Week 13 NFL Power Rankings
(Number in brackets indicates last weeks rank.)
Patriots finally looked vulnerable last week vs. the Eagles. Look for them to bounce back with a big effort vs. the Ravens on Monday Night.
The Cowboys are playing at a very high level. They have the # 2 ranked offense and the 7th ranked defense. Look for the Cowboys running game to be the difference in their
monster matchup with the Packers this week.
The Colts are not playing that great of football, but if this team can get healthy there is no doubt they are one of the best teams in the NFL. Don't forget, they had a 10 point 4th quarter lead against the greatest team in history and their only other loss was at the Chargers, when FG kicker Adam Vinatieri missed a 29 yard game winning field goal. The Colts are 1 or 2 plays from being undefeated and the talk of the NFL.
The Packers head to Dallas in the
biggest NFC matchup of the year. I love what the Packers and QB Brett Favre have done this year. The winner of this game would solidify the #1 seed in the NFC playoffs.
The Jaguars have quietly put together the 4th best record in the NFL. They take on an unhealthy Colts team in a
monster AFC South matchup. QB David Garrard is playing perfect football and has yet to throw an interception this year.
WOW!
The Steelers looked anything but impressive in their 3-0 win over the Dolphins last Monday Night. This team hasn't played well of late, looking awful last week vs. the Dolphins and losing to the Jets the previous week. They haven't covered the spread in their last 3 games.
The Bucs were completely outplayed by the Redskins last week. The Redskins had 14 more first downs and out gained the Bucs 412 yards to 192. 4 of the Redskins 6 turnovers contributed to all of the Bucs points in that game. Its obvious that the Bucs can't compete without a healthy Jeff Garcia, who left last week's game in the 1st Quarter with a bad back.
This is one of the hottest teams in the NFL. They've won 6 of their last 8 games, their only 2 losses both came on the road to the Patriots and Steelers.
the Seahawks got a gift win over the Rams last week and now find themselves on the road again in Philadelphia. Tough spot. With their win and the Cardinals loss last week, the Seahawks find themselves with a comfortable 2 game lead in the
NFC West with only 5 games to go.
QB Eli Manning threw 4 INT's, of which 3 were returned for touchdowns. But he's taking
way too much heat, with pundits questioning Eli's ability to play this game. Yes, he was absolutely
awful last week, but he's still done some good things this season and has grown into a leader of this team. I expect a great effort from Eli this week vs. a bad Bears defense.
The Chargers gained a firm grip of the
AFC West with their win over the Ravens last week. The Chargers should be favored in their remaining 5 games and already have a win over the Broncos and play the Broncos at home, so they have a major edge in head to head matchup which is the first factor in all tie breakers.
No Albert Haynesworth, no wins for the Titans. Titans have lost 3 straight since DE Haynesworth went down with a strained hamstring.
The Lions are reeling, suffering 3 straight losses and putting them in a must win game this week vs. the Vikings. A loss to the Vikings would make it 4 straight losses and that kind of streak would be impossible for this young team to rebound from. But a win would go far in solidifying this team in the race for the playoffs.
The Broncos, what the hell were you thinking kicking the ball to Devin Hester. That
'brilliant' strategy cost you the game and most likely any chance of winning the AFC West.
As bad of a season as it's been for the Saints, they are very much in the thick of things for a playoff spot. This team will be favored in 4 of their last 5 games, and arguably will be favored in all remaining 5 games. The only game in question, their last game of the year, at Chicago Bears. But for this team to make any move toward the playoffs, they have to win this week at home vs. the Bucs.
The Vikings are off back to back wins for the first time since week 2 of last season. For this team to have any chance at a playoff berth, they have to win their matchup with
NFC North rival Detroit Lions. They should have a healthy Adrian Peterson for that matchup.
Our hearts and prayers go out to Sean Taylor's family and friends.
The Cardinals completely choked in their loss to the
brutally bad 49ers. This team doesn't have much time to get over that tough loss that brings them back to the pack in the chase for the playoffs. Up next for the Cardinals, the red hot Browns who are torching teams of late.
The Eagles played the Patriots tough in their last game and this team is primed for a late playoff push. They are 5-6 and only trail the Lions by 1 game for the last spot in the playoffs. With wins over the Lions and Vikings, they hold tie breaker edges against those teams. They play the Saints in New Orleans in the 2nd to last game of the season. With 3 of their finally 5 games being played at home, this team is once again a contender in the NFC.
The Bears are consistently up and down, alternating wins with losses in their last 8 games. After every win, comes a loss and after every loss, comes a win. Can this team win back to back games for the first time since their playoff run last year??
After 4 straight wins, the Bills have been blown out in their last 2 outings. They take on the Redskins this week in what should be an emotional game with the death of Sean Taylor on everyone's mind.
The Texans suffered their first loss of the year with WR Andre Johnson in the line up. The loss pretty much ends any playoff hope for this young team.
the Bengals looked like the Bengals of old vs. the Titans last week. They had 30 first downs and over 425 yards of offense. This team hasn't put together consecutive victories since November of last year. It will be interesting to see how they fair against the Steelers this week on SNF.
This team is 1-10 ATS, next up are the Patriots who are 9-2 vs the number. Honestly, the 21 points the Ravens are getting in that game, at home, vs the Patriots, is short. Can't see the Ravens competing at all vs. an upset Patriots team that looked human last week.
Amazing that this team was ranked as high as 13th my rankings. Their play has fallen off big time and with 3 of their final 5 games on the road, don't expect this team to get any better or find many more wins. HC Herm Edwards proved how ill-equipped he is on the sidelines, going for it on 4th and 1 on the Raiders 20 yard line, instead of kicking a field goal for the tie.
Beyond stupid!
This team is just too beat up to compete. No quarterback and no Steve Smith, enough said.
Raiders got their first win vs. an AFC West opponent since 2004 and only their 3rd win of the season last week vs. the Chiefs. But people are still anxious to see rookie QB JaMarcus Russell play. Raiders need to get this guy into the rotation some how.
The Rams gave away their game to the Seahawks. They outplayed them despite losing their stud QB Marc Bulger in the 1st Quarter. When healthy, the Rams are as good as any team in the NFC West.
The 49ers needed overtime, a missed field goal and a defensive TD for their first win in 9 games. Up next for the 49ers, another road game vs. a
brutally bad team in the Panthers.
HC Bobby Petrino killed any momentum this team had by going with Byron Leftwich 2 weeks ago, replacing Joey Harrington after 2 straight wins. Rumors are flying that Petrino might return to the college game, which would make sense for this embattled coach who never signed on to deal with all the off the field garbage brought on by Mike Vick.
The Jets are coming off a
dominating loss to the Cowboys. Scoring only 3 points, gaining 9 first downs and only 180 yards of offense. Boy has this team regressed in 2007. Anyone remember when the Jets were only a 6 point dog at home to the Patriots in week 1? What's even more amusing, I was on the Jets in that game.
YIKES!
Dolphins are an
ugly team coming off a
brutally ugly loss. They were shutout by the Steelers on Monday Night and in their last 4 games, they've scored 10, 10, 7 and 0 points. RB Ricky Williams contributed 6 carries for 15 yards in his debut, but is now done for the season with a torn pectoral muscle. Thanks for coming Ricky!
