Six weeks into the NFL season, we're starting to get a good idea of which teams are good and which are not. For example, despite their rash of injuries, the San Francisco 49ers remain undefeated with signature wins over teams like the Rams, Seahawks and Broncos. Speaking of the Rams, is it time to panic? After a loss to the lowly Cardinals, it'd be hard not to.

While there's still time for any team to go on a run, both good and bad, a look at the NFL standings a month and a half into the regular season gives us a good idea of which teams we should start to believe in and which have a lot more to prove.

AFC East standings

The AFC East features two legitimate contenders, the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots, and two bottom-feeders in the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins. We saw this in full force Week 6. The Bills overcame their shoddy defense once again to earn a crucial road win, allowing them to maintain first place in the division, while the Patriots held on to beat the Jets in a game they really shouldn't have won. Winning that game is what good teams do, and losing that game is what bad teams do.

I have no idea whether the Bills or the Patriots will win this division, but it should be a fascinating race to follow the rest of the way.

AFC North standings

How about the first-place Cleveland Browns? Yes, the Browns, of all teams, are in first place in an AFC North division that is filled with winning teams at this point of the season. Is this likely to last? Of course not. Even with their defense balling out, Deshaun Watson still does not look like a starting quarterback, and Cleveland's offense as a whole hasn't done much for most of the year.

That doesn't mean they're bad, though. In fact, I don't know if there is a bad team in this division, making it a fascinating one to follow. The Baltimore Ravens should probably be favored with Lamar Jackson on the cusp of a return from injury, but the Steelers' offense has been better than expected, and Joe Burrow is still with the Cincinnati Bengals.

AFC South standings

The AFC East and North might go down to the wire, but it feels like the AFC South is all but decided. Sure, the Houston Texans were able to earn an upset win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, but given how well Jacksonville has played on both sides of the ball this season and that they still have a 2.0-game lead, it feels like their division to lose.

This is only emphasized by the fact that the Indianapolis Colts just blew a game to the previously 0-5 Tennessee Titans in Week 6 and fired GM Chris Ballard as a result. The only team somewhat capable of competing with Jacksonville is Houston, and with the Texans at 2-4, they still have more to prove before they can be taken seriously.

AFC West standings

The AFC West is a fascinating division, with the Kansas City Chiefs looking more and more like the Chiefs of old at the top and the Los Angeles Chargers likely to entertain a major trade deadline fire sale at the bottom. What makes it fascinating are the teams in the middle.

The Denver Broncos have all kinds of offensive questions, but their defense remains as legit as ever, and they're 4-2 despite a tough schedule. The Las Vegas Raiders are 3-3 after starting 3-0, which sounds bad (and it is), but given that they've lost games to the Chiefs and Bills by just three points each in that span, the Raiders can still be viewed as postseason contenders, at least for now.

AFC playoff bracket entering Week 7

NFC East standings

The NFC East is easily the worst division in football right now. The New York Giants lead the way, but as of this writing, we don't even know who their Week 7 starting quarterback and running back will be, speaking to the dysfunction they're dealing with. The Philadelphia Eagles are in second place, but they've lost four in a row and are without Jalen Hurts for the rest of the season. The Dallas Cowboys are tied with Philadelphia, but they've lost back-to-back embarrassing prime-time games and have all kinds of issues on both sides of the ball. As for the Washington Commanders, Jayden Daniels hasn't won a game in over a year. Enough said.

The Cowboys are the most talented team in this division, but they can't seem to get out of their own way. I guess this is the Giants' division to lose, with John Harbaugh doing a good job (mostly) as their head coach, but I don't feel good about any of these four teams.

NFC North standings

While I don't know if there's a single good team in the NFC East, is there a bad team in the NFC North? The Minnesota Vikings are the best defensive team in football. The Green Bay Packers have turned their season around after a frighteningly bad start. The Chicago Bears looked like the Bears team we expected them to be with Caleb Williams back healthy, and while the Detroit Lions have defensive concerns, they can put up points with the best of them.

The Vikings should be seen as favorites to win this division right now, but it's so tight that things can change in the blink of an eye. All four teams would make the playoffs if the regular season ended today, speaking to how great a division this has the potential to be.

NFC South standings

As is the case every single year, the NFC South is a mess. The Carolina Panthers look like the most complete team in the division, and they're the only team with a winning record, but their defense has some serious issues that need to be addressed if they want to do anything but squeak into the playoffs with a near-.500 record.

I thought the Atlanta Falcons were poised to go on a run with how good their team looked with Michael Penix Jr. upon his return, but they've dropped two in a row in unconvincing fashion. I thought the New Orleans Saints had a good amount of upside entering the year, and while Tyler Shough has mostly lived up to his end of the bargain, their defense nearly let a comfortable second-half lead slip in Week 6. As for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, all I can say is yikes.

NFC West standings

We live in a world where the Browns are in first place in the AFC North and the Los Angeles Rams are in last place in the NFC West, which is absolutely bonkers. Injuries have a lot to do with that, but they cannot be used as an excuse for losing a Week 6 home game to the Arizona Cardinals. The Rams still have a lot of talent, but given how they've played and their injuries, time for them to prove themselves is running out.

This feels like a two-horse race, and even then, not only do the San Francisco 49ers have a 3.0-game lead over the Seattle Seahawks, but they've already beaten the Seahawks in Seattle this season. The Niners have a ton of injuries to deal with, but they've overcome them, while the Seahawks have flat-out underperformed. Counting the reigning champs out would be foolish, but so would ignoring the fact that the Niners are 6-0.

NFC playoff bracket entering Week 7