2013 Week Sixteen NFL Power Rankings

By: Matt Harmon

32. Washington Redskins (3-11)
  • Its actually mildly impressive the Redskins were in position to win that game considering they committed seven turnovers. Emphasis on mildly. For that reason, there really should not really be any outrage over Mike Shanahan’s decision to go for the win on a two-point conversion. The game is meaningless, might as well have some fun. 

31. Houston Texans (2-12)
  • The Texans switch to Wade Phillips did nothing to spark this team. Case Keenum had a really nice run in the middle of this season, but the magic seems to be gone. Many were impressed with him, myself included, but he never took the next step. He still could have a very nice career in the mold of Ryan Fitzpatrick, as a backup quarterback.

30. Oakland Raiders (4-10)
  • The Raiders are settling in to be the team many thought they would be before the season; which is not a good thing. However, with $49 million in dead cap money this year they were forced to field a terrible roster. Next season they will reportedly have $60M in cap space. With how well Dennis Allen had that undermanned defense playing early in the year, he deserves another chance with better pieces to work with. 

29. Cleveland Browns (4-10)
  • There have been plenty of positive things to take away from the Browns season; they just have not translated to wins recently. With a stellar coaching staff in place, the front office just needs to infuse talent to key positions.

28. Buffalo Bills (5-9)
  • The Bills looked much better than they have in recent weeks. However, despite a really talented front seven, they have been giving up tons of yards to running backs recently. Kiko Alonso has been a part of the problem, but it still should not be this bad. Mike Pettine must find out if the issue lies with schemes or other personnel.  

27. Atlanta Falcons (4-10)
  • The Falcons have to put a ton of resources into their defense this offseason. The problem is, they need help on the offensive line as well. The team has to wonder if their offensive skill positions will begin to decline as their defense improves. The old see-saw theory. We have seen that happen to a couple teams this season. 

26. New York Giants (5-9)
  • The Giants seem to give up whenever the possibility of a miracle run no longer exists. This coaching staff needs to be completely overhauled. Their offense continues to disappoint, and the team seems to tune out Tom Coughlin far too often. 

25. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-10)
  • The Buccaneers did next to nothing positive on Sunday. The question now is if Mike Glennon has shown enough to continue to quarterback this team in the future. He has begun to regress in the past few weeks. He is just a rookie, but even his bright moments were not all that impressive to begin with.

24. New York Jets (6-8)
  • It was a little surprising that the Jets allowed DeAngelo Williams to have such a nice day against them. The veteran running back had been rather quiet recently, but made some explosive plays against their stout front seven. Given that that is the only good unit on their team, that greatly decreased their odds of winning. 

23. Minnesota Vikings (4-9-1)
  • The Vikings have looked much better in recent weeks. Matt Cassel has been their best quarterback by far this season. Leslie Frazier will likely lose his job because he failed to identify that fact before it was too late.

22. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-10)
  • The Jaguars discovered that Jordan Todman could be their foundation running back next season. Even if the plan is to bring back Maurice Jones-Drew next season, they would be wise to give Todman the majority of the work in 2013. With more tape available on Todman, they can decide whether to attack the running back position in the draft. 

21. Tennessee Titans (5-9)
  • There was not enough Fitzmagic to win the game on Sunday. Even though this defense has been much better this year, they have struggled some against the run lately. Andre Ellington and Rashard Mendenhall were just the latest runners to break off big runs against the Titans.  

20. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-8)
  • The Steelers still have the offense to stifle the “little brother Bengals”. It is too bad this unit could not click early in the season. The offense was a big culprit behind their 0-4 start, but it has turned things around in a major way in the second half of the season.

19. Dallas Cowboys (7-7)
  • What more is there to say about Dallas? They will choke in December, and finish around .500. Rinse and repeat each year. 

18. Indianapolis Colts (9-5)
  • It will be interesting to see how the Colts approach their upcoming matchup with the Chiefs, since the Chiefs will almost certainly be coming to their building in the playoffs. Given that the Colts have everything wrapped up with their division, how much will they show the Chiefs in the regular season? 

17. Miami Dolphins (8-6)
  • Really impressive win, or as one team beat writer would say KILL by the Dolphins on Sunday. They have two very winnable games coming up against the Bills and Jets. By the math, all they need to do is to win those two games and they are in the playoffs. 

