Latest / NFL Power Rankings / #5: Cowboys, Pats rising at quarter mark; unbeaten Vikings fall out of top 10

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#5: Cowboys, Pats rising at quarter mark; unbeaten Vikings fall out of top 10 · NFL Power Rankings

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  Speaker 1: NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in
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  Speaker 1: partnership with iHeartRadio. Welcome to NFL Power Rankings. I'm your host,
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  Speaker 1: Colleen Wolfe, and I'm pleased to be joined by our
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  Speaker 1: ranking czar, Nick Shook. Nick, how are you feeling after
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  Speaker 1: another week of games?
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  Speaker 2: I'm a big fan of defense, and if you love defense,
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  Speaker 2: then you love this week. Ooh!
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  Speaker 1: Okay, well, you guys can read... Nick's full article, NFL.com
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  Speaker 1: slash power rankings. Let's take a look at your teams
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  Speaker 1: one through eight. The top eight in the league. Hey,
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  Speaker 1: the Cowboys, look at them. And up at number one,
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  Speaker 1: same as last week, it is the Niners. You got
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  Speaker 1: the Chiefs. They are number two. Then Seahawks, Ravens, Broncos, Jags, Bills.
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  Speaker 1: The Bills are falling. And Cowboys. We'll get to them,
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  Speaker 1: but let's start with the Niners. How impressed were you
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  Speaker 1: with the Niners after their win over the Broncos?
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  Speaker 3: You know, for a half I wasn't very impressed, but
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  Speaker 3: by the time the second half showed up and they
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  Speaker 3: found some offensive rhythm, then it became more of, okay,
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  Speaker 3: this Niners team might be for real.
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  Speaker 2: Because this is a really good defense.
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  Speaker 3: This is a defense that, you know, had stopped a
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  Speaker 3: lot of other good offenses, had stopped Jacksonville. the week prior,
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  Speaker 3: and instead of crumbling, despite a lack of offensive production,
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  Speaker 3: Brock Purdy and co., they found their rhythm. It was
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  Speaker 3: a short touchdown pass to Debo Samuel. It was a
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  Speaker 3: tight end screen to finish it off to George Kittle,
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  Speaker 3: one of the best executed tight end screens you're ever
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  Speaker 3: going to see in the NFL. And ultimately, what it was,
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  Speaker 3: was a team passing their first legitimate test. Now, you
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  Speaker 3: can look at their schedule and say, oh, they played
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  Speaker 3: the Rams in week one, but they played the Rams
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  Speaker 3: in Australia, and the Rams, we had talked about their
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  Speaker 3: travel situation, right? So I didn't really count that as
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  Speaker 3: a legitimate test. strong, you know, check mark on their resume.
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  Speaker 3: The next two games were against softer opponents. This time,
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  Speaker 3: they faced a test. They overcame adversity, and they beat
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  Speaker 3: the Broncos at their own game. Their defense did a
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  Speaker 3: great job.
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  Speaker 1: How about that? And the fact that the 49ers, they
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  Speaker 1: have not allowed a sack the offensive line. I mean,
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  Speaker 1: that is just wild.
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  Speaker 2: Against a team that majors in sacks.
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  Speaker 1: Yes, exactly. So, okay, I get it. I respect it
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  Speaker 1: that they are number one. They are up there above
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  Speaker 1: the Chiefs. Let's get to the Chiefs right now. Why
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  Speaker 1: should we be impressed? I feel like this is a
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  Speaker 1: mean way to tee it up.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, go ahead, say it.
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  Speaker 4: I feel like the Raiders are maybe better than people
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  Speaker 4: are giving them credit for, and they put up a
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  Speaker 4: massive fight in this game, so this almost told me
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  Speaker 4: more about the Raiders, but we're talking about the Chiefs here,
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  Speaker 4: so where are you mentally with the Chiefs now?
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  Speaker 3: You know, I think in previous years, this would be
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  Speaker 3: a major red flag, but these Raiders are not the
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  Speaker 3: Raiders of old, and I've I was really impressed by
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  Speaker 3: the Chiefs' way that they won this game, which is
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  Speaker 3: overcoming a deficit in the fourth quarter, getting some timely
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  Speaker 3: plays on special teams, cashing them in, and continuing to
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  Speaker 3: be the team that they've been since week one, which
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  Speaker 3: is a balanced offense, a team that doesn't have to
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  Speaker 3: rely on Patrick Mahomes, who only finished with a 50%
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  Speaker 3: completion percentage. They were able to lean on Kenneth Walker,
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  Speaker 3: puts up another huge day, 22 carries, 177 yards, two touchdowns.
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  Speaker 3: They are multiple. They can hit you in a number
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  Speaker 3: of different ways. And they overcame challenges on the road.
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  Speaker 3: This was the feistiest Raiders crowd I've ever heard. And
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  Speaker 3: that's with a lot of Chiefs fans still in attendance. So, yes,
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  Speaker 3: I get a lot out of it for the Raiders.
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  Speaker 3: But I don't believe in moral victories. And I do
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  Speaker 3: believe in this being a strong win for the Chiefs.
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  Speaker 1: Are you concerned at all about the wide receiver injuries
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  Speaker 1: for Kansas City?
