- Mar 19, 2006
- 38,712
- 599
- 113
- 75
By Mike McAllister
ESPN.com
ESPN.com's Power Rankings
The rankings were determined by a poll of ESPN.com's NFL staff: writers John Clayton, Len Pasquarelli, Matt Mosley, Jeffri Chadiha and Mike Sando; Scouts Inc. Insiders Jeremy Green and Keith Kidd; and ESPN.com NFL senior editor Mike McAllister.
The Seahawks were a .500 team and flailing about in mediocrity. The Chargers had been tagged underachievers, with their new coach taking the blame. And the Vikings? Sorry, but they weren't even on the playoff radar screen.
Then ... poof! Somehow, someway, each team turned on the ignition switch, found the accelerator and has yet to stop. The Seahawks have won five straight, the Chargers have won three straight and the Vikings have won four straight. Consequently, all three teams are taking up residence in the top 12 -- the playoff 12, if you will -- in this week's rankings.
The Seahawks, in fact, have already clinched their playoff spot by winning the NFC West. The Chargers will win the AFC West this week if they beat the Lions (more about them later), and if the Broncos lose at Houston on Thursday. And the Vikings now control their own fate; if they just keep winning, they'll claim one of the NFC's wild-card spots.
Such is the way of life in the NFL, where parity can send you on a rollercoaster ride. For those teams who happen to get hot for an extended length of time, it doesn't take long to go from disappointment to playoff contender.
Of course, on the flip side, it doesn't take long for a promising season to completely unravel. Consider the Lions, who reached the halfway mark of the season with a 6-2 record and the No. 8 spot in our Power Rankings. Five losses later, the Lions have fallen to 20th while living up (living down?) to their reputation as second-half choke artists.
The Ravens have been even worse, losing seven straight after a 4-2 start and dropping from 7th to 25th in the rankings. That would be one spot ahead of the, ahem, Raiders.
So how would you rank the Seahawks, Chargers and Vikings, as well as the 29 other teams, after Week 14? Click here to access SportsNation's ranking tool.
BIGGEST RISE: Denver Broncos from 20th to 15th. BIGGEST DROP: Chicago Bears from 16th to 23rd.
(Editor's note: LW indicates each team's ranking last week.)
2007 Power Rankings: Week 15
RK (LW) TEAM REC COMMENT
1 (1) Patriots 13-0-0 Here's what Bill Belichick should do when he meets Eric Mangini at midfield following the Pats' 58-3 win Sunday: Hand Mangini a camcorder and say, "I don't know what I was thinking stealing your crappy team's signs. But feel free to tape ours."
2 (2) Cowboys 12-1-0 First, Buffalo. Now, Detroit. The Cowboys have won two games that they really should've lost. "We're not happy with the way we played," Terence Newman told the Morning News after escaping the Lions den, "but you always take the win."
3 (3) Colts 11-2-0 In this week's voting, the Colts actually tied the Cowboys for the second spot in the rankings. When that happens, the team with the better record gets the higher ranking. So, sorry Colts, you'll need one more vote.
4 (4) Packers 11-2-0 In blowing out Oakland, the Packers completed a sweep of the four AFC West opponents -- just the second time since the merger in 1970 that they've swept opponents in the other conference. In the three years prior to this one, GB was 2-10 vs. the AFC.
5 (6) Jaguars 9-4-0 Fred Taylor has reached the 100-yard mark in three straight games, the first time he's done that since the second half of the 2004 season. He turns 32 next month, but he's running like he's 22. "Fred's hungry," QB David Garrard told the T-U.
6 (7) Seahawks 9-4-0 QB Matt Hasselbeck can't match the attention given to Brady, Manning, Romo and Favre, but he's quietly putting together the best season of his seven years in Seattle. He's on pace for career highs in yards and TDs.
7 (9) Chargers 8-5-0 Shawne Merriman, claiming a Titans player illegally hit him, told the U-T: "There were a bunch of cheap shots out there, but they can get some cheap seats on the sofa at home while they watch us [in the playoffs]." Oh, snap!
8 (5) Steelers 9-4-0 Guarantee or not, the Steelers got a taste of just how far they are from being a championship-caliber team in getting blown out by the Pats. "If that's the measuring stick," coach Mike Tomlin said, 'we're not close.'"
9 (10) Giants 9-4-0 The question came up Monday and it's a good one: If the Giants have a playoff spot clinched by Week 15, will they rest the starters vs. the Pats in the season finale? Logic says they should, but some players may want a shot at that unbeaten mark.
10 (11) Browns 8-5-0 If the Browns don't make the playoffs, they'll have only themselves to blame, since they control their own fate with three games left. Beating Buffalo (home), Cincinnati (away) and SF (home) isn't asking too much.
11 (8) Buccaneers 8-5-0 QB Jeff Garcia will return after missing the last two weeks with a bruised back. But the Bucs play the lowly Falcons, so why the rush? If the game is tight and Luke McCown is struggling, then you can send in Garcia. No need to thank us, coach.
12 (13) Vikings 7-6-0 The Vikings have played 707 regular-season games since joining the NFL in 1961 -- and not until the last three weeks have they won three straight games by at least 20 points. Your sleeper playoff pick?
13 (12) Titans 7-6-0 That OT loss to the Chargers may come back to haunt them, but the Titans have a favorable schedule down the stretch: at KC, home against the Jets, then the finale against a Colts team that could be resting its starters.
14 (15) Bills 7-6-0 Trent Edwards became the first rookie QB since Jim Plunkett in 1971 to throw three TD passes in the first half of an NFL game. More important, he's 5-1 as a starter -- which is why the Bills are contending for a playoff spot.
15 (20) Broncos 6-7-0 In this season of underachieving, the Broncos' 34-point win over KC was their most lopsided since moving to INVESCO Field in 2001. So why didn't they play like that before? "That's the million-dollar question," John Lynch told the Denver Post.
16 (17) Saints 6-7-0 It's shocking that Aaron Stecker rushed for 100 yards on Monday night. It's even more shocking that it was the second 100-yard game of his eight-year career. Expect another 100-yard performance in 2010.
17 (21) Redskins 6-7-0 Thanks to Jason Campbell's knee injury, 36-year-old Todd Collins is expected to make his first NFL start since 1997. Know who the backup QB for the 'Skins was that year? Jeff Hostetler! Feeling old now?
18 (14) Cardinals 6-7-0 The Cards showed plenty of fight Sunday. Unfortunately, it was in the locker room after losing to Seattle, as Darnell Dockett and Darryl Blackstock got into an argument. "Words were exchanged. ... It's nothing," Dockett told the Az. Republic.
19 (22) Texans 6-7-0 Best team in the NFC South? Unofficially, that'd be the AFC South's Texans, who beat division leader Tampa Bay to go 3-1 against that division this season. But finishing .500 will be tough, since Denver, Indy and Jacksonville remain on the schedule.
20 (18) Lions 6-7-0 After a heartbreaking loss to Dallas, Damien Woody told the Free Press: "The problem with the Lions is that it's acceptable to put up a fight. At the end of the day, it's not acceptable. It's all about wins. I don't care about putting up a fight."
21 (19) Eagles 5-8-0 The Eagles wrap up a brutal four-game stretch at Dallas. In the previous three weeks, Philly has lost to the Pats, Seahawks and Giants (a combined 31-8 record) by a grand total of 10 points. These guys aren't winning, but they aren't pushovers.
22 (25) Bengals 5-8-0 Not that it matters since they're out of the playoff chase, but the defense has allowed a paltry 12.2 points a game in the last five games. The bad news? None of the offenses they face in that stretch were ranked in the NFL's top 10.
23 (16) Bears 5-8-0 What has happened to defensive end Mark Anderson's pass-rushing ability? The second-year man from Alabama produced 16 sacks in his first 20 regular-season games, but he has just one in the last nine
24 (23) Panthers 5-8-0 Combine the points in the first, second and fourth quarters and the Panthers have scored 172 while giving up 191. Not very good -- but it's certainly better than the third quarter in which they've been outscored 103-38.
25 (24) Ravens 4-9-0 A day after his team lost its seventh straight game, coach Brian Billick thought it was the appropriate time to announce that he will be back next season. You'll pardon Ravens fans if they're not exactly high-fiving each other about the news.:mj07:
26 (26) Raiders 4-9-0 Shane Lechler had punted 572 times (which, given the Raiders' poor offense, seems like a half-season's worth) without having one returned for a TD ... until the Packers' Will Blackmon did it Sunday. Somewhere, Ray Guy is crying.
27 (27) Chiefs 4-9-0 That regular season finale on the night of Dec. 30 at the Jets looked enticing at one point (the whole Herm Edwards vs. former team angle). Now it's just a game of two teams who can't wait to end the season.
28 (28) Rams 3-10-0 Things have gotten so bad in St. Louis that not even Isaac Bruce is catching passes. For the first time since the 2003 regular-season finale, Bruce went without a catch. It's just the sixth time in his 196-game career he's been held catchless.
29 (29) Jets 3-10-0 Here's what Eric Mangini should do when he meets Bill Belichick at midfield following the 58-3 loss Sunday: Hand him a copy of the Leave Bill Belichick Alone YouTube clip and say, "Is this what you were taping 'cause I gotta say, it's damn funny!"
30 (31) Falcons 3-10-0 Putting the last few months in its proper perspective, owner Arthur Blank told the J-C.: "The beauty of the National Football League is that seasons come to an end," he said. And none too fast in Atlanta, right, Artie?
31 (30) 49ers 3-10-0 How bad have things gotten in the Bay Area? The highlight of the season may very well be watching how third-string QB Shaun Hill performs now that Alex Smith and Trent Dilfer are both out with injuries.
32 (32) Dolphins 0-13-0 Three sacks, one resulting in a fumble. Tripped up for a loss. Two passes, one incomplete, one for a six-yard gain. Two handoffs. That was John Beck's day before he was pulled after eight snaps. Please pick up your parting gifts.
ESPN.com
ESPN.com's Power Rankings
The rankings were determined by a poll of ESPN.com's NFL staff: writers John Clayton, Len Pasquarelli, Matt Mosley, Jeffri Chadiha and Mike Sando; Scouts Inc. Insiders Jeremy Green and Keith Kidd; and ESPN.com NFL senior editor Mike McAllister.
The Seahawks were a .500 team and flailing about in mediocrity. The Chargers had been tagged underachievers, with their new coach taking the blame. And the Vikings? Sorry, but they weren't even on the playoff radar screen.
Then ... poof! Somehow, someway, each team turned on the ignition switch, found the accelerator and has yet to stop. The Seahawks have won five straight, the Chargers have won three straight and the Vikings have won four straight. Consequently, all three teams are taking up residence in the top 12 -- the playoff 12, if you will -- in this week's rankings.
The Seahawks, in fact, have already clinched their playoff spot by winning the NFC West. The Chargers will win the AFC West this week if they beat the Lions (more about them later), and if the Broncos lose at Houston on Thursday. And the Vikings now control their own fate; if they just keep winning, they'll claim one of the NFC's wild-card spots.
Such is the way of life in the NFL, where parity can send you on a rollercoaster ride. For those teams who happen to get hot for an extended length of time, it doesn't take long to go from disappointment to playoff contender.
Of course, on the flip side, it doesn't take long for a promising season to completely unravel. Consider the Lions, who reached the halfway mark of the season with a 6-2 record and the No. 8 spot in our Power Rankings. Five losses later, the Lions have fallen to 20th while living up (living down?) to their reputation as second-half choke artists.
The Ravens have been even worse, losing seven straight after a 4-2 start and dropping from 7th to 25th in the rankings. That would be one spot ahead of the, ahem, Raiders.
So how would you rank the Seahawks, Chargers and Vikings, as well as the 29 other teams, after Week 14? Click here to access SportsNation's ranking tool.
