🏈 Y! Sports AM: NFL power rankings

Yahoo Sports AM is our daily newsletter that keeps you up to date on all things sports. Sign up here to get it every weekday morning. ⚾️ MLB roundup: Pete Alonso hit his 300th career home run at Citi Field (and in a classy move, got a curtain call from his former home fans); the Brewers clinched the NL Central following another gem from Jacob Misiorowski (5 IP, 7 K, 0 R); Rays 3B Junior Caminero hit his second walk-off homer in his past four games as he makes a late push for the AL MVP. 🎰 Betting backlash: The NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and MLS are banding together to crack down on betting-related harassment of players, coaches and families, with the leagues issuing a joint statement suggesting punishments for those who engage in such behavior. The WNBA criticized the NBA for failing to include them in their joint statement. 🏈 Big weekend ratings: Texas' comeback win over Ohio State on Saturday was ESPN's most-watched regular-season college football game in a decade (14M viewers), and the Giants' win over the Cowboys on NBC was the most-watched Week 1 Sunday night game since 2015 (25.7M viewers). 🇦🇷 Messi's last dance: Lionel Messi, who already announced his retirement from international soccer, will take part in one final farewell match with Argentina on Oct. 6 against Benin in Buenos Aires as part of the upcoming international break. ⛳️ Sorry, LIV: PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp on Tuesday unveiled the qualification system for the Tour's new two-tier structure debuting in 2028. He also addressed the elephant in the room, making it clear that the Tour will not offer a return opportunity for LIV Golf players like the one Brooks Koepka used earlier this year. Welcome to the first in-season edition of our 2026 NFL power rankings, courtesy of Yahoo Sports' Frank Schwab. It's good to be back. It would be foolish to draw long-term conclusions after one week of football — and equally foolish to pretend the openers meant nothing. So let's review what we learned from the biggest risers and fallers. Four teams climbed at least five spots in this week's rankings, with the 49ers making the biggest leap (up 11) following their rout of the preseason Super Bowl favorites in Melbourne. No. 5 49ers (▲11): Few teams looked better in Week 1 than the Niners, who scored a resounding victory in the battle of dueling jet lag strategies. The only bad news for San Francisco: They lost exciting rookie WR De'Zhaun Stribling (ankle) for at least a month. No. 6 Jaguars (▲8): The Jags picked up right where they left off, destroying the Browns for their ninth straight regular-season win behind Trevor Lawrence (18/23, 245 yards, 4 TD), who looks poised for another big season. No. 7 Chiefs (▲5): Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III looks like he's ready to transform Kansas City's offense, which will only get better as Patrick Mahomes gets more comfortable in his return from a torn ACL. No. 14 Giants (▲9): Big Blue bullied the Cowboys in primetime to deliver a statement victory for new head coach John Harbaugh, who has already given the Giants something they haven't had in years: hope. More risers: No. 1 Bills (▲2), No. 3 Ravens (▲3), No. 10 Bears (▲1), No. 12 Bengals (▲3), No. 17 Vikings (▲1), No. 13 Saints (▲1), No. 25 Raiders (▲1), No. 27 Jets (▲2), No. 28 Cardinals (▲3). Five teams fell at least five spots, with the Broncos tumbling the furthest (down 11) following their blowout defeat at Arrowhead on Monday night. [Read Full Story on Yahoo! News →](https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/y-sports-am-nfl-power-115145419.html)