NFL Power Rankings – Week 6: Where the Eagles Stand
The Eagles are on their first multi-game winning streak of the season following their dominant 31-6 victory against the New York Jets. Heading into week 6, the Eagles are now back on the doorstep of being ranked in the top 5 in the power rankings.
Part of the Eagles’ ascension in the power rankings is due to four teams in last week’s top 10 suffering losses — the Chiefs, Rams, Cowboys, and Bears all fell to their opponents this week. A number of other teams finally had a statement win to solidify their ranks in the top half of the league, including the 49ers and Colts.
Meanwhile, it’s becoming more clear which teams will be stuck at the bottom of the barrel this season — the Dolphins (who were on a bye), Bengals, Redskins, and Jets all remain winless. The battle for this year’s top pick in the NFL draft will heat up (or cool down) when the Redskins travel to Miami to face the Dolphins.
Through the first five weeks of the season, the MVP picture is also beginning to shape up. Reigning MVP Patrick Mahomes, along with Russell Wilson and Christian McCaffrey are in the lead to win the award, while Carson Wentz and Tom Brady are among those with a case that still can be made to receive the honor.
Once again, there was plenty of history made across the league in last week’s games.
- With 70 yards in his 21st career game, Ravens QB Lamar Jackson is now at 1,003 career rushing yards. Jackson tied Robert Griffin III as the quarterback’s to reach 1,000 career rushing yards in the fewest games in NFL history.
- Panthers QB Kyle Allen is the first quarterback in the Super Bowl era to go 4-0 without throwing any interceptions in his first four career starts.
- Jaguars QB Gardner Minshew joined Kyle Allen and Jeff Kemp as the only players in the Super Bowl era to have a passer rating of at least 100 with no interceptions through their first four career starts.
- Panthers RB Christian McCaffrey joined Thurman Thomas today as the only players in NFL history to record at least 500 rushing yards and 250 receiving yards in their team’s first five games of a season.
Before getting into this week’s power rankings, be sure to check out where every team ranked in last week’s rankings.
32: 0-4 Miami Dolphins
Last weeks ranking: 32
Last weeks result: BYE
31: 0-5 Cincinnati Bengals
Last weeks ranking: 30
Last weeks result: 26-23 loss at home to the Arizona Cardinals
30: 0-5 Washington Redskins
Last weeks ranking: 28
Last weeks result: 33-7 loss at home to the New England Patriots
29: 0-4 New York Jets
Last weeks ranking: 27
Last weeks result: 31-6 loss on the road to the Philadelphia Eagles
28: 1-4 Denver Broncos
Last weeks ranking: 31
Last weeks result: 20-13 win on the road against the Los Angeles Chargers
27: 1-4 Atlanta Falcons
Last weeks ranking: 26
Last weeks result: 53-32 loss on the road to the Houston Texans
26: 1-3-1 Arizona Cardinals
Last weeks ranking: 29
Last weeks result: 26-23 win on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals
25: 1-4 Pittsburgh Steelers
Last weeks ranking: 25
Last weeks result: 26-23 loss in OT at home to the Baltimore Ravens
24: 2-3 New York Giants
Last weeks ranking: 24
Last weeks result: 28-10 loss at home to the Minnesota Vikings
23: 2-3 Jacksonville Jaguars
Last weeks ranking: 21
Last weeks result: 34-27 loss on the road to the Carolina Panthers
22: 2-3 Los Angeles Chargers
Last weeks ranking: 15
Last weeks result: 20-13 loss at home to the Denver Broncos
21: 2-3 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Last weeks ranking: 19
Last weeks result: 31-24 loss on the road to the New Orleans Saints
20: 2-3 Tennessee Titans
Last weeks ranking: 16
Last weeks result: 14-7 loss at home to the Buffalo Bills
19: 2-3 Cleveland Browns
Last weeks ranking: 11
Last weeks result: 31-3 loss on the road to the San Francisco 49ers
18: 3-2 Chicago Bears
Last weeks ranking: 8
Last weeks result: 24-21 loss in London to the Oakland Raiders
17: 3-2 Houston Texans
Last weeks ranking: 20
Last weeks result: 53-32 win at home against the Atlanta Falcons
16: 4-1 Buffalo Bills
Last weeks ranking: 23
Last weeks result: 14-7 win on the road against the Tennessee Titans
