Week 9 of the NFL season saw a historic performance from a rookie quarterback, a resounding win by the AFC's best team (not the Chiefs), and the continued resurgence of the Bengals. Meanwhile, a presumed Super Bowl contender was put on fraud watch in Germany.
While all that was happening, the 49ers rested on their much-needed bye week. Did they rise or fall in the NFL power rankings while watching from afar?
Here's where each team stands after Sunday's Week 9 action:
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32. Carolina Panthers (1-7): Maybe the Panthers should have kept Steve Wilks as head coach. Frank Reich has made a lot of money off a Nick Foles Super Bowl performance but is now 41-40-1 as a head coach. I’ve seen enough.
31. Arizona Cardinals (1-8): The Cardinals are in poll position for Caleb Williams through nine weeks. Just how they drew it up.
30. New York Giants (2-7): The Giants are going to roll out Matt Barkley and Tommy Devito for the foreseeable future. Welcome to the Caleb Williams sweepstakes, Giants.
29. New England Patriots (2-7): Mac Jones has been far from perfect this season, but the Patriots’ offense does little to help out the young quarterback. Jones sounds like he is losing faith in New England’s offense, and I can’t blame him.
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28. Chicago Bears (2-7): Tyson Bagent has some Gardner Minshew to him. He might not wind up being a starter, but he looks like he has long-term value as a competent NFL backup. That’s valuable, just as *gestures at whatever the Rams did today*
27. Los Angeles Rams (3-6): There was nothing positive for the Rams to take out of Sunday’s offensive performance. Brett Rypien just doesn’t have it.
26. Green Bay Packers (3-5): The Packers gave the ball to Aaron Jones, and good things happened Sunday. See, it’s not that hard.
25. Tennessee Titans (3-5): Did Will Levis really slide in the draft because he puts mayo in his coffee? Drafting a quarterback is the most inexact science. Titans might have had a gift fall in their lap.
24. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5): Baker Mayfield put up 37 points and lost Sunday in Houston. That’s not the first time that’s happened, but it’s the first time Alex Grinch wasn’t on the sideline to ruin Mayfield’s good work.
23. Las Vegas Raiders (4-5): Look up addition by subtraction in the dictionary, and all you'll see is a picture of Josh McDaniels as a head coach.
22. Denver Broncos (3-5): It was a big week for former Texas Rangers legend Russell Wilson. I wonder if he gets a World Series ring to go along with his Super Bowl ring.
21. Atlanta Falcons (4-5): Why did the Falcons draft Bijan Robinson if they aren’t even going to use him properly?
20. Washington Commanders (4-5): In the last five games, Sam Howell has thrown for 1,510 yards and 10 touchdowns. Both lead the NFL. Washington might just have its franchise quarterback.
19. Indianapolis Colts (4-5): Kenny Moore’s two pick-sixes got the Colts back to within a game of .500. No tanking here.
18. New Orleans Saints (5-4): The Saints are deeply unserious, but I guess someone has to be in first place in the NFL’s worst division.
17. New York Jets (4-4): I’m not sure who was more disgusted watching the Jets’ offense on Monday night: Troy Aikman, Peyton Manning, or Aaron Rodgers. Jets have a Super Bowl defense and an FCS offense.
16. Houston Texans (4-4): C.J. Stroud set the NFL single-game rookie passing record with 470 yards and five touchdowns, including a game-winning drive with 46 seconds remaining. So about that S2 test.
15. Seattle Seahawks (5-3): Pete Carroll was adamant that Geno Smith wasn’t the issue for the Seahawks’ offense in their non-competitive loss to the Ravens. That might be true, but he wasn’t part of the solution either.
14. Minnesota Vikings (5-4): Make the Josh Dobbs statue right now. What an unbelievable performance by the Vikings’ new QB.
13. Los Angeles Chargers (4-4): Games against Bears and Jets have given the Chargers new life, but tougher tests await in the second half. Brandon Staley is far from out of the woods.
12. Buffalo Bills (5-4): The Bills have a lot of problems, and none of them are easily fixed. The last hurrah of this version of the Bills might fizzle out before we get to January.
11. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3): The Steelers have no business being 5-3. And yet, like the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park, Mike Tomlin finds a way.
10. Cleveland Browns (5-3): Embarrassing Clayton Tune gets you few points in these rankings.
9. Dallas Cowboys (5-3): Sunday was a perfect encapsulation of the last 30 years of Cowboys football: Just not good enough.
8. Miami Dolphins (6-3): The Dolphins might be the bad-good team. They trash the dregs of the NFL but have been handled by the NFL’s best. On fraud alert in South Beach.
7. Detroit Lions (6-2): Are the Lions for real? The jury remains out and will be for quite some time.
6. Jacksonville Jaguars (6-2): The Jags entered the bye with a share of the top spot in the AFC. They’ve done good work, but the real tests loom as they face the 49ers, Bengals, Browns, and Ravens in four of the next six weeks.
5. San Francisco 49ers (5-3): The bye week comes at the perfect time for the limping and weary 49ers. Will Kyle Shanahan be able to cook up a cure for what ails the Niners during the off-week?
4. Cincinnati Bengals (5-3): The Bengals are all the way back. As long as Joe Cool is healthy, the Bengals will be there in the end.
3. Baltimore Ravens (7-2): The Ravens have been the AFC’s best team through nine weeks, but I can’t have them jump Patrick Lavon Mahomes II just yet.
2. Kansas City Chiefs (7-2): After years of dragging a raggedy defense to the playoffs, Patrick Mahomes finally has a defense that is able to carry him. That’s good because these aren’t your dad’s Chiefs.
1. Philadelphia Eagles (8-1): The Eagles have their flaws, but they are the class of the league through 10 weeks. No question.