The Latest GPR and Some Other NFL Thoughts

Week 11 of the NFL season kicks off in less that two hours, so I thought it would be a good time to release the Week 10 Grandstander Power Rankings.

1. Vikings (8-1)
2. Eagles (8-1)
3. Chiefs (7-2)
4. Dolphins (7-2)

• Knocking On The Door.....Bills 6-3, Cowboys 6-3, Giants 7-2, Titans 6-3

The Bills, whom I think may still be the best team in the NFL, fall from the top 4 following two straight losses, and the Vikings, who notched one of those wins over the Bills, rise to the top based upon that quality win and a tied-for-the-best record in in the League of 8-1.  The previously undefeated Eagles fall to number two based upon their loss to a so-so Washington team.

Some movement could be anticipated in Week 11 with some key match ups including the Titans-Packers tonight, Bills-Browns, Eagles-Colts, Giants-Lions, and, in what could be the Game of the Week, Cowboys-Vikings on Sunday, and Chiefs-Chargers on Monday night.

Other thoughts from Week 10....

• Prior to the Steelers-Saints game, I posted on Facebook: "Looking forward to seeing Andy Dalton throwing his trademark Soul Crushing Interception afternoon. The #bengalsdna will show itself."  The Red Rifle didn't let me down and he threw not one, but two such interceptions that afternoon, and the Steelers won their third game of the seasons.
• How about the Colts?  After being ridiculed all week for hiring Jeff Saturday out of his chair at ESPN to be their interim coach, they pull off a 25-20 win over the Raiders.  The Colts aren't any good, they appear to be tanking this year, and Saturday could be back at his post in Bristol next season, but for one day, anyway, that had to be a pretty sweet win.
• As for the Raiders, wow.  A playoff team last year with high expectations for 2022, they are now a 2-7 dumpster fire.
• I never got around to do it, but after Week 9, I wanted to write a piece talking about the decline of quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady,  Not so fast, my friend.  Rodgers rebounded last week with a strong performance and a win over the Cowboys.  As far as Brady goes, watching him lead a sixty yard drive down field in 35 seconds with no timeouts and touchdown to beat the Rams, I will say this:  his skills may have eroded this season, but as they say in the old country song "I'm not as good as I once was, but I'm as good once as I ever was."  With a game on the line with two minutes to go in the fourth quarter, is there any other QB in the league that you would want instead  of Tom Brady?  Patrick Mahomes, maybe, but I can't think of anyone else off the top of my head.
• What if someone came to you before the season began and said "After ten weeks of the season, the Steelers would have the same record as the defending Super Bowl champion Rams.  I hope that Steelers fans would have read the fine print before signing on for that, because the Steelers and Rams are indeed tied with records of 3-6.  The Rams put all of their eggs in one basket last year to go for a Super Bowl, and they succeeded, but right now, Rams fans and even the Rams themselves have to be asking....

• I don't know about you, but I am very much looking forward to tonight's Thursday night game between the Titans and Packers.  Tennessee could stake a real claim to inclusion in the GPR Top Four with an impressive win, and how that plays out will depend on which Aaron Rodgers shows up at Lambeau tonight, the one who engineered that upset of Dallas last week, or the guy at the controls through that five game losing streak that preceded that Cowboys game.