NFL Power Rankings Week 10: Comparing Teams to Thanksgiving Foods

Usually when NFL Power Rankings are done, the person doing the ranking considers things such as strength of schedule, offensive prowess and defensive capability. However, with Thanksgiving just around the corner, a ranking based on a team's similarities to some of our favorite foods of the holiday might prove to be just as useful.

For many people, Thanksgiving would not be the same without an NFL football game to enjoy, as they digest the large meal that they just consumed. It is one of the only days of the year where overeating is encouraged and putting your feet up while relaxing to a football game is never frowned upon.

With that in mind, here is a list of 10 NFL teams and the Thanksgiving food they are most similar to.

Green Bay Packers

No Thanksgiving feast would be complete without the golden brown turkey acting as the dinner table's centerpiece. That turkey is the most easily recognized food that represents Thanksgiving and is many people's favorite treat of the holiday.

If there is one team in the NFL that could be related to the Thanksgiving turkey, it would be the Green Bay Packers.

The Packers are the last undefeated team in the NFL and are currently firing on all cylinders. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers is currently proving that he is one of the best NFL players in the league today, and his team's record is a direct result of that.

For those reasons, the Packers are most definitely the best team in the NFL right now and will be a real treat to watch on Thanksgiving Day after you had your fill of the real turkey on your dinner table.

New Orleans Saints

Another essential part of Thanksgiving dinner is the stuffing. Stuffing is an interesting dish in that there are many different variations in recipes for it and many different flavors. However, all of those flavors usually always come together into a delicious end product.

The New Orleans Saints can easily be considered the stuffing of the NFL. On any given Sunday, a different combination of their many playmakers will have huge games that lead the team to victories. It seems like every game the Saints' play features a different slew of players.

Having multiple playmakers at every position allows the Saints the luxury of never having to rely on the same players. That is a luxury that few teams enjoy and even fewer execute as well as the Saints.

While trying new recipes does not always turn out well for stuffing or the Saints offense, the majority of the time, the end result is a good one.

Carolina Panthers

The Cam Newton-led Carolina Panthers are the cranberry sauce of the NFL. While not a favorite Thanksgiving food of everyone, cranberry sauce is there to make the food it is paired with a little more flavorful and exciting.

If there is one player that is exciting to watch every week, that player is Cam Newton. He emerged as a huge offensive threat as soon as he stepped foot on an NFL field for his first start and hasn't slowed down since.

The Panthers also take a little getting used to before they are truly appreciated. The same holds true to many people for cranberry sauce. While apprehensive to try such a different flavor with their holiday meal at first, the more they eat, the more they start to like it.

Unfortunately, the Panthers don't have much to show for all of their offensive excitement. With only two wins this season, football fans can take them or leave them, which is also true of cranberry sauce. While it is exciting to some extent, it does not make or break a Thanksgiving meal.

Philadelphia Eagles

To many people, the mashed potatoes are the best part of Thanksgiving dinner. It is something that they expect to be good and look forward to for days leading up to the holiday. Needless to say, when those mashed potatoes turn out lumpy, it is an unexpected and unwelcome disappointment for spud lovers.

In that regard, the Philadelphia Eagles can be thought of as the lumpy mashed potatoes of the NFL. High expectations for the team's season have come to an abrupt halt with their surprisingly poor play.

During the offseason, the Eagles were extremely active and signed several of the top free agent players available. With the offensive explosiveness of Michael Vick and LeSean McCoy, many thought that the Eagles were a lock for the playoffs and maybe even a trip to the Super Bowl. They were even dubbed the "Dream Team" by some people.

However, the Eagles have only managed to win three games this season. They are in trouble of actually missing out on the playoffs entirely.

Just like those lumpy mashed potatoes that look good on your plate until you bite into them, the Eagles look great on paper, but that greatness has not translated into on-field performance.

Cleveland Browns

There is nothing about Thanksgiving dinner that is uglier to look at and harder to swallow than a burnt dinner roll. They are usually ignored except by the most dedicated Thanksgiving diehards.

