Power Rankings after Week 17: Chiefs retake top spot, Eagles second, Lions and Vikings Week 18 showdown

After 17 week of the regular season there are two playoff spots left, one conference with home field advantage and a first round BYE up for grabs and four teams at three losses heading into the final week of the season hoping to get the first pick in the draft. There is a lot to settle next weekend, but it’s all going to boil down to the final game of the regular season as the Vikings and Lions square off for a battle to decide the King of the North.

Here are our latest edition of Power Rankings after Week 17.

1) Kansas City Chiefs 15-1, last week 4

The one seed. Home field advantage. A Christmas Day win. And Andy Reid dressing up as Santa Clause in the locker room. An all around perfect day and near perfect season for KC, who couldn’t have drawn up a better path to a three peat if they had the opportunity before Week 1. They are getting healthy at the right time and the offense had maybe it’s best game of the season against a Steelers defense that is supposedly one of the scariest in the league. The only question heading into the final week of the season is if Andy Reid plays his starters to keep them fresh heading into their first round BYE in the playoffs?

2) Philadelphia Eagles 13-3, last week 2

After their loss last week in Washington we would have expected a response by Philly if Jalen Hurts was under center, but he wasn’t. Instead it was Kenny Pickett, but you wouldn’t have noticed it by the way the Eagles played against the Cowboys. This blowout win convinces me even more than the 10 game win steak that this team is built to be at the top of the NFC and at the top of the Power Rankings. The defense set the tone early and Saquon carried the load the rest of the way in another fabulous performance that saw him carry the ball 31 times and reach the 2,000 yard mark in 16 games. They may not be the one seed, but this is as tough of an out as any in the league, NFC or AFC.

3) Detroit Lions 14-2, last week 1

Is the state of the Lions defense cause for concern heading into their battle for the one seed and further into the playoffs? Yes, obviously allowing 32 points a game over the last month isn’t ideal, but when you have Jared Goff as your quarterback he demands a level of excellence from the other teams’ offense that few teams are able to keep up with. On top of that Jahmyr Gibbs proved for another week that he can carry the work load in the backfield all on his own. The only problem for the Lions is they leave themselves little margin for error with their defensive deficiencies. One punch out fumble, or a strip sack or a tipped ball at the line that leads to an interception may make the difference in a win or go home situation, and that’s a lot of pressure to put on a QB, even one who has been as perfect as Goff. That’s why the Lions have dropped down a couple spots even though they have been winning.

4) Minnesota Vikings 14-2, last week 5

Ok. That’s it. I’m sold. I’m sorry it took me 17 weeks, but this Vikings team is legit. Their defense has receive most of the praise for their ability to make big plays and celebrate those big plays like only they can, but Sam Darnold and the offense are equally as spectacular. They put on a clinic against a Packers defense that has been growing stronger every week they inch towards the playoffs. Darnold lit them up as he used everyone other than Justin Jefferson for most of the game. Jalen Nailor, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson stepped up and got open while Jefferson was being double and triple teamed. They have the Lions in Detroit next week, and if they win that, this is my favorite to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. But that’s a big if.

5) Buffalo Bills 13-3, last week 3

Easy does it for the Bills in a game that on paper could have got a little complicated. Good teams take care of business and play their game even against the worst of teams. Great teams blow them out early and are able to take their foot off the gas for the final quarter. The Bills are rolling, after clinching the two seed, the only game they will have to play on the road will be in KC, where they have already proven they can win.

6) Baltimore Ravens 11-5, last week 7

Any team that has the playoffs on the horizon would love to be playing like the Ravens have played over the last few weeks. Since their narrow loss to the Eagles and BYE week that followed, Baltimore has scored 30+ in all three games and are holding their opponents to just 11 ppg. They will likely end the season as the division winners which means they get at least one game at home, but it would be hard to bet against this team no matter where they play.

7) Green Bay Packers 11-5, last week 6

The Packers did the same thing against the Vikings in the first match up between these two teams. They let Minnesota get out to a commanding lead and then battled back to make the scoreline respectable although the game was never in danger. They have made a habit of starting games with knock out blows early in the first half against lesser teams, but that doesn’t pan out against good teams. That’s been the knock on this Green Bay team all year. They are good but they aren’t good against great teams.

