NFL Power Rankings: Giants hit Top 15 before Week 5

The New York Giants have quickly become a team to watch in the NFC. On paper so much should be going wrong for them with the loss of Jaxson Dart and top pass rusher Brian Burns, but instead we’ve seen John Harbaugh turn this team into a winner with some swagger, now sitting atop the NFC East and looking down on those around them.

It’s fair to note that two of their three wins have come against the Cardinals and Titans — but in the past you could never count on the Giants to close out these kinds of games, especially while battling through serious injury. We’ve yet to see this team at its best, and yet they’re still on the right side of the win column after one month in the league. They deserve their flowers, cracking the Top 15 in our Power Rankings ahead of Week 5.

Here’s our full ranking of all 32 teams, as well as their previous rank and how it changed since Week 4.

The Giants are passing the eye test right now too. That’s less about their football being pretty, because it often isn’t — but it’s about how the team is carrying itself on the sideline. The biggest thing Harbaugh has done for New York is improve its locker room culture to the point where these players believe they can win any game, like they’re being led by a much grumpier Ted Lasso.

This Lions defense is just so, so, so bad. Granted, they were playing Bryce Young on Sunday Night Football, who is playing out of his mind — but the Panthers were also without four offensive linemen, as well as their No. 2 and No. 3 receivers (Jalen Coker and Xavier Legette). With essentially one good receiver, the Panthers sliced and diced the Detroit secondary using the RPO, basically making a blueprint for whoever wants to attack it. It’s growing more and more difficult to see how the Lions hang with the Bears in the NFC North.

As for the Commanders, this is some course correction. We were bullish on Washington returning to form in 2026, but there’s been nothing to indicate they’re worthy of faith. Moreover, the team is getting worse as time goes on, struggling more against worse opponents — and the injury bug is creeping in. It’s a shame, but this is shaping up to be another lost season for the team.

Getting the doors blown off against the Panthers in Week 2 might have been the best thing to happen to the Falcons this season. The team looks completely different following their divisional embarrassment, now boasting a really solid all-around defense despite lacking their top pass rushers, and having an offense that can lean on Bijan Robinson to carry them over the finish line. There’s so much to like about this team other than its shaky QB position, but all in all, the Falcons are looking like a team that could contend in the NFC South and make a push into the top half of the league.