Hi everyone, I hope that everyone had a great weekend. The leaves are changing, the moon is full and the energy is wild right now. We are starting to see some serious separation in the NFC. While in the AFC it is absolute chaos after the Titans upset the Bills last night. We have a little bit of a shake up at the top. Check out the rest of the rankings below.
32. Lions 0-6 (Drew Rating: -17.44 Projected Record 1-5) LW: 31
The Lions got thumped for really the first time this season. It was a miserable day for the hometown kitties as the Lions did not even score until the 4th Quarter of a 34-11 loss. We look ahead to the Lions schedule to see where there is even a potential win on their schedule. They have two potentially winnable games against the Eagles and the Steelers (yes they are not world beaters). Dan Campbell is biting and clawing but the Mo Town Cats are just flat out undermanned.
31. Dolphins 1-5 (Drew Rating: -24.8 Projected Record 1-5) LW: 30
The Phins are one of the worst teams in football by even metric you look at. This was doubly true after they were outplayed throughout against the Jags in a 23-20 loss in London. The Dolphins would go for it on 4th and 1 at their own 46 in a tied game and Malcolm Brown would be stuffed short. I do not disagree with Brian Flores decision to go for it but asking a poor offensive line to get a push on a 4th and 1 that you are obviously running the ball was a big ask. Many of us thought the swimming mammals would be a playoff contender this year, but that is certainly not the case in South Beach. Will be a season of seeing if Tua is the guy.
30. Jaguars 1-5 (Drew Rating: -19.94 Projected Record 1-5) LW: 32
Congrats to Trevor Lawrence for getting his first NFL Win. You can tell he is getting more comfortable week by week and he is going to be a good one really soon. The Jags in a bad division could still win about 5 games this year but the bigger question to many is if Urban Meyer is the guy to lead them to a promising future. Many pundits around football still believe that Urban Meyer is going to take the USC job in the offseason. This certainly may come true if he gets the boot at season’s end, everything in on the table in Duvall County.
29. Texans 1-5 (Drew Rating: -17.95 Projected Record 1-5) LW: 28
I cannot believe that I am rating three teams ahead of the Texans but the Metrics don’t lie. The Texans are a terrible team, however they blew out the Jags head to head and have played three other competitive games thus far. It is fair to say however that Davis Mills is not the long term answer at Quarterback. Against the three solid to good defenses he has gone against the Texans have scored 12 points combined. This is almost impossible to accomplish in the offensive happy NFL that we live in today.
28. Jets 1-4 (Drew Rating: -13.47 Projected Record 1-4) LW: 29
Horray to the Jets who had a bye and so decided to bump them up in the rankings because the Texans are certainly worse. The Jets being the 5th worst team in football currently is like being the winner of a pooper scooper contest. In other words it is not much of a badge of honor. The Jets travel to Foxboro to try to get revenge on a Pats team that embarrassed Zach Wilson in Week 2. Zach Wilson’s development is the biggest takeaway from this season, potential is there but has to improve his accuracy.
27. Giants 1-5 (Drew Rating: -12.79 Projected Record 1-5) LW: 27
Well that was bad!! The biggest concern from the Giants 38-11 dud against the Rams in New Jersey was Daniel Jones regressing to the staring down his receivers not acknowledging the pass rush Daniel Jones we saw in the first two seasons of his career. A bigger concern to me thus far has been how downright bad the Giants defense has been so far. They are giving up over 6 yards a play after being one of the more stingy defenses in 2020.
26. WFT 2-4 (Drew Rating: -19.14 Projected Record 1-5) LW: 24
Washington had a golden opportunity to blow out the Chiefs in the first half of Sunday’s game after the Chiefs were playing the same sloppy football they have been playing all season. However, the Football’s were only up by three at the half and the Chiefs for the first time all season looked like the team we all thought they would be in running away in a 31-13 victory. Taylor Heinicke did not look so much like a baller in this game. Now the WFT gets to travel to Green Bay against a red hot Packers team. This season is slipping away from the defending NFC East Champs very quickly.
