NFL Power Rankings: Rock Bottom Watch for League's Cellar Dwellers

The Indianapolis Colts and St. Louis Rams both lost on Sunday, further cementing each team's status as the NFL's worst teams. We're now almost done with nine weeks of the 2011 NFL season, and the bottom and top of the league has essentially solidified, giving us clear top and bottom tiers of teams. The Colts and Rams are firmly entrenched in that bottom level.

Indianapolis continued its slide on Sunday with a 31-7 home loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Over the past four weeks, the Colts have lost their games by a combined score of 147-41. That's just atrocious.

For a team that was expected to compete for a playoff spot had star quarterback Peyton Manning not been out for (presumably) the year, Indianapolis has been a shocking disappointment. The Colts were expected to have one of the NFL's best offenses as always, but instead they currently rank 31st in total yards, averaging just 282.8 yards per game.

Defensively Indianapolis has been similarly awful, surrendering 406.1 yards per game, which is 31st in the league. 

With the second-worst offense and the second-worst defense in the league, it's easy to put the Colts at the bottom of the NFL right now. It's looking more and more likely that owner Jim Irsay will have a decision to make about the future of his franchise's quarterback position very soon.

Like the Colts, the Rams were expected to be set up for a good run this season, and like the Colts, they have been a complete disappointment.

Aside from a fluky 31-21 win over the New Orleans Saints in Week 8, St. Louis has looked awful week-in and week-out. On Sunday the Rams lost to the Arizona Cardinals 19-13 in overtime to drop to 1-7. Thanks to Miami's 31-3 pasting of the Kansas City Chiefs, the Rams have dropped to 31st in my power rankings this week. 

The biggest area of concern for St. Louis is its run defense, which currently ranks last in the NFL, allowing 153.6 yards per game. Until the Rams tighten that up, we can expect them to continue getting smoked every week.

NFL Power Rankings, Week 10

1. Green Bay Packers (8-0)
2. San Francisco 49ers (7-1)
3. Baltimore Ravens (6-2)
4. New York Giants (6-2)
5. Detroit Lions (6-2)
6. Cincinnati Bengals (6-2)
7. New Orleans Saints (6-3)
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-3)
9. New England Patriots (5-3)
10. Houston Texans (6-3)
11. New York Jets (5-3)
12. Buffalo Bills (5-3)
13. Atlanta Falcons (5-3)
14. Oakland Raiders (4-4)
15. San Diego Chargers (4-4)
16. Kansas City Chiefs (4-4)
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-4)
18. Chicago Bears (4-3)
19. Philadelphia Eagles (3-4)
20. Tennessee Titans (4-4)
21. Dallas Cowboys (4-4)
22. Cleveland Browns (3-5)
23. Denver Broncos (3-5)
24. Washington Redskins (3-5)
25. Seattle Seahawks (2-6)
26. Minnesota Vikings (2-6)
27. Carolina Panthers (2-6)
28. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-6)
29. Arizona Cardinals (2-6)
30. Miami Dolphins (1-7)
31. St. Louis Rams (1-7)
32. Indianapolis Colts (0-9)