Week 16 NFL Power Rankings
Updated: December 18, 2012
Administrator Note: Well I can only hope you all missed reading these as much as I did creating them. Many things have changed since the last rankings so I am excited to dive into these. As always, go ahead, attack these rankings and hit me up on Twitter (@BackyardBanters) or the contact form on the homepage with thoughts.
32. Kansas City Chiefs (2-12)
Kansas City couldn’t muster a single point against Oakland. Jamal Charles was somehow only given three carries in the first half that went for -3 yards. The misuse of their best and most explosive offensive player will be just one of the reasons that this regime needs to be blown up, despite the tough and tragic situation they recently faced.
31. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-12)
The Chad Henne thing was fun for a while, but he has not maintained consistent play. Despite his big arm, he seems to settle for too many checkdown passes. He is a good back up, but the book is out on this guy, and Jacksonville should be searching for a new signal caller come the offseason.
30. Oakland Raiders (4-10)
Yes the Raiders shut out the Chiefs, but they did it with five field goals from Sebastian Janikowski. Not exactly a sustainable formula. I am not much of a believer in Terrelle Pryor, but I am glad they are getting him on the field, as they need to see what they have in the guy. They know who Carson Palmer is, and its pretty much mediocre at this point.
29. Philadelphia Eagles (4-10)
The Nick Foles show came to a screaming halt on Thursday night. Not that he played an awful game, but there were those delusional Eagles fans thinking he was coming into a stud. Not just yet. Foles is probably in a bad spot too, as the next coach in Philly is likely to bring in his own guy for competition, and Foles has not played so great as to be immune to replacement.
28. Arizona Cardinals (5-9)
WOW! The Cardinals actually got a win for the first time since October. They still are not much of a good team, and clearly there is internal struggle, see Dockett, Darnel. However, there are pieces here, and luckily for them the Lions decided not to try. Speaking of which….
27. Detroit Lions (4-10)
That was a pathetic showing on Sunday. In fact, I really do not have much of a reason why they are ranked ahead of the team that just shellacked them on Sunday, but I just feel like continuing to punish the Cardinals for losing nine games in a row. It seems that the only thing Detroit cares about anymore is getting Calvin Johnson the receiving yardage record. That’s good for Megatron, but it looks pretty pathetic for his team.
26. Buffalo Bills (5-9)
This is lower than many publications have the Bills, but I feel they are deserving. They were completely and totally demolished by Seattle, and in every facet of the game too. They did not even touch Russell Wilson on any of his three touchdown runs. What a pathetic effort in front of their sorta home crowd.
25. New York Jets (6-8)
Well it seems that the Mark Sanchez experience has mercifully come to and end. I cannot bash this team enough for their handling of the quarterback situation this season. Frankly, I do not care how this season ends up, it is time to clean house of all the clowns, Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbuam included. And for Tim Tebow’s sake, I hope he gets out with the rest of them.
24. Tennessee Titans (5-9)
Watching that Monday night game was the equivalent of getting my head smashed into a brick wall over and over again. The only good thing to watch was Chris Johnson’s 94-yard touchdown run. I am not a big fan of CJ at this point, but that was a reason he is still a special player. I think the best thing Tennessee could do for Johnson is to acquire another, bigger, back and have them split carries. Knowing Johnson, he would probably just cry about that however.
23. San Diego Chargers (5-9)
That was the low point of a disgusting Chargers season. At this point I wish they would just put Norv out of his misery, he is a good guy, who we all know is gone. I wonder what happens to Rivers after this season. He has been an elite player in the past, but he has struggled this year. Will a new staff decide to move on from him?
22. Cleveland Browns (5-9)
It is telling when a three game win streak is considered such a high point for your franchise. They game crashing back to Earth against the RG3less Redskins. That Brandon Weeden pick looks worse by the day. Especially after losing to a guy drafter three rounds after him, and who is five years younger than him.
