Raiders impress to climb in Week 6 power rankings

The NFL has almost closed out Week 5. Normally, Tuesday would mark the turn to the next week, but this week is a little different. Covid-19 resulted in Bills-Titans being moved from Sunday to Tuesday.

That being said, Tuesday is power rankings day! I opened the season with power rankings that used Super Bowl odds and strength of schedule. I moved into a more subjective look a week later, and are continue on with some gut feelings. I’ve kept the Titans and Bills where they were at last week, and will update them following Tuesday’s game.

Each week we take a look at best performers, sleepers, and where we have more questions than answers. It’s specific to this week as opposed to how they’ve done prior, so some weeks the best teams to date will not be showing up in best performers.

Best performers, Week 5

How about the Raiders??? They took a punch in the mouth early from the Chiefs, but responded in a big way. The two teams went back and forth in the second quarter and after a scoreless third, Las Vegas exploded for 17 unanswered points. The game turned into a shootout and I really didn’t expect Derek Carr to be able to hang with Patrick Mahomes. Las Vegas got a huge road win against the big bully of the AFC West.

Meanwhile, the Browns keep on rolling, winning their fourth straight to improve to 4-1. Philip Rivers is looking more and more washed as the season goes on, but props to the Browns for handling their business at critical times. I’m still not 100 percent sold on the Browns, but four straight wins, including wins over Indy and Dallas indicate this is a pretty solid team.

Sleeper teams, Week 5

The Chargers one of the more fun teams in the league. They dropped to 1-3 with a heart-breaking loss to the Saints, but Justin Herbert remains incredibly impressive in his rookie season. LA will remain inconsistent for significant stretches, but if they can get healthy, they turn into a really interesting team.

The Dolphins crushed the 49ers and Ryan Fitzpatrick had another great performance. They’re clearly better than last year, but considering the 49ers might not be a good team this year, Miami has to show us a little bit more. We’ll get a lot more answers coming out of the bye when they host the Rams, travel to Arizona, and host an improving Chargers squad.

More questions than answers, Week 5

Dallas got a big win late to move into first place in the NFC East, but losing Dak Prescott for the season leaves them with the biggest question in the league coming out of Week 5. They take a big step back, but their division is awful

And with that, here’s a look at my power rankings as we head into Week 6.