NFL Power Rankings Week 14

10. Broncos

The Broncos are making their debut on the Power Rankings, and it has been a long time coming. The Broncos started to emerge when the Broncos defense began to gel, and then Russ found his number one, Courtland Sutton, who is not getting anywhere near the love he deserves for his performance this year.

Sean Payton has saved this offense, which was an immediate change that could be seen at the beginning of the season, but the emergence of the defense as not just good but great in turnovers has really opened the viability of this team. If the Broncos had hired the right coach in the first place, they would have been a lot better earlier.

9. Jaguars

The Jaguars are sliding down again after losing to another team led by a backup QB. They are in serious trouble. Trevor is actually acting as more of a playmaker despite the three-interception performance. Believe it or not, that's not the most hurtful thing to the team. The real problem is the defense has recovered, and the Jaguars depend on that. If the Jaguar's defense can bounce, then they will be caught by the early surging teams, some of which are in their division. Hopefully, Doug Pederson has some tricks up his sleeves to give this team a spark.

8. Chiefs

The Chiefs lost to the Bills, and sadly, I saw it coming. Some may say the referees robbed them, but Toney was clearly offside. The best argument you can make is he got away with it before and should be able to do it again. Also, the week before, yes, the refs blatantly missed a DPI, but they probably did that on purpose to balance out the roughing penalty they gave Mahomes to even put him in position to make that pass.

However, whether or not you think those calls were right or wrong is irrelevant. Let's call a spade a spade. The Chiefs are still a top-ten team, but they used to be top 1, and now that they aren't doing their job, they are finding themselves in these situations with refs. This happens to every team, but it matters because the Chiefs aren't winning outright like they used to. They need everything now, but these controversies are more about the Chiefs' decline than the refs'. But you can never truly count out the Super Bowl champions, and despite all the adversity, they are still one of the ten best teams in the league.

7. Browns

The Browns are coming. It's fun to watch an elite defense in today's NFL be so impactful. Also, Joe Flacco is throwing for 300 and 3 TDs in the AFC North. What year is it? I knew the Browns had something when Amari Cooper raved about Flacco before his first game. Now, they have knocked off a top-ten Jaguars team. The Browns are the team that nobody wants to play.

6. Dolphins

What are the Dolphins doing? They are also falling apart at the wrong time despite having the wins to be on this list. They had the one seed and then lost to the Titans, and honestly, I didn't buy them as the one seed. I have been unimpressed with the Dolphins for a while now. Ever since the Raiders game, I have felt like they were playing sloppy football offensively and getting away with it. Hopefully, this is the wake-up call they need to make some changes and capitalize on their potential because the league is better when the Dolphins are good.

5. Lions

The Lions are another top contender who has been playing badly at the wrong time. The Bears may have exposed the Lions because they have been struggling since they played them. Goff has looked bad after the bye. The defense started the season so well and has looked very beatable. They lost to teams they should have beaten, like the Bears and the Packers, but even when they beat the Bears, they should have lost, and their win against the Saints seems like it was more about the Saints being bad than getting back on track. The Lions are on the edge of the top five now, but hopefully, they get it together so they can finally be a force in the playoffs.

4. Eagles

The Eagles are still one of the best teams in the league, and they have the pieces to compete for a Super Bowl. But they need to have a come to Jesus moment. They have been playing every Joe Shmoe close, and the common denominator is them. It's late in the season, so they are who they are to an extent. But the much-maligned Eagles defense showed in the second half of the Cowboys game that they can raise their game.

For weeks, the players on the Eagles offense were helping them skate by with little schematic help. But can the offense get more creative and find a new way to win? The Eagles were flying high, and now they have fallen. We will see if they move up or down based on whether they can level up their play and cover their holes or if they will continue to play the same way.

3. Cowboys

The Cowboys have finally legitimized their record by beating a top contender. Even better, they didn't just beat the Eagles. They destroyed the Eagles. Even though the Cowboys and Eagles have split, I'm giving the edge to the Cowboys because they had the more dominant win, and they have had more dominant wins overall. This could be the year the Cowboys go to the Super Bowl. If not now, when?

2. Ravens

The Ravens have reclaimed their rightful place at the top of the AFC after a hard-fought battle against the Rams. Plus, Lamar remains undefeated at home against AFC teams, and he's still beaten all but one NFC team he has ever faced(could come up in February). The Ravens have shown they could easily blow teams out and win behind in close games, but they have not dominated like the 49ers.

1. 49ers

The 49ers are the number-one team in football. They have unseeded the Eagles after beating them head-to-head and catching up to them in wins. The 49ers are currently the best team in football. The 49ers have assembled such a good roster that it feels illegal. Unless they get hit by the injury bug again, they are as close to unstoppable as you can be in the NFL.