NFL Power Rankings Week 13: Looking at Teams Making Late Pushes

Even though we know it's gonna happen, it's never ceases to amaze when a team makes a late-season push for the playoffs.

The funny thing about 2011, however, is that the three following teams are in the AFC and battling for that No. 6 seed.

Denver Broncos (6-5)

The Broncos are in great position to make a playoff push because of their tiebreaker over Cincinnati (Kyle Orton's lone win of 2011). So as long as the Broncos can catch the Bengals, the AFC West will get a wild-card team.

That said, Denver is on a four-game win streak and rolling into the final stretch. Denver has games left against Minnesota, Chicago, Buffalo and Kansas City, all beatable teams. If the Broncos are in the NFL's second season, consider them this year's Cinderella.

New York Jets (6-5)

Perhaps one of the more inconsistent clubs this year has been the Jets. They get on multi-game winning or losing streaks, and it's clearly affected their playoff positioning.

Nonetheless, they swept the Buffalo Bills, which is a big boost for them, and the defense finally appears to have improved in stopping the run. Despite not having the tiebreaker over Denver, New York's remaining schedule is nothing but winnable games.

And only one is within the AFC East (Miami), a team they bested back in Week 6.

Tennessee Titans (6-5)

Of the three teams, the Tennessee Titans are quite possibly in the best of positions. They don't have the tiebreaker over Cincinnati, but they do have one over the Broncos.

The only problem is that the Music City still has to play New Orleans and Houston. So their remaining schedule isn't technically the easier road. Nonetheless, Tennessee has proven they can beat the better teams (Baltimore in Week 2), so it really just depends on which Titans team shows up.

Week 13 NFL Power Rankings (LW = Last Week's Rank)

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

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