Entering week 12, there is one team with only one win, and five teams with only two wins…but none have officially been eliminated from the playoffs yet. Houston, Kansas City, Baltimore, Detroit, Minnesota, and Washington are all currently outside of the playoffs, looking in. The Chiefs and Ravens are each 5-5…but one is on the way up, and the other just plummeted out of the top 10. My faith in the Broncos has been vindicated, and my take on the Patriots is proving to be misguided. With all that in mind, here is this week’s ranking, with week 11 in the books:
The Worst Of The Worst:
32. New York Giants: Bill Belichick put out a statement this week saying he was not interested, nor would he pursue the vacant HC job of the New York Football Giants. It is reminiscent of a politician saying he wouldn’t seek re-election, nor accept the nomination. Frankly, if the Mara family called, he’d be there in an instant. The answer may not be Belichick, but the Giants definitely need a complete overhaul.
31. Tennessee Titans: The Titans are the sole one-win team in the league. At this point of the season, it is a tankathon among a handful of teams…and the Titans are definitely one of them.
30. Cleveland Browns: There was a Shadeur Sanders sighting on Sunday…and it did not go well. It is a shame that the prime of Myles Garrett is being wasted in Cleveland.
29. Las Vegas Raiders: The Raiders are now 2-8, only winning one of their last nine games. Ashton Jeanty is having a rocky rookie season, and the Pete Carroll/Geno Smith tandem has proven to be a disaster.
28. New York Jets: Another loss for the Jets, and another dismal performance by Justin Fields. The team has finally pulled the plug, and is going with Tyrod Taylor the rest of the way…neither Taylor nor Fields is the answer. There are three former Jets QBs, thriving elsewhere, that would have been.
27. New Orleans Saints: The Saints had a bye this week and moved three spots up this list. That can happen when six of the teams above and below you all lose.
Underachievers:
26. Atlanta Falcons: It’s another disaster of a season for the Falcons. They are sitting at 3-7, woefully out of the division, as well as the playoffs. Michael Penix is now out injured, giving the reins back to Kirk Cousins. One has to wonder if Bill Belichick would have produced a better result.
25. Cincinnati Bengals: Another loss for the Bengals…another lost season. It was looking promising for a while, with Joe Flacco at the helm, but the clock has struck midnight. They will be without Ja’Mar Chase for a spitting incident and without their best defensive player, Trey Hendrickson. Joe Burrow is trying to work his way back. Rest up, and get yourself ready for 2026.
24 Arizona Cardinals: The Cardinals are another of these 3-7, underachieving teams. It doesn’t help that they are in a buzzsaw of a division, but their QB play just hasn’t been good enough, with Kyler Murray or Jacoby Brissett.
23. Washington Commanders: From the penthouse of the NFC Championship game to the outhouse, sitting at 3-8. Without Jayden Daniels, this is a completely different team.
22. Miami Dolphins: Don’t look now, but the Dolphins won again. Granted, this wasn’t as convincing as their destruction of the Bills, but they are now 4-7, and could get frisky the rest of the year. At 2-7, other teams may have packed it in, but Mike McDaniel hasn’t lost this team…yet.
21. Minnesota Vikings: The Vikings are at the bottom of these middling teams, with the faintest of playoff chances. They are the 11th seed in the AFC with a 5% chance of making it to the postseason.
20. Dallas Cowboys: The Cowboys dismantled the hapless Raiders on Monday night…(Why they get so many primetime games is beyond me). When clicking, they have a dynamic offense, which can compete with any team in the league. At 4-5-1, they are the 10th seed in the NFC, with a 7% shot at the playoffs. With the Eagles sitting with the no.1 seed in the NFC, a Cowboys postseason would be via the Wild Card.
In The Playoff Race:
19. Kansas City Chiefs: Maybe no.19 is an overreaction, but this isn’t the same Chiefs of the last decade. Travis Kelce is past his prime, at age 36…and Patrick Mahomes is now in his 30s. They are the No. 9 seed in the AFC, one game behind the Jaguars and Chargers in the loss column. Their playoff chances are still 51%, but currently, these teams above them are all more worthy.
18. Carolina Panthers: The Panthers are sitting as the NFC counterpart to the Chiefs, sitting as the ninth seed. They are over .500, at 6-5, and only a half game behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
17. Houston Texans: The Texans are back at .500, sitting at 5-5, but CJ Stroud will still be out, in concussion protocol. If Davis Mills can do what Mac Jones did for the Niners, they’ll have a shot, but they have a monumental task this Thursday against the Bills.
