NFL Week 17 Power Rankings
Josh Frey
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Well, we made it, everyone. It’s week 17 of the NFL season, and that means the final edition of this year’s power rankings. Normally I take this section to recap last week’s games, but today, I just want to say thanks to everyone taking time out of their day to read these power rankings. Whether it’s your first time or your 17th time, thank you. Now, let’s hop into these rankings.
- Green Bay Packers
Last Week: 40-14 win vs TEN
Trending: ↑2
Next Week: 1/3 @ CHI
It had to be done. Green Bay absolutely dominated Tennessee on Sunday night, and if this Green Bay team shows up throughout the postseason, they will be going to the Super Bowl. AJ Dillon also showed why he deserved to be a second round pick. If Green Bay doesn’t pay Aaron Jones this offseason, he should fill the RB1 role nicely. Finally, Aaron Rodgers won the MVP award last night by tossing four TDs.
- Kansas City Chiefs
Last Week: 17-14 win vs ATL
Trending: ↓1
Next Week: 1/3 vs LAC
The Chiefs did not win this football game; the Falcons Falcon’d it. Mahomes did not play well. He had (by my count) three passes that easily could have been intercepted, but the Falcon defenders just dropped them. This includes a late fourth quarter end-zone pass that went in and out of the arms of A.J. Terrell that would have sealed a win for Atlanta. Like I said, the Falcons Falcon’d.
- Buffalo Bills
Last Week: 38-9 win @ NE
Trending: ↓1
Next Week: 1/3 vs MIA
Buffalo did everything right in this game. New England’s offense got nothing going; Buffalo’s offense rolled. If anyone is going to usurp the Chiefs from the AFC come postseason time, it looks like it will be the Bills.
- New Orleans Saints
Last Week: 52-33 win vs MN
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 @ CAR
Alvin Kamara became the first player to have six rushing touchdowns since Ernie Nevers did it in 1929 for the Chicago Cardinals. He very easily could have had a seventh as well, but Sean Payton hates Saints fans and left him on the sidelines, so Taysom Hill could score. The team looked good on Christmas Day, but Drew Brees does not look like himself yet. If Michael Thomas and Tre’Quan Smith aren’t 100% by the time the playoffs roll around, this is a vulnerable team. As good as Kamara is, he won’t have this type of game every week.
- Baltimore Ravens
Last Week: 27-13 win vs NYG
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 @ CIN
I’ve been saying for a while now that the Ravens are back, and this game is just further proof. The Giants defense has been giving teams fits all season, but Baltimore rolled right past them. The rushing duo of Dobbins/Edwards alongside Lamar Jackson looks lethal right now. Their defense is elite as well.
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Last Week: 47-7 win @ DET
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 vs ATL
The Bucs are clicking on both sides of the ball right now which led to their first playoff clinch since 2007. Tom Brady was throwing darts in the first half which resulted in four TDs and nearly 350 yards. The one thing to watch with this team is the special teams; Ryan Succop missed two extra points and a field goal on Sunday.
- Cleveland Browns
Last Week: 16-23 loss @ NYJ
Trending: ↓3
Next Week: 1/3 vs PIT
While a loss to the Jets is never good, I’m taking this less seriously than the Rams loss given the Browns essentially lost their entire wide receiver room to Covid. Cleveland couldn’t get any sort of offense going. The Jets got a couple breaks go their way which was just enough to pull this one out. Jamison Crowder did his best Jarvis Landry impersonation, throwing a 43-yard touchdown in the first quarter.
- Seattle Seahawks
Last Week: 20-9 win vs LAR
Trending: ↑2
Next Week: 1/3 @ SF
The Seahawks defense, while bad, has gotten feisty. The team has had an opportunity to gel throughout the year. This is the result. This has been said before too, but Chris Carson gives this offense a look and flow that they just don’t have without him.
