Week 12 Power Rankings

By Timothy An and AJ Olona

32. New York Jets (0-10): The Jets got another victory on Sunday in their pursuit for the first overall pick. They are no longer playing to win, they are playing to lose. The goal for the Jets is to Tank for Trevor, and it is working to perfection.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-9): The Jaguars should be praying for the Jets to win a game. Other than rookie RB James Robinson, the Jaguars have had no bright spots on their roster. Their goal should be to Tank for Trevor, but it seems like they will get stuck with the second quarterback off the board in this year's draft.

30. Cincinnati Bengals (2-7-1): The Bengals are coming off a loss to the Washington Football Team, but the main story of that game is the season-ending injury to rookie QB Joe Burrow. Burrow showed all the signs of a star QB, and we can expect the Bengals to drastically improve next season. The goal for this team now should be to tank for Penei Sewell!

29. New York Giants (3-7): The Giant had a bye week in Week 11 but saw two of their division opponents get wins this week in the Dallas Cowboy and the Washington Football Team. Luckily the Giants face the Bengals in Week 12, still giving them the opportunity to win the NFC East.

28. Washington Football Team (3-7): The Alex Smith led Football Team was able to pull out a win over the Bengals. While the Bengals are not a good team by any means, it is still good for a team like this to get any wins they can, given the state of the NFC East. If Alex Smith can get more comfortable as the weeks go on, there is still a chance this team makes the playoffs.

27. Philadelphia Eagles (3-6-1): Another week, another disappointment by the Eagles. It is starting to feel more and more like it is time to pull Carson Wentz and see what you have with rookie Jalen Hurts at quarterback. Wentz has been careless all season long with the football, and it is costing his team games. Despite the loss to the Browns, the Eagles are still somehow in first place in the NFC East. While that is not something to be super proud of, it is still worth noting.

26. Atlanta Falcons (3-7): The Falcons just lost to the New Orleans Saints with their third-string quarterback. They had no answer for Taysom Hill, Michael Thomas, or Alvin Kamara. If the Falcons can’t even put up a competitive game in those circumstances, it shows why they are so low in the rankings.

25. Dallas Cowboys (3-7): The Cowboys were able to get Andy Dalton back under center and got their first win since Week 5 against the Giants. The Cowboys are not a good football team. But luckily for them, neither is no one else in the NFC East, giving them a really good chance at making the playoffs somehow.

24. Detroit Lions (4-6): Coming off of a 20-0 loss to the Panthers and prove that they are not a team ready for the playoffs. This is a team that will likely face a lot of roster and personnel turnover in the offseason, starting with head coach Matt Patricia.

23. Houston Texans (3-7): The Texans have finally beat a team other than the 1-9 Jacksonville Jaguars as they took down the New England Patriots on Sunday. This team has had one of the harder schedules in the NFL and really took a hit by trading away All-Pro WR DeAndre Hopkins. Hopefully, the Texans will be able to get Deshaun Watson some help next season and get him back into the postseason.

22. Carolina Panthers (4-7): The Carolina Panthers are coming off of a 20-0 win over the Detroit Lions without their starting quarterback. Despite that, the Panthers are still not a great team. They firmly sit behind the Saints and the Buccaneers in the NFC South.

21. Minnesota Vikings (4-6): The Minnesota Vikings lost another close game, this time to the 2-7 Dallas Cowboys. Despite how well the offense plays, this team cannot pull out any wins on the season. Losing these close games keeps the Vikings towards the bottom of the power rankings, especially when they are against bad teams.

20. Los Angeles Chargers (3-7): The Chargers are coming off a victory against the Jets in which they almost blew a fourth-quarter lead again. This team has played close games all season but simply does not know how to close out games. This leads to a question from all football fans of whether this team is just bad or unlucky.

19. Denver Broncos (4-6): The Broncos are coming off of an impressive 20-13 victory over the Miami Dolphins. This team has shown signs of a great football team defensively, but the struggles of QB Drew Lock and RB Melvin Gordon are holding this team back offensively. The Broncos need to fix their offensive unit if they want to compete for a playoff spot next season.

18. Chicago Bears (5-5): Despite a hot start to the season, the Chicago Bears are becoming more and more unimpressive as the year goes on. The offense is a huge mess, as Nick Foles has struggled to stand out in any game this year. As long as the offense is struggling, it will hold this team back all year.

17. San Francisco 49ers (4-6): Coming off of a bye week, the San Francisco 49ers are floundering in the middle of the pack. With how well the rest of the NFC West is playing this season, Nick Mullens and the 49ers need to string together some wins to stay in the conversation for the playoffs.

16. New England Patriots (4-6): Coming off a surprising upset victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night in Week 10, the Patriots lost to the Houston Texans 20-27 this past week. It’s weird seeing the Patriots, not atop the AFC East, but after an 11-year run winning the division, it seems safe to say that their streak is over.