25. Falcons 2-3 (Drew Rating: -13.01 Projected Record 1-4) LW: 25
The Falcons stay put after they completed their week of rest. What does a Falcons player do on their bye week. Do they play Madden 04 and use Michael Vick (who was super human in this game). Do they sob watching game tape of all of the games that they have blown over the past five years. Do they reminisce about the days that M.C Hammer and Lisa Left Eye Lopez would hang out on the sidelines. We are pulling straws here folks, the 2021 Falcons have been a very boring team thus far.
24. Patriots 2-4 (Drew Rating: -2.52 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 22
The Pats have been in the vast majority of these games but the fact of the matter is that they are 2-4 and even worse off 0-4 at home this season. The Pats are not out of the hunt quite yet as nobody in the AFC has separated themselves from anyone thus far. But outside of one big play to Kendrick Bourne late in Sunday’s game the Pats have not been able to create many (if any) big plays so far this season. It is tough to win in the NFL when you have to go on 12 play drives all the time, must win against the Jets this week to linger around the AFC Wildcard hunt.
23. 49ers 2-3 (Drew Rating: -1.12 Projected Record 2-3) LW: 18
It is tough to drop the 49ers 5 spots after not even playing but the 49ers have not been overly impressive this season. Here is their slate, almost blew a game against the Lions, narrowly beat the Eagles, came back but still lost at the horn against the Packers, got outplayed and lost to Seahawks, played a hard fought game but still lost to the Cards. The 49ers are not a bad football team by any means and could still compete for the 6th or 7th seed, but as of today they are closer to the bottom of the rankings then the top.
22. Eagles 2-4 (Drew Rating: 0.29 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 19
The Eagles have been a surprisingly competent team so far this season. Even in a game that they were completely the inferior football team they came back and made the Bucs have to sweat some on Thursday night. The defense has been very stingy giving up only 5.3 yards per play but the offense behind Jalen Hurts has been rather hit or miss. Plus the Eagles traded away Zach Ertz which may be a sell move by a team that may see 2021 as a year that they are not going to contend for a playoff berth.
21. Seahawks 2-4 (Drew Rating: 0.86 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 20
The Hawks fought hard in coming back to force overtime in Pittsburgh on Sunday night but two things held true in that game in the city of Steel. 1. Geno Smith is not Russell Wilson, Geno had two chances to win the game in Overtime and got shut down by T.J Watt on both occasions. 2. The defense is not very good and was masked more by an incompetent Steelers offense then an improved unit all of a sudden. They have to bail water until Russell Wilson gets back, a very testy time of the season in the Emerald City.
20. Colts 2-4 (Drew Rating: 4.33 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 26
The Colts are a better football team than the record shows and the metrics prove that. Carson Wentz has been revived over the past three weeks and with a favorable schedule moving forward the Sunday night game in San Francisco is easily the biggest game of the Season for team Horseshoe. The Colts look like they could be the good bad team in 2021 where they smoke the bad teams and lose to the good teams, we are still undecided about San Francisco which is why the Sunday night game is downright fascinating.
19. Bears 3-3 (Drew Rating: -10.45 Projected Record 2-4) LW: 17
The Bears had a deflating loss against the Packers on Sunday in which the clinching touchdown Aaron Rodgers scored resulted in him pointing to a bird waving woman and said I STILL OWN YOU!!! The Bears are 5-22 against Aaron Rodgers so that statement is quite accurate. Aaron Rodgers has owned the NFC North for over 10 years now but Justin Fields has the ability to potentially become the future king of that division. The Question is can he improve his pocket presence and ability to read a defense, and who is his head coach going to be moving forward. The 3-3 record is very smoke and mirrors as the metrics would suggest.
18. Steelers 3-3 (Drew Rating: -4.59 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 23
I moved the Steelers up into the teens out of respect but this team is a shell of the team that began 11-0 last season. The defense overall has been okay, the offense has been terrible. The Steelers needed some late game big plays on defense to preserve narrow victories over the mediocre Broncos and the Russell Wilsonless Seahawks over the past two weeks. Even Steelers fans are wanting to dumb ketchup all over their hopes of a special season. For now though we will have to respect the pedigree of Mike Tomlin and think the Burgh will be at least competent in 2021.
17. Broncos 3-3 (Drew Rating: -2.52 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 14
What in the heck happened to the Donkeys defense last week. They gave up 7 plays of over 25 yards in a game that it looked the Broncos had just lost their tenured head coach suddenly. The biggest Question for the Broncos nation is if head coach Vic Fangio is about to coach his last game in Cleveland this Thursday. If the Broncos get boat raced by a banged up Browns team I must say that the former Bears Defensive Coordinator will probably be handed his pink slip postgame, trying times in the Mile High City.
16. Browns 3-3 (Drew Rating: 1.32 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 9
I know this is a steep drop but the Brownies are now out both top running backs, both tackles, four of their defensive starters and Quarterback Baker Mayfield’s left shoulder is in a sling (even though he states he will play on Thursday). It is tough even for a roster as good as Cleveland has to be without this much of their starting talent. A win on Thursday night against an equally reeling Broncos team would go a long way in reviving a season that is wouldn’t be on life support yet but is tittering towards not being the banner year than many pundits were clamoring for the team by the lake to have in 2021.
15. Panthers 3-3 (Drew Rating: 1.33 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 12
The 3-0 start has rapidly vanquished into a .500 record and the September darlings from the south is now appearing to be a potentially below average team. The biggest concern for everyone on Sunday was that Sam Darnold had his second straight game of looking like the Jets Sam Darnold. He was staring down receivers, forcing throws and just being flat out reckless is the football. The defense even had a rough game giving up 571 yards of offense to the Vikings and not being able to get off the field on critical downs (something the Panthers had been fantastic defensively early in the year).
14. Vikings 3-3 (Drew Rating: 5.85 Projected Record 4-2) LW: 21
The Vikes got the biggest jump in the Rankings this week. Does this mean I am taking the Vikings seriously? Of course I am not, they still make too many critical mistakes on both sides of the ball. However, the Vikings do have two things that should serve them well throughout the year. They have big play receivers (Jefferson, Thielen), a great running back (Cook when healthy) and an elite pass rush (tied for 1st in league with 21 sacks), I still say to trust them at your own risk.
13. Chiefs 3-3 (Drew Rating: -0.02 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 17
The second half of Sunday’s game against Washington could be the catalyst the Iron Chefs needed to get back into the ranks of the leagues best. These rankings however is not what you have done before but what have you been this season thus far. The two time AFC Champs at #13 on the Power Rankings is a very fair position for the Chiefs to be. They have a 60 down third down rate (which is insane) which shows just how great Reid and Mahomes are in critical downs. However, they still lost the turnover battle and the Patrick Mahomes interception before halftime could have been the dagger against a better team, potential is here if the defense plays as it did on Sunday.
12. Titans 4-2 (Drew Rating: -4.22 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 13
Huge win for the Titans on Monday night as they held their two game lead over the Colts in the division. They are 4-2 with a victory over the Bills but 2 things still hold true for the Titans. 1. They lost to the Jets and got legitimately outplayed in that game. 2. Outside of last night the Titans have been extremely underwhelming thus far. Derrick Henry is an absolute beast and has a legitimate chance with the extra game to break Eric Dickerson’s all time rushing mark.
11. Chargers 4-2 (Drew Rating: 0.61 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 7
Two big problems with the Chargers so far this season. 1. They cannot stop the run. They have the worst run defense in football and in every game so far this season the Bolts have been run on like a treadmill. 2. They cannot run the ball. Austin Ekeler had a fantastic game two weeks ago against the Raiders but on Sunday in Baltimore the Bolts abandoned the run far too early in the game. Sunday was just a flat out humbling performance for L.A. This is a good but not great football team.
10. Bengals 4-2 (Drew Rating: 8.22 Projected Record 4-2) LW: 11
The Bengals are now in the Top 10 of the Power Rankings and they deserve to be here. They have been outstanding on defense (allowing 5.2 yards per play) and have a big game offense with the trio of Ja’Marr Chase, Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins. The Bengals have an absolute monster game against the Ravens this week. The question many have is the Ravens defense the unit we saw against the Chargers, or the unit we’ve seen most of the season. All I can say is that this is the biggest Ravens-Bengals game since 2014.