- Pittsburgh Steelers
Last Week: 28-24 win vs IND
Trending: —
Next Week: 1/3 @ CLE
The Steelers offense seemed to finally get back on track in the second half of this game. After going down 24-7, they scored 21 unanswered points to finish the game. Ben Roethlisberger also seemed to get a shot of something (figuratively) in his arm. He looked great throughout the fourth quarter of this game. I’m still not quite convinced how real this win is given their recent history, though.
- Tennessee Titans
Last Week: 14-40 loss @ GB
Trending: ↓2
Next Week: 1/3 @ HOU
The Titans looked bad for most of Sunday night. That’s troubling, but not as much as people will make it seem. The Packers are a really good team, and Tennessee just doesn’t see enough snow to become comfortable in it. If they ever have to go to Buffalo this postseason, it’ll become worrisome, but until that happens, this is still a very good team.
- Indianapolis Colts
Last Week: 24-28 loss @ PIT
Trending: —
Next Week: 1/3 vs JAX
Indy is a good team, but they just got way too complacent in this game. After taking their lead, they punted on their next three drives and let Pittsburgh score every time. They should clinch a playoff spot next week against Jacksonville, though.
- Chicago Bears
Last Week: 41-17 win @ JAX
Trending: ↑3
Next Week: 1/3 vs GB
Alright, I’m taking the bait. The Bears offense looks great right now. We keep waiting for this hot streak to end, but it doesn’t. David Montgomery is finding running lanes. While Mitch Trubisky makes his two or three dumb throws every game, he looks good overall. This team might not actually make the playoffs, but they deserve it more than Arizona at this point.
- Los Angeles Rams
Last Week: 9-20 loss vs SEA
Trending: ↓1
Next Week: 1/3 vs ARI
Jared Goff broke his thumb during this game; however, before that happened, he still didn’t play well. Between sliding behind the first down marker and an ugly interception, Goff lost the Rams plenty of opportunities in the first half.
- Washington Football Team
Last Week: 13-20 loss vs CAR
Trending:—
Next Week: 1/3 @ PHI
Dwayne Haskins didn’t play well against the Panthers. There is hope, though, because Taylor Heinicke was better. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to get out of the hole that Haskins had already dug with his three turnovers. Washington finds themselves in a must-win situation next week because of that; they’ve also cut the 15th overall pick in last year’s draft.
- Miami Dolphins
Last Week: 26-25 win @ LV
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 @ BUF
The disparity between Tua and Ryan Fitzpatrick is staggering at this point. The offense flows so much better with Fitzpatrick, and while that’s good for this season’s playoff chase, Miami fans should be getting a little nervous about the quarterback they chose fifth overall in the draft.
- Arizona Cardinals
Last Week: 12-20 loss vs SF
Trending: ↓4
Next Week: 1/3 @ LAR
Kliff Kingsbury’s coaching decisions have not gotten enough scrutiny from me this season. Kyler Murray should not have thrown the ball 50 times this week. I know San Francisco’s run defense is very good, but they should have tried harder to establish their ground game before forcing Murray into difficult passing situations. Not only that, but DeAndre Hopkins has been contained for large portions of Arizona’s recent games.
- Los Angeles Chargers
Last Week: 19-16 win vs DEN
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 @ KC
Justin Herbert is officially the record holder for touchdown passes by a rookie quarterback. While this season has been full of heartbreak and disappointment, the future is certainly bright for this team and their young star.
- San Francisco 49ers
Last Week: 20-12 win @ ARI
Trending: ↑3
Next Week: 1/3 vs SEA
I continue to be at a loss with this Niners team, specifically on offense. Jeff Wilson has gone from unstoppable, to very stoppable, back to unstoppable over the past few weeks, and Kyle Shanahan keeps mixing things up.
- Dallas Cowboys
Last Week: 37-17 win vs PHI
Trending: ↑3
Next Week: 1/3 @ NYG
Ezekiel Elliott must have read my power rankings last week saying that Dallas looked better with Tony Pollard. Well, this week Elliott came back with a vengeance and took over the reins in the backfield. The Cowboys are suddenly very much alive in this NFC East race.
