Oct. 12, 2025, 5:05 AM EDTBy Andrew GreifIt’s a distressing time to be a team once considered a preseason Super Bowl contender. Reigning champion Philadelphia has lost two straight after Thursday’s blowout loss to the Giants. The Baltimore Ravens are 1-4 and star quarterback Lamar Jackson is hurt. The Kansas City Chiefs have their game-breaking quarterback healthy, but are 2-3, having suffered more losses already than all of last season. Buffalo’s 13-game home winning streak was just snapped in a surprise upset. Since Green Bay began talking of going undefeated at 2-0, the Packers have lost one game and tied another. Cincinnati? Don’t even ask.The Detroit Lions seemed to be headed toward trouble, too. In Week 1, playing with brand-new defensive and offensive coordinators, an offense that led the league in scoring in 2024 mustered only 13 points in a loss to division-rival Green Bay. As many of the NFL’s favorites have wilted over the past month, though, the Lions have quietly built one of the best cases for Super Bowl contention by winning four straight and scoring 34 or more points in every win. Even after wunderkind offensive coordinator Ben Johnson left to coach Chicago, the Lions have scored 174 points, the most in franchise history through five games. And despite coordinator Aaron Glenn leaving to coach the Jets, the defense ranks in the top three in sacks, pressures, quarterback hits and forced fumbles. Oddsmakers at DraftKings now peg the Lions’ as the favorite to win the NFC, and have given them the second-best odds to win the Super Bowl, behind only Buffalo. Parity and drama across the league have drawn attention elsewhere. Seven teams are 4-1, including Indiana, Jacksonville and San Francisco, which missed the playoffs last season. Twenty-five games have come down to a score in the final three minutes of regulation or overtime, most in NFL history through Week 5, per NBC Sports research. Meanwhile, the Lions keep ripping off wins.”That core group is still intact,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “I think the most important thing is you’ve got your culture, you’ve got your identity and you’ve got players that fit into that, and we’ve got that. “We’ve got players in every pivotal position you can ask for to have success. And those guys are made the right way, so absolutely, our window is open.”Skepticism about Detroit (4-1) taking advantage of that title window is expected after it earned the NFC’s top playoff seed last season, setting franchise records for points (564) and tying an NFL record for games with 40-plus points (six) along the way, only to instantly underwhelm in the postseason by losing its playoff opener to Washington, at home.This season, just like last, injuries have begun to chip away at the Lions’ depth and potential. Three starter-level defensive backs could miss a significant amount of time after recent injuries, Campbell said this week. A shoulder injury sidelined left tackle Taylor Decker last week, and that missing protector on quarterback Jared Goff’s blind side contributed to Goff being sacked four times, after taking zero sacks the previous three weeks combined. Yet pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson, whose leg injury last season was one of the most devastating to Detroit’s defense, is back, and is again playing like a candidate for defensive player of the year. His team-high five sacks tie for third-most in the league. “It’s good to have him back, period,” Campbell said. “My gosh … we missed him last year.” There were questions about how Goff would fare playing for the first time in his career without an offense directed by either Sean McVay or Johnson, both considered two of the league’s most creative at calling offenses. Johnson, who reveled in mixing in hook-and-ladders, trick plays and throws to offensive linemen, was particularly flashy. His successor, John Morton, 56, had been an offensive coordinator in the NFL just one other season in his career prior this season. But critically, he had previously coached in Detroit in 2022 and overlapped with Goff then in a different role.“I’ve said it a million times, the fact that we were together at one point and have a relationship prior to him being my coordinator is extremely important and allows us to kind of speak freely to each other,” Goff said last month.Goff has thrown for a league-high 12 touchdowns and completed a league-best 75.2 percent of his passes — only the second player in NFL history, behind Peyton Manning in 2013, to put up stats like that through five games. (Manning would go on to win MVP that season, and lead Denver to a Super Bowl.)Morton compared the Lions to a Raiders team he coached on that went to a Super Bowl. “We had the best offense in the league” filled with “Hall of Famers,” Morton said this month when asked to compare Detroit’s options. “That’s really the only thing that comes to mind, really. But these weapons (here), we can do whatever we want.”And in a league where the expected contenders have rarely been able to do as they please, it has made Detroit’s start notable.What we’re watching for in Week 6Broncos (3-2) vs. Jets (0-5): In London, the aforementioned Glenn has yet to win as a head coach, and is facing a Broncos team with a league-leading 21 sacks. New York has started 0-6 only twice in its history.Cardinals (2-3) at Colts (4-1): Arizona has been snake-bitten, losing three straight games on game-winning field goals in the final seconds. The Colts haven’t turned the ball over in four games.Chargers (3-2) at Dolphins (1-4): Justin Herbert threw four interceptions last season but has three in his last three games. Miami has won one of its last 15 games against opponents with winning records.Seahawks (3-2) at Jaguars (4-1): Jacksonville is the best in the league at forcing turnovers (14), while Seattle is the best road team (eight consecutive wins). Patriots (3-2) at Saints (1-4): If Stefon Diggs collects 100-plus receiving yards for a third straight game this week, he’ll be the first Patriots receiver to do that since Wes Welker in 2012. Browns (1-4) at Steelers (3-1): Under coach Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh is 14-1 when facing a rookie quarterback at home, per NBC Sports research. Another good omen: Pittsburgh has won eight straight games coming off a bye week.Cowboys (2-2-1) at Panthers (2-3): Dak Prescott needs 150 passing yards to pass Troy Aikman for the second-most passing yards in team history, and a win would move him past Tony Romo into third all-time in franchise history for wins.Rams (3-2) at Ravens (1-4): Baltimore’s defense will have to tighten after allowing 35-plus points in each of their last four games. The Ravens have allowed a league-high 13 passing touchdowns.Titans (1-4) at Raiders (1-4): No team has completed a lower percentage of its passes this year than the Titans (51.8 percent). Bengals (2-3) at Packers (2-1-1): Green Bay is one of two teams (Buffalo) whose defense has yet to allow a big play of 40-plus yards. And it has allowed a league-low six plays of 20-plus yards. Cincinnati is starting QB Joe Flacco after trading for him this week.49ers (4-1) at Buccaneers (4-1): Tampa rookie wideout Emeka Egbuka ranks fourth with 445 receiving yards and his average of 17.8 yards per catch ranks fourth among qualified receivers.Lions (4-1) at Chiefs (3-2): If Patrick Mahomes throws for one touchdown Sunday, he’ll become the fastest quarterback to reach 300 for a career, beating Aaron Rodgers by eight games. Bills (4-1) at Falcons (2-2) on Monday: Bijan Robinson’s 146 scrimmage yards per game lead the NFL. Buffalo’s Josh Allen has a turnover in each of his last two games after zero turnovers in his previous eight games.Bears (2-2) at Commanders (3-2) on Monday: Chicago has won its last two games but, historically, is 1-9 coming off a bye since 2015.Andrew GreifAndrew Greif is a sports reporter for NBC News Digital.