Championship Round NFL Power Rankings
Updated: January 15, 2013
Administrator’s Note: for the playoff power rankings I will be leaving teams that have been eliminated in their spots, as you cannot really change your standing if you aren’t playing. So this week teams 32-9 will remain in the same spot as they were last week. The teams that played this week, and all others above them, will be written about and ranked.
32. Kansas City Chiefs (2-14)
31. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-14)
30. Oakland Raiders (4-12)
29. Philadelphia Eagles (4-12)
28. Detroit Lions (4-12)
27. Arizona Cardinals (5-11)
26. New York Jets (6-10)
25. Tennessee Titans (6-10)
24. Buffalo Bills (6-10)
23. Cleveland Browns (5-11)
22. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9)
21. San Diego Chargers (7-9)
20. Miami Dolphins (7-9)
19. St. Louis Rams (7-8-1)
18. New Orleans Saints (7-9)
17. Carolina Panthers (7-9)
16. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-8)
15. Dallas Cowboys (8-8)
14. New York Giants (9-7)
13. Chicago Bears (10-6).
12. Cincinnati Bengals (10-7)
11. Minnesota Vikings (10-7)
10. Indianapolis Colts (11-6)
9. Washington Redskins (10-7)
8. Houston Texans (13-5)
The Texans and Patriots game was by far the most boring of the weekend. It didn’t stand much of a chance seeing as the other three games were awesome. The Texans have some correctable flaws, but there has to be some growing concerns amongst the team about the quarterback position. Schaub seems to be falling into the category of “Chad Pennington”. A good quarterback who can get you to the playoffs by playng within the system, but may not be gifted enough to get you to the promised land. I think at the very least they need to bring in competion. Houston cannot simply run away with the AFC South anymore either. The Colts are back and ready to roll.
7. Green Bay Packers (12-6)*
After a disgraceful performance in the playoffs against the 49ers the Packers go from NFC favorites to having an egg on their face. The defensive breakdowns on Saturday should lead to some serious questions about their personnel and their coaches. They get Desmond Bishop back from injury, but more upgrades are needed throughout this side of the ball. Despite Rodgers and a ton of nice receivers, there needs to be an influx of new talent on offense as well. A reliable bell cow running back, who is good in the passing game, would go a very long way. And while injuries wrecked were a problem with the offensive line in 2012, some new guys here wouldn’t help hurt.
6. Denver Broncos (13-4)
Denver’s early exit from the playoffs comes as one of the biggest surprises of the season. Denver has all of the ingredients for a championship run. A top defense with great pass rushers, a stable running game, and a good passing game run by a hall of fame quarterback. Well their ultra conservative coach made some mistakes, their pass rush disappeared, and their hall of fame quarterback continued the narrative that he can’t win in the postseason. My question, why are people surprised John Fox played it conservative and then said he would do it 10/10 times? This is who fox has always been. Following him as the Panthers head coach he was always a guy who preferred to play it safe. Fox will always be this way, regardless of Peyton Manning’s presence.
5. Seattle Seahawks (12-6)*
Seattle started slow and came roaring back in both of their playoff games. The only difference was that they were facing a team in the Falcons that could come back right back with them. Seattle hasa great yound nuclues to build around and they clearly have the right quarterback with Russell Wilson. There clearly is a need for more pass rushers, especially on the interior of the defensive line, after the Chris Clemons injury exposed their lack of depth. An infusion of talent on the offensive line, and maybe a number one receiver, would go along way too. Regardless, there is potential for a long sustained successful program here in Seattle.
4. Atlanta Falcons (14-3)
The Falcons got the monkey off their back and won their first playoff game. Barely. Here is what is going unreported; Matt Ryan didn’t play that great of a game. Yes he obviously had a fantastic couple of passes to end the game, but before that he made some costly turnovers. I think we can definitely say he has “arrived” but it is still worth watching whether he will be able to keep pace with the electrifying Colin Kaepernick this week.
3. Baltimore Ravens (12-6)
Baltimore continues its magical run for another week, and the matchup couldn’t be more interesting this week. The Ravens get to go up against the Patriots, who got away with a victory last year when Lee Evans and Billy Cundiff decided they didn’t want it. Flacco played outstanding in that game and last week against Denver last week. They will need another performance like that this week.
2. San Francisco 49ers (12-4-1)
It couldn’t have gone better than that for the Niners. They rebounded from a youtful mistake and showed that they can be one of the more dynamic offenses in the league. With Kaepernick at the helm, they have all of the ingredients of a championship run. I am personally not rooting for the Harbowl. It would be a fun storyline, but no doubt everyone is just going to beat it to death. I really hate those types of things, because it just takes away from football discussion and analysis.
1. New England Patriots (13-4)
The Patriots look poised to be in another Super Bowl. However, I wonder if the emotional ride that Baltimore is on will trump the seemingly superior Patriots. It’s hard not to look at the Patriots and think that they will have the upper hand because of the pace they play at. Their pace of running plays on offense could be disastrous for an older defense with guys like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed.
