NFL power rankings: 49ers stay hot, Rams plummet in Week 7

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KANSAS CITY, MO – OCTOBER 13: Carlos Hyde #23 of the Houston Texans celebrates his second quarter rushing touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on October 13, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images) /

NFL Power Rankings: Nos. 10-5

. 4-1. Previous: . Buffalo Bills. 10. team. 16

BYE

Record-wise, the Bills should be higher in our NFL power rankings. Coming off the bye, though, there’s no change.

Buffalo can continue its hot start in 2019 by beating up on the lowly Dolphins in Week 7.

Previous: . Minnesota Vikings. 9. team. 60. . 4-2

W, 38-20 vs. Eagles

So much for all that scrutiny surrounding the Vikings wide receivers, namely Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. Both found the end zone on Sunday against the Eagles, and Diggs only managed to put up an impressive seven-catch, 167-yard, three-touchdown effort during the lopsided blowout.

He alone could lift Minnesota in our NFL power rankings, although quarterback Kirk Cousins did a lot to silence his critics, too, tossing four touchdowns against one interception.

The Vikings appear to have turned around their early season woes.

4-2. Previous: . Baltimore Ravens. 8. team. 26.

W, 23-17 vs. Bengals

Beating the Bengals isn’t impressive in of itself. But the Ravens are 4-2 for a lot of the right reasons, especially quarterback Lamar Jackson.

Jackson was solid enough with his arm. But when he’s the leading rusher, picking up 152 yards and a touchdown this way, there are few defensive game plans equipped to properly contain him.

Meanwhile, Baltimore’s defense held the lowly Bengals to a mere 33 yards on the ground, which kept Cincinnati’s offense one-dimensional. That was a good formula for head coach John Harbaugh, who now has his sights on the AFC North crown with the Browns faltering.

. 4-2. Previous: . Kansas City Chiefs. 7. team. 124

L, 31-24 vs. Texans

Rare are Chiefs losing streaks these days, yet that’s what has happened after Kansas City has now dropped two in a row, first to the Colts and now to the Texans at home at Arrowhead Stadium.

Sure, quarterback Patrick Mahomes was electrifying again, and he was happy to see wide receiver Tyreek Hill return from injury. Hill managed a two-touchdown performance, and the Chiefs offense looked its typical self against one of the better defenses in the NFL.

The problem, though, is the Texans had little trouble moving the ball against a still-porous K.C. defense, which gave up a whopping 192 rush yards over the course of the game.

The Chiefs need to figure things out, defensively, and the fall in our NFL power rankings is justified as a result. Mahomes and the offense can’t be asked to do everything each and every week.

4-2. Previous: . Houston Texans. 6. team. 10.

W, 31-24 @ Chiefs

This is the matchup fans wanted to see, Mahomes versus Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson.

Mahomes might have looked better in the box score, as Watson tossed one touchdown against two interceptions. But Watson got the final laugh, as Houston used a beefy ground attack to completely overwhelm Kansas City’s defense.

It was a revenge game for running back Carlos Hyde, who was traded from the Chiefs to Houston earlier this season. Hyde rushed for a notable 116 yards and a touchdown, averaging 4.5 yards in the process.

In total, Houston put up just shy of 200 yards of rushing offense.

More importantly, this was quite the statement game on the road against one of the better teams in the conference. And give credit to Houston’s defense for making Mahomes look slightly less than godlike. That’s an impressive feat.