1. New England Patriots (10-0; Last Week- No. 1)
For the second straight week, the Patriots were challenged, but still found a way to get the win.
The Pats certainly look beatable, but with just six games remaining, their 16-0 chances still look decent. And those chances will look much better if New England can beat the 8-2 Broncos on Sunday night in Denver.
2. Carolina Panthers (10-0; Last Week- No. 2)
Every week you wonder if the Panthers have peaked, and every week they seem to only look better.
Cam Newton has been fantastic. Five touchdown passes — and no interceptions — on Sunday gives him 20 on the season, and he also has six touchdowns on the ground.
3. Arizona Cardinals (8-2; Last Week- No. 3)
Two impressive wins in a row over good teams on Sunday Night Football as part of a four-game winning streak. Carson Palmer finds himself in the thick of the MVP conversation.
Looking ahead on the schedule, the Cardinals host the Packers in Week 16, in what could be for the No. 2 NFC seed and a first-round bye.
4. Cincinnati Bengals (8-2; Last Week- No. 4)
If we eliminated the third quarter, the Bengals would’ve had a 31-13 win over the Cardinals, instead of a 34-31 loss.
The Bengals now have two favorable games on paper (vs St. Louis and at Cleveland) before what is shaping up to be a pivotal game against the Steelers in Week 14.
5. Denver Broncos (8-2; Last Week- No. 6)
The Broncos don’t win that game in Chicago with 2015 Peyton Manning playing. Brock Osweiler wasn’t quite as stellar as his numbers in the box score would say, but he was efficient, and that’s all the Broncos are going to need out of their quarterback most of the time given their elite defense.
Now, to beat the Patriots, Osweiler and the Denver offense are likely going to need to make some big plays.
6. Green Bay Packers (7-3; Last Week- No. 7)
Now that’s back to the Packers team we saw earlier in the season.
If good Eddie Lacy is back, that will be a massive boost to the Packers’ offense.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4; Last Week- No. 8)
Pittsburgh had the Bye week to get prepared for a very difficult stretch of games: at Seattle, vs Indianapolis, at Cincinnati, at Denver.
8. Minnesota Vikings (7-3; Last Week- No. 5)
The Packers went into Minnesota and showed they’re still the team to beat in the NFC North.
That had to be a demoralizing loss for the Vikings, and they have two more games up next (at Atlanta, vs Seattle) that will be critical for playoff purposes.
9. Seattle Seahawks (5-5; Last Week- No. 13)
Seattle is having a down year, but they should probably be considered favorites for the second Wild Card spot in the NFC right now. They’re just one game behind a Falcons team that has been a mess over the last two months.
Marshawn Lynch may miss multiple games, but Seattle’s running game shouldn’t miss a beat with rookie Thomas Rawls.
10. Indianapolis Colts (5-5; Last Week- No. 17)
Welp, Matt Hasselbeck keeps getting it done. The Colts are now 3-0 when the 40-year-old has had to play in place of Andrew Luck this season.
11. Buffalo Bills (5-5; Last Week- No. 9)
It’s hard to knock the Bills too much for a 20-13 loss in New England, especially when you consider the officiating may have altered the outcome.
12. Kansas City Chiefs (5-5; Last Week- No. 16)
The Chiefs have followed up a five-game losing streak with a four-game winning streak, and would have the AFC’s second Wild Card spot if the season ended today. It’s been a pretty stunning turnaround, especially after losing Jamaal Charles for the season in Week 5.
13. New York Giants (5-5; Last Week- No. 12)
The Giants return from their Bye up at least one game on the rest of the weak NFC East. Really, it seems the team they should be most concerned about at the moment is two games behind them in the Dallas Cowboys. Remember, the Giants and Cowboys already played their two head-to-heads this season, which resulted in a split.
14. Dallas Cowboys (3-7; Last Week- No. 27; Biggest Riser)
This is the toughest ranking we’ve had all year, given the Cowboys’ record vs what we think they truly are. And what we think they are with Tony Romo is a very good football team.
The 3-7 Cowboys are now 3-0 in Romo’s starts after a 24-14 road victory over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, and are still just two games back of the Giants in the NFC East.
15. Atlanta Falcons (6-4; Last Week- No. 11)
They have gone 1-4 after starting 6-0, with the only win being a 10-7 one over a Marcus Mariota-less Titans team. We have watched two completely different Falcons teams this season, and the reality is they’re probably somewhere in the middle (a very mediocre team).
16. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-5: Last Week- No. 22)
Jameis Winston in Tampa Bay’s 45-15 blowout win over the Eagles: 19-29, 246 yards, five touchdowns, no interceptions, 131.6 QB rating.
The No. 1 overall pick is making noticeable strides, and earlier than most evaluators expected.
17. Houston Texans (5-5; Last Week- No. 23)
Three straight wins for the Texans to get to .500, after looking like one of the worst teams in the league through seven games.
The Houston defense is now playing like the defense we thought they’d have with JJ Watt and company, with just 29 points allowed over the last three games.
18. New York Jets (5-5; Last Week- No. 10; Biggest Faller)
The Jets have now lost four of their last five games, and have what should be viewed as a must-win this Sunday vs the Dolphins in New York. They end the season with a brutal three-game slate: at Dallas, vs New England, at Buffalo.
Ryan Fitzpatrick’s performance is dipping, but it’s no surprise given his thumb (which he had to get surgery on recently) likely being an annoyance even on his non-throwing hand.
19. Chicago Bears (4-6; Last Week- No. 14)
The Bears had a chance to beat the Broncos, even without Alshon Jeffery, Matt Forte, and Eddie Royal. They keep competing and against good teams. It’s just hard to win games with that many key injuries, and especially when it’s a below average roster to begin with.
20. Oakland Raiders (4-6; Last Week- No. 15)
A disappointing three-game losing streak for a Raiders team that looked like a surprise playoff contender.
But if you look at the big picture, this has still been a successful year for the Raiders simply due to the breakout of Derek Carr and other young talented young players (like Amari Cooper and Khalil Mack). Many organizations ranked ahead of the Raiders on this list would gladly trade situations with them.
21. St. Louis Rams (4-6; Last Week- No. 19)
The classic “They’re just a quarterback away!” team.
22. Miami Dolphins (4-6; Last Week- No. 18)
It appeared Dan Campbell may have had this team turned around, but they have only won one of their last four games. And that win was by one point against an Eagles team that is a much bigger mess right now.
The Dolphins have the upside of a top-10 team given the talent level, but are just far too inconsistent. Their offseason will be one of the more interesting ones to monitor.
23. Washington Redskins (4-6; Last Week- No. 20)
Kirk Cousins may be an “every other game” guy.
24. Detroit Lions (3-7; Last Week- No. 28)
Hey, a winning streak for the Lions. The defense has been very good over the last two games (29 total points allowed), and against two very good offenses in the Packers and Raiders.
They have a great shot to get their third straight win against the Eagles for the annual Thanksgiving game in Detroit.
25. New Orleans Saints (4-6; Last Week- No. 24)
It’s pretty easy to explain this team:
*Awful defense
*Great quarterback
There are games where Drew Brees will carry them to a victory, but there are games where the defense is just too bad for his excellence to even matter. The Saints are the perfect example of an NFL team that can beat anyone, but can just as easily to lose anyone (and badly).
26. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-6; Last Week- No. 26)
The Jaguars have won three of their last four games and are just one game back in the AFC South.
Jacksonville’s schedule is very favorable too: vs San Diego, at Tennessee, vs Indianapolis, vs Atlanta, at New Orleans, at Houston.
27. Philadelphia Eagles (4-6; Last Week- No. 21)
An embarrassing 45-17 loss at home to a rookie quarterback pretty much summarizes their season to this point. Chip Kelly’s team faces a must-win on Thanksgiving in Detroit.
28. Baltimore Ravens (3-7; Last Week- No. 29)
They won a game, but became a much worse team at the same time with the losses of Joe Flacco and Justin Forsett for the year. This has been an incredibly unlucky season for the Ravens.
29. San Francisco 49ers (3-6; Last Week- No. 30)
Blaine Gabbert really doesn’t look too bad. He threw some ropes in the 49ers’ loss to the Seahawks and didn’t turn the ball over. He looks like a much more confident quarterback than he was with the Jaguars.
30. San Diego Chargers (2-8; Last Week- No. 25)
The Chargers are ready for this season to end, as their 33-3 home loss to the Chiefs made loud and clear. Just far too many injuries.
31. Tennessee Titans (2-8; Last Week- No. 31)
Marcus Mariota and another top-five draft pick to come are going to be some very nice building blocks for a team in full-on rebuild mode.
32. Cleveland Browns (2-8; Last Week- No. 32)
Really, what is there to say anymore about the Browns?
