quarters and trailed 16-3. But their defense kept them in it. Then Aaron Rodgers woke up a little. Then he went off in overtime (6 for 7, 51 yards and a TD). I don’t know. They’re 4-2, but the roller coaster is making me a little nauseous. Next game: vs. Saints (Sunday, 9:30 a.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Steelers have started 4-2 in four consecutive seasons. Super Bowl odds: +3000 (tied for 14th-best) OK, Mike LaFleur just did a nice job pulling himself out of the theoretical hot seat and putting the Packers back into the fire of the NFC North. The Packers are 4-2 and have won three straight games. Jordan Love and the offense has clicked in that span, and the defense has been excellent, too. So why are they ranked this low? Because they barely beat the Bucs, they beat the Bears without Caleb Williams and then beat the reeling Cowboys. They can’t do anything about the schedule, but let’s see how it goes at Detroit, vs. Carolina, at New England and vs. Minnesota in the month leading into their bye week before I put my cheesehead on. Next game: @ Lions (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: With their win over the Cowboys, the Packers improved to 21-4 (.840) all-time in Sunday night home games, the best winning percentage in NFL history. Super Bowl odds: +2500 (13th-best) Dan Campbell did not fire defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard during the bye week, which is interesting considering how bad Sheppard’s defense has been. The Lions are giving up an astonishing 404.4 yards per game, including three games (out of five) where the opponents topped 440 yards and 30 points. It’s a shame, really, because the Lions offense can run up the score on any team in the league, but the defense is going to kill them. Teams rarely last in the NFL when their only hope is to win 41-38 while praying they get the ball last. Next game: vs. Packers (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Lions rank second in the NFL behind only the Bills in both scoring drive percentage (53.8%) and points per drive (3.15), excluding kneel-downs. Super Bowl odds: +2100 (12th-best) Hopefully the Bengals spent their bye week fixing the recent issues with a run defense that gave up 466 yards on the ground over their last three games (including 217 to the Dolphins … yikes!). Because they’ll need that with games in Baltimore and Atlanta over the next three weeks, especially if Lamar Jackson is back for the Ravens. Other than those two games, though, their schedule really offers clear sailing until December. That gives QB Joe Burrow and WR Ja’Marr Chase a chance to get on the kind of roll we haven’t really seen from them yet. Next game: @ Ravens (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Bengals have converted 50% of their third-down attempts, ranking second in the NFL through six weeks. Super Bowl odds: +1800 (tied for ninth-best) Yawn! The Patriots beat the Jets. What else is new? But that’s three straight wins now for a team that was on the brink of disaster after Week 3. And more importantly, it was a third straight good game from QB Drake Maye. The turnaround is stunning. He averaged 195 passing yards and had one touchdown pass and six interceptions over the first three games. He’s since averaged 292.7 yards while tossing 10 touchdowns with just one interception. Maye may not get there because that terrible start could be an anchor, but he’s playing like an MVP contender again. Next game: @ Bears (Thursday, 8:15 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Patriots have won their first three home games in a season for the first time since 2019. Super Bowl odds: +4000 (17th-best) The Panthers have earned their spot in the top 10, even though their record is only 3-2. And it really has little to do with their narrow win over the Jalen Hurts-less Eagles on Sunday. They are just a really complete team. QB Bryce Young has been phenomenal, leading the NFL with 309.8 passing yards per game while throwing 11 touchdowns and just two interceptions. The Panthers’ defense has also looked a lot better after a disastrous showing in Week 1 versus the Bears. For those wondering, there’s still plenty of room on the bandwagon. Next game: vs. Buccaneers (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Panthers have scored 25-plus points in four of their five games this season, including over 30 three times. Super Bowl odds: +1000 (tied for fourth-best) The Ravens should have run away from the Browns this past Sunday, only to lose 13-10 on a last-second field goal. Baltimore obviously isn’t the same team when Lamar Jackson is on the sideline. Backup QB Ty Huntley led an excellent, game-opening touchdown drive, but basically did nothing the rest of the game after that. It feels like Jackson is close to a return, and boy do they need him, because the Bengals, Bills and Jaguars are up next. Without their leader, the Ravens won’t survive that. Next game: vs. Bengals (Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: Since 2025, the Ravens are 3-4 in divisional games after their loss to the Browns on Sunday. Super Bowl odds: +1300 (seventh-best) The Jaguars’ offense is finally starting to click, but their 34-31 loss to the Texans in London should be a wake-up call that their defense isn’t everything they thought it was. Maybe they were just tired from a long couple of weeks in London, or maybe the Texans are just starting to roll. But even Houston’s disastrous running game managed to put up 114 yards on the Jags. The good news for them, though, is they have a really soft schedule coming out of the bye week, including games against the Colts and the Giants and two meetings with the Titans. So the Jags have a good chance to get back on their roll. Next game: BYE Stat To Know: The Jaguars have gone 23 straight games without allowing a 75-plus-yard rusher, tied for the third-longest streak since 1966. Only the 49ers have had longer streaks: 27 games from 2021-23 and 26 games from 1989-91. Super Bowl odds: +1200 (tied for