October 5, 2025
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NFL Power Rankings 2025: Chiefs and Rams Enter Top Five After Big Wins

Walt020 mins
Patrick Mahomes
My current NFL Power Rankings for the 2025 NFL season. Chiefs and Rams Enter Top Five After Big Wins.

I’m going to use these rankings as the order for my 2026 NFL Mock Draft during the early stages of the 2025 season. Follow @walterfootball.

NFL Power Rankings updated Sept. 30, 2025




    Group A:

  1. Buffalo Bills Buffalo Bills (4-0) – Previously: 1.
    The Bills prevailed by 10 and 12 in their previous two games, but they could have lost to the Dolphins had the roughing-the-punter penalty not occurred, and they could have lost to the Saints had Brandin Cooks not dropped a touchdown. Matt Milano and Ed Oliver were sidelined, and it’s clear that their defense is not the same without them.

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  2. Philadelphia Eagles Philadelphia Eagles (4-0) – Previously: 2.
    The Eagles hadn’t looked like a defending Super Bowl champion through three games – they were outgained versus the Chiefs and Rams in both in total yards and yards per play – but they had a huge first half against the Buccaneers. They fell asleep in the second half, though I wonder if the 110-degree heat had something to do with that.

  3. Detroit Lions NFL Power Rankings Detroit Lions (3-1) – Previously: 4.
    The Lions are literally the best in the NFL right now. Sure, they can lose half their offensive line, including their Pro Bowl center, and both of their coordinators, but it doesn’t matter because they’re just going to go 15-2 again. The team continued to swarm the opposing quarterback, with Joe Flacco being responsible for three turnovers.

  4. Kansas City Chiefs NFL Power Rankings Kansas City Chiefs (2-2) – Previously: 8.
    The Chiefs are 2-2, which isn’t ideal, but they’ve battled the Chargers, Eagles, and Ravens, so their schedule hasn’t exactly been a cake walk. With Xavier Worthy returning this past week, and Rashee Rice coming back soon, the Chiefs could go on a great run late in the year.


    5. Group B:

  5. Los Angeles Rams Los Angeles Rams (3-1) – Previously: 7.
    The Rams would be 4-0 if they didn’t have that ridiculous second-half collapse in Philadelphia. Remember, they outgained the Eagles, 356-288, and averaged nearly one more yard per play. They blew a 26-7 lead with a fourth-and-1 stuff and a missed field goal, but they still had a chance with a game-winning kick, but it was blocked.

  6. Los Angeles Chargers San Angeles Chargers (3-1) – Previously: 6.
    The Chargers looked like the real deal at 3-0, with victories over the Chiefs and Broncos. However, losing Joe Alt for an extended period of time could completely derail their season with Rashawn Slater already sidelined.

  7. Green Bay Packers Green Bay Packers (2-1-1) – Previously: 3.
    Green Bay’s offense looked great in Dallas. The defens, however, was absolutely atrocious. How did the Packers fail to sack Dak Prescott for a loss on a single occasion? The Bears’ awful defense dismantled the Cowboys! Dallas was missing CeeDee Lamb and two offensive linemen. The Packers should have been able to deal with them very easily.

  8. Washington Redskins Washington Redskins (2-2) – Previously: 9.
    Good teams tend to play well with their backup quarterbacks as long as they’re not battling elite defenses. The Redskins beat the Raiders with Marcus Mariota, but couldn’t do so against the Falcons, who have a top-10 EPA defense.

  9. Denver Broncos Denver Broncos (2-2) – Previously: 10.
    I’ve put all the NFL teams into groups, ranging from A to F. Group A is comprised of the elite teams, while Group F is the worst. Not counting Week 18, Six of Denver’s nine wins from last year came against Group D and Group F. Their other three victories were very fluky or have occurred in weird circumstances. They finished 0-6 straight up, 1-5 against the spread versus teams above Group C.

    I mention this because the Broncos looked like a Group C team once again versus the Titans and Colts. They nearly beat Indianapolis, but were outgained by 140 yards and 1.1 yards per play. And they once again lost to the Chargers, who swept them last year. Denver predictably bounced back against Cincinnati.