21. Carolina Panthers (5-9)
Carolina is having almost the exact same season this year as last. I am not sure what that says about Ron Rivera, but they were playing teams tough and losing early in the year, and are now beating people handedly to close the season. The only difference this season is Cam Newton has become a better passer and they actually have assembled a decent defense (especially their pass rushers). Perhaps Ron Rivera deserves another year.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-8)
This team looked like a possibility to sneak into the playoffs a few weeks ago. Now, they resemble that motley crew that finished last year. Josh Freeman’s inconsistencies are troubling, and maddening to boot, and this pass defense is amongst the worst in the league. Tampa Bay needs another great offseason.
19. St. Louis Rams (6-6-1)
St. Louis is still a tough out each week and they are improved, but they cannot finish and they made Christian Ponder look competent. That is not okay. Another year in Jeff Fisher’s program will reap better results.
18. New Orleans Saints (6-8)
The Saints showed the team that they could have been when they shut out rival Tampa Bay. It was an encouraging sign from the defense that has many slow and poor players. It was also nice to see Drew Brees have a dominant game as he was struggling prior to this week.
17. Miami Dolphins (6-8)
As if we needed any validation, Ryan Tannehill > Chad Henne. Tannehill showed on Sunday his great potential. Not only did he have a stellar day passing, but he also showed some nice read option looks. Like I said, I didn’t doubt the decision, but moving from to the Tannehill era from the Henne era was a great decision.
16. Cincinnati Bengals (8-6)
My faithful readers no my thoughts on the Bengals, and they have not changed. Their one win against a good team came against a Giants team that we well know turns it off from time to time. Their butt whooping of sad-sap Philadelphia does not change my feelings. This team may well make the postseason, but they will get bounced in the first round. Book it.
15. Chicago Bears (8-6)
The Bears have fallen way hard fro mtheir 7-1 start. Their precipitous fall can mostly be traced back to their defense. They were scoring, what seemed like, two touchdowns per week. Now, they are getting gashed on a weekly basis. This not only does not bode well for the future of this team.
14. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-7)
Everyone wants to kill the Steelers, and they deserve some of it. They are not a top-10 team anymore, but they are still an average team. They need to overhaul this defensive unit and they need a running back that they can count on week to week. I know Ben killed them this week, but as long as they have him, expect them to be a potentially dangerous team.
13. Minnesota Vikings (8-6)
Adrian Peterson. That is all I have to say about these guys, because that is all there is. What a boss.
12. Dallas Cowboys (8-6)
This feels high for Dallas, as I really do not trust them all that much. However, they are still in the running for the division race as shocking as that feels. Their week 17 matchup against Washington should be a great on to watch. Even if they make it to the postseason, I doubt it, I would not trust them to last long at all.
11. Indianapolis Colts (9-5)
The Colts are out of my top-10 mostly because I do not consider them an elite team. I think they are another great candidate to get bounced from the playoffs rather quickly. In a side note: I consider Andrew Luck the third choice in my offensive rookie of the year race. He has frankly turned the ball over too much. A case can be made for him, but I see the other two quarterbacks as the better choices.
10. Baltimore Ravens (9-5)
The Ravens are falling hard and fast. They need to take some pressure off of the struggling Flacco and RUN WITH RAY RICE MORE! He is your best player, try and use him a little. It does not have to be that hard.
9. New York Giants (8-6)
The Giants are in danger of figuring out that they cannot just expect to magically make the playoffs at 9-7 every year. This time they need a lot of help to make the dance, and I am not sure they will get it. Getting shutout by the overrated Falcons does not inspire much confidence from this guy, at the very least.
8. Washington Redskins (8-6)
Having the Redskins I nthe top-10 shocks even me. However, they have earned it. Going on the road and beating a “hot” Cleveland team with your rookie backup QB is not an easy task, and the Skins pulled it off with ease. If RG3 has to miss more games, a real possibility, it stands to reason that developing cult hero Kirk Cousins can help this team in two ways. Helpign them into the playoffs, and pumping up his trade value.
