The Regular Season is at the halftime mark – time for the second SPOX Power Ranking of the season! There’s a new front-runner as the Seattle Seahawks, Minnesota Vikings and Houston Texans climb up the ladder. In the cellar there is little change, but the red lantern has a new owner. It is also getting darker and darker for the Miami Dolphins and the Arizona Cardinals.
Last Ranking (after Week 5): 30
Every now and then you can see Shanahan’s play-calling, but the Niners are facing an unpleasant rest of the season. The injuries of Staley, Ward and Thomas will lead to another significant loss of quality. C.J. Beathard makes an expectable number of mistakes, especially his fitting accuracy is alarmingly inconsistent and currently you don’t see much of the potential that Shanahan supposedly recognized in him. The run game is fine, not much more and the defense is too vulnerable on all levels so far. Even if the front lets its potential shine again and again. San Francisco has talent, but it’s going to take a lot of time. The trade for Jimmy Garoppolo was a very good start for this, but it is not likely to move too much immediately.
Place in previous ranking: 32
One thing you have to admit to the Browns: The Run-Defense has increased noticeably over the last weeks! That was also against Minnesota, and coach Hue Jackson stayed with DeShone Kizer after his unspeakable quarterback carousel against the Vikings in London last week. He will continue to make mistakes, with more elements than against Minnesota – screens, fast passes, play action and above all, finally a better run game – but he also has a chance to develop himself. No more deep isolation routes! First, however, there is an extremely inefficient passing game, a blood-soaked rookie quarterback, and a fragile passport defense system that shows good approaches, but always falls victim to its own aggressiveness.
Place in last ranking: 27
Much more than what the Colts showed against Cincinnati on Sunday, you can’t expect from this team. Indy’s front managed to control the Bengal Run Game and Jacoby Brissett had some very appealing scenes. Plus an explosive Marlon Mack play here and there as well as some solid runs by Frank Gore – that’s the highest feeling for Indianapolis right now. Playing against Jacksonville or against the Titans in the second half of the game will be a recurring event as the offensive line continues to be a huge problem area. Still nobody seems to know when Andrew Luck will return and if that will be the case this season. The Secondary is by far the most vulnerable in the league, the injury of Malik Hooker will help little and offensively comes at T. Y. Hilton of frustration is becoming increasingly common. The second half of the season, that much can be predicted, will not be a pleasure for Colts fans.
Placement in previous ranking: 29
Absolutely brutal game at the Ravens on Thursday – and I don’t mean the hit against Joe Flacco. The problems in the offensive line are getting more and more glaring, Miami still doesn’t have a run game: a 21 yard run by Jay Ajayi, then two yards at twelve runs. Whew. The Dolphins are still a mix of predictable and inefficient offensively, and given the impressions so far, it cannot be assumed that this will change with the return of Jay Cutler. After all, the defensive front has been the stabilizer until now, and Miami crumbled against Baltimore’s Scheme. This team is currently lacking any identity, and given the individual quality of the team, you have to critically question Adam Gase and his coaching staff, although the main cause is probably the players. Giving Ajayi now seems more like a message of gases to the team and makes the offense much harmless. Scheme switch to a stronger involvement of the running backs in the passing game is quite likely.
Place in previous ranking: 26
Even the last Cardinals-Optimist can confidently put the season to rest after the game against the Rams in London. Carson Palmer has now been placed on the Injured Reserve List as a result of his crossbreak, and instead of the earlier comeback he has been acclaimed for, he can return to the show at the earliest in Week 16. David Johnson is also known to be missing – most recently, according to Bruce Arians, for the remainder of the season – and so it won’t help that the offensive line has improved with the comebacks of D. J. Humphries and Earl Watford. Sure, Adrian Peterson, Larry Fitzgerald and the defensive columns Patrick Peterson and Chandler Jones can be enough scaffolding to win one or two more victories. Too many of them should not expect Cards fans with Drew Stanton. Especially as the Defense still allows a lot too much in spite of the individual quality, especially with third down and the once again shaky second cornerback spot. Arizona is facing radical change, and how hard and rigorous it will become must be seen.
Place in last ranking: 28
Impressive victories against the Ravens and the Panthers. Impressive because on the one hand everyone knew what the Bears wanted to do – and on the other hand because Chicago won two NFL games in 2017 almost without Passing Game. Of course, this is not a formula that promises success over the course of a season or even beyond, but Chicago is doing quite a bit right when it comes to leading a rookie quarterback. Mitchell Trubisky is still very raw, and you can see that: Many mistakes, inaccuracies, bad reads. Trubisky still needs very simple structures, and the coaches try to give him those. Meanwhile, the Front Seven continues to play well, the defense as a whole is solid and can decide, as against Carolina, matches. Chicago is on the right track for a decent season, but in the medium and long term everything depends on Trubisky’s development and learning curve.
Place in last ranking: 25
Josh McCown plays better than expected, the running backs always have good games and Robby Anderson is one of the positive surprises of the season and well on his way to becoming a real downfield weapon. Against the Falcons, the Defensive Line finally managed to get a bag, while the Secondary finally managed to surprise with explosiveness and aggressiveness. All in all, this results in a jet crew that has already exceeded all expectations for this season – but at the same time remains clearly limited. McCown will always have serious mistakes in his game and the offensive line definitely belongs to the lower third of the league. However, Gang Green must be credited for the team’s efforts and the positive developments of the young players.
Place in last ranking: 20
A really disappointing year in Tampa in the first half of the season, even though the supposedly biggest problem area – the Offensive Line – has so far turned out to be quite solid. Instead, Jameis Winston does not show any progress at all, but rather the opposite: inaccuracies, bad reads and, above all, great inconsistency. Doug Martin, whose tape reveals a hard runner. For less confidence, however, there is the own pass rush, which belongs to the most harmless in the league and is possibly the most harmless. Tampas Secondary isn’t good enough to catch it and like Winston is currently playing, the Bucs won’t win many shootouts.
Page 1: From San Francisco to Tampa Bay
Page 2: From New York to Washington
Page 3: From Carolina to Houston
Page 4: The top group – with New Orleans, Minnesota, the Rams and the new number 1