NFL Week 9 power rankings: Vikings holding steady, Bills inch up, Chiefs defense pounding

1. Patriots, 6-2 (Last week, 1): They have won four in a row, giving up fewer than 18 points in each game during that stretch.

2. Eagles, 7-1 (2): Already fifth in the league in rushing, the streaking Eagles add more power with their trade for Jay Ajayi.

3. Rams, 5-2 (3): A bye week followed by a semi-bye week at the Giants.

4. Chiefs, 6-2 (4): The offense looked sluggish, but the defense and special teams hammered free-falling Denver on Monday.

5. Vikings, 6-2 (5): Good teams prevail when layup games start going south. And nothing is further south than trailing Cleveland.

6. Seahawks, 5-2 (6): Good couple of days for Russell Wilson. Throws for 452 yards, wins a shootout and gets a new left tackle in Duane Brown.

7. Steelers, 6-2 (7): Held the host Lions to nine points, no touchdowns in five red zone trips.

9. Bills, 5-2 (10): The defense is tied for second in points against, tied for first in takeaways and not missing Marcell Dareus in the least.

10. Panthers, 5-3 (13): Cam Newton averaged less than 5 yards on 32 pass attempts, but the defense dominated the lowly Buccaneers.

11. Cowboys, 4-3 (17): The Ezekiel Saga: He's suspended. No he's not. Yes he his. No he's not. Yes he is. No he's not. Yes he is …

12. Jaguars, 4-3 (12): They have surpassed last year's win total with a points differential that's 15.5 better than a year ago.

13. Texans, 3-4 (11): They need to start winning some of these Deshaun Watson shootouts.

15. Redskins, 3-4 (9): Proving once again that a team can't compete when its offensive line is in crisis.

16. Bears, 3-5 (15): They were a little sloppy in New Orleans, but they are also a lot more competitive than I expected.

17. Lions, 3-4 (16): Loss to Steelers proves the Lions can't win with Matthew Stafford getting zero run support.

18. Ravens, 4-4 (27): If you have this team figured out, let me know.

19. Dolphins, 4-3 (14): Re-read No. 18.

21. Titans, 4-3 (21): Bye week helped Marcus Mariota's hammy heal. He needs his mobility.

22. Jets, 3-5 (19): They are tailing off, but I like how hard they compete. Especially after we all accused them of tanking.

23. Chargers, 3-5 (23): A narrow loss at New England tells me this team isn't out of the playoff picture just yet.

24. Bengals, 3-4 (25): They hit the road for three weeks against the Jags, Titans and Broncos.

25. Broncos, 3-4 (24): When Brock Osweiler is your savior, chances are you're in deep you-know-what.

27. Raiders, 3-5 (22): Suddenly that big win at K.C. doesn't feel like a corner-turning triumph.

28. Buccaneers, 2-5 (28): Trying to give Giants a run for NFL's most disappointing team.

29. Colts, 2-6 (29): Colts officially go from "When will Andrew Luck return?" to "Why would Andrew Luck return?"

30. Giants, 1-6 (30): Next.

31. 49ers, 0-8 (31): A second-round pick for Jimmy Garoppolo was a wise move, but he can't do it by himself.