- Philadelphia Eagles
Last Week: 17-37 loss @ DAL
Trending: ↓3
Next Week: 1/3 vs WSH
This was the first game that Jalen Hurts struggled at quarterback, and his defense wasn’t there to back him up. Philly has a quarterback choice next season.
- Las Vegas Raiders
Last Week: 25-26 loss vs MIA
Trending: ↓1
Next Week: 1/3 @ DEN
The karma from that victory lap around Arrowhead seems to have completely derailed the Raiders season to the point where a no look pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick has ended their playoff hopes. Derek Carr played well, and the defense did their job for the most part. This was just bad luck.
- Minnesota Vikings
Last Week: 33-52 loss @ NO
Trending: ↓3
Next Week: 1/3 @ DET
Minnesota’s offense is fine, but their defense has played atrociously the past couple weeks. It’s a shame given that with a win, they could have been very much alive for the playoffs. That said, it’s time for a very long and busy offseason to begin in Minnesota.
- Denver Broncos
Last Week: 16-19 loss @ LAC
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 vs LV
Drew Lock can’t be counted on as the quarterback of the future in Denver, but at least the Broncos know that now (hopefully). That said, the defense is still really good moving forward.
- Cincinnati Bengals
Last Week: 37-31 win @ HOU
Trending: ↑3
Next Week: 1/3 vs BAL
The Bengals are ending their season on a high note, which is promising. The offense has looked fluid over the past couple weeks. With Joe Burrow coming back next season, it should look even better.
- Houston Texans
Last Week: 31-37 loss vs CIN
Trending: ↓2
Next Week: 1/3 vs TEN
Deshaun Watson needs help; that’s all there is to it. The defense cannot consistently give up this many points and expect to win any more than they have this year. JJ Watt put it best during his post game press conference, basically saying the team should be embarrassed.
- New England Patriots
Last Week: 9-38 loss vs BUF
Trending: ↓1
Next Week: 1/3 vs NYJ
The Patriots just need to go home this offseason, lick their wounds, and figure out how to improve this team for the 2021 season. Who knows what the quarterback situation will be, but Cam Newton is clearly not New England’s Tom Brady replacement that they were hoping for.
- New York Giants
Last Week: 13-27 loss @ BAL
Trending: ↓1
Next Week: 1/3 vs DAL
There isn’t much this team could have done against Baltimore with how well that group is playing. The Giants may need to eventually give some attention to their quarterback situation, but it should wait until after we see Saquon Barkley come back next year.
- Carolina Panthers
Last Week: 20-13 win @ WSH
Trending: —
Next Week: 1/3 vs NO
I feel very similarly towards this Panthers team as the Giants. Until their star running back makes a full return to this lineup, it’s too early to evaluate where they truly are in the rebuilding process.
- Atlanta Falcons
Last Week: 14-17 loss vs KC
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 @ TB
The Falcons Falcon’d. That’s all there is to say. The defense dropped a game winning interception, and Younghoe Koo missed his first field goal of under 40 yards at the worst possible time.
- New York Jets
Last Week: 23-17 win vs CLE
Trending: ↑1
Next Week: 1/3 @ NE
I mentioned this in the Cleveland section, but I feel like the main reason New York won this game is because of their lack of wide receivers. Still, it’s good to see the Jets playing good football together.
- Detroit Lions
Last Week: 7-47 loss vs TB
Trending: ↓2
Next Week: 1/3 vs MIN
If nothing before this has, then this should ultimately prove how valuable Matthew Stafford is to the Lions.
- Jacksonville Jaguars
Last Week: 17-41 loss vs CHI
Trending: —
Next Week: 1/3 @ IND
The Jags have won the Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes and still played competitive football through most of the season. It wasn’t until the second half of this game where we could really see the tanking come through.