16. St. Louis Rams (6-8)
  • The Rams showed off their talent by beating the Saints on Sunday. This team needs to stick with the physical identity they have developed in the second half of the season. With a monstrous pass rush and a foundation back, they have some things to build on. 

15. San Diego Chargers (7-7)
  • The Chargers defense was beyond impressive last Thursday. If this unit had played to that level the entire season, perhaps San Diego would be in a better playoff position. As it stands, they need to win out, and receive a lot of help to get into the dance. 

14. Green Bay Packers (7-6-1)
  • The team squeezed one last great moment out of Matt Flynn against the Cowboys. If this group gets Aaron Rodgers back, they reminded us they have enough pieces in place to make a surprise Super Bowl run. 

13. Detroit Lions (7-7)
  • The skill position talent on the Lions offense is vastly overrated. Yes, Calvin Johnson is great and the running backs are very nice, but what is there after that? The number two receiver position is virtually nonexistent, and the tight ends are maddeningly inconsistent. Even Matt Stafford is as up and down as they come at his position. The Lions call plays like they are the “Greatest Show on Turf” but they are far from that talent level. 

12. Cincinnati Bengals (9-5)
  • With that terrible loss to the Steelers the Bengals now face a bit of trouble to get into the playoffs. They could get beat for the division crown by the Ravens, and then bounced from the wild card picture if the Dolphins win two pretty easy games. The Bengals will still probably find a way to get in, but after an “egg on the face” performance on Sunday night, it is even tougher to see them going anywhere once they arrive. 

11. Baltimore Ravens (8-6)
  • The Ravens beat the Lions on Monday night, but it was not all that impressive. They needed the Lions to beat themselves and for their kicker to nail a whopping six field goals. Why does the aura around this team feel so familiar?

10. Arizona Cardinals (9-5)
  • The Cardinals will likely now miss the playoffs, to no fault of their own. It is not much of a consolation prize, but the team should feel great that they have so much to build on. Get a new left tackle, and a developmental quarterback, and this team will be could look great for several years. 

9. Philadelphia Eagles (8-6)
  • The Eagles secondary reverted back to the liability it was earlier in the season. That unit alone could keep the team from advancing in the postseason. The NFC is filled with so many great quarterbacks; it is not hard to envision that group getting torched in its own stadium, come January. 

8. Chicago Bears (8-6)
  • If Aaron Rodgers remains on the shelf the Bears will be the odds on favorite to win the NFC North. That is quite a feat for a team with a historically bad run defense and that has had to juggle two quarterbacks all season. 

7. New England Patriots (10-4)
  • Sports Center actually had a nice montage of plays where Tom Brady would put the ball up for receivers and they would fail to haul in the catch in traffic. Those are the plays where they miss Gronk. They also miss him when it comes to hitting big plays down the field. With Josh Boyce, Julian Edleman, and Danny Amendola in the line up, the Patriots have no deep threats. 

6. Kansas City Chiefs (11-3)
  • If the return of Justin Houston also brings the return of a dominant Chiefs defense, look out. Scoring 56 points against the Raiders only put an exclamation point on a series of nice offensive performances from this team. If both sides of the ball can play at those high levels at the same time, they could advance all the way to the Super Bowl. 

5. New Orleans Saints (10-4)
  • The Saints continue to show they can be beat by physical teams on the road. Their offensive line, and particularly Charles Brown, was completely exposed on Sunday. They will not find things so easy against the Panthers in the rematch away from their dome. 

4. Carolina Panthers (10-4)
  • Nice business-like win over the Jets. The real test comes next week against the Saints. Ron Rivera seems determined to have his team come in prepared and extra humble. His insistence on this fact underscores his improvement as a head coach. 

3. San Francisco 49ers (10-4)
  • This move up the power rankings is probably overdue. This passing offense is now a legitimate threat with the return of Michael Crabtree. Now that teams are worried about him as the number one threat, Vernon Davis can excel as the second option, and Anquan Boldin is at home in the third spot.

2. Denver Broncos (11-3)
  • The Broncos are human, but it is okay, they are still a very good team. There are big holes at the last two levels of the defense and at the offensive line. However, their strengths are certainly great enough to cover those areas up. 

1. Seattle Seahawks (12-2)
  • The Seahawks were so dominant on Sunday that they decided to gloat after sacks instead of pick up forced fumbles. This team knows how good it is, and that can be both a good and bad thing. 

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