Administrator’s Note: for the playoff power rankings I will be leaving teams that have been eliminated in their spots, as you cannot really change your standing if you aren’t playing. So this week teams 32-9 will remain in the same spot as they were last week. The teams that played this week, and all others above them, will be written about and ranked.
32. Kansas City Chiefs (2-14)
31. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-14)
30. Oakland Raiders (4-12)
29. Philadelphia Eagles (4-12)
28. Detroit Lions (4-12)
27. Arizona Cardinals (5-11)
26. New York Jets (6-10)
25. Tennessee Titans (6-10)
24. Buffalo Bills (6-10)
23. Cleveland Browns (5-11)
22. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9)
21. San Diego Chargers (7-9)
20. Miami Dolphins (7-9)
19. St. Louis Rams (7-8-1)
18. New Orleans Saints (7-9)
17. Carolina Panthers (7-9)
16. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-8)
15. Dallas Cowboys (8-8)
14. New York Giants (9-7)
13. Chicago Bears (10-6).
12. Cincinnati Bengals (10-7)
11. Minnesota Vikings (10-7)
10. Indianapolis Colts (11-6)
9. Washington Redskins (10-7)
8. Houston Texans (13-5)
The Texans and Patriots game was by far the most boring of the weekend. It didn’t stand much of a chance seeing as the other three games were awesome. The Texans have some correctable flaws, but there has to be some growing concerns amongst the team about the quarterback position. Schaub seems to be falling into the category of “Chad Pennington”. A good quarterback who can get you to the playoffs by playng within the system, but may not be gifted enough to get you to the promised land. I think at the very least they need to bring in competion. Houston cannot simply run away with the AFC South anymore either. The Colts are back and ready to roll.
7. Green Bay Packers (12-6)*
After a disgraceful performance in the playoffs against the 49ers the Packers go from NFC favorites to having an egg on their face. The defensive breakdowns on Saturday should lead to some serious questions about their personnel and their coaches. They get Desmond Bishop back from injury, but more upgrades are needed throughout this side of the ball. Despite Rodgers and a ton of nice receivers, there needs to be an influx of new talent on offense as well. A reliable bell cow running back, who is good in the passing game, would go a very long way. And while injuries wrecked were a problem with the offensive line in 2012, some new guys here wouldn’t help hurt.
6. Denver Broncos (13-4)
Denver’s early exit from the playoffs comes as one of the biggest surprises of the season. Denver has all of the ingredients for a championship run. A top defense with great pass rushers, a stable running game, and a good passing game run by a hall of fame quarterback. Well their ultra conservative coach made some mistakes, their pass rush disappeared, and their hall of fame quarterback continued the narrative that he can’t win in the postseason. My question, why are people surprised John Fox played it conservative and then said he would do it 10/10 times? This is who fox has always been. Following him as the Panthers head coach he was always a guy who preferred to play it safe. Fox will always be this way, regardless of Peyton Manning’s presence.
5. Seattle Seahawks (12-6)*
Seattle started slow and came roaring back in both of their playoff games. The only difference was that they were facing a team in the Falcons that could come back right back with them. Seattle hasa great yound nuclues to build around and they clearly have the right quarterback with Russell Wilson. There clearly is a need for more pass rushers, especially on the interior of the defensive line, after the Chris Clemons injury exposed their lack of depth. An infusion of talent on the offensive line, and maybe a number one receiver, would go along way too. Regardless, there is potential for a long sustained successful program here in Seattle.
4. Atlanta Falcons (14-3)
The Falcons got the monkey off their back and won their first playoff game. Barely. Here is what is going unreported; Matt Ryan didn’t play that great of a game. Yes he obviously had a fantastic couple of passes to end the game, but before that he made some costly turnovers. I think we can definitely say he has “arrived” but it is still worth watching whether he will be able to keep pace with the electrifying Colin Kaepernick this week.
3. Baltimore Ravens (12-6)
Baltimore continues its magical run for another week, and the matchup couldn’t be more interesting this week. The Ravens get to go up against the Patriots, who got away with a victory last year when Lee Evans and Billy Cundiff decided they didn’t want it. Flacco played outstanding in that game and last week against Denver last week. They will need another performance like that this week.
2. San Francisco 49ers (12-4-1)
It couldn’t have gone better than that for the Niners. They rebounded from a youtful mistake and showed that they can be one of the more dynamic offenses in the league. With Kaepernick at the helm, they have all of the ingredients of a championship run. I am personally not rooting for the Harbowl. It would be a fun storyline, but no doubt everyone is just going to beat it to death. I really hate those types of things, because it just takes away from football discussion and analysis.
1. New England Patriots (13-4)
The Patriots look poised to be in another Super Bowl. However, I wonder if the emotional ride that Baltimore is on will trump the seemingly superior Patriots. It’s hard not to look at the Patriots and think that they will have the upper hand because of the pace they play at. Their pace of running plays on offense could be disastrous for an older defense with guys like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed.
