NFL POWER RANKINGS
Week 12 (2023) NFL Power Rankings From The Sturg
A look at the teams and the league as a whole two-thirds of the way through the regular season
The #1 and #32 teams held their positions this week but there was a ton of movement from all of the other spots. There are new teams in all three tiers this week. The team that is impressing me a ton right now is the Denver Broncos. The five-game winning streak after starting 1–5 is the feel-good story of the year. Also, the Eagles pulled one out in overtime over a team that still can’t seem to win in overtime was monumental. Let’s take a look at where I ranked all 32 teams this week.
Elite (1–10)
1. Philadelphia Eagles (10–1): The Eagles won in an exciting overtime game against the Bills this week. In a game that they very well could’ve lost given that the game-tying field goal in regulation was from 59 yards but they also fell behind in overtime. Jalen Hurts willed them to a win despite the Eagles being outgained 505–378. Also, worth mentioning, Philadelphia only had the ball for 26:53 in that game.
2. Baltimore Ravens (9–3): This team is proving to be the real deal. They beat the Chargers 20–10 and their running game was humming this week. Their defense also stepped up and made Justin Herbert look sloppy out there. They forced four turnovers and sacked him three times. Keaton Mitchell is a good looking back and this team is built to win in the postseason. Watch out for them.
3. San Francisco 49ers (8–3): This team is on a three-game winning streak and making their way back up the rankings as they are once again in control of the NFC West. They beat the Seahawks on Thanksgiving 31–13. They didn’t need Brock Purdy to be perfect this time either as they leaned into their effective and prolific running game. Christian McCaffrey is leading the league in rushing yards this year.
4. Kansas City Chiefs (8–3): The Chiefs won a game that they should’ve at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas 31–17. Patrick Mahomes was efficient and threw for nearly 300 yards. Rashee Rice had over 100 yards receiving in the win. Isiah Pacheco had two rushing touchdowns as well.
5. Miami Dolphins (8–3): Tua threw two interceptions but still had the offense buzzing for the most part in a 34–13 win over the Jets. The running game led by Raheem Mostert definitely helped with two touchdowns and 94 yards on 20 carries. Both Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle went over 100 yards receiving this week. The Jets still looked bad on offense with Tim Boyle under center.
6. Jacksonville Jaguars (8–3): The Jaguars actually beat a team with a winning record this week. It was a road win and a divisional win at that. They deserve to move back up to the sixth spot after defeating the Texans 24–21. Trevor Lawrence threw for 364 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for a score.
7. Dallas Cowboys (8–3): I would move this team up further if I thought that they could beat any team over .500. The knock against them despite their impressive record and point differential is that it really does come against the league’s average to bad teams. Even the Cardinals have beaten them this year. But this team should still see the playoffs. Dak is playing out of his mind right now and the defense is anchored by a very historic DaRon Bland.
8. Detroit Lions (8–3): This team lost on Thanksgiving. I was thinking about how they’d play on that game in a year where they’re one of the top teams in the NFL. They lost three fumbles and couldn’t overcome themselves despite an otherwise good offensive showing against the Packers. They lost at home on Thanksgiving though 29–22. It feels a bit like a wake-up call to this team at this point.
9. Pittsburgh Steelers (7–4): The Pittsburgh Steelers fired offensive coordinator, Matt Canada, before the game, and the team responded well. It was the first 400 yard offensive game for the Steelers since before his tenure. I guess this Steelers’ offense actually can be good. I watched a play by Najee Harris during the game where he seemed to drag defenders for at least 10 yards that is making me reconsider him as a top back again. The Steelers beat the Bengals 16–10.
10. Cleveland Browns (7–4): This team will continue to fall in this division race. Dorian Thompson-Robinson got hurt and they had to turn to PJ Walker, which was disastrous. A team can only get injured so much before they don’t have enough depth to cover it up. The defense can only do so much. This offense is horrendous right now. They earned every bit of that 29–12 loss to the rising Broncos.
Mid-Tier (11–20)
11. Denver Broncos (6–5): Five wins in a row now. I think I was wrong about my initial impressions of this Sean Payton-Russell Wilson pairing. The defense is definitely helping them win games as well but Russ is starting to cook again and it’s fun to watch a good Broncos team again after they started 1–5. They beat the Browns in a game I can only describe as unfair.
12. Indianapolis Colts (6–5): I feel good about moving this team up now after three straight wins. This one was a well-deserved 27–20 win over the Buccaneers. Jonathan Taylor had 91 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. Gardner Minshew II threw for over 250 yards and played well enough to help them win the game.
13. Houston Texans (6–5): I know they only lost by 3 so I didn’t move them down too far. They will continue to climb as they are a good team led by a historically good rookie quarterback. Even in a loss, CJ Stroud threw for 304 yards and two touchdowns. They need to protect him better as the Jaguars sacked him four times though.
14. Seattle Seahawks (6–5): This team is falling behind in the race for the NFC West. They will likely lose to the team that they’ve now lost to twice this year. They lost to the 49ers again on Thanksgiving 31–13. The offense could only manage 220 yards against the 49ers defense. They get a major test this week against the Cowboys.
15. Buffalo Bills (6–6): They were so close to beating the Eagles, the top team in the NFL and in my power rankings, but they came up short despite taking the lead on a field goal in overtime. The overtime rules were changed because of a playoff game that Josh Allen was a part of. It’s funny that they still haven’t won an overtime game under the new rules. They played well and outgained and had the ball longer than the Eagles but still lost.
16. Minnesota Vikings (6–6): Two losses in a row now. Now the reality for the Vikings is starting to set in. Josh Dobbs threw four interceptions against the Bears defense in a 12–10 loss at home. The fact that they lost to the division’s worst team at home shows me troubling signs for the rest of this season. They should start looking forward to next season.
