Without a doubt, this NFL season has been one that has had a lot of fans frustrated. Whenever a team seems to rise above the rest as the clear favorite, they seem to falter. Personally, I don't get the frustration. The product is better, and the regular season is a lot more dramatic and unpredictable. This unpredictability makes for a very interesting power ranking. When it comes to the power ranking, (at least for this year) you can throw the records out the window. It is all about the eye test and what each team has done lately. When I constructed my own power rankings, I also considered the teams that have dealt with adversity the best throughout the season. It should be noted that there are only ten teams on my power rankings, and they have to be one of the fourteen teams that I believe will make the playoffs. I went through every team's remaining schedule and came up with my prediction for who will make the playoffs and what their final records will be. Here are my fourteen teams:
Cincinnati Bengals 11-6
Cleveland Browns 11-6
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-8
Kansas City Chiefs 11-6
Dallas Cowboys 11-6
Miami Dolphins 13-4
Philadelphia Eagles 13-4
San Francisco 49ers 13-4
Jacksonville Jaguars 11-6
Detroit Lions 12-5
Los Angeles Rams 10-7
Baltimore Ravens 12-5
Houston Texans 10-7
Minnesota Vikings 9-8
You may notice that the Bills aren't there. I had them finishing up at 10-7, losing to the Dolphins in the last game of the season because the Dolphins are going to be playing for the one seed and they won't take that game lightly. Unfortunately, if the Texans go 10-7, they will have the tiebreaker over the Bills because they would have a better record against the AFC. Now, here is my top ten:
- Kansas City Chiefs (Projected Record: 11-6)
Shocking, right? But what has been impressive about the Chiefs? Isiah Pacheco? The emergence of a respectable defense? Patrick Maholmes? All of those have been good, but it feels as though there are about nine other teams who have what the Chiefs have with probably three or four of them having better. So then why aren't the Chiefs in the top three or four? It's their attitude. After the Bills game in week thirteen, Patrick Maholmes was making excuses about how the refs cost them the game. How the refs need to let it go and let the players decide the game. It's amazing how the player who usually gets calls in his favor could ever complain about a call going the other way. It's the mark of a sore loser, and it's going to be massive billboard material for other teams in the playoffs. In the next three weeks, the Chiefs will beat the Raiders, lose to the Bengals, and beat the Chargers. Come the playoffs, they are going to have a problem when something goes wrong, and they are going to have a really tough time winning without homefield advantage.
- Cleveland Browns (Projected Record: 11-6)
The Browns are one of those teams that physical football teams don't want to play because they can compete with their physicality. This year, they have beaten the Jaguars, the 49ers, the Bengals, and the Ravens. That's an impressive resume. For the Browns, the loss of Deshaun Watson hasn't seemed to matter all that much. Joe Flacco has come in and has been a steady substitute. In the next three games, they will beat the Texans and the Jets, but they will lose a close one to the Bengals in the last game of the regular season.
- Minnesota Vikings (Projected Record: 9-8)
This Minnesota Vikings may be the most underrated team in all of football. They are also one of those teams that can match the physicality of the more physical teams in football. The difference between them and the Browns? They have Justin Jefferson, who is one of the most unstoppable forces in all of football. He seems to catch everything in his vicinity. The Vikings play a lot of tight games. If a game comes down to the wire and the Vikings need the game, expect them to go to Jefferson time after time. The Vikings have a very tough last three games. They will lose to the Lions, beat the Packers in a close one, and then beat the Lions in the final game of the season.
- Jacksonville Jaguars (Projected Record: 11-6)
The difference between the Jaguars and the previous two teams on this list? Trevor Lawrence. I think that Lawrence's taste of the postseason last year will prove to have been valuable experience for this year. Don't expect him to throw a bunch of interceptions when the postseason comes around this time. The Jaguars will win their final three games of the regular season.