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, Taequann Thornton going down with a gruesome injury. Rasheed
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  Speaker 2: Rice going down with an injury.
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  Speaker 3: That's going to concern me, but here's the thing. The
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  Speaker 3: Chiefs are in the same place they've been for the
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  Speaker 3: last four years.
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  Speaker 2: I know, it's so true. They've been searching. They signed
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  Speaker 2: Juju Smith-Schuster twice.
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  Speaker 3: I mean, I know that was a few years ago,
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  Speaker 3: but this is a team that's very capable of overcoming
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  Speaker 3: injuries at receiver, and they're more capable, better equipped now
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  Speaker 3: than they were in previous years because of Kenneth Walker.
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  Speaker 3: So they stay at number two. That is a big
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  Speaker 3: win that I think is going to look good in
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  Speaker 3: the long run on the resume.
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  Speaker 1: It's just such a beautiful sight to see Kansas City
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  Speaker 1: with a run game.
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  Speaker 2: Yes.
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  Speaker 1: And to see Andy Reid calling... Runs. That's something that
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  Speaker 1: he doesn't typically do and hasn't done historically.
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  Speaker 2: Not even Clyde Edwards-Alaire. That didn't work out either.
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  Speaker 1: No, uh-uh. Let's go to your number four team, the Ravens.
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  Speaker 1: And at this point, with Tyler Snoop Huntley, can he
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  Speaker 1: keep the offense going? And where does that put you
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  Speaker 1: with the team and Lamar's injury?
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  Speaker 3: This is going to be one of the toughest games
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  Speaker 3: to pick this week.
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  Speaker 2: They sit here because they took care of business, and
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  Speaker 2: they actually bump up a spot as a product of
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  Speaker 2: the Bills coming down. So, you know, sometimes that happens
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  Speaker 2: when it comes to these rankings. So by default.
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  Speaker 3: By default, they move up. They took care of business.
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  Speaker 3: They got the job done. They were clearly the better team.
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  Speaker 3: They built a big lead in the first half. Lamar
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  Speaker 3: goes out. And then they just kind of coasted to
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  Speaker 3: victory because they could against the Tennessee Titans. When you
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  Speaker 3: look forward, though, against Atlanta coming up this week, it's
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  Speaker 3: going to be a massive game. It's in prime time.
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  Speaker 3: And the Falcons look very strong. And I'm a little
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  Speaker 3: concerned about the Ravens' offense because it didn't have the
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  Speaker 3: greatest level of momentum in the last few weeks, even
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  Speaker 3: with Lamar in there. The running game has still not
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  Speaker 3: been a major factor, as I would like it to be.
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  Speaker 3: And if you take Lamar out of the equation, you
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  Speaker 3: get Snoop Huntley, who's a very capable and accomplished veteran,
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  Speaker 3: then I start to worry about your overall offensive ceiling
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  Speaker 3: against a Falcons offense that is just fantastic right now.
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  Speaker 1: You cannot bring down Bajon Robinson.
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  Speaker 2: Exactly.
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  Speaker 3: So I think that judging by what we're going to
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  Speaker 3: see this week, we could see some movement from the
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  Speaker 3: Ravens and probably more movement from the Falcons as they
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  Speaker 3: come out on top. I mean, Look, the Ravens are
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  Speaker 3: still a good football team. They're just not quite as
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  Speaker 3: good as I thought they'd be as of now.
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  Speaker 1: I think a lot of people are aligned with that opinion.
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  Speaker 1: Let's go to the Broncos, who you move them up
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  Speaker 1: even though they lost.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: Okay.
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  Speaker 3: Another product of just change around them, right? Look, the Broncos,
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  Speaker 3: they played valiantly. They still had the same issues that
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  Speaker 3: I have a lot of issue with, which is that
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  Speaker 3: their offense doesn't show up for four quarters. It didn't
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  Speaker 3: really show up until the fourth quarter of this game.
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  Speaker 3: And defensively, while they played a good game in the
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  Speaker 3: first half, they weren't, as you said earlier, they weren't
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  Speaker 3: able to get after Brock Purdy. Their pass rush has
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  Speaker 3: just not been as good as it was last year.
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  Speaker 3: Not having Jonathan Cooper in the mix, I think, definitely
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  Speaker 3: affects that. It's just kind of Nick Benito out there
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  Speaker 3: generating the pass rush. And they haven't used Jalen Waddell
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  Speaker 3: to the level that I would have liked so far.
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  Speaker 3: And a lot of it's just because their offense lacks consistency.
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  Speaker 3: They want to be a team that can run the football.
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  Speaker 3: They did not run the football well in this game
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  Speaker 3: at all.
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  Speaker 2: And they weren't able to.
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  Speaker 3: Build the pass out of that. And, you know, Bo Nix,
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  Speaker 3: he's always a lightning rod of sorts. And I understand why.
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  Speaker 3: He's a playmaker who isn't quite making enough plays to
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  Speaker 3: help this offense right now. So they move up because
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  Speaker 3: of the Bills moving down. They move up because they
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  Speaker 3: were competitive against the Niners, but they're still not worthy
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  Speaker 3: of a top three or four spot.
