What a week in the National Football League! Seven of the 14 matches were decided by three points or less. Including one-point wins over the Ravens and Steelers. It was also a week road clubs were victorious in more than half (8) of the 14 competitions. How do we make sense of the fact that less than half (14) of the league’s 32 teams are above the .500 mark?

As for the four who did not play in Week 10; The Browns, Packers, Raiders and Seahawks were off last week. However, it’s somewhat fascinating to note that everyone outside of Green Bay currently resides in the basements of their own division.

Every team in the league has now played at least nine games and suddenly There are only eight weeks left until the end of the regular season. Here are the latest NFL Division Power Rankings, not to be confused with the 32-team version. There was a lot of confusion this week when it came to the top half of the list.

8. AFC South

Last week: 8.

All four teams in the division were in action on Sunday, making it a troublesome day for this group. Doug Pederson’s last-place club would be without quarterback Trevor Lawrence as they took on the visiting Vikings, while Tennessee would head west to battle the Chargers. The Colts welcomed the surging Bills to Indianapolis. Finally, the top-seeded Texans hosted the Lions in a battle of the division leaders on Sunday night. When the dust settled, all four clubs were relegated, ensuring this group’s place at the bottom of the standings.

Start with Shane Steichen’s club, where he was beaten by veteran Joe Flacco’s too many mistakes. He hit an early six and turned the ball over four times to lose 30-20. The Jaguars took down Minnesota’s Sam Darnold, but Mac Jones (replacing the injured Trevor Lawrence) committed three turnovers in the 12-7 defeat. For the first time in ’24, The Titans didn’t turn the ball over and still fell to the Bolts. The falling Texans squandered a 23-7 halftime lead against the Lions and are 1-3 in their last four games.

7. NFC South

Last week: 7.

The top-seeded Falcons were away for the fourth time but were already playing their fifth game against league rivals. They had the opportunity to sweep the struggling Saints for the first time since 2016 (who also faced an NFC South opponent for the fifth time this season). The Panthers were overseas to face the Giants, while the battered Buccaneers were the losers of three games. I was hoping to take advantage of a 49ers team that has been inconsistent at best this year but has running back Christian McCaffrey.

All three matches were decided by three points. Atlanta racked up 468 yards, but Kirk Cousins ​​had trouble avoiding the Saints’ passing attack. Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo had a memorable day. He missed three of his four field goal attempts by every possible means, and New Orleans ended its seven-game losing streak with a 20-17 victory. Carolina and the Giants went into overtime, and the Panthers earned their second straight win with a 20-17 win. The understaffed Bucs suffered their fourth straight defeat, losing 23-20 in the shootout.

6. AFC East

Last week: 6.

All four members of the AFC East were on the road. The top-seeded Bills were headed to Indianapolis, the Patriots were in the Windy City, and the disappointing Jets were in the desert to face the NFC West leaders. The final game of Week 10 was played at SoFi Stadium on Monday night, with the Dolphins facing Sean McVay’s revamped Rams in the midst of their second three-game losing streak of the season.

Josh Allen and the division leaders weren’t at their best, but they had more than enough to fend off the error-prone Colts. Allen threw a pair of interceptions (4 in his last 3 games), but the Bills forced four turnovers to win their fifth straight game. The Pats sacked Bears quarterback Caleb Williams in a 19-3 victory. The Dolphins held the Rams to five points in a huge 23-15 win. Are you talking about disaster? Aaron Rodgers and the Jets’ defense looked unprepared and inept in an embarrassing 31-6 loss to the Cardinals.

5. NFC West

Last week: 5.

Heading into the weekend, the surprising Arizona Cardinals were the only club with a winning record in the NFC West. They hosted the well-rested Jets, who were looking to make it four straight wins. Meanwhile, the 49ers and running back Christian McCaffrey headed east to Tampa in the fight for the 2023 league champions. The resurgent Rams welcome the Dolphins to SoFi Stadium on Monday night. The Seahawks, who have fallen to 1-5 in their last six games after a 3-0 start, have taken some time off lately to consider what went wrong.

