Ryan Shadle
Staff Writer
2014 NFL Power Rankings: Week 13
#32 Oakland Raiders- They will not go without a win this season but just got blown out and embarrassed by the Rams.
#31- Jacksonville Jaguars- This team has grit after coming back from 21-3 and winning the game. This team still has a long way to go relevance at the end of the season.
#30 Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Mike Evans looks like a steal at #7 in the draft but QB issues between Josh Mccown and Mike Glennon make this not as sweet. They are supposed to get Marcus Mariota or Jameis Winston in the draft.
#29 Washington Redskins- This team has to figure out their QB situation as former #2 overall pick Robert Griffin III has not played well at all as Colt McCoy has taken over the starting QB spot. Colt McCoy is a free agent after this season they have must decide if they want to give up on RGIII.
#28 New York Jets- This team is gonna be a spoiler in a close division. Bad draft picks have led to this team being 2-8. This teams defense looked well against the Dolphins and almost won them the game. Difficulty passing the ball has lead to this teams record.
#27 Tennessee Titans- This team needs to draft a star playmaker or QB in the upcoming draft. This team has a lot of needs and needs to decide which ones they can put off.
#26 New York Giants- Eli Manning has gone from 2 Super Bowls in 3 years to the offense having a turnover in 26 straight games. It looks right now that they may need to cut their ties to Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin soon.
#25 Carolina Panthers- Nobody thought Kelvin Benjamin would be this good with the 28th pick. Their offensive line is filled of 5 undrafted guys that are doing a bad job. Look for this team to be reworking their offensive line the first 3 rounds.
#24 Minnesota Vikings- This team needs AP back. They will be focusing on WR’s, offensive line, and defense in this draft
#23 Chicago Bears- Signs a huge contract no one except the Bears thinks Jay Cutler deserves and then he plays like crap. Their defense is not that good and they have very inconsistent play from their QB.
#22 St Louis Rams- The Rams are hoping Tre Mason continues to produce and the project of turning Kenny Britt into the star receiver he used to be with the Titans succeeds.
#21 Atlanta Falcons- Not sure how a 5-7 is leading a division but the Falcons are. A lot of teams need offensive line in this upcoming draft and the falcons will be one of them. TE’s, offensive line, and linebackers will be critical pieces for this team to target.
#20 New Orleans Saints- The Saints are 3-5 since last season when Jimmy Graham has three or less catches compared to 13-6 when he has 4 of more.
#19 Buffalo Bills- They will probably need 3 wins out of four games against raiders, bronco, packers, and patriots.
#18 Houston Texans- Ryan Fitzpatrick abused the Titans. Fitzpatrick isn't the answer for the future though.
#17 Cleveland Browns- Looked like a surprise contender to make the playoffs but now looks like they don’t have enough talent at the moment.
#16 San Diego Chargers- Comeback win against the ravens. Firmly in the playoff race but has a tough game this week against the Patriots/
#15 Miami Dolphins- Almost lost to the jets but all that matters is they won. I don’t believe in this team because they almost lost to a 2-10 team.
#14 Baltimore Ravens- Joe Flacco has to prove that huge contract he got a couple years ago was worth it in this close division.
#13 Cincinnati Bengals-This team has talent on both sides of the ball but just needs consistency.
#12 Pittsburgh Steelers- Leveon Bell is just outright a stud RB. This guy may prove his worth if the Steelers get in the playoffs.
#11 Seattle Seahawks- The seahawks have a total of teams with the second highest winning percentage to finish the season.
#10 San Francisco 49ers- Colin Kaepernick had to get over the hump off division rival Seahawks if they want to get into the playoffs.
#9 Indianapolis Colts- Passing game very strong and running game very weak. Need to establish a constant solid running game.
#8 Detroit Lions- Megatron is heating up at a good time as he has two touchdowns and over 100 yards against division rival Bears last week.
#7 Dallas Cowboys- If they win or tie one game they will have a winning record for the first time since 2009.
#6 Arizona Cardinals- Toughest schedule in my opinion to finish off the season.
#5 Kansas City Chiefs- Have lost 8 out of 9 last divisional games at home. Need to win more.
#4 Denver Broncos- No real divisional challenge to get into the playoffs yet to the Broncos.
#3 Philadelphia Eagles- Lesean McCoy broke out against the cowboys for the first time this season. 244 yards on 40 runs.
#2 New England Patriots- They hold the tiebreaker over the broncos and winning the last couple of games will put them in foxborough for most of their run in the playoffs.
#1 Green Bay Packers- Beating the Patriots last week is what has vaulted the packers to the #1 spot.
