| Power Rankings |
| January 6, 2009 |
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| Each week the Commish scours the stats, looks at the records, and, most importantly, the heart of each team and delivers his Power Rankings! |
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| 1 | Titans (13-3), Last Week: 1 | The offense certainly had an off day against the Texans on Sunday, but it is certainly hard to move thsi team down when they have the best record in the NFL. A showdown against the Steelers would loom large in the AFC seeding.
Offense: 18
Defense: 5
Overall: 6 |
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| 2 | Giants (12-4), Last Week: 2 | That is back-to-back losses for the Giants. They are clearly trending down -- and there is a compelling argument to be made for moving them down below the Panthers. We aren't ready to do that just yet.
Offense: 7
Defense: 7
Overall: 2 |
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| 3 | Steelers (12-4), Last Week: 3 | Say what you will, but that Steelers are finding ways to win football games -- as demonstrated by their late game heroics against the Cowboys in Week 14, followed by their good fortune against the Ravens in Week 15.
Offense: 23
Defense: 1
Overall: 10 |
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| 4 | Panthers (12-4), Last Week: 4 | The Panthers are rounding into shape just in time for the playoff run. Not only do they now sit alone atop the NFC South standings -- but they are in a virtual tie with the Giants for the top record in the conference.
Offense: 12
Defense: 13
Overall: 13 |
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| 5 | Colts (12-4), Last Week: 6 | Is there a hotter team in the NFL than the Colts right now? That is six big wins in a row now. Although, things looked shaky there for awhile against the lowly Lions. The are in the driver's seat for a Wild Card spot.
Offense: 15
Defense: 11
Overall: 15 |
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| 6 | Cowboys (9-7), Last Week: 9 | The victory over the Giants on Sunday night was huge for keeping their playoff hopes alive. It looks like Romo, Witten and TO are all buddies again.
Offense: 9
Defense: 8
Overall: 4 |
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| 7 | Falcons (11-5), Last Week: 10 | The Falcons just keep hanging in there. They still have a shot at the division title -- and are in good shape for a Wild Card spot.
Offense: 6
Defense: 24
Overall: 17 |
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| 8 | Jets (9-7), Last Week: 8 | Well, the Jets got back on the winning page -- and a good thing for them too, since the Dolphins and Patriots also won. Suffice to say that many a NY Jet should remember JP Losman during this holiday season!
Offense: 16
Defense: 17
Overall: 20 |
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| 9 | Patriots (11-5), Last Week: 11 | The Pats had a rather easy time of it, dispensing with the Oakland Raiders. That AFC East will be very interesting down the stretch.
Offense: 4
Defense: 10
Overall: 2 |
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| 10 | Buccaneers (9-7), Last Week: 5 | Have the Bucs hit a late season slump? At this point, Brian Griese and Jeff Garcia are practically interchangeable.
Offense: 14
Defense: 9
Overall: 6 |
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| 11 | Ravens (11-5), Last Week: 7 | The Ravens' defense is so scary that very little is expected from the offense. That came back to bite them on Sunday when they lost a defensive battle to the Steelers.
Offense: 21
Defense: 2
Overall: 6 |
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| 12 | Dolphins (11-5), Last Week: 13 | Another victory for the Dolphins, this time against the suddenly pesty 49ers. As crazy as it sounds, the Dolphins control their own destiny. Win the next two games -- and they win the division. Even crazier: Chad Pennington is getting serious Pro Bowl consideration -- and deservedly so!
Offense: 10
Defense: 15
Overall: 13 |
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| 13 | Vikings (10-6), Last Week: 17 | Well, the Williams boys received another reprieve, which was good news for the Vikings, who surprisingly demolished the Cardinals on Sunday.
Offense: 17
Defense: 6
Overall: 6 |
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| 14 | Eagles (9-7), Last Week: 15 | Just when it looked like their season was going to end a couple of weeks ago, the Eagles have responded like champs, winning their last three games in a row. The playoffs now look like a possibility again.
Offense: 8
Defense: 3
Overall: 1 |
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| 15 | Cardinals (9-7), Last Week: 12 | Did the Cardinals clinch too soon? They certainly have looked rather lethargic the past couple of weeks, losing to the Eagles and Viking in back-to-back weeks. These are the types of teams they will have to beat, when the playoffs start up.
