Week 10 AP NFL Power Rankings: Dolphins poised to go on run; Saints crash the top five

Can you believe we’ve now passed the half way point of the season?

We wait for what seem like an eternity in spring and summer for the season — only for the games to fly by. Here we are, just eight short weeks from preparing for playoff games.

This week’s voters were Matt Stagner, Pete Sweeney, Ron Kopp and myself.

1. Kansas City Chiefs (1st)

A nerve-wracking win for the world champs, but 8-1 going into the bye is nothing to be down about.

2. Pittsburgh Steelers (2nd)

Have we all been a bit guilty of overhyping the Steelers of late? When you look at the teams they have beaten, it certainly raises eyebrows.

3. Seattle Seahawks (3rd)

Russell Wilson’s path to MVP just become a little bit harder.

4. Baltimore Ravens (5th)

Marcus Peters continues to make big plays, although the call for an interception was rather questionable.

5. New Orleans Saints (7th)

Soaring into the top five after a string of excellent results and a dominating win over the Bucs.

6. Green Bay Packers (6th)

They got their revenge on the 49ers for last year’s NFC championship game humbling.

7. Tennessee Titans (8th)

They didn’t need to get out of second gear against an increasingly bad Bears team.

8. Buffalo Bills (9th)

That was the Josh Allen we all know and love. When the Bills offense comes out passing, it’s a lot of fun.

9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4th) | This week’s big faller

The Saints are the first divisional opponent to ever sweep Tom Brady. That is crazy.

10. Miami Dolphins (13th) | This week’s high riser

After an underwhelming performance last week, Tua was excellent with his arm and his legs against the Cardinals. Old friend Emmaunel Ogbah is balling right now.

11. Arizona Cardinals (10th)

You simply cannot sell kicks short from 48 yards.

12. Las Vegas Raiders (12th)

I think the Raiders are good? (In my best ‘I’m Ron Burgundy?’ voice)

13. Indianapolis Colts (11th)

The Philip Rivers stumble was hilarious.

14. Carolina Panthers (17th)

They left everything out there and it almost paid dividends. They should adopt that aggressiveness in every game.

15. San Francisco 49ers (14th)

The George Kittle injury is the final nail in their coffin.

16. Los Angeles Rams (16th)

A bye week for the Rams and our eyes, as we don’t have to witness those horrible uniforms.

17. Cleveland Browns (15th)

Can imagine they’re taking stock right now.

18. New England Patriots (19th)

No names, but one very generous AP writer is the reason why the Patriots are in the top 20.

19. Chicago Bears (18th)

Matt Nagy’s seat is heating up.

20. Minnesota Vikings (21st)

They look like the team that will make a late-season push.

21. Los Angeles Chargers (20th)

The Chargers —finding new ways to break their fans’ hearts every week.

22. Cincinnati Bengals (25th)

I was gutted that they didn’t have a game this week. They’ve been so much fun to watch.

23. Philadelphia Eagles (22nd)

Sounds strange, but the Eagles are one of the few teams that can start prepping for the playoffs.

24. Denver Broncos (23rd)

A late push was too little, too late for Denver. Maybe if they start playing when the game starts, they’ll be OK.

25. Atlanta Falcons (26th)

Matt Ryan is not giving up his job without a fight.

26. Detroit Lions (24th)

Matt Patricia is now 12-26-1 as the head coach of the Detroit Lions.

27. Houston Texans (27th)

I feel like they’re a team counting down the days for Eric Bieniemy to come in.

28. Dallas Cowboys (28th)

Not going to lie: I thought they were going to do the Chiefs a huge favor there for a second. Valiant performance none the less.

29. New York Giants (29th)

Four of Daniel Jones’ five wins have come against Washington. Wow.

30. Washington Football Team (30th)

Alex Smith is going to be the starter for the foreseeable future. Please look after him.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars (31st)

You just know they were cheering on the Jets last night.

32. New York Jets (32nd)

They’re getting better while losing. The perfect tank.