Cardinals take flight: Top ten spot in…

Just like that, the Arizona Cardinals are on a four-game winning streak entering their bye week, playing some of the league’s best football in the process.

The Cardinals sit pretty as NFC West leaders thanks to a 31-6 thrashing of the New York Jets on Sunday, a statement win that showed Arizona could be a team to watch in the postseason.

Top ten in the league? Some power rankings say yes.

NBC Sports: No. 10

Mike Florio: “Kyler Murray, comeback player of the year? Kyler Murray, MVP? How about both?”

ESPN: No. 10

Josh Weinfuss on the team’s non-QB MVP: “Ryland was signed Oct. 2 and then went on to win three games for the Cardinals with late kicks. He kick-started Arizona’s run of five wins in six weeks with a winning field goal at San Francisco. Then, after Arizona lost to Green Bay , he had back-to-back winning kicks against the Chargers and the Dolphins.”

Yahoo: No. 9

Frank Schwab: “The Cardinals keep getting better. The offense seems to have found its rhythm after some inconsistency, and the Cardinals are much better defensively than expected (better than the Jets, which is a huge upset). Jonathan Gannon for NFL Coach of the Year?”

USA Today: No. 10

Nate Davis: “Few recognizable names on this defense, but it hasn’t allowed a touchdown in three consecutive homes games – meaning all of October and November.”

And if the Cardinals were placed in the top ten, they were right outside on others:

Sports Illustrated: No. 12

Conor Orr: “The second-best team in the NFL on opening drives and the fourth-most efficient offense in the NFL, the Cardinals have it all right now. Against the Jets, it was clear that the execution was there. Kyler Murray’s zone read game was devastating and pulled the rug out from underneath a team that was already unwilling to match them physically. There is some legitimate and well-earned head coaching buzz around offensive coordinator Drew Petzing right now.”

The Athletic: No. 11

Josh Kendall: “Kyler Murray completed 22 of 24 passes Sunday, including his last 17, and it wasn’t because he was throwing to wide-open receivers all day. The odds of completing his final 17 passes based on their expected completion percentage was .245 percent, according to Next Gen Stats. Murray is 11th in EPA per dropback at .13, which is the best number of his career, and with 12 touchdowns and three interceptions, he’s on pace to have the best touchdown-to-interception ratio of his career.”

CBS Sports: No. 12

Pete Prisco: “The ‘first-place Cardinals’ doesn’t sound right this late in the season. They face a tough division game at Seattle after the bye to stay there.”