NFL Power Rankings: 3 Teams That Will Drop After Being Exposed

Whoever said, "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing," obviously didn't know anything about football.

Oh wait...that was Vince Lombardi?

Bear with me, folks...

Losses can tell you a lot about your team, such as who is coming to play, which areas you need to address and the types of teams you need to be wary of.

Here are three teams that will drop in the NFL Power Rankings after Week 12 losses, but may end up stronger in the long run.

3. San Francisco 49ers (9-2)

The 49ers are still a very good team, don't get me wrong.

They have a dominant defense and one of the better running games in the league led by veteran Frank Gore.

However, quarterback Alex Smith needed to be more of a game manager against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 12, and he simply didn't have a good game, period.

The 49ers have shown they can beat top teams, but when they've faced good defenses such as the Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals and Washington Redskins, they've had trouble putting up points with Smith under center.

Smith needs to get better for this team to contend for the Super Bowl down the line.

2. New York Giants (6-5)

The Giants are beginning to turn into the San Diego Chargers: a team with immense talent that hasn't been able to get it done in the last two years.

The Giants have now lost three straight games to the 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints, and they lost to the Saints in Week 12 by a score of 49-24.

The offense isn't scoring enough and the Giants defense simply appears to quit at times.

I don't want to hear about injuries hurting this team; the Giants have the talent to be a playoff team and they aren't headed that way right now.

1. Buffalo Bills (5-6)

The Bills got off to a 5-2 start because of their offense, but when that started faltering they had no chance.

This defense has been troubled all season long. It's allowing 25.5 points per game and is ranked 24th in opponents' rushing yards per game and 22nd in opponents' passing yards per game.

The Bills are giving up 33.5 points per game in their last four games (all losses) and just allowed a New York Jets team that scored 13 points against the Denver Broncos score 28 points in Week 12.

The Bills are falling just as fast as they rose early in the season.