- Cincinnati Bengals (Projected Record: 11-6)
After the loss of Joe Burrow, everybody thought that the Bengals were done. However, ever since they lost Burrow to a season ending injury, these guys have proven themselves to be a lot more than just a quarterback. Don't get me wrong, Jake Browning has come in and done an excellent job, but the defense has also stayed together, and the offense (particularly, Jamarr Chase) is still playing at a high level. They won't have Jamarr this week against the Steelers, but they will still win. After that, they will beat the Chiefs and the Browns in two very tough end of season games.
- Detroit Lions (Projected Record: 12-5)
Against a very tough schedule over the previous seven games, the Broncos had gone 6-1. Then they ran into the Lions, who brought them a 42-17 drubbing. If the Lions looked like fakers before, last week was a warning that this team isn't playing around. Expect them to beat the Vikings, run through the Cowboys, and then lose to the Vikings in a game that will be meaningless to them in the final week of the season.
- Los Angeles Rams (Projected Record: 10-7)
Ever since the Rams started implemented the run into their game more, they have looked like a legitimate Super Bowl contender. They have won five out of their last six games with their only loss coming in overtime to the Ravens. The only flaw with this team is in their secondary. They seem like they are susceptible to giving up big pass plays, especially in the latter parts of games. In their last two games of the season, they will beat the Giants, and win against a 49ers team who will be resting a lot of their players for the playoffs.
- San Francisco 49ers (Projected Record: 13-4)
When this team is healthy, they are the best team in football. Offensively, they have statistically been better than a Dolphins team that at points during the season have been called historic. Defensively, they still have one of the more physical units in the NFL. However, this team does not deal with injuries that well, especially when the injuries come to their best offensive players. The three games that they have lost this season were in direct correlation to injuries. It's hard to believe that in the playoffs they won't run into something. In the last three weeks of the season, the 49ers will beat the Ravens, beat the Commanders handedly, and then lose to the Rams.
- Miami Dolphins (Projected Record: 13-4)
The difference between the Miami Dolphins and the 49ers is very simple. The Dolphins are a team that has dealt with adversity better. They didn't miss a beat without Tyreek Hill last week, winning 30-0 against a solid Jets defense. Also, under Mike McDaniel the team seems to turn the page better than just about any other in the NFL. They have not lost two consecutive games all season. Their only problem is they have not played well against their best opponents. In fact, they haven't beaten a great opponent all year. The next three weeks will be a huge test for them. One in which they are going to make a statement to the rest of the league. They will run the Cowboys out of town, win a close game against the Ravens, and beat the Bills in the last game of the season, putting in a full effort with the one seed on the line.
- Baltimore Ravens (Projected Record: 12-5)
The Ravens are a team that are just as good as the Dolphins are at turning the page. They also have not lost two consecutive games this season. The difference between the two teams is small, but meaningful. The Ravens have played well against their best opponents, and whenever they have lost to them, they have lost close. In other words, whenever a team plays the Ravens, they are going to get a battle to the bitter end. It should also be a little bit worrisome for the rest of the league that the Ravens might not get the first seed. In 2019 when Lamar Jackson had won the MVP and the Ravens were the Super Bowl favorite, they seemed to come into the Divisional Round thinking they would roll over the Titans. They sat their best players in the final week of the season, which they won't do this year with the one seed on the line. They will also be playing in a Wild Card game this year as the Dolphins will edge them out for the one seed. For them, this is far from a bad thing. In the final three weeks, the Ravens will lose two close games to the 49ers and the Dolphins, then beat the Steelers, putting themselves in prime position to win a Super Bowl.
My 2023-2024 NFL Power Ranking (With Projected Records):
- Baltimore Ravens 12-5
- Miami Dolphins 13-4
- San Francisco 49ers 13-4
- Los Angeles Rams 10-7
- Detroit Lions 12-5
- Bengals 11-6
- Jaguars 11-6
- Vikings 9-8
- Browns 11-6
- Chiefs 11-6
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