Is Los Angeles Charging to Top of AFC? Ultimate NFL Power Rankings Week 7

Chargers have won three in a row and are poised to push streak even further.

October 17, 2018 5:00 am
CLEVELAND, OH - OCTOBER 14: Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) throws a pass during the third quarter of the National Football League game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Cleveland Browns on October 14, 2018, at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland, OH. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - OCTOBER 14: Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) throws a pass during the third quarter of the National Football League game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Cleveland Browns on October 14, 2018, at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland, OH. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

They aren’t winning the battle for NFL bragging rights in Los Angeles, but the Chargers are making up ground.

Often overlooked because of the early-season dominance of the undefeated Rams, the Chargers have quietly reeled off three wins in a row, tied for the longest winning streak in the AFC with the Patriots and Texans.

It’s not like the wins have exactly come against the iron of the NFL (49ers, Raiders, and Browns) but, as the saying goes, you can only play the games that are on your schedule.

The Chargers have done that and, in doing so, have racked up the third-best point differential in the AFC behind the Ravens (+76) and Chiefs (+41) at +31. That’s largely due to the play of veteran quarterback Philip Rivers, who is averaging 8.8 yards per pass attempt and boasts a 15-3 TD-to-INT ratio, both career bests through this point of the season.

Ranked in the upper half of the league in both rushing and passing yards and currently No. 5 in the NFL in average points scored at 29.2, the Chargers are in the middle of the pack defensively but will be getting back defensive cog Joey Bosa in Week 9 following their bye.

In their lone game before that, Los Angeles will be in London to take on the middling Tennessee Titans this weekend. Only the Bills have scored fewer points this year, so the Chargers should roll in that one and push their record to 5-2.

Looking ahead, Los Angeles has a cake-walk schedule in November with games against the Seahawks, Raiders, Broncos, and Cardinals, meaning there’s a good chance they can be 9-2 when they play Pittsburgh to over the first weekend of December.

With a record like that, they’d almost certainly be on pace for a playoff spot, if not a bye.

But how do the power rankers from ESPNNFL.com, and USA Today see it?

Find out in the latest edition of RealClearLife‘s Ultimate NFL Power Rankings, which combine ratings from those three outlets to get a single rank for all 32 teams in NFL and use segmented tiers to arrange them.

Also, for an even greater perspective on how the season has been progressing, check out how each team’s season average ranking compares with where they finished this week and last.

The Best of the Best (1.00-5.33)

No. 1.00, last 1.00, two weeks ago 1.00, season average 1.38: Los Angeles Rams (ESPN, 1), (NFL.com, 1), (USA Today, 1)

No. 2.00, last 3.66, two weeks ago 5.33, season average 5.65: New England Patriots (ESPN, 2), (NFL.com, 2), (USA Today, 2)

No. 3.33, last 2.00, two weeks ago 2.00, season average 3.61: Kansas City Chiefs (ESPN, 3), (NFL.com, 3), (USA Today, 4)

No. 3.66, last 3.33, two weeks ago 3.66, season average 6.05: New Orleans Saints (ESPN, 4), (NFL.com, 4), (USA Today, 3)

The Best of the Rest (5.34-10.66)

No. 6.00, last 10.33, two weeks ago 8.66, season average 11.22: Baltimore Ravens (ESPN, 5), (NFL.com, 7), (USA Today, 6)

No. 6.33, last 9.66, two weeks ago 12.00, season average 10.71: Los Angeles Chargers (ESPN, 8), (NFL.com, 6), (USA Today, 5)

No. 8.00, last 10.66, two weeks ago 14.33, season average 8.88: Minnesota Vikings (ESPN, 10), (NFL.com, 5), (USA Today, 9)

No. 8.00, last 11.66, two weeks ago 15.66, season average 11.86: Pittsburgh Steelers (ESPN, 9), (NFL.com, 8), (USA Today, 7)

No. 8.33, last 6.66, two weeks ago 7.66, season average 11.44: Cincinnati Bengals (ESPN, 7), (NFL.com, 10), (USA Today, 8)

