Upsets were hard to find in Week 6, with several favorites dominating Sunday. Perhaps for the first time this season, tiers between the good and bad teams finally showed after five weeks of unpredictable outcomes.
The Baltimore Ravens might be the one team that can hang with the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC after they defeated the Washington Commanders 30–23, snapping Jayden Daniels’s four-game winning streak.
The Commanders don’t appear to be in the class of the Ravens when it comes to forming a list of Super Bowl contenders, but they are definitely contenders in the NFC East. The Philadelphia Eagles had a sluggish 20–16 victory against the Cleveland Browns.
The Detroit Lions had the look of a team in pursuit of the Lombardi Trophy, cruising past the Dallas Cowboys 47–9. But unfortunately for the Lions, their victory in Dallas had a sour ending after Aidan Hutchinson sustained a scary lower leg injury and was carted off the field.
It wouldn’t be wild to say the Ravens and the Lions are the two best teams in their respective conferences. But the San Francisco 49ers and Chiefs definitely disagree—those two teams will clash in a Super Bowl rematch in Week 7. And don’t overlook the undefeated Minnesota Vikings, who were on a bye week.
Going back to Week 6, the Los Angeles Chargers and Chicago Bears have ways to go before reaching the top-tier status in the NFL, but they might be well on their way to becoming playoff teams after both picked up impressive wins Sunday.
Here’s what else we learned in Week 6, including what we saw from rookies Drake Maye and Spencer Rattler in their starting debuts.
Lions regain top status in NFC after crushing Cowboys
The Lions made an emphatic statement with their dominant win over the Cowboys, displaying the wide gap between the two teams.
Dallas (3–3) has the look of a fringe playoff team and might be the third best team in the NFC East, but more on them in a bit. This Week 6 matchup was all about the Lions (4–1) regaining their top status as one of the two best teams in the NFC. Last season ended with Detroit falling to San Francisco in the NFC championship game, and the two teams might be headed for another playoff rematch in late January.
But it’s tough to say whether the 49ers are fully back after brushing off a slow start and improving to 3–3 with Thursday night’s win against the Seattle Seahawks. And the Lions might not be the best team inside their own division; the Vikings are 5–0 and lead the NFC North. Minnesota and Detroit meet next Sunday with first place on the line in the division and the conference.
With the Lions, it’s obvious they’re an elite team, especially on offense. Quarterback Jared Goff has regained his top form from last season, including a perfect game against the Seahawks. On Sunday, he completed 18-of-25 passes for 315 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers.
Detroit’s offense might be even better than last year with Jameson Williams (three catches, 76 yards, one touchdown against Dallas) contributing regularly. David Montgomery, who signed a new two-year, $18.25 million contract extension, quickly started earning his money Sunday, rushing for a team-high 80 yards and two touchdowns. The Lions finished with 184 rushing yards.
Defensively, though, Detroit might be without Hutchinson for the foreseeable future. He’s the Lions’ best defender, giving defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn a daunting task to fill his void.
As for the Cowboys, they continue to show they’re a two-man team on offense and have many issues on the defensive side. Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb were enough to get by the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers, but that won’t get it done against teams as good as the Lions. Dallas needs to find more help for Prescott, but that won’t save Mike Zimmer’s poor defense, which allowed 492 total yards to the Lions with several key starters missing due to injuries.
