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NFL Week 12 Power Rankings

Saints movin’ on up...

Carolina Panthers v Oakland Raiders Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images

1. Dallas Cowboys (Last Week: #1, -) – The Cowboys just keep winning and Ezekiel Elliott is almost a lock at this point for NFL’s Rookie of the Year. Dallas seems headed for a first-round Bye.

2. New England Patriots (Last Week: #2, -) – I’m sure this wasn’t the offensive showing the Patriots were expecting against the rival Jets, but the Patriots did enough to win.

3. Oakland Raiders (Last Week: #3, -) – Derek Carr is surging himself as a frontrunner for MVP and the Raiders offense is seemingly unstoppable right now. The questions will be if Derek Carr’s broken finger has any lasting effects.

4. Atlanta Falcons (Last Week: #6, +2) – In a battle of the birds, the Falcons stomped the Cardinals, the latter of whom was expected to win the NFC West.

5. Kansas City Chiefs (Last Week: #8, +3) – After an embarrassing upset loss to the Bucs last week, the Chiefs were able to rebound with a big win over the division-rival Broncos.

6. New York Giants (Last Week: #9, +3) – Odell Beckham Jr. had a monster game and the Giants were able to put a beating on the winless Browns.

7. Denver Broncos (Last Week: #5, -2) - Four of the best teams in football are in the AFC West, and if the Broncos were in any other division, they’d most likely be atop it.

8. Seattle Seahawks (Last Week: #4, -4) – This time it was Seattle’s turn to be upset by the Buccaneers. Seattle will look to rebound similarly next week.

9. Pittsburgh Steelers (Last Week: #11, +2) – Against a team without its starting QB, the Steelers did what they were supposed to do: win.

10.Miami Dolphins (Last Week: #15, +5) – The Dolphins are continuing their late-season push and beat the 49ers at home.

11.Detroit Lions (Last Week: #15, +4) – Playing on Thanksgiving Day for the NFC North lead, the Lions will face one of their toughest challenges yet against New Orleans.

12.Washington Redskins (Last Week: #7, -5) – Washington wanted desperately to be given respect in the NFC East, but have now lost both of their matchups against the leading-Cowboys.

13.Buffalo Bills (Last Week: #18, +5) – Tyrod Taylor is severely underrated, and both LeSean McCoy and Sammy Watkins are now healthy. This offense might be finally hitting its groove.

14.Philadelphia Eagles (Last Week: #10, -4) – The Eagles are tumbling in the division, and after the past few offenses were able to torch the Packers secondary, the Eagles were not able to find similar success.

15.Minnesota Vikings (Last Week: #12, -3) – Minnesota is getting inconsistent play out of QB Sam Bradford and consistently-bad play out of its running game. The season is slowly slipping away for the Vikings.

16.Baltimore Ravens (Last Week: #16, -) – A couple of wide receivers who are a little long in the tooth, Steve Smith Sr. and Mike Wallace, are helping the Ravens offense do just enough to get by.

17.Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Last Week: #19, +2) – The Buccaneers are still right in the thick of the NFC South divisional race. Mike Evans, Cameron Brate and Doug Martin are giving QB Jameis Winston plenty of weapons right now.

18.New Orleans Saints (Last Week: #21, +3) – A previously dominant defensive unit was embarrassed by Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints offense.

19.Cincinnati Bengals (Last Week: #13, -6) – Losing A.J. Green hurts, but losing a divisional game to the Ravens hurts too. The Bengals offense was obviously struggling to click without Green.

20.Houston Texans (Last Week: #14, -6) – The Texans are ahead in their division, but that more speaks to the weak division than the strength of Houston. This was evident again in their loss to San Diego.

21.Tennessee Titans (Last Week: #21, -) – The Bears receivers kept trying to give the Titans a chance to blow them away, but Tennessee just couldn’t put their foot on Chicago’s throat.

22.San Diego Chargers (Last Week: #26, +4) – Speaking of San Diego, the Chargers were able to get a convincing win over the Texans, and Melvin Gordon continues his rise into fantasy football dominance.

23.New York Jets (Last Week: #20, -2) – The Jets were just one possession away from putting away the Patriots.

24.Green Bay Packers (Last Week: #28, +4) – This was the Packers team we’ve been waiting to see all year. Hopefully it’s not too late for Green Bay.

25.Arizona Cardinals (Last Week: #23, -2) – And this is the Cardinals team we’ve unfortunately been seeing all year. Up and down. This was a down, but even in the down’s, David Johnson goes bonkers.

26.Los Angeles Rams (Last Week: #24, -2) – Jared Goff showed signs of being a franchise QB, but maybe the Rams defense has been slightly over-rated thus far.

27.Carolina Panthers (Last Week: #27, -) – Carolina couldn’t finish their comeback attempt against the Raiders, and it might have finally put their postseason hopes to bed.

28.Indianapolis Colts (Last Week: #28, -) – Maybe Andrew Luck comes back next week. It’s doubtful it makes a difference at this point.

29.Jacksonville Jaguars (Last Week: #29, -) – Not much else to say about Jacksonville at this point that hasn’t already been said. An early dark horse pick to win the division is vastly underwhelmed.

30.Chicago Bears (Last Week: #30, -) – Yuck. Just yuck. This team is a complete mess right now.

31.San Francisco 49ers (Last Week: #31, -) – Compared to the Browns, at least the 49ers were able to keep their game close.

32.Cleveland Browns (Last Week: #32, -) – Poor Browns.