1. Steelers (last week No. 1; 8-0): The Year of Winning Dangerously continues. For now.
2. Chiefs (No. 2; 8-1): They get two weeks to plot emphatic revenge for their only loss of the season, against the Raiders.
3. Saints (No. 5; 6-2): They’re moving toward the driver’s seat in the NFC; however, an early-season loss to the Packers could haunt them when it’s time to apply tiebreakers.
4. Ravens (No. 7; 6-2): The only stat that matters is winning, as they learned the hard way against the Steelers and the better way against the Colts.
5. Titans (No. 6; 6-2): The next three — Colts, Ravens, Colts — will tell us plenty about this team.
6. Bills (No. 8; 7-2): They could be moving from Tier 2 to Tier 1 in the AFC.
7. Seahawks (No. 3; 6-2): They could be moving from Tier 1 to Tier 2 in the NFC.
8. Packers (No. 9; 6-2): The road to Tampa could end up going through Lambeau.
9. Dolphins (No. 12; 5-3): The team is looking great. Can we now do something about the uniforms?
10. Buccaneers (No. 4; 6-3): With losses under the lights to the Bears and Saints and a narrow win over the Giants, the Tompa Bay Bucs just aren’t ready for prime time.
11. Cardinals (No. 10; 5-3): And now we wait four years for Chapter Two of Tua vs. Kyler.
12. Colts (No. 11; 5-3): Team goes up, team goes down.
13. Rams (No. 13; 5-3): Even in a seven-team field, they could still miss the playoffs.
14. Raiders (No. 14; 5-3): They may not be on the cutting edge of beating the virus, but they’re on the cutting edge of making the playoffs.
15. Browns (No. 15; 5-3): If they win the games they should, they’ll go 10-6.
16. Bears (No. 16; 5-4): The season arguably hinges on Monday night’s visit from the Vikings.
17. Eagles (No. 17; 3-4-1): The division is theirs to win, maybe if they don’t even win another game.
18. Vikings (No. 20; 3-5): If they keep playing like they’ve been playing, they’ll take a 7-5 record to Tampa Bay next month.
19. Bengals (No. 19; 2-5-1): It’s not crazy to think that they can beat the Steelers.
20. Falcons (No. 22; 3-6): After the bye, the schedule becomes very difficult.
21. Broncos (No. 18; 3-5): It feels like they’re both close to contending and miles away from doing so.
22. 49ers (No. 21; 4-5): As we said, finishing out a 10-point lead with seven minutes to play in the Super Bowl is a hell of a lot easier than getting to that point.
23. Patriots (No. 23; 3-5): Barely beating the worst team in the league with a broken-down backup quarterback is hardly something to build on.
24. Panthers (No. 24; 3-6): Hopefully, Christian McCaffrey won’t be gone for long.
25. Giants (No. 28; 2-6): With a 4-0 record against Washington, Daniel Jones should imagine that every opposing helmet is burgundy.
26. Washington (No. 25; 2-6): Alex Smith gets a chance to take this team as far as he can.
27. Lions (No. 26; 3-5): After two straight losses, the clock is ticking again.
28. Texans (No. 29; 2-6): If not for wins against a really bad team, the Texans would have no wins at all.
29. Chargers (No. 27; 2-6): With a young franchise quarterback and a team that can’t find a way to win, time could be running out for coach Anthony Lynn.
30. Cowboys (No. 30; 2-7): They’ve met the Steelers three times in the Super Bowl. A fourth installment won’t be happening for a while, but not because of Pittsburgh.
31. Jaguars (No. 31; 1-7): The only thing the Jags can do right lately is find capable quarterbacks in round six.
32. Jets (No. 32; 0-9): Taking the Patriots to the last play of the game isn’t quite what it used to be.