Dallas Cowboys: Pre-Halloween NFL Power Rankings

The great unknowns

14. New Orleans Saints (4-2)
13. Kansas City Chiefs (3-4)

New Orleans has been operating all of 2021 with essentially one hand tied behind their backs. As they get healthier, they could make a huge run but there will always be a major question with their quarterback until Jameis Winston proves people wrong. Kansas City, on the other hand, is struggling with their confidence as teams are forcing them to play without the big play. Still, their four losses are all to teams in the top 12 of the league. They remain a team to be feared.

Playoff pretenders

12. Las Vegas Raiders (5-2)
11. Cincinnati Bengals (5-2)

Both of these teams seem destined to be good regular season teams that will very likely be first-round exits when the playoffs roll around.

Dangerous teams… with one huge flaw

10. Cleveland Browns (4-3)
9. Baltimore Ravens (5-2)
8. Los Angeles Chargers (4-2)
7. Green Bay Packers (6-1)

The Browns’ near future will depend on the play they get from quarterback Baker Mayfield who is playing with a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder. The only thing that Baltimore can rely on is their quarterback and their kicker, while the Chargers desperately need their defense to play much better. As for the Packers, we will find out a lot about their defense in the coming weeks against Arizona, Kansas City, and the Rams.

The elite

6. Dallas Cowboys (5-1)
5. Buffalo Bills (4-2)
4. Tennessee Titans (5-2)
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-1)
2. Los Angeles Rams (6-1)
1. Arizona Cardinals (7-0)

All of these teams have consistently been the most impressive so far this season. Dallas is a field goal away from being undefeated. The Bills have the second-highest scoring offense to go with the second-best scoring defense.

Tennessee has back-to-back wins over the Bills and Chiefs with their only loss to Arizona. The Bucs’ only loss was to the Rams whose only loss was to Arizona. Lastly, Arizona is the lone undefeated team possessing a top four offense and the league’s best scoring defense.

The next power rankings will be unveiled prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. A lot could change by then, but I feel confident in saying that the top 14 teams should all remain in the upper echelon of the league. Only time will tell, however.