Power Rankings Post NFL Week 4: The Tom Brady Mouth Kiss Episode

Five teams are sitting at 0-4, which means the 2026 NFL season has already reached one of our favorite annual traditions: deciding whether it is socially acceptable to bury a team’s playoff hopes before the leaves have even changed. This week on Missing the Point, we dive headfirst into our NFL Week 5 Power Rankings, starting at the very bottom with the league’s winless teams and asking the uncomfortable question: which NFL teams can officially be crossed off from playoff contention? The Los Angeles Chargers take the heaviest fire. Justin Herbert is supposed to be one of the NFL’s elite quarterbacks, but turnovers, offensive inconsistency, coaching questions, penalties, and an absolutely brutal AFC West playoff race have the Chargers staring straight into the abyss at 0-4. With the Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas Raiders, and Denver Broncos all occupying valuable real estate in the division, how much longer can Los Angeles pretend there is still time to turn this season around? We also put the Houston Texans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tennessee Titans, and Miami Dolphins on trial. Houston keeps losing close games and somehow still looks more competitive than its record. Tampa Bay cannot stop collecting injuries. Tennessee is searching for an offensive identity. Miami is…well, Miami is already familiar with the cross-off list. Then we work our way through the rest of the 2026 NFL Power Rankings, where things get significantly messier. Are the Arizona Cardinals and New York Jets next in line for elimination? Are the New Orleans Saints secretly worse than their record suggests? What exactly are the Washington Commanders right now? And how long are we supposed to politely nod while teams hovering around .500 insist they are “figuring things out”? The Las Vegas Raiders get a much more serious conversation this week after continuing to look competent, physical, and legitimately dangerous. Brock Bowers remains a weekly matchup nightmare, and suddenly Raiders football is forcing everyone to confront a deeply uncomfortable possibility: Las Vegas might actually be good. Then there are the Minnesota Vikings, who keep winning despite an offense that sometimes appears morally opposed to scoring touchdowns. At what point does an undefeated record outweigh every concern about quarterback play and offensive sustainability? Can an elite NFL defense drag a shaky offense deep into January? That leads directly into the Denver Broncos debate. How high should a team climb in NFL power rankings when its defense is carrying the operation? How much can an elite defense cover for offensive inconsistency? And are we giving Denver too much credit based on what we think they can become rather than what they actually are? Naturally, we also get into the Baltimore Ravens, because every Ravens conversation eventually reaches the exact same question: what happens when Lamar Jackson and Baltimore get into a one-score playoff game in December or January? The talent is obvious. The ceiling is obvious. The scar tissue is also obvious. But the centerpiece of this episode is a full New England Patriots deep dive with the MTP Boston crew. We break down Drake Maye, his confidence, his development, his turnovers, his ability to create outside structure, and whether the Patriots offense is finally beginning to find something sustainable. We dig into Josh McDaniels’ play-calling, New England’s third-down problems, offensive line pressure, protection issues, the running game, and what the upcoming Patriots vs. Raiders matchup can tell us about whether this team is actually turning a corner. Is Drake Maye becoming the quarterback Patriots fans hoped he would be? Was the win over Buffalo a genuine breakthrough or the beginning of another classic NFL overreaction cycle? And does New England actually belong anywhere near the top ten of an NFL power ranking yet? We close with rapid-fire conversations around some of the biggest NFL storylines heading into Week 5: The Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers matchup gives us a legitimate NFC measuring stick. The Chicago Bears suddenly look terrifyingly well coached, physical, disciplined, and capable of winning football games regardless of who is playing quarterback. And the Jacksonville Jaguars are quietly building one of the most convincing contender profiles in the NFL, with Trevor Lawrence playing efficient football and a defense that is making life miserable for opposing offenses. So if you’re looking for NFL Power Rankings Week 5, NFL playoff predictions, NFL Week 5 analysis, NFL contender rankings, NFL teams to eliminate from playoff contention, Drake Maye analysis, New England Patriots news, Chicago Bears analysis, Jacksonville Jaguars predictions, 49ers vs. Seahawks, Justin Herbert Chargers discussion, or just three people aggressively arguing about football for longer than any reasonable person should… You’re in the right place. Subscribe to Missing the Point, share the episode with the friend who declares a team Super Bowl-bound after one good Sunday, and leave a review with the team you are officially ready to CROSS OFF from the 2026 NFL playoff race. #NFL #NFLPowerRankings #NFLWeek5 #NFL2026 #NFLPredictions #NFLPlayoffs #NFLPlayoffPicture #NFLNews #NFLAnalysis #Football #FootballPodcast #SportsPodcast #MissingThePoint #DrakeMaye #NewEnglandPatriots #Patriots #PatriotsNation #ChicagoBears #DaBears #BearsFootball #JacksonvilleJaguars #DUUUVAL #TrevorLawrence #SanFrancisco49ers #49ers #SeattleSeahawks #Seahawks #KansasCityChiefs #ChiefsKingdom #BuffaloBills #BillsMafia #BaltimoreRavens #RavensFlock #DenverBroncos #BroncosCountry #LasVegasRaiders #Raiders #RaiderNation #BrockBowers #LosAngelesChargers #Chargers #JustinHerbert #MinnesotaVikings #Skol #HoustonTexans #TampaBayBuccaneers #TennesseeTitans #MiamiDolphins #NFLWeek4 #NFLStandings #NFLContenders #SuperBowl #SuperBowlLX #FantasyFootball #AFC #NFC Support the show ----------- https://www.MTPshow.com Our Social Media https://linktr.ee/MTPSHOW ----------- Hosts: Mike Marcangelo, Dave Clarke Producer: Craig D'Alessandro, Dave Clarke Inquiries: [email protected]