NFL power rankings, Week 10: Giants drop one spot to No. 11

The New York Giants had a bye week after an impressive start that nobody would have predicted. The Giants were coming off three consecutive weeks with an aggregate rating in the top 10. Unfortunately, between the bye week and the injury to defensive play caller Xavier McKinney, the Giants are now on the outside looking in. With a game against the Houston Texans up next, there is a prime opportunity to climb back in.

This week, we have aggregated nine power rankings across the Internet.

NFL.com (13)

Stupid bye-week injuries are the worst. On Monday, we learned that safety Xavier McKinney, one of the breakout contributors on Big Blue’s surprisingly stout defense, will be out several weeks after breaking his hand in an ATV accident in Cabo. McKinney is New York’s defensive play-caller and team captain, making the unfortunate circumstances connected to his journey to Mexico all the more troubling for head coach Brian Daboll. New York at least has the benefit of the kind of soft landing McKinney could have used: The Giants get the one-win Texans on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

USA Today (13)

When your defensive co-captain and starting safety (Xavier McKinney) injures his hand in an ATV accident and is gone at least a month, you’ve officially lost to the bye week.

Sporting News (7)

The Giants got a bye to recuperate after losing at the Seahawks. They need to find a way to generate more offense around Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley. They also need to clean up their run defense.

ESPN (11)

Barkley is the Giants’ only consistent offensive threat. He has accounted for 38% of their total offense this season. That is second most for any player in the NFL, behind only Tennessee’s Derrick Henry. The remarkable part is that Barkley’s success comes after three straight seasons ruined by injury. “Him being healthy this year, you’ve kind of seen who he is and what he can do,” New York general manager Joe Schoen said. The Giants couldn’t live without it. Barkley is back to rookie year form; his 1.1 rushing yards over expectation matches his performance from 2018. — Jordan Raanan

The Athletic (13)

Trade recall: First-round pick Justin Fields for first-round pick Kadarius Toney, fifth-round pick Jamar Johnson, first-round pick Evan Neal and fourth-round pick Daniel Bellinger (trade with Bears, April 2021)

Maybe this depends on your evaluation of Neal, but it would definitely be better for the NFL public if Fields played for a coaching staff that took a little less time to build things around his skill set. The Giants’ wide receivers might not be too much better than the Bears’, but Fields sharing a backfield with Saquon Barkley is tantalizing, and we’d all probably have a better evaluation of him as a passer at this point. Second place goes to the Giants’ minor trade-up for Aaron Robinson in 2021 that cost them a better cornerback, Paulson Adebo.

CBS Sports (12)

They come off their bye with a winnable home game against the Texans. That’s the type of game they can’t afford to lose.

YAHOO! Sports (14)

The Giants had a bye and then get the Texans at home, so they’re likely going to be 7-2. Then they get the Lions at home. So it’s very possible they’re 8-2 for a Thanksgiving game at the Cowboys.

NBC Sports Chicago (9)

Given the state of the NFC, the Giants can probably go 3-6 the rest of the way and still make the playoffs.

Pro Football Talk (6)

With two games still to play against the Eagles, they can make things interesting in the division and in the conference.