Patriots Fall from Top Spot in Week 10 MMQB Power Rankings
The Week 10 MMQB Power Rankings have been released, and it looks like there is a new team at the very top of the NFL. After sitting in 2nd place for a large part of the season, the San Francisco 49ers are now No. 1 in this week's power rankings, bumping down the New England Patriots from their spot on the throne. The Patriots now sit at No. 2 in the rankings and are tied with the New Orleans Saints at that position.
What caused New England to lose their position in the rankings is a 37-20 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 9. That loss was the first of the season for the Patriots, and makes the 49ers the only undefeated team left in the league after nine weeks of regular season play.
Here is what the MMQB staff wrote about New England's new position in the rankings:
"The defending champs turned in their first turd of the season as the top-ranked defense had few answers for Lamar Jackson. Mohamed Sanu appears to be getting up to speed, but a pitiful run game (74 rushing yards) and lack of identity are hurting this offense."
Their assessment of the reigning Super Bowl champions is completely warranted. New England's rushing attack is the clear weakness of this year's Patriots squad, which is causing them to air the ball out and become more one dimensional.
During last week's game against Baltimore we saw New England have a ton of success with their hurry-up offense, which allowed Brady to stay upright in the pocket while he got the ball out quickly to Julian Edelman and Mohamed Sanu, who both had 10 catches on the night. The return of Isaiah Wynn may help their struggling offensive line, which in turn will help their run game as well. However, if the second-year pro returns and New England continues to struggle running the ball, then we may see a lot more of their hurry up offense going forward.
As long as San Francisco remains undefeated the Patriots won't have a shot of being No. 1 in the power rankings for the remainder of the season.