16. Pittsburgh Steelers: The Steelers are a resilient bunch. They have held off the charging Ravens team…at least for one week. They are sitting at 6-4, atop the AFC North. Aaron Rodgers may have dodged a bullet regarding his left wrist. His status for Sunday is still up in the air, but he is lobbying to play against the Bears in Chicago on Sunday…a team he’s owned through the years.
15. Jacksonville Jaguars: The Jaguars are playing some of their best football. The biggest problem with them, and why they aren’t ranked higher on this list, is that they aren’t historically very consistent. After a dominant 35-6 win against the Chargers, victories against the Cardinals and Titans will give me more faith. That will put them at 8-4, heading into their battle with Indianapolis.
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs had the NFC South firmly in their grip when they were 6-2. They’ve now lost back-to-back games to the Patriots and Bills. At 6-4, they are clinging to a half-game lead over the Cardinals.
Possible Contenders:
13. Green Bay Packers: Early in the season, I said how much I hate ties on a schedule. That tie may prove to be very costly for the Packers. At 6-3-1, they are the sixth seed in the NFC, sitting as a Wildcard team. At 7-3, the Bears are ahead of them, atop the NFC North.
12. Seattle Seahawks: The Seahawks lost a pivotal game this week against the Rams, in a game that will go a long way to determine the NFC West.
11. San Francisco 49ers: Brock Purdy is back. Mac Jones did fantastic work in his place, but heading down the stretch, the team is getting healthier. They are sitting at 7-4, two games behind the Rams. A playoff berth will most likely be as a Wildcard, as they currently cling to the seventh seed in the NFC.
10. Chicago Bears: Don’t look now, but the Bears just may be a good team. They lead the NFC North, and are sitting at 7-3, with the third seed in the NFC…and have cracked the top 10 on this list. They have a very interesting matchup this week against the Steelers, at home.
Best Of The Best:
9. Detroit Lions: The offense has been stagnant of late, and Dan Campbell taking it over hasn’t helped. The reality is, his decision-making, with regard to going for it on fourth down…constantly, seems to backfire more and more.
8. Los Angeles Chargers: The Chargers were throttled 35-6 in Jacksonville against the Jaguars on Sunday. Their loss, coupled with Denver’s win, makes the division almost out of reach. But if the season ended today, they’d be in, and they currently have a 60% chance of staying there.
7. Baltimore Ravens: The Ravens have won four in a row and are back to .500. As I said in the intro, at 5-5, they have ascended back into the top 10, while the Chiefs have plummeted. The Ravens are actually seeded lower than the Chiefs in the AFC, but their playoff chances are far superior, sitting at 77%.
6. Buffalo Bills: The Bills bounced back nicely from their inexplicable loss against the Dolphins. Josh Allen is proving again to be Superman for the team, although he isn’t currently in the mix for another MVP. If he keeps playing the way he did on Sunday against the Buccaneers, he may get back into the race. But it’s more than unrealistic to expect him to score six TDs per game.
5. New England Patriots: Finally, the Patriots have cracked my top five. I’ve been a doubting Thomas all year. I mocked Las Vegas setting their o/u at 8.5 wins. I mocked Drake Maye, believing he was in the lower tier of the six first-round QBs drafted a couple of years ago. And I underestimated the impact of HC Mike Vrabel and OC Josh McDaniels. But they are sitting at 9-2, with the No. 2 seed in the AFC. Mea Culpa!
4. Indianapolis Colts: The Colts had a bye this week and moved up one spot due to the Chargers blowout loss in Jacksonville.
3. Los Angeles Rams: This Rams team almost defeated the Eagles in their playoff matchup last year. They currently lead the NFC West and are the No. 2 seed in the NFC. This season is shaping up to have a rematch between the two teams…and this year, I think the Rams will prevail.
2. Philadelphia Eagles: It wouldn’t be an NFL season if there weren’t drama in Philly. With all the turmoil surrounding their offense, they just keep winning. They are sitting at 8-2. They lead the NFC East, and if the playoffs started today, they’d have the No. 1 seed in the NFC, with the sole bye.
1. Denver Broncos: I am so proud of the Denver Broncos. I’ve had them as the No. 1 team on this list for a few weeks now. If there was ever a game they were going to lose, it would have been on Sunday, against the wounded Chiefs. But Denver is a historically tough place to play, even when they don’t have a defense that has the most sacks in the league. Patrick Mahomes found that out on Sunday.
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