NFL Power Rankings 2014: Predicting Post Week 16 Standings

The middle is muddled, but a few NFL teams are jousting for a seat on the league's throne.

Throughout the season, a handful of title contenders have traded off the No. 1 spot. Following an upset last weekend, a new headliner has once again emerged after two weeks out of the limelight.

While there's no guarantee one of these "elite" clubs ends up hoisting the Lombardi Trophy, the top four should certainly get pampered as favorites before the postseason fun commences. Anything can happen when one win ejects someone from play, but that's a dilemma to worry about when January rolls around.

Date	Matchup	Prediction
Thursday, Dec. 18	Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars	Jaguars
Saturday, Dec. 20	Philadelphia Eagles at Washington	Eagles
Saturday, Dec. 20	San Diego Chargers at San Francisco 49ers	Chargers
Sunday, Dec. 21	Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears	Lions
Sunday, Dec. 21	Minnesota Vikings at Miami Dolphins	Dolphins
Sunday, Dec. 21	Baltimore Ravens at Houston Texans	Ravens
Sunday, Dec. 21	Cleveland Browns at Carolina Panthers	Panthers
Sunday, Dec. 21	Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints	Saints
Sunday, Dec. 21	Green Bay Packers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Packers
Sunday, Dec. 21	Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers	Chiefs
Sunday, Dec. 21	New England Patriots at New York Jets	Patriots
Sunday, Dec. 21	New York Giants at St. Louis Rams	Rams
Sunday, Dec. 21	Buffalo Bills at Oakland Raiders	Bills
Sunday, Dec. 21	Indianapolis Colts at Dallas Cowboys	Cowboys
Sunday, Dec. 21	Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals	Seahawks
Monday, Dec. 22	Denver Broncos at Cincinnati Bengals	Broncos

32. Tennessee Titans (2-12)

The Tennessee Titans masterfully lost the Marcus Mariota Bowl to the New York Jets, going so far as to give Shonn Greene regular work. Tennessee has not won since Oct. 12, when it squeaked past the Jacksonville Jaguars, but it must resist the urge to repeat that result with Mariota on the line.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-12)

Whoever picked Tennessee and Jacksonville to play a nationally televised game deserves a promotion. Add in the usual lethargy from most Thursday night contests, and it would take a truly loyal fan to sit through this disaster in waiting.

30. Oakland Raiders (2-12)

So much for history repeating itself. After finally breaking their win drought against the Kansas City Chiefs a month ago, the tides turned for the Oakland Raiders. In the rematch, Derek Carr mustered just 222 passing yards on 56 attempts.

29. Washington Redskins (3-11)

Washington has dropped six straight games by an average of 14 points per loss, losing its last three by double digits. Although the club beat the Dallas Cowboys and played the Philadelphia Eagles tough in a three-point defeat already, it doesn't look poised to impact the NFC East race while hosting both division rivals in upcoming weeks.

28. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-12)

Ranked No. 24 in passing defense, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers close out the season against Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees. This probably won't end well.

27. New York Jets (3-11) 

Yeah yeah, tanking ruins the sport's moral integrity and spits on everything somebody decided everyone stands for. Because everyone will sleep better at night knowing the Jets won three games instead of two.

At least they entered the record books, per ESPN Stats and Info's obscure tidbit:

Yay?

26. Chicago Bears (5-9)

Oh dear. Compounding a nightmarish season for the Chicago Bears, Jay Cutler conducted a chorus of boos at Soldier Field with three interceptions against the New Orleans Saints.

After upping his pick total to 18, a defeated Cutler spoke to WBBM-AM, via NFL.com's Kevin Patra.

"It's frustrating," he said. "We're trying to say the same thing different ways after games. You get to a point where you don't have the answer. I think that's where we're at."

25. Carolina Panthers (5-8-1)

For one ominous day, the 5-8-1 Carolina Panthers led the NFC South. For a few hours, a team with a minus-70 point differential that once went two months without a victory stood atop its division.

24. New York Giants (5-9)

Alex Goodlett/Getty Images

Hey, this Odell Beckham Jr. guy is good at catching footballs. After obliterating Washington, the rookie standout now has 71 catches for 971 receiving yards and nine touchdowns through 10 games.

That prorates to 113 receptions, 1,553 yards and 14 touchdowns over 16 games. At least something good came out of this dismal season for the New York Giants.

23. Atlanta Falcons (5-9)

The Falcons are still alive despite their losing record, and Matt Ryan has picked the right time to heat up. Although Atlanta has lost three of its last four, Ryan has compiled 329.8 passing yards per game with 12 touchdowns. 

If not for their NFL-worst defense, the Falcons would make a fearsome playoff foe regardless of their record.

22. Minnesota Vikings (6-8)

With the team's playoff hopes dashed, Teddy Bridgewater has given Minnesota Vikings fans reason to watch the season wind down. The rookie is beginning to blow his fellow first-year quarterbacks out of the water, completing more than 70 percent of his passes in each of the last three games.

21. Cleveland Browns (7-7)

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

So, um, who's the Cleveland Browns' third-string quarterback? Johnny Manziel had a debut to forget during Cleveland's 30-point loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. ESPN Stats and Info put his inaugural dud into perspective:

It's only one game, which isn't nearly enough to write off the polarizing neophyte. The untimely loss, however, crushes the Browns' playoff chances.

20. San Francisco 49ers (7-7)

In this week's installment of "The San Francisco 49ers just aren't that good," the free-falling club slid all the way down to No. 27 in total offense after another dud against the Seattle Seahawks. Since their Week 8 bye, they have scored an anemic 13.3 points per game.

