NFL Power Rankings Week 11: Giants Fall After Cowboys Dominate, Who's No. 1?
The NFL Week 11 power rankings are taking shape with one game left to play tonight.
This was an ugly week around the NFL for many teams. The entire structure of the power rankings has been upset as our top 10 have been almost completely re-ordered, and even the bottom 12 have seen some significant shuffling.
This was a weird week, with teams making unexpected pushes while other teams uncharacteristically fell apart.
Some of these movements may reverse course next week and the universe may return to its proper order. Or this week may be a sign of a second half of the season so full of surprises that it will make picking games a fool's errand.
Starting with the bottom...
The Bottom Two
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32. Carolina Panthers: By virtue of their loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Panthers assume the bottom spot in the power rankings and the lead for the No. 1 overall pick in next year's draft.
31. Buffalo Bills: The Bills' victory over the Lions elevates them to one above the bottom. If they keep this up, they just might break into the 20s.
One Up From the Bottom
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30. Minnesota Vikings: Brett Favre threw three interceptions in what probably was the last meaningful game of his career. He's claiming retirement for real, but with Favre, how seriously can you take that statement?
29. Cincinnati Bengals: The Bengals continue to drop games as Carson Palmer makes bad decisions and forces the ball into locations that only benefit the other team. Marvin Lewis may be finding himself in the unemployment line in the very near future.
Scrambling for Answers
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28. Arizona Cardinals: The Cardinals continue to flounder with Derek Anderson at quarterback and a defense that has more holes than Ken Whisenhunt can count.
27. Detroit Lions: The Lions continue to scuffle when they shouldn't be scuffling. A loss to the Buffalo Bills drops the Lions back to the bottom end of the rankings.
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Identity Crisis
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26. Washington Redskins: This ranking is partially based on the prediction of an Eagles win tonight. But the Redskins benched Donovan McNabb, continuing to misuse him while he struggles with his own consistency issues.
25. Dallas Cowboys: A big win over the Giants elevated the Cowboys out of the basement, but they have a lot more to prove before they can rise higher in the rankings.
Teams That Should Be Better
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24. St. Louis Rams: The Rams lost a close one in overtime to the Niners, but they play in the NFC West, so anything still is possible.
23. San Francisco 49ers: The Niners pulled out a victory over the St. Louis Rams, improving their record to 3-6. More importantly though, Troy Smith has brought new life to the Niners offense.
Dealing With Issues
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22. Denver Broncos: The Broncos got a great win against the Kansas City Chiefs, a team that, all of a sudden, has a lot of issues. But the Broncos put all their issues to rest on Sunday, except the one asking them if they can do this again next week.
21. Seattle Seahawks: The NFC West divisional leaders are 5-4 and show about as much ability to win a playoff game as the next team in the division. Not a great way to go into the playoffs.
20. Cleveland Browns
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Last Week: 15
A bad overtime loss drops the Browns back down five spots. The defense lost two guys to injuries in the first half. The team never recovered as Mark Sanchez escaped sacks and burned the Browns downfield.
Colt McCoy looks more and more like the real deal, and the Browns just need to get some real pressure through the pass rush.
19. Houston Texans
8 of 26
Last Week: 17
A tough, last-second loss drops the Texans two spots. Now below .500, they're going to have to pull it together quickly or they're going to drop out of the top 20 and definitely miss the playoffs.
18. Chicago Bears
9 of 26
Last Week: 21
The Bears continue to make things interesting in the NFC North with a victory over the Minnesota Vikings. The Bears move into a tie for first with the Green Bay Packers, but bad losses and questionable wins earlier in the season keep the Bears' power ranking low.
17. Jacksonville Jaguars
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Last Week: 20
Good teams find ways to win, and the Jaguars certainly found an unconventional way to win against the Texans on Sunday. The Jaguars aren't an elite team, but they're a good team that scraps their way to victories.