8) Los Angeles Rams 10-6, last week 8

Forget that finess, fancy football we are used to seeing from Sean McVay’s Rams over the last few seasons. LA have showed they can win ugly, rough and rugged games that you have to grind out late in the season and especially in the playoffs. They have the capacity to put up points by the bucket load like they showed in their win over the Bills, but these last couple games have looked more like what they should be expecting in the playoffs. Their four game win streak has clinched them the NFC West and home field for at least a game in the playoffs, and remember since Puka and Cooper came back this team is 8-2. Only the Lions, Vikings, Eagles and Chiefs have been better in that span.

9) Washington Commanders 11-5, last week 10

Jayden Daniels didn’t just look like the best rookie QB this year, Jaylen Daniels looked like one of the best QBs in the league on the Commanders overtime drive that clinched Washington a playoff spot for the first time in four years. That’s two game winning drives in Week’s 16 and 17 to secure his team a trip to the postseason. The best part of it was, Dan Quinn didn’t want to kick a field goal. He kept his rookie QB on the field and told him go take us where we want to be. The legend of JD in DC is only beginning but boy what a first chapter it has been.

10) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-7, last week 11

After a heart wrenching loss for the Bucs in Dallas last week which cost them their spot at the top of the NFC South, Tampa Bay had two options against the Panthers. They could either sulk about losing control of their own destiny, or they could stand on business and put the pressure on the Falcons who were undoubtedly scoreboard watching in preparation for their Sunday Night match up. Baker threw five TDs as the Bucs rolled to victory and ended the week at the top of the NFC South.

11) Pittsburgh Steelers 10-6, last week 9

The gauntlet of a finish to the regular season is taking it’s toll on the Steelers and the top teams in the league have been feasting on them like vultures. By the time the playoffs come around there might only be scraps to pick at for whoever draws them in the first round of the playoffs. After games against the Eagles, Ravens and Chiefs now they have to beat a red hot Bengals team desperate for a win to avoid stumbling into the postseason on a four game losing skid. Should they win, they would draw the Texans in the first round. If anyone is hurting more than the Steelers, it’s Houston.

12) Los Angeles Chargers 10-6, last week 13

The Chargers are going to the playoffs in Jim Harbaugh’s first year as head coach. That statement shouldn’t really surprise anyone. He has been a winner and brought a culture of winning everywhere he goes. On Saturday in Foxborough, it was the offense that finally started to click as Justin Herbert tossed three TDs in what was his best performance of the season. The only doubt all season has been Herbert and the offense, but if this spring boards him into looking like the Herbert we are used to seeing than the Chargers are going to be a team everyone tries to avoid in the playoffs.

13) Cincinnati Bengals 8-8, last week 18

I’ll be damned. The Bengals are still alive in the last week of the season. Despite their horrendous start to the season, despite the horrific defensive performances that have kept Joe Burrow from being included in the MVP conversation, despite the 10 wins Burrow said would get them into the playoffs being mathematically impossible since a month ago, the Bengals still have a chance and they did so by beating the team that stands between them and the postseason. Tee Higgins made up for his 4th quarter fumble with his third TD of the game to end it in overtime, and now all the Bengals can do is win and hope that Andy Reid won’t want to give their starters two consecutive weeks off as the Chiefs play the Broncos in next week.

14) Denver Broncos 9-7, last week 12

Two straight losses and two opportunities to clinch a playoff spot for the Denver Broncos. Before we go ripping them and labeling them choke artists, lets straighten one thing out. They went into Cincy against a desperate team and hung with them for more than 60 minutes. That wasn’t an easy game, and Bo Nix showed he can be as clutch and heroic as and rookie QB or veteran QB in the league with his final drive of the 4th quarter. It all comes down to next week, and if the Broncos lose a third straight game against a KC team that may or may not play all of their starters after wrapping up a first round BYE in the playoffs.

