Week 9 Power Rankings: the Top 9 from each conference

[gettlemanjack]

Seahawks blog:

-Denver looks like a runaway train in the AFC. ... it's possible that Emmanuel Sanders was the best free agent acquisition in the NFL this past offseason, at least on the offensive side of the ball

-Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles has his guys flying around, blitzing like crazy. The Cardinals have to be one of the toughest teams to game plan for because of their aggressive style. On offense, rookie John Brown (4.34 forty at combine) continues to be an explosive playmaker for Arizona. He caught a perfect 75-yard bomb from Carson Palmer late in the game to take the lead back from Philly for good. With a seemingly healthy Palmer throwing passes to Brown, Larry Fitzgerald (6-3/218) and the always dangerous Michael Floyd (6-3/225), and handing off to the explosive Andre Ellington , this is an underrated offense

[gettlemanjack]

AFC South could get interesting. Texans (4-4) are only 1 game back on the Colts (5-3), and the Texans get Jadeveon Clowney back soon

Arizona Republic:

"The Texans get the Browns, the Titans and the Jaguars twice left on their schedule, so if they take care of business and win one or two they shouldn't, they're playoff-bound."

Texans' remaining games

-Eagles (Eagles favored by 2)

(bye)

@Browns W

-Bengals

-Titans W

@Jags W

@Colts

-Ravens

-Jaguars W

Colts' remaining games

@Giants - MNF (Colts favored by 3)

(bye)

-Patriots - SNF

-Jags W

-Redskins W

@Browns W

-Texans

@Dallas

@Titans W

[gettlemanjack]

New York Post:

-Lions (6-2): Winning without Calvin Johnson and Reggie Bush shows this team is capable of big things this season.

-Cardinals (6-1): No more doubting this team now, because it’s legit.

-Patriots back in that ruthless mode... New England has been on a rampage, reeling off four consecutive wins by an average of 18 points...and averaging 39.5 points in their four consecutive victories

[gettlemanjack]

Peter King:

No one in the NFC South is over .500. No one in the AFC North is under .500.

Mile High Report:

the AFC North is wide open halfway through the season. And by wide I mean, any of the teams in this division could win it. ... the entire AFC North is in the playoff hunt halfway through the season.

Arizona Republic:

The AFC North is up for grabs and just about anybody is capable of winning the division – even the Browns

Newsday:

Browns need just seven games to equal last year’s win total. They’re right in the thick of a rare four-game race in the AFC North.

Tampa Tribune:

Cleveland - They’re 3-1 at home, with the Bucs coming to town.

Business Insider:

We're getting very close to Josh Gordon's return, and the Browns are still hanging around the playoff picture.

Detroit News:

The Bengals got a critical win over the Ravens and stayed atop the division. Andy Dalton scored the winning touchdown — his second rushing score — in the final minute

Tampa Tribune:

Cincinnati - Boy, did they need that one.

Newsday:

The Bengals got a potentially season-saving win at home against the Ravens, as Cincy breaks a three-game winless streak and hangs in for the divisional lead.

[gettlemanjack]

Detroit News:

Bills (5-3): They cruised to a 43-23 victory over the Jets, staying squarely in position for a playoff spot.

Washington Post:

The Bills aren’t going away. They’re hanging in there as they try to reach the playoffs for the first time since the 1999 season and end the league’s longest postseason drought. They enter their bye week having won two straight and three of four games, and they’re only a game in back of the first-place Patriots in the AFC East.

Tampa Tribune:

Buffalo - Already 3-0 against NFC opponents

Mile High Report:

Kyle Orton and the Buffalo Bills might just win 10 games this year.

[gettlemanjack]

Mile High Report:

The New York Jets are probably the worst team in football right now. At least the Oakland Raiders have a promising young quarterback to give them hope for the future.

New Orleans Times Picayune:

Michael Vick getting another opportunity to show he's done.

Yahoo Sports:

I can't even imagine what would happen if the Jets drafted Jameis Winston next year.

[gettlemanjack]

Sports Illustrated:

The Vikings are starting a rookie quarterback, rookie running back and won Sunday's game (vs the Bucs) when their rookie linebacker scored a touchdown. Things are about as promising as they can be for a 3-5 team

Newsday:

(rookie) Teddy Bridgewater puts the game into OT with a late drive, and (rookie) Anthony Barr seals the win over the Bucs with a fumble return in OT

Washington Post:

It was quite a day Sunday for the Vikings’ 2014 first-round draft picks, LB Anthony Barr and QB Teddy Bridgewater. Bridgewater threw for 241 yards and a TD against the Buccaneers, and Barr won the game with a TD in OT on a return of a fumble recovery. That makes an entire organization look good.

Newsday:

Lovie Smith’s nightmare lives on

Tampa Tribune:

Tampa Bay - Making it hard on their loyal fans.

Business Insider:

The Bucs are still 2.5 games out of a playoff spot!

[gettlemanjack]

Detroit News:

Bears (3-5): They've lost four of five and are on the verge of imploding after a 2-1 start. The bye this week is well timed, but they'll be at Green Bay after that, with the Lions awaiting two weeks later. They'll need a huge rally to try to contend.

Washington Post:

Things seem to be unraveling rather quickly now for Chicago. The Bears have a bye week to try to regroup. But is it too late?

Peter King:

The Bears are going up in flames, and it’ll be interesting to see how mild-mannered Marc Trestman handles the current crisis.

Newsday:

Losers of four of their last five, Bears hit the bye week in disarray. Leadership questions. Jay Cutler questions. Doubts on defense. Nice way to start Year 1 of Cutler’s $126 million contract.

[gettlemanjack]

Newsday:

The Lions have their answer in first-year head coach Jim Caldwell.

Washington Post:

The Lions relatively quietly have positioned themselves as a serious NFC contender.

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Washington Post:

No one in the league should be intimidated by the Seahawks at the moment

Mile High Report:

Seahawks: teams are now exploiting their weaknesses like there is no tomorrow.

[gettlemanjack]

Tampa Tribune:

Arizona - That’s no desert mirage Bruce Arians has artfully crafted in Glendale.

Business Insider:

Cardinals rookie WR John Brown (picked 91st overall) looks like the steal of the NFL Draft.

[gettlemanjack]

Newsday:

Chiefs quietly on a roll here, winning four of their last five and looking like another wildcard playoff berth is in range.

Mile High Report:

Look out San Diego, the Kansas City Chiefs are playing like the Chiefs that started the season 9-0 in 2013.

New York Daily News:

Chiefs are running it better than anyone in AFC right now (Chiefs have #1 rushing offense in the AFC, #3 in NFL behind Cowboys and Seahawks)

[gettlemanjack]

Mile High Report:

The Broncos are now 5-1 against playoff and/or 10-win teams from a year ago.

Mile High Report:

The New England Patriots now have a chance to actually take control of their own destiny in the AFC (homefield advantage in playoffs) by bringing down Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos at home. Home is a place they never seem to lose too.

Peter King:

Tom Brady and Peyton Manning have been near-mirror images over the past month. Check it out:

Player Age W-L Comp-Att. (Pct.) Yds TD Int Rating

T. Brady 37 4-0 100-134 (.746) 1,268 14 0 138.5

Manning 38 4-0 100-141 (.709) 1,320 14 2 127.4

It wouldn’t be Brady-Manning if there wasn’t something particularly eerie about it: Each has 100 completions over the past four games, each has four wins, each has 14 touchdown passes, each is over 70 percent completions, each is over a 125 composite rating.