1. Carolina Panthers (Last week: 2)
Carolina showed up on Thanksgiving and made easy work of the Cowboys. Vegas looks incredibly dumb for making this a pick ‘em game. Carolina won the game how they usually do, through dominating defense, running the ball, and winning the turnover battle. The question now is, will Carolina lose this year?
2. New England Patriots (Last week: 1)
For the first time this year, the Patriots are not sitting on top of the power rankings. Granted, #2 isn’t a bad spot, but Patriot fans will be bitter about this loss for a couple of days. This team is getting decimated with injuries; people are starting to wonder if it will catch up to them. The likely answer is no, because they have Tom Brady.
3. Denver Broncos (Last week: 4)
Brock Osweiler became only the second quarterback ever to beat Brady and Belichick in his first or second start. With a big win, the Broncos look to be tough opponent with that defense. The Broncos have suddenly made the race for home field advantage in the AFC interesting. Next week they play the Chargers.
4. Arizona Cardinals (Last week: 3)
While it certainly wasn’t pretty, the Cardinals took care of business against the 49ers. Arizona has to be careful next week as they have a trap game of sorts against the Rams in St. LOuis, who always play well against division opponents. If they win that, they can solidify their positioning for the #2 seed against the Vikings in Week 14.
5. Cincinnati Bengals (Last week: 5)
Cincinnati took care of business against a struggling Rams team to get back on the winning side of football. Combined with a Pittsburgh loss, the Bengals have taken a commanding three-game lead in the division with five games to go. The Bengals can now start focusing on a push for the #2 seed.
6. Minnesota Vikings (Last week: 8)
After a stinker against the Packers last week, the Vikings took care of business and then some in Atlanta. Adrian Peterson looked like he was in 2012 form as the Vikings absolutely dominated the Falcons on the ground. We are about to see what this team is made up of the next 10 days, as the Vikings get Seattle and Arizona on Sunday and Thursday respectively.
7. Kansas City Chiefs (Last week: 9)
Outside of the Panthers who have yet to lose this season, the Chiefs are the hottest team in football. After starting 1-5 and losing Jamaal Charles for the season, the Chiefs have now put together five straight wins. Their 5-2 record vs. AFC opponents will be a huge tiebreaker over the last couple of weeks.
8. Green Bay Packers (Last week: 6)
On such a historic night in Green Bay on Thanksgiving, the Packers played a very poor game against the rival Bears. Dropped passes have plagued this team, specifically from Cobb and Adams. If the Packers are going to turn this around, they are going to get creative with their offensive scheme and find ways to get people open.
9. Indianapolis Colts (Last week: 10)
Believe it or not, the Colts are now on their second three-game win streak of the season. The AFC South certainly did not have a strong start to the season, but now the division is competitive. Obviously the Colts will let Andrew Luck start when he gets back, but this team has looked better with Matt Hasselbeck at the helm.
10. Seattle Seahawks (Last week: 13)
Believe it or not, this is the first time all year that Seattle has been above .500. After improving to 4-2 at home this season, Seattle would be in the playoffs had the season ended today. Russell Wilson absolutely torched the Steelers defense this weekend, throwing for a career high five touchdown passes.
11. Pittsburgh Steelers (Last week: 7)
While the defense certainly did not hold its own in Seattle this weekend, Mike Tomlin coached a terrible game. This is the second time this season (Baltimore in Week 4) that his coaching cost the Steelers the game. A fake field goal attempt in the 2nd quarter and settling for the field goal in the 4th quarter were among the deciding factors in the game.
12. Houston Texans (Last week: 15)
The AFC South has two playoff teams if the season ended right now. The Houston Texans have now spun off five wins in six games, putting them in the 6th seed in the AFC. This defense has given up six points in three of the team’s last four games, including the Saints and Bengals offenses. This looks like a playoff team all of a sudden.
13. Buffalo Bills (Last week: 11)
Buffalo went into Kansas City and certainly had a chance to win the game. A series of penalties and late game mishaps cost the team a crucial victory. Rex Ryan teams tend to lose games the same way. It doesn’t get any easier for the Bills, as they take on the red hot Texans next week.
14. New York Jets (Last week: 16)
The Jets took care of business against the lowly Dolphins this past week and had a dominant performance doing so. The Jets really needed a win this week after losing four of their last five. Ryan Fitzpatrick looked incredibly sharp while throwing four touchdown passes, two of them to Brandon Marshall.
15. Chicago Bears (Last week: 18)
Don’t look now, but the Bears are in the thick of the playoff race. Obviously being behind Green Bay and Seattle doesn’t look promising, but Jay Cutler has looked good since coming back from his early season injury. Cutler also picked a really good time to get his first career win at Lambeau Field.
16. Atlanta Falcons (Last week: 14)
The Falcons are currently in a free-fall and they need to fix it fast. Even though they started 6-1, they have already fallen out of the playoffs with a four-game losing streak. They have lost their last four games by a combined 17 points, so winning the turnover battle would be a great way to turn these games in their favor.
