Somehow, the NFL playoff picture became a lot clearer this weekend while also getting even more complicated at the same time. Just another Sunday.
Kansas City, Tampa Bay, Green Bay, and Dallas all won, further solidifying their spots as division leaders as they battle it out for home field in their respective conferences. But while many of the top teams aside from Arizona strengthened their resumes, the Wild Card teams shuffled around and made for an interesting final few weeks of the season ahead.
There are just four regular-season editions of power rankings to go, so let’s find out where all 32 teams rank as we get deeper into December football.
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NFL Power Rankings Week 15
| Team | Rank (?") | Last Week | Next Week | Notes |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 1 (+2) | W 48-9 vs. LV | @ LAC (TNF) | And we’re back. |
| New England Patriots | 2 | Bye | @ IND (Saturday) | Home field is in their sights. |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 3 (+1) | W 33-27 vs. BUF | vs. NO (SNF) | Four straight 30-point outputs. |
| Green Bay Packers | 4 (+1) | W 45-30 vs. CHI | @ BAL | Aaron Rodgers still owns the Bears. |
| Arizona Cardinals | 5 (-4) | L 30-23 vs. LAR | @ DET | Tough loss against an undermanned Rams team in a game that would have played a huge role in clinching the division. |
| Los Angeles Rams | 6 (+1) | W 30-23 @ ARI | vs. SEA | The NFC West race isn’t over yet. |
| Dallas Cowboys | 7 (-1) | W 27-20 @ WSH | @ NYG | Big step towards locking up the NFC East. |
| Indianapolis Colts | 8 (+1) | Bye | vs. NE (Saturday) | Absolutely huge game upcoming against the Pats. |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 9 (+2) | W 37-21 vs. NYG | vs. KC (TNF) | LA has a chance to get a signature home win Thursday against the Chiefs |
| San Francisco 49ers | 10 (+2) | W 26-23 @ CIN | vs. ATL | Four wins in their last five. |
| Buffalo Bills | 11 (-3) | L 33-27 @ TB | vs. CAR | A once Super Bowl favorite is now the seven seed. |
| Baltimore Ravens | 12 (-2) | L 24-22 @ CLE | vs. GB | If they’re without Lamar Jackson... uh-oh. |
| Tennessee Titans | 13 (+1) | W 20-0 vs. JAC | @ PIT | Big win with the Colts idle. |
| Cleveland Browns | 14 (+1) | W 24-22 @ BAL | vs. LV (Saturday) | The Browns are very much alive now. |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 15 (-3) | L 26-23 vs. SF | @ DEN | Two home games to solidify their playoff spot, two losses. Brutal. |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 16 (+1) | Bye | vs. WSH | Next week against Washington very well may determine who gets a Wild Card spot and who doesn’t. |
| Denver Broncos | 17 (+3) | W 38-10 vs. DET | vs. CIN | Whoever loses next week is probably on the outside looking in at season’s end. |
| Miami Dolphins | 18 (+1) | Bye | vs. NYJ | Miami hasn’t lost since Halloween. |
| Minnesota Vikings | 19 (+2) | W 36-28 vs. PIT | @ CHI (MNF) | They tried as hard as they could to blow that game against Pittsburgh. |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 20 (-4) | L 36-28 @ MIN | vs. TEN | Maybe they can build on their second-half performance? |
| Washington Football Team | 21 (-2) | L 27-20 vs. DAL | @ PHI | Next week is for the season, essentially. |
| Seattle Seahawks | 22 (+1) | W 33-13 @ HOU | @ LAR | Back-to-back wins. |
| Atlanta Falcons | 23 (+5) | W 29-21 @ CAR | @ SF | Somehow, Atlanta is still alive. |
| New Orleans Saints | 24 (+1) | W 30-9 @ NYJ | @ TB (SNF) | Nice to have Alvin Kamara back. |
| Las Vegas Raiders | 25 (-3) | L 48-9 @ KC | @ CLE (Saturday) | Whatever those pregame antics were – it didn’t work. |
| Carolina Panthers | 26 (-2) | L 29-21 vs. ATL | @ BUF | This team was number one in DVOA just over two months ago. |
| New York Giants | 27 (-2) | L 37-21 @ LAC | vs. DAL | The Mike Glennon show. |
| Chicago Bears | 28 (-1) | L 45-30 @ GB | vs. MIN (MNF) | Major changes are coming to Chicago this offseason. |
| New York Jets | 29 | L 30-9 vs. NO | @ MIA | Robert Saleh looks more and more overwhelmed every week. |
| Houston Texans | 30 | L 33-13 vs. SEA | @ JAC | Shield your eyes next week. |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 31 | L 20-0 @ TEN | vs. HOU | Is Urban Meyer even going to last the rest of the season? |
| Detroit Lions | 32 | L 38-10 vs. DEN | vs. ARI | They’ll always have last week. |
Big Movers
Buffalo Bills
The Bills are somehow just 7-6, but they’ve got a potentially favorable schedule to end the year. Aside from a Week 16 date in New England, Buffalo plays Carolina, Atlanta, and the Jets. They very well could finish the year 3-1 and 10-6 overall, which you’d imagine would net them a Wild Card spot. Perhaps it’s not the season Bills fans envisioned, but get into the playoffs, and anything can happen. As evident by their comeback on Sunday in Tampa, this team isn’t giving up.
Denver Broncos
The Broncos are still in a flurry of AFC teams hovering around .500, like the aforementioned Bills. But their upcoming schedule is a gauntlet. Next week is a home date with Cincinnati, who also happens to be in the hunt with Denver, and then the Broncos will finish the year against each of their three AFC West rivals. Obviously, the deck is stacked against the Broncos, but they also control their fate at the same time. Win, and you’re probably in. Lose, and it’s probably over.
Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons are unbelievably 6-7, mainly because their schedule has been so soft, but credit them – they’re staying alive. And the rest of their season isn’t insurmountable. It’s not easy, but the Lions and Saints are mixed in there, and those are two very beatable teams. I still don’t think this Falcons team is a very good one, but they’re battling, and it will prove to be a valuable experience for the younger players on this team moving forward.
Random Musings
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs have been hot for a while now – they’ve won six in a row. But if this team goes on and rips off six or seven more wins and takes home another Super Bowl trophy, you can blame the Las Vegas Raiders for waking them up. Patrick Mahomes and company clearly didn’t take too kindly to the Raiders using Kansas City’s midfield logo as a meeting hub, and the Chiefs didn’t stop pouring it on all game long. This is the best Kansas City has looked in a long time, and if this is how they’re going to play in the playoffs, we could very well be looking at an AFC three-peat.
Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens offense has completely dried up over the last month and change, averaging over 10 points per game fewer the last five games than they did the first eight. Today’s 22-point output in a loss to the Browns was actually the first time they topped 20 points since Week 9, and Lamar Jackson barely played. Regardless of how poor the offense has shown in recent weeks, the Ravens season would be hanging in the balance if Jackson misses time.
San Francisco 49ers
The Niners are getting back to their roots and running the football. It may not be in the most conventional ways considering they’re using Deebo Samuel a ton, but it’s righted the ship in the Bay Area; San Francisco is on track to clinch a Wild Card spot. They’ve now won three of four and four of six dating back to Halloween, and their schedule could be quite favorable down the stretch. They play Atlanta and Houston, both of which should be wins, and get a Tennessee team without Derrick Henry. The Rams are the final team on the schedule, which could have tremendous playoff implications.
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