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  Speaker 1: No, 27th in scoring.
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  Speaker 2: Like, that is.
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  Speaker 1: That's not great. When you look at it, they've scored
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  Speaker 1: fewer points than the Eagles, and the Eagles' offense has
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  Speaker 1: been atrocious to watch.
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  Speaker 2: I'm surprised you haven't lost sleep over the Eagles.
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  Speaker 1: Look at me today. It's Tuesday, and I still feel
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  Speaker 1: like I am weathered by that game. Speaking of which,
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  Speaker 1: let's go to the Jaguars, who will be playing the
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  Speaker 1: Eagles on Sunday in London. The Jags are your number
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  Speaker 1: six team, and the defense looks good.
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  Speaker 3: This was the consummate Jaguars victory, I think in my opinion, because... Yes,
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  Speaker 3: they have Trevor Lawrence, and they can move the football,
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  Speaker 3: but what they've done is they've built an identity that
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  Speaker 3: they are willing to announce every time they arrive in
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  Speaker 3: your stadium or they show up at their home stadium, which.
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  Speaker 2: Is currently halfway through renovations right now. Weird picture, by
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  Speaker 2: the way, when you see the upper deck just tarped
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  Speaker 2: off and everything else.
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  Speaker 3: Huh. Basial Tootin is going to be the center of
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  Speaker 3: their ground game, 17 for 73. His numbers per game
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  Speaker 3: are way too similar. You could just very much tell
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  Speaker 3: this is what they want to do. It's always like 68,
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  Speaker 3: 73 yards. Chris Rodriguez comes in as the spellback, gets
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  Speaker 3: him a rushing touchdown in this game. But what's most
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  Speaker 3: important for me and why I love this Jaguars team
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  Speaker 3: as we continue to move into October is this defense.
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  Speaker 3: This defense is better than people realize. Their front is
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  Speaker 3: better than people realize. They're opportunistic. And they caused all
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  Speaker 3: kinds of problems for Joe Burrow on Sunday. They got
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  Speaker 3: after him a lot. They forced him to throw a
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  Speaker 3: couple of really ugly interceptions. This is a win, much
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  Speaker 3: like what I had said about an earlier team in
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  Speaker 3: the Chiefs, that I think is going to look really
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  Speaker 3: good on their resume a couple of.
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  Speaker 2: Months from now. And look, you might not like the
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  Speaker 2: idea of the Jaguars. I love the Jaguars right now.
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  Speaker 1: Hey, I mean, I also enjoy the Jaguars. Yes. That defense,
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  Speaker 1: they're the only team in the NFL that they haven't
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  Speaker 1: allowed more than 20 points in any game this season.
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  Speaker 1: That is the only defense.
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  Speaker 2: That usually wins a game. Exactly.
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  Speaker 1: That's what I've heard. Let's go to the Bills, who
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  Speaker 1: two weeks in a row now, they've kind of looked good.
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  Speaker 1: underwhelming at home.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, and I'm sure I'll attract a ton of anger
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  Speaker 2: from Bills fans for this, but if they're being honest
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  Speaker 2: with themselves... Down four spots.
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  Speaker 3: Yes, if they're being honest with themselves, they'll probably agree
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  Speaker 3: with this to a degree. Look, this is a Patriots
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  Speaker 3: team that came into Buffalo last week in crisis mode.
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  Speaker 2: They looked terrible against Jacksonville.
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  Speaker 3: Scott Zolak, the color commentator, flirted with the idea of
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  Speaker 3: wanting to bench Drake May in the middle of last
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  Speaker 3: week's loss. Drake May gets back on track a little
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  Speaker 3: bit with his play in this game, and the Patriots
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  Speaker 3: end up getting the turnover they needed to seal the victory.
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  Speaker 2: They overcame a late deficit. They got after Josh Allen.
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  Speaker 3: This Bills offense, I think if you take James Cook
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  Speaker 3: out of the equation, which wasn't by design for Buffalo,
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  Speaker 3: but what New England forced them to do, they bottled
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  Speaker 3: up the run early and really made him ineffective for
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  Speaker 3: the most part. it becomes too much, too reliant on
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  Speaker 3: Josh Allen. Keon Coleman has a fantastic game, and they
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  Speaker 3: still lose. That's how important James Cook is to them.
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  Speaker 3: So right now, they have some questions that they have
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  Speaker 3: to answer, some problems that they have to work out
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  Speaker 3: in order to get.
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  Speaker 2: Back to where they are.
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  Speaker 3: And look, they're 3-1, and they're probably one of the
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  Speaker 3: lowest-ranked 3-1 teams on this ranking. There's a couple more
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  Speaker 3: behind them. But it's the fashion in which they've played
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  Speaker 3: the last two weeks. They got away with one against
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  Speaker 3: the Chargers. They couldn't do it against the Patriots.
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  Speaker 1: The turnovers. They need to clean up the turnovers. Seven
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  Speaker 1: turnovers in two weeks, that's going to keep you falling
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  Speaker 1: down Nick Shook's power ranking. So maybe that'll be some
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  Speaker 1: bulletin board material for them, Nick.
