2023 NFL Power Rankings: Week 12
The Eagles continue to roll. They went into Arrowhead and left with a victory. They haven’t looked particularly dominant at any point this season, and Jalen Hurts looks limited with his mobility, but they’re 9–1. It’s impossible to not have them ranked #1 right now.
The Ravens got another nice victory this week, and with how bad the Chiefs offense has looked, the AFC is theirs to lose in my eyes. Mark Andrews will be missed, but he may return come playoff time, which would be big. The 49ers are all the way back following their 3-game skid. The Lions proved they can be explosive when needed and win games they have no business winning. But Jared Goff needs to be better if they’re going to do anything significant this season. The Cowboys continue to punish subpar competition.
The AFC is so average at the top right now that the Jaguars, Bills and Dolphins all still have Super Bowl hopes, despite not really deserving them.
The Browns probably deserve to be a tier higher based on their defense and ability to run the ball. But I’m not there with their QB situation right now. The Texans have a huge test this week that could bump them up a tier if they’re able to get the victory. I am so impressed with this Vikings team, despite their loss this week. I’m close to saying this Vikings team is better than last year’s 13–4 team simply due to their defense being competent. And Justin Jefferson will be returning eventually. The Seahawks are in dangerous territory right now following a bad loss this week. They have an absolute GAUNTLET these next 4 weeks and could easily see themselves on the outside looking in of a playoff berth in a month. The Joe Burrow injury is devastating to this Bengals team that was turning their season around. I still think they have enough talent to potentially sneak into the playoffs simply due to the quality of the rest of the teams in the AFC. The Saints don’t truly resemble a playoff-caliber team, but by default, they’re likely to get in.
Finally, the Steelers fired Matt Canada. I expect that to spark them a little, and since they’ve won a bunch of games despite looking atrocious at times, they have a path to the playoffs. The next crop of AFC teams, the Chargers, Broncos, Colts and Raiders have all, at times, looked horrific. They all have a reasonable path to the playoffs though due to the QB injuries that hit last week. In the NFC, the Rams, Packers and Buccaneers have all also looked awful at times. But, similarly, have paths to the playoffs due to that 7th seed.
The Jets were hanging on for dear life, but their season ended for what feels like the 5th time this week. They’ve finally moved on from Zach Wilson, which was the final waving of the white flag. The only things Jets fans need to hope for is that someone in that building has the courage to stand up to Aaron Rodgers and tell him he is not coming back this season. The Commanders season ended this week in an embarrassing home loss to the Giants. The Falcons technically are still alive, and could even find themselves atop their division with a win this week. But they’re so bad it feels like their season is dead. The Bears and Cardinals have impressed me recently, mostly with their defenses. And both Justin Fields and Kyler Murray have looked solid. While their games may be competitive and fun, their seasons are both still over. The Titans are back to being awful following a nice 2-week stretch of Will Levis injecting some life into their offense.
Nice win by the Giants this week, but all it did was ruin their hopes of getting the #1 pick. Still, it’s nice to see the fight and I believe more in building a winning culture than getting a top pick, so well done G-men. Speaking of that #1 pick, the Patriots and Panthers (which means the Bears) seem to be battling for it. Both have winnable games this week.
