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NFL Power Rankings entering Week 8: Vikings are last undefeated team, but are they No. 1?

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One of the themes to this NFL season is a lack of permanence.

Every time a team starts to look good, they take a bad loss. Teams we thought would be fantastic this season are hanging around .500 or below it. The circle of trust is small through seven weeks. In that scope, what the Minnesota Vikings have done is impressive.

It's not even Halloween and there's just one team left without a loss. That's the Vikings, who had the longest odds to win the NFC North coming into the season. Simply winning every game in this chaotic season is worth praise. It's not like anyone else could do it.

Does that make the Vikings the best team in the NFL? That's way more complicated. Oddsmakers aren't convinced. Minnesota is tied for 10th in Super Bowl odds at BetMGM. DVOA isn't convinced. The Vikings are ranked sixth there. Part of that is the Vikings have played the third-easiest schedule in the NFL, according to DVOA. Their future schedule is the fifth-toughest.

The reason for any skepticism is obvious: The Vikings' offense isn't very good. Minnesota is 29th in EPA (expected points added) per play, 30th in offensive DVOA, 29th in yards gained and 29th in passing yards. Against a bad Colts defense Sunday, the Vikings' offense was as healthy as it has been all season. The Vikings had six points through three quarters until they rallied for 10 points in the fourth quarter to win. The Vikings have failed to surpass 275 yards in four of six games. They've scored more than 23 points only once this season. Kyler Murray was a bargain addition at quarterback this offseason after the lowly Cardinals cut him, and the Vikings are getting what they're paying for.

Minnesota has a championship level defense and Seattle is the only other team with a decent argument for a better group. But the Vikings don't have the balance of other elite NFL teams. The 49ers were clearly the most impressive team in the NFL coming into Week 7, and the only difference in Week 7 was that San Francisco had a bunch of injuries for a tricky early start at Atlanta and lost, while the Vikings had an easy matchup against the Colts at home and barely won. Those results don't make the Vikings suddenly better than the 49ers, or the best team in the league. They aren't yet. It just means Minnesota is the last undefeated team.

There's still time for the Vikings to prove without a question they are the best team in the NFL, with a stellar defense and perhaps an offense that will improve. But they're not there yet. However, they are the only team without a loss, and that's all that will really matter in Minnesota for now.

Here are the NFL power rankings after Week 7 of the NFL season:

32. Los Angeles Chargers (0-6, LW: 31)

The Chargers are the last winless team in the NFL, which nobody saw coming two months ago. And it might be a while until they get their first win. The next three games come against the Rams, Texans and Ravens. Then on Nov. 22 the Chargers host the Jets, so they'll have a shot at a win then if they don't pull an upset in their next three games.

Everyone will be watching to see if coordinator Mike McDaniel can turn around the offense. There was speculation the Chargers might remove him from that role over the bye week, but they didn't. Everyone in the offense is underachieving. And now the Chargers have three tough matchups in a row.

31. Tennessee Titans (1-6, LW: 30)

The Titans are not a good team, but the hope lies in them turning around their luck in close games. Three times in the final minute they've had a chance to win, but against the Eagles and Browns they gave up drives to lose in the final seconds, and against the Giants they threw an interception into the end zone. Tennessee isn't good enough to finish those games, but at least there's some reason to believe they're not as far off as their record indicates.

Titans head coach Robert Saleh went out of his way to defend Cam Ward after the last-second loss to the Browns. Ward had 181 yards and an interception for a 66.7 passer rating.

"You can't possibly watch that film and say Cam Ward did not play good, winning football. You can't," Saleh said, via the team's site. "Now there's things you have to fix, but if anyone is trying to pin this loss on him you are just trying to make s*** up."

30. New York Jets (2-5, LW: 29)

It's just a matter of time for Aaron Glenn. He's 5-19 and Sunday brought a new low, losing to a previously winless Dolphins team that the Jets clearly have a talent edge against. The Jets never led in the game. It wouldn't have surprised anyone if Glenn was the first coach fired this season on Monday, though the Jets made no such decision.

