After several consecutive weeks with the LA Rams as the unanimous #1 team in the league through the first half of the season, things changed down in New Orleans this week as the Saints outlasted the Rams in thrilling fashion, 45-35. The Saints' offense, who boast (arguably) the NFL's best triplets in 2018 with Drew Brees, Alvin Kamara, and Michael Thomas, are second in the league in scoring and have now won seven straight games on their way to the top of this week’s Power Rankings. Take a look at this week’s other big risers and fallers as well as the full consensus rankings for Week 10 according to the Blitz team.
Risers:
Houston Texans
Week 10 Ranking: 9 (+3)
You might have done a double-take when you looked at the standings Monday morning and saw the Texans in first place of the AFC South with a 6-3 record. Weren’t they just 0-3 and getting ready to run Bill O’Brien out of town? Winners of six straight after escaping Denver with a narrow win after a missed Brandon McManus FG attempt, Houston is quietly turning into a playoff contender with the resurgence of their leaders on each side of the ball; Deshaun Watson and JJ Watt.
Chicago Bears
Week 10 Ranking: 10 (+4)
Yes, they only beat the Bills. Yes, Nathan Peterman was playing quarterback for the Bills. However, it was still a blowout road win thanks to a dominant defensive performance that came without Khalil Mack. Now Chicago finds themselves at 5-3 and tied for the division lead.
Atlanta Falcons
Week 10 Ranking: 17 (+4)
Don’t look now, but the Falcons have won three straight games and are back at the .500 mark halfway through the year. Sunday’s impressive 38-14 win at Washington could prove to be huge down the stretch, depending on how the NFC Wild Card picture looks in a few weeks. Oh, and Julio Jones finally has a touchdown in 2018 (fantasy owners rejoice)!
Fallers:
Washington Redskins
Week 10 Ranking: 13 (-4)
Penalties and injuries hurt the Redskins for much of the game against Atlanta, who ended Washington’s brief winning streak and dropped them to 5-3 on the year. Brandon Scherff, Shawn Lauvao, and Paul Richardson all suffered season-ending injuries and Trent Williams is expected to miss 2-3 more games after thumb surgery. Is this a one-game hiccup or the start of a free fall for Jay Gruden’s team?
Baltimore Ravens
Week 10 Ranking: 15 (-5)
Losing to the rival Steelers at home is tough, and when it’s a third straight loss and it drops you to below .500, that’s just brutal. One silver lining may be that those three losses have come to teams with a combined 18-5-1 record (Saints, Panthers, and Steelers). John Harbaugh’s seat is starting to heat up as the defense and Joe Flacco have cooled off.
Dallas Cowboys
Week 10 Ranking: 21 (-3)
The hot seat just got a lot hotter for Jason Garrett and Co. following a sloppy performance out of the bye week, suffering their first home loss of the season in a 28-14 defeat against the Titans on Monday Night Football. Newly acquired receiver Amari Cooper made his mark in his Cowboys debut (5 rec, 58 yds, 1 TD), but the overall results of the offense were much of the same. At 3-5, they have dug themselves into quite a hole to not only save the season, but also the head coach’s job.
One last special shoutout to the Oakland Raiders, who land in the basement for the first time this season after the ugly blowout loss to Nick Mullens and the 49ers on Thursday Night Football.
Full Rankings
1 New Orleans Saints
2 Los Angeles Rams
3 Kansas City Chiefs
4 New England Patriots
5 Los Angeles Chargers
6 Carolina Panthers
7 Pittsburgh Steelers
8 Minnesota Vikings
9 Houston Texans
10 Chicago Bears
11 Philadelphia Eagles
12 Washington Redskins
13 Cincinnati Bengals
14 Green Bay Packers
15 Seattle Seahawks
15 Atlanta Falcons
17 Baltimore Ravens
18 Miami Dolphins
19 Jacksonville Jaguars
20 Tennessee Titans
21 Dallas Cowboys
21 Indianapolis Colts
23 Detroit Lions
24 Denver Broncos
25 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
26 Cleveland Browns
27 New York Jets
28 San Francisco 49ers
29 Arizona Cardinals
30 New York Giants
31 Buffalo Bills
32 Oakland Raiders
Written By: Greg Lehr
Rankings: Blitz Team