Getty Gallery: 5/6
No. 7 Chicago Bears
No. 8 Carolina Panthers
You could technically call the Chicago Bears winners of Week 5 even though they were on a bye. Mitchell Trubisky and company carried their 3-1 record into the off week and there was a very real chance the Green Bay Packers could have jumped to 3-1-1. The Detroit Lions made sure that didn't happen, though, knocking off the Packers at home.
The Bears defense makes them one of the more intriguing and dangerous teams in the NFL. If the offense comes along the way many expect it to, then Chicago may be a force coming out of the NFC for many years to come. Their decision to swing a trade for 2016 Defensive Player of the Year Khalil Mack this offseason was a huge one.
As Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune revealed, Bears linebackers coach Brandon Staley raved about what Mack brings to the defense.
"As far as our outside linebackers, he’s just a steady guy. On the field. In drills. In between series, whether it’s a practice or a game. And that affects people in a positive way. He has so much confidence in himself. And that can’t help but spread to his teammates. Like, hey, this is going to turn out OK." Staley said in an interview.
Panthers Need Wild Finish but Get It Done
I'll admit that if not for Panthers kicker Graham Gano's incredible 63-yard field goal to defeat the New York Giants, Carolina wouldn't be on this list. But in the NFL, a win is a win and they're never easy to come by.
Through the madness that was Gano's near-record-breaking kick, it's easy to forget that Cam Newton and company have defeated the Bengals and Cowboys – two good football teams. They lost a road game to the rival Falcons in a close 31-24 finish, but the Panthers deserve a tip of the cap.
The main reason I placed them ahead of the two other teams in the top-10 is that at this moment, Carolina would defeat both. Kudos to Gano for keeping the dream alive and most importantly, pushing the Panthers into my power rankings. After all, the kicker said he "felt like Cam [Newton] a little bit" after his clutch win, as ESPN's David Newton quoted.
"I'm happy that we got a kicker like that," Newton said of Gano. "A wise man once told me a great quarterback is only as good as his kicker. Graham put the whole team on his back. Well, on his toe."