NFL Power Rankings Week 12: Updated 2014 Analysis Before Thursday Night Football

This is the time of the NFL season where we believe we have it all figured out. Teams constantly tossed previous perceptions into disarray, but a larger data pool now makes intelligent followers impervious to such twists and turns.

Well, that's all a lie. Come on, even Shaun Hill's relatives probably picked the Denver Broncos to beat the St. Louis Rams last Sunday. Even in Week 12, the NFL won't stop dishing up surprises.

Granted, it's far enough into the season to not make embarrassing proclamations on par with "Tom Brady is finished." Yet not everything is as clear as the high-definition televisions displaying the action.

In a truly bizarre season, only two teams have a .500 record even though 30 of them have played exactly 10 games. There are, however, seven 6-4 squads and six 7-3 clubs. That sure makes it difficult to order them all from worst to best. Wouldn't want to be the sucker in charge of that.

With that said, here's the latest round of NFL power rankings heading into Week 12.

32. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-9)

Good news, everyone: The Jacksonville Jaguars didn't lose last week. They didn't play, but at least that gave them no chance to worsen their already NFL-worst point differential (-124).

31. Oakland Raiders (0-10)

The very same Rams who just stunned the Broncos represent the only remaining losing team on the Oakland Raiders' schedule. They're running out of chances to avoid a winless season.

Latavius Murray, who turned four carries into 43 yards in Week 11, deserves a chance to revive Oakland's cellar-dwelling ground game.

30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-8)

Mitchell Layton/Getty Images

One victory isn't enough to overlook a season full of transgressions. Despite beating Washington by 20, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers still rate last in Football Outsiders' team DVOA.

At least they have rookie Mike Evans, who continued his coming-out party with 208 receiving yards and two touchdowns vs. Washington. Sunday Night Football's Twitter page charted his rapid rise over Tampa Bay:

29. Tennessee Titans (2-8)

The Tennessee Titans almost executed a Monday night upset over the Pittsburgh Steelers, but a two-point victory over the Jaguars remains their only win since Week 1. A rushing defense that yielded just 204 yards to Le'Veon Bell could rejuvenate LeSean McCoy this weekend.

28. New York Jets (2-8)

They've faced Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning this season, but nobody has scored more points on the New York Jets than Kyle Orton's Buffalo Bills. When they met a month ago, the Bills ended the Geno Smith experiment with three early interceptions.

27. Washington Redskins (3-7)

Robert Griffin III certainly isn't the same quarterback who thrilled everyone as a rookie. He hasn't thrown for 300 or more yards since Sept. 22, 2013, and he is no longer a significant threat on the ground with 89 rushing yards through four games this season.

26. Carolina Panthers (3-7-1)

Heading into their Week 12 bye with three victories, the Carolina Panthers sadly remain in the playoff hunt. They play each of their fellow NFC South brethren once along with winnable matchups against the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns. 

25. Minnesota Vikings (4-6)

Shortly after the Browns placed Ben Tate on waivers, the Vikings scooped him up, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport:

Added depth never hurt anyone, but they'd be better served giving more touches to rookie Jerick McKinnon, who is averaging 4.9 yards per carry but has yet to receive 20 or more handoffs in a single game.

24. New York Giants (2-7)

There's no in between with Eli Manning. When he's great, the New York Giants take a Super Bowl from the New England Patriots. When he's awful, he won't stop sharing the football with the opposition.

His latest five-interception blunder is far from the first time he threw several picks in bunches, per ESPN Stats & Info:

23. Chicago Bears (4-6)

During a season featuring diminished output from both star receivers, Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall combined for 18 catches, 225 yards and three touchdowns in the Chicago Bears' Week 11 win over the Vikings. If the dynamic duo starts rolling again, Chicago will close 2014 as the explosive offense everyone expected.

22. St. Louis Rams (4-6)

The Rams are a tricky team to rank. They've slayed the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers and Broncos, three of the final four teams standing last postseason. Yet they also own a minus-73 point differential with the No. 29 offense.

Not overreacting to one stunning upset over Denver, St. Louis still falls shy of cracking the top 20.

21. Atlanta Falcons (4-6)

The *sighs* first-place Atlanta Falcons have yet to best a team outside the atrocious NFC South, and they enter Week 12 with the NFL's worst defense. Honestly, what's the point of breaking teams off into divisions anyway?

20. New Orleans Saints (4-6)

Wouldn't it be weird if the Saints won the NFC South at 7-9, only to host and beat the Seahawks in the first round? It'd sure help if they avoided their third straight home loss on Monday night.

19. Buffalo Bills (5-5)

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Since dismantling the Jets for 157 yards and a touchdown, Sammy Watkins caught a combined seven passes for 59 yards in Buffalo's last two games, both losses. The dynamic rookie wideout has 514 receiving yards and four touchdowns in the team's five wins compared to 135 yards and one score during its five defeats.

18. Houston Texans (5-5)

Ryan Mallett wasted no time assimilating to his new starting gig. Pro Football Focus tracked his rapid work rate during the Houston Texans' victory over Cleveland: 

"

Ryan Mallett's average time per pass attempt was 2.06 seconds vs CLE. Off the charts fast, lowest in the league this week.

— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) November 18, 2014"

Not bad for a guy who threw four passes before Week 11.