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  Speaker 2: Clean it up.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, let's shine a spotlight on the Cowboys. They're up
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  Speaker 1: three spots. What is this team's ceiling? Because the offense,
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  Speaker 1: CeeDee Lamb, what a game he had.
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  Speaker 3: What a tough, I think, analysis, job to analyze this team.
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  Speaker 2: The Cowboys, we know they can score points.
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  Speaker 1: Uh-huh.
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  Speaker 3: And that's exactly what they did to win this game.
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  Speaker 3: We know their defense is going to give up a
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  Speaker 3: lot of points. They're going to have to outscore opponents.
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  Speaker 3: But as it stands right now, I'm looking at this
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  Speaker 3: team and I'm thinking, okay, I know what you are.
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  Speaker 3: You're a team that's going to rely heavily on the
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  Speaker 3: passing game. You're going to get enough from your running game.
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  Speaker 3: You're going to lean heavily on CeeDee Lamb. You're going
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  Speaker 3: to hope George Pickens contributes, which he usually does. And
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  Speaker 3: then you're going to pray that you get enough out
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  Speaker 3: of your defense.
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  Speaker 1: C.J.
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  Speaker 2: Stroud had a great game in this game. He was fantastic.
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  Speaker 3: Texans can't run the football. Cowboys end up coming out victorious.
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  Speaker 3: And look, I know that this is a pass-first league.
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  Speaker 2: This is an offensively driven league.
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  Speaker 3: But this is a win that I think is going
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  Speaker 3: to stand over the next month or so as an
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  Speaker 3: impressive one because of how they were able to drop
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  Speaker 3: a ton of points on a Texans team whose defense
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  Speaker 3: has a great reputation, who I think we should start
• 10:45
  Speaker 3: to question a little bit.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I think a lot of people are wondering what's
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  Speaker 1: going on with D'Amico Ryans and that defense. Okay, coming up,
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  Speaker 1: where are the Rams after their comeback win over the
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: Eagles in Philadelphia? And how about the undefeated Vikings? Yeah,
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: we all saw that coming. Stick around, we have more
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  Speaker 1: Power Rankings next. Back here on Power Rankings, a look
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  Speaker 1: at teams 9 through 16. The Bengals down one spot.
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  Speaker 1: They're right there up top of this tier. You got
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: the Bears, the Vikings down two, 4-0. We'll get to that. Raiders,
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  Speaker 1: 3-1 team. They're down two spots, though, at 12. The Rams,
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  Speaker 1: they stood pat at 13. The Carolina Panthers are shooting
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  Speaker 1: up the list here, up eight spots at 14. Same
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  Speaker 1: with the Falcons, up eight spots behind them at 15.
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  Speaker 1: And then the Lions down two at 16. But let's
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  Speaker 1: start with the Bengals first. After starting 2-0, they looked
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  Speaker 1: really good, but now they've lost two in a row.
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  Speaker 1: They're 2-2 at this point, and this was your AFC
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  Speaker 1: Super Bowl contender. So how are you feeling about that?
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  Speaker 2: Just got to rub it in.
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  Speaker 3: I mean, at least I didn't pick a worse team
• 11:57
  Speaker 3: that's 0-4 that I'm not going to reference right now. Look,
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  Speaker 3: the Bengals have lost two one-score games. They've been in
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  Speaker 3: both of them. They are going to regret losing both
• 12:05
  Speaker 3: of these games. This one I think was especially frustrating. Yes,
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  Speaker 3: they gave up a ton of points to the Steelers
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  Speaker 3: last week, but they were in this one. They had opportunities.
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  Speaker 3: The Jaguars couldn't get out of their own way with
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  Speaker 3: all their penalties that they committed in the first half. Otherwise,
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  Speaker 3: they probably would have had a two or three touchdown lead.
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  Speaker 3: And yet the Bengals didn't capitalize. It's one of those
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  Speaker 3: performances that causes a little bit of concern because there's
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  Speaker 3: not enough balance with this offense. I know Joe Burrow
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  Speaker 3: postgame was like, let's throw it more.
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  Speaker 2: Well, Joe, you threw it a lot in this game.
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  Speaker 3: Over 54 passes. He threw 54 passes. That's too many
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  Speaker 3: throws for Joe Burrow. There's a little bit of imbalance
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  Speaker 3: in this offense right now that the Bengals need to correct.
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  Speaker 3: They also lost Jamar Chase in this game, which hurt
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  Speaker 3: them and their potential to throw the football.
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  Speaker 2: The defense bounced back, I think.
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  Speaker 3: You only gave up 22 points. That was the big
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  Speaker 3: issue with them against the Steelers last week. So I
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  Speaker 3: still like the way that they look. They're going to
• 12:51
  Speaker 3: go play the Dolphins, get right game.
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  Speaker 1: Right.
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  Speaker 2: But make sure that you do get right.
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  Speaker 3: Make sure that you actually take care of business because
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  Speaker 3: the Dolphins are more competitive than people realize.
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  Speaker 1: And the nice thing, too, for the Bengals is they
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  Speaker 1: have a bye right after that. So that will hopefully
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  Speaker 1: get their wide receivers enough time to get back out
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  Speaker 1: there and playing Jamar Chase and Tee Higgins, both dealing
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  Speaker 1: with injuries. Let's go to the Bears. Up two spots, right?
