NFL Power Rankings Week 14: Patriots remain hottest team in football

12/08/2021

Will the Patriots ever lose?

The Patriots keep winning ballgames and the haters remain furious.

Bill Belichick’s team is the hottest in the NFL following seven consecutive victories, with the latest being over the Bills on Monday Night Football.

Mac Jones only needed to complete two of three passes — no, your eyes weren’t playing tricks on you when you read that — in order for the Pats to defeat Buffalo in brutal weather conditions.

The greatest coach of all time is striking again. As a result, New England has further ascended ESNY’s 2021 NFL Power Rankings.

32. Jacksonville Jaguars ( ↓ 1 )

The Jaguars are back at the bottom of our power rankings.

Jacksonville suffered a 30-point defeat to a struggling Rams team that had lost three straight entering the matchup.

Urban Meyer’s squad is now 2-10, has lost four consecutive games, and sits in the basement of the AFC South division.

31. Houston Texans ( ↓ 1 )

The Texans continued their losing ways with one of their worst performances of the year in Week 13.

The Colts shut Houston out by a score of 31-0 — the Texans gained just 141 total yards.

30. Detroit Lions ( ↑ 2 )

The Lions won a game!

I repeat, the Lions won a game!

Detroit is finally in the win column after defeating the Vikings on a last-second fourth-down touchdown pass from Jared Goff to wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

With the exception of Vikings fans (and Lions fans desperately wishing for the No. 1 overall draft pick), everyone on the planet was ecstatic over the victory.

Congratulations to Dan Campbell on achieving his first win as an NFL head coach (not counting his five as Miami’s interim head coach in 2015).

29. New York Jets ( → )

The Jets returned to the loss column Sunday with a 33-18 defeat against the Eagles.

There was a positive side to the game though — Zach Wilson looked better than usual. The rookie quarterback completed 60.5% of his throws for 226 yards, two touchdowns, and one pick. He also recorded a rushing touchdown for the second straight week.

28. Chicago Bears ( → )

The Bears remain at No. 28 after suffering an expected loss to the Cardinals.

The team is a lost cause at this point; Chicago should be waving the white flag and looking to 2022.

27. New York Giants ( → )

Playoff chances are disappearing in East Rutherford.

The Giants dropped to 4-8 following a 20-9 loss to Miami. The offense was putrid with Mike Glennon at quarterback (the nine points were a season-low for New York) and the defense couldn’t do enough to keep Big Blue in the game.

26. Atlanta Falcons ( → )

The Falcons were no match for Tom Brady in Week 13.

Amid the loss to the Bucs, Atlanta allowed the legendary quarterback to throw four touchdowns.

25. Carolina Panthers ( ↓ 1 )

The Panthers drop one spot despite their bye week coming in Week 13 — we needed to move Carolina in order to improve the ranking of this next team…

24. Seattle Seahawks ( ↑ 1 )

The Seahawks are back in the win column after losing three straight.

Seattle notched a much-needed victory over the division-rival 49ers Sunday. Russell Wilson completed 30 of 37 throws for 231 yards and two touchdowns.

23. Miami Dolphins ( → )

The Dolphins have won five straight but we won’t give them much credit for defeating the Mike Glennon-led Giants in Week 13.

Tua Tagovailoa keeps improving though. The second-year quarterback threw for 244 yards and two touchdowns in the victory while rookie wideout Jaylen Waddle caught nine balls for 90 yards.

22. Washington Football Team ( → )

Washington has won four straight, is 6-6, and sits in the NFC wild card.

I’m sorry though — I just don’t trust Taylor Heinicke as much as some of the other quarterbacks in the conference, which is why I keep the Football Team at No. 22.

21. Denver Broncos ( ↓ 3 )

The Broncos drop three spots after losing by double digits to the Chiefs despite another lackluster performance from Patrick Mahomes.

Denver further proves to be one of the more inconsistent ballclubs in the NFL.

20. Pittsburgh Steelers ( ↑ 1 )

What a win it was for Pittsburgh against the Ravens.

The Steelers prevailed after Lamar Jackson overshot his target on a two-point conversion attempt that would’ve given Baltimore the lead with 12 seconds remaining.

Could Pittsburgh turn a corner and eventually make the postseason?

19. Cleveland Browns ( ↑ 1 )

To make room for the Broncos’ aforementioned drop-off in the rankings, the Browns move up one spot following their bye week.

Congratulations…I guess.

18. New Orleans Saints ( ↓ 1 )

The Saints are really feeling the effects of Jameis Winston’s absence.

