NFL Power Rankings Week 12

On this holiday weekend, I’d like to share what I’m thankful for. First of all, I’m thankful for no dominant teams stepping up this season, otherwise the Power Rankings would be quite boring from week to week. Second, as a huge Bears fan, I’m thankful that Chicago somehow managed to stay in first place deep into November. Third, I’m thankful that Thanksgiving is the one holiday where it’s OK to eat as much stuffing as humanly possible. Seriously, I love stuffing. I bet I could beat Albert Haynesworth in a stuffing eating contest. So before I head home to chow down on a whole bunch of food in my biggest pair of sweatpants, I wanted to post the power rankings for everyone to digest. Let me know what you think in the comments and have a happy Thanksgiving!

NFL Power Rankings

1 Last Week: 2	New England Patriots (8-2) The pass defense numbers aren’t pretty in New England, but in the biggest moment of their annual slugfest with the Colts, the Pats’ D stepped up and made the game-clinching play. With only two tough games left on their schedule (home contests against the Jets and Packers), the Pats are in prime position to grab a first-round bye.
2 Last Week: 1	New York Jets (8-2) Barely escaping with a home win against the Texans is not enough to keep the team in the top spot. That’s three straight lackluster performances that could’ve resulted in upsets for the Jets, and that’s not going to cut it come playoff time, when the competition will be significantly tougher.
3 Last Week: 3	Philadelphia Eagles (7-3) Add LeSean McCoy to the long list of dangerous playmakers on the Eagles offense. McCoy had 101 rushing yards in the fourth quarter of the Eagles big win over the Giants, including the clinching touchdown on a 50-yard scamper on a 4th and 1 play. If you’re facing the Eagles, who do you gameplan for: Mike Vick? DeSean Jackson? LeSean McCoy? It’s a scary proposition.
4 Last Week: 4	Atlanta Falcons (8-2) They should really be in a tie with the Packers for fourth here. Atlanta will face its toughest home challenge of the season with the surging Packers coming to town in Week 12. Winner gets to sit atop the loser. (In the power rankings, not literally, of course. That could be dangerous, especially after a huge Thanksgiving feast.)
5 Last Week: 7	Green Bay Packers (7-3) There’s no question the Pack is surging, but which unit is playing better right now? The offense has scored 85 points in its last three games, while the defense has only allowed 10 points in their last three contests. Again, we’ll learn a lot about the NFC’s elite from the Falcons-Packers contest this weekend.
6 Last Week: 6	Pittsburgh Steelers (7-3) Good teams know how to bounce back from tough losses, and I’d say a 35-3 home win could be considered bouncing back. Two weeks from now, the Steelers get their shot at revenge against the Ravens, but first, a potential trap game against the Bills. The Steelers pass defense has been shaky (22nd in the league) while Ryan Fitzpatrick and Steve Johnson are red hot.
7 Last Week: 5	Baltimore Ravens (7-3) Don’t let the 37-13 final score deceive you. The Ravens needed two fourth quarter pick sixes to seal the win over the league’s worst team, which happened to be quarterbacked by a guy the Panthers had just signed off the street. With two tougher teams on the docket (Tampa then Pittsburgh), the Ravens will have to play a more complete game to keep winning.
8 Last Week: 10	New Orleans Saints (7-3) After scoring over 30 only once in their first eight games, the Saints have topped 30 in back to back wins. With Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas looking more likely to play before the season is over, the offense might be rounding back into 2009 form.
9 Last Week: 13	San Diego Chargers (5-5) There are plenty of signs pointing to San Diego’s resurgence, but the biggest one has to be that fake punt they pulled off on Monday night against the Broncos. After all of the special teams blunders the Chargers went through in the beginning of the season, now they’re using their special teams as a weapon?
10 Last Week: 8	Indianapolis Colts (6-4) If you’re looking to predict the Colts 2010 season, look no further than their injury report. Peyton Manning is one of the best quarterbacks in the universe, but he needs more help on both sides of the ball for the Colts to make a return trip to the big game.
11 Last Week: 9	New York Giants (6-4) Turnovers continue to do in the Giants. New York is 28th in the league in turnover differential and it seems every week they lose the ball at a critical moment. Unless the G-Men learn how to hold on to the ball, they’ll continue to slide.
12 Last Week: 15	Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-3) OK, it’s make or break time for the overachieving Bucs. Back-to-back games against the Ravens and Falcons will show us if upstart Tampa has what it takes to hang with the established big boys.