15. Miami Dolphins (6-4): After winning five games in a row, the Dolphins fell to the Denver Broncos 13-20. The biggest concern was the injury of rookie QB Tua Tagovailoa. Hopefully, he will be able to return, but if not, Ryan Fitzpatrick and this defensive unit should be able to hold it down against their next two matchups against the Jets and the Bengals.

14. Cleveland Browns (7-3): The Browns are coming off a 5-point victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. This team has not been able to beat any real competition this season but has an easy schedule that could propel them into a Wild Card spot in the postseason. As the weather starts getting colder, defenses could have real trouble stopping the two-headed monster in the backfield featuring Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt.

13. Las Vegas Raiders (6-4): After beating the Chiefs in Week 5, the Raiders fell to the Chiefs by a game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter. However, the Raiders played well and are showing their identity as a run-heavy team. This team is dangerous and a matchup nobody wants to see in the playoffs.

12. Baltimore Ravens (6-4): The Ravens have lost 3 of their last 4 games and have looked very one-dimensional offensively. Coming up against the Steelers on Thanksgiving night will be a dangerous matchup without RBs Mark Ingram and JK Dobbins due to COVID-19. If the Ravens lose this matchup, they will be far behind the Browns and the Steelers in 3rd place in the AFC North.

11. Tennessee Titans (7-3): After being embarrassed by division rivals Indianapolis Colts two weeks ago, the Titans came out with a victory against the Baltimore Ravens with a score of 30-24. As we get deeper into the winter season, Derrick Henry will continue to become more dominant and I would not be surprised to see this team shoot up the power rankings in the coming weeks.

10. Arizona Cardinals (6-4): The Arizona Cardinals have been frustrating all year long. They are seemingly unable to build off of huge wins this season as they lost their Week 11 rematch against the Seahawks after their miraculous win over the Buffalo Bills. Until the Cardinals can capitalize on important games, they won’t be taken seriously as contenders.

9. Seattle Seahawks (7-3): After a red hot start to the season, the Seahawks hit a bit of a rough patch, losing two straight games to the Bills and the division rivals the LA Rams. The Seahawks were able to narrowly avoid losing three straight games, and two straight division losses when they were able to beat the Cardinals Thursday night. Despite the 7-3 record, the Seahawks have shown their vulnerabilities over the last few weeks.

8. Green Bay Packers (7-3): The Green Bay Packers are coming off of a heart-crushing loss to the Indianapolis Colts. Aaron Rodgers was his usual great self, putting his team in a position to win it until Marquez Valdez-Scantling fumbled the ball away in overtime. This game was more of a testament to how impressive the Colts are playing rather than any indication of how bad the Packers are. They are still a top team in the NFL.

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-4): Despite the loss on Monday night to the LA Rams, the Buccaneers are still a top team in the NFL. The embarrassment of riches that the Bucs have on offense keep them in contention with everyone. However, the recent losses against the Rams and Saints show that the Bucs may have problems against tougher teams in the NFL. Their upcoming game against the Chiefs this week is huge.

6. Los Angeles Rams (7-3): The Los Angeles Rams got a huge win against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers, proving that they are a top team in the NFL. With such a tight race in the NFC West, the Rams need any win that they can get, and wins over credible teams are huge.

5. Buffalo Bills (7-3):

The Bills are coming off a 32-20 loss against the Arizona Cardinals in a close matchup won by a DeAndre Hopkins Hail Mary. This team should be 8-2 and has beat some great teams this season. Josh Allen has proven himself as a reliable starter and we can expect this team to win the AFC East for the first time since 1995.

4. Indianapolis Colts (7-3)

The Colts are coming off back-to-back impressive victories over both the Tennessee Titans and the Green Bay Packers. This defense has been dominant and their offense has been able to generate just enough points to get victories. This team has proved that they belong in the Super Bowl contender conversation in these past two weeks, which is why they are four on our list.

3. New Orleans Saints (8-2)

Despite missing their Hall of Fame quarterback, the Saints were still able to pull off a win with Taysom Hill making his first career start at quarterback. The Saints have proved that they are much more than Drew Brees as a team and that when their defense is firing at every level, they can hang with almost anyone, despite who is under center. With Cameron Jordan finally coming along, partnered with Trey Hendrickson, the Saints finally have an intimidating front seven to boost their defense.

2. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-0)

The Steelers beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 27-3 last week. Though this team remains undefeated through 11 weeks, their schedule has been much easier than teams like Chiefs, which is why they remain at number two. They have an important matchup against the Baltimore Ravens on Thanksgiving. While the Ravens are not a scary team by any means, the two rivals always have a competitive matchup.

1. Kansa City Chiefs (9-1)

The Chiefs are coming off of an impressive victory over division-rivals, the Las Vegas Raiders as QB Patrick Mahomes led the team down the field for a game-winning touchdown to TE Travis Kelce with 28 seconds left in the game. This team is coming off a Super Bowl victory and is not showing any signs of slowing down from last season.

Follow AJ on Twitter @age_lona and Timothy @timothyan1

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