BIGGEST RISE: Denver Broncos from 20th to 15th. BIGGEST DROP: Chicago Bears from 16th to 23rd.
(Editor's note: LW indicates each team's ranking last week.)
2007 Power Rankings: Week 15
RK (LW) TEAM REC COMMENT
1 (1) Patriots 13-0-0 Here's what Bill Belichick should do when he meets Eric Mangini at midfield following the Pats' 58-3 win Sunday: Hand Mangini a camcorder and say, "I don't know what I was thinking stealing your crappy team's signs. But feel free to tape ours."
2 (2) Cowboys 12-1-0 First, Buffalo. Now, Detroit. The Cowboys have won two games that they really should've lost. "We're not happy with the way we played," Terence Newman told the Morning News after escaping the Lions den, "but you always take the win."
3 (3) Colts 11-2-0 In this week's voting, the Colts actually tied the Cowboys for the second spot in the rankings. When that happens, the team with the better record gets the higher ranking. So, sorry Colts, you'll need one more vote.
4 (4) Packers 11-2-0 In blowing out Oakland, the Packers completed a sweep of the four AFC West opponents -- just the second time since the merger in 1970 that they've swept opponents in the other conference. In the three years prior to this one, GB was 2-10 vs. the AFC.
5 (6) Jaguars 9-4-0 Fred Taylor has reached the 100-yard mark in three straight games, the first time he's done that since the second half of the 2004 season. He turns 32 next month, but he's running like he's 22. "Fred's hungry," QB David Garrard told the T-U.
6 (7) Seahawks 9-4-0 QB Matt Hasselbeck can't match the attention given to Brady, Manning, Romo and Favre, but he's quietly putting together the best season of his seven years in Seattle. He's on pace for career highs in yards and TDs.
7 (9) Chargers 8-5-0 Shawne Merriman, claiming a Titans player illegally hit him, told the U-T: "There were a bunch of cheap shots out there, but they can get some cheap seats on the sofa at home while they watch us [in the playoffs]." Oh, snap!
8 (5) Steelers 9-4-0 Guarantee or not, the Steelers got a taste of just how far they are from being a championship-caliber team in getting blown out by the Pats. "If that's the measuring stick," coach Mike Tomlin said, 'we're not close.'"
9 (10) Giants 9-4-0 The question came up Monday and it's a good one: If the Giants have a playoff spot clinched by Week 15, will they rest the starters vs. the Pats in the season finale? Logic says they should, but some players may want a shot at that unbeaten mark.
10 (11) Browns 8-5-0 If the Browns don't make the playoffs, they'll have only themselves to blame, since they control their own fate with three games left. Beating Buffalo (home), Cincinnati (away) and SF (home) isn't asking too much.
11 (8) Buccaneers 8-5-0 QB Jeff Garcia will return after missing the last two weeks with a bruised back. But the Bucs play the lowly Falcons, so why the rush? If the game is tight and Luke McCown is struggling, then you can send in Garcia. No need to thank us, coach.
12 (13) Vikings 7-6-0 The Vikings have played 707 regular-season games since joining the NFL in 1961 -- and not until the last three weeks have they won three straight games by at least 20 points. Your sleeper playoff pick?
13 (12) Titans 7-6-0 That OT loss to the Chargers may come back to haunt them, but the Titans have a favorable schedule down the stretch: at KC, home against the Jets, then the finale against a Colts team that could be resting its starters.
14 (15) Bills 7-6-0 Trent Edwards became the first rookie QB since Jim Plunkett in 1971 to throw three TD passes in the first half of an NFL game. More important, he's 5-1 as a starter -- which is why the Bills are contending for a playoff spot.
15 (20) Broncos 6-7-0 In this season of underachieving, the Broncos' 34-point win over KC was their most lopsided since moving to INVESCO Field in 2001. So why didn't they play like that before? "That's the million-dollar question," John Lynch told the Denver Post.
16 (17) Saints 6-7-0 It's shocking that Aaron Stecker rushed for 100 yards on Monday night. It's even more shocking that it was the second 100-yard game of his eight-year career. Expect another 100-yard performance in 2010.