No. 9.33, last 14.33, two weeks ago 10.33, season average 7.49: Philadelphia Eagles (ESPN, 6), (NFL.com, 12), (USA Today, 10)

So You’re Saying There’s a Chance (10.67-15.99)

No. 11.66, last 6.33, two weeks ago 7.66, season average 9.38: Carolina Panthers (ESPN, 13), (NFL.com, 9), (USA Today, 13)

No. 12.66, last 8.00, two weeks ago 10.66, season average 14.10: Chicago Bears (ESPN, 12), (NFL.com, 11), (USA Today, 15)

No. 13.00, last 13.66, two weeks ago 9.66, season average 10.21: Green Bay Packers (ESPN, 14), (NFL.com, 13), (USA Today, 12)

No. 14.33, last 16.33, two weeks ago 14.66, season average 16.49: Washington Redskins (ESPN, 16), (NFL.com, 16), (USA Today, 11)

No. 15.66, last 6.33, two weeks ago 3.33, season average 6.21: Jacksonville Jaguars (ESPN, 11), (NFL.com, 15), (USA Today, 21)

Stuck in the Middle with You (16.00-21.32)

No. 16.00, last 17.33, two weeks ago 16.33, season average 16.49: Miami Dolphins (ESPN, 15), (NFL.com, 19), (USA Today, 14)

No. 17.33, last 22.00, two weeks ago 21.33, season average 22.44: Seattle Seahawks (ESPN, 17), (NFL.com, 18), (USA Today, 17)

No. 17.66, last 24.66, two weeks ago 21.66, season average 22.05: Dallas Cowboys (ESPN, 20), (NFL.com, 14), (USA Today, 19)

No. 19.33, last 21.33, two weeks ago 16.66, season average 14.05: Atlanta Falcons (ESPN, 19), (NFL.com, 23), (USA Today, 16)

No. 20.00, last 22.00, two weeks ago 26.00, season average 22.16: Houston Texans (ESPN, 21), (NFL.com, 21), (USA Today, 18)

No. 20.00, last 15.33, two weeks ago 11.66, season average 18.49: Tennessee Titans (ESPN, 18), (NFL.com, 24), (USA Today, 18)

No. 20.66, last 15.66, two weeks ago 23.33, season average 21.99: Cleveland Browns (ESPN, 22), (NFL.com, 20), (USA Today, 20)

No. 21.00, last 21.00, two weeks ago 24.00, season average 24.44: Detroit Lions (ESPN, 23), (NFL.com, 17), (USA Today, 23)

It’s Probably Not Your Year  (21.33-26.65)

No. 23.00, last 24.66, two weeks ago 29.33, season average 25.05: New York Jets (ESPN, 25), (NFL.com, 22), (USA Today, 22)

No. 25.00, last 23.66, two weeks ago 19.33, season average 20.10: Denver Broncos (ESPN, 24), (NFL.com, 26), (USA Today, 25)

No. 25.33, last 19.66, two weeks ago 19.33, season average 16.71: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (ESPN, 26), (NFL.com, 25), (USA Today, 25)

See You in 2019  (26.66-32.00)

No. 27.66, last 27.33, two weeks ago 26.33, season average 25.82: Indianapolis Colts (ESPN, 27), (NFL.com, 29), (USA Today, 27)

No. 28.00, last 28.33, two weeks ago 31.33, season average 29.83: Buffalo Bills (ESPN, 28), (NFL.com, 28), (USA Today, 28)

No. 29.00, last 28.00, two weeks ago 26.00, season average 26.27: New York Giants (ESPN, 29), (NFL.com, 27), (USA Today, 31)

No. 30.00, last 31.00, two weeks ago 31.66, season average 30.99: Arizona Cardinals (ESPN, 31), (NFL.com, 30), (USA Today, 29)

No. 30.33, last 31.33, two weeks ago 28.66, season average 26.83: San Francisco 49ers (ESPN, 30), (NFL.com, 31), (USA Today, 30)

No. 32.00, last 30.66, two weeks ago 28.33, season average 29.38: Oakland Raiders (ESPN, 32), (NFL.com, 32), (USA Today, 32)

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