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2015 NFL Power Rankings Week 10
NFL Power Ranks Week 10
And then there were two. Another week in the books and another undefeated goes down. It's down to just New England and Carolina in the ranks of the unbeatens. Who will get the last laugh and when do the 1972 Miami Dolphins start to worry?
*Note ~ Due to my lack of a rankings update last week all previous rankings will reflect that of two week's ago. I promise it won't happen again. Well, maybe. I promise I'll try to not let it happen again. Yeah. That's better.
1. New England Patriots (9-0) ~ They needed all 60 minutes to dispatch the pesky New York Giants but the bigger takeaway from this game was the loss of star receiver Julian Edelman to a broken foot. Can Danny Amendola fill those shoes? (Last Ranking 1)
2. Carolina Panthers (9-0) ~ Can Carolina truly run the table? Their remaining games are against teams like Washington, Dallas and the rest of the NFC South. I suppose anything could happen. Either way they are the cream of the NFC crop. (LR 5)
3. Cincinnati Bengals (8-1) ~ The Bengals looked more like the Bungles of not too long ago rather than the undefeated juggernaut they have been so far in 2015. Let's chalk it up to a bump in the road shall we? They are still three up in the loss column in the AFC North. (LR 3)
4. Arizona Cardinals (7-2) ~ Carson Palmer went in to Seattle and threw for 363 yards and three scores as Arizona hung 39 on the two-time defending NFC champs. They now boast a three-game lead in the NFC West. Looks like their division to lose. (LR 6)
5. Minnesota Vikings (7-2) ~ A five-game winning streak has the Vikings atop the division heading into a home showdown against the Green Bay Packers. This is the biggest game in Minnesota in quite some time dontcha know. (LR 10)
6. Denver Broncos (7-2) ~ A day that Peyton Manning became the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards the future hall of famer was benched after throwing four interceptions. To add to that he will miss at least the next game due to a torn plantar fascia in his foot. I hope this isn't how the great Peyton will go out but it's certainly a possibility. (LR 2)
7. Green Bay Packers (6-3) ~ A loss in Denver against the undefeated Broncos? Understandable. A loss in Carolina against the undefeated Panthers? Sure, that happens. A loss at home against the Detroit Lions? R-E-L-A-X is not the five letter word coming to most Packers' fans at the moment. More like P-A-N-I-C. (LR 4)
8. Atlanta Falcons (6-3) ~ Losers of three out of their last four it will be interesting to see if Atlanta can right the ship coming off the bye. They host the Andrew Luck-less Colts on Sunday. (LR 8)
9. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4) ~ Ben Roethlisberger was listed as the emergency quarterback after he had to leave last week's game with a foot injury. Landry Jones going down early forced him into the game and he responded by throwing for nearly 400 yards as the Steelers rolled to a victory. Tell me again why he wasn't starting? (LR 15)
10. Seattle Seahawks (4-5) ~ Beast mode has been missing in action all season. Marshawn Lynch has rushed for more than 75 yards just once in the seven games he has played this year. If Seattle is going to contend for the postseason that will need to change. And fast. (LR 7)
11. New York Jets (5-4) ~ It appears as though Ryan Fitzpatrick will be able to play through the pain in his non-throwing hand and continue to lead this Jets team that has a realistic shot at the playoffs. Without him they don't stand a chance. (LR 12)
12. New York Giants (5-5) ~ Eli Manning and the Giants almost did it again as they came heartbreakingly close to handing New England their first loss of the year. It's not the only game New York has blown a late lead in this year. Fortunately for them they still rule the putrid NFC East. (LR 16)
13. Buffalo Bills (5-4) ~ Buffalo will be the next New York team up to try and upend the Patriots and they have some extra time to prepare after playing on Thursday last week. The Bills put a scare into New England earlier this year with their rally falling just short in a 40-32 defeat. (LR 17)
14. Oakland Raiders (4-5) ~ Aldon Smith has been suspended by the NFL for one year. While his loss is big for Oakland it's more important that Smith get his life back on track. This is bigger than football. (LR 11)
