32. Raiders. They are still the worst team in the NFL. They don't look like a team that wants to be out there and they couldn't find a way to limit Lamar Jackson. At least Jon Gruden took accountability for this loss, unlike previously throughout the season.
31. 49ers. Looks like the NFL has finally figured out Nick Mullens. I never thought I'd see the day, but I guess it finally has happened. What a shame...If Mullens can't lead the 49ers then who will? Oh wait, Jimmy G is out with a torn ACL. Yeah, they were supposed to be here this season. I will say this though. This is the first game I saw (albeit still stuffed from pumpkin pie) where I felt like this team didn't bring the intensity they needed.
30. Jets. A tale as old as time itself. The Jets have momentum and the Jets then go on to lose handily to the Patriots. The Jets played poorly enough to make the Pats looked like they solved all of their issues. Problematic to say the least.
29. Cardinals. They started out the first quarter up 10-0! If they could have ended the game there then that would have suited the Cardinals. Instead, Phillip Rivers had the best game of his career and picked them apart. Josh Rosen also did his best to replicate Sam Bradford by going 12-19 with 105 passing yards (that's 8.75 yards per pass).
28. Giants. Saquon went off in the first half. Odell had a good first half too! Then apparently the Giants intentionally went away from them? Sounds crazy right? This is what tanking looks like. Purposely not using your best players to help you win a game that was very winnable.
27. Dolphins. Is there any team that makes you want to turn off the TV quicker than watching the Dolphins play? Whether it's the Brocketship or Tannehill. Both are just boring enough to make me want to look away from the TV. If Andrew Luck wasn't slinging it there's no way I would have kept this game on.
26. Buccaneers. The Bucs played defense and protected the ball on Sunday. I literally cannot believe my eyes. They limited the 49ers to 9 points and Jameis Winston had one of his best games of the year. I'm guessing that this win will lead to another win which lead to a 7-9 season which will allow Dirk Koetter to keep his job.
25. Jaguars. Blake Bortles is their problem on offense. Leonard Fournette getting thrown out in the 3rd quarter is their problem on offense. Their defense not finding a way to stop Josh Allen is a problem for their defense. There are some major problems all around and each person deserves some blame (obviously more than others). I don't think they need to blow up their team or that they have any major chemistry issues. I do think they should pursue another QB like Matthew Stafford, as suggested by Peter King.
24. Bills. The Bills aren't that bad and if Josh Allen can eventually become the QB who plays like he did this week throughout his career, then the Bills will be just fine. They also won their revenge game against the Jags today to avenge their loss from the playoffs last year! They're also ahead of the Jaguars now in my rankings. The Bills are looking up.
23. Falcons. The Falcons not knowing how to score in the Redzone is absolutely incredible. They have all the weapons they need to win more games and have one of the best offenses in the NFL, they just can't put it together. Calvin Ridley fumbling on the 1-yard line Thursday was the epitome of their failures to score the football. Another stat here that I found interesting: Matt Ryan has a 71.3% completion percentage on the season, but when he gets within 20 yards his percentage drops to 50% and within 10 yards it drops to 44%. The stats certainly reflect what I have been seeing as well.
22. Lions. This game was so long ago that I forgot it happened. That's good for the Lions because I forgot that they lost to a team on 3 days rest and had a backup QB starting. I guess I remember that now. If the Falcons didn't play worse than them on Thursday then I would remember the Lions loss more.
21. Bengals. Are the Bengals the worst defense in the NFL? Let's find out. Over the past five weeks they have given up 45, 37, 51, 24, and 35 points. They have given up 439 yards per game, a total of 347 points, and surrender 31.5 points per game. Each one of those stats are the worst in the NFL. So yes, they have the worst defense in the NFL. Is it the worst of all time? Yes as well. No other team has given up as many points per game as them. The closest was the 2009 Lions who surrendered 30.9 points per game. That team went 0-16. So basically the Bengals' defense is worse than the 0-16 Lions. Not a good look and certainly not a good defense.
20. Browns. Baker Mayfield is really good! I know that sounds obvious, especially after this week, but he continues to wake up and feel dangerous. The Browns have had Rookies of the Week basically ever week since the start of the season. They have won 7 of the 12 this season and Baker has won 2 individually. They embarrassed Hue Jackson in his debut (again) for Cincinnati and they dragged defenders in to the Endzone on Sunday. They have swagger and are fun to watch. I can't declare them good yet, but they certainly can get there if they keep playing this way.
19. Packers. They have the same record as the Browns. Aaron Rodgers looks deflated. Mike McCarthy doesn't now what to do. Also Aaron Rodgers's bathroom is continually being set on fire by his agent. It's a really a sad scene. The Packers are basically out of the playoff race at this point...Also why has there never been a State Farm crossover with Chris Paul and Aaron Rodgers. I feel like that would be fire.
18. Broncos. The Broncos have had a good few weeks here. They beat the Chargers last week and they beat the Steelers this week. It helps that they played at home, but both wins are impressive nonetheless. They still can make plays defensively (it also helps when Ben throws the ball straight at the defense, although he is not the first to do that). Lindsay has turned into a really good starting runningback and I am consistently surprised at how people miss on players like this in the draft.
17. Titans. The Titans aren't fun to watch. They're a lot like the Dolphins in that sense. No matter who their QB is, they look predictable and lack inspiration. They were man-handled by the Texans on Monday night and essentially surrendered the division to them.