One unbelievable stat got attention Sunday: New York has been outscored 107-6 in the final two minutes of the first half through Glenn's 24 games. On Sunday, Glenn made the curious decision to not call timeouts late in the first half with the Dolphins in the red zone, which could have preserved time for the offense to answer. Glenn said he thought his defense would get a stop, but "maybe we should have" used the timeouts. Either way, the continued failures late in the half are startling.

"If I were them, I would do two-minute every day of my life until further notice," former Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said on NBC.

29. Miami Dolphins (1-5, Last week: 32)

The Dolphins can relax. There was always the hope that the team with the NFL's thinnest roster could beat the Jets in one of their two meetings, and that happened. Everyone focuses on the winless teams in the NFL but nobody remembers the one-loss teams, so the Dolphins are spared a lot of grief that would have come had their winless season continued through November. They're still probably not the 29th best team in the NFL but they deserved a bump up after outplaying the Jets.

"It was a really, really special moment, one that I'm appreciative of and one that I won't forget. It was fun," Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley said, according to Associated Press. "They deserve it. You could feel a lot come out of it. I'm very happy for the players. They did a great job."

28. Indianapolis Colts (2-5, LW: 28)

For a while, it looked like the Colts might beat the NFL's only remaining undefeated team. Indianapolis led 10-6 at halftime and that lead held through the third quarter. But in the fourth quarter the Colts were outscored 10-0 and it was just another loss for a team that has already fired its general manager and has to be considering a change at head coach too.

Coach Shane Steichen is being asked if he'll consider a quarterback change. Steichen said he hasn't considered replacing Daniel Jones with Anthony Richardson Sr. Jones' passer rating is down to 69.4. Richardson hasn't been good in the NFL but at some point something has to change. Steichen may not consider it, but he might not be the one making that call by the end of the season.

27. Arizona Cardinals (2-5, LW: 24)

There's so much going wrong with the Cardinals that it's not like a quarterback change would make a difference. Jacoby Brissett isn't the reason Arizona is losing, and rookie Carson Beck isn't going to fix much. But there's not much else to discuss around that team so head coach Mike LaFleur will be asked about it after every loss. After losing to the Broncos on Sunday, LaFleur again confirmed that Brissett is his QB1.

The Cardinals are wasting another great season by tight end Trey McBride, who had 10 catches for 111 yards Sunday. McBride leads the NFL with 59 receptions and has 472 yards. He is on an early Hall of Fame pace, and the Cardinals are 21-52 in games he has played.

26. Philadelphia Eagles (2-5, LW: 27)

It could get ugly in Philadephia the rest of the season. This was a team that started the season with legitimate hope of being a Super Bowl contender. They could end up with a top-five draft pick in April.

There is still enough talent on the roster to be competitive in games, but the effort in the second half against Dallas wasn't inspiring. The offense quit moving the ball and the defense really let down. The Cowboys, who had been struggling to run the ball, had 204 yards on the ground. Dak Prescott threw three touchdown passes. The Eagles were completely flat on defense for most of Monday night.

Young teams can sometimes play well in the second half of the season as they keep fighting, like the Saints did last season. That usually doesn't happen for teams that have recently won a championship, were expected to compete for another this season and are already out of the race before the end of October.

25. New Orleans Saints (2-5, LW: 23)

It seems more and more like the Saints just caught an easy part of their schedule late last season, throwing everyone off on how good they could be. In a loss to the Steelers, the Saints' running backs had 11 yards on 14 carries. The defense got only two stops the entire game. A missed field goal in the fourth quarter was a big blow. The Saints simply aren't a very good team.

Everything going forward is framed through an ominous message last week from Saints owner Gayle Benson, who was clearly not happy with the team's start this season.