16. Kansas City Chiefs
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Last Week: 12
The Chiefs continue their tumble down the rankings, after being in the top 10 two weeks ago. Losing two divisional games in as many weeks is not a good way to keep the lead in your division, nor is it a good way to stay on top of the power rankings board.
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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Last Week: 18
The Buccaneers beat the Carolina Panthers, something they were supposed to do, so they get to move up a few spots.
The offense, with Josh Freeman and LeGarrette Blount, is starting to really click, and the NFC South race is far from over.
14. Miami Dolphins
13 of 26
Last Week: 16
The Dolphins move up a few spots with the win over the Tennessee Titans. But with the prospect of Tyler Thigpen as the starting quarterback for the rest of the season, depending on how the injury reports read, it's difficult to move the Dolphins up much more on the list.
13. San Diego Chargers
14 of 26
Last Week: 14
The Chargers were idle this week, but they move up a spot in the rankings because of movement around them and the Dolphins' plight. With the Chargers looking better the last few weeks, they could make a serious move up the rankings in the next few.
12. Tennessee Titans
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Last Week: 7
The Titans added Randy Moss and, while it allowed Chris Johnson to run for more than 100 yards, it didn't do much for the aerial attack. Kerry Collins got injured and a hobbled Vince Young finished the loss to the Dolphins.
The Titans are scuffling now due to injuries, but they can still put things back together and climb up the list.
11. New Orleans Saints
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Last Week: 8
The Saints were idle this week, and that turned out to be a bad thing as both the Falcons and Buccaneers won games. The Saints now fall a few spots as they wait to take on Seattle this Sunday.
10. Oakland Raiders
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Last Week: 11
The Raiders move up a spot after the Chiefs' loss. The Raiders, despite being idle, now have the lead in the AFC West.
9. Baltimore Ravens
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Last Week: 3
The Ravens fall six spots after losing to the Atlanta Falcons. The offense was moving, but the defense isn't holding as strong as it used to. However, everything that brought the Ravens a loss this week is correctable.
8. Indianapolis Colts
19 of 26
Last Week: 13
The Colts proved they could win without Peyton Manning throwing touchdowns this week. Even though it was against the Bengals, who are awful this year, that does say something.
If the Colts can do that against the Patriots, now we're talking.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers
20 of 26
Last Week: 2
The Steelers lose a few spots after a tough loss to the Patriots in a game that turned wild in the second half. The Steelers offensive line couldn't handle the Patriots, Ben Roethlisberger forced the ball where he shouldn't have, and there it is.
6. New York Giants
21 of 26
Last Week: 1
The Giants got slapped in the face by the Dallas Cowboys yesterday, getting dominated in every aspect of the game. The Giants didn't know what hit them, as Dallas came out and played better on offense and defense.
It remains to be seen how this game really will affect the division going forward, but the Giants may have taken this game too lightly.
5. New England Patriots
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Last Week: 9
The Patriots rebounded from their loss to the Cleveland Browns by beating the Steelers on Sunday night. The Patriots offense looked much sharper, and Rob Gronkowski became the new big star for Tom Brady to throw to.
4. Atlanta Falcons
23 of 26
Last Week: 5
The Falcons move up a spot with the win over the Ravens, but they've been here before and tumbled. The Falcons are looking very good on offense, but the defense still gives their fans fits, even in wins.
3. New York Jets
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Last Week: 10
Another week, another overtime victory, as Mark Sanchez kept slipping out of the grasp of defenders and rallied the Jets to a win at the end of overtime. The Jets looked inconsistent during the first half on Sunday, and Nick Folk may be kicking himself out of a job, but Sanchez is looking better and better the last few weeks.
2. Green Bay Packers
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Last Week: 4
The Packers were idle this week, but their improved play recently, coupled with the downward movement in the top five, automatically moves the Packers up this week.
1. Philadelphia Eagles
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Last Week: 10
This ranking partially is based on the prediction the Eagles will win tonight, partially based on the Giants loss and partially based on the fact Michael Vick is back and looking great.
The Eagles are a team to watch down the stretch as they battle it out with the Giants for the NFC East crown.
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