16. Eagles. The Eagles had a depleted secondary this weekend, yet they still found ways to limit the Giants and (maybe in due to Giants' coaching) managed to take Barkley and Beckham Jr. both out of the game in the second half. The Eagles limited the Giants to three points in the second half and were able to hang on to fight for the division title as a result.
15. Redskins. I'm so happy the Redskins didn't just run away with the NFC East. I love competition and chaos. Tiebreakers, head to heads, and constant schedule debates are what football fans live for this time of year and the fact that the Eagles, Skins, and Cowboys all have a legit shot at the division title is amazing. I think the Redskins are perfectly capable of finishing the season 3-2 and winning the division still, but currently the Cowboys are better than them and the Redskins are just ahead of the Eagles in my rankings.
14. Cowboys. How about them Cowboys? Amari Cooper looks like a legitimate option as a number one receiver and the Cowboys are clicking both on offense and defense. Their defense looks good thanks to 8-man football player from Riggins, Idaho Leighton Vander Esch and the coaching looks better as a result of both sides of the ball looking good. I still think an 8-8 season is in the works with a quick Wild Card weekend exit in a loss to the Seahawks or Panthers if either make it.
13. Panthers. The Panthers would like a reset of November please. Their last win was November 4th against the Bucs and ever since then everything we have praised them for, they have lacked. They surrendered over 50 points to the Steelers and then lost two close games to NFC teams that they should be better than. Their schedule is crucial these next five weeks if they want a shot at the playoffs. They play the Bucs, Browns, and Falcons, but also play the Saints twice. They catch the Saints in Week 17 so they can hope that the Saints don't care by then, but I wouldn't bank on that. The Panthers need to be like the Texans and figure out how to win close games. Not lose them as they have of late.
12. Seahawks. Who would you want with the game on the line? If your answer is Russell Wilson then I would completely agree with you. I would take him over Aaron Rodgers and even Tom Brady as of now. His ability to consistently extend plays and make miracles happen out of nothing is truly impressive and borders on inspiring at times. The once dead in the water Seahawks from a few weeks ago against the Rams have had a resurgence and are a dangerous team to play the rest of the way.
11. Ravens. Lamar Jackson is not a better passer than Joe Flacco. That being said, he is way more fun to watch than Flacco ever was. Jackson's ability to run around and fix once broken plays brings a much needed element of unpredictability that their offense was lacking before. I don't want to overreact just yet because I know this game was against the Raiders, but I feel like it's okay to say the Ravens have someone special in Lamar Jackson.
10. Vikings. They had that Sunday night game wrapped up by mid 4th quarter and looked like an entirely different team than they did last Sunday against the Bears. The dome probably helped a lot. Aaron Rodgers's teammates fumbling at the most crucial of moments helped as well. I will give some credit to the Vikings though. Their offense continues to roll with Thielen being their primary option and Stefon Diggs outrunning every defender who tries to tackle him on wide receiver screens.
9. Steelers. That was a tough loss in Denver and Big Ben throwing 5 picks in 2 weeks is certainly problematic. However, I am not dropping them out of the top 10 because they still had a 6 game winning streak before this most recent loss and were bound to let us down eventually.
8. Colts. Andrew Luck for MVP and Comeback Player of the Year? He's definitely in the driver's seat for CPOY and he certainly has a case for MVP. He looks really good again thanks to his now, incredible offensive line. They have allowed him to throw at least 3 touchdowns per game for eight games in a row now. The Colts have won 5 straight as a result and are cooking on offense.
7. Chargers. Phillip Rivers is another MVP candidate after he had perhaps the greatest game of his career on Sunday. His 25 straight completions to start the game was next to improbable. His finished with 28 of 29 passes completed and somehow still didn't have a perfect QBR. I truly don't understand that stat. That's for another day, but the Chargers rebounded nicely this week after a bad loss last week.
6. Bears. Chase Daniel doubled his career touchdown total in one game and put the Bears in the driver's seat in the NFC North ( I can't believe I've used that expression twice today). Anyway, the Bears won a tough game on the road and they are so close to being in the top 5 for me. If there wasn't another team in New England that had a better win then the Bears would be there.
5. Patriots. As I mentioned above, New England seemed to have fixed every problem ever on Sunday and are now firmly in second place in the AFC playoff race. This is also the time of year when the Pats come off their bye week and rattle off 5 wins in a row to end the year. They have a tough three weeks ahead (vs Vikings next week and at Pittsburgh three weeks from now), but besides those two tough games, every game for the rest of the year is against the AFC East which the Patriots own.
4. Texans. They finally won a game convincingly on Monday night, and unless the Colts have another 4 game win streak in them, locked up the AFC South. The Texans are rolling. They look like the team we all predicted them to be to start the year and my ego is happy as a result because they didn't prove me wrong.
3. Chiefs. Off this week.
2. Rams. I can't believe both of these teams were off this week!
1. Saints. They absolutely dismantled the Falcons on Thursday night. As I sat in front of the television eating turkey, I saw Drew Brees throw touchdowns to four players who I was convinced had made up names and were created players. Brees's brilliance was on display on Thanksgiving as he cooked the Falcons for dinner.
All stats and info found on NFL.com, Pro Football Reference, and ESPN.con
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