17. Green Bay Packers (5–6): Jordan Love looked great in the win against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving. He had arguably his best game so far. He had 268 yards and 3 touchdowns and he’s finding his young receivers. The defense helped immensely by taking three fumbles away from the Lions. This team has now won two in a row.
18. Los Angeles Rams (5–6): Matthew Stafford had his best game this year in a win over the Cardinals. He had four touchdowns against one interception. He also had 229 yards passing. Kyren Williams had 204 yards combined on the ground and through the air and scored two touchdowns. He has emerged as the #1 back in LA. This team’s offense can actually get better and that’s a scary thought.
19. Atlanta Falcons (5–6): This Falcons team is leading a weak NFC South this year in a season in which three teams have led the NFC South so far this year. Desmond Ridder didn’t look sharp out there but they got the job done by keeping the Saints out of the end zone in a 24–15 win. Bijan Robinson had a touchdown on the ground and through the air and his touchdowns were the difference in the game.
20. New Orleans Saints (5–6): When you can outgain a team, it doesn’t really matter much when you don’t score a touchdown. Normally, a 300-yard passing performance by Derek Carr would’ve made me assume they won. The running and passing games were both very active but they lost despite all of this.
The Caboose (21–32)
21. Cincinnati Bengals (5–6): Jake Browning looked decent as the new quarterback after Joe Burrow’s season-ending injury last week. He couldn’t do enough to win as the Steelers sacked him four times. He also threw an interception and they couldn’t get the ground game going this week.
22. Las Vegas Raiders (5–7): Two losses in a row now. This team isn’t done this season but those certainly hurt. They lost in a game they should’ve despite great efforts from both rookie Aidan O’Connell and a solid running game from Josh Jacobs. Neither team turned the ball over and they only had 2 fewer yards in a 31–17 loss to the Chiefs.
23. Tennessee Titans (4–7): The Titans won? Well, don’t get too excited. It was against the 1–10 Panthers. I still don’t think that this team is very good. Will Levis is showing signs of being good but he’s not there yet. They sacked Bryce Young four times and also got an interception in the win. Derrick Henry scored two touchdowns in the win.
24. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4–7): Turning the ball over twice won’t help against a team to try to earn a win. They earned a loss in the 27–20 game against the Colts this week. Baker Mayfield isn’t the problem here but he isn’t exactly helping the situation. This team is not a very good team and should miss the playoffs this year after starting strong.
25. Los Angeles Chargers (4–7): Their 20–10 loss was a lot more of a blowout than the final score would indicate but they played a sloppy game on offense and were lucky to only lose by 10. I could see them rebounding against the Patriots this week but they are now on a three-game losing streak.
26. New York Jets (4–7): The Jets have just dropped their fourth game in a row. Tim Boyle didn’t look great out there and despite their elite defense, their offense is a mess. My prediction is that Robert Saleh’s job is on the line because of his stubborn willingness to stick with Zach Wilson for so long but they could keep him to see how he pairs with Aaron Rodgers.
27. Chicago Bears (4–8): The Bears won a very defensive-minded game in Minneapolis this week. They forced Joshua Dobbs into four interceptions and earned a 12–10 win against the Vikings. This team almost beat the Lions previously. They look like they might be on a slight rise for the second half. We will have to wait and see. Their success will hinge on how well Justin Fields plays down the stretch.
28. New York Giants (4–8): The Giants were outgained by the Patriots in their recent 10–7 win over them. Despite that, Jalin Hyatt managed to get a 100-yard receiving game with Tommy DeVito at quarterback. They played well enough to win and that’s all that matters. They also faced two of the quarterbacks that New England has on their roster so that might have helped a bit.
29. Washington Commanders (4–8): I’m fully convinced that the Commanders are now the worst team in the NFC East. It’s not all Sam Howell’s fault but he could limit the turnovers. He only had one in this game but it went back for a score, not just any score though, as it was Dallas’ DaRon Bland’s fifth pick-six, setting a new NFL record.
30. New England Patriots (2–9): The Patriots had to play Bailey Zappe in their recent loss to the Giants. Is Mac Jones done in Foxboro? I mean he did previously injure himself in Week 10 and then get an X-ray after this game. This team might play better with Zappe under center but we will have to wait and see. This season is pretty much a lost cause at this point.
31. Arizona Cardinals (2–10): The Cardinals were thoroughly beaten in a 37–14 loss to the Rams at home this week. Kyler Murray was sacked four times so his line is leaking and not giving him time. He did manage to throw 256 yards and a touchdown though in the loss.
32. Carolina Panthers (1–10): Frank Reich, the head coach, was the one that the organization decided to blame after their recent loss. So much so that they fired him 11 games into his first season in Carolina. He wasn’t the one who wanted to draft Bryce Young. I’m not saying that Bryce Young is necessarily the problem but he’s not playing as well as it seemed he would coming out of the draft. This team is a mess right now and it could get worse after the firing.
Source: NFL.com NFL Standings
I published ahead of all of the other major outlets this week so I invite you to go look at theirs over at NFL.com, ESPN, and Sporting News when they actually publish.
Also, I was two for three on my Thanksgiving picks only missing on the Lions game. My prediction is the Cowboys for this week’s Thursday night game. The Eagles for the rematch of the NFC Championship Game. The Chiefs for the Sunday night game. And the Jaguars for Monday night. We’ll see how well I can predict those games and I will report my prediction success in the next power rankings.
Stay tuned every Tuesday or Wednesday here at The Press Box on Medium. I’m the Sturg. And I publish a power ranking every week. Stay tuned for the next one, sports fans.
