Tom Brady has a new No. 1 team in his weekly NFL power rankings heading into Week 8, and it isn’t the San Francisco 49ers anymore. After San Francisco’s 29-20 loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 7, Brady moved the Minnesota Vikings to the top spot following their 16-10 win over the Indianapolis Colts, which kept Minnesota unbeaten.
“Someone alert the media: We’ve got a new No. 1 in the Tom Brady Power Rankings as the Minnesota Vikings beat the Colts to stay unbeaten. I’m taking a mini victory lap here,” Brady said. “We were getting some heat early when I had the Vikings up with the Niners and Chiefs of the world, but they’re backing it up.”
Brady acknowledged the Vikings’ offense still needs work, but praised the team’s coaching, pass rush and takeaways, along with quarterback Kyler Murray. Minnesota travels to Detroit on Sunday to face the Lions.
No AFC North teams in the top 10
Despite the AFC North having four teams with winning records, Brady left all of them out of his top 10 this week. He did note how closely matched the division has become, floating the idea of an 18-week round-robin within the division to determine a playoff entrant.
The rest of the top 10
Brady’s No. 2 team is the Jacksonville Jaguars, who were idle in Week 7 after a trip to London and hold a 2.5-game lead in the AFC South. They host the Colts on Sunday. Brady praised head coach Liam Coen and quarterback Trevor Lawrence’s play this season.
At No. 3, the New England Patriots fell 30-24 at the Chicago Bears on Thursday night in a game Brady called a treat to watch, highlighting quarterback Drake Maye’s recent stretch of 12 touchdowns and two interceptions over his last four games. New England plays at Miami on Sunday.
The Detroit Lions sit at No. 4 after a 20-17 win over the Green Bay Packers, with Brady pointing to the connection between quarterback Jared Goff and receiver Jameson Williams, who have combined for four touchdowns in the last two games. Detroit hosts Minnesota on Sunday, a matchup Brady and broadcast partner Kevin Burkhardt will call.
No. 5 is the Chicago Bears, fresh off their Thursday night win over New England. Brady noted quarterback Caleb Williams threw for 300 yards with no turnovers since returning from a hamstring injury. Chicago visits Seattle on Monday night.
The Seattle Seahawks rank No. 6 after handing the Kansas City Chiefs their first loss of the season, 20-3, shutting down running back Kenneth Walker III. Brady credited receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s 150-yard, one-touchdown performance. Seattle hosts Chicago on Monday.
The Denver Broncos are No. 7 following a 30-16 win at the Arizona Cardinals, with their only losses coming against San Francisco and Kansas City. Denver hosts the Chiefs on Sunday, a rematch of Kansas City’s 31-10 Week 1 win.
At No. 8, the Kansas City Chiefs dropped to 20-3 at Seattle. Brady said quarterback Patrick Mahomes had a rough night but expects him to bounce back in Denver.
The Buffalo Bills are No. 9 after a bye week, preparing to face the Baltimore Ravens, who may have quarterback Lamar Jackson back. Brady said Buffalo’s offense, which leads the league in points per game, moved the team into a tie atop the AFC after Kansas City’s loss.
Rounding out the top 10 at No. 10 are the San Francisco 49ers, who fell 29-20 at Atlanta. Brady said he may have jinxed the team last week by predicting a perfect 7-0 run into their bye. San Francisco is idle this week as it deals with injuries, with quarterback Brock Purdy coming off a difficult outing.