13 Last Week: 16	Chicago Bears (7-3) With the spotlight on the shaky offense, the Bears D has quietly returned to 2006 form, the year the team went to the Super Bowl. Chicago’s giving up the fewest points in the league and the third fewest yards per game. Can they keep it up against the high-flying Eagles this week?
14 Last Week: 17	Jacksonville Jaguars (6-4) I’ll give you three guesses who sits in first place in the AFC South. No, it’s not the Colts. Nope, not the Titans either. Give up? Yep, it’s the Jags. Enjoy it for now, Jacksonville, because with three divisional games left, it probably won’t last.
15 Last Week: 18	Kansas City Chiefs (6-4) The Chiefs are all about running the ball, but it’s impossible to ignore what wide receiver Dwayne Bowe is doing right now. Bowe has 563 receiving yards and 10 TDs in his last six games.
16 Last Week: 11	Oakland Raiders (5-5) Darren McFadden got grounded against Pittsburgh and took the Raiders bandwagon with him. McFadden had his worst game of the season (14 yards rushing) and his team followed suit.
17 Last Week: 12	Miami Dolphins (5-5) The Dolphins got shut out by the Bears, only amassing 38 rushing yards. No surprise they lost, seeing as the ‘Fins average 125 yards on the ground in their wins compared to only 70 in their losses.
18 Last Week: 14	Tennessee Titans (5-5) Forget the record or the talent they have on this team, until Vince Young grows up and stops acting like a crazy person (VY apparently threw his equipment into the stands because he was upset that he got booed), the Titans are not going to be a winning football team.
19 Last Week: 19	Houston Texans (4-6) The Texans are ranked dead last in pass defense and I don’t even think it does their terrible defense justice. The Texans secondary is stinkier than a bean burrito that gets forgotten in the back seat of a car for three straight July days in Houston.
20 Last Week: 20	Cleveland Browns (3-7) You know the phrase, “Close, but no cigar?” I think it should be changed to, “Close, but no win for the Browns.” Cleveland has lost two heartbreakers in the last two weeks and should be looked at as much better than their record.
21 Last Week: 21	Seattle Seahawks (5-5) The Seahawks are 2-3 in their last five games, have been outscored by a total of 48 points this season…and are still in first place in the NFC West!
22 Last Week: 26	Washington Redskins (5-5) It’s never pretty or drama-free with Donovan McNabb, but some how, some way, the Redskins are within two games of first place in the NFC East with three division games left.
23 Last Week: 23	St. Louis Rams (4-6) The Rams really needed that home win against the Falcons, because now they set out on a three-game road trip…without a road win all season.
24 Last Week: 27	Dallas Cowboys (3-7) How low have expectations been lowered in Big D that back-to-back wins is considered big news? Jason Garrett has done a great job of turning this team around, but he’s gonna have to work a lot harder in the coming weeks, with games against the Saints, Eagles and Colts on the schedule.
25 Last Week: 28	Buffalo Bills (2-8) Break up the Bills! More importantly, break up the combination of Ryan Fitzpatrick and Steve Johnson. Buffalo’s dynamic duo has combined for 319 yards and three TDs in the last three games.
26 Last Week: 22	San Francisco 49ers (3-7) The mini-offensive revival happening with Troy Smith came to an abrupt halt at home against the Bucs. After posting two straight starts with a QB rating of 115 or higher, Smith imploded and posted a 51.5 rating against Tampa.
27 Last Week: 29	Detroit Lions (2-8) You can’t deny this Lions team plays aggressively…perhaps too aggressively. Detroit leads the league in penalties.
28 Last Week: 24	Minnesota Vikings (3-7) Can the new coach in Minnesota do what the new coach in Dallas did? Probably not with such an old quarterback.
29 Last Week: 25	Denver Broncos (3-7) Remember that 6-0 start last year when Josh McDaniels took over as head coach? I doubt Broncos fans do, considering McDaniels has gone 5-15 since.
30 Last Week: 31	Arizona Cardinals (3-7) This team has self-destructed on offense without Kurt Warner, but just as jarring are the team’s defensive numbers. After giving up the 14th most points in the league last season, the Cards have dropped to dead last in that category in 2010.
31 Last Week: 30	Cincinnati Bengals (2-8) Carson Palmer’s inaccuracy continues to plague this offense. He’s only completing 60 percent of his passes and he’s fourth in the league in interceptions.
32 Last Week: 32	Carolina Panthers (1-9) Look on the bright side, thanks to all of the losing and injuries, the Panthers were forced to play running back Mike Goodson, who’s rewarded Carolina with two straight 100-yard rushing games.

Thumbnail Settings

T1 Thumbnail: 

T1_powerrankings.jpg

T2 Thumbnail: 

T2_powerrankings.jpg

T4 Thumbnail: 

T4_powerrankings.jpg