15. Philadelphia Eagles (4-5) ~ I was upset when the Eagles-Dolphins game wasn't on TV last weekend. I was more upset when I streamed the game only to see them choke away an early 16-3 lead. This team truly is an enigma. An enigma that will now have Mark Sanchez leading the way while Sam Bradford is injured. (LR 15)
16. Indianapolis Colts (4-5) ~ Speaking of backup quarterbacks it looks like Matt Hasselbeck is back in the driver's seat in Indy. Andrew Luck will miss 2-6 weeks with kidney/abdominal injuries. Ouch. (LR 18)
17. Miami Dolphins (4-5) ~ Miami gave up a safety for the third straight week but still found a way to win a sloppy game in Philadelphia. Swim, Dolphins, swim. (LR 19)
18. Kansas City Chiefs (4-5) ~ After a brutal start to the season KC has rolled off three straight wins in a row including a rout in Denver. They might not be out of it just yet. Shame on me for writing them off. (LR 20)
19. St. Louis Rams (4-5) ~ Jeff Fisher has seen enough of Nick Foles. Case Keenum has been announced as the starting quarterback. Hey, Nick, we will welcome you back in Philly! Just sayin'! (LR 9)
20. Houston Texans (4-5) ~ Quote of the year material from the postgame in Cincy. Defensive end J.J. Watt played on Bengals QB Andy Dalton's nickname of the red rifle by referring to him as the red ryder BB gun. If you're looking for a better quote, well, you'll shoot your eye out kid. (LR 22)
21. Washington Redskins (4-5) ~ Kirk Cousins looked like a hall of fame quarterback against the porous New Orleans defense. Somehow the 'Skins are back in the thick of the NFC East divisional race. That's the sorry state of that division. (LR 23)
22. Chicago Bears (4-5) ~ Jeremy Langford has taken Chicago by storm. Filling in for the injured Matt Forte the rookie has amassed 324 total yards and three touchdowns in the last two games. Suddenly the Bears aren't looking like a cupcake victory. (LR 26)
23. New Orleans Saints (4-5) ~ After giving up 16 touchdown passes in the last three games to Eli Manning, Marcus Mariota and Cousins the Saints gave defensive coordinator Rob Ryan the ax. It's surprising he has lasted this long. (LR 14)
24. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-5) ~ Jameis Winston had the game-winning touchdown right in front of him and he fumbled the ball away. Luckily for him Dallas committed a penalty on the play giving Tampa another chance. This time Winston held on as he crossed the goal line for Tampa's third win in their last five games. (LR 28)
25. San Diego Chargers (2-7) ~ Philip Rivers has already topped 3,000 yards on the season but is it San Diego's 30th ranked running attack or their 28th ranked defense in terms of points allowed that is holding them back? Probably a bit of both. (LR 21)
26. Dallas Cowboys (2-7) ~ The good news is that Tony Romo should be back this weekend. The bad news is that they went 0-7 without him. (LR 25)
27. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-6) ~ Can anyone stop Allen Hurns? The Jaguars wideout has now found the end zone in seven straight contests. (LR 29)
28. Cleveland Browns (2-8) ~ As the Browns look to get healthy during their bye week one has to wonder if there is a quarterback controversy in Cleveland. Both Josh McCown and Johnny Manziel have performed adequately and the Browns are going nowhere. Could they turn to Manziel to see if he can be the signal-caller of the future? (LR 24)
29. Baltimore Ravens (2-7) ~ Officiating blunder or not all Elvis Dumervil has to do is not take down Blake Bortles by the facemask and there is no discussion here. (LR 27)
30. Detroit Lions (2-7) ~ Maybe you haven't heard but the Lions just won in Lambeau Field for the first time since 1991. That's the same year the Cold War ended. Or if you are like me and know more about football than history it's the same year Scott Norwood was wide right in the Super Bowl. So yeah. It's been a while. (LR 30)
31. San Francisco 49ers (3-6) ~ Something tells me Blaine Gabbert isn't going to have the same amount of success in Seattle as he did at home against the Falcons. Bet on that. (LR 31)
32. Tennessee Titans (2-7) ~ The Titans have scored just 169 points so far this season which is the fewest in the AFC. (LR 32)
Questions? Comments? Please feel free to leave them below in the comments. Good or bad. Either way is fine by me. Want to bug me on Twitter? Give me a follow @therichwhiteguy.