NFL Power Rankings: Which Sleepers Are Making a Playoff Push?

The 2011 NFL season has been one of the wildest rides you could imagine, and after a tumultuous week, the power rankings are going to get a shot in the arm.

After watching the strong survive all season, many of the better teams were exposed as the frauds they really were. Other teams showed they are much closer to contenders than pretenders.

The following list is of three teams that were written off at the beginning of the season, but have managed to be in serious playoff contention thus far.

Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears were written off as dead earlier this season, but don’t write that eulogy just yet.

After starting the season 2-3 and watching their division be devoured by the fantastic starts of the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers, all looked lost for the Bears.

Four straight victories later, Chicago looks like the kind of team that can sneak into the playoffs via a wild-card berth.

San Francisco 49ers

I still can't believe the team that was bad enough to cost Mike Singletary his job is now 8-1 to start the season.

Not only are they 8-1, it’s the fact that they won seven straight games after starting the season 1-1 and its been against legitimately tough competition.

If the team can continue getting solid play from notoriously mediocre quarterback Alex Smith and running the ball well, their defense is good enough for them to make a splash in the playoffs.

Cincinnati Bengals

In one of the toughest divisions in all of football, a rookie tandem of quarterback Andy Dalton and wide receiver A.J. Green have moved to 6-3 on the season.

The impressive record is only compounded by the fact that the team was expected to be one of the worst in the entire NFL this year, if not the worst.

Six wins and plenty of chemistry later, the Bengals now look like they have a future.

Check back for more on the National Football League as it comes, and check out Bleacher Report’s NFL Page to get your fill of all things football.

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