NFC Hierarchy/Obituary: Week 7 edition

Week 6 of the NFL season is in the books, and the NFC North has separated itself as the best division in the NFL. We have no new obituaries this week, so let’s get right to the Hierarchy.

Graveyard

Hierarchy

14) Giants (2-4): The Giants are improved, particularly in the pressure game, on both sides of the ball. In 2023, they gave up a staggering 85 (!) sacks on the season, by far the most in the NFL:

Team	Sacks allowed
Giants	85
Commanders	65
Panthers	65
Jets	64
Titans	64

The five teams in the above chart had a combined record of 25-60 (0.294). If you can’t protect the quarterback, you’re probably not going to be a very good team. #Analysis.Those 85 sacks that the Giants allowed were good for the second-most in NFL history:

Team	Sacks allowed
1986 Eagles	104
2023 Giants	85
1987 Cardinals	78
2002 Texans	76

Defensively, they had just 34 sacks, which tied them for 28th in the NFL. Their sack differential was -51, lol.

This year? Different story! They’ve allowed 14 sacks, with is tied for 15th-best in the NFL. They have also sacked opposing quarterbacks 26 times, best in the NFL. They’re +12 in sack differential. HUGE improvement.They’re going to win some games this year, which ultimately might not be the best thing for them, because those empty wins might give John Mara a false positive on Joe Schoen and Daniel Jones.

13) Cardinals (2-4): One of the big criticisms of Jonathan Gannon in Philly was a failure adjust in-game to what opposing offenses were trying to do to his defense. Well, the Cardinals have given up 34 or more points in half of their games this season, which is pretty good indication that he isn’t great at making adjustments in Arizona either.

Last week: 13

11) Seahawks (3-3): After winning their first three games of the season, the Seahawks have now dropped three straight, but at least head coach Mike Macdonald would appeal to the troglodytes who posted up outside the NovaCare Complex last year with their “Run the Ball” sign:

Ultimately, the Seahawks never led against the 49ers last Thursday night, and as a result Geno Smith threw 50 times vs. 19 combined carries for 52 yards for Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. So, you know, they didn’t “run the damn ball.”

The Seahawks have now lost five straight games to the Niners, with the closest deficit being 8 points:

• 2022: L, 7-27
• 2022: L, 13-21
• 2022 (playoffs): L, 23-41
• 2023: L, 16-28
• 2023: L, 13-31
• 2024: L, 24-36

It’s never a good thing when there’s a team in your division that just owns you.

I will say this for the Seahawks — I loved their uniforms in the ’80s, and I think I love them even more now.

The Seahawks throwbacks are out of control. One of the greatest color palettes in NFL history is finally coming back. pic.twitter.com/LhwRfJmMPZ

— NFL Fashion Advice (@fashion_nfl) July 19, 2023

Just switch full-time to those.

Last week: 8

2) Lions (4-1): Through the first 4.5 games of the season, Aidan Hutchinson had 7.5 sacks, 17 QB hits, and a forced fumble. He was an early Defensive Player of the Year candidate, and now his season is over after suffering a gruesome injury in the Lions’ 47-9 beatdown of the Cowboys.

My guess is that most Lions fans would trade that win to have Hutchinson back. He has half of the Lions’ 15 sacks this season, and their pass rush is going to be a major concern going forward.

Last week: 2

1) Vikings (5-0): The Vikings’ bye comes at an interesting time. On the one hand they’re 5-0 and rolling, and their week off could slow their momentum. On the other hand, they have two weeks to prepare for the Lions at home, while the Lions had to play on the road Week 6 in Dallas. That’s a pretty nice advantage over the biggest threat to them in the NFC North, and if they can beat the Lions Week 7 they’ll have a commanding lead.

Amazingly, the top four teams in the NFL in point differential are the four NFC North teams: