NFL Power Rankings Week 13: Falcons Not Sexy, but Are They Still No. 1?
The NFL power rankings for Week 13 are here, and this will be one of the more quiet weeks you'll see all season.
There were relatively few upsets during this weekend's slate of games, so there won't be too many drastic differences in the rankings.
But like always, there are a few movers and shakers in the NFL who are looking to join that category of elite teams or just climb their way out of the league's cellar.
Well, enough with this. Let's get to it.
Here are my NFL power rankings for Week 13.
32-21: Closing Time
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32. Carolina Panthers: People won't hate John Kasay quite like that Boise State kicker, but the Panthers just fell short in what would have been a nice comeback win. (Last Week: 32)
31. Cincinnati Bengals: Do the Bengals need to draft Carson Palmer's replacement in 2011? I'm beginning to think so. (Last Week: 31)
30. Arizona Cardinals: How do you make a three-win 49ers team look dominant? Just ask the Cardinals. (Last Week: 29)
29. Detroit Lions: The Lions have some solid pieces in place, but they're probably another year or two away from realistically competing. (:Last Week: 28)
28. Seattle Seahawks: Seattle's one saving grace was its halfway decent run defense. So much for that. (Last Week: 27)
27. Minnesota Vikings: The Leslie Frazier era has begun in Minnesota, and it looks like the Vikings will at least be somewhat motivated with Brad Childress gone. (Last Week: 30)
26. Denver Broncos: Josh McDaniels might want to start worrying about his job security. Denver has now lost 16 of its last 21 games. (Last Week: 25)
25. Dallas Cowboys: Roy Williams probably earned himself even more haters in Dallas by coughing the ball up at the end of the team's game against the Saints. (Last Week: 23)
24. San Francisco 49ers: Troy Smith is now 3-1 as San Francisco's starter. Believe it or not, he's actually got this team alive in the playoff hunt. (Last Week: 26)
23. Buffalo Bills: I wonder if Steve Johnson is still blaming God for dropping that pass? He really did cost the Bills a victory, but Buffalo continues to be a tough matchup every week. (Last Week: 24)
22. Washington Redskins: Can we now settle the debate? The Redskins are not a good football team. (Last Week: 19)
21. Tennessee Titans: When your quarterback is Rusty Smith and you can't even score on the Texans, you're in trouble. (Last Week: 18)
20. Cleveland Browns (Last Week: 20)
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Thanks to Peyton Hillis, my fantasy football season is still alive and Cleveland didn't give the Panthers their second victory.
But the Browns learned in that close win over Carolina just how important Colt McCoy is to their success.
Jake Delhomme actually played pretty well, but that team needs McCoy on the field in games like that.
19. Jacksonville Jaguars (Last Week: 17)
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The Jaguars ran all over the Giants this week, but David Garrard actually looked human for the first time in several weeks.
Jacksonville's offense looks like it'll be fine going forward.
But that defense? Ugh. Something needs to be done there.
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18. Oakland Raiders (Last Week: 15)
4 of 21
Geez, the Raiders looked absolutely terrible this weekend.
Oakland let Chad Henne throw for 300 yards and the Ronnie Brown-Ricky Williams duo rush for a combined 180 yards.
The Dolphins are far from an offensive juggernaut, and the Raiders aren't going anywhere if they play like that again.
17. St. Louis Rams (Last Week: 22)
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Sam Bradford's stat line this week: 22 of 37 for 308 yards and three touchdowns.
The Rams will take that every week from their rookie quarterback.
This guy is doing some incredible things with a team that doesn't exactly have a boatload of talent on offense.
16. Houston Texans (Last Week: 21)
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Mark the date on your calendars: Nov. 28, 2010.
That'll go down as the day when the Texans' historically awful pass defense managed to shut out the Titans' offense.
That's pretty sad if you're Tennessee.
Oh, by the way, I've got my money on Andre Johnson in his rematch with Cortland Finnegan.
15. Indianapolis Colts (Last Week: 9)
7 of 21
All of the injuries seem to finally be taking their toll on the Indianapolis Colts.
The team's loss to the Chargers was the worst home loss of Peyton Manning's career.
The Colts need to get healthy fast, but at least they play in a division that no one seems to want to win.
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Last Week: 11)
8 of 21
Tampa Bay looked pretty mediocre across the board in the team's loss to the Ravens this week.
Though Raheem Morris might think his team is the best squad in the NFC, the dude needs a reality check.
