NFL Power Rankings Week 13: Building a Case for AFC or NFC as Best Conference

With six teams in the top 10 of my Week 13 power rankings coming from the AFC and four coming from the NFC, it seems easy to say that the AFC is clearly the stronger conference, but both conferences make a convincing argument.

The strongest case for the NFC being the better of the two is simply that the best team in the NFL, the Green Bay Packers, comes from the conference. At 11-0 and seemingly unstoppable, the Packers elevate the rest of the NFC single-handedly.

But they're not the only powerhouse squad in the conference. At 9-2, the San Francisco 49ers have come out of the mire that is the West division to not only look good compared to their three divisional contemporaries, but to the entire league.

They boast a strong defense that has the most takeaways of any squad in the league, an efficient offense and a fiery new head coach that has combined to make a well-balanced team prepared to make a deep run in the playoffs.

Rounding out the NFC in the top 10 this week are the New Orleans Saints—who just bested the New York Giants by scoring 49 points by way of their league-leading offense—and the Dallas Cowboys—who are currently atop the NFC East and have a good shot to retain that lead into the playoffs.

However, the AFC, with their six top-10 teams, seems at first glance to be the most difficult and competitive conference. The No. 2 team in the conference, the Baltimore Ravens, just beat the 49ers in Week 12 and have managed to sweep the Pittsburgh Steelers in their two games this season.

The Steelers, however, are also in the top 10, with eight wins to their name including impressive victories over the New England Patriots and Cincinnati Bengals.

The Patriots themselves are another eight-win team headed into December as one of the scariest squads to meet this time of year, with quarterback Tom Brady having yet another banner year as the head of the team's impressive offense.

And while the Houston Texans are potentially in trouble now that both quarterbacks Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart have been struck down with season-ending injuries, the team is confident in the skills of newly-anointed starter T.J. Yates.

It doesn't hurt that the team boasts one of the best running games in the league and the top defense based on yards allowed.

The AFC has two surprising teams in the top 10 this week, with the Oakland Raiders and Cincinnati Bengals both at 7-4 and gearing up for postseason appearances of their own.

But what about overall competitiveness of the two conferences? Rounding out the top half of the rankings this week, in spots 11-16, are four NFC teams, compared to just two from the AFC.

The NFC has three clear highly-competitive divisions this season, the North, the South and the East, while just the AFC North has proven to be the source of most strength in the conference.

There are clearly convincing arguments why either conference can be considered the best in the NFL through 12 weeks, but because of overall competitiveness and sheer number of stronger teams, I'd have to say that the NFC barely beats out the AFC as the league's most dominant.

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