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Welcome back for another round of Fooch's 2014 NFL power rankings. They are completely mindless entertainment, but a chance to figure out what we can make of the always wild and crazy NFL. I don't think any power rankings have consistent rhyme or reason to them, and mine are no different. Sometimes I'll go in and re-assess the entirety of what I'm thinking, and sometimes I'll just make some minor adjustments. Different teams have different context to how they are rankings.
The San Francisco 49ers dropped their third straight on Sunday, dropping to 7-7 on the season. Some have suggested they belong at the bottom of the 7-win teams, but I'm inclined to just sort of dump them in the middle of that group. The Cleveland Browns with Johnny Manziel under center have a lot of work to do this season. I moved the Houston Texans and above them, but that was sort of just a "whatever" type of decision at this point.
The 49ers are not playing good offensive football, but there are a lot of ugly teams in the lower half of these power rankings. Its kind of fitting we have a clump of two- and three-win teams, and then a separate clump of five-, six-, seven-, and eight-win teams. The eight win teams might be a notch above, but even they have plenty of question marks. It's just an ugly middle of the field, as is usually expected.
The Arizona Cardinals remain a difficult team to figure out. They are 11-3, but they will host the Seattle Seahawks with Ryan Lindley starting at quarterback. They could have Drew Stanton back in time for the playoffs, but in the meantime, they have to try and win the division with Ryan Lindley. I don't really know what to say. They can clinch with a win over Seattle, and while few probably expect that, this Cardinals squad has surprised all season long.
How would you rank them all out?
Rank | Team | LW |
1 | New England Patriots (11-3) | 1 |
2 | Denver Broncos (11-3) | 3 |
3 | Seattle Seahawks (10-4) | 4 |
4 | Green Bay Packers (10-4) | 2 |
5 | Indianapolis Colts (10-4) | 5 |
6 | Arizona Cardinals (11-3) | 6 |
7 | Dallas Cowboys (10-4) | 7 |
8 | Detroit Lions (10-4) | 9 |
9 | Baltimore Ravens (9-5) | 10 |
10 | Pittsburgh Steelers (9-5) | 11 |
11 | Cincinnati Bengals (9-4-1) | 13 |
12 | Philadelphia Eagles (9-5) | 8 |
13 | Buffalo Bills (8-6) | 14 |
14 | Kansas City Chiefs (8-6) | 17 |
15 | San Diego Chargers (8-6) | 12 |
16 | Miami Dolphins (7-7) | 15 |
17 | St. Louis Rams (6-8) | 16 |
18 | Houston Texans (7-7) | 19 |
19 | San Francisco 49ers (7-7) | 18 |
20 | Cleveland Browns (7-7) | 20 |
21 | Minnesota Vikings (6-8) | 21 |
22 | New Orleans Saints (6-8) | 23 |
23 | Carolina Panthers (5-8-1) | 25 |
24 | Atlanta Falcons (5-9) | 22 |
25 | New York Giants (5-9) | 26 |
26 | Chicago Bears (5-9) | 24 |
27 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-12) | 28 |
28 | Washington (3-11) | 30 |
29 | New York Jets (3-11) | 32 |
30 | Oakland Raiders (2-12) | 27 |
31 | Tennessee Titans (2-12) | 29 |
32 | Jacksonville Jaguars (2-12) | 31 |