  10. Indianapolis Colts Indianapolis Colts (3-1) – Previously: 11.
    Adonai Mitchell cost his team 14 points with the idiotic dropped ball shy of the goal line and then a holding penalty negating a long Jonathan Taylor touchdown run. The Colts could be 4-0 right now. Instead, Mitchell can win the weekly award for the player whose mom took Tylenol.

  11. Baltimore Ravens Baltimore Ravens (1-3) – Previously: 5.
    The Ravens are the toughest team to rank right now. Already down Justin Madubuike and Kyle Van Noy, they lost Roquan Smith and Marlon Humphrey against the Chiefs. And if that wasn’t enough, Lamar Jackson injured his hamstring right after I bet his over rushing yards. The Ravens are obviously a Group A team if everyone’s healthy, but it’s impossible to know who’s going to be able to play in Week 5.


    12. Group C:

  12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1) – Previously: 13.
    The Buccaneers finally lost. Coincidentally, it came on the first matchup against a team above Group C. Credit the Buccaneers for fighting hard to come back from down 24-3 though.

  13. Seattle Seahawks Seattle Seahawks (3-1) – Previously: 14.
    The Seahawks nearly beat the 49ers, but they’ve won three in a row since. Granted, they defeated a bad team (Steelers), a horrible team (Saints), and a mediocre team (Cardinals), so it’s fair to be skeptical thus far. Their defense looks great though.

  14. Minnesota Vikings Minnesota Vikings (2-2) – Previously: 12.
    The Vikings can’t really be penalized for their loss in Ireland because they lost two offensive linemen early in the game and didn’t have Andrew Van Ginkel. Plus, international games can’t be taken seriously.

  15. San Francisco 49ers San Francisco 49ers (3-1) – Previously: 15.
    The 49ers are 3-1 despite not having George Kittle for nearly four games, Brock Purdy for two games, Jauan Jennings for two games, and Nick Bosa for four-thirds of a game. Unfortunately for the 49ers, Bosa is not coming back, so the defense will struggle for the rest of the season.

  16. Atlanta Falcons Atlanta Falcons (2-2) – Previously: 17.
    A nice bounce-back game by the Falcons. It’s hard to believe they were home underdogs for most of the week versus the Marcus Mariota-led Redskins.

  17. Arizona Cardinals Arizona Cardinals (2-2) – Previously: 16.
    The Cardinals once again lost to a good team, but if there’s a silver lining, it’s that Kyler Murray and Marvin Harrison Jr. finally got on the same page in the second half of the Seattle game. Perhaps this will carry over in the weeks to come.

  18. New England Patriots New England Patriots (2-2) – Previously: 23.
    Mike Vrabel needs to stop being so stupidly stubborn with his running back usage. Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson ended up costing the Patriots a victory against the Steelers with three combined lost fumbles. New England would be 3-1 if Vrabel wasn’t so dumb with his running backs.

  19. Pittsburgh Steelers Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1) – Previously: 24.
    International games can’t be taken seriously – the Bears looked like the ’99 Rams last year – so I don’t want to move Pittsburgh up for the win over Minnesota. However, I do want to move up the Steelers because their defense is healthier.

  20. Jacksonville Jaguars Jacksonville Jaguars (3-1) – Previously: 21.
    If the Jaguars didn’t blow their lead against the Jake Browning-led Bengals, they’d be 4-0 right now. That’s great and all, but their three wins have come against teams in Group F, D, D, and C. Not good. Also, Trevor Lawrence kind of sucks.


    21. Group D:

  21. Chicago Bears Chicago Bears (2-2) – Previously: 18.
    The Bears were given up for dead after starting 0-2. They’re now 2-2, but there should be some skepticism regarding this record. The Bears took advantage of the CeeDee Lamb injury and then were outgained by a mile against the Raiders, but were able to win because Geno Smith self-destructed.

  22. Dallas Cowboys Dallas Cowboys (1-2-1) – Previously: 28.
    I’m not sure how the Cowboys scored 40 on the Packers and failing to do anything versus Chicago, but whatever. The point is that the Cowboys are clearly not a Group F team.

