NFL Power Rankings Week 11: Did Matt Ryan's Heroics Make Falcons No. 1?
NFL Power Rankings Week 11 are out and it seems like with each and every week I have a harder and harder time putting these together.
With the way this season has gone and how up and down some of the teams are, it just makes it hard to get a read on things. Clearly the Patriots weren't frauds after losing to Cleveland, now that they pounded the Steelers. But what does that tell us about the Steelers?
See what I mean?
If you have any thoughts or comments, make sure to leave them below. Who do you think is the best team in the NFL?
Nos. 32-21: Bottom Of The Barrel
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32. Carolina (Last Week: 30): It was just another pitiful performance by a team who looks more and more like the worst team in football.
31. Buffalo (Last Week: 32): Well, now the Detroit Lions can hold their heads high and know they're still the only 0-16 of all time.
30. Cincinnati (Last Week: 28): Carson Palmer continues to make mistakes that just haunt the Bengals. How much longer can that go on before there's a personnel change?
29. Detroit (Last Week: 26): The Lions couldn't even beat the winless Bills on the road. Detroit may never win a road game again at this rate.
28. Dallas (Last Week: 31): That was a huge win in Jason Garrett's debut as head coach. Let's see if he can keep it up this week.
27. Arizona (Last Week: 25): The Cardinals just cannot get it together and seem to be falling out of the NFC West race.
26. Minnesota (Last Week: 24): The Vikings need to beat the Packers to stay in the playoff hunt. I wouldn't bet on that happening this Sunday.
25. Denver (Last Week: 29): The Broncos pounded the Chiefs on Sunday, but I'm still not sold on a team that one-dimensional on offense.
24. St. Louis (Last Week: 20): The Rams struggled to close out that game against the 49ers and suffered a big division loss. St. Louis has Atlanta this week. Good luck.
23. San Francisco (Last Week: 27): The 49ers are on a bit of a roll and have crawled back into things in the NFC West. They'll need help, but they're still alive.
22. Washington (Last Week: 19): There's no excuse for an uninspired performance like the one we saw on Monday night. None.
21. Chicago (Last Week: 23): The Bears are 6-3 and right in the thick of things in the NFC North. I bet Chicago doesn't feel anything like a team that has a record that good. It's mind boggling.
No. 20: Seattle
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Last Week: 22
Mike Williams must love playing the Arizona Cardinals.
Both times Williams and the Seahawks have played the Cardinals, Williams has registered double-digit catches and given Arizona fits. It's impressive for a guy who nearly ate himself out of the league to rebound like this.
Good for him getting his life back on track.
No. 19: San Diego
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Last Week: 21
The Chargers have started their second half comeback again this year and we'll see if they can get it together down the stretch.
Philip Rivers is playing some of the best football of any player in the league and is an MVP candidate heading into the final stretch of the season. He's been making plays with a bunch of nobodies and Antonio Gates to throw to.
Now that's impressive.
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No. 18: Kansas City
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Last Week: 13
Don't let that final score fool you, the Kansas City Chiefs were manhandled on Sunday by the Denver Broncos.
Denver jumped out to an early lead, piled it on and kept hitting the Chiefs right in the mouth until the final whistle of the game. The Chiefs looked lost out there on defense and Kyle Orton made them pay all day long.
The Chiefs need to figure things out and quick.
No. 17: Houston
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Last Week: 14
It seems like these plays of poor luck just always seem to find the Houston Texans.
There was the kick off of the upright when trying to win the game against San Diego, and now the Texans give up a Hail Mary touchdown pass with no time left on the clock when a player bats the ball down like he's supposed to.
Only the Texans would find a way to lose like that. Possibly Buffalo (sorry Bills fans)
No. 16: Cleveland
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Last Week: 18
The Cleveland Browns seem to be impressing week after week now.
First it was a win against the New Orleans Saints in dominant fashion, followed up by a big win over the New England Patriots when people thought the Pats were the best team in the league. Then it took almost five quarters of play for the Jets to beat the Browns.
It looks like Cleveland is for real ladies and gentleman.
No. 15: Miami
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Last Week: 17
The Miami Dolphins went through three different quarterbacks on Sunday and still beat the Tennessee Titans.
Now that's impressive, but Anthony Fasano made it really easy on the quarterbacks, finding room down the field to make plays in the passing game. The Wildcat was mildly effective but it's clear that formation isn't a force in this league anymore.
The Dolphins needed that win badly though.
No. 14: Jacksonville
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Last Week: 16
There's an expression that you'd rather be lucky than good. That's the Jacksonville Jaguars.
We've seen two different Jaguars teams this year, one that can hang with teams and look like a team that could make a playoff push, and then there's the games where they just roll over and lose. It took a Hail Mary to win the game, but whatever works.
No. 13: Tampa Bay
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Last Week: 15
Tampa Bay did what a good team should do, and that's pound a clearly inferior opponent.
