NFL Power Rankings Week 10: Assessing Every Team in Unpredictable Season

The 2013 NFL season is intent on making life difficult for anyone who is into power rankings. Every team in consideration for the top spot has displayed what looks to be a fatal flaw. 

Meanwhile, there are a host of teams further down in the rankings that have shown the potential to hang with any team in the league. 

Take the Seattle Seahawks needing an amazing comeback at home to beat the winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Last week, I had the Seahawks as my top team and the Buccaneers as the worst. Yet the Bucs almost beat the Seahawks in Seattle. 

"On any given Sunday" has never been more appropriate than it is this year. 

Anyway, here are my current power rankings following another wild week of football. 

1. Kansas City Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs will take their perfect record into their bye this coming week. Upon return, we will finally will get a better measuring stick for this team.

Two of the Chiefs' next three games are against the Denver Broncos.

Kansas City also has two games left with the 4-4 San Diego Chargers and a game against the 6-2 Indianapolis Colts.

So far this year the Chiefs have played just two games against teams currently at .500 or better. That was a 17-16 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 15 and a 26-17 win over the Tennessee Titans on Oct. 6.

The Chiefs play smart and efficient football and feature an opportunistic defense with the league's most productive pass rush.

However, this is not a high-scoring or overly powerful offense. During the upcoming slate of games, we will finally learn if this team can truly be elite with that offense.

2. Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks have been less than impressive the last two weeks in narrow wins over the St. Louis Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

Seattle has been struggling along the offensive line and in rush defense. While it is a testament to this team that it was able to emerge victorious, that will do little good in the long run if improvements in these areas are not made. 

3. Denver Broncos 

The Denver Broncos will come off their bye looking to make improvements in pass defense. Denver is 30th in passing yards allowed. 

The Broncos have a powerful enough offense to thrive even when the defense is helpless against opposing offenses, but Denver will not be able to make a run to the Super Bowl if the defense does not make some improvements. 

4. Indianapolis Colts

The Colts are gaining maturity by the week. Despite playing without veteran wide receiver Reggie Wayne, the Colts authored a big comeback over the Houston Texans this past weekend. 

Andrew Luck is not posting the biggest stat lines, but he is making excellent decisions and making plays when his team needs them most. 

5. San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers enjoyed their bye this past week as winners of five straight and having scored at least 31 in all five. San Francisco has found this success by getting back to a powerful offense that rides the league's most productive rushing game.

Next week, that style of play will be severely tested against the Carolina Panthers' strong defensive front and second-ranked rush defense.

6. New Orleans Saints

After the New Orleans Saints beat the Bears in Chicago, 26-18, in Week 5, it looked like this team was finally ready to be as dangerous away from home as it was in the Superdome. That conclusion may have been a bit premature.

After falling 26-20 in New York to the Jets this past weekend, the Saints have now lost two straight road games, with the other being a 30-27 loss to the New England Patriots.

7. Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals suffered a painful overtime loss on a safety this past week to bring to a halt a four-game winning streak. 

Besides the loss, what was troubling for the Bengals is that they mustered just 20 points a week after posting 49 against the Jets. 

The Bengals are explosive, but this offense must gain some consistency if this team wants to make a deep run in the postseason. 

8. New England Patriots

Upon further review, Tom Brady is not washed up. After a string of play far below his high standards and diminished results, Brady torched the Pittsburgh Steelers for 432 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. 

If New England can build on that success in the passing game, this team will be in great shape heading into the postseason. 

9. Carolina Panthers

The Carolina Panthers are on a roll. After starting the year at just 1-3, Carolina has run off four straight wins. Granted, those wins have come against teams with a combined six wins on the season, but the Panthers have still been impressive.

With Cam Newton throwing for seven touchdowns and two interceptions in that span, the Panthers have outscored their opponents 130-48. 

The Panthers feature a punishing defense with an outstanding defensive line. The defense ranks 10th in passing and second in rushing. 

Offensively, this team is not built to blow people out. It is a run-first offense, and with the dual-threat ability of Cam Newton, it is tough to defend. 

