We have a fresh top five in this week’s power rankings after the Cardinals and Bucs lost this past week. See who takes the top spots and where your team ranks.
LOS ANGELES — We had quite the shakeup in our top 10 NFL Power Rankings coming into Week 9, following a Week 8 that saw our No. 1 and No. 2 teams both lose this past week.
The Cardinals were narrowly defeated by the Packers while the Bucs lost to the Saints on Sunday.
With those teams ranked No. 1 and No. 2 and the teams behind them winning their games (Rams, Bills, Cowboys, Packers), there was a big shake up in the rankings.
This year, the Locked On Podcast Network and TEGNA sports departments have teamed up to vote weekly to rank all 32 NFL teams in our Locked On/TEGNA NFL Power Rankings.
Our local Locked On NFL hosts and TEGNA sports journalists ranked their 1-32 power rankings and the voting averages created the official power rankings.
As a voter, and the person who curates the votes, it was a struggle to place the top six teams this week. Do the Cardinals deserve to drop heavily out of the No. 1 spot after a three-point loss to a top-5 team that came down to the final play?
But, how do you fairly vote in the teams right behind them that were able to get it done in Week 8, including the Packers who defeated them without Davante Adams or Allen Lazard and the Cowboys who defeated a decent Vikings team on the road with a backup quarterback?
The top six teams are all very close. Four of the top six this week earned first-place votes and all six earned second and third place votes, so it was very scattered this week.
With all of that said, let’s get on to the rankings.
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1. Los Angeles Rams
Ranking last week: 3
Last week result: 38-22 win over Texans
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 1/6
The Los Angeles Rams move up to the No. 1 spot for the second time this season after they jumped the Cardinals and Bucs who just lost this past week. The Rams definitely look like they belong in the title conversation. They’ll finally have a tough matchup again Sunday against the Titans.
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2. Green Bay Packers
Ranking last week: 5
Last week result: 24-21 win over Cardinals
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 1/6
It’s wild what Aaron Rodgers is doing for Green Bay right now. They’re now 7-1 with six-straight wins after they were dominated by the Saints in Week 1. They fell to 13th in our Power Rankings after Week 1, now they’re all the way up to 2.
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3. Buffalo Bills
Ranking last week: 4
Last week result: 26-11 win over Dolphins
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 1/7
The Buffalo Bills beat up on another bad team and showed their strength. They jump up from four to three, jumping Tampa and Arizona and then holding off the Cowboys.
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4. Dallas Cowboys
Ranking last week: 6
Last week result: 20-16 win over Vikings
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 1/11
The Dallas Cowboys, led by backup QB Cooper Rush were able to go into Minnesota and defeat the Vikings in primetime to move to 6-1 on the year. This team is for real and Dak Prescott should be back next week.
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5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Ranking last week: 2
Last week result: 36-27 loss to Saints
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 2/7
The Tampa Bay Bucs fall three spots to No. 5 after they fell to the Saints on the road on Sunday. Tampa is now 6-2 on the year. They did land surprisingly above Arizona, who was ranked ahead of them last week and maybe had a “better” loss. But, the voting was very tight between those teams.
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6. Arizona Cardinals
Ranking last week: 1
Last week result: 24-21 loss to Packers
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 2/12
The Arizona Cardinals fall five spots after a three-point loss to the 7-1 Green Bay Packers. Arizona had a chance to win the game at the end but threw an end zone interception. Voters are making them pay for it. But, as stated earlier, this is a very tight group here from three through six with only a couple of votes swaying teams in and out of spots.
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7. Baltimore Ravens
Ranking last week: 7
Last week result: BYE
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 5/10
The Baltimore Ravens were on bye this week and remain No. 7.
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8. Tennessee Titans
Ranking last week: 8
Last week result: 34-31 win over Colts
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 5/14
The Tennessee Titans picked up another huge win, this time in overtime on the road in Philadelphia. But, they lost their best player Derrick Henry for maybe 6-10 weeks or more in the process. Can the 6-2 Titans sustain their success without Henry, an MVP candidate at the time of his injury?
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9. Las Vegas Raiders
Ranking last week: 11
Last week result: BYE
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 6/14
The Raiders were on bye this week but they actually get a two-spot boost with the Chargers and Bengals ahead of them losing this week. However, news out of Las Vegas early Tuesday morning that Henry Ruggs III was involved in a DUI crash that killed someone. He is facing charges and will likely be away from the team. He’s their top receiver this year and it’s more major adversity for the team after Jon Gruden’s sudden resignation just weeks ago.
This obviously goes far beyond football with the loss of life in the crash and our thoughts here at Locked On Podcast Network are with the victim’s loved ones.
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10. New Orleans Saints
Ranking last week: 14
Last week result: 36-27 win over Bucs
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 9/14
How about the New Orleans Saints? Now 5-2 on the year after defeating Tom Brady and the Bucs, mostly using third-string quarterback Trevor Siemian after Jameis Winston’s injury. Taysom Hill should return this week after being in concussion protocol. Can they keep it up without Jameis?
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11. Los Angeles Chargers
Ranking last week: 9
Last week result: 27-24 loss to Patriots
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 8/15
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12. Cincinnati Bengals
Ranking last week: 10
Last week result: 34-31 loss to Jets
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 10/17
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13. Pittsburgh Steelers
Ranking last week: 15
Last week result: 15-10 win over Browns
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 9/18
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14. Kansas City Chiefs
Ranking last week: 13
Last week result: 20-17 win over Giants
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 10/16
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15. Cleveland Browns
Ranking last week: 12
Last week result: 15-10 loss to Steelers
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 10/18
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16. New England Patriots
Ranking last week: 17
Last week result: 27-24 win over Chargers
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 11/19
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17. Seattle Seahawks
Ranking last week: 20
Last week result: 31-7 win over Jaguars
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 14/22
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18. Indianapolis Colts
Ranking last week: 18
Last week result: 34-31 loss to Titans
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 13/24
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19. San Francisco 49ers
Ranking last week: 19
Last week result: 33-22 win over Bears
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 15/26
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20. Minnesota Vikings
Ranking last week: 16
Last week result: 20-16 loss to Cowboys
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 15/24
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21. Denver Broncos
Ranking last week: 21
Last week result: 17-10 win over WFT
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 18/27
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22. Carolina Panthers
Ranking last week: 22
Last week result: 19-13 win over Falcons
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 15/27
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23. Philadelphia Eagles
Ranking last week: 23
Last week result: 44-6 win over Lions
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 17/26
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24. Atlanta Falcons
Ranking last week: 24
Last week result: 19-13 loss to Panthers
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 21/26
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25. Washington Football Team
Ranking last week: 25
Last week result: 17-10 loss to Broncos
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 22/27
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26. Chicago Bears
Ranking last week: 26
Last week result: 33-22 loss to 49ers
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 22/28
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27. New York Giants
Ranking last week: 27
Last week result: 20-17 loss to Chiefs
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 24/29
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28. New York Jets
Ranking last week: 31
Last week result: 34-31 win over Bengals
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 24/30
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29. Jacksonville Jaguars
Ranking last week: 28
Last week result: 31-7 loss to Seahawks
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 24/30
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30. Miami Dolphins
Ranking last week: 29
Last week result: 26-11 loss to Bills
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 24/30
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31. Detroit Lions
Ranking last week: 30
Last week result: 44-6 loss to Eagles
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 27/32
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32. Houston Texans
Ranking last week: 32
Last week result: 38-22 loss to Rams
Highest/lowest vote in power rankings poll: 30/32
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