17. Cleveland Browns (6-4)

A lot can change in a week. No team suffered a harsher reminder of that than the Browns, who went from first to last in the AFC North after falling to the Texans. Currently the fourth-best squad in the NFL's best quadrant, they have a fighting chance to make their first postseason in 12 years with Josh Gordon returning.

16. San Diego Chargers (6-4)

In their past four games, opponents have outscored the San Diego Chargers 101-54. Their lone victory during that stretch came against the Raiders.

Yes, they were 5-1 with Philip Rivers meriting MVP consideration before that.

15. San Francisco 49ers (6-4)

Al Bello/Getty Images

Rookie Chris Borland has morphed into an immense force up the middle for San Francisco. In the past three games, he has filled Patrick Willis' shoes with 35 tackles. Pro Football Focus rates him as the second most productive interior linebacker behind Luke Kuechly:

"

Well hello there Chris Borland. That's a hell of a grade you have amassed on those snaps... pic.twitter.com/NbPo51pBm3

— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) November 17, 2014"

The 49ers have allowed 44 points over that span, giving them the fourth-best defense on the season.

14. Cincinnati Bengals (6-3-1)

What's the point in trying to figure out the Cincinnati Bengals? Following an excruciating loss against the Browns, they of course toppled the Saints in the Superdome.

The No. 28 rushing defense flashed significant improvement, limiting Mark Ingram to 67 yards on 23 carries.

13. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-4)

After generating 12 passing touchdowns in Weeks 9 and 10, he regressed to two in the past pair of contests. Shucks, guess he couldn't maintain that 96-touchdown pace.

12. Baltimore Ravens (6-4)

The Baltimore Ravens are 4-0 against losing teams and 2-4 against winning ones, creating doubt in their ability to hang with the big boys despite a plus-80 point differential. Although the 4-6 Saints fall into the losing category, containing Drew Brees in New Orleans is a tall task for Baltimore's No. 21 passing defense.

11. Miami Dolphins (6-4)

Leon Halip/Getty Images

The Miami Dolphins continued their stout defensive play by stymieing the Bills to nine points. They have not allowed 56 points over their past five games since losing to the Packers. 

10. Seattle Seahawks (6-4)

It's time to embrace the possibility of Seattle missing the postseason altogether. Following a tough loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, the defending champions play the Arizona Cardinals and 49ers twice apiece along with the Philadelphia Eagles. 

That gives them the toughest remaining schedule in terms of opposing win percentage, courtesy of ESPN.com's Mike Sando:

9. Philadelphia Eagles (7-3)

How exactly is this Mark Sanchez different from that other guy who played his way off the Jets? Since taking over for Nick Foles, he's already relinquished six turnovers in three games with a 59.2 completion percentage.

8. Dallas Cowboys (7-3)

A well-situated bye gave Tony Romo an extra week to rest up before meeting the Giants on Sunday night. He shouldn't have to do too much other than unleash DeMarco Murray on the NFL's worst rushing defense.

7. Detroit Lions (7-3)

Calvin Johnson's return figured to ignite the Detroit Lions' underwhelming offense, but they've scored 26 points in his two games back despite 172 yards and a score from Megatron.

A win over the Patriots would prove the Detroit Lions are for real, but a loss will more likely cost them first place and shoot their status south.

6. Indianapolis Colts (6-4)

Let's not freak out after one bad game against the Patriots. The worst is behind the Indianapolis Colts, who close out the season against Jacksonville, Washington, Cleveland, Houston, Dallas and Tennessee.

5. Kansas City Chiefs (7-3)

They still haven't manufactured a touchdown from a wide receiver, but the Chiefs have won seven of their last eight games. It helps having Jamaal Charles gushing Seattle's premier rushing defense for 159 yards and two touchdowns.

4. Denver Broncos (7-3)

Uh-oh. Just like that, the Broncos are tied with the Chiefs at 7-3 after a shocking 22-7 defeat against the Rams. Is the pressure of a Super Bowl-or-bust year getting to Peyton Manning? Let's turn to NFL on ESPN for the answer:

So no, sounds like he's fine. Yet a seven-point showing is noteworthy considering Denver scored in single digits only one other time since Manning's arrival. He'll probably want to forget the other one.

3. Green Bay Packers (7-3)

Scoring 106 points in two games is a good way to vault up the rankings. The Packers still need to fix their No. 29 rushing defense, but Rodgers will make them a major threat to circumvent the NFC.

2. Arizona Cardinals (9-1)

It'd sure take a major collapse for Arizona to miss the playoffs now. Any Arizona supporters would have panicked if they were told Andre Ellington averaged 2.2 yards per carry against Detroit, yet Drew Stanton stepped in masterfully for Carson Palmer.

The replacement went 21-of-32 for 306 yards against an elite passing defense that limited Rodgers to 162 yards earlier in the season. Even if they falter in their pair of clashes against the Seahawks, the Cardinals will get a chance to make a postseason splash.

1. New England Patriots (8-2)

New England's offense hit its stride after a rough September, but running back Jonas Gray directed them to victory on Sunday night. Per ESPN Stats & Info, he matched all other backs in rushing touchdowns during the week:

If the Pats can add an effective ground game to the fold, they might not lose again this season.