The Carolina Panthers are on longer undefeated, which means the Arizona Cardinals take the top spot in the Power Rankings chart, followed by the 14-1 team, the New England Patriots, the Denver Broncos an the Cincinnati Bengals to complete the top 5. Worst? The Tennessee Titans seem to deserve that recognition right now.
1. Arizona Cardinals, 13-2: For the first time this season they’re on top and deservedly so. Not just the demolition of the Green Bay Packers, but having the best offense in the league and one of the scariest defenses.
2. Carolina Panthers, 14-1: One loss doesn’t destroy a body of work that’s about as impressive as it gets, but it might suggest a little bit of arrogance or complacency creeping in.
3. New England Patriots, 12-3: Some days the Patriots look like the best team in the NFL. Taking them down is difficult even when they’re missing so many players. But they are missing them, which is hurting Tom Brady in ways costing his team.
4. Denver Broncos, 11-4: They’re not just above the Cincinnati Bengals because they beat ’em. With Brock Osweiler at quarterback compared to A.J. McCarron, they have the better team.
5. Cincinnati Bengals, 11-4: A loss they could live with only it might cost them a first round bye, not to mention even A.J. McCarron not being completely healthy now.
6. Kansas City Chiefs, 10-5: Nine wins in a row by keeping things simple and unleashing a defense that’s incredible difficult to cope with.
7. New York Jets, 10-5: Ryan Fitzpatrick is having a career season, and the Jets wouldn’t have needed overtime had he not missed so many open receivers in the win against the Patriots.
8. Green Bay Packers, 10-5: Carrying on due to the faith that when things will matter, Aaron Rodgers and the broken wagon he’s carrying will look a bit more competitive.
9. Seattle Seahawks, 9-6: Didn’t have to win against the St. Louis Rams, but might have lost some crucial momentum they were riding.
10. Pittsburgh Steelers, 9-6: With this defense, they’re not going far in the playoffs. They might not even make the playoffs.
11. Minnesota Vikings, 10-5: As long as the Vikings don’t try to have Teddy Bridgewater win games on his own, they’re capable of giving contenders some trouble in the playoffs.
12. Atlanta Falcons, 8-7: Their last two wins and especially the one over the Falcons suggests this is an incredible waste of a season for a very talented team.
13. Washington Redskins, 8-7: The best of the least, with Kirk Cousins as the quarterback who survived a lot of organizational BS to possible become the team’s franchise guy.
14. Houston Texans, 8-7: It’s one of the more hilarious things to see Brandon Weeden actually lead a team into the playoffs considering how bad he was in Dallas.
15. Oakland Raiders, 7-8: Believe it or not, but the Raiders finish a second consecutive season with feeling of optimism and looking forward to the future.
16. St. Louis Rams, 7-8: If only this season was just about playing their own division, the Rams would be winning the Super Bowl.
17. Buffalo Bills, 7-8: Looking terrible while beating the Dallas Cowboys isn’t new. Playing getting tired of Rex Ryan before the end of the season isn’t new either.
18. Indianapolis Colts, 7-8: Another team running out of quarterbacks and chances to make the playoffs.
19. New Orleans Saints, 6-9: Drew Brees in the dome is still a sight to behold, but everything around him has fallen apart and needs to be put back up.
20. Detroit Lions, 6-9: Currently busy trying to tell Calvin Johnson he needs to take a paycut.
21. Chicago Bears, 6-9: A season without anything good or bad to say about it. Maybe it’s better than last year fits more than anything.
22. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 6-9: The moment they lost their playoff hopes decided to pack it up and being their vacation.
23. Philadelphia Eagles, 6-9: One of the more unpredictable teams in the NFL, and usually disappoints whenever it has an opportunity to.
24. Baltimore Ravens, 5-10: Give the Ravens a division rival to ruin its season, and it doesn’t matter how many injured players they have – they’ll get the job done.
25. Jacksonville Jaguars, 5-10: This team isn’t that far away from being capable to win the division.
26. New York Giants, 6-9: Sad how bad they look without Odell Beckham Jr. to help out Eli Manning.
27. San Diego Chargers, 4-11: A melancholic season for the Chargers, who are probably better than their record suggests.
28. Miami Dolphins, 5-10: When you exclude all the teams hit by injury, the Dolphins are probably the most disappointing team in this NFL season.
29. Dallas Cowboys, 4-11: The good thing about the Cowboys is that they’re able to drag most teams down with them. The problem is that they’re incapable of playing good offense for more than a series or two.
30. San Francisco 49ers, 4-11: I’m not sure they’re too hot about Blaine Gabbert anymore.
31. Cleveland Browns, 3-12: At least they made it difficult on the Chiefs, and Johnny Manziel, good or bad, is fun to watch.
32. Tennessee Titans, 3-12: Vacation.