NFL Power Rankings: 4 Teams Stuck in a State of Free Fall

Now that 13 weeks of the 2011 NFL season are behind us, there are clearly a number of teams that have little to be happy about. Fifteen of the league's 32 teams are under .500 and few, if any, of them have much of a chance to significantly turn things around in their remaining four games.

Here, I examine four teams that have managed to do nothing but slide southward in the power rankings over the last few weeks, as losses continue to pile up and hope wanes. This discussion ends with my full 32-team power rankings for Week 14.

No. 18: Chicago Bears (Last Week: 12)

For the past two weeks, the Chicago Bears have had usual backup Caleb Hanie as their starting quarterback, and for the past two weeks, the Bears have lost.

These two things aren't unrelated, to be sure, and now things have gotten far worse for the one-time playoff contenders, now that they've lost starting running back and the league's yardage leader Matt Forte to an MCL sprain that could sideline him through the end of the regular season.

Without quarterback Jay Cutler and Forte, the team suffered their most embarrassing loss of the season in Week 13, dropping 10-3 to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Not even the Bears' venerable defense could prevent a collapse this epic and it's going to be hard for them to compensate for what has become one of the NFL's most troubled offenses simply due to two major injuries.

There's some talk of Chicago bringing in a veteran quarterback to start in Hanie's place, such as the recently released former Minnesota Viking Donovan McNabb.

However, at this point, all the speculation seems to be producing little in way of action, with Bears head coach Lovie Smith insisting the team will stick with Hanie as starter.

If that's truly the case, then the team needs to improve on offense and fast if they are to have any chance to see the postseason with a healthy Cutler and Forte on the field. With Tim Tebow's Denver Broncos up next for the Bears, it might take a miracle to keep the team out of the league's basement headed into Week 15.

No. 23: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Last Week: 15)

I've been giving the Tampa Bay Buccaneers more than their fair share of the benefit of the doubt all season, but now that they've lost six games in a row, most recently dropping 28-19 to the then-3-8 Carolina Panthers, there's nowhere to go but down.

Tampa Bay has gone from one of 2010's great surprises to one of 2011's biggest disappointments, with quarterback Josh Freeman alternating between being injured and looking more like he did in his rookie 2009 year than the accurate passer he seemed to become last season.

At the same time, the Buccaneers defense seems to only get worse as the weeks pass, with the team unable to recover from injuries earlier in the year.

If there's any team that embodies what it means to regress, it's Tampa Bay. While teams change on a yearly basis, it's still quite surprising that the Buccaneers have struggled so much in 2011 after ending 2010 with a 10-6 record.

No. 31: St. Louis Rams (Last Week: 31)

The St. Louis Rams should take comfort where they can find it. And when it comes to my power rankings, that means they should be happy to have two wins on the season, for otherwise they'd be ranked 32nd instead of 31st.

Much like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Rams headed into the 2011 season with a lot of promise. Though they didn't end 2010 with a winning record, they seemed well on their way to doing so this year.

Instead, injuries took their toll, especially on offense. Quarterback Sam Bradford has been dealing with an injured ankle all season long and has missed three games because of it.

While it's not fully healed as of today, it looks like he will have to start in Week 14 against the Seattle Seahawks because his backup, A.J. Feeley, has a broken thumb.

St. Louis was shut out by the San Francisco 49ers in Week 13 and of their two wins, only their Week 8 besting of the New Orleans Saints is worth mentioning as being particularly impressive.

With the league's worst offense and a defense allowing an average of 366 yards per game, the Rams will have to wait until 2012 to see if they can live up to their potential.

No. 24: San Diego Chargers (Last Week: 24)

The San Diego Chargers have yet to play their Week 13 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at the time of this writing, and as such have yet to move in my Week 14 power rankings.

However, that doesn't change the fact that the one-time Super Bowl favorites have lost six games in a row and are currently in last place in the ever-changing AFC West.

Rumors have been flying that head coach Norv Turner and perhaps, general manager A.J. Smith, are going to be fired at the end of the season, and it's hard to argue against it.

Since Turner took over the Chargers in 2007, critics have made claims that while he's a gifted offensive coordinator, he's not an effective head coach.

And now, with Turner's team taking on his own uninspiring personality when on the field, it's pretty clear that canning the head coach is the first and most important change the Chargers need to make if they want to return to being one of the NFL's dominant teams in the near future.

Not all of the blame is Turner's of course. Quarterback Philip Rivers, usually one of the most reliable passers in the league, is having the worst year of his starting career. He's thrown 17 interceptions—the most he's ever thrown—to 16 touchdowns, has lost four of eight fumbles and has been sacked 28 times.

All this despite being the head of a top-10 passing offense. That clearly means the once-vaunted Chargers defense isn't doing Rivers any favors. They're allowing an average of 131.9 rushing yards and 25 points per game this season.

If they cannot manage a win tonight against the 3-8 Jacksonville Jaguars, then what was supposed to be the Chargers' best year of the last decade is clearly a lost cause.

Full 32-Team NFL Power Rankings for Week 14

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

*Subject to change pending outcome of Monday night's Chargers-Jaguars contest