Well, that was certainly a heck of a way to end Week 11. The Los Angeles Rams scored a touchdown with 1:49 remaining in the fourth quarter to beat the Kansas City Chiefs by a final score of 54-51 in what will go down as one of the greatest regular season contests in NFL history. It looked like the Rams might run away with things early, but the Chiefs battled back to turn this into a heavyweight slugfest. It truly was “last team to score wins.”
With the win, the Rams are 10-1, and a half game up on the New Orleans Saints. That being said, in my latest Week 12 NFL power rankings, I have the Saints at the top of the board. They beat the Rams, and right now are looking like the best team in the league. Playoff upsets happen, but a Rams-Saints NFC title game rematch would be so much fun.
If anybody is going to upset the Rams or Saints, it seems like Chicago would be the team. They held off the Minnesota Vikings in Week 11 thanks to a dominant defensive performance. At this point, Khalil Mack and Aaron Donald should be co-defensive players of the year.
And then of course, there are our San Francisco 49ers hanging around the bottom of the list. The 49ers currently hold the top pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, but the Oakland Raiders remain at the bottom of my power rankings. Even though they beat an Arizona Cardinals that beat the 49ers twice this year, it’s hard to put too much stock into that for the time being.
As we head into Week 12, the 49ers face an atrocious Bucs team, Oakland travels to Baltimore, and Arizona travels to face the Los Angeles Chargers. This is a winnable week for the 49ers, but we know anything could go south in a hurry. But if the 49ers do win, they would likely slip at least a couple spots down the draft board.
On to my Week 12 NFL power rankings!
Week 12 NFL power rankings
| Rank | Team | LW |
|---|---|---|
| Rank | Team | LW |
| 1 | New Orleans Saints (9-1) | 2 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Rams (10-1) | 3 |
| 3 | Kansas City Chiefs (9-1) | 1 |
| 4 | New England Patriots (7-3) | 5 |
| 5 | Chicago Bears (7-3) | 6 |
| 6 | Houston Texans (7-3) | 8 |
| 7 | Pittsburgh Steelers (7-2-1) | 10 |
| 8 | Los Angeles Chargers (7-3) | 4 |
| 9 | Minnesota Vikings (5-4-1) | 7 |
| 10 | Indianapolis Colts (5-5) | 17 |
| 11 | Carolina Panthers (6-4) | 11 |
| 12 | Baltimore Ravens (5-5) | 14 |
| 13 | Washington (6-4) | 9 |
| 14 | Seattle Seahawks (5-5) | 19 |
| 15 | Tennessee Titans (5-5) | 12 |
| 16 | Green Bay Packers (4-5-1) | 13 |
| 17 | Cincinnati Bengals (5-5) | 16 |
| 18 | Miami Dolphins (5-5) | 18 |
| 19 | Dallas Cowboys (5-5) | 20 |
| 20 | Philadelphia Eagles (4-6) | 15 |
| 21 | Denver Broncos (4-6) | 23 |
| 22 | Detroit Lions (4-6) | 24 |
| 23 | Atlanta Falcons (4-6) | 21 |
| 24 | Jacksonville Jaguars (3-7) | 22 |
| 25 | Cleveland Browns (3-6-1) | 25 |
| 26 | New York Giants (3-7) | 30 |
| 27 | Buffalo Bills (3-7) | 27 |
| 28 | New York Jets (3-7) | 28 |
| 29 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-7) | 26 |
| 30 | Arizona Cardinals (2-8) | 29 |
| 31 | San Francisco 49ers (2-8) | 31 |
| 32 | Oakland Raiders (2-8) | 32 |