15: 3-2 Oakland Raiders
Last weeks ranking: 18
Last weeks result: 24-21 win in London against the Chicago Bears
14: 3-2 Carolina Panthers
Last weeks ranking: 17
Last weeks result: 34-27 win at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars
13: 2-1-1 Detroit Lions
Last weeks ranking: 14
Last weeks result: BYE
12: 3-2 Baltimore Ravens
Last weeks ranking: 12
Last weeks result: 26-23 win in OT on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers
11: 3-2 Indianapolis Colts
Last weeks ranking: 22
Last weeks result: 19-13 win on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs
10: 3-2 Minnesota Vikings
Last weeks ranking: 10
Last weeks result: 28-10 win on the road against the New York Giants
9: 3-2 Dallas Cowboys
Last weeks ranking: 6
Last weeks result: 34-24 loss at home to the Green Bay Packers
8: 3-2 Los Angeles Rams
Last weeks ranking: 5
Last weeks result: 30-29 loss on the road to the Seattle Seahawks
7: 4-0 San Francisco 49ers
Last weeks ranking: 13
Last weeks result: 31-3 win at home against the Cleveland Browns
6: 3-2 Philadelphia Eagles
Last weeks ranking: 9
Last weeks result: 31-6 win at home against the New York Jets
5: 4-1 Green Bay Packers
Last weeks ranking: 7
Last weeks result: 34-24 win on the road against the Dallas Cowboys
4: 4-1 Kansas City Chiefs
Last weeks ranking: 2
Last weeks result: 19-13 loss at home to the Indianapolis Colts
3: 4-1 Seattle Seahawks
Last weeks ranking: 4
Last weeks result: 30-29 win at home against the Los Angeles Rams
2: 4-1 New Orleans Saints
Last weeks ranking: 3
Last weeks result: 31-24 win at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
1: 5-0 New England Patriots
Last weeks ranking: 1
Last weeks result: 33-7 win on the road against the Washington Redskins
Why the Eagles Are Ranked Where They Are
After putting together an impressive performance in week 4’s win against the Green Bay Packers, the Eagles followed it up with a dominant win at home against the New York Jets. The defense had struggled a bit to that point, but against the Jets, the accumulated 10 total sacks, which was just one shy of the franchise record for most in a single game. Granted, it was against Luke Falk, but Sunday’s performance by the defense was a realization of what they were close to doing in weeks past.
However, the reason why the Eagles are ranked just outside of the top 5, and largely why their record is 3-2 and not better, is the lack of consistency by the offense. Against a below average Jets defense, the Eagles offense managed just two offensive touchdowns. Carson Wentz also had his second-consecutive game with less than 200 passing yards, though that can be more attributed to the Eagles pounding the run and getting up big early on.
The issue of consistency is one that’s followed the Eagles offense from last season and is something that has to be figured out. The team that is just two spots ahead of the Eagles — the Seahawks — are a great example of why it’s so odd that the offense is struggling. The Seahawks have a far weaker offensive line than the Eagles, and even with DeSean Jackson out, the Eagles have a better receiving corps than the Seahawks. Yet, the Seahawks are consistently putting up points thanks to Russell Wilson’s heroics.
If the Eagles hope to be a true contender, they must figure out how to be as effective as possible, and consistently, on offense. These next six games will be a true test of just how good the Eagles are.
The Eagles have a three-game road trip awaiting them; they will travel to Minnesota, then Dallas, and finally to Buffalo, before returning home to face Chicago, New England, and Seattle. All teams are above .500, and all have a defense that will truly test the capability of the Eagles offense. They may still be without Jackson for next week’s game at the minimum, which means it could be even more tough sledding.
To this point, there is plenty to be encouraged about from the Eagles’ play, but there are a few things to improve upon if they hope to truly become one of the elite teams in the league. The test of if they belong in that group will begin next Sunday in Minnesota.
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