NFL Power Rankings Week 14: Examining Where ESPN Got It Wrong

As always, ESPN released its weekly power rankings yesterday, and while most of the network's placements match up fairly well with mine, there is one large discrepancy. ESPN's experts jumped the Denver Broncos from 16th to 10th this week on the strength of a 35-32 win over the hapless Minnesota Vikings. I gave Denver almost no credit for that win, as they rank 17th this week. And I'm right.

The Broncos are 6-1 since inserting Tim Tebow at quarterback for the now-departed Kyle Orton. But a look at those wins shows that they have come against less-than-stellar competition. During that streak, Denver has beaten the Miami Dolphins (when they were still winless), the Oakland Raiders (who have been up and down all year), the hapless Kansas City Chiefs, the New York Jets (is there a more uneven team in football?), the disappointing San Diego Chargers and the 2-10 Minnesota Vikings.

That's not exactly a stellar resume.

In addition to that, each of those games has come down to the wire. In fact, other than the Oakland game, the Broncos have yet to beat a team by more than seven points all season.

While some might see that as a good thing, since it means they play well in tight games, I'm worried that the Broncos are just barely besting terrible teams.

Denver still has to show me something before I give them a top 10 or top 12 ranking. They must solidly beat a playoff-bound team. Until then, I won't be convinced.

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