Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells, who won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants, used to say that you know what you have as a football team by Thanksgiving.
These power rankings certainly aren’t definitive, but provide a good measure of where teams are coming out of Turkey Day — which had touching tributes to the late John Madden.
The Philadelphia Eagles, coming off a loss two weeks ago and edging the Indianapolis Colts, asserted their dominance in Week 12.
The Minnesota Vikings also got over their pre-Thanksgiving thrashing at the hands of the Dallas Cowboys to defend U.S. Bank Stadium from the New England Patriots.
The Miami Dolphins returned from their bye week with their fourth straight game of scoring 30-plus points.
Here are the power rankings across the NFL with Week 12 in the books.
32. Houston Texans (1-9-1)
Last week: No. 32
The Texans went with Kyle Allen to provide the offense with a spark, but it hardly did that as Houston fell down 30-0 by halftime. The Texans don’t have one position group they can hang their hat on as being dominant. Houston fans may have to hang their heads until the offseason when they can fantasizing about their possible No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft.
31. Chicago Bears (3-9)
Last week: No. 31
Bad things tend to happen to teams that rely on Trevor Siemian at quarterback, but that is the unenviable place Chicago finds themselves until Justin Fields returns. The loss of receiver Darnell Mooney doesn’t help one bit.
30. Denver Broncos (3-8)
Last week: No. 28
When a Sam Darnold-led offense is outscoring yours led by Russell Wilson and schemed by Nathaniel Hackett, you know you have some bigger issues. Will Denver back out of their pairing when the season is over?
29. Carolina Panthers (4-8)
Last week: No. 30
They did manage to get a win, but they are still a team waiting to get to the offseason to start over. They aren’t exactly the true spoilers teams with bad records can be in December. The only thing Carolina is spoiling with wins over terrible teams is their draft positioning.
28. Indianapolis Colts (4-7-1)
Last week: No. 25
Speaking of teams that are in desperate need of the offseason, throw in the Colts. Indianapolis is one of the more puzzling teams in the league this season. They can be good enough to hang with the best team in football (Philadelphia Eagles), but come out the next week and play down to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
27. Los Angeles Rams (3-8)
Last week: No. 24
Albeit the Rams were starting Bryce Perkins, there was no better contrast between where Los Angeles used to be and where they are now than their showdown with the Kansas City Chiefs. The definitive vision of Sean McVay’s team would have kept pace or beaten Kansas City. Instead the current incarnation of the Rams is on pace to become the first defending Super Bowl champion to post a losing record the following season. The last to do it were the 2003 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
26. Arizona Cardinals (4-8)
Last week: No. 21
Things continue to spiral out of control for the Cardinals. Toss in Kyler Murray criticizing the offensive scheme against the Los Angeles Chargers, and it’s a recipe that could result in a coaching change at the end of the year.
25. Green Bay Packers (4-8)
Last week: No. 20
The Packers have gathered a cloud of skepticism with Aaron Rodgers hurt. Jordan Love looked better against the Philadelphia Eagles than he did at any point in 2021, but there is still a little unknown. With Green Bay floundering and sporting a bad record, the last five games could be long and dark.
24. New Orleans Saints (4-8)
Last week: No. 22
The Saints were playing one of the top-4 teams in the NFC on their home field. The defense did their part to hold San Francisco down, but the offense was nowhere to be found, which has been the case for the Saints in 2022.
23. Cleveland Browns (4-7)
Last week: No. 29
The Browns secured a quality win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and also have their definitive vision of a starting quarterback taking the field in Week 13. Cleveland could be the ultimate spoiler in December.
22. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-7)
Last week: No. 26
As Kenny Pickett gains more experience, and the defense remains dominant with T.J. Watt back in the lineup, the Steelers are a team no one wants to see on their December slate. Perhaps Mike Tomlin can avoid his first losing season after all.
21. Las Vegas Raiders (4-7)
Last week: No. 27
The Raiders’ bad record and the fact they play in the division with the conference’s best team puts a governor on their postseason aspirations. Nevertheless optimism can be built if Las Vegas finishes strong as it provides some measure of proof that the Josh McDaniels way can work.
20. Atlanta Falcons (5-7)
Last week: No. 18
The Falcons had a chance to gain ground on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the top of the NFC South, and they couldn’t take care of business. Atlanta may have found a stable foundation they can build upon in 2022 given their surprising record.
19. New York Giants (7-4)
Last week: No. 17
New York had a halftime lead on the Cowboys, who have been horrendous on Thanksgiving the past couple seasons, but weren’t able to close it out. December still looks optimistic for the Giants if they can find a way to capture that October momentum and stay on the plus side of .500.
18. Detroit Lions (4-7)
Last week: No. 23
A case of “failing upward,” the Lions took a dominant AFC team down to the wire on a short week after a big road win against another tough team in the New York Giants. It may be fair to say that Detroit is coming out of their rebuild. December will show just how far the Lions have to go to start thinking about contender status in 2023.