Offense: 5
Defense: 19
Overall: 10 |
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| 16 | Bears (9-7), Last Week: 18 | The Bears are back on a roll now -- and the Thursday night nail biter over the Saints may very well have been exactly the right recipe for a late season push.
Offense: 26
Defense: 14
Overall: 23 |
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| 17 | Broncos (8-8), Last Week: 14 | The old axiom is that to win in the NFL you need to be able to run and stop the run. Funny enough, the Broncos can do neither -- and, yet, they look like they will be winning the AFC West division, almost by default.
Offense: 2
Defense: 28
Overall: 17 |
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| 18 | Texans (8-8), Last Week: 21 | When the season ends, we will be talking about the Texans as the best team to have fallen short of the playoffs.
Offense: 3
Defense: 23
Overall: 15 |
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| 19 | Saints (8-8), Last Week: 19 | The overtime loss on Thursday night in all liklihood ended any shot they may have had at a playoff spot. Yes, they are still mathematically alive, but it would take a wild sequence of events to get them in.
Offense: 1
Defense: 18
Overall: 5 |
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| 20 | Redskins (8-8), Last Week: 16 | Are the Redskins running out of steam? They just look like a tired, tired team. And rookie head coach, Jim Zorn, is now questioning his own coaching philosophy.
Offense: 20
Defense: 4
Overall: 10 |
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| 21 | Packers (6-10), Last Week: 20 | With all of the hype about Favre leaving and Rogers replacing him, the simple fact is that, regardless of who was playing QB, this was never going to be a playoff team.
Offense: 11
Defense: 22
Overall: 20 |
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| 22 | 49ers (7-9), Last Week: 22 | The Niners were on a nice roll there for awhile, but came up short against the Dolphins. Even so, the defense played quite well again.
Offense: 24
Defense: 16
Overall: 23 |
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| 23 | Bills (7-9), Last Week: 23 | The downward spiral continues. JP Losaman proved once again that he is not an NFL caliber QB, while the coaching staff continues to bumble. Has any 4-0 team ever gone on to stumble this badly down the stretch?
Offense: 25
Defense: 20
Overall: 25 |
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| 24 | Chargers (8-8), Last Week: 24 | Give the Chargers credit for making a big 4th quarter comeback against the Chiefs, snatching vicotry from the jaws of defeat. That they were in this situation in the first place against the lowly Chiefs is another topic.
Offense: 13
Defense: 25
Overall: 22 |
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| 25 | Jaguars (5-11), Last Week: 25 | What is going on with the Jags? If nothing else, we thought that they at least had a decent defense. With their decision to get rid of Gregg Williams at season's end, we know the answer there.
Offense: 19
Defense: 12
Overall: 19 |
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| 26 | Browns (4-12), Last Week: 26 | Look for a major shake-up in Cleveland when the season ends. There are rumors of Schottenheimer coming back as GM and Cowher coming back as head coach. Yes, we know that this scenario is unlikely, but the current regime certainly has looked spiritless in recent weeks.
Offense: 31
Defense: 26
Overall: 30 |
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| 27 | Seahawks (4-12), Last Week: 29 | The Seahawks finally managed to pick up another "W". Yes, we know it came against the lowly Rams...
Offense: 28
Defense: 30
Overall: 31 |
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| 28 | Bengals (4-12), Last Week: 30 | Well, let's give the bengals some credit for showing up and playing in earnest against the Redskins on Sunday. Maybe they can build off this "W" and end the season on a strong note.
Offense: 32
Defense: 21
Overall: 26 |
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| 29 | Chiefs (2-14), Last Week: 27 | The Chiefs have found all manner of ways to lose games this season. The 4th quarter collapse against the Chiefs was just another in a long line.
Offense: 22
Defense: 31
Overall: 26 |
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| 30 | Raiders (5-11), Last Week: 28 | Have the Raiders cashed in on the season yet? They certainly won't be happy to see Rand Moss return again anytime soon.
Offense: 29
Defense: 27
Overall: 28 |
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| 31 | Rams (2-14), Last Week: 31 | Same story, different week for these sorry Rams.
Offense: 27
Defense: 29
Overall: 28 |
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| 32 | Lions (0-16), Last Week: 32 | Well, the Lions did give the Colts a scare, but in the end, they failed to get that elusive first victory. Can they honestly go 0-16?
Offense: 30
Defense: 32
Overall: 32 |
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