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The 49ers pulled away from the Rams after falling behind early. That was the last game of the week and that way we could finalize this week's power rankings. Here are my Week 7 rankings:
With Seattle falling and Denver playing well outside of their sole loss to Seattle, in Seattle the Broncos remain the top team in the NFL.
While it hurts to write this, the Cowboys may be the best team in football right now. Their running game with DeMarco Murray has been record breaking and their defense has been stout, holding Seattle at home to 13 offensive points.
The loss to the Cowboys at home drops the Hawks a couple of spots. Their offense looked bad and their top-ranked defense was beaten down, but this a very talented team that will likely bounce back from this loss with a mean vengeance.
The Eagles moved up the rankings with a total beat down of the New York Giants on prime time, Sunday night football. Their defense and special teams leads the league in scoring (over 70 points from just their defense and special teams!) and their offense remains dangerous, especially if LeSean McCoy gets back into form.
The Chargers are another team that keeps winning and generally looking good doing it. Against Oakland they struggled on the defensive side of the ball but Phillip Rivers continued his record breaking year (6 games of 120 rating or better, breaking the record previously held by Kurt Warner).
With all the injuries many thought we were on the slide but a surprise start by Carson Palmer and spotty but timely defensive play by the depleted Cardinals defense have kept them in the running for a playoff spot as the NFC West leaders.
Andrew Luck is playing out of his mind but is being held back by his defense. If the Colts can get consistency on the defensive side of the ball they could become a very dangerous team come playoff time.
8. San Francisco 49ers
Much like the Cardinals, the 49ers have experienced a lot of loss on the defensive side of the ball. Aldon Smith is out for a few more weeks, NaVorro Bowman is still out, Glenn Dorsey is out and a few other less known players. However against the Rams it appears the defense is back in order with five sacks and some stingy play.
At the beginning of the season I thought this team on paper could be the most talented team in the NFL. Both sides of the ball have some seriously dangerous play makers yet they continue to underperform. Who are the Bengals? The previously undefeated team or the team that just gave up 80 points the last two games?
Green Bay looked bad to start the season but has started to ramp it up as Aaron Rodgers has gotten back into form.
And for the rest:
12. Baltimore Ravens
13. Chicago Bears
14. Cleveland Browns
15. Houston Texans
16. New York Giants
17. Atlanta Falcons
19. Buffalo Bills
21. Detroit Lions
23. Miami Dolphins
25. New York Jets
27. St. Louis Rams
28. Tennessee Titans
29. Oakland Raiders