NFL Contenders/Pretenders Power Rankings
As we come down the final stretch of the regular season, things are beginning to be come more clear. Who are the real contenders? Who are the frauds? Who’s in big trouble coming down the stretch? It’s not picture perfect quite yet, but it’s getting there.
Contenders
1. Dallas Cowboys (11-1): Taking the top spot is the first team to clinch a playoff berth. What we’ve seen from the Cowboys this season is basically the team we saw a couple of seasons ago at it’s best. The best offensive line paving the way for a devastating running game is the foundation. After that you have a QB who doesn’t make game losing mistakes in Dak Prescott. And finally you have a defense that hasn’t broken quite yet. And with critical injuries to their biggest competitor, the Cowboys are the clear favorite in the NFC right now.
2. New England Patriots (10-2): With or without Gronk the Patriots are a threat. It’s just that without him in recent years (injured or otherwise), they’ve seem to have had trouble getting out of the AFC. They’re braintrust of Brady and Belichick are still in tact so that pretty much puts them in the AFC championship game. Where that game is played may ultimately decide if they’re Super Bowl bound or not.
3. Oakland Raiders (10-2): This team is sort of a throwback to Raiders teams of the past. Explosive offense and penalties galore. The question for the Raiders is can their defense and improve and where will they be seeded in the playoffs. They still have to play all of their divisional foes (which isn’t an easy task) down the stretch in a tight AFC West race. They could easily go from top seed to playing in the wildcard round on the road. With Gronk out for the year, they have to feel like their window opened a little wider.
4. Seattle Seahawks (8-3-1): It’s a matter of which Seattle team you’re going to get. Will you get the defensive jugguarnaut with enough offensive firepower to beat just about any team? Or will you get the team that’s weak on the offensive line and inconsistent on offense? And what will Earl Thomas’ absence mean for this team? If Kam Chancellor is the boom of the legion of boom, Thomas is the brains of the group. For now they’re still a legitimate contender, but we’ll have to wait and see where this team will be without one of their defensive leaders.
5. Kansas City Chiefs (9-3): They’re the most difficult team to predict, but you can’t deny that they’re quietly one of the best teams in football. Their offense showed some variety against the Falcons last week and they’re beginning to get healthy at the right time. Justin Houston is making up for lost time as well. With the AFC top seed in sight, other teams in the conference has to be afraid of the prospect of having to travel to Arrowhead when the playoffs begin.
Fringe Contenders
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5): Their offense is beginning to come together nicely thanks to the emergence of Ladarius Green and what looks like a pecking order on offensive play calling. Since Ben Roethlisberger went down with injury, the Steelers offense is built from the run and then blooms with their explosive passing offense. On that side of the ball they have it all as long as everyone stays healthy. But much like the Raiders, you have to wonder about their defense. Some games they look passable and other games they look flammable.
7. Detroit Lions (8-4): The shocker of the NFC has to be the Lions. Up until this past week, the cardiac Lions trailed in the fourth quarter of every game and managed to win through heroics of some sort. The best news for the Lions is their defense seems to progressively get better with each passing week. Combine that with an offense that has the capability to score with anyone and you have a sleeper in the NFC.
8. Baltimore Ravens (7-5): The scariest things about this team are that their defense is back to standard and Joe Flacco is their quarterback. The top defense overall in the league is what you expect from this organization. Another expectation that people sleep on is Flacco in the playoffs. Think about it, he plays inconsistent in the regular season, but is borderline great when the playoffs start. We’ve seen what happens when he gets red hot.
9. Denver Broncos (8-4): You can never count out this defense, but their offense is probably in worse shape than it was a year ago. All of a sudden Peyton Manning’s chalk outline looks pretty good when compared to what they have at QB now. Week to week there’s no telling if the offense can do enough. And with the AFC West slipping out of grasp, you have to wonder if whoever the QB will be can navigate the pitfalls of a road playoff game.
Pretenders
10. Atlanta Falcons (7-5): The Falcons are right where they belong as a pretender on this list. The first half MVP Matt Ryan has slowly come crashing back down to earth and the defense puts zero fear into anyone. On a good day, the Falcons can score with anyone with their explosive offense. Problem is their defense rarely has a good day. They’re ranked 27th in the league in total defense.
11. Green Bay Packers (6-6): Basically known as Aaron Rodgers or bust since that’s what the Packers have been regulated to. When Rodgers plays well the Packers have a chance to win. If he plays anything less than that the Packers will likely lose the game. Their defense slid from respectable to not mentioned at all and they barley having a running game worth speaking about. The best hope for the Packers is if the team catches fire like they did in 2010.
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-5): Jameis Winston warned us that he’s not a loser and has led his team t four straight victories as a result. The Buccaneers sit atop the NFC South by way of tiebreakers right now. And with the Falcons faltering right now, they have a chance to take the division by the end of the season.
13. New York Giants (8-4): Don’t let the record fool you. This is a very fraudulent team. Their six game winning streak consisted of mostly beating teams like the Rams, Bears, Browns and Bengals. The moment they faced off with an actual contender, they were punched in the mouth by the Steelers. On top of that, Eli Manning is turning the ball over at an alarming rate.