15) Miami Dolphins 8-8, last week 16

Tua was a late scatch in the Dolphins must win game against Cleveland, to make things a little more interesting in Miami’s penultimate game of the season. Mike McDaniels didn’t need a Payton Manning like performance from Tyler Huntley to beat the impotent Browns on a cold and rainy day from Cleveland, but that’s exactly what he got. Huntley connected on 22 of his 26 passes and led his team to a 20-3 to give Miami a ray of playoff light going into the final week of the season. They need to win and the Broncos and Bengals to lose, but crazier things have happened.

16) Atlanta Falcons 8-8, last week 17

Did the Falcons make the move a little too late? We will find out next week, but Michael Penix has looked like the right option under center for the last two weeks. A lot of credit should go to Bijan Robinson who has assumed his role as the leader of the offense, but it still wasn’t enough to top a really good Washington team in a must win scenario for both teams. Now it comes down to Atlanta beating Carolina and hoping for a Bucs loss to the Saints next week.

17) Seattle Seahawks 9-7, last week 15

The Seahawks were eliminated on the last play of Sunday night in Week 17. The Commanders game winning overtime TD was the nail in the Seahawks playoff chances. This was a streaky team all season long, and unfortunately for Mike Macdonald they have more valleys than peaks in his first season in the Pacific Northwest.

18) Houston Texans 9-7, last week 14

The Texans are like that kid on the playground that everybody fights to get behind in knockout. It’s a team that is emotionally and physically in peril and you can see it in their play and their body language. I hate to use this as the reason why, because Tank Dell’s injury is serious and he deserves nothing but wishes for a safe and speedy recovery, but this team was fragile even before that injury, and now they look shattered.

19) Dallas Cowboys 7-9, last week 20

The Eagles let their eternal rivals have it on the field, and the Philly fans let Jerry Jones have it off the field at Lincoln Financial Field. The worst part for Jerry and Dallas fans, is they did it with a couple of back up quarterbacks. Kenny Pickett ripped the Cowboys defense apart after Cooper Rush started the day by getting an interception taken to the house on the first series of the game. It was gutsy for Jerry to go to Philly in such circumstances, but he might think twice about going to the Link no matter who is under center in the City of Brotherly Love.

20) Indianapolis Colts 7-9, last week 19

The pathetic performance of the week goes to: the Indianapolis Colts. Forget the week, make that the year. With their season on the line, and a chance to at least survive for another week, the Colts laid down and got run over by the two loss Giants, who probably didn’t have much of an interest in winning considering they had the No. 1 pick. The defense got shredded for 45 yards and couldn’t make a tackle in the second half. If you can’t beat the Giants with the playoffs on the line you deserve to be packing up your lockers at the end of Week 18.

21) San Francisco 49ers 6-10, last week 22

You have to hand it to the 49ers. They could have come out and laid down against the Lions like a lot of teams with a whole lot more on the line did this week. But they came out and gave us a show on the final Monday Night of the regular season. Guys like Fred Warner and Nick Bosa played through injuries in a game that didn’t mean anything to them and went toe-to-toe with what has been one of the best, if not the best, team in the league all season. In the end two Brock Purdy interceptions made the difference, but take nothing away from the third year QB who had 377 yards and 3 TDs on a night his defense couldn’t get a stop. I’m not sure how it can even be up for debate, but the Niners need to pay him a lot of money this offseason to make sure he stick around the Bay Area.

22) Carolina Panthers 4-12, last week 23

Statistically it was another decent outing for Bryce Young who had 2 TDs and hit almost 60% of his passes but there was no stopping the Baker and the Bucs who steam rolled the Panthers defense and didn’t the let Carolina do what they have been doing lately, which is keep games close and make teams chasing playoff spots nervous until the closing minutes of the game.

23) New Orleans Saints 5-11, last week 24

There is just not much you can expect from a team that has no weapons on either side of the ball. I guess the good news is New Orleans got on the board after getting shut out by the Packers the week before but they got outclassed by a terrible Raiders team that is just about as short handed as they are.

24) Arizona Cardinals 7-9, last week 21

Death, taxes and the Cardinals collapsing at the end of the season. We have become all to accustomed to seeing this scene play out in the desert, and Arizona will add to their playoff drought for yet another year.

