Week 13 NFL Power Rankings: Jets and Patriots Continue To Dominate NFL

The parity continues in the NFL this season as there are several teams still in the playoff race.

With the Jets and Patriots seemingly in a two-way battle for AFC supremacy and the Falcons looking like the cream of the crop in the AFC, will there be any surprise squads making a late season push?

Here are the Week 13 NFL Power Rankings.

1. New York Jets: 9-2, T-First AFC East

The Jets handled the Bengals on Thanksgiving and can really put some distance between themselves and the Pats with a second win against them on Monday Night Football.

2. New England Patriots: 9-2, T-First AFC East

Since looking like they were headed for disaster against the Browns, the Patriots have proved that they’re once again a Super Bowl contender.

3. Atlanta Falcons: 9-2, First NFC South

With an impressive win against the Packers in Week 12, Matt Ryan is now 19-1 in his career at home as a starter.  Odds are that the Falcons will continue to make a strong push to secure home field advantage for postseason.

4. New Orleans Saints: 8-3, Second NFC South

The Saints are getting healthier, and it’s clear that fantasy football stud QB Drew Brees is much more effective than he was in the early going. The defending Super Bowl Champs aren’t going anywhere just yet.

5. Pittsburgh Steelers: 8-3, T-First AFC North

The Steelers might be 8-3, but they could easily find themselves sliding in the rankings if they continue to look inferior against the top-tier teams.

6. Green Bay Packers: 7-4, Second NFC North

QB Aaron Rodgers is coming on strong for a Packers team that is playing quality football despite all of the injuries.

7. Chicago Bears: 8-3, First NFC North

If you don’t believe in the Bears by now, you probably never will. It’s tough to blame anyone who doesn’t, as QB Jay Cutler looks like the second coming of Brett Favre.  

8. Baltimore Ravens: 8-3, T-First AFC North

Despite the Ravens 8-3 record, many think that the team has underachieved this season. It will be interesting to see how they hold up through the stretch run.

9. Philadelphia Eagles: 7-4, T-First NFC East

Fantasy football godsend QB Michael Vick continues to look incredible even in a loss. If the defense can step up their level of play, this offense has the ability to go stride-for-stride with any other.

10. San Diego Chargers: 6-5, Second AFC West

The Chargers are making a strong push toward the top and there’s no reason to think that they won’t succeed with MVP candidate QB Philip Rivers playing the best football of his career.

11. New York Giants: 7-4, T-First NFC East

The most inconsistent first place team in the league, the G-Men look great one week and awful the next. With the Eagles playing better than most expected, the Giants will have a tough time making the postseason if they don’t win the division.

12. Kansas City Chiefs: 7-4, First AFC West

Why is this team still surprising people? The Chiefs have the most explosive RB in football in Jamaal Charles, WR Dwayne Bowe is a one man wrecking crew and they’re beating quality opponents.

13. Indianapolis Colts: 6-5, T-First AFC South

This is the worst the Colts have looked in a while, as even Peyton Manning doesn’t look right. Regardless, it’s hard to imagine a playoff picture that didn’t include Indianapolis.

14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-4, Third NFC South

Did anyone really believe Raheem Morris when he said the Bucs were the best team in the NFC? They’re certainly a pleasant surprise, but a couple of key injuries suffered in Week 12 could really come back to bite them.

15. Jacksonville Jaguars: 6-5, T-First AFC South

David Garrard is often ridiculed as one of the worst starting QBs in the NFL, but his level of play over recent weeks has been surprisingly high and he has the Jags headed in the right direction. When’s the last time they were tied for first headed into Week 13?

16. Houston Texans: 5-6, T-Second AFC South

After finally showing some signs of life against a depleted Titans team in Week 12, the Texans are just one game out of the top spot. Can the defense finally step it up?

17. St. Louis Rams: 5-6, T-First NFC West

The Rams might be a team built for the future, but they’ve got a very real shot at a playoff berth in a weak NFC West. QB Sam Bradford is performing like a franchise player, and Steve Spagnuolo has his troops highly motivated.

18. Miami Dolphins: 6-5, Third AFC East

The Dolphins finally rushed the ball, and guess what? It resulted in a win! If only they had implemented this gameplan from Week 1, and perhaps they’d be higher in the rankings.

19. Washington Redskins: 5-6, Third NFC East

Stuck toiling in mediocrity, it’s hard to see the Redskins finishing the season with more than eight wins. Without a real running game to rely on, Donovan McNabb is going to have a tough time winning over the critical DC crowd.

20. Cleveland Browns: 4-7, Third AFC North

It took all of 60 minutes, but the Browns were able to secure the victory over the Panthers. Although they won’t make the playoffs, this is the best four-win team in the league.

21 .Seattle Seahawks: 5-6, T-First NFC West

The Seahawks might be tied for first, but there’s just not enough talent on this team to sustain any sort of success right now.

22. Oakland Raiders: 5-6, Third AFC West

In the early going, the Raiders were among the most surprising teams in football. Now with RB Darren McFadden struggling to find his groove and QB Jason Campbell back under center for the rest of the way, a 7-9 finish seems like a stretch.

23. Tennessee Titans: 5-6, T-Second AFC South

If rookie QB Rusty Smith is forced into any more action, the Titans will sink faster than the Titanic. Hey, at least the Randy Moss acquisition has worked out well.

24. Minnesota Vikings: 4-7, Third NFC North

Dallas Cowboys 2.0? The Vikes won their first game under new coach Leslie Frazier despite playing an entire half without their best player, RB Adrian Peterson. Unfortunately, this squad is on the outside looking in.

25. San Francisco 49ers: 4-7, Third NFC West

The 49ers still have a legitimate chance to take the division and save Mike Singletary’s job, but losing RB Frank Gore for the season is a serious blow to the aforementioned.

26. Dallas Cowboys: 3-8, Fourth NFC East

WR Roy Williams cost his team a chance at moving to 4-7, and it was very encouraging to see them play the Saints so tightly. However, at the end of the day, 3-8 is a mega disappointment.

27. Denver Broncos: 3-8, Fourth AFC West

They have the biggest surprises in fantasy football with QB Kyle Orton and WR Brandon Lloyd, but unfortunately the team has to play defense, too.

28. Buffalo Bills: 2-9, Fourth AFC East

Kudos to Chain Gailey and his team for not throwing in the towel on the season, as they give every opponent their best effort.  They were just a dropped TD pass away from taking down the Steelers.

29. Detroit Lions: 2-9, Fourth NFC North

QB Matt Stafford is quickly gaining a reputation as injury-prone, and rookie RB Jahvid Best hasn’t been the same since his initial first couple of weeks in the league.

30. Cincinnati Bengals: 2-9, Fourth AFC North

There’s not a more talented team on paper in the NFL that is performing this badly. It’s a nightmare season for everybody involved.

31. Arizona Cardinals: 3-8, Fourth NFC West

Derek Anderson’s Week 12 post-game tirade just about sums up the Cards’ issues in a nutshell.

32. Carolina Panthers: 1-10, Fourth NFC North

It really doesn’t even matter for the Panthers at this point, who seem destined to collect the No. 1 overall pick. QB Jimmy Clausen is looking like a big swing and a miss at this point.