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  Speaker 1: And how impressed were you with Tyson Bajan? Is Ben
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  Speaker 1: Johnson quarterback-proof?
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  Speaker 2: That's the talk now, right? Is he quarterback-proof?
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  Speaker 3: Which quarterback can they sign and he can still win?
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  Speaker 3: Can we get Joe Flacco off the Bengals roster? Can
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  Speaker 3: we go pull somebody else out of the free agency
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  Speaker 3: pool right now.
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  Speaker 2: Just to test it? Let's just test this experiment.
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  Speaker 3: This is the most impressive win I think of the
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  Speaker 3: season for them, which is crazy because it was with
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  Speaker 3: Tyson Bajan.
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  Speaker 2: It was against the Jets. Jets team, I think, is better. Well,
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  Speaker 2: maybe not anymore. I thought they were better than their
• 13:40
  Speaker 2: record indicated.
• 13:41
  Speaker 3: What was so impressive was how lopsided it was. Let's
• 13:44
  Speaker 3: look at the play totals. 89-32, okay?
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: That's a lot for one team and a little for
• 13:49
  Speaker 2: the other.
• 13:50
  Speaker 3: 492 yards to 157 for the Jets.
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: Quite the disparity.
• 13:54
  Speaker 3: In fact, it's a miracle that they only won by 11.
• 13:56
  Speaker 3: They probably should have won by a lot more. It's
• 13:59
  Speaker 3: told me that Ben Johnson remains one of the best
• 14:01
  Speaker 3: coaches in the league.
• 14:02
  Speaker 2: One who can overcome.
• 14:03
  Speaker 3: challenges brought about by health concerns. I'm curious to see
• 14:07
  Speaker 3: what this offense looks like when they do get Caleb
• 14:09
  Speaker 3: Williams back eventually. But as of now, they're 3-1. They've
• 14:12
  Speaker 3: won their last two games without Caleb.
• 14:14
  Speaker 2: Yeah. Pretty good team.
• 14:16
  Speaker 3: I'm glad they're in the top 10, and if they
• 14:18
  Speaker 3: do it again, they'll probably continue to climb.
• 14:19
  Speaker 1: Hey, they're the number one team in rushing, and they
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: take on the Packers next week, who cannot stop the run.
• 14:26
  Speaker 2: Look, it's a rivalry, and you throw the records out
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: the window with the rivalries, but I have a feeling
• 14:30
  Speaker 2: it's going to be lopsided again.
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: Yeah, division games, you never know what's going to happen.
• 14:34
  Speaker 1: Speaking of division, let's go to the Vikings, who are
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: down two spots. They're at 11. They won Sunday.
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: They're 4-0.
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: Undefeated! And they fell two spots. Is this just also
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: a product of the environment?
• 14:47
  Speaker 2: It's a little bit of a product of the process, right?
• 14:49
  Speaker 3: It's also a product of this team not having any
• 14:51
  Speaker 3: offense to speak of. All 15 points they scored in
• 14:54
  Speaker 3: this game, off the foot of Will the Thrill Reigert.
• 14:57
  Speaker 3: I think that's his nickname.
• 14:58
  Speaker 2: Great kicker, but the offense, not great.
• 15:01
  Speaker 3: Kyler Murray looked a little bit better than he did
• 15:03
  Speaker 3: in the previous outing, but he still looks pretty uncomfortable.
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: Offensively they put up 330 yards.
• 15:09
  Speaker 3: So like you're looking at it, you're thinking, okay, this
• 15:12
  Speaker 3: is pretty good, but they continue to stall.
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: And, and look, I love the dolphins.
• 15:15
  Speaker 3: I think they're better than their own for a record
• 15:17
  Speaker 3: because I see their potential and what they're trying to accomplish.
• 15:19
  Speaker 3: But when you look at it from the bigger picture,
• 15:21
  Speaker 3: this is kind of an.
• 15:22
  Speaker 2: Embarrassing win in some ways. This is a defense first team.
• 15:26
  Speaker 3: And they know that they're going to be an extreme
• 15:28
  Speaker 3: challenge to any offense they face. But I don't think
• 15:30
  Speaker 3: that formula on itself can go win you, like, a
• 15:33
  Speaker 3: postseason game against some of the best teams in the NFL.
• 15:35
  Speaker 3: So they've got to figure this out offensively in order
• 15:38
  Speaker 3: to really become the team that I think they can
• 15:39
  Speaker 3: and climb into.
• 15:40
  Speaker 2: The top 10. So that's why at 4-0 they sit
• 15:42
  Speaker 2: at 11.
• 15:42
  Speaker 1: You know what they're really good at, though? They are
• 15:45
  Speaker 1: number one in the NFL in punts. They have the
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: most punts.
• 15:48
  Speaker 2: Yeah, because they cannot finish drives.
• 15:50
  Speaker 1: Let's go to the Raiders, who we, I don't know,
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: they really put up a great fight against the Chiefs.
• 15:57
  Speaker 1: They suffered their first loss of the season. Where are
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: you right now with the Raiders? Because they're a lot
• 16:03
  Speaker 1: of fun.