17. Seattle Seahawks (6-5)
Last week: No. 15
The rest of the NFL may finally be catching up to the Seahawks. It was a good run while it lasted. It also shows how great of a coach Pete Carroll is that he could take a team many picked to be bottom-5 and have them competitive through this point of the season.
16. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-7)
Last week: No. 19
Doug Pederson’s decision to go for the two-point conversion rather than go to overtime was gusty, but it is the culture shift the Jaguars needed to get out of their perpetual rebuilding mode. Their execution and win over the best team in the AFC North showed Jacksonville may already be out of the rebuilding mode.
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-6)
Last week: No. 10
Tampa Bay still has everything going for them as the rest of the NFC South is questionable at best, but they have to figure out what ails them quickly. The next month would be a great time for Tom Brady to spark the Bucs into having momentum to carry into the playoffs.
14. New England Patriots (6-5)
Last week: No. 9
New England could have used a win over the Minnesota Vikings, but at least they did show that the three points from the offense against the Jets the week prior was a result of bad weather conditions. Maybe the Patriots would be higher this week if the NFL could ever figure out what constitutes a catch.
13. New York Jets (7-4)
Last week: No. 16
New York may have gotten the win with a backup quarterback in Mike White, but they are still the Jets and may find a way to disappoint their fans in the last month of the season. White having a good game against a floundering Bears team was good for the winning percentage but more needs to be proven to truly believe in the Jets.
12. Washington Commanders (7-5)
Last week: No. 13
Think of where Washington would be if they rolled with Taylor Heinicke to start the season and didn’t trade for Carson Wentz. Nevertheless Washington is the third-hottest team in a highly competitive NFC East. Both Philadelphia and Dallas would have to suffer monumental collapses on top of Washington doing their job in order to secure the division title. Nevertheless they can still stack wins in December and be a formidable wild-card team.
11. Baltimore Ravens (7-4)
Last week: No. 4
The Ravens have blown way too many leads to be considered a top-10 team. If the Ravens truly were the best the AFC North had to offer, they should have been able to close out against the Jaguars. Instead Baltimore may give away the division over the next month in a manner similar to how they have given up leads this season.
10. Tennessee Titans (7-4)
Last week: No. 5
The Titans may be the kings of the AFC South, but that isn’t saying much compared to the landscape of the AFC playoff race. Tennessee had a rematch with the conference champions a year ago and weren’t able to keep pace. Their Week 13 encounter with the Eagles will reveal plenty about where the Titans actually are.
9. Cincinnati Bengals (7-4)
Last week: No. 12
If not for some early season slip ups, the Bengals would be running away with the AFC North. Cincinnati has to keep doing their job and hope that the Week 18 showdown with the Ravens at home isn’t a winner-take-all for the division.
8. Los Angeles Chargers (6-5)
Last week: No. 14
It was a bold move on coach Brandon Staley’s part to go for two and let the game hinge on that two-point conversion rather than overtime. However, the decision was successful and allowed the Chargers to get the win rather than spend another 10 minutes risking players getting hurt. The Chargers can build momentum with their rematch at the Las Vegas Raiders.
7. Minnesota Vikings (9-2)
6. Buffalo Bills (8-3)
Fun fact: the Bills have as many wins in Ford Field this season as the Lions do (two). Buffalo has a revealing three-game stretch that includes all AFC East teams and starts off on the road at the New England Patriots. Which Josh Allen will show up?
5. San Francisco 49ers (7-4)
Last week: No. 7
The 49ers are getting to be a team no one wants to see in the playoffs, either as a wild-card or as a host site. San Francisco’s defense has come to life and stifled opposing offenses, which has taken considerable pressure off of quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
4. Dallas Cowboys (8-3)
Last week: No. 3
The Cowboys were a bit generous with a few possessions in the first half against the Giants. However, they picked up their first Thanksgiving win since 2018 with a strong rally in the second half. While Dak Prescott got the Madden Turkey Leg, he gave proper credit to the defense for providing the second half spark.
3. Miami Dolphins (8-3)
Last week: No. 8
It wasn’t that the Dolphins got a win over the Texans as much as it was how they got the win. Miami didn’t mess around; they didn’t play with their food. They posted a 30-0 lead by halftime and shut it down. The Dolphins offense is as quick strike as the Kansas City Chiefs, and if those two teams met in the playoffs, it would be a fireworks display.
2. Kansas City Chiefs (9-2)
Last week: No. 1
There really wasn’t any doubt that the Chiefs were going to handle their business against the Rams. Their schedule gets even easier down the stretch as they face only two playoff teams from a year ago — both on the road — in the Cincinnati Bengals (Week 13) and Las Vegas Raiders (Week 18).
1. Philadelphia Eagles (10-1)
Last week: No. 2
The Eagles provided a convincing win over the Packers and didn’t play down to the level of their competition, even though it was a one-score game at the end. With a two-touchdown lead in their own building and Aaron Rodgers in the locker room, there was no doubt Philadelphia would close out, which they did with their dominant run game. The Eagles have their vulnerabilities, but they are difficult to exploit.
