NFL Power Rankings Week 14: Seahawks Reassert Status as NFL's Best Team

1.       Seattle Seahawks (11-1)                                                  Last Week: 1

Russell Wilson improved to 14-0 at CenturyLink Field, throwing for 310 yards and three touchdowns in Seattle’s blowout victory over New Orleans. Wilson posted a 139.6 passer rating as the Seahawks clinched a postseason berth for the second straight season. The Seahawks can seize the NFC West crown with a win at San Francisco this Sunday.

2.       Denver Broncos (10-2)                                                   Last Week: 3

The Broncos wrapped up the AFC West for all intents and purposes with their second win over the Chiefs in three weeks. Denver is also on the fast track to home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs, given their favorable schedule.

3.       New England Patriots (9-3)                                          Last Week: 4

The Patriots one-two-TE/Slot-WR-punch is back in action with Rob Gronkowski returning to his All-Pro form and Julian Edelman providing a steady dose of yards after the catch. Gronkowski caught six passes for a game-high 127 receiving yards and a TD, while Edelman hauled in nine receptions for 101 yards in the Patriots’ comeback win.

4.       Carolina Panthers (9-3)                                                  Last Week: 6

Dual-threat QB Cam Newton rushed for 68 yards and a touchdown on five carries, and completed 19 of 28 passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns. The defense for the Panthers, now #1 in the league, continued their hot play by disrupting Tampa Bay QB Mike Glennon all game. The Panthers sacked Glennon five times, forcing a fumble and an interception with the latter courtesy of safety Mike Mitchell.

5.       New Orleans Saints (9-3)                                              Last Week: 2

The Saints looked overwhelmed on offense and defense in their demoralizing 34-7 loss to the Seahawks. They will have to play far better in their Sunday night showdown versus the Panthers at the Superdome with first-place in the NFC South on the line.

6.       Kansas City Chiefs (9-3)                                                 Last Week: 5

The Chiefs certainly don’t look like a championship caliber team anymore. After building a 21-7 lead, they were outgained 356 yards to 97 by the Broncos as K.C. dropped their third straight contest following their 9-0 start to the season.

7.       Cincinnati Bengals (8-4)                                                 Last Week: 7

Andy Dalton continued his inconsistent play on Sunday against the Chargers, quivering to a 5-for-10 (1 interception), 41-yard, 21.2-passer rating performance in the first half. Dalton was able to make second half strides, completing nine of his final 13 passes for 149 yards and a critical touchdown toss to A.J. Green in the third quarter of the Bengals’ 17-10 win. It was an encouraging sign that Dalton did not turn the ball over after intermission, but it is concerning that his 44.4 QBR was his best mark since Week 9 versus the Jets.

8.       San Francisco 49ers (8-4)                                              Last Week: 9

Michael Crabtree’s presence in the 49ers lineup was felt in his first game of the season as he caught two passes for 68 yards and opened up receiving routes for Vernon Davis (4 receptions, 82 yards, 1 TD) and Anquan Boldin (9 receptions, 98 yards).

9.       Dallas Cowboys (7-5)                                                      Last Week: 8

Tony Romo improved his incredulous career record in November to 24-5 by taking down the Raiders on Thanksgiving. How will Romo fare now that the calendar has flipped to December? His career December record is a middling 11-15. However, Romo has enjoyed recent success in the month of December. Romo has thrown 27 touchdown passes and only 5 interceptions in 13 December games since 2009.

10.   Philadelphia Eagles (7-5)                                               Last Week: 11

Nick Foles belongs in the MVP conversation after leading the Eagles to their fourth straight victory. Foles needs to throw just two more touchdown passes to break Peyton Manning's NFL record of 20 touchdown passes without an interception. Dating back to last season, Foles has thrown 233 passes without an interception.

11.   Detroit Lions (7-5)                                                            Last Week: 13

The Lions now own a stranglehold on the NFC North by blasting the Packers 40-10 on Thanksgiving.

12.   Indianapolis Colts (8-4)                                                  Last Week: 12

The Colts are just a win away from winning the NFC South, but their inability to run the ball effectively (20^th in rushing offense) or stop the run (28^th in rushing defense) could doom a club that appears headed towards a second-straight one-and-done in the postseason.

13.   Arizona Cardinals (7-5)                                                   Last Week: 10

Carson Palmer reverted to his turnover-prone ways on Sunday, coughing up a fumble on the third play of the contest and throwing two interceptions in the Cardinals’ narrow loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

14.   Baltimore Ravens (6-6)                                                  Last Week: 17

The Ravens have utilized fast-starts to capture three wins in their past four contests. In the past four games, the Ravens have outscored teams 30-3 in the first quarter.

15.   Miami Dolphins (6-6)                                                      Last Week: 20

The Dolphins proved they are the second-best team in the AFC East after crushing the Jets...Can Miami make a playoff run? A win over the Steelers on Sunday is a must and then they must take care of business in their AFC East rematches against Buffalo (4-8) and New York Jets (5-7) to make the postseason for the first time since 2008.

16.   Pittsburgh Steelers (5-7)                                               Last Week: 15

The Steelers played listless in their Thanksgiving night loss to the Ravens… Head coach Mike Tomlin should be ashamed of himself for the stunt he pulled on the kickoff returned by Jacoby Jones. The Steelers may be forced to forfeit a draft pick as a result of Tomlin’s boneheaded actions and that may be the perfect lesson to keep the snide head coach in line.