9. Raiders 4-2 (Drew Rating: 8.34 Projected Record 4-2) LW: 15
Welp that was unexpected. What if Jon Gruden was just an average coach and he wasn’t the big difference maker we all thought he was. Derek Carr had maybe his best game of the season in a season he’s been dazzling in (at least in the Raiders win). Henry Ruggs is a massive deep threat and Daren Waller is the second best pure receiving tight end in football. It could just be that the Raiders were in Zombie mode against the Bears after the Jon Gruden distraction and the Raiders are still a good football team, the evidence suggest they are, could be 6-2 at the midway point.
8. Saints 3-2 (Drew Rating: 13.03 Projected Record 4-1) LW: 10
The Saints if you go by the Drew Rating are a good football team in 2021. They have a solid defense and have played well in all but one half of a game against the Giants. The offense however has been underwhelming thus far. As I’ve stated Jameis Winston has been very solid with ball security (only three interceptions so far this season). Maybe Sean Payton does know what he’s doing??
7. Packers 5-1 (Drew Rating: 3.95 Projected Record 3-3) LW: 6
The metrics show that the Packers have not been a very good football team in 2021. The on the field product shows the same, after a 38-3 beatdown by the Saints in Week 1 the Packers beat the Lions after trailing at the half, beat the 49ers on a 51 yarder at the horn, beat the Steelers but was underwhelming, beat the Bengals in a game that just had another missed field goal and then beat the Bears rather underwhelmingly. Outside of the Bengals that is not a great group of teams the Pack are skirting by against, that being said Aaron Rodgers DOES OWN THE BEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
6. Ravens 5-1 (Drew Rating: 9.20 Projected Record 4-2) LW: 8
Well that was unexpected, the Ravens destroyed the Chargers 34-6 in a game that the Ravens defense dominated. Lamar Jackson did not even have a great game overall but the Ravens shut down the Chargers on three key fourth downs and showed why always going for it can backfire when it doesn’t work. With all of the injuries this team has endured thus far I think John Harbaugh deserves some serious consideration for coach of the year.
5. Bills 4-2 (Drew Rating: 32.56 Projected Record 6-0) LW: 1
The Bills rating is still absurd as their point differential, yards per play discrepancy, turnover differential, and third down percentage differentials are still the best in football. But this is a results driven league and the Bills have lost two games and the teams ahead of them have not lost two games. Josh Allen looked fantastic last night and over the past two weeks have turned into the unstoppable force he looked was at the end of last season. The Bills are going to be fine.
4. Rams 5-1 (Drew Rating: 13.34 Projected Record 5-1) LW: 5
The Rams did what a good team is supposed to do to a bad team. Jumped on them in the second quarter and never let them even sniff making the game competitive. The Rams are just a big play offense (averaging 6.7 yards a play). You can tell the difference between Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff by the teams performance this year. Stafford still misses a lot of throws but man he has a cannon, the Rams are going to win a lot of games.
3. Bucs 5-1 (Drew Rating: 13.82 Projected Record 5-1) LW: 4
Tom Brady said he could play until he’s in his 50’s. Well having the 2nd highest Quarterback rating while under pressure so far this season proves to me that his weakness is now a strength. He keeps himself in great shape. He still throws a great deep ball. He never takes a big hit. Plus the Bucs are in a position to contend for the next few years. I think it would be insane but I’m not putting it past Tommy boy to play another five years, I can’t.
2. Cowboys 5-1 (Drew Rating: 16.67 Projected Record 5-1) LW: 3
The Cowboys had 567 yards of offense on Sunday and it still seemed like they left a ton of plays of the field. This offense is so dynamic with Ceedee Lamb, Amari Cooper and a revamped Ezekiel Elliott. Travon Diggs is going for an NFL Record 7th game in a row with an interception. The Cowboys only have one issue, they have a coach that does not know the concept of clock management, things are almost perfect in the big D.
1.Cardinals 6-0 (Drew Rating: 21.28 Projected Record 6-0) LW: 2
They won at Tennessee by 25, at Los Angeles (Rams) by 17, and now at Cleveland by 23. The defense is in the top 10 in every meaningful stat. Kyler Murray threw four more touchdowns on Sunday. The Cards beat the Browns by 23 in a game that the Browns got a hailmary touchdown at the end of the first half and a game that the Cards did not have their head coach. Congrats AZ, you have made it to the mountain top.