NFL power rankings entering Week 5 of the 2026 season (previous rank in parentheses):
1. San Francisco 49ers (4): Would have put them in the top spot sooner if not for concern regarding their latest rash of injuries, FB Kyle Juszczyk the latest star to go down. However, the Niners are certainly safeguarding QB Brock Purdy, becoming the first team since Peyton Manning's 2005 Colts to permit zero sacks through four games. Beat Seattle on Sunday, and San Francisco will have already taken down three of last season's final four teams. Unbeaten through four games for the third time under Kyle Shanahan, now the longest-tenured coach in franchise history, the 49ers leveraged those other two hot starts into Super Bowl berths.
2. Kansas City Chiefs (2):
Will the AFC's final undefeated team have anyone left to play wide receiver on the other side of their Week 5 bye after losing Rashee Rice and Tyquan Thornton in Vegas on Sunday? Maybe an old friend?
3. Seattle Seahawks (3): Even with RB Jadarian Price joining Zach Charbonnet on the shelf, they're doing a nice job with a patchwork running game that's incorporating KR/WR Rashid Shaheed and, perhaps, veteran Joe Mixon eventually.
4. Denver Broncos (5): It hasn't been pretty through four weeks, especially offensively. But their only losses are to the undefeated Chiefs and Niners, and the schedule eases a bit for the rest of October. Even better, All-Pro CB Patrick Surtain II (ankle) isn't expected to miss much time.
5. Los Angeles Rams (6): They're still out of sorts offensively, QB Matthew Stafford launching a league-high 162 passes for an offense that's only running 38% of the time. But facing Buffalo's air defense − not exactly the Iron Dome − in Week 5 won't provide much reason to balance things out.
6. Jacksonville Jaguars (8): Bend but don't break? They rank 26th overall in total defense, yet the Jags haven't allowed more than 20 points in their past 10 regular-season games.
7. New England Patriots (15): Will their biggest offensive outburst of the season steady QB Drake Maye and this team at large? The Pats' 29 offensive points Sunday matched their aggregate total entering Week 4.
8. Buffalo Bills (1): They're still scoring at the highest clip in the league. But the early season success is now contextualized by beating two winless teams, including a Week 3 struggle against the Chargers, prior to Sunday's wake-up loss to the Patriots − winners of two in a row at Buffalo. Now it's up to the Bills to stabilize away from Western New York, given they'll only play at home once over the next six weeks.
9. Minnesota Vikings (7): As great as their swarming defense has been, let's not lose sight of All-Pro K Will Reichard. His league-high 42 points scored are nearly half of the Vikes' total (86). Reichard has provided all of the scoring in two of Minnesota's four wins.
10. Chicago Bears (9): After giving up 37 points in the opener, the defense has surrendered 28 − total − over the past three weeks. Doesn't much matter who the QB1 is with that kind of margin for error.
11. Las Vegas Raiders (11): Where has this franchise been? Andy Reid has the most wins (7) of any coach − including the Raiders' − at Allegiant Stadium. And while Klint Kubiak's troops arguably legitimized themselves by nearly knocking off Reid's Chiefs on Sunday, they'll be challenged to keep it up − the Patriots, Bills, Rams, 49ers, Seahawks and Broncos are among the Silver and Black's next seven opponents.
12. Cleveland Browns (18): Kardiac Kids Part Deux? Deshaun Watson is the first Browns quarterback since Brian Sipe, the league MVP in 1980, to engineer a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter of three consecutive games.
13. Carolina Panthers (21): By the conclusion of Sunday night's win over Detroit, they owned the league's No. 1 passing attack. Props to QB Bryce Young for rendering the bust label some had affixed to him premature.
14. Atlanta Falcons (22): It's been an entirely new team since QB Michael Penix Jr.'s Week 3 return … and maybe one capable of winning its first NFC South crown in a decade.
15. Detroit Lions (10): They're certainly leaning on their stars, RB Jahmyr Gibbs with the most touches (102) in the league and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (46) with the most targets. Gonna be hard to deviate from that formula given how bad the league's most permissive defense has been … a state of affairs that seems unlikely to change any time soon.
16. New Orleans Saints (12): They're in the same boat as the Lions, likely needing to win a shootout every week. But the Saints will need to get RB Travis Etienne and WR Jordyn Tyson back soon if they're going to recover sufficiently to make their first post-Brees playoff appearance.
17. Baltimore Ravens (13): It's no secret that they can't afford to be without injured QB Lamar Jackson for long. But he's doing more damage with his arm right now than his legs, Jackson's 14.2 yards per completion pacing the league and representing the best figure of his nine-year career.
18. Dallas Cowboys (14): After a strong debut Sunday, CB Joey Porter Jr. might be making the case he's the ex-Steeler this team should re-sign given the significant drop in WR George Pickens' production.
19. Pittsburgh Steelers (16): Time will tell if their hardline negotiating policies cost them too much following the departure of Porter … but sure could have used him in Cleveland.
20. Cincinnati Bengals (17): Depending on how long injuries to WRs Ja'Marr Chase (concussion) and Tee Higgins (groin) linger, QB Joe Burrow could be throwing to Dohnte Meyers and Mitch Tinsley on Sunday at Miami Gardens.
21. New York Giants (23): If the season ended today − it doesn't − they'd be the NFC East champions and a No. 3 playoff seed. Worthing noting QBs Jameis Winston and J.J. McCarthy have the same number of career postseason starts: Zero.
22. Philadelphia Eagles (19): The last time they were this helpless on offense (172 yards on Sunday) was 2014 … when Chip Kelly was the coach and Mark Sanchez the quarterback.
23. Indianapolis Colts (24): Maybe they should pack the Mayflower trucks (ships?) for Europe given they've won three in a row in the Old World, which the NFL seems ready to make its new frontier.
24. Washington Commanders (20): Rookie Athan Kaliakmanis became the first NFL quarterback to throw his first career TD pass in an international game. Cool. But this team can't get Jayden Daniels back fast enought.
25. Arizona Cardinals (28): S Budda Baker leads the team with 1½ sacks … which is fairly indicative of how things are going for one of the league's worst defenses.
26. Green Bay Packers (26): Still no Josh Jacobs. Still no Micah Parsons. And now standout LB Edgerrin Cooper is out for the season with an Achilles tear. Getting increasingly difficult to view this squad as a playoff entry, especially given the narrow win at Tampa.
27. Houston Texans (25): Even if an 0-4 outfit wanted to wave the white flag, the contracts of players like DE Danielle Hunter and WR Nico Collins are basically untradeable due to their salary cap ramifications.
28. New York Jets (27): After losing three in a row to NFC North teams, the Browns should be a welcome sight for a Jets team that became the first this century to run fewer plays (32) in a game than the number of first downs it surrendered (34).
29. Los Angeles Chargers (29): They don't face a team that currently has a losing record until Houston visits in Week 9 … by which time the Bolts could be 0-7.
30. Tennessee Titans (30): Little has gone right so far, but it's been nice to see rookie WR Carnell Tate pick up the pace. He has 15 catches for 203 yards over the past two weeks.
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (31): Their point total has decreased with each successive week, proportionate with the optimism that once surrounded these dead-in-the-water Bucs.
32. Miami Dolphins (32): They haven't led for a single minute of any game so far.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NFL power rankings Week 5: No. 1 spot changes hands for third consecutive week
