2018 NFL Power Rankings: Week 11

NFL Power Rankings
Philip Rivers and the Chargers have staked out their place among some of the best in the NFL Power Rankings. (Photo Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY)

Tier 1: Living the Life

1 New Orleans Saints (9-1; +98)

New Orleans enters its second week as the top team. As long as Brees keeps rolling and the defense can be average or better, this looks like the Super Bowl favorite at this point.

2 Kansas City Chiefs (9-1; +113)

3 Los Angeles Rams (9-1; +104)

After a little hiccup in the location of this game, it will be played. And this game deserves as much hype as any this season. It would’ve maybe been anticipated a bit more if the Rams didn’t lose to the Saints, but it’s a matchup of powerhouses either way.

Tier 2: Not Hurting by Any Means

4 New England Patriots (7-3; +44)

New England hasn’t played well at all against former Belichick players and coaches. Still, they deserve as much benefit of the doubt as anyone. And being in one of the NFL’s weakest divisions doesn’t hurt, either.

5 Los Angeles Chargers (7-2; +54)

The Chargers could throw a wrench into the conventional wisdom pertaining to the AFC playoffs. It might come as a surprise, or even met with indifference, but L.A. should be taken as seriously as any other team in the top tier of the AFC.

6 Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2-1; +70)

It will be interesting to see if getting the Le’Veon Bell situation resolved (sort of, for now) will allow them to play with more freedom than before. Knowing their running back isn’t coming back this season may finally let them close the book on that chapter and allow them to focus on the players who are there now. But they’ve played really well lately. How much room do they have before they hit their ceiling?

7 Carolina Panthers (6-3; +9)

Last Thursday’s loss to Pittsburgh was bad enough to derail a season. Luckily, it was only Carolina’s third loss. They need to prove that that game was something of a fluke, though, and get things back on track.

Tier 3: Could Use a Boost

8 Chicago Bears (6-3; +94)

Matt Nagy and his staff have found ways to make it easy for Mitchell Trubisky. But there’s going to be a game where the QB will need to make plays to allow the Bears to win. He has the ability to get out of the pocket and pick up yardage with his legs. At some point, he’ll need to do it with his arm. This week facing Minnesota could end up being that game.

9 Houston Texans (6-3; +32)

10 Washington Football Team (6-3; +1)

These two teams get to line up against one another this week. As long as the game is relatively close, we’ll probably learn more about the winner than the loser. No matter the outcome, both are in line to stay atop their division for at least another week.

11 Philadelphia Eagles (4-5; +15)

Super. Bowl. Hangover.

Tier 4: Seeking Help

12 Atlanta Falcons (4-5; -10)

This might be the most talented team with a losing record this deep into the season in some time. Every time it looks like they’re working their way back into the playoff picture, they put up a stinker and make you question why you put faith in them, to begin with.

13 Miami Dolphins (5-5; -57)

Miami (still) being in the thick of the AFC playoff picture probably says more about the lack of depth in the conference than it does the Dolphins. But still, there’s a lot that needs to be corrected with this squad if their destiny includes playing after the conclusion of the regular season.

14 Minnesota Vikings (5-3-1; +17)

Beating Chicago on Sunday night would make a mess of the NFC North, standings-wise. But messes like that can provide endless entertainment as we approach the end of the season.

15 Cincinnati Bengals (5-4; -53)

16 Baltimore Ravens (4-5; +53)

The Ravens don’t appear to be sure who will be their QB, which is obviously concerning. They’re also trending downward, despite still sporting a good point differential. If Cincinnati wins, Baltimore would be a write-off in the AFC North race.

17 Green Bay Packers (4-4-1; +7)

18 Seattle Seahawks (4-5; +27)

Thursday night’s Seattle/Green Bay game be a make-or-break game. The loser won’t technically be out of the playoff race, but they’ll be very close.

19 Dallas Cowboys (4-5; +10)

Just when you think the Cowboys have hit something of a rock bottom, they put in a really good performance. But usually, that just starts the cycle over, rather than propelling them to more success. This is how it goes in the Jason Garrett era.

20 Indianapolis Colts (4-5; +21)

21 Tennessee Titans (5-4; +17)

Indy is making a run at the AFC South after practically being an afterthought in the conversation. A win this week – and pulling even with Tennessee – would be a huge step forward for the Colts while, on the other side, it’s imperative the Titans fend off the surging Colts.

Tier 5: It’s a Day-to-Day Operation

22 Detroit Lions (3-6; -42)

Looks like another lost season in Detroit. That’s nothing new though. At least they realized it early enough to get some value out of a player (Golden Tate) that deserved to be on a winner. But the franchise needs to figure out how to avoid these dead-end seasons.

23 Denver Broncos (3-6; -8)

Denver seems pretty close to building a contender for a team that’s 3-6. Or, that might be Von Miller blinding us from the truth: this is a pretty bad roster in total. It’s shaping up to be one of the most important offseasons in this organization’s history. They are squarely at the intersection of rebuild or run it back.

24 Cleveland Browns (3-6-1; -45)

Browns fans need to hope Baker Mayfield wakes up feeling dangerous every Sunday. And hope for a better defense. And maybe a decent coach.

25 Jacksonville Jaguars (3-6; -39)

Every season a good team has the year go sideways as a result of injuries and being on the wrong end of a few bounces. Jacksonville could certainly qualify for that distinction in 2018. But, on the other hand, they might just be a bad team.

26 New York Jets (3-7; -46)

Even though we now have a decent-sized sample of Sam Darnold in the pros, it’s hard to evaluate him because of all the obstacles – meaning a terrible roster – they’ve put around him. It can be risky to ride a QB for too long when the situation is bound to fail. It’s won’t get to that point for a while yet, but it’s probably safe to say the Jets expected to see more out of their rookie signal-caller.

27 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-6; -59)

28 New York Giants (2-7; -51)

Between Jameis Winston and Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tampa doesn’t have a trustworthy QB on the roster. However, they might have the two best quarterbacks in the game when these two teams play each other this weekend.

Tier 6: Empty Shelves

29 Buffalo Bills (3-7; -114)

A team that is otherwise terrible having a couple games where they just explode is really perplexing. The Bills might have another one of those games left in them, but don’t count on it. Usually, the point explosion happens against them.

30 Arizona Cardinals (2-7; -101)

The Cards get the Raiders at home this week. A loss there will make this season all the more depressing. On the other hand, a win … won’t mean a whole lot. Not too much to be excited about anymore here.

31 San Francisco 49ers (2-8; -36)

One thing that’s getting lost in an otherwise horrible season in San Francisco: Richard Sherman is playing very well (again).

32 Oakland Raiders (1-8; -125)

At least the Raiders have a decent quarterback under contract because it doesn’t appear as if there’s any help in that department coming out of the upcoming draft. That narrows it down to about 21 other positions on offense and defense where they’re in desperate need of help,

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Ryan lives in Wisconsin. He was raised on a steady diet of whole milk, cheese, sports, WWF/WWE wrestling, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

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