  23. Cleveland Browns Cleveland Browns (1-3) – Previously: 19.
    The Browns have battled three teams in Group A thus far – Ravens, Packers, Lions – and their other game should have been a victory over the Bengals in the opener. Cleveland’s schedule will get easier.

  24. Las Vegas Raiders Las Vegas Raiders (1-3) – Previously: 20.
    ESPN DEI hire Mina Kimes called Geno Smith a top-10 quarterback during the trade this offseason, but Smith was responsible for the loss to Chicago because of three horrible interceptions. The Raiders outgained the Bears, 357-271, and averaged 6.9 yards per play compared to 4.2 for Chicago. Yet, they still lost because of Smith, who has never been anywhere close to a top-10 quarterback.

  25. Houston Texans Houston Texans (1-3) – Previously: 22.
    The Texans finally got a win, but the 26-0 result was misleading. Houston’s offensive line continued to be a disaster. On the bright side, Woody Marks emerged as a legitimate threat out of the backfield.

  26. New York Jets New York Jets (0-4) – Previously: 25.
    The Jets are now 0-4, but a new possibility has emerged to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Here’s my 2026 NFL Mock Draft.

    It should be noted that the Jets aren’t as bad as their record indicates. Their battle against the Steelers was a 50-50 game, and they nearly beat the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay with their backup quarterback. They outgained the Dolphins, but three lost fumbles sabotaged their chances.

  27. New York Giants New York Giants (1-3) – Previously: 26.
    Jaxson Dart looked great in his NFL debut, mostly as a rusher. The passing numbers weren’t quite there, but to be fair, Dart didn’t have Malik Nabers for two-and-a-half quarters. Unfortunately for Dart, he won’t have Nabers until 2026.

  28. Miami Dolphins Miami Dolphins (1-3) – Previously: 30.
    The Dolphins won their first game, but it’s hard to take the victory seriously because they recovered all five fumbles in the game. They’re also going to be worse without Tyreek Hill if he’s out for a while.


    29. Group F:

  29. Cincinnati Bengals Cincinnati Bengals (2-2) – Previously: 27.
    The Bengals might have been the worst 2-0 team we had seen in a long time. They were outgained by about 200 yards versus the Browns in Week 1, and they trailed for most of the afternoon against the Jaguars. Now, without Joe Burrow, this is very little hope.

  30. Carolina Panthers Carolina Panthers (1-3) – Previously: 29.
    The Panthers predictably fell back down to Earth after their ridiculous 30-0 win against the sleepwalking Falcons in Week 3. What’s crazy is that the Panthers haven’t even played a team better than Group C yet this year, and yet they’re 1-3 with three of their losses effectively being blowouts.

  31. New Orleans Saints New Orleans Saints (0-4) – Previously: 32.
    The Saints are now 0-4, but they at least covered the spread. It must be noted that they haven’t battled any bad teams yet, as they’ve taken on one Group A team (Bills), one Group B team (49ers) and two Group C teams (Cardinals, Seahawks).

  32. Tennessee Titans Tennessee Titans (0-4) – Previously: 31.
    The Titans are 0-4, but they’ve played against the Broncos, Rams, and Colts, three teams listed in Group B. They also got shut out at Houston, but the offense couldn’t do anything against DeMeco Ryans’ defense.



2025 NFL MVP Projection:

1. Josh Allen, QB, Bills
2. Jalen Hurts, QB, Eagles
3. Justin Herbert, QB, Chargers
4. Patrick Mahomes, QB, Chiefs
5. Matthew Stafford, QB, Rams


Go to 2026 NFL Mock Draft




NFL Picks - Oct. 4


2026 NFL Mock Draft - Oct. 1


NFL Power Rankings - Sept. 30


Fantasy Football Rankings - Sept. 1







2022 NFL Power Rankings. Week: Post-Super Bowl Power Rankings | Post-Free Agency Power Rankings | Post-NFL Draft Power Rankings | Post-Preseason Power Rankings | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17

2021 NFL Power Rankings. Week: Post-Super Bowl Power Rankings | Preseason Power Rankings | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Playoffs |

2020 NFL Power Rankings. Week: Post-Super Bowl Power Rankings 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Playoffs |

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