1. Dallas Cowboys (No. 2 last week; 6-1): “Glory days, well they’ll pass you by.” Maybe sooner than later. But not yet.
2. Denver Broncos (No. 3; 5-1): The Broncos are proving that they can play with the best the NFC West has to offer during the regular season, which bodes well for their ability to face the best the NFC has to offer come February.
3. Arizona Cardinals (No. 4; 5-1): The next five games (Eagles, Cowboys, Rams, Lions, Seahawks) will tell us plenty about whether the Cardinals are viable Super Bowl contenders.
4. Philadelphia Eagles (No. 5; 5-1): Philly returns to Arizona for perhaps the biggest game there since the Cardinals beat the Eagles in the 2008 NFC title game.
5. San Diego Chargers (No. 1; 5-2): Well, at least Peyton Manning won’t set the passing touchdown record against them.
6. Green Bay Packers (No. 7; 5-2): Either defenses still aren’t taking Jordy Nelson seriously, or they are and it doesn’t matter.
7. Indianapolis Colts (No. 8; 5-2): Nineteen years after they nearly secured a Super Bowl berth in Pittsburgh, the Colts return with a chance to prove that they’re legitimate Super bowl contenders.
8. Baltimore Ravens (No. 10; 5-2): It’ll be four more years until the next Flacco vs. Ryan debate. Hopefully.
9. New England Patriots (No. 12; 5-2): As Jason Taylor noted on last night’s PFT on NBCSN, Tom Brady apparently honed his flopping skills while attending World Cup matches in Brazil. (Or maybe while playing Madden.)
10. Detroit Lions (No. 14; 5-2): On that long touchdown play, Golden Tate was running like Percy Harvin was chasing him.
11. Seattle Seahawks (No. 6; 3-3): In the same week the Vikings were faced with the 25th anniversary of the Herschel Walker trade, the Seahawks admitted that they were on the wrong end of its modern-day equivalent.
12. Cincinnati Bengals (No. 9; 3-2-1): With three home games in 11 days, plenty of people won’t be witnessing whether the Bengals can turn things around.
13. San Francisco 49ers (No. 11; 4-3): Good news, Colin Kaepernick outplayed Denver’s quarterback. Bad news, the one he outplayed was Brock Osweiler.
14. Buffalo Bills (No. 16; 4-3): The Bills will face Percy Harvin at the worst possible time — when he’s on his best behavior and without any idea how he’ll be used.
15. Carolina Panthers (No. 13; 3-3-1): They’re up, they’re down, and somehow they’re still in first place in the NFC South.
16. Kansas City Chiefs (No. 20; 3-3): In 16 games after the bye week, Andy Reid has broken down the wall 14 times.
17. Cleveland Browns (No. 15; 3-3): The Browns hobble with one less appendage toward Trap Game No. 2.
18. Pittsburgh Steelers (No. 19; 4-3): There’s nothing like three straight home games to commence the process of turning around a struggling Steelers team.
19. Miami Dolphins (No. 23; 3-3): Here’s what really unacceptable — The Bears made Ryan Tannehill look like a combination of Dan Marino and Larry Csonka.
20. New Orleans Saints (No. 17; 2-4): How do “decoy” snaps get characterized for the purposes of the franchise tag?
21. Chicago Bears (No. 18; 3-4): Apparently, Brandon Marshall going berserk in the locker room after a home loss to the Dolphins isn’t unacceptable to the head coach.
22. Houston Texans (No. 21; 3-4): Can Jadeveon Clowney play quarterback?
23. New York Giants (No. 22; 3-4): Two straight losses, three straight wins, two straight losses . . . three straight wins? With the Colts, Seahawks, and 49ers up next, bet the under.
24. St. Louis Rams (No. 28; 2-4): All those empty seats at the Edward Jones Dome will have a great story to tell their grandkids about the day the Rams beat the defending champs.
25. Atlanta Falcons (No. 24; 2-5): Maybe Matt Ryan won’t have to use the silent count for their “home” game in London.
26. New York Jets (No. 25; 1-6): Percy Harvin wasn’t traded. He was exiled.
27. Washington (No. 30; 2-5): Maybe they can get a first-round pick for Colt McCoy.
28. Tennessee Titans (No. 26; 2-5): Charlie Whitehurst’s passer rating is in the 90s. Which finally has convinced me of the worthlessness of that statistic.
29. Minnesota Vikings (No. 27; 2-5): Isn’t it better to just get blown out than to lose a winnable game late?
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (No. 31; 1-6): Could this be the best 1-6 team in NFL history?
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (No. 29; 1-5): If the Bucs can win a couple of games, they could still become contenders in a watered-down NFC South.
32. Oakland Raiders (No. 32; 0-6): Raiders fans no longer need to check the newspaper to see the team’s won-loss record. Just ask Darnell Dockett.