19. New Orleans Saints (6-8)

Usually its Achilles' heel, New Orleans' defense limited Chicago to 4.8 points per play while forcing three Cutler interceptions. NFL.com's Albert Breer noted some personnel changes that netted results:

If the defense holds its own this winter, no NFC squad will feel relieved to face this seven- or eight-win team during the opening round.

18. St. Louis Rams (6-8)

After outscoring Oakland and Washington 76-0, the St. Louis Rams stumbled against someone less terrible. In an ugly Thursday night bout against the Arizona Cardinals, St. Louis couldn't locate the end zone while averaging 3.5 yards per rush.

17. Houston Texans (7-7)

Michael Hickey/Getty Images

After Rodgers' poor performance against the Buffalo Bills, J.J. Watt's MVP candidacy received a revival of sorts. The dominant defensive end has tallied 16.5 sacks, 10 deflected passes, three fumble recoveries and five touchdowns for the Houston Texans.

Former defensive end Bruce Smith gave his support to the man who should one day join him in Canton, per USA Today's Lindsay H. Jones:

"

What J.J. is doing is remarkable and he should be considered for MVP. Not defensive MVP, but MVP. He's had that kind of year. The only setback is that his team isn't doing extremely well. If they were performing well offensively, it would be hands down for me that he should win both MVP and defensive MVP.

"

The conversation would have become all the more interesting if Houston had found a way to upset the Indianapolis Colts and keep the AFC South in striking distance.

16. Miami Dolphins (7-7)

After looking so promising at 7-5, the Miami Dolphins are all but down for the count following two double-digit losses inside the AFC. Ranked No. 7 in Football Outsiders' weighted Defensive-adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA), it's a letdown to see them fighting to swim above .500.

15. San Diego Chargers (8-6)

Nobody can blame the San Diego Chargers for losing to the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos in succession. In fact, the defense deserves considerable credit for stifling those impressive offenses to 23 and 22 points, respectively.

14. Cincinnati Bengals (9-4-1)

Figuring out the Bengals is an impossible code to crack. A week after relinquishing 41 points to the Pittsburgh Steelers, they shut out the Browns. Their AFC North lead, however, remains slim heading into a Monday night clash against the Broncos.

13. Buffalo Bills (8-6)

Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

Over the past two weeks against Buffalo, Peyton Manning and Rodgers went a combined 31-of-62 with 358 passing yards, no touchdowns and four interceptions. This defense is for real.

12. Kansas City Chiefs (8-6)

Kansas City halted a three-game losing streak to remain relevant in the playoff discussion. Using a novel concept called throwing the ball, the Chiefs plotted their highest point tally (31) since Week 8 behind 297 passing yards from Alex Smith.

11. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-5)

Antonio Brown continues his unbelievable season, averaging 107 receiving yards per game while collecting at least five catches every time. Per the team's official Twitter page, Mike Tomlin doesn't anticipate him slowing down any time soon:

If Kansas City's second-best passing defense can't slow down Brown this Sunday, nobody will.

10. Philadelphia Eagles (9-5)

Suffering two losses in as many weeks, the wounded Eagles have slowed down their frenetic pace. Pro Football Focus' Mike Clay gives the details:

Luckily for Chip Kelly's squad, it closes out the season against Washington and the Giants.

9. Detroit Lions (10-4)

The Detroit Lions have taken care of business inside the NFC North, going 4-0 with three double-digit wins. Finishing off the season with a pair of road games at Chicago and Green Bay, they'll hope to extend that streak all the way to a first-round bye.

8. Arizona Cardinals (11-3)

Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

The Cardinals aren't leaving Week 16 with the NFC West lead. Owning a No. 20 weighted DVOA, they're not as good as the Seahawks, who reside all the way at No. 5. 

More importantly, this is the starting quarterback who is being tasked with conquering Seattle's No. 1 defense:

Good luck with that.

7. Baltimore Ravens (9-5)

Third in weighted DVOA and point differential, the Baltimore Ravens trump teams with higher records by consistently looking strong in victory. Facing two .500 clubs in Houston and Cleveland paves the path for a playoff berth for the team at 11-5.

6. Dallas Cowboys (10-4)

In best misguided talking-head voice: "Tony Romo can't just the job done when it counts. Once again, the choker blew a sizable lead on Sunday night against a divisional foe and..."

Wait, the Cowboys debunked the myth of momentum, beating the Eagles despite a 21-0 start turning into a 24-21 deficit? And Romo battled through myriad injuries to toss three touchdowns? Oh. 

5. Indianapolis Colts (10-4)

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Andrew Luck is a tremendous quarterback, but the raw numbers oversell his breakout year. Although he leads the league with 4,492 passing yards and 38 touchdowns, he is also eighth in yards per attempt (7.77), seventh in quarterback rating (97.5) and 24th in completion percentage (61.4).

4. Green Bay Packers (10-4)

Rehashing some old advice from Rodgers, relax. Despite getting upended by the Bills, the Packers still lead the NFC in point differential (plus-111) while placing fourth in DVOA. If they win their final two games, they'll seize the NFC North once again.

3. Seattle Seahawks (10-4)

Seattle's defense has pulverized the competition over the past four games, allowing a combined 27 points. With the Legion of Boom operating at optimal capacity, the Seahawks are a strong contender to successfully defend their title.

2. Denver Broncos (11-3)

Against the Chargers, Manning averaged 11.7 yards per pass. C.J. Anderson registered 2.9 yards per run. Manning threw it 20 times, and Anderson received 29 handoffs. No wonder why the Broncos kicked five field goals.

1. New England Patriots (11-3)

Miami ranks fourth against the pass, yet Tom Brady picked its secondary apart at will. Avenging Week 1's loss, he threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns, extending his streak of submitting multiple passing scores to 10 games.

Since Week 4, losing an evenly matched epic at Green Bay has been the only blemish on New England's ledger. Things are going well for the Patriots.