"[Head coach] Kellen Moore and his coaches are responsible for preparing our players to perform," Benson said at a gathering of the Greater New Orleans Quarterback Club, according to the Associated Press. "[General manager] Mickey Loomis and our football staff are responsible for building a roster capable of sustained success. The players are responsible for their preparation and execution. I am responsible for holding this organization accountable.

"Words will not restore our fans' confidence. Our performance must do that."

24. Washington Commanders (1-4-1, LW: 25)

The big question for the Commanders coming out of the bye will be how to replace top receiver Terry McLaurin, who is done for the season with a torn patellar tendon. Stefon Diggs' role will increase, though he is miscast as a top option at this point in his career. Tight end Chig Okonkwo had season highs with seven catches on seven targets last week, and his usage will have to increase without McLaurin. Rookie receiver Antonio Williams, a third-round draft pick who has shown flashes, has a big opportunity ahead.

The Commanders are 1-4-1 but not completely out of the NFC East race due to the malaise elsewhere in the division. But the Commanders first need to figure out how to adequately replace their best pass catcher.

23. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-5, LW: 26)

Nobody counted on the Buccaneers scoring 43 points with Baker Mayfield having just 64 passing yards. The Panthers were very sloppy on Sunday, but the Buccaneers had something to do with that. The 43-13 win gave new life to Tampa Bay's season.

Tampa Bay, who was 1-5 before Sunday, now has a 32.5% chance to win the NFC South, according to DVOA. That's the second-best chance, and not far behind Carolina at 36.3%. Now with Mayfield healthy — presumably anyway, it was hard to tell in 11 low-stress passing attempts in his return from a dislocated thumb — and in a bad division, the Buccaneers can feel like their season is alive even with just two wins.

"You don't change the process just because of the results," Mayfield said, according to the team's site. "We've been working on how to play together, how to come together, so to see it come together in a win like this, guys can continue to build on that."

22. Las Vegas Raiders (3-4, LW: 18)

The Raiders have had a tough schedule the last four games, but Sunday's loss to the Rams was disheartening. They trailed 28-6 before a fourth-quarter rally. The offense was particularly ineffective, which brought about more questions over the quarterback situation. Sunday's loss wasn't all Kirk Cousins' fault, but impatience over rookie Fernando Mendoza's first start was inevitable upon the first signs of trouble.

Head coach Klint Kubiak is a rookie at his job, and he could have shut down any quarterback speculation Sunday when asked. Instead he said the team was "thinking about everything," which invited a quarterback controversy. That lasted less than 24 hours. Kubiak made it clear Monday that Cousins would start. But he has invited weekly speculation on the issue.

"Eventually Fernando is going to play football, we have a plan but we don't have a timeline for that," Kubiak told the media Monday. "Kirk is playing really well, and we're in the hunt.

"Fernando is going to play at some point. It's not going to be this week."

21. Houston Texans (2-5, LW: 17)

The Texans' loss Sunday was one of the most damaging of the entire NFL season. They were double-digit favorites to beat the Giants, and a win over New York would have put Houston at 3-4, not far behind 4-2 Jacksonville with a head-to-head win over the Jaguars. And the Texans had a massive letdown in an overtime loss to the Giants. At 2-5, their margin of error is incredibly slim with 10 games to go.

At this point it's clear the Texans are nowhere near as good on defense as expected. They were 16th in defensive DVOA through Sunday's games and 24th in EPA (expected points added) allowed. Needing a stop in overtime Sunday, Houston allowed runs of 42 and 30 yards on back-to-back plays that ended the game.

"No magical elixir is going to drop out of the sky and ... fix it," Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said according to AP. "We fix it by putting the work in and getting better at fundamentals of football and that's where we've got to just own it. As coaches, as players, we've all got to own it and we've got to find a way to turn this thing around."

20. Dallas Cowboys (3-4, LW: 21)

There are still defensive problems. The Eagles, without several key starters on offense including Jalen Hurts, moved the ball with ease on their first two drives that ended in touchdowns. But Dallas deserves credit for pitching a fourth-quarter shutout in a win it had to have. And the Cowboys’ offense seems to be over whatever slump it was in.

