Week 5 Edition Of The Best Teams

The Green Bay Packers stand as the fifth-best team for now. Everyone is down on them for their performance against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night when the game ended in a 40-40 tie. Green Bay was more than a touchdown favorite heading into the game, so a tie felt like a loss for some people.

For me, though, it wasn’t a big deal. Revenge games are always a little tricky. Micah Parsons was making his return to Dallas for the first time since he was traded to the Packers.

When a player goes back home, numerous external factors influence these games. The emotions and motivation tend to be a bigger factor than the actual X’s and O’s. A prime example was when Peyton Manning returned to Indianapolis as a Denver Bronco.

The Broncos entered that game undefeated, having won their first six games, and faced the 4-2 Indianapolis Colts. Denver was the better team, but ended up losing 39-33. Tom Brady is another example.

In 2021, Brady made his return to Foxborough as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the first time. The Buccaneers were clearly the better team heading into that week four matchup. The New England Patriots had a rookie quarterback in Mac Jones, while Tampa Bay was the defending Super Bowl champs.

Everyone thought it was going to be a rout, but the Buccaneers ended up winning 19-17 on a game-winning field goal. Revenge games are weird, so I don’t think the Packers should be looked down on for tying with the Cowboys.

Jordan Love has shown that he is taking that next step, throwing for eight touchdowns to just one interception on the season. Parsons and that defense were outstanding in the first three games, holding offenses like the Detroit Lions to just 13 points. The defense has shown enough to get the benefit of the doubt for their poor play in Dallas Sunday Night, and we can chalk it up to being that weird revenge game.

Green Bay is still a team that no one should want to face.

4. Detroit Lions

The fourth-best team, in my opinion, is the Detroit Lions. After week one, things looked bleak when they scored 13 points against the Packers. Many thought that Ben Johnson’s departure was going to be hard on this team.

Turns out that week one performance was just a blip. The Lions offense went back to being the well-oiled machine they were a year ago. Since the week one snoozer, they have scored 52, 38, and 34. Jared Goff picked up right where he left off, as he has thrown for nine touchdowns to just two interceptions.

The running back room of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery has spearheaded the sixth-best rushing offense in the league with 139 yards per game.

The defense is not perfect, but it is so much better and healthier than it was a year ago. Detroit ranks 14th in total defense, which they can definitely live with. If your offense can put up 50+ points on any given Sunday, you need a defense that is opportunistic and clutch on key downs.

So far, the Lions have forced seven turnovers in four games, which is a good pace for them. They are ranked in the bottom half in allowing third downs at 41.7% so if they can improve that a bit, they can make some serious noise.

3. Kansas City Chiefs

The third-best team is the dynasty that didn’t die. The Kansas City Chiefs’ downfall may have been greatly exaggerated. The concerns, though, about them being Super Bowl contenders were legit.

In their first 10 quarters of football, they did not look good at all. They lost the first two games against two quality opponents, but lost them in a fashion that they normally win in. Against the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Chargers, they got thoroughly outplayed in the clutch on both sides of the ball.

In week three, Kansas City was in an ugly, tight ball game with the hapless New York Giants, and the concerns were at an all-time high. In that second half, however, the offense started to look better, and they ended up winning 22-9, pulling away in the end.

Next came the showdown against the Baltimore Ravens. The game was a reminder to the league that the Chiefs are here to stay. Kansas City dominated Baltimore, winning 37-20.

Their first game scoring more than 35 points since week three of 2023. Patrick Mahomes and that offense looked like their 2018-2022 counterparts. They moved the ball at will, and the big play was there all day long.

Now granted, the Ravens’ defense is not very good, but it doesn’t take away how easy Kansas City made it look through the first three quarters, especially. If their offense can be 80% of what they were from 2018 to 2022, the rest of the league is in trouble because that defense is so much better now.

Rashee Rice is still on his way back. They, at full strength, smell danger for everyone else.

2. Buffalo Bills

The second-best team, in my opinion, is the Buffalo Bills. They haven’t looked overwhelmingly dominant in the first four weeks, but they haven’t had to either. For what it looks like for the second straight year, Josh Allen has figured out how to play dynamic football without turning the ball over.

Allen has seven touchdowns to just one interception at the quarter pole. The aspect that makes them very dangerous is their run game. James Cook has looked better after signing his extension.

Cook has racked up 401 yards and five touchdowns in just four games. He is a threat in the passing game as well, and his development is key for them to finally get over the hump. The defense has been hit or miss so far, so that part needs to tighten up a bit.

Buffalo, as a whole, has only one turnover on the season. They are going to be awfully hard to beat if they continue to protect the ball and Allen continues his dominance. It feels like he’s found the right balance between being Superman and playing within himself.

The key is, can they make the plays in the clutch against that team in Kansas City when it matters most?

1. Philadelphia Eagles

The best team in the league as of now is the Philadelphia Eagles. If you are the defending champs and start the season out 4-0, you deserve the top spot on the rankings. With all that said, it has been far from perfect for this team.

The offense has looked bland for most of the season. The Eagles have had two great offensive halves, two horrible offensive halves, and four halves that are ok football. Saquon Barkley has not been as dominant this year as he has 237 yards on just 3.1 yards per carry.

Despite the struggles, Philadelphia is still 4-0, so if they get things figured out and Barkley returns to form, they will be back in the big game. Jalen Hurts has had a weird season. He hasn’t thrown many passes over 10 air yards to start, but when he has, he has been good. He was the driving force for their comeback against the Los Angeles Rams in week three.

Hurts was also the catalyst for their first-half dominance over Tampa when they jumped on them 24-3. His first half against the Rams and second half against the Buccaneers, however, are what give some people pause on crowning this team again.

In that Rams game, the offense had negative yards in the first half, and in the second half against the Buccaneers, he went 0/8 passing. Philadelphia needs to clean that up fast because star receiver AJ Brown has voiced his frustration with the lack of production in the passing offense as a whole.

Vic Fangio has that defense playing good football despite losing key players. At the end of the day, the point of the game is to win, and they have done that better than most teams. It doesn’t always have to be pretty.

The defending champs deserve the benefit of the doubt that they are going to figure it out.

End Of My Teams Rankings Rant

This list, once again, is not a reflection of how each team has looked in the first four weeks this year. It’s a blend of what they have done in the past and what they could look like moving forward if they figure things out. Potential plays a big factor in the list.

All the teams in this list are trending in the right direction. The Eagles may be the one exception, as they have the Brown drama, but they’re undefeated, so it’s hard to doubt them until proven otherwise.

Some honorary mentions for the list were the Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Chargers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.