Last week's ranking in parentheses.
1. Patriots 5-1 (1). Juicy mid-October showdown with the Steelers this week isn't as intriguing with Big Ben on the mend after knee surgery.
2. Vikings 5-0 (2). Sam Bradford returns to Philadelphia to face the team that traded him just before the season, with the Vikings looking to remain undefeated atop the NFC.
3. Seahawks 4-1 (6). Richard Sherman erupted after a third-quarter explosion by Falcons and then the Seahawks rallied for an impressive victory.
4. Cowboys 5-1 (8). Convincing upset of the Packers has to make this Dak Prescott's team for the time being. Isn't that right, Jerry?
5. Falcons 4-2 (3). A late field goal made them a 26-24 loser, but it was an impressive showing in Seattle.
6. Steelers 4-2 (4). Defense will have to play much better with Ben Roethlisberger on the mend after surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee.
7. Broncos 4-2 (5). The defending champs are scuffling on offense and that's a familiar issue after last season.
8. Packers 3-2 (7). Can Aaron Rodgers and the struggling offense get going Thursday night against the Bears?
9. Bills 4-2 (12). A little surprising we haven't seen or heard Rex Ryan pounding his chest after the Bills have come to life.
10. Cardinals 3-3 (11). It looks like Bruce Arians has his team back on track, but a hamstring injury for Carson Palmer is a concern.
11. Redskins 4-2 (14). Pass rush was impressive against Carson Wentz, and the running game is coming to life.
12. Eagles 3-2 (9). After losing two in a row, they face a stiff challenge with the Vikings coming in having had an extra week to prepare.
13. Raiders 4-2 (10). Running game did not get going with Latavius Murray sidelined.
14. Chiefs 3-2 (16). Andy Reid moved to 16-2 all-time coming out of a week off with a victory over the Raiders. Now he needs to get it going in regular weeks.
15. Texans 4-2 (15). Brock Osweiler was pretty bad for three quarters before rallying the troops to an overtime win over Indianapolis.
16. Giants 3-3 (17). Rally to defeat the Ravens was critical because as everyone has discovered, the NFC East is pretty tough once again.
17. Bengals 2-4 (13). Off to their worst start since 2010 and they need to claw their way back to .500 with the Browns and Redskins coming up before their week off.
18. Lions 3-3 (21). Opposing quarterbacks are completing 73.7 percent of their passes with 17 TDs and only three interceptions. They've won their last two though.
19. Saints 2-3 (23). Drew Brees set a record for his 16th 400-yard passing game and he needed all 465 yards to topple the Panthers 41-38.
20. Rams 3-3 (18). Their defense crashed into Lions' victory formation kneel-down, and that is breaking the code. Jeff Fisher says it wasn't his idea.
21. Ravens 3-3 (19). They need to end a three-game slide against the Jets before a week off or it will be a long week off.
22. Titans 3-3 (26). With the Colts and Jaguars at home the next two weeks, the Titans could quietly become a contender in the worst division.
23. Buccaneers 2-3 (24). After a week off, they have the 49ers and a chance to climb to .500.
24. Dolphins 2-4 (29). Their offensive line played much better than it had in a major upset of the Steelers. Perhaps it is the start of something for Adam Gase.
25. Chargers 2-4 (31). Did they save their season with an upset of the Broncos on Thursday? Not if they can't carry the momentum to Atlanta this week.
26. Panthers 1-5 (20). Ever since the missed field goal at the end of the season-opening loss in Denver, they've been consistently bad.
27. Jaguars 2-3 (27). When you win as ugly as they did over the Bears, it's tough to warrant a jump.
28. Colts 2-4 (22). They nearly blew the game against the Bears before frittering one away in Houston.
29. Jets 1-5 (25). Is it possible this is the "perfect position" that Brandon Marshall was talking about?
30. Bears 1-5 (28). Some injured players ought to be making their way back soon, but John Fox's bunch continues to find new ways to enter the jaws of defeat.
31. 49ers 1-5 (30). Colin Kaepernick isn't the story when the run defense gets trampled by LeSean McCoy.
32. Browns 0-6 (32). Cody Kessler passed for 336 yards in their latest loss, and Terrelle Pryor is looking like a nice find at wide receiver. Will he play for a new QB in 2017?
