A lot of shifting around this week in the NFL. Giants upset the Seahawks. The nameless team in Washington ended the Steelers undefeated season. I have to shoutout the 1972 Dolphins as the only team to have a perfect record. You might hate it but I can’t hear over the sound of the champagne bottles popping. Nevertheless, let’s see where I have everyone this week.
Is The Season Over Yet?
32. New York Jets
So close yet so far away. They almost did it. Despite what many think, this was not a tank job. Gregg Williams didn’t sacrifice his job for the betterment of this dumpster fire of an organization. I do feel bad for the players though. They bust their butt every week and they can’t even get their coach to call a comprehensible coverage. This seemed like their last chance.
31. Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals lost again. Zac Taylor stinks. Their line gave up six sacks. Brandon Allen played like a backup. Their defense was alright. Not a good team.
30. Philadelphia Eagles
Carson Wentz might be done in Philly. Doug Pederson is either going to get fired or quit before he gets fired. Zero continuity within the offense. The defense has played alright, but they are still not very good.
Slightly Above Terrible
29. Jacksonville Jaguars
For the sixth time the Jags have lost by one score or less. And this is the fourth time they have lost by three points or less. They seem primed to pull one of these out before the season is over–we are looking at you Chicago. Mike Glennon has been playing adequately. They have a good young nucleus.
28. Dallas Cowboys
Poorly coached across the board. The defense has once again played like they added zero resources to their unit this past off-season. No rhythm on offense. Bad team.
27. Los Angeles Chargers
This team might have the worst special teams unit of all time. Herbert plays poorly again. Except this week he just played bad to where he can’t make a critical mistake late in the game. Anthony Lynn coached like he has four games left.
Bad But Competitive
26. Denver Broncos
Credit to Denver. They have faced a lot of different circumstances and are still staying competitive. However, when you do start questioning if Lock is the long-term answer? I know a lot of people have already stated they don’t believe in him.
25. Detroit Lions
Detroit gets that one game boost that usually comes when the head coach has been fired. With games against Green Bay, Tennessee, Tampa Bay, and Minnesota we will get to see if it was really Patricia that was holding them back. Or maybe they are just a deeply flawed team.
24. Chicago Bears
I am not even sure what to say at this point. The Bears might have to clean house. Because this team is freefalling.
23. Carolina Panthers
The new Panther era might not have had the season they were imaging, but they have shown a lot of promise. A lot of young talent on the defense. They have some good receivers and one of the best running backs in football. They just need to find a quarterback who is more capable of creating explosive pass plays.
The NFC East Contenders
22. Washington Football Team
Big time win for the team with no name–yes I know I said that already. Alex Smith seems to be the right guy for this season. The defense is already borderline elite. Ron Rivera showing that culture is important. I like this teams future.
21. New York Giants
A lot of people owe Joe Judge an apology. Because there was a lot of unfair things said about him on why he got this job over other candidates. Obviously we have no idea on what the future holds, but right now a lot of people have egg on their face. That’s all I have to really say.
Spoiling Someone’s Season
20. Atlanta Falcons
Again after another slow start by this team, all they have left to play for is their pride and the chance to spoil someone’s season. Seeing as they have the Bucs twice they can definitely decimate the Bucs chances at making the playoffs. They also have the Chiefs and can ruin their chances at having a first-round bye thanks to the expanded playoffs.
19. Houston Texans
Like the Falcons, their season is over. However, they have Deshaun Watson. They will be in every game. They have Tennessee and Indianapolis left as far as whose season they can spoiler. In such a tight race a loss to this Texans team might be the thing that keeps you at home in January.
On The Bubble
18. San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers have hanged tough after a slew of injuries that has impacted this team from the get-go. Their next games are Washington and Dallas. Those two games will determine if their last two games against Arizona and Seattle will have any meaning for them.
17. Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders are very lucky that Gregg Williams is just the biggest idiot there is. They are in the hunt, but definitely the least likely to make the playoffs of all the teams who are fighting for the wild card.
16. New England Patriots
Crazy how there was a point where they were 2-5 and the Bills were 6-2. Now with four weeks left they are still mathematically alive for the division title. They’ll still need multiple meltdowns between the Raiders, Dolphins, Ravens, and Colts or Titans to make the playoffs. But credit to them for hanging around when everyone thought they should tank the rest of the season.
