NFL Week 9 power rankings: Saints still a top 10 team, plus futures odds, sim projections for all 32 teams

Injuries loom over every NFL season, and on Sunday the New Orleans Saints became the latest team to lose its quarterback for a long period of time. But the injury to Jameis Winston doesn't necessarily mean the Saints are doomed; in fact, the SportsLine Projection Model actually increased their power ranking from No. 10 to No. 7 after a win over the NFC favorite Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Saints' improvement on defense and in the running game is enough to counterbalance the downgrade from Winston to Trevor Siemian, according to the model. There's also a chance the Saints find a way to deal for a veteran quarterback before Tuesday's trade deadline. But even if it's Siemian (or Taysom Hill when he returns to health), this is a team with its sights set on playing football deep into January.

Updated NFL futures odds from Caesars Sportsbook make the Buffalo Bills favorites once again at +550 following a comfortable win over the Miami Dolphins. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers drop from favorites to +600 after their loss to the Saints. Next up is the Los Angeles Rams at +650, largely closing the gap between them and the top two teams after sitting at +850 last week. The Green Bay Packers are next at +900, followed by the Dallas Cowboys at +1000. The Arizona Cardinals and Baltimore Ravens are tied at +1100, while the Kansas City Chiefs are hanging around the Super Bowl race at +1300 following their Monday night win. The Tennessee Titans would be the No. 1 seed in the AFC if the playoff started today, but they come in at +1600 following the injury to Derrick Henry.

Before you place any futures bets on who wins the Super Bowl and each conference or division, you need to see what the SportsLine Projection Model has to say.

The model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, is up almost $7,800 for $100 players on top-rated NFL picks since its inception six-plus years ago. The model enters Week 9 of the 2021 season on an incredible 128-86 run on top-rated NFL picks that dates back to the 2017 season.

The model also ranked in the Top 10 on NFLPickWatch four of the past five years on straight-up NFL picks and beat more than 94 percent of CBS Sports Football Pick'em players four times during that span. Anyone who has followed it is WAY UP.

Below, you can find the power ranking for all 32 teams based on the model's "neutral sim%," which is calculated based on the number of simulations they win playing healthy (in February) vs. every other team on a neutral field. You'll also find the simulation's projection for how often each team wins their division, conference and the Super Bowl, compared to the current available odds, along with notes from the model's creator, Stephen Oh.

Which team has jumped the Buccaneers for a spot in the top two? And how far did the Titans fall after losing their best player? ... Join SportsLine right now to see Week 9 power rankings from the proven NFL model which has delivered consistent positive value on its picks!