2024 NFL Week 9 Power Rankings: Dallas Cowboys continue to fall to the bottom
We are just about halfway through the 2024 NFL season which is crazy to think given that it feels like it barely started. Time flies and all that jazz. By next week Halloween will have passed, candy will have been consumed and the clocks will have fallen back (except for you, Arizona). Things are getting more and more serious across the NFL which makes the fact that the Dallas Cowboys look so moribund all the more concerning.
Contenders across the league are beginning to really separate themselves as this is happening which is also noteworthy and making things feel intense. This is evidenced by our latest power rankings which have the Cowboys down near the bottom quarter of the league (not quite there, though).
As always we have also curated where outlets across the internet have the Dallas Cowboys ranked.
You can view last week’s rankings right here.
1 – Detroit Lions (LW: 1)
You cannot win the Super Bowl in October, but they sure do look like they could in February.
2 – Kansas City Chiefs (LW: 3)
It is so unbelievable how it feels like they are so far away from the peak version of themselves and that they are the last undefeated team as November nears. Life is good in Kansas City.
3 – Buffalo Bills (LW: 4)
There has been some fatigue around them not getting it all the way done over the last few years, but my goodness they remain a force.
4 – Baltimore Ravens (LW: 2)
They may have stumbled in Cleveland, but we know we can trust them. Plus they showed a level of aggression on Tuesday by trading for Diontae Johnson. Good for them.
5 – Washington Commanders (LW: 6)
Luck is a part of every successful NFL season and there is no question that they picked up some of it on their iconic Hail Mary.
Fate is smiling upon the Washington franchise for the first time in a while.
6 – Green Bay Packers (LW: 7)
It is so impressive how they can build the plane as it flies and find ways to win.
7 – Minnesota Vikings (LW: 5)
It feels unfair to overreact to last Thursday night and all of the drama with the missed facemask certainly matters.
It is time to see what they are properly made of against Joe Flacco. What a sentence to be said in 2024!
8 – Houston Texans (LW: 8)
Losing Stefon Diggs for the season is awful and it robs us still of a matchup between him and his brother Trevon.
The AFC South is hardly super competitive so Houston should have no issue winning it, but it does seem like the ceiling on their potential is lowering a bit.
9 – Philadelphia Eagles (LW: 9)
Maybe they really are starting to find themselves.
I wish the Cowboys were good enough for us to really care.
10 – San Francisco 49ers (LW: 10)
They won and I am in no way taking away anything from them, but it was hardly the best version of San Francisco that we have seen. Getting players back from injury will likely help them totally re-find their form.
11 – Arizona Cardinals (LW: 13)
I’ve said for weeks that I will take all of the stock in this team that I can get.
They may be grinding them out in ugly fashion, but they are stacking wins!
12 – Pittsburgh Steelers (LW: 14)
Kind of like the Cardinals, the Steelers feel a bit more gross than their record would suggest.
It doesn’t matter, though.
13 – Atlanta Falcons (LW: 17)
We will see you on Sunday.
14 – Chicago Bears (LW: 11)
Losses like last week’s are tough to get over.
Hopefully Matt Eberflus is able to rally the group.
15 – Los Angeles Rams (LW: 21)
They may be coming around now that reinforcements have arrived.
16 – Seattle Seahawks (LW: 12)
On the other hand, they may be starting to fade just a little bit.
17 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (LW: 15)
You could offer the same here.
By the way, Baker Mayfield and Dak Prescott both have three-game streaks going with multiple interceptions. Not fun company at the moment.
18 – Denver Broncos (LW: 19)
They remain a bit weird, but they are putting together wins. Who says they can’t be a playoff team?
19 – Los Angeles Chargers (LW: 22)
There was so much offseason hype and right now they are rather boring.
20 – Cincinnati Bengals (LW: 16)
It is okay to say that they are not very good.
21 – Dallas Cowboys (LW: 18)
We clearly have no issue offering that here.
22 – Indianapolis Colts (LW: 20)
Abandoning Anthony Richardson is a bold move to say the least.
We at least get some serious football with Joe Flacco involved.
23 – New England Patriots (LW: 31)
Are they turning a corner? Maybe. I don’t know. It is still weird for them to be so irrelevant in the big picture conversations.