17 (21) Redskins 6-7-0 Thanks to Jason Campbell's knee injury, 36-year-old Todd Collins is expected to make his first NFL start since 1997. Know who the backup QB for the 'Skins was that year? Jeff Hostetler! Feeling old now?
18 (14) Cardinals 6-7-0 The Cards showed plenty of fight Sunday. Unfortunately, it was in the locker room after losing to Seattle, as Darnell Dockett and Darryl Blackstock got into an argument. "Words were exchanged. ... It's nothing," Dockett told the Az. Republic.
19 (22) Texans 6-7-0 Best team in the NFC South? Unofficially, that'd be the AFC South's Texans, who beat division leader Tampa Bay to go 3-1 against that division this season. But finishing .500 will be tough, since Denver, Indy and Jacksonville remain on the schedule.
20 (18) Lions 6-7-0 After a heartbreaking loss to Dallas, Damien Woody told the Free Press: "The problem with the Lions is that it's acceptable to put up a fight. At the end of the day, it's not acceptable. It's all about wins. I don't care about putting up a fight."
21 (19) Eagles 5-8-0 The Eagles wrap up a brutal four-game stretch at Dallas. In the previous three weeks, Philly has lost to the Pats, Seahawks and Giants (a combined 31-8 record) by a grand total of 10 points. These guys aren't winning, but they aren't pushovers.
22 (25) Bengals 5-8-0 Not that it matters since they're out of the playoff chase, but the defense has allowed a paltry 12.2 points a game in the last five games. The bad news? None of the offenses they face in that stretch were ranked in the NFL's top 10.
23 (16) Bears 5-8-0 What has happened to defensive end Mark Anderson's pass-rushing ability? The second-year man from Alabama produced 16 sacks in his first 20 regular-season games, but he has just one in the last nine
24 (23) Panthers 5-8-0 Combine the points in the first, second and fourth quarters and the Panthers have scored 172 while giving up 191. Not very good -- but it's certainly better than the third quarter in which they've been outscored 103-38.
25 (24) Ravens 4-9-0 A day after his team lost its seventh straight game, coach Brian Billick thought it was the appropriate time to announce that he will be back next season. You'll pardon Ravens fans if they're not exactly high-fiving each other about the news.:mj07:
26 (26) Raiders 4-9-0 Shane Lechler had punted 572 times (which, given the Raiders' poor offense, seems like a half-season's worth) without having one returned for a TD ... until the Packers' Will Blackmon did it Sunday. Somewhere, Ray Guy is crying.
27 (27) Chiefs 4-9-0 That regular season finale on the night of Dec. 30 at the Jets looked enticing at one point (the whole Herm Edwards vs. former team angle). Now it's just a game of two teams who can't wait to end the season.
28 (28) Rams 3-10-0 Things have gotten so bad in St. Louis that not even Isaac Bruce is catching passes. For the first time since the 2003 regular-season finale, Bruce went without a catch. It's just the sixth time in his 196-game career he's been held catchless.
29 (29) Jets 3-10-0 Here's what Eric Mangini should do when he meets Bill Belichick at midfield following the 58-3 loss Sunday: Hand him a copy of the Leave Bill Belichick Alone YouTube clip and say, "Is this what you were taping 'cause I gotta say, it's damn funny!"
30 (31) Falcons 3-10-0 Putting the last few months in its proper perspective, owner Arthur Blank told the J-C.: "The beauty of the National Football League is that seasons come to an end," he said. And none too fast in Atlanta, right, Artie?
31 (30) 49ers 3-10-0 How bad have things gotten in the Bay Area? The highlight of the season may very well be watching how third-string QB Shaun Hill performs now that Alex Smith and Trent Dilfer are both out with injuries.
32 (32) Dolphins 0-13-0 Three sacks, one resulting in a fumble. Tripped up for a loss. Two passes, one incomplete, one for a six-yard gain. Two handoffs. That was John Beck's day before he was pulled after eight snaps. Please pick up your parting gifts.