7. Seattle Seahawks (9-5)*
Some say that Seattle will lose in the first round of the playoffs because they play better at home. I don’t buy it for a second. These guys are legit and they have showed they can beat teams on the road. I expect them to make some noise in January and as many of my friends know, and berate me for it too, Russell Wilson is my rookie of the year choice, and in two weeks, it may not even be close.
6. Atlanta Falcons (12-2)
Atlanta made a statement on Sunday, showing that they are not to be taken too lightly. They can blowout a team if everything is click, and the other team is sleepwalking. However, everyone, except Roddy White, knows that this season doesn’t mean anything until we see them in the playoffs. Then we will know if these are the same old Falcons or not.
5. Green Bay Packers (10-4)*
The Packers are getting healthy and we are seeing more of the team we thought they would be this year. I am excited to see this team in the playoffs. Are they the stunning super bowl winners of 2010, or the clunkers we saw last year? I thin kthey are buying themselves as underdogs, and we know what that sounds like.
4. Houston Texans (12-2)
Houston bounced back nicely from their disgraceful loss to the Patriots. They need to take this as a lesson that they need to play much better against the elite teams that they will be seeing in January. That is if they want to regain their super bowl favorite status.
3. New England Patriots (10-4)
The Patriots lost what very well could be a super bowl preview, but man did Tom Brady look like a machine in his attempt to mount a comeback. This team is as good as ever and no one wants to meet them, much less at home, in January.
2. San Francisco 49ers (10-3-1)
Kaepernick as made this team so much better. Jim Harbuagh deserves a ton of credit for not playing it safe and going back to Alex Smith. What many people do not seem to realize is that they can win shootouts now. Remember when they lost that game to the Giants earlier this year? That is because the Giants made Alex Smith throw. I don’t think anyone wants to see CK throwing these days.
1. Denver Broncos (11-3)
It is a tough choice between the Niners and the Broncos for the top spot, but in the end, I give it to the team that has not lost in almost two months. They are too good, and they can beat you in so many ways. Solid special teams, Knowshon Moreno leaping over you,and attacking defense, and that Manning guy throwing it all over you. This team is super bowl ready and scary.
Administrator Note: Well I can only hope you all missed reading these as much as I did creating them. Many things have changed since the last rankings so I am excited to dive into these. As always, go ahead, attack these rankings and hit me up on Twitter (@BackyardBanters) or the contact form on the homepage with thoughts.
32. Kansas City Chiefs (2-12)
Kansas City couldn’t muster a single point against Oakland. Jamal Charles was somehow only given three carries in the first half that went for -3 yards. The misuse of their best and most explosive offensive player will be just one of the reasons that this regime needs to be blown up, despite the tough and tragic situation they recently faced.
31. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-12)
The Chad Henne thing was fun for a while, but he has not maintained consistent play. Despite his big arm, he seems to settle for too many checkdown passes. He is a good back up, but the book is out on this guy, and Jacksonville should be searching for a new signal caller come the offseason.
30. Oakland Raiders (4-10)
Yes the Raiders shut out the Chiefs, but they did it with five field goals from Sebastian Janikowski. Not exactly a sustainable formula. I am not much of a believer in Terrelle Pryor, but I am glad they are getting him on the field, as they need to see what they have in the guy. They know who Carson Palmer is, and its pretty much mediocre at this point.
29. Philadelphia Eagles (4-10)
The Nick Foles show came to a screaming halt on Thursday night. Not that he played an awful game, but there were those delusional Eagles fans thinking he was coming into a stud. Not just yet. Foles is probably in a bad spot too, as the next coach in Philly is likely to bring in his own guy for competition, and Foles has not played so great as to be immune to replacement.
28. Arizona Cardinals (5-9)
WOW! The Cardinals actually got a win for the first time since October. They still are not much of a good team, and clearly there is internal struggle, see Dockett, Darnel. However, there are pieces here, and luckily for them the Lions decided not to try. Speaking of which….
