NFL Power Rankings Week 14: Biggest Question Marks in the Top 10

More than any other year in recent memory, there seems to be a lot of uncertainty in the NFL in 2011.

Concerning the teams at the top of the totem pole, we know that the Green Bay Packers are the best team in football. Beyond them, it's the wild west. Truly superior teams are hard to come by, and the playoff picture is extraordinarily messy.

Take my word for it, all of this makes putting together a weekly power rankings pretty difficult, especially when it comes to the teams in the top 10. When you actually get down to brass tacks, there are a couple questions you have to ask yourself.

To give you an idea, I'd like to talk about the five biggest question marks that concern the top of my rankings. If nothing else, getting these questions out in the open should lead to some good football discussions.

Cincinnati Bengals (No. 9)

Question: Can they beat superior competition?

This has been the knock on the Bengals all season, as they've gotten to where they are by beating up on inferior competition. In recent weeks, they've been exposed by the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, the two teams currently ahead of them in the AFC North race.

The Bengals aren't done facing superior teams this season. They have to host the 9-3 Houston Texans this weekend, and they wrap up the season against the Ravens. If they lose these games, the Bengals will likely miss out on the playoffs.

In the event the Bengals do make the playoffs, we're going to be asking this question all over again. Is this Bengals team ready for the big stage? Or, like last year's Kansas City Chiefs, are they just lucky to be there?

Denver Broncos (No. 8)

Question: How long can Tim Tebow keep this up?

The more appropriate question to ask would be: How long can this Broncos team keep this up?

But let's not kid ourselves. Without Tebow, the Broncos would not be where they are now. For lack of a better description, he is their power source.

For now, I really like the Broncos. No doubt you can tell by their No. 8 standing in my rankings. But even I think that their success could be easily undone. All it could take is one bad game from Tebow, and Denver's season could be over. It's a copycat league, and teams will copy whatever game plan it was that finally beat the Broncos.

If the Broncos want to avoid this fate, they better hope that Tebow still has a few tricks left up his sleeve that he hasn't yet shown us.

Houston Texans (No. 7)

Question: How deep does this team go?

The injuries just keep piling up in Houston. But fortunately for the Texans, so do wins.

The circumstances are different, but the Texans are starting to remind me of last year's Packers. They should have been killed by their injuries, but they kept plugging guys in and kept winning football games. That's more or less what the Texans are doing, and so far it's working out just fine.

The question, naturally, is: Will the Texans hit a wall before the end of the season? There are only so many injuries a team can take, and the Texans have lost some pretty major contributors. They can either keep going strong, or they can crumble like a house of cards.

Pittsburgh Steelers (No. 5)

Question: Can they beat the Baltimore Ravens?

The Steelers are, without a doubt, one of the best teams in the NFL, but they haven't gotten as much credit as they deserve because most people don't even think they're the best team in their own division.

That's what happens when you get swept by your biggest division rival. The Steelers opened the season by getting destroyed by the Ravens, and the Ravens beat them again in Week 9.

These losses obviously aren't going to keep the Steelers from making the playoffs, but it's a good bet that they'll run into the Ravens a third time when the playoffs start, and that they will have to play them in Baltimore.

Will the third time be a charm for the Steelers? That remains to be seen.

Green Bay Packers (No. 1)

Question: Can they go undefeated?

Well, can they?

Right now, I'm thinking the answer is yes. The Oakland Raiders will give them a run for their money, but they won't beat the Packers. After that, the Packers should have no trouble taking care of the Kansas City Chiefs, Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions.

As sexy as an undefeated record may be, the thing to keep in mind is that it won't matter once the playoffs start. That's when going undefeated really matters.

So instead, let's adjust this question to ask: Are the Packers unbeatable?

Short answer: No. No they're not. No team is.

Zachary D. Rymer's Week 14 Power Rankings

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