The Carolina Panthers came into Tampa Bay and were quickly shut down but the Buccaneers as Tampa Bay cruised to a victory on Sunday. LaGarrette Blount had another big game as Tampa Bay dominated Carolina.
No. 12: Oakland
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Last Week: 12
The Raiders had a bye week on Sunday, so it will be interesting to see what team comes out of that rest.
Will we see the Oakland team that has been on fire the past couple of weeks, or are we going to see the team that struggled at the beginning of the season and had a lot of us thinking the Raiders were just going to be the Raiders again?
Keep your eye on Oakland in the AFC West.
No. 11: Tennessee
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Last Week: 9
That was by far the ugliest game of the year for the Tennessee Titans.
There was no rhythm on offense whatsoever. Kerry Collins looked pitiful until he got injured and then Vince Young came in and looked better, but not much, because of a lack of practice. After the game came the report that Young missed treatment on his injured ankle the Friday before.
It's just another black mark on Young's credibility as a starting quarterback.
No. 10: New Orleans
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Last Week: 11
Don't look now, but here come the New Orleans Saints.
After a sluggish start to the year and some injuries to key players in the offensive backfield, the Saints have rebounded and looked good in their last two games against the Steelers and the Panthers. No one's really talking about the Saints with the Falcons, Eagles and Giants in the NFC.
Don't forget about Drew Brees and company just yet.
No. 9: Green Bay
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Last Week: 8
The Green Bay Packers seem to have gotten things together after a slow start to the season.
Right now, the Packers are in a battle with the Chicago Bears for the top spot in the NFC North and this week Aaron Rodgers and company have the chance to finish off Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings once and for all.
I'm sure Rodgers is relishing the chance right now.
No. 8: New York Giants
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Last Week: 4
So what in the world was that New York?
The Giants went out against the hapless Dallas Cowboys—who were steamrolled the week before by Green Bay, and it was so bad that Dallas fired its coach—and you go out and get beaten that badly on a showcase game?
That was just embarrassing on so many levels.
No. 7: Pittsburgh
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Last Week: 2
The Pittsburgh Steelers that we saw on Sunday against New England didn't look like the Steelers I knew.
Pittsburgh was dominated all night long by the New England offense, something that never happens to the Steelers and Tom Brady looked comfortable all night and just carved up what people thought was the best defense in football.
The Steelers need some answers after that performance.
No. 6: Baltimore
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Last Week: 1
Okay, so the Baltimore Ravens have a legit gripe about how last week's game against the Atlanta Falcons ended.
There was a sideline catch that may or may not have been an actual catch, and then there was Roddy White, who shoved a defensive back to the ground, springing him for a late touchdown that won the game for the Falcons.
It's a tough loss, but that's football sometimes.
No. 5: Philadelphia
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Last Week: 10
There's been a ton that has been said about the way the Philadelphia Eagles played on Monday night.
Dominant is really the only word that applies. From the first play from scrimmage, the Eagles just pounded the Redskins into the turf at FedEx Field and didn't let up. Michael Vick played the best game of his career and put together one of the best performances by a quarterback in a long time.
The Eagles are a dangerous, dangerous team if Vick keeps playing like that.
No. 4: Indianapolis
18 of 21
Last Week: 7
The Indianapolis Colts rebounded from a tough loss against the Eagles to beat the Bengals on Sunday, even if it wasn't pretty.
Peyton Manning struggled and the Bengals did have a chance to try and win that game late, only Carson Palmer did what he does best— throw interceptions that cost Cincinnati the game late when the Colts were on the ropes.
Maybe this will get the Colts back on track.
No. 3: Atlanta
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Last Week: 5
I believe this is the highest I've had an NFC team ranked all year.
I didn't think the Atlanta Falcons were going to beat Baltimore last Thursday night despite the fact that Matt Ryan is almost unbeatable at home, only having lost once in the Georgia Dome in his two-plus years in the league.
There were a couple questionable calls but a win is a win and the Falcons are dangerous in that building.
No. 2: New England
20 of 21
Last Week: 6
The New England Patriots looked awful two weeks ago against the Cleveland Browns and then went out and beat up the Pittsburgh Steelers on national television.
That makes perfect sense. Tom Brady just did whatever he wanted to the vaunted Steelers defense on Sunday and the Patriots looked like the team people thought they were until the Browns gave them the business.
Does this mean the Patriots are back? Only time will tell.
No. 1: New York Jets
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Last Week: 3
In past weeks, I've been hesitant to put the New York Jets in this top spot because I didn't believe the Jets were for real.
I still have some doubts, but it's clear that at this juncture of the season, the Jets are the best team in the NFL. Winning two overtime games on the road in back-to-back weeks is something that not a lot of teams can do, and pulling it off is quite the feat.
Mark Sanchez still struggles at times and so does Rex Ryan, but the Jets can make up for their mistakes.
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