27. Detroit Lions (4-10)
That was a pathetic showing on Sunday. In fact, I really do not have much of a reason why they are ranked ahead of the team that just shellacked them on Sunday, but I just feel like continuing to punish the Cardinals for losing nine games in a row. It seems that the only thing Detroit cares about anymore is getting Calvin Johnson the receiving yardage record. That’s good for Megatron, but it looks pretty pathetic for his team.
26. Buffalo Bills (5-9)
This is lower than many publications have the Bills, but I feel they are deserving. They were completely and totally demolished by Seattle, and in every facet of the game too. They did not even touch Russell Wilson on any of his three touchdown runs. What a pathetic effort in front of their sorta home crowd.
25. New York Jets (6-8)
Well it seems that the Mark Sanchez experience has mercifully come to and end. I cannot bash this team enough for their handling of the quarterback situation this season. Frankly, I do not care how this season ends up, it is time to clean house of all the clowns, Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbuam included. And for Tim Tebow’s sake, I hope he gets out with the rest of them.
24. Tennessee Titans (5-9)
Watching that Monday night game was the equivalent of getting my head smashed into a brick wall over and over again. The only good thing to watch was Chris Johnson’s 94-yard touchdown run. I am not a big fan of CJ at this point, but that was a reason he is still a special player. I think the best thing Tennessee could do for Johnson is to acquire another, bigger, back and have them split carries. Knowing Johnson, he would probably just cry about that however.
23. San Diego Chargers (5-9)
That was the low point of a disgusting Chargers season. At this point I wish they would just put Norv out of his misery, he is a good guy, who we all know is gone. I wonder what happens to Rivers after this season. He has been an elite player in the past, but he has struggled this year. Will a new staff decide to move on from him?
22. Cleveland Browns (5-9)
It is telling when a three game win streak is considered such a high point for your franchise. They game crashing back to Earth against the RG3less Redskins. That Brandon Weeden pick looks worse by the day. Especially after losing to a guy drafter three rounds after him, and who is five years younger than him.
21. Carolina Panthers (5-9)
Carolina is having almost the exact same season this year as last. I am not sure what that says about Ron Rivera, but they were playing teams tough and losing early in the year, and are now beating people handedly to close the season. The only difference this season is Cam Newton has become a better passer and they actually have assembled a decent defense (especially their pass rushers). Perhaps Ron Rivera deserves another year.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-8)
This team looked like a possibility to sneak into the playoffs a few weeks ago. Now, they resemble that motley crew that finished last year. Josh Freeman’s inconsistencies are troubling, and maddening to boot, and this pass defense is amongst the worst in the league. Tampa Bay needs another great offseason.
19. St. Louis Rams (6-6-1)
St. Louis is still a tough out each week and they are improved, but they cannot finish and they made Christian Ponder look competent. That is not okay. Another year in Jeff Fisher’s program will reap better results.
18. New Orleans Saints (6-8)
The Saints showed the team that they could have been when they shut out rival Tampa Bay. It was an encouraging sign from the defense that has many slow and poor players. It was also nice to see Drew Brees have a dominant game as he was struggling prior to this week.
17. Miami Dolphins (6-8)
As if we needed any validation, Ryan Tannehill > Chad Henne. Tannehill showed on Sunday his great potential. Not only did he have a stellar day passing, but he also showed some nice read option looks. Like I said, I didn’t doubt the decision, but moving from to the Tannehill era from the Henne era was a great decision.
16. Cincinnati Bengals (8-6)
My faithful readers no my thoughts on the Bengals, and they have not changed. Their one win against a good team came against a Giants team that we well know turns it off from time to time. Their butt whooping of sad-sap Philadelphia does not change my feelings. This team may well make the postseason, but they will get bounced in the first round. Book it.
15. Chicago Bears (8-6)
The Bears have fallen way hard fro mtheir 7-1 start. Their precipitous fall can mostly be traced back to their defense. They were scoring, what seemed like, two touchdowns per week. Now, they are getting gashed on a weekly basis. This not only does not bode well for the future of this team.
14. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-7)
Everyone wants to kill the Steelers, and they deserve some of it. They are not a top-10 team anymore, but they are still an average team. They need to overhaul this defensive unit and they need a running back that they can count on week to week. I know Ben killed them this week, but as long as they have him, expect them to be a potentially dangerous team.
13. Minnesota Vikings (8-6)
Adrian Peterson. That is all I have to say about these guys, because that is all there is. What a boss.
12. Dallas Cowboys (8-6)
This feels high for Dallas, as I really do not trust them all that much. However, they are still in the running for the division race as shocking as that feels. Their week 17 matchup against Washington should be a great on to watch. Even if they make it to the postseason, I doubt it, I would not trust them to last long at all.
11. Indianapolis Colts (9-5)
The Colts are out of my top-10 mostly because I do not consider them an elite team. I think they are another great candidate to get bounced from the playoffs rather quickly. In a side note: I consider Andrew Luck the third choice in my offensive rookie of the year race. He has frankly turned the ball over too much. A case can be made for him, but I see the other two quarterbacks as the better choices.
10. Baltimore Ravens (9-5)
The Ravens are falling hard and fast. They need to take some pressure off of the struggling Flacco and RUN WITH RAY RICE MORE! He is your best player, try and use him a little. It does not have to be that hard.
9. New York Giants (8-6)
The Giants are in danger of figuring out that they cannot just expect to magically make the playoffs at 9-7 every year. This time they need a lot of help to make the dance, and I am not sure they will get it. Getting shutout by the overrated Falcons does not inspire much confidence from this guy, at the very least.
8. Washington Redskins (8-6)
Having the Redskins I nthe top-10 shocks even me. However, they have earned it. Going on the road and beating a “hot” Cleveland team with your rookie backup QB is not an easy task, and the Skins pulled it off with ease. If RG3 has to miss more games, a real possibility, it stands to reason that developing cult hero Kirk Cousins can help this team in two ways. Helpign them into the playoffs, and pumping up his trade value.
7. Seattle Seahawks (9-5)*
Some say that Seattle will lose in the first round of the playoffs because they play better at home. I don’t buy it for a second. These guys are legit and they have showed they can beat teams on the road. I expect them to make some noise in January and as many of my friends know, and berate me for it too, Russell Wilson is my rookie of the year choice, and in two weeks, it may not even be close.
6. Atlanta Falcons (12-2)
Atlanta made a statement on Sunday, showing that they are not to be taken too lightly. They can blowout a team if everything is click, and the other team is sleepwalking. However, everyone, except Roddy White, knows that this season doesn’t mean anything until we see them in the playoffs. Then we will know if these are the same old Falcons or not.
5. Green Bay Packers (10-4)*
The Packers are getting healthy and we are seeing more of the team we thought they would be this year. I am excited to see this team in the playoffs. Are they the stunning super bowl winners of 2010, or the clunkers we saw last year? I thin kthey are buying themselves as underdogs, and we know what that sounds like.
4. Houston Texans (12-2)
Houston bounced back nicely from their disgraceful loss to the Patriots. They need to take this as a lesson that they need to play much better against the elite teams that they will be seeing in January. That is if they want to regain their super bowl favorite status.
3. New England Patriots (10-4)
The Patriots lost what very well could be a super bowl preview, but man did Tom Brady look like a machine in his attempt to mount a comeback. This team is as good as ever and no one wants to meet them, much less at home, in January.
2. San Francisco 49ers (10-3-1)
Kaepernick as made this team so much better. Jim Harbuagh deserves a ton of credit for not playing it safe and going back to Alex Smith. What many people do not seem to realize is that they can win shootouts now. Remember when they lost that game to the Giants earlier this year? That is because the Giants made Alex Smith throw. I don’t think anyone wants to see CK throwing these days.
1. Denver Broncos (11-3)
It is a tough choice between the Niners and the Broncos for the top spot, but in the end, I give it to the team that has not lost in almost two months. They are too good, and they can beat you in so many ways. Solid special teams, Knowshon Moreno leaping over you,and attacking defense, and that Manning guy throwing it all over you. This team is super bowl ready and scary.
