NFL power rankings entering Week 17 of the 2023 season (previous rankings in parentheses):
1. Baltimore Ravens (2): Their greatest strength may be their lack of glaring weakness, their frequent inability to take a fourth-quarter lead. But that didn’t matter Monday night when the Ravens went on the road and dismantled a Niners team that was pretty much the consensus No. 1 before kickoff. And don’t let Lamar Jackson and his guys go to the Super Bowl…considering the sixth-year quarterback is currently 20-1 against the NFC.
2. San Francisco 49ers (1): A small picture? It wasn’t a very pleasant vacation, and QB Brock Purdy likely saw his MVP hopes evaporate. Big picture? The Niners should be fine, but if they embarrass themselves on Monday, they could be in trouble for Super Bowl 58.
3. Philadelphia Eagles (3): Philadelphia fans, take a breath. The NFC East leaders defeated the Giants on Monday, dominating in every way except the scoreboard, with Jalen Hurts setting a single-season QB record with his 15th rushing TD. Yes, last year’s team was probably better, but this season’s team has plenty of potential to go even further.
4. Buffalo Bills (4): QB Josh Allen ended up being the league MVP, given his rushing season-ending run, the 40 TDs he produced (27 passing, 13 rushing), and the fact that most of the front-runners were clearly stuck in the reversal. Will I be chosen?
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5. Detroit Lions (8): By now, you’re probably aware that they are division champions for the first time in 30 years. But did you know that this is the first time in the franchise’s 94-season history that they have won 20 regular season games in two years?
6. Kansas City Chiefs (5): Even after Monday’s terrible performance, QB Patrick Mahomes (career-worst 6 losses) almost has to win another Super Bowl, even if tight end Travis Kelce temporarily loses his mind. We’ll definitely have to leave for the playoffs. … It’s really hard to trust this team going into January.
7. Miami Dolphins (6): RB Raheem Mostert continues to build on his career, becoming Miami’s first 1,000-yard rusher since Jay Ajayi in 2016.
8. Los Angeles Rams (9): Has there been a better offense since Los Angeles Thanksgiving, when they averaged 32.4 points and 433.8 yards over the past five games? If the Rams truly are peaking at the right time, he has little chance of making it to the Super Bowl again.
9. Cleveland Browns (10): Imagine how much better WR Amari Cooper, the first player in club history to record 1,000 consecutive yards receiving, would be if he could work with a quarterback for more than 10 minutes…but with Joe Flacco… Although his average receiving yards of 121.3 exceeds Cooper’s career record (67.8 ypg) by more than 50 yards.
10. Dallas Cowboys (7): Sunday was another reminder of this team’s inability to run the ball effectively when needed. That’s especially true on the road, where Dallas has notoriously struggled. It’s hard to believe that this will be the year that “America’s Team” returns to the NFC title game.
11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (15): Indeed, their four-game heater came against a quartet of struggling teams. But do you want to go to Tampa for the postseason and play against this defense and the unprecedentedly effective offensive trio of QB Baker Mayfield, WR Mike Evans, and RB Rashard White? ?
12. Seattle Seahawks (19): two weeks. Two quarterbacks. He made the winning TD pass just before the end of the game and won twice, 20-17. Who will qualify for the wild card for the second year in a row?
13. Houston Texans (11): The 9-8 record they’re trending this year has basically exceeded all expectations…and if rookie phenom CJ Stroud can recover from his concussion and get this offense back on track, the AFC South There’s a good chance they can win the district title and improve to 10-7.
14. Jacksonville Jaguars (13): The 9-8 record they’re aiming for this year feels vastly different than last year’s 9-8 team, with battered QB Trevor Lawrence in particular calling the team’s recent performance “truly embarrassing.” It’s frustrating,” he thought.
15. Minnesota Vikings (17): All-Pro WR Justin Jefferson’s 5,648 career receiving yards are already the most by a player in his first four seasons. And if he had just 30 more yards on Sunday, the Vikes’ playoff prospects would have improved dramatically.
16. Atlanta Falcons (25): If this seems like a huge leap forward for this team…well, it is. This is more indicative of how dense the mediocrity is throughout the league. But let’s give credit to QB Taylor Heinicke, who just led the Falcons to a season-high 29 points in an important win.
17. New Orleans Saints (18): QB Derek Carr, in his 10th year of NFL career, has never played as a district champion. A loss Sunday in Tampa would extend his wait to an 11th year.
18. Indianapolis Colts (14): I feel like I’ve been waiting weeks for the wheels to come off. For an offense that has scored 14 points or less in three of its past six contests, it might be time to give it some road service.
19. Pittsburgh Steelers (20): A team that averaged less than 300 yards per week totaled more than 800 yards in the season’s Cincinnati Sweep.
20. Cincinnati Bengals (12): The team, which has won the past two AFC North championships, is on the brink of going 0-6 in division play this season.
21. Las Vegas Raiders (21): Believe it or not, they are still among the favorites to win the AFC West. He is a credit to a defense that has scored four touchdowns over the past two weeks.
22. Denver Broncos (16): Believe it or not, they are still among the favorites to win the AFC West. …Well, let’s give credit to the sleepwalking KC squad that can’t put this division to bed.
23. Green Bay Packers (22): This defense has fallen off a cliff over the past month despite facing a middling to bad offense. However, head coach Matt LaFleur appears to be willing to support DC Joe Barry until the very end, at least for another two weeks.
24. Chicago Bears (24): As the number of wins continues to rise, so will the debate over whether they should trade their No. 1 draft pick for the second year in a row, or continue to protect their pick while releasing QB Justin Fields.
25. Tennessee Titans (23): It’s pretty crazy that after two years they won’t even take advantage of the opportunity to potentially introduce QB Malik Willis to another team.
26. Arizona Cardinals (26): After Sunday’s loss, he is currently ranked No. 2 overall in the 2024 draft, but will he just take him assuming Ohio State’s WR Marvin Harrison Jr. is available, or will he be fully drafted this offseason? Do something wild?
27. New England Patriots (30): After Sunday’s win, the team is currently ranked No. 4 overall in the 2024 draft, but rather than continue to risk ruining the organization’s prospects of selecting a new franchise quarterback next spring, it’s likely they’ll be drafting Bill Belichick now. Should he be fired?
28. New York Jets (27): The idea that there was some drama over head coach Robert Saleh and GM Joe Douglas’ job security is cute. After all, wouldn’t owner Woody Johnson want to give his recuperating quarterback a reason to pursue a fifth MVP elsewhere?
29. New York Giants (28): A bottle of red, a bottle of white… On Christmas night, the season collapsed around Tommy DeVito. (Yes, Billy Joel was better.)
30. Los Angeles Chargers (31): The team that was supposed to steal the Hollywood spotlight from the Rams not only faces a new script in 2024, but also significant cast turnover.
31. Commander Washington (29): Imagine how formidable they would be if QB2 Jacoby Brissett could play half…
32. Carolina Panthers (32): Yes, they lost again. But did you notice that embattled rookie Bryce Young actually looked like a franchise quarterback? He had a passer rating of 110.0, 2 TDs, 312 yards, and was second best total by 65 yards.
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