24 – Cleveland Browns (LW: 32)
What a huge win.
25 – Jacksonville Jaguars (LW: 23)
Another wandering and aimless team.
26 – New Orleans Saints (LW: 24)
They have lost every game that they have played since destroying the Cowboys.
That was back in Week 2.
27 – New York Jets (LW: 25)
It sure is something seeing everybody come for Aaron Rodgers and his, um, antics!
28 – Las Vegas Raiders (LW: 26)
Boring.
29 – Tennessee Titans (LW: 27)
Irrelevant.
30 – Carolina Panthers (LW: 28)
At least they are smart enough to trade away assets, even if the return is horrible.
31 – New York Giants (LW: 29)
One day we will look back and be unbelievably upset that the Cowboys did not do more during a time where one of their three division rivals was a complete and total disaster.
32 – Miami Dolphins (LW: 30)
I’ll say it again… nobody ever wants to criticize Mike McDaniel.
This team stinks. He should own that.
NFL.com: 21 (LW: 19)
Get ready for a downward ride.
The Cowboys are below .500 and two-plus games out of first place in the NFC East. Even their Week 7 bye couldn’t freshen them up sufficiently to earn a win in San Francisco. They showed effort on both sides of the ball in the first half but were overtaken in the third quarter, with Dak Prescott throwing a bad pick and the defense allowing three touchdowns. Though Dallas made it interesting late, it wasn’t enough. At 3-4, the margin for error is very small now. Sometime over the next month or so, the ‘Boys are expected to get significant pass-rush help when Micah Parsons, Marshawn Kneeland and DeMarcus Lawrence return to the field, with WR Brandin Cooks in line to boost the offense. But will it matter by then? Dallas’ next four games are against the Falcons, Eagles, Texans and Commanders, who are all projected to be playoff teams right now.
ESPN: 20 (LW: 16)
They also included the “best offseason addition” for each team which as you can imagine was probably an easy exercise to do what with the few amount of options.
Best offseason addition: Linebacker Eric Kendricks
There aren’t many options, considering how the Cowboys approached the offseason. Kendricks is the Cowboys’ leading tackler, and he has missed a game, which might say something about how the defense has played. When he was out, the Cowboys were misaligned far too many times in a 38-point loss to the Lions. He is the defense’s quarterback and has been as reliable as any defender Dallas has. — Todd Archer
USA Today: 17 (LW: 13)
Not as far down the line here.
WR CeeDee Lamb owns 28% of their offensive production. Still can’t figure why RB Rico Dowdle, who was out sick Sunday night, and TE Jake Ferguson aren’t more heavily featured in an offense begging for diversification.
Yahoo: 21 (LW: 18)
Back into the 20s we go.
The Cowboys are a bad team right now and Dak Prescott deserves plenty of blame. He has gotten a lot of undue criticism through his career, but this season he’s not playing like a $60 million QB. Not that he’s the Cowboys’ only problem.
CBS Sports: 20 (LW: 16)
Right on that line.
They just aren’t a good team right now. The offense is too limited and the defense isn’t physical enough. This team is a mess.
The Athletic: 22 (LW: 16)
They also offered out something “scary” for each team what with Halloween approaching.
Something Scary: The run game
Ezekiel Elliott led the Cowboys with 10 carries for 34 yards on Sunday. Dallas, whose owner Jerry Jones said the team couldn’t afford to pursue Derrick Henry in free agency, is last in the league with 519 rushing yards this season. The Ravens, who did sign Henry, have triple that. Ten individual players have more than that. The Cowboys have lost two straight, and their wins have come over the Browns, Giants and Steelers.
Sports Illustrated: 22 (LW: 21)
Only one sport worse!
This defense was stomped out in the second half. It’s hard to imagine the Cowboys held a lead at one point in this game before George Kittle bullied through a handful of defenders and set up a physical touchdown run. On the Kittle touchdown, a hard legal pick hammered home the point. Dak Prescott majored in turnover worthy plays and was a few dropped picks away from having one of his worst games in quite some time.
Dallas Cowboys Movement Week To Week
Every week (per suggestions from you wonderful BTBers) we will update this graph to note how the Cowboys moved in power rankings according to each of the outlets that we curate.