The Bucs feast on the weaker teams and lose all the games they're supposed to--they haven't beat a team with a winning record all season.
13. Miami Dolphins (Last Week: 16)
9 of 21
Miami's offense looked pretty good this week even with Chad Henne at the helm.
I'm not sure the team can go all that far with him behind center, but at least he seemed to make some progress this week.
I wouldn't get my hopes up if I was a Dolphins fan though. They still have to deal with the Jets and the Patriots in the AFC East.
12. Kansas City Chiefs (Last Week: 14)
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That Charlie Weis offense seems to be working to perfection in Kansas City.
The Chiefs have Dwayne Bowe looking like the league's best wide receiver and Jamaal Charles running all over opposing defenses.
If that defense can consistently step up, the Chiefs will make some noise in the AFC.
11. San Diego Chargers (Last Week: 13)
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I wrote over a month ago that the San Diego Chargers would win the AFC West.
It'll be an awesome battle between them and the Chiefs, but I'm sticking with the pick.
Philip Rivers is playing unconscious right now, and that San Diego defense is finally getting it done both statistically and in the win column.
10. New York Giants (Last Week: 10)
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The New York Giants need two things: their star wide receivers and consistent defensive line play.
They absolutely have to get Hakeem Nicks and Steve Smith back, and their uber-talented defensive front needs to show up each and every week.
When that happens, the Giants won't have to squeak out wins they like they did against Jacksonville.
9. Chicago Bears (Last Week: 12)
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Jay Cutler threw four touchdown passes this week, but I'm expecting that to be the exception rather than the rule.
Although the Bears' defense will keep them in a lot of games, I'm not sure Cutler's consistent enough for Chicago to go on a deep playoff run.
I won't be drinking the Chicago Kool-Aid yet, but they'll be a tough team to beat from here on out.
8. Green Bay Packers (Last Week: 4)
14 of 21
The Green Bay Packers have been decimated by injuries all season, and I'm beginning to wonder if that will keep them out of the playoffs..
They're arguably the most talented team in the NFC, but at 7-4 they're far from a playoff lock.
Aaron Rodgers will have to continue to perform well with the passing attack because Green Bay's running game is essentially nonexistent.
7. Philadelphia Eagles (Last Week: 2)
15 of 21
Can one play turn a team's entire season around?
I'm not sure, but I do think that Michael Vick's interception before halftime on Sunday probably cost the Eagles that game.
We'll see how Philadelphia responds after losing a tough one on the road this week.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (Last Week: 6)
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I don't care what any Pittsburgh fan says, the Steelers deserved to lose to the Bills on Sunday.
In fact, it's been quite a while since they've put together two straight complete football games.
The Steelers will have to start playing four quarters every week if they want to be considered one of the league's elite teams.
5. New Orleans Saints (Last Week: 8)
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The Saints are often left out of the conversation for the league's best team.
I guess people forgot they're the defending Super Bowl Champs.
New Orleans will probably continue to fly under the radar as long as Atlanta keeps winning, but the Saints could very well finish with the NFC's best record again this season.
4. New York Jets (Last Week: 7)
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After pulling out a few closer-than-expected victories, the New York Jets finally won with some breathing room this week.
The Mark Sanchez to Santonio Holmes combination struck once again, and looks to be one of the league's top QB-WR combos the rest of the way.
But not all is good in New York. The Jets still haven't proved that they're not more lucky than good.
They need to beat a quality opponent by more than three points.
3. Baltimore Ravens (Last Week: 5)
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With his two-touchdown performance on Sunday, Joe Flacco is now Baltimore's all-time leader in touchdown passes with 53.
Flacco's Ravens have now won eight straight home games, tying a franchise record.
They need home field advantage in the playoffs, and Flacco will need to continue his solid play for that to happen.
2. New England Patriots (Last Week: 3)
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Other than Tom Brady, the Patriots don't have a true star on their offense.
But that doesn't seem to matter.
Guys like BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Deion Branch are proving that production on the field means a whole lot more than being a household name.
1. Atlanta Falcons (Last Week: 1)
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Matt Ryan is now 19-1 inside the Georgia Dome, but the Falcons continue to live life on the edge with their defensive performance.
The only thing that stands between Atlanta and a Super Bowl run is the team's pass defense, which gave up 344 yards to the Packers this week and has been shredded throughout the season.
That's gotta change, or Falcons fans could be in for some major disappointment come playoff time.
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