15. Arizona Cardinals
I was willing to take the L for saying Kingsbury was a terrible hire because he essentially failed into a better job. However, if it weren’t for the “Hail Murray” the Cardinals would be on a 5 game losing streak. They are already out of the playoff picture when just a few weeks ago it looked like they could win the toughest division in football. When do we start looking at the head coach?
14. Minnesota Vikings
Remember when I said “Don’t look now but the Vikings are one game back of the 7th seed”? Well, they are in the 7th seed now. While it is still unlikely they make the playoffs you really have tip your cap to Mike Zimmer for getting his team to keep playing and playing well.
13. Baltimore Ravens
Next week will go a long way in determining if they are a legit playoff team. They spanked Cleveland in the opener. However, Cleveland has found their strive offensively while Baltimore has really been up and down.
Sitting Pretty…For Now
12. Tampa Bay Bucs
Fitting that Tom Brady is on the 12th best team, in my opinion. The Bucs have really seemed to hit a wall after they seemed like they were the best team in the NFC. With two matchups with Atlanta and one against Minnesota they certainly won’t have an easy time clinching a playoff spot.
11. Seattle Seahawks
They certainly gave Russ the chance to cook, but he failed to cash in. Seattle has certainly regressing back to the mean now that Wilson is no longer putting up video game numbers.
10. Indianapolis Colts
The Colts have given 17, 28, 35, and 20 points respectively in the first half of their last four games and are 3-1 in those games. They are playing with fire right now as polarizing play by Philip Rivers won’t be able to save them every week. They still have the Raiders and Steelers that are seen as playoff matchups. Then they still have Houston, who nearly pulled the upset this week. So if I am the Colts I am trying to play more completely games because they are hanging on the 7th seed by a thread.
9. Tennessee Titans
The Titans have also had a case of playing two completely different halves in recent weeks. The silver lining behind this past week is that they turned a 31 point halftime deficit into a six point loss. Knowing they can make up that kind of ground rather quickly could give them confidence in a game where the deficit is a bit more manageable. With that being said, even though they are leading the division they still don’t have much room for error in these last four weeks.
8. Buffalo Bills
The offense has seemed to find their stride again. Their defense has found their stride. But they will certainly battle-tested in the last four games. With matchups against the Steelers, Patriots, and Dolphins they are also in a position where they can win the division or miss the playoffs entirely.
7. Miami Dolphins
Much like the three previous teams, the Dolphins are also in a position where they can win the division or miss the playoffs entirely. Their last four games include the Chiefs, Raiders, Patriots, and Bills. The toughest four game stretch in the NFL. We will really get to see what this team is made of.
6. Cleveland Browns
Really the only team outside of Pittsburgh and Kansas City I can say with confidence will actually make the playoffs. Their win against Tennessee was absolutely a massive one when it comes to their playoff chances as now they have a two games lead with four games. And one of those games is against the Jets…
5. Los Angeles Rams
I can’t quite figure out where to put the Rams. Last week they were ranked 11th, but they beat the Cardinals after being upset by the 49ers. They are also probably a safe bet to not only make the playoff, but to win the division with Seattle regressing.
Super Bowl Contenders
4. Green Bay Packers
Not sure why I decided to the Packers in this tier this week. Beating the Eagles was hardly an accomplishment, but I think I have seen enough of Aaron Rodgers this year to say they can a Super Bowl.
3. Pittsburgh Steelers
The lack of explosiveness and consistency has finally gotten to them. Again, shoutout to the 1972 Dolphins to remain the only perfect team in NFL history. With that being said, the Steelers are still the 1st seed, but with matchups against the Bills, Colts, and Browns, they have to start finding some more offense or they will lose that 1st seed really quick.
2. New Orleans Saints
A scare this week, but the Saints have collected their ninth win in a row and are one of only two teams who have clinched a playoff spot–can you guess who the other team is? The Saints defense didn’t play at an elite level like they have been the last 5 weeks or so, but still got three sacks and one fumble recovery against Matt Ryan. They are still my favorites to come out of the NFC.
1.Kansas City Chiefs
With the Steelers finally losing we can stop pretending who the best team in the NFL is. However, they are still trailing the Steelers for the top spot in the AFC. If they can manage to get by the red-hot Dolphins and Saints, all they really need is one Steeler loss to get that coveted bye week.
