Where 49ers stand after win over Panthers

NFL Power Rankings: Where 49ers stand after win over Panthers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea

Parity, or mediocrity, continues to reign in the NFL in the Year of Our Lord 2022.

The Philadelphia Eagles keep on rolling, the San Francisco 49ers announced themselves as a legit NFC contender (if they can stay healthy), the Green Bay Packers have a lot of issues, and Josh Allen got compared to Michael Jordan after ripping apart the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Here’s where each team stands after Week 5’s action:

32. Washington Commanders (1-4): The Commanders opened as one-point underdogs for their Thursday night showdown with the Bears. That tells you all you need to know.

31. Carolina Panthers (1-4): Baker Mayfield’s 16.8 QBR is the second worst of any QB to start in each of his team’s first five games since they started tracking the stat in 2006. Jamarcus Russell posted a QBR of 11.5 during the stretch in 2008. Baker might be headed to bustville.

30. Houston Texans (1-3-1): Derek Stingley Jr. and Dameon Pierce led the Texans to their first win of the season. Future might be bright in Houston.

29. Detroit Lions (1-4): Jared Goff is exactly who we thought he was.

28. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-4): The Kenny Pickett era opened with a 38-3 loss to the Bills. It’s going to get worse before it gets better in the Steel City.

27. Seattle Seahawks (2-3): Seattle lost a shootout on the Bayou, but Geno Smith is still slinging the pill. Glad to have West Virginia Geno back.

26. Chicago Bears (2-3): The Bears showed a lot of fight and heart in their narrow loss to the Vikings. But you can’t give up 17 straight completions and expect to move up these rankings.

25. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3): Trevor Lawrence put up a second straight stinker and the Jags’ once-promising start has now been wasted.

24. New Orleans Saints (2-3): Taysom Hill got the Saints off the mat Sunday, but New Orleans still has a lot of questions to answer on defense.

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23. Atlanta Falcons (2-3): Grady Jarrett should suit Jerome Boger for the roughing the passer call on Tom Brady on Sunday. That was an abomination.

22. Denver Broncos (2-3): Russell Wilson suffered a partially torn lat in Week 4. That might excuse his Week 5 performance, but what about the first three weeks?

21. Indianapolis Colts (2-2-1): I still think the Colts are one of the NFL’s worst teams. Beating Russell Wilson won’t change that.

20. Las Vegas Raiders (1-4): The Raiders are better than their record suggests. But 1-4 is 1-4.

19. New England Patriots (2-3): Is Mac Jones going to get Wally Pipped by Bailey Zappe? The rookie looked like he belonged Sunday against the Lions.

18. Arizona Cardinals (2-3): When the Cardinals fire Kliff Kingsbury, the end of Sunday’s Eagles game will be presented as evidence of gross negligence.

17. Cleveland Browns (2-3): The Browns’ playoff chances fell by 27 percent with their loss to the Chargers on Sunday. It’s getting late early in Cleveland.

16. Miami Dolphins (3-2): With Tua and Teddy both injured, the Dolphins got clowned by the Jets. The ship might be sinking in South Beach.

15. New York Jets (3-2): Tyreek Hill dissed the Jets during his introductory press conference in Miami. The speedy receiver probably wished he had chosen Gang Green on Sunday when Quinnen Williams ran over him during New York’s route of the Fins.

14. Tennessee Titans (3-2): Someone has to win the AFC South. Titans haven’t relinquished their grip on it yet.

13. New York Giants (4-1): Brian Daboll is your front-runner for Coach of the Year. Simply ran circles around Matt LaFleur and Joe Barry in London.

12. Los Angeles Rams (2-3): The Rams’ failure to adequately replace Odell Beckham Jr., Andrew Whitworth and Von Miller is costing them dearly in their bid to repeat.

11. Green Bay Packers (3-2): The Packers might be good in December and January. But right now, they stink.

10. Cincinnati Bengals (2-3): All three of the Bengals losses have come on walk-off field goals after overcoming double-digit deficits. Related: We might need to file coaching malpractice charges against Zac Taylor.

9. Los Angeles Chargers (3-2): I am once again asking: “What in the hell is Brandon Staley doing?”

8. Dallas Cowboys (4-1): Cooper Rush has done his job and kept the Cowboys in the NFC East race. Will Dak be back for the showdown with the Eagles?

7. Baltimore Ravens (3-2): Justin Tucker doesn’t miss.

6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-2): Every week, Tom Brady looks more and more miserable. This isn’t what he signed up for when he unretired.

5. Minnesota Vikings (4-1): Cam Dantzler rescued the Vikings’ defense from disaster Sunday, stripping Ihmir Smith-Marsette to seal a 29-22 win over the Bears. First place in the NFC North belongs to Minnesota. Sound the Gjallarhorn.

4. San Francisco 49ers (3-2): I have been reticent to make this move, but I’m in on the 49ers. As long as Jimmy Garoppolo avoids back-breaking interceptions and the injuries don’t pile up, the Niners should be in the conversation for the NFC’s best team.

3. Kansas City Chiefs (4-1): I’ve never seen a home crowd intimidate an officiating crew the way Arrowhead did after the roughing the passer call on Chris Jones. The Chiefs could have committed murder for the rest of the game and the zebras would have looked the other way.

2. Buffalo Bills (4-1): Tony Romo likened Josh Allen to Michael Jordan. You can’t miss a moment. That’s hyperbole but might not be far off in terms of the must-see factor. Allen threw for 424 yards without four weapons Sunday. Now, the Chiefs are on deck.

1. Philadelphia Eagles (5-0): Jalen Hurts has rushed for 1,322 yards and 19 touchdowns in his first 24 starts. Something special is brewing in Philly and the Eagles will go as far as Hurts’ legs and arm can take them.