• 16:03
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I'm at 12th, and it pains me
• 16:05
  Speaker 2: to put them at 12, because.
• 16:07
  Speaker 3: If they would have won that game, they'd be inside
• 16:08
  Speaker 3: the top 10 and climbing. They're one of the most
• 16:11
  Speaker 3: enjoyable stories to track this season in the NFL. Kirk
• 16:14
  Speaker 3: Cousins is playing like he's years younger than his actual age.
• 16:18
  Speaker 3: They don't have much of a running game, didn't in
• 16:19
  Speaker 3: this game, and yet they were still able to put
• 16:21
  Speaker 3: up a good amount of points and take the Chiefs
• 16:23
  Speaker 3: to the wire.
• 16:24
  Speaker 2: And You know, we talked about it earlier with the Chiefs.
• 16:26
  Speaker 3: It's like you look at a close one over the Raiders,
• 16:28
  Speaker 3: and it's.
• 16:28
  Speaker 2: Like almost a red flag.
• 16:29
  Speaker 3: It's not because the Raiders are, for real, they're getting
• 16:32
  Speaker 3: the absolute most out of their talent. Their offseason acquisitions,
• 16:35
  Speaker 3: you know, starting with guys like the Kobe Dean on
• 16:36
  Speaker 3: the defensive side, have really carried them to the next level.
• 16:39
  Speaker 3: Clint Kubiak's doing a fantastic job with them. So I
• 16:41
  Speaker 3: know they moved down two spots as a product of losing,
• 16:44
  Speaker 3: but this is the best, I think, one of the best,
• 16:47
  Speaker 3: not the best, because the Bears are also 3-1.
• 16:49
  Speaker 2: Teams in the NFL right now.
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: And they already matched their win total from last year,
• 16:53
  Speaker 1: so that's a positive.
• 16:53
  Speaker 2: And it's not even Halloween.
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: Hey, look at that. Let's go to the Rams, who
• 16:58
  Speaker 1: had a big win against the Eagles in Philadelphia, even
• 17:02
  Speaker 1: though Matthew Stafford threw two interceptions in that game, and
• 17:06
  Speaker 1: there were points off of turnovers, but the Eagles are
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: a mess. This is about the Rams, though, Chuck.
• 17:11
  Speaker 2: This is about the Rams.
• 17:12
  Speaker 3: I know, we're going to avoid talking about your Eagles,
• 17:14
  Speaker 3: and I'm sorry, but This is a win that can
• 17:17
  Speaker 3: be good and bad.
• 17:17
  Speaker 2: At the same time.
• 17:18
  Speaker 3: I think both things can be true with this team
• 17:19
  Speaker 3: because for about three and a half quarters, they look
• 17:21
  Speaker 3: like a team destined for another loss. And one of
• 17:24
  Speaker 3: those look long and hard in the mirror situations at
• 17:27
  Speaker 3: dropping to one and three. Instead, they find it within
• 17:29
  Speaker 3: themselves to mount a comeback. They scored two touchdowns in
• 17:31
  Speaker 3: the final four minutes of this game to take down
• 17:34
  Speaker 3: the Eagles, overcome a deficit that I thought was going
• 17:36
  Speaker 3: to stand the test of time. And so it's a
• 17:39
  Speaker 3: good sign for them and their ability to overcome adversity,
• 17:41
  Speaker 3: but they still have a lot of things to figure out. Offensively,
• 17:43
  Speaker 3: they've got to eliminate the turnovers. Matthew Stafford, I hate
• 17:46
  Speaker 3: to say it, but he's starting to look like his age.
• 17:48
  Speaker 3: He's just been sloppy with the football. They got Puka
• 17:50
  Speaker 3: Nakua back. He has nine catches for 125 yards. He
• 17:52
  Speaker 3: was also on a pitch count. It just seems like
• 17:54
  Speaker 3: there's not quite enough depth and diversity with this offense
• 17:58
  Speaker 3: right now. They love to go heavy personnel. They were
• 17:59
  Speaker 3: missing some of their top tight ends. So they've got
• 18:01
  Speaker 3: to get healthy more than anything.
• 18:02
  Speaker 2: But look, you're 2-2. It could be worse.
• 18:04
  Speaker 1: Yeah, and Monday Night Football next week against the Bills.
• 18:08
  Speaker 1: So that is appointment viewing.
• 18:10
  Speaker 2: Yes, and it's too bad they won't have Miles Garrett
• 18:11
  Speaker 2: for that.
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: That's fair. Time for our team of the week, and
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: it is the Atlanta Falcons. They've won back-to-back weeks in
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: primetime on the road. Monday night, they went to New Orleans,
• 18:21
  Speaker 1: and they rolled the Saints. This offense, we talked about
• 18:24
  Speaker 1: it a little bit earlier, but now with Michael Penix Jr. back,
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: the offense just looks so different and runs so well.
• 18:31
  Speaker 2: Yes, they bludgeoned the Saints last night.
• 18:33
  Speaker 3: A Saints team that I've really had a lot of
• 18:35
  Speaker 3: fun watching because I thought their defense was better than
• 18:37
  Speaker 3: the sum of its parts.
