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NFL Insiders Week 15 Power Rankings and Picks
Week 14 gave us a lot of excitement and upsets. Speaking of upsets, I wanted to look at some players that have been "upsets" all year. Sam Bradford is number one on this list. I know he doesn't have much talent around him but he has more than last year when he played much better than he has this season. I'm wondering if the Rams shouldn't consider drafting a QB or even making a run at Luck and cutting ties with Bradford.
Josh Freeman has been just as bad as Bradford, and in some cases, even worse. He turns the ball over way too much and it seems that Blount is the only offensive weapon the Buc's have this year. This team needs to rebuild that offense and the old defense in the off season or it's going to be much the same next year.
On another note, James Harrison earned a one game suspension for his hit on Colt McCoy Thursday night. Suh gets all the negative attention but this guy has been much worse through his entire career. As a continuous repeat offender, I think he should've gotten more than a game. The Browns will continue to be investigated for allowing McCoy to come back into the game after that hit. I expect some fines and possibly suspensions or lost jobs for the team doctors.
One thing I'm really burning on is the lack of respect that Eli Manning gets. Watching NFL Network and ESPN all they had to say was how disappointing the Cowboys were for blowing the lead and wondering if it's time for Eli to finally get out of Peyton's shadow. Are you serious??? Eli has a Super Bowl ring already (faster than Peyton got his) and has always been clutch when the game is on the line. Tebow gets all the attention for fourth quarter magic but Eli has been doing this consistently throughout his career. He has 14 fourth quarter touchdowns this season, tied with Peyton and Johnny Unitas for most all time. He's on pace to throw for over 4500 yards and 35 touchdowns this year and would be the MVP if it weren't for Aaron Rodgers. Give Eli the respect he deserves.
Now let's get to the rankings:
Power Rankings
1
| Green Bay Packers
| I don't know if they're that good or the Raiders are that bad these days, but they sure looked like they are on their way to an undefeated season
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|---|---|---|
2
| New Orleans Saints
| The Saints are very good, but they are suspect outdoors and away from their home turf. They really need to get that second seed to have a chance at a Super Bowl run
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3
| Baltimore Ravens
| The Ravens look to be the best team in the AFC with the Steelers being banged up. This may finally be the year that Flacco gets them over the hump.
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4
| Pittsburgh Steelers
| The Steelers are defending AFC champs and are very tough but they are seriously banged up. It will be interesting to see what happens to them down the stretch.
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5
| San Francisco 49ers
| The niners were dumped by the Cardinals and are starting to show some weaknesses. They have Pittsburgh next week and may suffer their second straight loss.
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6
| Houston Texans
| T.J Yates did it again. What a performance against a playoff caliber team. They seem to be the real deal, despite all the injuries they've suffered this season.
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7
| New England Patriots
| They've found a way to get it done the past few weeks, but this team has a lot of holes. The big Gron' is a beast in the middle. If teams take away the middle of the field, this team will struggle.
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8
| Denver Broncos
| Tebow is getting the job done and turning all his doubters into believers, including me. They just keep rolling.
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9
| New York Giants
| I probably have the Giants ranked higher than anyone else, but I believe in Eli. They will be in the playoffs, but that defense is going to cost them any legitimate chance they would have in the playoffs.
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10
| New York Jets
| Pounding on the hopeless Chiefs isn't going to get much attention, but they have strung together some victories and are in position to make the playoffs when all hope seemed lost three weeks ago.
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11
| Cincinnati Bengals
| The Bengals play well but not good enough to beat playoff caliber teams. I think they're a year away from doing anything legitimately.
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12
| Atlanta Falcons
| The Falcons had to come from behind to beat Cam Newton and the Panthers. That defense is suspect though and will cost them down the stretch.
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13
| Detroit Lions
| They need to keep winning to make the playoffs. It's going to be hard with the schedule they have left. But if teams like the Cowboys and Bears keep losing, they may not have a problem.
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14
| Dallas Cowboys
| The Boys blew a 12 point lead late in the fourth quarter to lose their second straight game and have fallen out of the playoff rankings
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15
| Tennessee Titans
| Jake Locker almost pulled out a last second miracle over the Saints, but he didn't even throw the ball to give his team a chance. I do like him though and think he'll be a great QB for their future.
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16
| San Diego Chargers
| The Chargers have now won two straight and are trying to make a late run at the playoffs. I think it may be too late for them though, especially with Baltimore on deck.
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17
| Oakland Raiders
| I'm not sure what's going on with the Raiders but they're playing awful. They've lost some bad games and are out of the playoff picture.
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18
| Arizona Cardinals
| The Cards are playing spoiler late in the season. If they had a legitimate QB they would be in the running right now.
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19
| Seattle Seahawks
| Another team that's playing well down the stretch here. They have really put together some good wins lately and are riding Marshawn Lynch. It's a little too late though.
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20
| Chicago Bears
| The Bears are on a downward spiral without their top two offensive weapons and look to be playing their way out of the playoffs
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21
| Washington Redskins
| They are playing hard for Shanahan and had a chance to beat the Patriots but a mental error got a touchdown erased and they ultimately lost the game.
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22
| Philadelphia Eagles
| Beating the Dolphins shows they have some fight in them but it's too little too late for Reid and the birds.
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23
| Carolina Panthers
| As good as Cam is he makes mistakes that are just as bad. He's young though and these are to be expected. They will get better each year.
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24
| Buffalo Bills
| I've never seen a team crumble as bad as the Bills have down the stretch. It's disappointing to see. Hopefully they can finish strong.
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25
| Miami Dolphins
| They've now fired their head coach and will be looking in a new direction. If Moore's injury keeps him out, don't look for them to win another game this season.
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26
| Jacksonville Jaguars
| Putting up 40 points on the Buccaneers isn't saying much these days. Jones Drew is literally all this team has going for them.
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27
| Minnesota Vikings
| Christian Ponder is a lot like Cam Newton. He looks great often but makes way too many mistakes and turns the ball over. They've played admirably without Peterson but they are already looking forward to the draft.
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28
| Cleveland Browns
| Great defense, horrible offense. The story of the Browns season. I'm begging them to draft some offensive talent next year.
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29
| Kansas City Chiefs
| Haley has been fired and the Chiefs are struggling. Battle is not a starting back in this league. Palko is far from a starting QB, so I don't blame this season on Haley. Hopefully he'll land on his feet somewhere else.
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30
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers
| I'm not sure about the order of the last three teams on this list. They really can be interchangeable. The Buc's are very bad.
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31
| St Louis Rams
| Bradford has taken a step backward and the Rams are awful. Here's looking to next season.
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32
| Indianapolis Colts
| As an Indianapolis resident, I'm one of thousands that hope Caldwell loses his job because he's awful.
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Week 15 Picks
Jaguars at Falcons = 28-13 Falcons
Cowboys at Buccaneers = 34-10 Cowboys
Bengals at Rams = 17-12 Bengals
Panthers at Texans = 23-17 Texans
Seahawks at Bears = 20-13 Seahawks
Redskins at Giants = 31-20 Giants
Titans at Colts = 27-7 Titans
Dolphins at Bills = 21-20 Dolphins
Saints at Vikings = 33-17 Saints
Packers at Chiefs = 27-6 Packers
Lions at Raiders = 27-17 Lions
Browns at Cardinals = 17-9 Cardinals
Patriots at Broncos = 24-17 Patriots
Jets at Eagles = 20-17 Jets
Ravens at Chargers = 30-24 Ravens
Steelers at 49ers = 17-14 49ers
