Week 14 NFL Power Rankings
By Liam McKeone
Your weekly power rankings for Week 14 of the NFL season.
32. Cincinnati Bengals (1-11)
The Bengals got their first win! Good for them. That man has finally left his roof. Doesn't change the fact that they remain in the lead by two full games for the No. 1 pick in April.
31. Washington Redskins (3-9)
After many injuries, Derrius Guice looks like the running back the Redskins were hoping to see when they drafted him, and he was a large part of their upset victory over Carolina. Washington still isn't very good, though.
30. New York Giants (2-10)
The turnover issues continue for Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley can't get anything going. This is all probably for the best (especially if they end up with Chase Young), but this team will struggle to beat anyone down the stretch run.
29. Miami Dolphins (3-9)
I'm mildly surprised it took this long for Ryan Fitzpatrick to realize that tossing it up to DeVante Parker is far and away his best option on offense. It resulted in a surprising win over a struggling Eagles squad. Hats off to Brian Flores, even if it doesn't move them too far up the rankings here.
28. New York Jets (4-8)
Gifting the Bengals their first win is the biggest referendum on Adam Gase to date. The last two weeks have shown that Sam Darnold can produce in the system, but I mean... it's the Bengals, man.
27. Detroit Lions (3-8-1)
All things considered, kudos to Detroit for hanging in as long as they did against the Bears with their third-string QB. But the outlook for the rest of the season is extremely bleak.
26. Atlanta Falcons (3-9)
The Falcons were bad all night. The onside kicks provided some excitement, but nobody actually thought they'd tie the game. The offensive line was bullied all evening and the defense was dominated by Taysom Hill. The day of reckoning is coming for Dan Quinn.
25. Arizona Cardinals (3-8-1)
A tough day for Kliff Kingsbury's squad as they were summarily dispatched by the Rams at home. All things considered, their first thorough beatdown coming in Week 13 seems like a win in of itself.
24. Los Angeles Chargers (4-8)
Absolutely remarkable how they find ways to lose games. It's ridiculous. This team can't get out of its own way.
23. Denver Broncos (4-8)
Drew Lock showed some encouraging flashes, and Courtland Sutton could be a beast. They didn't deserve to win this game, but this is the most optimistic the franchise has felt since before the season started.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-8)
The Nick Foles signing is officially a failure. Time to look to next year and see how they can help out Gardner Minshew with a tight cap sheet. A new coach may be in order, too.
21. Carolina Panthers (5-7)
The Kyle Allen Cinderella story has officially come to an end. He isn't a sure thing by any means, the defense is bad, and things have grown stale in Carolina after a home loss to Washington.
20. Cleveland Browns (5-7)
It's a pretty tough pill to swallow when you talk the amount of trash Cleveland did and then lose to a man nicknamed "Duck". This Browns' season is all but over.
19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-7)
Bucs fans may find it frustrating that the team is showing enough glimpses to carry over most of the roster to next year. As it stands, the Bucs top out at mediocre.
18. Oakland Raiders (6-6)
Oakland got stomped at Arrowhead, but the fact they were above .500 heading in is a surprise. Some encouraging pieces, even if this particular outcome was anything but.
17. Philadelphia Eagles (5-7)
Everything is going wrong in Philly this year. Important players are hurt, Carson Wentz has regressed, and they lost to the Dolphins in a must-win game to stay in the division race. They're technically still in it, but nothing this team has done this year makes anyone think they're a threat in any capacity.
16. Chicago Bears (6-6)
The Bears did win, but it was against some guy named David Blough and a bad Lions team.
15. Indianapolis Colts (6-6)
Adam Vinateri may have cost them yet another game, but Jacoby Brissett didn't help matters with a couple of untimely interceptions. They're not out of it yet, but it'll take some luck to squeeze back into the playoff picture with no tiebreakers over Houston or Tennessee.
14. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5)
This is Mike Tomlin's finest coaching job of his career. Nobody is scared of the Steelers with Develin Hodges under center, but being in the playoff picture this late after how things looked early on is remarkable.
13. Los Angeles Rams (7-5)
The offense decided to show up this week, but Arizona doesn't represent stiff competition.
12. Dallas Cowboys (6-6)
The world may as well be ending in Dallas after losing their cherished Thanksgiving Day game to a good Buffalo squad. They remain at the top of the NFC East, but there are some serious issues with this team that make it hard to believe they'll last very long in January.
11. Tennessee Titans (7-5)
I tried to tell everyone last week that the Ryan Tannehill resurgence was real, but the Colts didn't listen. Tennessee is a contender for the final playoff spot and could make life tough on whoever they play in the first round-- if they can make it past a brutal final month that includes two games against Houston and a visit from New Orleans.
10. Kansas City Chiefs (8-4)
Ah, there's that Chiefs offense we've come to know and love. No trouble handling their feisty division rivals at home.
9. Buffalo Bills (9-3)
The Bills announced their presence as an elite team for anyone who wasn't paying attention on Thanksgiving by shutting down the Cowboys' offense. Josh Allen is limiting his mistakes and making big plays. Their schedule hasn't been the hardest, but the next three weeks will show the true mettle of this squad.
8. Minnesota Vikings (8-4)
Minnesota kept it close against Seattle despite losing their most important player in Dalvin Cook.
7. New England Patriots (10-2)
New England will never be an easy game, but this team has some clear and obvious flaws on the offensive side of the ball. The defense remains very good, but they can't be perfect every week. A lot to work on up in Foxboro before they can be considered favorites like they were early on.
6. Houston Texans (8-4)
The Texans are hot and cold as a team this year, but they came out scalding against a talented New England defense. Nobody wants to play Deshaun Watson and his trio of dangerous wideouts right now, much less come playoff time.
5. Green Bay Packers (9-3)
The Packers came out hot in the snow at MetLife after an embarrassing loss to San Francisco last week. This is still an elite and capable team, even if they have exploitable flaws.
4. New Orleans Saints (10-2)
The end made everyone in the Big Easy a little nervous, but the Saints handled their business after dropping a game against these same Falcons not one month ago.
3. San Francisco 49ers (10-2)
The Niners kept it closer than anyone has managed against the Ravens in nearly two months. They also did it in the rain in Baltimore. As positive a loss as one could hope at this point in the season.
2. Seattle Seahawks (10-2)
Russell Wilson and his receivers picked apart a stingy Vikings secondary to claim sole control of the NFC West.
1. Baltimore Ravens (10-2)
The Ravens are still playing like the best team in the league. Lamar Jackson is an MVP candidate. John Harbaugh is an analytics god. They're looking at homefield for the playoffs. It couldn't be going better right now.