17.   Chicago Bears (6-6)                                                         Last Week: 14

The Bears incompetence in containing the run has been exposed week-after-week this season. Adrian Peterson burned the Bears #32 ranked rushing defense for 211 yards. After bowing out to the Vikings in overtime, the Bears essentially must win-out in order to reach the postseason.

18.   San Diego Chargers (5-7)                                              Last Week: 16

The Chargers are in must-win mode after dropping four of their past five contests. San Diego plays three of their final four games in 2013 at home, but the Chargers are just 2-3 at Qualcomm Stadium this season…On a positive note, Philip Rivers’ 252-yard game versus the Bengals gave him 3,633 passing yards for the season, making him one of six players in NFL history to throw for at least 3,500 yards for six consecutive seasons.

19.   St. Louis Rams (5-7)                                                         Last Week: 18

The Rams lost on Sunday, yet their organization has to be in good spirits after the Redskins dropped their fourth consecutive contest. If the season ended today, the Rams would own the No. 3 overall pick in the 2014 draft as a result of the Robert Griffin III trade from two years ago.

20.   New York Giants (5-7)                                                    Last Week: 26

A week after their playoff aspirations were shattered by the division-rival Cowboys, the Giants were able to display a spirited performance on "Sunday Night Football" in their win over the Washington Redskins.

21.   Tennessee Titans (5-7)                                                  Last Week: 21

The Titans fought hard on Sunday, but ultimately fell short against the Colts due to a lack of offensive firepower. The Titans will likely miss the playoffs for the fifth straight season, clouding the future of Mike Munchak and Jake Locker in Tennessee.

22.   Green Bay Packers (5-6-1)                                           Last Week: 19

The Packers are now 0-4-1 in contests that Aaron Rodgers did not start and finish. With the Packers’ playoff hopes all but finished, should Green Bay shut down the 2011 MVP and Super-Bowl Champion QB for the rest of the season?

23.   New York Jets (5-7)                                                         Last Week: 22

For the second straight year, the Jets are faced with a quarterback controversy that appears forlorn no matter who owns the starting gig. Geno Smith completed only 4 of 10 passes for 29 yards with an interception (his 23rd turnover of the season) in the Jets’ 23-6 loss to the Dolphins at MetLife Stadium. He has led the offense to only one touchdown in his last 36 possessions, a major reason he was benched in the second half of Sunday’s contest in favor of Matt Simms.

24.   Oakland Raiders (4-8)                                                     Last Week: 28

Matt McGloin has earned the starting QB job for the Raiders, despite struggling mightily in the second half of their Thanksgiving day loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

25.   Cleveland Browns (4-8)                                                 Last Week: 23

Josh Gordon became the first player in NFL history with 200 or more receiving yards in back-to-back games after catching 10 passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns on Sunday. His 498 receiving yards in the last 2 games is also an NFL record. That being said, the Browns managed to lose in heartbreaking fashion to the Jaguars at the Dawgpound.

26.   Buffalo Bills (4-8)                                                              Last Week: 24

The Bills laid an egg in their annual home contest in Toronto, decimating their waning playoff dreams.

27.   Minnesota Vikings (3-8-1)                                            Last Week: 29

Adrian Peterson's 211-yard rushing performance helped him surpass 10,000 yards for his career in just 101 games,  the third fastest to achieve this mark behind Eric Dickerson and Jim Brown. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Peterson now has five games with at least 200 rushing yards, trailing only O.J. Simpson who had six such games in his career.

28.   Atlanta Falcons (3-9)                                                       Last Week: 30

The Falcons used a balanced offensive attack to win their first road contest of the season. Matt Ryan completed 28 of 47 passes for 311 yards and a touchdown, while Steven Jackson rushed for 84 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries. Antone Smith also added a 38-yard touchdown run in his lone carry. The defense finally came up with a critical play as William Moore stripped Bills TE Scott Chandler in overtime to set up an eventual game-winning, 36-yard field goal by Matt Bryant.

29.   Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-9)                                       Last Week: 25

Greg Schiano no longer has a secure grip on his job after the Buccaneers came out flat in a blowout loss against the Carolina Panthers.

30.   Jacksonville Jaguars (3-9)                                              Last Week: 31

The Jags have fought hard all season for head coach Gus Bradley and now the results are finally paying off, winning three (all on the road) of their past four contests. Can the Jags keep the good times rolling with upcoming home contests against the Texans (2-10), Bills (4-8) and Titans (5-7)?

31.   Washington Redskins (3-9)                                          Last Week: 27

Robert Griffin III played decent (24-32, 207 yards, 1 TD) on Sunday night, but not nearly good enough to compensate for the Redskins’ atrocious defense…Mike Shanahan appears to have four games (at most) left as the team’s head coach.

32.   Houston Texans (2-10)                                                  Last Week: 32

The Texans’ skid reached 10 games with their devastating loss to the Patriots. Defensive end Antonio Smith accused the Patriots of cheating, but in reality the Texans are just an inferior team that can’t finish out close games. (2-7 in games decided by 7 points or less)