Head coach Brian Schottenheimer challenged the offense to find balance, and it responded with 204 rushing yards on 5.4 yards per attempt on Monday night. If the Cowboys can run the ball like that, they'll have a few more 38-point games. And they might need those types of games, unless the defense's fourth-quarter performance is a sign of improvement.

19. Atlanta Falcons (3-4, LW: 22)

The Falcons might be the toughest team in the NFL to figure out. Even if we discount the first two games, which Michael Penix Jr. missed, they have three impressive wins and two bad home losses. They're back on the upswing after beating the previously undefeated 49ers on Sunday. Even within the victory, we saw the best and worst of the Falcons. They fell behind 14-3, then outscored San Francisco 26-6 the rest of the game.

The star Sunday was rookie linebacker Kendal Daniels, who a week before was immobilized on the field and taken off on a stretcher after taking a knee to the head. He was back Sunday, with 11 tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception that practically clinched the win.

"I wasn't scared, but I definitely thought about it," Daniels said, via WSBTV. "I haven't been in full pads all week. What if I'm not OK? But once I got my first tackle in pregame, I was good."

18. Carolina Panthers (3-3, LW: 13)

Every team is allowed a mulligan or two over a long season, but what happened Sunday was atrocious from the Panthers. They trailed 43-6 at home to a Buccaneers team that had just one win beforehand. Carolina turned it over four times. It even had an extra point blocked and returned for 2 points. Bryce Young had by far his worst game of the season.

For a team that had shown signs of progress, it was bad. Even if it was just an off game, its run defense is a concern. Tampa Bay rushed for 258 yards. Carolina also gave up 291 rushing yards in the opener against Chicago.

"Obviously they found something today, and it's a copycat league, so we got to stop the bleeding because teams are going to watch this film and try to exploit any weaknesses in our defense," linebacker Bobby Okereke told the team's site.

17. New York Giants (4-2-1, LW: 20)

There should be skepticism on the Giants, but Sunday was the type of win that will go a long way in a bad NFC East. The Giants were big underdogs at Houston but won in overtime, with J.J. McCarthy playing well in his first start and the running game coming alive.

The Giants face the Eagles and Commanders coming out of their Week 8 bye, two winnable games that could boost them to a huge lead in the division. Giants head coach John Harbaugh made quite a statement after the game, making it clear that after beating the Texans the Giants will be contenders in the division the rest of the way.

"The two most important games of the season will be coming up after we come back from the bye, which will set the direction for the rest of the season really," Harbaugh said, according to the team's site. "But we're going to be in this thing until the end now. This was a pivotal game. This was a really high-pressure game for our team. We didn't talk about that, but they all knew how important this game was, and they responded accordingly."

16. Cleveland Browns (5-2, LW: 19)

The Browns are on the kind of exciting run in close games that has rarely been seen in NFL history.

Browns are just the second team since the 1970 merger to record a game-winning score in the final four minutes of regulation (or OT) in each of their first five wins of a season. (2016 Lions)

(via @NFL345)
— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) October 26, 2026

Cleveland got another last-second win when it responded to a game-tying touchdown by Tennessee with 58 seconds left by putting together a quick drive for the game-winning field goal as time expired. Pulling out close wins every week is unsustainable ("We're gonna have to figure out how to start faster. That's for damn sure," head coach Todd Monken said), but a 5-2 record will keep the Browns in playoff contention. Odds are skeptical. DVOA has the Browns with just a 30% chance to make the playoffs. That's not stopping the good vibes.

"There's something about this group," Monken said, via the team's site. "There's something about those guys that play the next play and continue to fight for each other."

15. Green Bay Packers (4-3, LW: 14)

The NFL's officiating issues from early in the season hit a crescendo in Detroit on Sunday, when several questionable calls were made. The Packers lost 20-17. They were outraged, and safety Xavier McKinney decided it was worth the fine to air out the officiating problem.