17. Washington Redskins (Last week: 22)
You like that?! I know, I can’t keep starting my Redskins coverage like this, but I just can’t get over it. Kirk Cousins looks like he could be the answer at quarterback. It looks even crazier that this team will be paying RG3 $16 million to sit on the bench next year. Next up for Washington is a Monday Night Football home matchup against the depleted Cowboys.
18. New York Giants (Last week: 12)
The Giants had an opportunity to take a commanding 2 game lead in the division with five games to play. Instead they sit at 5-6 and tied with the Redskins. The Giants came out extremely flat, and didn’t score until the 4th quarter. It was a game of too little too late for the Giants. They take on the Jets in the battle for New York next week.
19. Oakland Raiders (Last week: 19)
Even though Oakland won, they beat the Titans and almost blew the game in the process. While this team can still technically make the playoffs, it’s clear that they are not ready yet. Next week they will be welcoming the red hot Chiefs to town and can get back in the wild card race with a win.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Last week: 17)
Tampa Bay was up 12-6 and Doug Martin had 90 rushing yards. That was in the second quarter. The game ended with 97 yards for Doug Martin and the Bucs losing 25-12. With a rookie quarterback, you cannot abandon the running game like that. The Bucs sit at 5-6, and a matchup with the slumping Falcons awaits them.
21. Detroit Lions (Last week: 26)
After losing the previous nine Thanksgiving day games, the Lions have won their past three Thanksgiving day games, outscoring opponents 119-41 in those games. Once viewed as a lost season, the Lions have now spun off three straight wins. If they beat Green Bay next week, it’ll be their first season sweep of them since 1991.
22. St. Louis Rams (Last week: 20)
Once viewed as a playoff contender, the Rams now sit at 4-7 and well out of the playoff race. They started 4-3, but have lost four in a row. The Rams have averaged less than 12 points per game during that streak. It doesn’t get any easier for St. Louis as they play the Cardinals next weekend.
23. Jacksonville Jaguars (Last week: 21)
Jacksonville had a fantastic opportunity to move to 5-6 against the Chargers, but this team showed its youth on Sunday. A good motto for the 2015 Jaguars would be two steps forward, and three steps back. This team has flashed the potential of a playoff team in a couple of years, but they are clearly not ready to compete.
24. Miami Dolphins (Last week: 23)
The Dolphins have fallen off significantly, losing four of their last five after winning their first two under interim head coach Dan Campbell. This team desperately needs an identity and a head coach that is tough on these players. This team is undisciplined, which is not surprising considering their interim head coach was a tight ends coach.
25. New Orleans Saints (Last week: 24)
Clearly the Saints defense was not much better without Rob Ryan. What was surprising was that Drew Brees was held out of the end zone the entire day, and the Saints only mustered six points. Unfortunately for the Saints, it does not get any easier as they have to play the Panthers next week.
26. San Diego Chargers (Last week: 31)
The Chargers looked like a competitive football team for the first time this year. Taking on a Jaguars team, Phillip Rivers won the type of game we had been expecting San Diego to win all year. Even though this is a lost season for the Chargers, it’s good to see them winning the games. They get the Broncos at home next week.
27. Philadelphia Eagles (Last week: 25)
The Eagles got absolutely smacked on Thanksgiving in Detroit. There were reports prior to the game that some players had quit on Chip Kelly. Based on the game they played, that seems quite plausible. The good news: this team is only one game back of the division lead. The bad news: they play New England next week.
28. Baltimore Ravens (Last week: 28)
The Ravens somehow found a way to sneak out of Cleveland in one of the weirdest football games I have seen in a very long time. Sans Flacco, Forsett, Smith, and Suggs, Baltimore showed a lot of heart. A lot of credit is owed to the coaching staff who had a great game plan, and the players for not quitting on the season.
29. Dallas Cowboys (Last week: 27)
As dead as the Cowboys have looked this year, if they win next week and the Giants lose, every team would be within one game of the division lead in the NFC East. In other news, you gotta feel for Tony Romo with the re-fracture of his collarbone. That being said, the Cowboys have to show more life than they did this weekend.
30. San Francisco 49ers (Last week: 29)
You can’t blame the 49ers for losing the way they did to the Cardinals. For a team that has looked largely lifeless since Week 1, they were competitive against a really good Cardinals team. In fact, the 49ers had a very really chance to win the game at the end. Next week they play the surging Bears in Chicago.
31. Tennessee Titans (Last week: 30)
As I have insisted all year, the Titans just are not very good. While this team certainly has some skilled players, there are far too many holes on this team to be competitive right now. It looks like they will have a top-3 pick in the next draft and don’t need to use it on a quarterback. They play the Jags next week.
32. Cleveland Browns (Last week: 32)
When McCown got hurt, it was a PR nightmare for the Browns, who I believe made the right decision to sit Johnny Football. This loss should sting for him in particular. While I don’t know if Johnny would have led that touchdown drive to tie the game up, if he was on the field for the last drive, he could have run farther than Austin Davis and set up a shorter field goal attempt.
Photo from fantasyknuckleheads.com.