fifth-best) Mike Macdonald seemed pretty ticked about his team’s performance last Thursday in Denver, but the Broncos tend to have that effect on opponents. Still, it was the Seahawks’ second straight loss and the defending champs are only 3-3, so maybe they don’t belong this high anymore? That record doesn’t do them justice, though. Their back-to-back losses were to the 49ers and the Broncos, and that’s a tough stretch for anybody. The real problem for Seattle is what’s next: home games against the Chiefs and the Bears. The Seahawks are heading for a tumble into a deep, dark hole if they can’t reassert themselves as championship material. Next game: vs. Chiefs (Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Seahawks’ defense leads the NFL in yards allowed per play (3.96) and ranks third in opponent third-down conversion rate (28%). Super Bowl odds: +1500 (eighth-best) It’s a big jump for a narrow win over the Atlanta Falcons, but this is all really about the return of Caleb Williams, who was phenomenal on Sunday, looked healthy, and led Chicago to a 31-7 lead before the defense almost threw it away. The Bears’ defense could be an issue, but for now they can celebrate in Chicago because a healthy Williams puts the dynamic Ben Johnson offense right back on track. It’s going to be a lot of fun in two weeks to see what the Bears can do in Seattle against one of the best defenses in the league. Next game: vs. Patriots (Thursday, 8:15 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: This is the first time the Bears have started 4-2 or better in three straight seasons since an eight-year streak from 1984-91. Super Bowl odds: +1800 (tied for ninth-best) I don’t know if their entry in the top five will finally make Vikings fans happy — or if anything I do actually can. Probably not, since they were off in Week 6 and only moved up because so many top-10 teams lost. Still, the Vikings are 5-0 and everyone in Minnesota thinks they belong at No. 1. But sorry, not with their pop-gun offense. Not yet. Maybe soon, if QB Kyler Murray continues what he started in Week 5 and generates more points on offense. If not, life for Minnesota will just be too hard the rest of the season, especially with six of its next seven opponents among the top half of the league in scoring. Next game: vs. Colts (Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The Vikings are undefeated (3-0) in one-score games so far this season. Super Bowl odds: +2000 (11th-best) Every week I watch the Broncos and feel like I can’t justify having them this high in the rankings. The playcalling has been an obvious issue. Bo Nix looks like a mess at times. They can’t run the ball. The defense can’t stop the run. And yet … they win. And they have quality wins. Three of their four wins are against the Seahawks, the Jaguars and the Rams. And their losses are to the Chiefs and the 49ers, who might be the two best teams in football. Denver has run an impossible gauntlet to start the season and somehow survived. It honestly feels like it did last season when the Broncos never seemed like a powerhouse team, never looked particularly impressive, yet somehow ended up in the AFC Championship game. Maybe Sean Payton is just a wizard. Next game: @ Cardinals (Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: Thursday night was the Broncos’ first win with under 175 yards since 1983 at the Steelers, which was also John Elway’s first start. Super Bowl odds: +750 (tied for second-best) It feels like every Bills game is exactly the same. Josh Allen is great. The running game, with Allen and RB James Cook, is great. Their defense is … not great. Their wins all feel like shootouts where they have to hang on, like they did against the Raiders in Week 6. They don’t get a lot of pressure (11 sacks on the season). They don’t create a lot of turnovers (6). They give up 386.8 yards and 28.5 points per game. It all feels unsustainable. And if they didn’t have Allen, it would be. They should think about that over their bye week. If they ever figure out their defensive problems, the Bills could be unstoppable. Next game: BYE Stat To Know: Joe Brady’s 5-1 start is the best record through six games by any head coach in Buffalo Bills franchise history. Super Bowl odds: +750 (tied for second-best) Is it possible that the Chiefs are actually under the radar for most of the NFL? Or maybe we just all take their greatness for granted? But there sure isn’t a lot of chatter or hype about what might be the best team in the league. And Patrick Mahomes, just 10 months removed from tearing his ACL, is quietly on pace for his best season since 2022 — when he won league MVP and the Chiefs won the Super Bowl. Maybe Mahomes belongs in the early MVP conversation, too? The Chiefs play at Seattle and at Denver these next two weeks, so the noise about K.C. is about to get a lot louder. Next game: @ Seahawks (Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid joined Bill Belichick/Tom Brady, Tony Dungy/Peyton Manning and Bud Grant/Fran Tarkenton as the only head coach-quarterback duos in NFL history with at least three 5-0 starts. Super Bowl odds: +540 (best) The 49ers are held together at times by Band-Aids and gauze tape, but there’s no question they’re the best team in football a third of the way through the season. They need a rest, especially after WR Mike Evans reinjured his Achilles on Monday night, joining WR Deebo Samuel, WR Christian Kirk, edge rusher Nick Bosa and more on the sideline. But they’re so deep and so good, they can sleepwalk through wins — like they seemed to do at times in the second half Monday night when they nearly blew their game against the Commanders. Now they just have to get through Atlanta to hit their bye week undefeated and see if they can get some of their walking wounded back after that. Next game: @ Falcons (Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET) Stat To Know: The 49ers are 6-0 for the second time under Kyle Shanahan. They last started 6-0 in 2019, when they reached the Super Bowl.