"I would rather get fined and try to help my team out because I see what's going on, and I see that it's killing us," McKinney said. "We all see it. We all see what's going on. Everybody sees what's going on, the fans see what's going on. … You're not even reviewing what you're calling. …

"Even they're looking at it, like, OK that's not it. I'm asking other refs and they're like, 'Oh, I'm not over there.' It's a lot of s*** that doesn't make sense right there."

Officiating or not, the Packers made key errors. Josh Jacobs was good in his return, but he dropped a pass in the end zone in the fourth quarter. Trey Smack missed two short field goals, one that was partially blocked right after Jacobs’ drop. Matt LaFleur passed on a field goal to go for it on fourth-and-4 in the first half. Green Bay put up only 17 points on a bad Lions defense. And the officiating didn't help either.

14. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2, LW: 16)

Four of the Steelers' wins have come against losing teams (combined record: 9-19). They have won only one game by more than seven points, but they also have a victory over the Bengals and at some point it doesn't matter who the Steelers have beaten. They're 5-2 and going to be in playoff contention all season. They're making just enough plays, like they did to beat the 2-5 Saints on Sunday.

What might keep the Steelers going is the running back combination of Jaylen Warren, who has emerged as one of the best playmakers at the position this season, and Rico Dowdle, one of the best backups in the league. They had 223 of Pittsburgh's 343 yards on Sunday.

"Anytime we can just line up and give you Jaylen and Rico all day, that's a good day for us," Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy said, according to the team's site.

13. Los Angeles Rams (3-4, LW: 15)

The Rams had their best game of the season Sunday. They let down a bit in the fourth quarter and gave the Raiders hope for a comeback, but the story was the 28-6 lead they built in the first half.

The Rams will be short on receivers, barring a much-needed trade, with Davante Adams out until perhaps late in the regular season. The offense might need to be reinvented as a run-first unit. We saw a bit of that Sunday. Kyren Williams rushed for 99 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries and Blake Corum had 93 yards and a touchdown (and had two others called back due to penalties) on 17 carries.

"That's a key factor for us," Rams head coach Sean McVay said via Rams Wire. "Any good offense that we've had here that I've been a part of, you've got to be able to do both."

12. Denver Broncos (5-2, LW: 12)

It's unfair to just eliminate three long plays for a team and judge it on the rest of its production. Those explosive plays are earned. And the Broncos got a 62-yard touchdown run from Bo Nix, a 52-yard touchdown on a short pass to RJ Harvey and a 47-yard catch to Marvin Mims Jr. that set up a touchdown.

Per @EliasSports, Bo Nix is only 5th NFL to have 50+yard TD run and 50+yard TD pass in same game.
He joins Justin Fields (2022), Lamar Jackson (2022), Cam Newton (2012) and Ace Parker (1938).
— MikeKlis9NEWS (@mikeklis9news) October 25, 2026

On the Broncos' other 53 plays, they gained only 216 yards. That's a middling 4 yards per play. Still, Sunday was another win. The Broncos are 5-2 and the Chiefs' loss on Sunday sets up a game that should frame the rest of the AFC West race as the Chiefs visit Denver in Week 8. The Broncos will have to find some consistency on offense and they have a few key injuries to track: receiver Jaylen Waddle has a chest injury, defensive lineman Zach Allen hurt his hamstring and cornerback Pat Surtain II has missed three straight games with an ankle injury.

11. New England Patriots (4-3, LW: 7)

Only two teams are worse than -5 in turnover differential. The Colts are last in the league at -9, and the Patriots are -7. It's impressive New England is above .500 given that mark. The other five teams at -4 or worse are under .500. The big turnover Thursday night that cost the Patriots dearly was a bad pass by Drake Maye into the end zone that was picked off by linebacker D'Marco Jackson. That was a big difference in a 30-24 loss at the Bears.