• 18:39
  Speaker 2: And yet, last night, the Falcons just took them to
• 18:42
  Speaker 2: the woodshed. I mean, they ran all over them. 205
• 18:45
  Speaker 2: rushing yards for the Falcons.
• 18:46
  Speaker 3: It wasn't just Bajon. It was also Brian Robinson. Surname
• 18:49
  Speaker 3: Cousins Brothers. They're not related, but I feel like there's
• 18:52
  Speaker 3: something that we can work with marketing-wise with those two Robinsons.
• 18:55
  Speaker 1: Absolutely. Yes.
• 18:56
  Speaker 3: They've been a fantastic backfield over the last couple of weeks,
• 18:59
  Speaker 3: obviously carried by Bajon, but Brian getting involved as well.
• 19:01
  Speaker 3: The offense looks a lot better with Michael Penix behind center.
• 19:04
  Speaker 3: He only had to throw the ball 20 times. This
• 19:06
  Speaker 3: is Kevin Stefanski at his best. When he has a
• 19:07
  Speaker 3: running game that's strong, when he has an offensive line
• 19:09
  Speaker 3: that is blowing the defensive line off the ball consistently,
• 19:13
  Speaker 3: winning at the point of attack, he can do.
• 19:14
  Speaker 2: Pretty much anything. Last night they established the run.
• 19:17
  Speaker 3: They're able to build off of that, hit Drake London,
• 19:19
  Speaker 3: hit Jahan Dotson, hit Kyle Pitts.
• 19:21
  Speaker 2: Saints had no answer for them defensively.
• 19:24
  Speaker 3: And if you look at the Saints offensively, they had
• 19:27
  Speaker 3: some struggles against this defense that got a lot of pressure,
• 19:29
  Speaker 3: which is.
• 19:29
  Speaker 2: Pretty new for the Falcons.
• 19:31
  Speaker 1: I know. This is a very different territory that we're in.
• 19:34
  Speaker 1: 80 points in two weeks for that offense with Michael Penix.
• 19:38
  Speaker 1: That is a joy for Atlanta fans to see. Coming up,
• 19:42
  Speaker 1: the Drake May haters. I guess they can go away now.
• 19:45
  Speaker 1: New England went into Buffalo and saved their season. This
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: is craziness, these words that I'm saying. How high does
• 19:53
  Speaker 1: Nick Shook have them in his power? rankings? We'll find out.
• 20:03
  Speaker 1: It's Nick Shook's power rankings presented by Energizer, and here
• 20:07
  Speaker 1: are teams 17 through 24. The Browns at 3-1. They
• 20:09
  Speaker 1: remain at 17, unchanged. The Patriots up 13 spots at 18.
• 20:17
  Speaker 1: You have the Giants, then the Saints, then the Eagles
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: down six spots. The Colts at 22, down two spots.
• 20:23
  Speaker 1: The Texans up one, and then the Jets down six.
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: So let's start with the Browns. They're on a three-game
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: winning streak. This is your team. Do you want to
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: say something nice about that?
• 20:34
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I'll say I'm sorry that they weren't moved up.
• 20:37
  Speaker 3: This is kind of a product of just going through
• 20:39
  Speaker 3: the whole process and looking at all these teams and Look,
• 20:42
  Speaker 3: I mean, that was a great win. It was the
• 20:43
  Speaker 3: inverse of how they won their last two games, which
• 20:45
  Speaker 3: was get offense late, lean on the defense early. They
• 20:48
  Speaker 3: got a ton of offense in the second quarter, and
• 20:50
  Speaker 3: were able to ride that out with their defense. This
• 20:52
  Speaker 3: looks like a competent football team. This looks like a
• 20:54
  Speaker 3: very fun football team to watch.
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: They're in a mix.
• 20:55
  Speaker 3: I don't know what mix it is, but Deshaun Watson
• 20:57
  Speaker 3: continues to get better every week, which is something I
• 20:59
  Speaker 3: never thought I would be saying, but here we are
• 21:01
  Speaker 3: in reality in 2026.
• 21:02
  Speaker 2: And if they win against.
• 21:04
  Speaker 3: The Jets, which I feel like is not a trap game,
• 21:06
  Speaker 3: but a pitfall opportunity, then I think they'll start to climb.
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: Also, their pass rush is awesome. Awesome. And this is
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: without Miles Garrett, something that I didn't think I would
• 21:14
  Speaker 1: ever say either.
• 21:15
  Speaker 2: Big tip of the cap to D.C. Mike Rutenberg.
• 21:17
  Speaker 1: How about that?
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: Doing a great job.
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: Let's go to Power Moves. And that is awarded to
• 21:20
  Speaker 1: the Patriots, up 13 spots after their big win in Buffalo. Yeah.
• 21:25
  Speaker 2: Look, I understand, Patriots fans. I hear you. I know
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: that you were angry that I ranked you 31st, but
• 21:30
  Speaker 2: it looked like one of the worst outfits in the
• 21:31
  Speaker 2: NFL last week. Was that reactionary? Yes. Did you bounce
• 21:36
  Speaker 2: back emphatically? Yes. Is Efton Chisholm awesome in crunch time? Perhaps.
• 21:40
  Speaker 3: Is Drake May back? Not quite, but he's on track.
