Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
Week 9 was a week of extremes: games were either won by a single score or they were over by the third quarter. And after sifting through all the games, I have my picks for the best teams in the league for Week 10.
0. The Kansas City Chiefs
This column will always feature the Kansas City Chiefs at rank 0. The NFL is currently rigged for the Chiefs to win it all; as such, I refuse to have them take up a spot on the list of best teams in the league. They aren't one of the best teams in the league; they just get constantly bailed out by the refs — which was on full display at multiple points during their matchup against Tampa Bay. That is my stance unless, by some miracle, they don't win a Super Bowl, God help us all if they three-peat this year.
8. The Atlanta Falcons
Making their first appearance of the season on this list, the Falcons confuse me. I wrestled with whether they should be on this list because of how inconsistent they have been, but as of now it seems like they've settled into the top spot in their division. Granted, this is coming after a win where they looked dominant versus the Dallas Cowboys — but any team can look dominant against "America's Team." That said, they had a dominant October and it looks as though they will continue adding to their win column into the latter half of the season.
7. The Philadelphia Eagles
Another first appearance on the list, the Eagles have been quietly returning to their 2022 form after a weak finish to their season last year. This has largely been due to the offseason acquisition of Saquon Barkley, who became a free agent this spring when the Giants failed to extend him. All he's done so far in Philadelphia is reestablish a dominant run-game that has helped reinvigorate their offense. It remains to be seen if they can continue that kind of output against teams down the stretch, but as of now it looks like Saquon is going to run over every team standing in their way of a top spot in the playoffs.
6. The Minnesota Vikings
At this point, I don't know what Vikings team this current Vikings team reminds me of. The fact that they went from undefeated to two straight losses to barely holding off a floundering Colts team on “Sunday Night Football” has me all kinds of baffled. That said, it seems like they may or may not be back on track, especially if Sam Darnold is able to limit his turnovers in games going forward. I don't know where they belong anymore, so I'm keeping them at six until they figure out the rest of their season.
5. The Baltimore Ravens
Another team I still can't make any sense of: the Ravens might be back for real this time? They looked overwhelmingly dominant against the Denver Broncos, manhandling a consensus top-three defense and seemingly scoring at will. Their defense also stifled the Broncos' offense, holding them to 10 points. In a must-win game, the Ravens got the job done and are looking to carry that momentum into their Thursday night matchup against the Bengals. If they can secure a win against the Bengals heading into their bye week, I think they might just be back to dominating the league.
4. The Washington Commanders
The Commanders had another sloppy week, holding off the Giants to complete their season sweep of the team. While it felt like the game was slipping away from the Commanders, it also felt like they were in the driver's seat the whole time. That alone keeps me confident that this team is just getting back in the swing of things after Jayden Daniels rib injury. The team also just traded for defensive back Marshon Lattimore, signaling that the Commanders are going all in on winning it all this season after their red-hot start.
3. The Green Bay Packers
Many would argue the Packers are not the third-best team in the league. I would argue otherwise. While they are currently sitting at 6-3 and third in their division, their losses have been close against some of the best teams in the league. This includes a close game last week against the Lions, where the loss really came down to small mistakes and not the team falling flat as a whole. I'll be concerned if they lose to a worse opponent, but right now the Packers still look like one of the top teams in the league.
2. The Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills aren't heating up anymore — they're on fire. The Bills played a deceptively competitive Dolphins team and executed on all three sides. The defense held the Dolphins to 27 points, Josh Allen led drives and helped the offense execute in key situations, and Tyler Bass came in clutch, knocking a 61-yard field goal clean through the uprights to win the game. The Bills don't normally play so well in high-pressure situations, which gives me confidence that they are finally on track to break their playoff curse — and, if everything goes right, bring a title back to Buffalo.
1. The Detroit Lions
The Lions are a step above every other team in the league. They are playing dominantly on all sides of the ball and they show no signs of letting up. Jared Goff managed a 17-3 lead coming into the second half — thanks largely in part to a Kerby Joseph pick-six — and kept the Lions on track to win a tough away game against the Green Bay Packers. I'm waiting for another team to prove me wrong in saying this, but for the third week in a row, the Detroit Lions seem to be the best team in football.
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