Another week of NFL action is in the books. We had another case of upset city on our hands. New England fell to the Dolphins, San Fran topped the Broncos, and the Raiders beat the Steelers. In five games as the interim head coach, Greg Williams has as many wins as Hue Jackson did in 2.5 seasons. Indianapolis put a stop to the Texans nine game winning streak. The Ravens almost bested the Chiefs. Let’s take a look at the Week 15 NFL power rankings.
Teams 32-11
32.) San Francisco 49ers (Last Week: 32) (3-10) 31.) Arizona Cardinals (30) (3-10) 30.) Oakland Raiders (31) (3-10) 29.) Buffalo Bills (25) (4-9) 28.) Jacksonville Jaguars (28) (4-9) 27.) New York Jets (29) (4-9) 26.) Atlanta Falcons (24) (4-9) 25.) Detroit Lions (26) (5-8) 24.) Cincinnati Bengals (23) (5-8) 23.) New York Giants (27) (5-8) 22.) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (20) (5-8) 21.) Washington Redskins (19) (6-7) 20.) Cleveland Browns (22) (5-7-1) 19.) Green Bay Packers (21) (5-7-1) 18.) Carolina Panthers (18) (6-7) 17.) Denver Broncos (15) (6-7) 16.) Philadelphia Eagles (14) (6-7) 15.) Minnesota Vikings (12) (6-6-1) 14.) Tennessee Titans (16) (7-6) 13.) Miami Dolphins (17) (7-6) 12.) Indianapolis Colts (13) (7-6) 11.) Baltimore Ravens (11) (7-6)
Top Ten
10.) Pittsburgh Steelers (8) (7-5-1)
Pittsburgh has now lost three straight and get to face the Patriots this week. They then get to follow up that matchup on the road against the Saints. Not a great looking next couple of weeks for Steelers fans, especially after this last loss came at the hands of the Oakland Raiders. The Ravens aren’t far behind in the division. Will the Steelers claim the division, or will Baltimore surpass them?
9.) Seattle Seahawks (10) (8-5)
The final score of Seattle’s matchup with the Vikings portrayed a much different game than it actually was. It was a defensive slugfest, with fourteen of Seattle’s points came with less than three minutes left in the game. In two weeks, we will get to see what this Seattle team is really made of when Kansas City comes to town.
8.) Dallas Cowboys (9) (8-5)
Amari Cooper continues to show his worth on this Dallas team. Not only did he have the walk-off touchdown in overtime, he also had over two-hundred yards receiving and three touchdowns. Dallas got a huge win over Philly and have won five straight games after their slow start to the season. The division isn’t locked up, but Dallas controls their own destiny moving forward.
7.) Houston Texans (5) (9-4)
Houston’s nine game winning streak was snapped this week against the division rival Colts. Despite the loss, the Texans are still in the driver seat in the division. All three of their remaining opponents have a losing record. They look to get back on track this week on the road against the Jets.
6.) New England Patriots (2) (9-4)
The “Miami Miracle.” The Patriots had this game in the bag, but an inevitable game of pitch and catch led to the Dolphins winning the game in the final seconds. New England travels to Pittsburgh this week, before finishing the season off at home against the Bills, then Jets.
5.) Los Angeles Chargers (6) (10-3)
After their tough loss to the Broncos, the Chargers have now won three straight. Melvin Gordon is still nursing a knee injury, and now Ekeler is likely to miss the Thursday night matchup against the Chiefs. Despite the team battling key injuries all season, they still have a shot at winning the division.
4.) Los Angeles Rams (1) (11-2)
The Bears defense proved to be too much for the high-scoring Rams offense. They struggled to establish the run and Goff had his worst game of the season. Los Angeles has already clinched their division, but got a taste of the elite Bears defense they may meet again in the playoffs. McVay is an offensive mastermind and this team will surely bounce back from this loss. They face the Eagles this week.
3.) Chicago Bears (7) (9-4)
The monsters of the midway held the Rams to just six points. They held Gurley to just twenty-eight yards on the ground, while picking off Goff four times. Trubisky was back this week and threw three interceptions of his own. The only touchdown scored in the game was a pass to offensive lineman Bradley Sowell of the Bears. The Packers come to Soldier Field this week.
2.) New Orleans Saints (4) (11-2)
It appeared the Buccaneers may be the Saints’ kryptonite early in the contest. After going into halftime down eleven, New Orleans scored twenty-five unanswered points to win the game. With the victory, the Saints clinched the NFC South. They travel to Carolina this week to face a Panthers team who has lost five straight.
1.) Kansas City Chiefs (3) (11-2)
Kansas City was pushed to their limits against the Ravens this past week. The team showed they can still put up points against one of the league’s best defenses. They became the first team in the AFC to clinch the playoffs, and now the door is wide open for the playoffs to run through Arrowhead in the AFC. The Chargers come to town on Thursday night, with a win, KC can clinch the division.
