Raise your hand if you picked the Cardinals as a first-place team more than halfway through the season.
Liars!
Kyler Murray is playing like a Pro Bowler in his first full season back from a torn ACL – he completed 17 straight passes in Sunday’s rout of the Jets – and the surging Cardinals have won four straight. He is just the fourth quarterback in NFL history with at least three rushing touchdowns in each of his first six seasons.
The NFC West could prove to be the NFL’s most chaotic division, with just 1 ½ games separating the top from the bottom.
The 49ers – winners of three of their last four – also appear to be hitting their stride after a slow start.
Neither team cracked the top 10 in The Post’s power rankings for Week 11, however. Who did?
1. Chiefs 9-0 (1)
Leo Chenal blocked a 35-yard field goal as time expired to rescue an undefeated record from the jaws of defeat and seal a 16-14 victory against the Broncos. Winners of eight straight when trailing at halftime, the Chiefs’ 15-game overall winning streak is the NFL’s longest since 2010-11. Patrick Mahomes threw for 266 yards and a touchdown to old reliable Travis Kelce.
2. Lions 7-1 (2)
Simply put, the Lions had no business beating the Texans. But that’s what happened when Texas native Jake Bates drilled a walk-off 52-yard field goal to seal a 26-23 victory. The Lions became the first team since 1970 to win after throwing five interceptions (all by Jared Goff) and trailing by at least 15 points (23-7 at the half).
3. Ravens 7-3 (3)
At the end of a miserable game for the defense, the Ravens forced an incompletion on a two-point conversion and hung on for a 35-34 victory against the Bengals. Lamar Jackson threw three of his touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to wipe out a 21-7 deficit. The Ravens had not trailed by 14 points with Jackson on the field in three years.
4. Bills 8-2 (4)
A 30-20 victory against the Colts gave the Bills their first win in Indianapolis since 1998, their first 8-2 start since 1993 and their fourth straight game with at least 30 points scored. The defense forced four takeaways, including a pick-six by Taron Johnson. Josh Allen threw for 280 yards and scored the 57th rushing touchdown of his career.
5. Packers 6-3 (5)
The Packers will come out of their bye with four division games remaining after their first 0-2 start within the NFC North since 2005. They are near the top of the NFL with 32 completions covering 20 yards or more, but Jordan Love’s 10 interceptions are only one fewer than all of last season. Xavier McKinney’s six interceptions are driving the defense.
6. Steelers 7-2 (8)
Trade-deadline acquisition Mike Williams wasted no time making an impact, catching the game-winning touchdown in the final three minutes of a 28-27 victory against the Commanders. The Steelers stayed hot out of the bye, winning a fourth straight. Russell Wilson improved to 3-0 as a starter, throwing three touchdowns, including George Pickens’ highlight-reel 16-yarder.
7. Commanders 7-3 (6)
A mind-boggling streak of 11 straight fourth-down conversions to start the season ended on the Commanders’ final possession, when Zach Ertz was marked down just shy of a first down in the one-point loss. Johnny Newtown jumped offside on a late fourth-and-1, allowing the Steelers to run out the clock. Austin Ekeler ran for two touchdowns.
8. Vikings 7-2 (7)
An ugly win is still a win. The Vikings held the Trevor Lawrence-less Jaguars to 143 yards of offense in a 12-7 victory, overcoming three interceptions thrown by Sam Darnold in the process of beating Mac Jones. Darnold’s offense managed just three field goals by John Parker Romo (making his NFL debut) out of five trips to the red zone.
9. Eagles 7-2 (10)
Jalen Hurts threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more – enough to make up for a lost fumble and an end-zone interception – in a 34-6 annihilation of the Dak Prescott-less Cowboys. The Eagles forced five turnovers and held the Cowboys to 146 yards – their lowest total at home since AT&T Stadium opened in 2009.
10. Texans 6-4 (9)
Letting that near-win against the Lions get away is going to hurt for a while. The Texans scored on five of their six first-half possessions and then were shut out in the second half as C.J. Stroud threw two interceptions to Carlton Davis. Ka’imi Fairbairn missed a would-be go-ahead 58-yard field goal in the final two minutes.
11. 49ers 5-4 (12)
12. Cardinals 6-4 (13)
13. Chargers 6-3 (14)
14. Falcons 6-4 (11)
15. Buccaneers 4-6 (15)
16. Broncos 5-5 (16)
17. Rams 4-5 (17)
18. Seahawks 4-5 (18)
19. Colts 4-6 (19)
20. Bengals 4-6 (22)
21. Cowboys 3-6 (20)
22. Patriots 3-7 (30)
23. Bears 4-5 (21)
24. Dolphins 3-6 (28)
25. Saints 3-7 (32)
26. Jets 3-7 (23)
Anyone who thought that the Jets might still carry playoff hopes even after losing in New England two weeks ago has to face reality after a 31-6 loss to the Cardinals. The Jets missed 20 tackles on defense and didn’t have a play go for longer than 15 yards on offense. Interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich fell to 1-4.
27. Panthers 3-7 (31)
28. Raiders 2-7 (25)
29. Browns 2-7 (27)
30. Titans 2-7 (29)
31. Jaguars 2-8 (26)
32. Giants 2-8 (24)
Favored for the first time in 25 games, the Giants laid an egg in Germany. Against the worst scoring defense in the league, the Giants were shut out in the first half and lost, 20-17, in overtime to the Panthers. Daniel Jones threw two red-zone interceptions, and Tyrone Tracy Jr. fumbled on the first play of overtime to set up the winning field goal.