Maye played well other than that blemish. He had 321 passing yards and two touchdowns with that interception. One mistake swinging the game showed how slight the margins are in the NFL.

"Those plays, I talk about all the time, those plays that can swing the game, can impact the game," Maye said. "That was definitely one of them right there. I wish I definitely had that one back."

10. Detroit Lions (4-2, LW: 11)

The Lions got a big win Sunday and a big return to the lineup. Safety Brian Branch was back after tearing his Achilles last season, and he had four tackles and an interception. He can make a big difference in a defense that needs the boost.

"That's just who he is, man," linebacker Derrick Barnes told MLive.com. "He a ballhawk, man. He run, he hits, man. He plays fast the whole game. That's who he is, man. And a lot of people feed off the energy."

Branch played 45 snaps, which was 67% of the Lions' defensive plays. That number will increase as he gets back to full strength. The Lions held the Packers to 17 points with Branch back in the lineup, which is progress from a unit that had struggled all season.

9. Baltimore Ravens (4-3, LW: 4)

The Lamar Jackson situation is frustrating. The Ravens don't want Jackson to come back too soon and struggle playing through an injury, as he did last season, but they clearly needed him in a big game against the Bengals on Sunday. The Ravens did not score after halftime and lost 35-13. It's the second straight week they were shut out in the second half and lost as a result.

Jackson practiced some last week and is seemingly close to a return. Baltimore's next two games are at the Bills and against the Jaguars. At the end of that, we'll know where the Ravens' season is headed. And if Jackson has returned to save it.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-2, LW: 9)

Brian Thomas Jr.'s playing time hasn't been above 62.4% in any game all season. Against Houston before the bye he played 15 snaps, including none in the second half. Over the Jaguars' last four games he has 25 yards. Yet, for some reason, Jaguars head coach Liam Coen predicted more for Thomas coming out of the bye.

"He's going to be able to help us make plays this week," Coen said, via Jags Wire. "I'd bet it, I know it."

Since Coen oversees decisions such as playing Thomas 15 snaps in the Jaguars' last game, that proclamation seems dubious. Thomas has been cut out of the offense, two years after he was a first-round draft pick and put up 1,282 yards as a rookie. It seems like he's a good bet to be dealt before the Nov. 10 trade deadline.

7. Seattle Seahawks (4-3, LW: 8)

Seattle has risen to the top spot in defensive DVOA this season after a phenomenal performance against Kansas City. It shut down everything KC wanted to do, starting with Kenneth Walker III.

The Seahawks held the Chiefs to their fewest points (3, tied), total yards (213), first downs (11), and red zone drives (0) in any game started by Patrick Mahomes.
— NFL Researcher (@NFL_Researcher) October 26, 2026

The problem for the Seahawks is they're 22nd on offense in DVOA. It's clear that the Seahawks have Jaxon Smith-Njigba and little else, although Emanuel Wilson did have 100 rushing yards and Zach Charbonnet is closing in on a return from a torn ACL. But no team needs a trade before the deadline more than Seattle, which has to find another playmaker.

6. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2, LW: 10)

The Bengals are in a great place at 4-2 after getting a really good road divisional win over the Ravens. You're about to hear more Joe Burrow MVP buzz soon, perhaps even this week. Burrow leads the NFL with a 71.7% completion percentage and has a career best 110.4 passer rating. He has 1,653 yards, 15 touchdowns and three interceptions for a team that is now favored in betting markets to win the division. On Sunday he had 249 yards and four touchdowns in the second half alone against Baltimore in a huge game for the Bengals' season. He also hasn't won MVP before, and voters like spreading the award around. It's surprising there hasn't been more talk about him creeping up on being the favorite.

"The second half, I think I was pretty lights out," Burrow said, via the team's transcripts.