Jonathan Gannon’s club continued to stay hot, outscoring the Jets by a score of 31-6. The red-hot Kyler Murray put up TD drives of 70, 70, 70 and 88 yards, respectively, in the impressive victory. Brock Purdy threw for 353 yards and two scores, but kicker Jake Moody pushed three of his first five field goal attempts either left or right. He nailed a 44-yarder on the final play of the game and the Niners escaped Tampa 23-20. The Rams settled for field goals in a 23-15 loss to Miami on Monday night.

4. NFC East

Last week: 2.

The improved Commanders can double their victory total in 2023 if they can calm the AFC North-leading Steelers. Earlier in the day in Munich, the Giants and Panthers faced off as a 2-7 team. A major divisional rivalry was reignited after the Cowboys went on a four-game winning streak with an Eagles team without Dak Prescott. Therefore, only one team could win in this league.

New York fell behind by 10 points to Carolina and rallied to tie the game. In overtime, Giants running back Tyrone Tracy forced a turnover and set up the Panthers’ game-winning field goal. Dan Quinn’s team was ahead by 10 points in the third quarter but lost at home for the first time this season. Washington was limited to a season-low 242 yards. The Cowboys have lost four straight and their home losing streak has now reached five games. Dallas fell to 3-6, meaning a fourth straight 12-5 season will not happen.

In total, the current losing streaks of the Giants (5) and Cowboys (4) have caused this division to drop two spots.

3. AFC West

Last week: 4.

This is a league worth watching, except perhaps for the Silver and Black. The Raiders are in the midst of a five-game streak after splitting their first four games and have a combined score of 154-90 in those setbacks. The Chiefs looked to extend their 14-game winning streak when the Broncos visited Kansas City on Sunday. Meanwhile, the improving Chargers hosted the disappointing Titans.

At Arrowhead Stadium, Sean Payton’s team won most of the battles but lost the war of its own. Rookie quarterback Bo Nix threw for 215 yards and two scores and led the club down the field for a game-winning 35-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter. As it turned out, all 11 Chiefs rushed in front of Denver kicker Wil Lutz, and Andy Reid’s team prevailed once again, 16-14. The Bolts’ grounding and defense became the story once again as the club improved to 6-3 with one more win from last season. Despite the Broncos’ two consecutive losses (5-5), three teams in the league continue to watch this game.

2. AFC North

Last week: 3.

With the disappointing 2-7 Browns coming off the game, the start of Week 10 in the NFL featured a rematch of one of the wildest games of the season. Earlier this year in Cincinnati (Week 5), the Ravens defeated the Bengals 41-38 in overtime in Cincinnati. Meanwhile, there was a somewhat unexpected battle between the top-seeded teams on Sunday in Landover, where the revamped Steelers visited the surprising Commanders.

Both matches were one-point victories. John Harbaugh’s club He overcame a 21-7 deficit in the third quarter, as well as a sensational performance from Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (11 receptions for 264 yards, 3 TDs) to take a 35-28 lead with 1:49 left in the game. passed. Lamar Jackson’s fourth TD pass. Joe Burrow and Chase connected for a five-yard score with 38 seconds to play, then failed on the two-point conversion attempt. Mike Tomlin’s club jumped out to a 14-7 lead over Washington, fell behind by 10 points in the third quarter, and then rallied to win. Russell Wilson’s 32-yard TD throw to newly acquired Mike Williams (and PAT) with 2:22 to play was the difference, as was the Commanders’ defensive offsides late in the game to kill the clock.

1. NFC North

Last week: 1.

The third-place Packers fell behind, but every other team in the division was on the move. Only the slumping Bears were at home as they faced the struggling New England Patriots. While the Vikings were in Jacksonville, the red-hot Lions brought a six-game winning streak to Houston in a prime-time showdown of the league leaders. There were some ugly performances from the top three quarterbacks in the NFC South, but two of those clubs managed to come away with wins. Meanwhile, the slide continues in the Windy City.

The Bears lost their third straight game. During that span, the team scored just two touchdowns, totaled 27 points, and allowed 18 sacks. On Monday, head coach Matt Eberflus talked about the changes, so stay tuned. Against the Jaguars, Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold was stripped three times and the club conceded four touchdowns in a 12-7 victory. Detroit’s Jared Goff had five interceptions in the Lone Star State on Sunday night. However, the club scored the last 19 points of the match to win 26-23.