Power Ranking the divisions 6 weeks in, from the ugly, to the good

Power Ranking the NFL Divisions 6 Weeks into 2015By Russell S. Baxter Oct 24, 2015 Six weeks into the NFL’s latest season and it’s already been an odd year.A very odd year.How so? While we have five unbeaten teams in the form of the Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos and Green Bay Packers (all 6-0 and off this week), as well as the 5-0 Carolina Panthers and New England Patriots, they are but five of only 10 clubs with winning records at the time.So as we quickly creep up on the halfway point of the 2015 campaign, we thought we would stop and power rank the league’s eight divisions, regardless of the fact that there hasn’t been much power in a few of them.We have our thoughts when it comes to the best and the worst, and we will rank them from the ugly, to the bad and the good.8. AFC SouthTroy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports Indianapolis Colts (3-3), Houston Texans (2-4), Tennessee Titans (1-4), Jacksonville Jaguars (1-5)Combined W-L Record: 7-16It appears we may be in very familiar territory.Last season, the Indianapolis Colts posted their third consecutive 11-5 season and won the AFC South for a second straight year. The Houston Texans finished 9-7 while the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans combined for just five victories.And while the Colts still appear to be the team to beat among this foursome, they haven’t exactly wowed us to date. All three of their victories (two with Matt Hasselbeck starting in place of a wounded Andrew Luck) have come against their divisional brethren, but Chuck Pagano’s team has fallen to the likes of the Buffalo Bills, New York Jets and New England Patriots.All four teams in the AFC South have allowed more points than they have scored, and both Tennessee and Jacksonville are in the midst of four-game losing streaks.7. NFC EastRich Schultz/Getty Images Philadelphia Eagles (3-3), New York Giants (3-3), Dallas Cowboys (2-3), Washington Redskins (2-4)Combined W-L Record: 10-13What is there to make of a division that a year ago boasted a pair of teams with 10 or more victories, a 12-win division champion and the NFL’s leader in rushing yards?The Philadelphia Eagles are currently riding a two-game winning streak that has “raised” their record to 3-3, while the Dallas Cowboys (minus quarterback Tony Romo and wide receiver Dez Bryant) have lost three straight after opening with a pair of divisional wins.You try and figure out the New York Giants. The team blew a pair of fourth-quarter leads in the first two weeks in losses to the Cowboys and Atlanta Falcons, ran off three straight wins and just when you thought it had its act together, it laid a big-time egg on Monday night at Philadelphia.As for the Washington Redskins, they are hardly out of the race. But consistency on either side of the football has been the team’s biggest issue, and 11 turnovers in six games hasn’t helped head coach Jay Gruden’s cause.Of course, the dynamic of this division could change dramatically once Romo and Bryant are healthy.6. AFC WestJason Miller/Getty Images Denver Broncos (6-0), Oakland Raiders (2-3), San Diego Chargers (2-4), Kansas City Chiefs (1-5)Combined W-L Record: 11-12For now, there are the Denver Broncos, and there are the other three teams.Then again, we are having a tough time trying to figure out Gary Kubiak’s club. Led by an imposing defensive unit, the Denver offense has been stuck in neutral or reverse for the majority of 2015. Will we see some semblance of the Peyton Manning of old after the team’s bye week or will we continue to watch the legendary signal-caller look old?As for the rest of the division, the Oakland Raiders are making definitive strides, and it’s only a matter of time before we see it reflected in the win-loss column.For the San Diego Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs, it’s been a disappointing start to date, especially for two clubs coming off 9-7 seasons.5. NFC NorthJeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports Green Bay Packers (6-0), Minnesota Vikings (3-2), Chicago Bears (2-4), Detroit Lions (1-5)Combined W-L Record: 12-11There are seemingly the Green Bay Packers and the rest of the NFC North these days, although there’s still time for the other three teams to have their say.Then again, when you speak of the Packers, they're a team that has won the division each of the last four years, and the last time they failed to do so, they were much busier en route to winning Super Bowl XLV in 2010.The Minnesota Vikings have managed to keep their heads above water to date, but we’re still waiting for second-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to flex his muscles a bit. Meanwhile, running back Adrian Peterson is starting to look like his old all-world self.It’s also worth noting that the Chicago Bears are looking like a much better football team these days after a rough start, while the Detroit Lions have once again fallen on hard times, especially when it comes to defense.4. NFC WestJason Bridge-USA TODAY Sports Arizona Cardinals (4-2), Seattle Seahawks (3-4), St. Louis Rams (2-3), San Francisco 49ers (2-5)Combined W-L Record: 11-14If the Seattle Seahawks are to win a third straight NFC West title, they will have to come from behind to do so.And if Pete Carroll’s club plays defense like it did Thursday night at San Francisco, it may be just a matter of time before it grabs that top spot once again.Despite losing two of their last three games, don’t dismiss the Arizona Cardinals. Bruce Arians has a healthy Carson Palmer at the controls, and with the exception of last week’s loss at Pittsburgh, the Cardinals have piled up points on everyone they’ve played.The St. Louis Rams remain an enigma, although we do know that they own a 2-0 record within the