New Orleans has lost five straight, with the most recent defeat coming against the Cowboys last Thursday night.

It’s clear neither Taysom Hill nor Trevor Siemian is a legitimate starting quarterback in this league.

17. Minnesota Vikings ( ↓ 3 )

I apologize for telling you all not to sleep on the Vikings.

Minnesota isn’t a playoff team — I will finally admit it.

Losing to the Lions isn’t something you want on your 2021 resume; the Vikings are the only organization that must include that bullet point thus far.

16. Philadelphia Eagles ( ↑ 3 )

The Eagles may be better than we all thought.

The fact they were able to win a game by double digits without their primary starting quarterback is really saying something, even if that victory was against the Jets.

15. Las Vegas Raiders ( → )

I still believe the Raiders are worthy of a top-15 ranking despite their 6-6 record.

But they need to come up big in these winnable games — Vegas can’t be losing 17-15 to an inferior Washington squad.

14. Indianapolis Colts ( ↑ 2 )

Will Jonathan Taylor ever stop scoring touchdowns?

The second-year running back crossed the goal line two more times Sunday in the Colts’ 31-0 thrashing of the Texans. He leads the league with 18 total scores.

Indianapolis is 7-6 and sits just outside the AFC playoff picture.

13. San Francisco 49ers ( ↓ 1 )

The Niners were hot entering Week 13 but came up short against the division-rival Seahawks.

Their three-game win streak thus concluded, but they’re still in the final NFC wild card spot.

12. Cincinnati Bengals ( ↓ 1 )

The Bengals couldn’t construct what would’ve been an enormous victory over the Chargers Sunday, losing 41-22.

Cincinnati is still the No. 6 seed in the AFC ahead of Week 14 though.

11. Baltimore Ravens ( ↓ 1 )

Despite sitting as the No. 3 seed in the AFC and residing atop the AFC North division, Baltimore exits the top 10 after losing what should’ve been a winnable game against Pittsburgh.

Will Lamar Jackson and the Ravens bounce back against the Browns this Sunday afternoon?

10. Los Angeles Chargers ( ↑ 3 )

The Chargers are so unpredictable.

But this week, they’re back in the win column and have returned to our top 10.

Thanks to quarterback Justin Herbert’s 317 yards and three touchdowns, the Chargers recorded a crucial victory over Cincinnati and are leading the AFC wild card standings.

9. Dallas Cowboys ( → )

The Cowboys stay at No. 9 after notching an expected win over New Orleans.

They were in sort of a slump prior to the win, having lost three of four. Let’s see if Dallas can build off this recent victory and outplay the Washington Football Team on Sunday.

8. Kansas City Chiefs ( ↓ 1 )

The Chiefs defeated the Broncos but still drop one spot — I’m not loving how Patrick Mahomes has performed (nor does really anyone, except for fans of the Raiders, Broncos, and Chargers).

The star quarterback threw for only 184 yards with an interception in Kansas City’s primetime Week 13 win over Denver.

7. Los Angeles Rams ( ↑ 1 )

The Rams needed a get-right game Sunday, and they surely received one against the putrid Jaguars.

Matthew Stafford threw for 295 yards and three touchdowns in a 37-7 win over Jacksonville.

6. Tennessee Titans ( → )

The Titans sit tight at No. 6 following a Week 13 bye.

5. Green Bay Packers ( → )

The Packers also had their bye this past week and remain at No. 5 ahead of their Sunday night matchup with Chicago.

4. Buffalo Bills ( ↓ 2 )

Buffalo moves back to No. 4 following a tough loss to New England on Monday night.

The Bills allowed the Patriots to rush for 222 yards in the terrible weather conditions and couldn’t conjure up much offensive success, scoring just 10 total points.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers ( ↑ 1 )

The Buccaneers find themselves in the top three following a third straight victory.

Behind four touchdown passes from MVP favorite Tom Brady, Tampa defeated Atlanta 30-17 and is en route to its first NFC South title since 2007.

2. New England Patriots ( ↑ 1 )

The New England Patriots: the hottest team in football.

That’s right — the Pats have won seven straight.

The most recent victory came over the Bills on Monday night and it was another incredible coaching performance from the legendary Bill Belichick. Behind fantastic defense and a productive ground game (rookie quarterback Mac Jones threw just three passes), the Patriots defeated the Bills 14-10 on the road.

New England is the No. 1 seed in the AFC heading into Week 14 — it didn’t take long for this franchise to find success again following the departure of Tom Brady.