NFL Power Rankings, Week 12

Eleven weeks into the season and we still have an undefeated team and a team with no wins. It’s a little bit like last year except nobody seems to think the Titans are as dominant as the Pats, or the Lions as miserable as the Dolphins. But the last few weeks will answer some of those questions. And others, like where did the Buffalo team from the first four weeks go? And which Colts team will show up as the season wears on?

So here's my take:

TEAM
1. Tennessee Titans (10-0)	Another week, another victory. The only difference this time was that the Titans WRs put up massive numbers. Well, Justin Gage at least. They are winning games in all different ways.
2. NY Giants (9-1)	If it wasn’t for the Titans everybody would be talking about the Giants. While the Titans squeeze out close wins, the Giants just blow teams away.
3. Carolina Panthers (8-2)	They are not exactly pounding weak competition lately, but wins are wins. With eight of them in the bag, they are looking to start securing a playoff bye.
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-3)	When Big Ben doesn’t turn the ball over the Steelers are a tough team to beat. It was an ugly win, but that defense will make other teams look bad often.
5. Tampa Bay Bucs (7-3)	They got the win, but with Earnest Graham lost for the season, that’s a huge weight to put on the tiny shoulders of Warrick Dunn. I don’t know if he can still handle it.
6. Arizona Cardinals (7-3)	The receivers keep rotating the big games, but as long as all three of them are on the field, it’s going to be a tough task for any team to shut down this offense.
7. Washington Redskins (6-4)	They’ve seen a very promising season suddenly take a turn towards a potential postseason at home. Campbell needs to step back up and lead this team in the right direction.
8. NY Jets (7-3)	I still won’t say I’m a believer, but with the defense playing the way it has, there has been far less pressure on Favre to put the Jets on his back. Which is a good thing.
9. Indianapolis Colts (6-4)	They may have finally taken a permanent step in the direction of being a solid team again. Of course, they could very easily take another step backwards this week.
10. New England Patriots (6-4)	Matt Cassell is starting to look like an NFL starting quarterback more and more every week. Now if they could only find a running game to help him out.
11. Atlanta Falcons (6-4)	Could have put themselves firmly in the playoff picture with a win against the Broncos. They’ve been there before, but getting there this year would be something special.
12. Miami Dolphins (6-4)	They certainly don’t look pretty going it, but the Dolphins continue to win games and are proving that a solid running game can make up for deficiencies elsewhere.
13. GB Packers (5-5)	I don’t think many people saw that coming. A thirty-four point trouncing of the Bears keeps the Packers moving in the right direction.
14. Dallas Cowboys (6-4)	Well Romo wasn’t pretty, but he made the plays when he needed to, which is more than can be said for the guys that replaced him while he was out.
15. Philadelphia Eagles (5-4-1)	Its bad enough to be the first team to tie a game in the NFL in years. It makes it even harder to take when you tie a team that has barely shown a pulse.
16. Baltimore Ravens (6-4)	Ran into a big test against the Giants and failed miserably. I wonder if John Harbaugh even knows what is going on with his running backs at this point.
17. Denver Broncos (6-4)	Kept themselves alive with a big win over Atlanta led by another new rushing leader in former college FB Peyton Hillis. Do they keep more RBs on their roster than every other team combined?
18. Buffalo Bills (5-5)	Just when everybody started talking about how great Trent Edwards was looking, he reverted back to the type of QB the Bills are used to, immobile, inaccurate and with no confidence to speak of.
19. Minnesota Vikings (5-5)	This is a team whose defense and running attack are built to lead them to the postseason, but if they can’t be a consistent passing game going that is never going to happen.
20. New Orleans Saints (5-5)	Another win at the right time keeps the Saints in the picture, but Marques Colston needs to show that his thumb is no longer a problem if they are going to take it to the next level.
21. Cleveland Browns (4-6)	Win number one for Brady Quinn. The kid sure looked good, but the Browns have shown a scary inability to put games away when they have big leads.
22. Chicago Bears (5-5)	Not the statement the Bears wanted to make when they took on the Packers. They have some time left, but they need to move past that game quickly.
23. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-6)	Didn’t necessarily want to run into the Titans while trying to build some momentum off last weeks win. Now they need to start all over again.
24. Houston Texans (3-7)	Playing in the division with the Colts is a good barometer for a team’s progress. Right now the Texans just can’t seem to get over that hump.
25. SD Chargers (3-6)	Tough loss against the Steelers and a really random score. But its been a pretty random year for a team that most people thought could contend for a Super Bowl birth.
26. SF 49ers (3-7)	Climb out of the basement another step after taking on the Rams. They are really only a good, consistent QB away from being a playoff team.
27. Seattle Seahawks (2-9)	Hung tough with the Cardinals, but these teams aren’t even in the same league right now. The Seahawks are just a mess.
28. St. Louis Rams (2-8)	All the promise from those two wins in a row has vanished into thin air now. As has the performance of Donnie Avery. Where has he gone?
29. Oakland Raiders (2-8)	Oakland is simply very bad at putting the ball into the other teams endzone right now. Its unfortunate for them that that’s a very important part of winning football games.
30. Cincinnati Bengals (1-8-1)	Well, a tie isn’t a loss, so that’s one thing to be proud of. In fact it might be the other thing this once potent offense has to keep their heads up over.
31. KC Chiefs (1-8)	Well, they didn’t blow this lead, but they still lost another game. Good thing for them the Bills might be playing even worse football at the moment.
32. Detroit Lions (0-10)	They continue to keep teams close, but can’t seem to find that mythical win. Culpepper didn’t look too bad and he might be the one to help them overcome that obstacle.

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NFL Power Rankings, Week 12