NFL Power Rankings: New York Jets and 3 Contenders That Moved Up

Week 7 of the 2011 NFL season proved crucial to the hopes of a number of teams teetering on the edge between contender and pretender. Some, like the Washington Redskins and the Detroit Lions, stumbled, while others, like these three teams, rose to the occasion.

New York Jets

The Jets deserve a ton of credit for pulling off one of the more impressive wins of the week. Gang Green went into the locker room at halftime against the Chargers down 21-10, but came storming back with their finest performance in any half this season.

Rex Ryan's defense, which had come under fire for its lackluster performance this season, led the way, with Darrelle Revis and Kyle Wilson each intercepting passes from Philip Rivers in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the Jets offense showed some signs of life behind the suddenly steady running of Shonn Greene, a solid performance by Mark Sanchez and three red-zone touchdown catches by Plaxico Burress.

The Jets still have some work to do to get their house back in order, but a win over a talented Bolts team will go a long way toward boosting their confidence heading into a Week 8 bye.

Houston Texans

Funny how anyone thought the Texans were going nowhere. After three losses in four games, Houston looked stuck in reverse, with another step back coming with a trip to Tennessee to face the well-rested Titans.

All the Texans did was pull out the second-most lopsided win of the day (outside of the Saints' shellacking of the Colts), posting 518 yards and 41 points against the vaunted Titans defense.

But, as impressive as Matt Schaub and Arian Foster were, the real star of the day was Wade Phillips' defense, which held Tennessee to a measly 148 yards, slapped down seven passes, picked off two and ran one back for a touchdown.

I don't want to speak too soon about this team again, but the Texans should have the AFC South in the palm of their hand, with home games against Jacksonville and Cleveland and a road test at Tampa Bay before their bye.

Chicago Bears

Somehow, someway, this Bears team just keeps hangin' around, and may soon overtake the Lions as second fiddle in the NFC North.

Truth be told, you don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out how Chicago's managed to stick around this season, not with Matt Forte, Devin Hester and the defense as a whole playing as well as they have.

Forte, in particular, has emerged as arguably the second-best running back in the NFL this season, behind only Adrian Peterson, with another 183 total yards and a touchdown against the Buccaneers at Wembley Stadium in London.

Somewhere, Bill Swerski's having a heart attack out of sheer excitement.

The road ahead could be a bumpy one for Da Bearsss, with a road game at the Eagles and home games against the Chargers and the Lions following a Week 8 bye, but if they can hold steady through that stretch, they may well find an NFC Wild Card berth waiting on the other side.

Josh Martin's Week 7 NFL Power Rankings

1. Green Bay Packers

2. New England Patriots

3. Baltimore Ravens

4. San Francisco 49ers

5. New Orleans Saints

6. Pittsburgh Steelers

7. Atlanta Falcons

8. New York Giants

9. Detroit Lions

10. Buffalo Bills

11. New York Jets

12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

13. San Diego Chargers

14. Cincinnati Bengals

15. Houston Texans

16. Chicago Bears

17. Kansas City Chiefs

18. Cleveland Browns

19. Oakland Raiders

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

21. Philadelphia Eagles

22. Tennessee Titans

23. Washington Redskins

24. Carolina Panthers

25. Minnesota Vikings

26. Denver Broncos

27. Seattle Seahawks

28. Jacksonville Jaguars

29. Arizona Cardinals

30. Miami Dolphins

31. St. Louis Rams

32. Indianapolis Colts