There is no more fitting team to relate to a burnt dinner roll than the Cleveland Browns. Just ask anyone who watches the Browns play football on a weekly basis. The joke of an offense that they are running is extremely hard to swallow for Browns fans, not to mention almost hard to watch.

Only the most diehard fans can remain supportive of the team with the way they are currently playing. In fact, many fans may well prefer eating a burnt dinner roll to watching the Browns look miserable week after week.

San Francisco 49ers

Although no Thanksgiving food can compare to the glamor of the hot-out-of-the-oven roasted turkey, there are a couple foods that are equally as delicious.

One of those foods is the leftover turkey sandwich. The leftover turkey sandwich is nothing more than an afterthought during the main Thanksgiving dinner event. However, once the festivities have died down and appetites have come back to life, there is no better treat than opening up the fridge and assembling a towering sandwich from the leftovers.

The team most similar to the leftover turkey sandwich in the NFL is the San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers have very quietly assembled a stellar 7-1 record so far. They have done so without much flash or fanfare.

While they have not garnered the media attention of the likes of the Packers, the 49ers are one of the strongest teams in the NFL right now. Just like that late-night turkey sandwich, the 49ers are flying under the radar and loving every minute of it.

New England Patriots

One of the sweetest dishes of Thanksgiving dinner in any household is the candied yams. There are those that can't get enough of them and then there are those that just can't stand them.

Most people, however, find that candied yams are best in small doses.

All of those characteristics hold true when comparing candied yams to the New England Patriots.

The Patriots have their fair share of diehard fans as well as their fair share of detractors. To most football fans, the Patriots can only be watched in small doses. Any longer than that and the taste starts getting old.

Indianapolis Colts

In many families, the same person is responsible for cooking the Thanksgiving meal year after year. That person is usually the best chef in the family and can create delicious meals every single year.

If, however, that regular chef is for some reason unable to perform their usual duties, the meal often does not taste right and can sometimes be downright inedible.

This circumstance has struck in Indiana. The Indianapolis Colts are the Thanksgiving dinner that is missing its head chef.

Just one season ago, the Colts ended the year by losing in the first round of the playoffs. They ended that season with 10 wins. Now in 2011, Colts QB Peyton Manning has been unable to play because of neck surgery and it is readily apparent that without him, the Colts are nothing.

They are winless so far and have been downright abysmal on both sides of the ball. Colts fans can only hope that their head chef is back in action next season. Hopefully, no one experiences a Thanksgiving dinner this year that was missing its head chef.

Miami Dolphins

The absolute worst part of Thanksgiving dinner is the mountain of dirty dishes that accumulates in the sink throughout the meal. Nobody wants to look at the dishes, let alone think about actually washing them.

When they finally can't be ignored any longer, the dishes are met with anger and malice by the person unlucky enough to draw cleaning duty.

If one team in the NFL is similar to the dirty dishes of Thanksgiving dinner, it would be the Miami Dolphins. Mostly ignored by the majority of the country, the Dolphins have only one win this season. They seem to be playing for the first pick in the NFL Draft and are not loved by very many people.

Houston Texans

The Houston Texans are the pumpkin pie of the NFL. Pumpkin pie is not remembered by very many people during Thanksgiving dinner. They are too focused on all the main dishes put on the table in front of them.

However, when all is said and done, the pumpkin pie suddenly becomes the most interesting item on the table. Everyone at the table clamors for a piece of the delicious dessert and starts to claim that they were looking forward to it all along.

The Texans will see a similar fate. Once the playoffs start to draw closer and people's favorite teams start dropping out of the hunt, it would not be a surprise if people start jumping on the Texans bandwagon. They are a lot better than many people are giving them credit for and have had success the past couple of weeks without their best players on both offense and defense.

The return of Andre Johnson will only make the Texans that much better, and football fans across the country will all be hurrying to claim their piece of the proverbial pie. (Pun intended.)