The potential of this team lies in Newton. If he can continue to make good decisions, protect the ball and make big plays, the Panthers can beat anyone. 

10. New York Jets

I keep waiting for the New York Jets to go on a losing streak, and it never happens. They just keep winning every other week. 

It is time I just realize this team is a legitimate playoff contender. With a defense that is first in rushing and with an improving run game that is currently 11th in the NFL, this is starting to resemble the Jets teams Rex Ryan coached to back-to-back conference championship games. 

11. Green Bay Packers

Green Bay was dealt a major blow with the injury to Aaron Rodgers on Monday night.  

However, as long as the Packers can get Rodgers back healthy with their playoff hopes intact, they will be just fine.

With the emergence of Eddie Lacy, Green Bay is finding balance on offense. Meanwhile, the defense is making strides in the pass game. If this injury-riddled team can find some semblance of health, it will be a Super Bowl contender.

12. Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions are coming off of a bye after posting a solid yet inconsistent 5-3 record. This team remains lethal with the passing game, but unless Detroit makes some strides in defense and continues becoming a smarter and more mature group, Detroit will be plagued by lackluster showings. 

13. Chicago Bears

As you can see, this is the NFC North portion of the rankings.

It is impressive that the Bears have been able to maintain this standing while playing without the injured Jay Cutler. The Bears have won two of their last three, and in the loss to the Redskins they scored 41 points.

This is not the best news for Cutler's, the soon-to-be free agent, pocketbook.  

Meanwhile, the fact that Chicago lost a game where they scored 41 raises the real question mark about this team: the defense. Chicago's defense is 23rd in passing and 29th in rushing. 

14. San Diego Chargers

After a late touchdown against the Washington Redskins was overturned and the ball was given a dubious spot, the San Diego Chargers dropped a tough game to fall back to .500. 

In the loss, quarterback Philip Rivers threw two interceptions after not having thrown one over the previous two games. Rivers has to get back to avoiding turnovers if the Chargers want to make a serious run at the postseason. 

15. Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys' five victories have all come against teams below .500. Of the Cowboys' four losses, only the nine-point loss to the Chargers was by more than three points. 

This team is talented and dangerous, but as it has been in recent seasons, it can't seem to get out of its own way in crunch time of big games. 

16. Miami Dolphins

Wrapped in all of the drama involving Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin is the Dolphins' odd win on an overtime safety against previously red-hot Bengals.

With Tampa Bay up next, the Dolphins are staring at two straight wins and will be right back in the playoff picture.  

17. Tennessee Titans

The Tennessee Titans picked up a needed 28-21 win over the St. Louis Rams to snap a three-game losing streak and climb back to .500.

If Chris Johnson's game of 23 carries for 150 yards and two touchdowns is a sign of a huge finish from the talented back, the Titans could make a run at the postseason.

18. Arizona Cardinals

Arizona will stay relevant with a defense that is fourth in the league in rushing. However, offensively, this team is still too weak. 

Last week Andre Ellington sparked life into the offense by rushing for 154 yards, but the Cardinals' weak offensive line won't get to face the Atlanta Falcons every week. 

19. Cleveland Browns

Jason Campbell has been good for the Cleveland Browns. He gives them a poised leader and a reliable hand at quarterback.

He's thrown for five touchdowns and no interceptions while completing over 61 percent of his passes for the Browns since being called into action three games ago.

His play is no surprise. This is what he's always done. Campbell is a cautious quarterback with solid accuracy and an underrated ability to pick up yards with his feet.

He doesn't throw a lot of interceptions. Of course, he doesn't exhaust a lot of reads before dumping it off to a checkdown receiver.

However, with a Browns defense that is in the top seven in rushing and passing, this is enough to win games.

Cleveland is on bye this week and will look to get back to .500 while playing at Cincinnati. That will be no easy task. The Browns also have road games against the Patriots and Jets remaining on the schedule. 

However, with two games against the floundering Steelers and one against the hopeless Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland's playoff hopes are not dead. 

20. Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens have lost four of their last five to fall to two games below .500. The win was the only game this team mustered more than 20 points in that span. 

With a terrible offensive line and a lack of weapons, the Ravens won't be around in the postseason to defend their championship. 

21. Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills have made some strides under first-year coach Doug Marrone. A defense that had been abysmal is 18th in passing and 17th in rushing. 

Still, this team has lost four of its last five and is best suited turning an eye towards next season. 

22. Philadelphia Eagles

Last week, I predicted Nick Foles would throw for an NFL record eight touchdowns. I have to apologize for my errant prediction. He only threw for seven. 

Of course I didn't predict that kind of scoring production from the second-year quarterback! No one could have seen that coming.

Coming just a week after the Eagles mustered just seven points against the New York Giants, that was some welcomed production in Philadelphia. 

23. Washington Redskins

Robert Griffin III's recent play is eliminating concerns that the dynamic quarterback will never be the same following his most recent knee injury. 

He's looked explosive running and throwing. However, he is still throwing way too many interceptions. While he typically avoids turnovers, Griffin has chucked five picks in his last four games. 

24. St. Louis Rams

This season began with hope for the St. Louis Rams. Now, this team is just biding its time until the offseason.

The Rams have lost three straight, and with a defense that has been a huge disappointment with a 28th ranking in the run game, question marks loom over the future of this franchise. 

25. Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders allowed the Eagles over 400 yards passing at 13.4 yards per attempt and over 120 yards rushing at 5.3 yards per attempt. Despite drastically better numbers on the season in rush defense, that side of the ball remains a huge concern in Oakland. 

For defensive-minded head coach Dennis Allen, this is not a good fact for his job security. 

26. Pittsburgh Steelers

The one thing the Pittsburgh Steelers had going for them heading into their game with the New England Patriots was that their pass defense had been doing a solid job. 

Then, a New England team that had been struggling in the pass game torched them for 55 points as Tom Brady threw for over 430 yards. 

It is going to be an interesting offseason in Pittsburgh. 

27. Atlanta Falcons

Midway through their season, the Atlanta Falcons have won just two games. That is hard to believe for a team that entered this season with big Super Bowl hopes. 

Atlanta is showing no signs of getting better either. In the last two games, both losses, the Falcons have lost by a combined score of 61-23. 

28. Houston Texans

For the second time in their current six-game losing streak, the Houston Texans blew a big halftime lead. The first came to the Seahawks. Houston led 20-3 at halftime of that one. 

Well, the Texans outdid that this week by taking a 21-3 lead into the locker room over the Colts. 

This team can't put together a complete game, and there is no reason to think this season will turn around. Arian Foster's injury certainly doesn't help the outlook.

29. New York Giants

The Giants will come off their bye next week to take on the Oakland Raiders as winners of two straight. The problem is those were the first two wins of the Giants' season.

The problem with that problem is that it is not the only discouraging facet surrounding the recent success. The wins over the Minnesota Vikings and Eagles were two of the ugliest games we will see all year. 

Still, every streak has to start somewhere, and the Giants have been no strangers to pulling off the remarkable. While I won't write off this team from making a second-half run, I've seen nothing to suggest that is realistic. 

30. Minnesota Vikings

Against the Cowboys on Sunday, Adrian Peterson rushed for 140 yards and also did this: 

No one can take that performance away from you, Vikings fans. Unfortunately, no one can take away the performance of the rest of the team either. 

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Leading the Seahawks 21-7 at halftime in Seattle, the winless Buccaneers were poised to author a strong candidate for surprise win of the year. 

Instead, they did what this team has become so adept at doing: lose the game. 

At least that performance was enough to get them out of the cellar of my power rankings. 

32. Jacksonville Jaguars

After a one-week reprieve from the cellar, the Jacksonville Jaguars are back at the bottom. The Jaguars were embarrassed by the 49ers, 42-10.

Chad Henne continues to do a decent job at quarterback, but this team now has to worry about not tasting victory all season.