5. Chicago Bears (5-2, LW: 6)

The Bears have scored 30 or more points in three of Caleb Williams' four starts. The fourth was a surprising three-point effort against the Vikings, which probably says a lot about how good Minnesota's defense is this season. Chicago's offense might be just as good as Ben Johnson said it would be.

One thing that had been a question about Williams coming into the season was him missing too many passes. His completion percentage was 58.1% last season. He was one of two quarterbacks with on-target percentage of less than 70% last season, according to Pro Football Reference, and the other was J.J. McCarthy. This season that has flipped. He has a completion percentage of 71%, just off the league lead. His on-target percentage is up to 79.6%, third in the NFL. He has gone from one of the most inaccurate quarterbacks to one of the most accurate in his third season. Williams has played just four games this season, but it appears he has arrived as one of the NFL's best QBs.

4. Kansas City Chiefs (5-1, LW: 2)

The Chiefs are allowed one bad game, in a hostile road environment against a great defense. They couldn't get anything going in a 20-3 loss. But it was troubling how little Kansas City did on offense once Kenneth Walker III was taken out of the equation. Walker had 36 rushing yards. Nobody else made an impact; no other Chief posted more than 44 yards.

Rashee Rice was out and that affected the offense. However, the Chiefs still have to be considered a candidate to make a trade for a receiver before the deadline to alleviate their recurring issues in the passing game.

"So you got to feel it on that plane ride home and understand that it sucks. But then how can you build off of it?" quarterback Patrick Mahomes said, via Chiefs Wire. "The biggest thing is as we get back and get back to that film study on the Broncos, you got to see where you made your mistakes and how they're going to try to execute, and then do stuff to combat that and play better. So, obviously, it sucks right now, but we'll be full steam ahead, trying to do our best to find a way to win this next week."

3. Minnesota Vikings (6-0, LW: 5)

One side note to the Vikings' season is watching how J.J. McCarthy's time with the Giants plays out. So far, McCarthy has been very good. Less than one month after being traded to the Giants, McCarthy had 243 yards in just 11 minutes off the bench against the Saints in Week 6 and 252 yards in a mistake-free game against Houston, which New York won in overtime.

The Vikings gave McCarthy 10 starts, gave up on him, then traded the 2024 10th pick of the draft for a fifth-round selection. They did so while going all-in on Kyler Murray, who has been mostly underwhelming despite the team's great start to the season. And that came a year after allowing Sam Darnold to leave in free agency to Seattle, where he promptly won a Super Bowl. If McCarthy has a good season for the Giants, everyone will be examining how the Vikings couldn't make it work and why they jumped ship so quickly, for such little return on investment.

2. Buffalo Bills (5-1, LW: 3)

The Vikings could have been ranked ahead of the Bills. Minnesota hasn't lost yet, and its defense is far better than Buffalo’s. The one factor in keeping the Bills at No. 2 is Josh Allen, who is adding 0.351 adjusted EPA per play, tops among quarterbacks with at least 150 snaps. No quarterback over the last two seasons has reached that mark, not even Allen in his 2024 MVP season. And Buffalo's results have been very good, with Allen carrying the team. The Bills' only loss was to a capable Patriots team that was desperate to save its season after a slow start.

The Bills' next game, after the bye, is hosting the Ravens on Sunday. It's unclear if Lamar Jackson will return for that one. Then they play at the Vikings on a Monday night in Week 9, which is a much better matchup than anyone could have anticipated when it was scheduled.

1. San Francisco 49ers (6-1, LW: 1)

The bye is coming at a good time for the 49ers. One of the reasons Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel Sr., Nick Bosa and others might have been inactive Sunday was because the bye would give them an extra week of rest before their return. Niners tight end George Kittle was unwilling to use the injuries as an excuse for the loss to the Falcons.

"It's the NFL, injuries happen," Kittle told NBC Sports Bay Area. "It's just how much depth do you have, how many vets do you have that can stay healthy that can like continue to keep the elevation, like the standard of play up, you know, that's all that really matters."

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