14. Washington Redskins (6-5-1): After generating some hype with moderately impressive play, the Redskins came crashing back down to earth after allowing 62 points in their last two games. You like that?
15. Miami Dolphins (7-5): This team could still make the playoffs, but I have my doubts about what they can do if they make it. After six straight wins, Miami reverted to the same old Dolphins in their lost to the Ravens. They turned the ball over three times, Tannehill turned into his same old self and Jay Ajayi couldn't get it going.
16. Minnesota Vikings (6-6): Vikings fans will look back at this season and think about what could’ve been if their offense was healthy. Since week 7, they’re offense is averaging 16.3 points per game. Even their defense can’t save them at this point.
17. Arizona Cardinals (5-6-1): Arizona picked the wrong time to have a down year. If they played at last year’s level, they’d be the clear favorite to go to the Super Bowl. Instead, they may be going on a premature fishing trip. Despite David Johnson’s brilliance and their good defense, Carson Palmer has failed to play up to expectations. It may be time to look at a new QB or overhaul that offensive line.
18. Tennessee Titans (6-6): Someone has to win the AFC South and the Titans may do it if they can hold it together. Marcus Mariota has improved and has a great running game and decent defense at his disposal. This team just had the worst record in the league a season ago and may just make it to the playoffs.
19. Buffalo Bills (6-6): Eight or more wins probably looks like a moral victory in Buffalo at this point. Tyrod Taylor and LeSean McCoy have the offense playing solid, but for some reason they tend to lose when scoring 24 or more points. Basically, they’re not winning if a game turns into a shootout.
20. Houston Texans (6-6): 5-3 feels so long ago for this team. It seemed they were going to win the AFC South despite their play leaning more towards mediocre. Brock Osweiler was supposed to be the savior, but he’s only saved the seasons of the Colts and the Titans.
21. Indianapolis Colts (6-6): Thank God for the AFC South. If the Colts played in any other division, they’d be finished already. Things have to be looking up for them now. They have the best QB in a division that looks like no one wants to win. But even asking Andrew Luck to carry this mess may be asking too much.
The Vacation Package
22. Philadelphia Eagles (5-7): It’s only so long rookie quarterbacks can pretend. The Eagles have lost three straight and have only averaged 14 points during that stretch. Wentzlvania is no longer running wild as the rookie has thrown three more touchdowns than interceptions during the losing streak.
23. New Orleans Saints (5-7): For a split second it looked like this team could sneak into the playoff discussion. But their defense is so bad that their offense cannot afford any off days. With Drew Brees signing an extension, job number one in New Orleans needs to be getting the future Hall of Famer a defense to play with.
24. Carolina Panthers (4-8): The Super Bowl hangover claims another victim in the Carolina Panthers. It seems like this team couldn’t get it going from the very beginning. Cam Newton’s accuracy and effectiveness are both down and the defense has suffered through injuries and losing Josh Norman. After last season, Cam seemed poised to become the face of the league. Now that’s all in question as the Panthers finish what’s left of the season.
25. Cincinnati Bengals (4-7-1): Surely Marvin Lewis can’t survive this right? Right?
26. San Diego Chargers (5-7): How to break up with a city in two years written by Dean Spanos and the NFL. First you demand a new stadium paid for by the city you play in. Then you team up with a hated rival to build a stadium on a landfill. After that, you ignore your local city’s idea for a stadium in favor of trying to go against every politician in your city because you want to be downtown. And then, you extend your horrible head coach and waste away what’s left of two hall of farmer’s careers (Rivers and Gates). Meanwhile, you get into a pissing contest with your top draft pick and put out yet another mediocre roster. Then you move in with the Rams in Los Angeles. We’ll miss you San Diego.
7. Los Angeles Rams (4-8): Whenever I picture the Los Angeles Rams, I picture the the city name being an old sticker slowly peeling away to revel something underneath: St. Louis. Yes ladies and gentlemen, these are just the same old St. Louis Rams who just happen to be playing in Los Angeles. Also, I aspire to be like Jeff Fisher. After all, who else could make millions and have bulletproof job security while being horrible at his job?
28. Chicago Bears (3-9): Jordan Howard is the lone bright spot for the Bears this season. Other than that, the Cubs won the World Series and Jay Cutler will never throw a football for the Bears again. So all in all, a solid year in the Windy City.
29. New York Jets (3-9): Things are getting bad for the Jets now. I mean they’re getting but fumble bad for them. Ryan Fitzpatrick has the worst TD-INT ratio in the NFL and now Bryce Petty will be starting games for them. The Blessing and Curse of Namath continues.
Other
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-10): Just when you thought it was safe to believe in the Jaguars just a little bit, they go full Jaguar on you. Now you have to wonder about the future of this team. Gus Bradley will be gone after the season is over for sure. Blake Bortles has only won 10 games in his career thus far and has an offense with enough weapons to win more than two games.
31. San Francisco 49ers (1-11): It’s a shame what this team has become since Jim Harbaugh was fired. From Super Bowl contender to the basement of the NFL in just a few years. This team needs to rebuild from scratch. As for Chip Kelly, I hear Oregon is hiring.
32. Cleveland Browns (0-12): Don’t pencil in the Browns for 0-16 just yet. Don’t schedule that parade just yet. They still have to play two teams that play in the two most cursed sports towns in America.
