In a year where a lot of teams that were hanging out near the bottom of the power ranks (like Miami, Jets, and Baltimore) last year are playing surprisingly well, there is a slow move heading back to the old guard, especially in the AFC, as some of the great teams of the past few years are finally starting to turn it on. The Steelers are now 10-3 and are looking good to get a first round bye after beating Dallas in an exciting game this week. They moved up to the #3 spot in the power ranks this week, and it gives me a chance to post a picture from the original Is It Sports? site. Remember when it was fun to make fun of Ben Roethlisberger’s crazy name? Ahh…2005.
The Colts dominated the Bengals to win their 6th in a row, moving them to #4, leapfrogging the Panthers who dropped to #5 despite getting a big win over Tampa Bay, who fell from #3 to #7. The Giants upset loss to the Eagles barely pulled the Titans back into #1 spot, and they could very well trade that spot back in forth over the next few weeks and into the playoffs. The Eagles benefited from that win by moving back into the top 10.
The Bottom 5 stayed the same and they still suck. The only thing to note is that if the Lions keep playing close games and the Rams keep getting blown out, there is a slim chance the Lions could finish #31 even if they go 0-16. I would have loved to see them play the Rams this year….
There wasn’t a ton of movement in the ranks this week. Pittsburgh, who I already mentioned, and New Orleans jumped 4 spots after they stayed alive in the NFC playoff race. The biggest losers were the Jets, who dropped 5 spots after losing to San Francisco and behind the Dolphins in the ranks, who are now my top AFC East team (who woulda thunk it?)
Projected Playoff Matchups:
AFC
Byes: #1 Titans, #3 Steelers
#4 Colts @ #20 Broncos
#6 Ravens @ #8 Dolphins
Top 3 Out: #14 Jets, #16 Patriots, #19 Texans
NFC
Byes: #2 Giants, #5 Panthers
#7 Buccaneers @ #15 Cardinals
#9 Eagles @ #13 Vikings
Top 3 Out: #10 Falcons, #11 Saints, #12 Cowboys
The Full Ranks:
1. Titans – 80.58 – +1
2. Giants – 80.30 – -1
3. Steelers – 74.39 – +4
4. Colts – 73.59 – +2
5. Panthers – 71.86 – -1
6. Ravens – 70.49 – -1
7. Buccaneers – 68.44 – -4
8. Dolphins – 64.64 – +3
9. Eagles – 63.60 – +3
10. Falcons – 59.11 – -2
11. Saints – 58.96 – +4
12. Cowboys – 57.92 – -2
13. Vikings – 57.19 – Even
14. Jets – 56.58 – -5
15. Cardinals – 54.67 – +1
16. Patriots – 53.95 – -2
17. Bears – 51.90 – +2
18. Redskins – 48.70 – -1
19. Texans – 48.64 – +2
20. Broncos – 48.55 – -2
21. Packers – 45.55 – -1
22. Chargers – 42.43 – +2
23. Browns – 41.83 – -1
24. Bills – 40.92 – -1
25. 49ers – 39.28 – +2
26. Jaguars – 30.67 – -1
27. Raiders – 29.51 – -1
28. Chiefs – 27.74 – Even
29. Bengals – 19.46 – Even
30. Seahawks – 18.72 – Even
31. Rams – 14.11 – Even
32. Lions – 12.35 – Even
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