25) Las Vegas Raiders 4-12, last week 29

What in the world is going on in Vegas? Two wins in a row? In the famous words of Lou Brown in Major League, “if we win one next week, that’s called a winning streak.” What a better way to end the season than on a winning streak.” The Raiders haven’t done that since November of 2022 and that would be a perfect way for Antonio Pierce to end the season and ensure himself another year as the head boss in Vegas. Although that should never be under question considering the team they provided him in his first full year.

26) Jacksonville Jaguars 4-12, last week 30

Doug Pederson has probably coached his last game in Jacksonville, and he did so ending on a good note. It was far from pretty, much like his tenure as the Jags coach, but he got the job done as Mac Jones had another positive day that might just show teams he is worthy of sticking around the league in a back up capacity. The only real thing to be excited about as a Jags fan is rookie WR Brian Thomas Jr. who will be hoping to have a healthy Trevor Lawrence in the backfield next year, and an offense that will afford those two to create a chemistry that has been missing in Jacksonville for a long time.

27) New York Jets 4-12, last week 25

Getting mopped up to the point of embarrassment is nothing new for Aaron Rodgers and the Jets by now. They have suffered countless blowouts this season, but seeing Rodgers get benched after getting blanked for the first three quarters only to see Tyrod Taylor go out and throw a couple of TDs might be the drop that overflows the glass. I’m not sure how Rodgers feels, but I’ve never been more convinced that he is going to hang it up at the end of the season. Prediction, like his predecessor in Green Bay and New York, it’s going to be a long and dragged out process that takes up our time and headline blocks on sports shows around the country.

28) Cleveland Browns 3-13, last week 27

I think I have to throw in the towel on the DTR project in Cleveland. I was hoping and rooting for the second year QB to raise some eyebrows at the end of the season and make his case for being a candidate for the QB1 job in Cleveland next year, but nine points in two weeks isn’t going to cut it. It wasn’t like he was playing the Steelers and Vikings offense either, 9 points combined against the Dolphins and the Bengals. The only good news is that the Giants lost to bring the bottom feeders all to 3 wins in the chase for Shadeur, and on top of that Deshaun Watson is willing to restructure his contract which will open up some cap space for the roster next season.

29) New England Patriots 3-13, last week 28

We have seen enough of Drake Maye for this season. Put him in the ice chambers and keep him fresh for next season. We almost saw him get knocked out of the game against the Chargers, and that should be enough of a warning shot for coach Mayo to keep his guy on the sidelines for next week. It’s been a rough enough season for Pats fans, don’t drag that misery into the offseason by putting the face of your franchise in harms way for the final four quarters of the season. There’s no point. Pack it in, and start building this team from the ground up today.

30) New York Giants 3-13, last week 32

That’s what I’m talking about Drew Lock. You could see his teammates rally around him in yesterday’s shootout win over the Colts. Lock may have had the best day of his NFL career on Sunday in the Giants first home win all season. Of course, that does the franchise and the fans little favors when it comes to getting the No. 1 pick, but personally I’m pumped for Drew Lock who I don’t feel has ever got a fair chance at being a QB in this league. I hope he gets out of NY and finds his Minnesota to Sam Darnold or Tampa Bay to Baker Mayfield.

31) Chicago Bears 4-12, last week 26

I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing that the Bears have another week and another game to play. Just when you think it couldn’t get any worse for Caleb Williams and the Bear offense, they put up just 3 points on a night that their rookie QB got sacked 7 times. It was bad before Thursday night’s game, but their loss to the Seahawks brought them to a new low. Finish the season, sweep the skeletons into the closet and clean house this offseason. It’s time for a new everything except QB in Chicago.

32)Tennessee Titans 3-13, last week 31

The Indianapolis Colts might have given the Tennessee Titans the best Christmas gift they could have ever hoped for by getting flattened by the Giants on Sunday. That puts them in position get the No. 2 pick in the draft behind the New England Patriots, which would mean the Titans will have their choice of a quarterback considering the Pats already have their franchise gun slinger in Drake Maye. The game? Oh yeah, they lost to the Jags. It wasn’t interesting. Now on to the draft room.