• 21:42
  Speaker 3: So it's a good win for the Patriots. It's a
• 21:44
  Speaker 3: divisional win, which always counts for a little more, and
• 21:47
  Speaker 3: I feel a little bit better about them, but they've got.
• 21:48
  Speaker 2: To continue to do this. It can't just be a
• 21:50
  Speaker 2: little flash in the pan.
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: Right, and A.J. Brown eligible to be activated from IR
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: this week, so that could be a boost for the
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: offense and Drake May as well.
• 21:58
  Speaker 2: The clouds may be parting.
• 21:59
  Speaker 1: Hey, look at that. Let's go to your number 19 team,
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: and that's the Giants. They're 3-1. They are the top
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: team in the NFC East. Are you buying them as
• 22:10
  Speaker 1: a playoff team?
• 22:11
  Speaker 3: I don't know what to make of this team right now.
• 22:13
  Speaker 3: I mean, Jameis Winston, I know what to make of him.
• 22:15
  Speaker 2: It's up and down. It's great plays. It's terrible plays.
• 22:17
  Speaker 2: They got both of that.
• 22:19
  Speaker 3: On Sunday, what was really impressive about this, though, was
• 22:21
  Speaker 3: a defense that I thought lacked teeth, definitely lacked teeth early.
• 22:25
  Speaker 3: Then they find a way to bounce back and then
• 22:27
  Speaker 3: kind of just stymie the Cardinals' offense. And then the Giants'
• 22:31
  Speaker 3: offense does enough to win this game, and then they
• 22:32
  Speaker 3: get the goal line stand as well at the end,
• 22:34
  Speaker 3: which is second straight, we get the goal line stand.
• 22:35
  Speaker 3: So what they are is they're a John Harbaugh team.
• 22:37
  Speaker 3: I think they lack a little bit of talent in
• 22:38
  Speaker 3: some spots, but they're getting the most out of some
• 22:40
  Speaker 3: of their key guys.
• 22:41
  Speaker 2: And as of now, yes, leading the NFC East. We'll
• 22:43
  Speaker 2: see how long it lasts.
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: Yeah, the Jameis Winston experience, we are all in it
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: right now.
• 22:47
  Speaker 2: Never disappoint.
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: Let's go to the Texans. 0-4 at number 23 in
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: your rankings. Are you finished with them? No. You mentioned
• 22:56
  Speaker 1: the defense. Some questions now around D'Amico Ryans and that
• 23:01
  Speaker 1: side of the ball, which was always the strongest part
• 23:03
  Speaker 1: of the ball.
• 23:04
  Speaker 3: Yeah, look, I was not one of the people that
• 23:06
  Speaker 3: picked the Texans to go to the Super Bowl, and
• 23:07
  Speaker 3: those who did will not be named on.
• 23:08
  Speaker 2: The show, but.
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: It wasn't me, by the way.
• 23:10
  Speaker 3: They do have an opportunity to get right and get
• 23:12
  Speaker 3: back on the winning side for the first time this year.
• 23:14
  Speaker 3: My concern with them... is that their identity has shifted.
• 23:17
  Speaker 3: They are not a defense-first team anymore. They cannot lean
• 23:19
  Speaker 3: on this defense to bail them out. And conversely, C.J.
• 23:22
  Speaker 3: Stroud has been really good.
• 23:24
  Speaker 2: Lately, and they're wasting good C.J. Stroud performances. Yeah, how
• 23:27
  Speaker 2: dare you? Exactly, how dare you?
• 23:29
  Speaker 3: I'm upset with you, Texans, but I haven't lost my
• 23:33
  Speaker 3: faith in them entirely yet.
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: Okay, all right. Well, they have Tennessee coming up next week.
• 23:37
  Speaker 1: Here is teams 25 through 32. You have the Steelers,
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: the Cardinals, the Packers, the Commanders down seven spots, Dolphins, Bucks,
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: Chargers down four spots, and at 32, it's the Titans.
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: So do you have something encouraging to say about one
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: of those bottom teams?
• 23:56
  Speaker 3: It pained me to drop the Commanders this far because
• 23:58
  Speaker 3: I think their defense continues to play above expectation, and
• 24:00
  Speaker 3: they did a good job of keeping them in this game.
• 24:02
  Speaker 3: But the quarterback situation is concerning. Even with Jaden Daniels,
• 24:05
  Speaker 3: if he's able to come back this week, playing with
• 24:07
  Speaker 3: the elbow brace, I know it's not his throwing arm.
• 24:09
  Speaker 3: I'm just a little hesitant about this team, but I
• 24:10
  Speaker 3: do like them a lot more than their ranking stands.
• 24:13
  Speaker 3: So I'm feeling good about them. Meanwhile, the Packers at 27,
• 24:15
  Speaker 3: I think they deserve to be there. That was an
• 24:17
  Speaker 3: ugly win.
• 24:17
  Speaker 2: Over the Buccaneers.
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: That truly was. Both teams just sort of in weird
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: spots right now, I feel like. Yeah. Hey, thanks so
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: much for hanging out with us. That's it for Power Rankings.
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: We're going to be back next week, so enjoy the weekend.
• 24:36
  Speaker 1: NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in
• 24:39
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• 24:43
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