division—including a victory at Arizona. As for the San Francisco 49ers, they are but a shell of their recent selves, and it’s been sad watching this club fall apart in less than a year with not much relief in sight.3. AFC NorthMark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports Cincinnati Bengals (6-0), Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2), Cleveland Browns (2-4), Baltimore Ravens (1-5)Combined W-L Record: 13-11The division that has provided us with at least two playoff teams in six of the past seven seasons (three in two of the last four years) may be getting ready to wow us soon.The Cincinnati Bengals have already tied the franchise record for the best start in a season, and the Pittsburgh Steelers have managed to stay in the race despite the absence of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for the last three-plus games.Both the Bengals and Steelers have been getting steady play from their defensive units, the former due in part to the re-emergence of defensive tackle Geno Atkins and the latter due to stellar play from its youth under new coordinator Keith Butler.We would be remiss not to mention the play of league MVP candidate Andy Dalton, who has led his club to come-from-behind wins at Baltimore and at home versus Seattle and has played as well as any quarterback in the league.As for the Steelers, they’re getting ready to use their third different quarterback in seven games in the form of Landry Jones. It will be interesting to see if Roethlisberger returns next Sunday for the showdown with the Bengals.While their record may not reflect it, the Cleveland Browns are proving to be a tough day’s work for any team, especially when it comes to their ever-improving offense.As for the Baltimore Ravens, their 1-5 start is simply inexplicable. But to sum up the team’s woes this season, you can look at their losses to the Oakland Raiders and Cleveland Browns, both setbacks despite scoring at least 30 points in each game.2. NFC SouthTroy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports Carolina Panthers (5-0), Atlanta Falcons (5-1), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-3), New Orleans Saints (2-4)Combined W-L Record: 14-8Well, what do you know?One year ago, the Carolina Panthers won their final four games and captured the NFC South with a 7-8-1 mark.Now, both the Panthers and Atlanta Falcons have each won five games in six weeks. Wouldn’t it be interesting if just one year later, the division boasted a pair of 10-win teams and one didn’t reach the postseason?The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are willing to let rookie quarterback Jameis Winston go through his growing pains, while the New Orleans Saints are certainly a team in transition. Still, it’s worth noting that Lovie Smith’s team has already won as many games as it did all of last season while the Saints have won twice in the last three weeks following an 0-3 start. Still, neither team has the defense to strike fear into opponents.That’s not the case with the Panthers and Falcons for two different reasons. Carolina’s forte is defense, and it’s a perfect complement to ever-improving quarterback Cam Newton, who is healthy and consistently guiding his team to wins like the comeback at Seattle last Sunday. Atlanta is doing it with an increased physical style of play, and so far, it has paid off in a big way.Unless the Bucs and Saints get their act together, the Panthers and Falcons (who don’t meet until mid-December) figure to duke it out over the next month or so for division supremacy.1. AFC EastJeff Haynes/Associated Press New England Patriots (5-0), New York Jets (4-1), Buffalo Bills (3-3), Miami Dolphins (2-3)Combined W-L Record: 14-7In each of the past six seasons, the New England Patriots have basically cruised to a division title with the New York Jets, Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills providing very little resistance.That doesn’t appear it will be the case in 2015, and over the next few days, we will find out if that is indeed true.First things first. The 5-0 Patriots are off to their best start since running the table in the regular season in 2007, and the Jets have already matched last season’s win total (albeit dismal) with four victories.New England boasts the league’s second-ranked offense, and the Jets have the NFL’s top overall defense.At times, the Buffalo Bills have looked formidable. Then again, they have also been humbled in their last three home games by the New England Patriots, New York Giants and Cincinnati Bengals.As for the Dolphins, we are only one game into the Dan Campbell Era, but you have to like what you see.Now for that aforementioned key stretch within the division. On Sunday, the Patriots begin a three-game home stand that features visits by the Jets and Dolphins within the span of five days. The showdown with the league’s best defense seems to have upset written all over it if you ask Neil Greenberg of the Washington Post.And let the fireworks begin, even if they apparently were a bit contrived. There are no guarantees in life, much less a football game, as Jets defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson attempted to explain when it came to his team’s chances this week.“This is going to be another win for us,” said the third-year defensive tackle to Metro.com. “We’ll let you all write the columns about validating wins and stuff like that.“This is going to be another win in the win column if we go out there and execute and do what we’re supposed to do,” added Richardson. “We’re going to be up in the division, that’s how we’re going to look at it. We’re going to be the front-runners, that’s how we look at it.”It could be a fun division to look at all year. Unless otherwise noted, all player and team statistics come from Pro Football Reference and ESPN.comlink