While the Thursday Night Football matchup of Week 11 was billed to be the best one of the season so far, injuries derailed the first game of this week. However, the return of the Kansas City Chiefs, Miami Dolphins, and Philadelphia Eagles from their bye weeks helped salvage this slate, which is included in our Week 12 NFL Power Rankings.
There were quite a few close games that weren’t expected to be tight, as the Lions-Bears, Browns-Steelers, and Dolphins-Raiders came down to the end. Impressive performances from Calvin Ridley, Tank Dell, Brandon Aiyuk, and others helped pace positional leaders this week, creating some fireworks in Week 11.
Previous NFL Power Rankings: Week 11 | Week 10 | Week 9 | Week 8 | Week 7 | Week 6 | Week 5 | Week 4 | Week 3 | Week 2| Week 1
1. Philadelphia Eagles (no change)
The Philadelphia Eagles continue to hold down the top spot in our NFL Power Rankings, coming off a sloppy road win over the Chiefs. While Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown weren't able to get on the same page all night, D'Andre Swift and the defense picked up the slack, helping the Eagles earn their ninth win of the year.
2. Detroit Lions (no change)
It wasn’t an easy win by any means for the Detroit Lions, but they used a 17-point fourth quarter to make a comeback win over the Bears. Three interceptions from Jared Goff put a sour note on their eighth win of the year, but both Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery found the end zone to help the Lions win another divisional matchup and stay at No. 2 in these NFL Power Rankings.
3. Baltimore Ravens (+1)
Both the Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens lost key offensive players in their TNF matchup, with the Ravens now without tight end Mark Andrews for the rest of the season. Lamar Jackson (318 total yards, 2 passing TDs), Gus Edwards (2 rushing TDs), and Odell Beckham Jr. (116 receiving yards) led the way for Baltimore, who finds themselves with a one-game lead over Cleveland in the AFC North.
4. San Francisco 49ers (+1)
An easy Week 11 win for the San Francisco 49ers over the Buccaneers was led by another three-TD performance from Brock Purdy. Having found Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle, and Christian McCaffrey for scores, Purdy has looked impressive over the past few weeks after a turnover-prone start to the season.
5. Kansas City Chiefs (-2)
They had plenty of chances to win, but the Kansas City Chiefs never looked like they wanted to win their Week 11 MNF matchup with the Eagles. While Patrick Mahomes struggled in the rainy elements, it was actually his receivers that let him down. A potential game-winning touchdown was dropped by Marques Valdez-Scantling, a deep bomb that likely would have been enough to put the Eagles away.
Instead, the Chiefs earn their third loss on the year, and there are still questions to be answered for this team moving forward.
6. Miami Dolphins (no change)
It was a lot closer than expected, but the Miami Dolphins held on for a home win over the Raiders. Injuries were an early concern for their offense, as both Devon Achane (knee) and Tyreek Hill (hand) received work in the blue tent in the first half.
Hill made his return and had a pretty typical boom performance, but Achane, who was making his long-awaited comeback from injured reserve, did not return after a first-half injury. Reports of the team holding Achane out means they are still taking a cautious approach with him, but it’s good to hear he could have returned.
7. Jacksonville Jaguars (no change)
Six-plus points in every quarter helped the Jacksonville Jaguars comfortably earn another divisional win, this time over the Titans. It was a nice bounce-back performance for Trevor Lawrence, who threw for two TDs and ran for another.
Calvin Ridley also reintroduced himself to the league, as he went over the century mark and found the end zone twice. With the Texans looking like the toughest competition for the AFC South race, the Jaguars continue to hold a top-10 spot in our NFL Power Rankings.
8. Cleveland Browns (no change)
After losing Deshaun Watson to a season-ending shoulder injury, the starting role was handed to rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson. While it wasn’t easy, it was good to see the rookie, who earned his second start of the year, help lead the Cleveland Browns to their seventh win of the year.
A 13-10 divisional win over the Steelers was an important one, especially since the AFC North likely will have one less team in the race after the Joe Burrow injury for the Bengals.
9. Dallas Cowboys (+1)
Another multi-TD performance from Dak Prescott, another win for the Dallas Cowboys. While he wasn’t able to throw for more than 200 yards, Prescott connected with CeeDee Lamb and rookie Luke Schoonmaker for scores.
Daron Bland earned his fourth pick-six of the season, as he intercepted Bryce Young and took it back 30 yards for a score. Tony Pollard also scored, the first time he found paydirt since Week 1 against the New York Giants.
10. Houston Texans (+3)
It was billed as one of the best matchups of Week 11, pitting rookie sensation CJ Stroud and the Houston Texans against Kyler Murray and the Cardinals, and the game didn’t disappoint. With the Texans earning their third win in a row, the connection between Stroud and fellow rookie Tank Dell (8/149/1) has been a big-time catalyst in their winning streak.
11. Seattle Seahawks (-2)
After losing Kenneth Walker III to an oblique injury and Geno Smith to an elbow injury (although Smith returned), the Seattle Seahawks blew a 13-point lead and fell to the Rams. a game-winning field goal from Jason Myers was missed after Smith returned and drove the team down the field, so this was a tough way to lose for the Seahawks.
12. Buffalo Bills (+4)
From the first snap to the final kneel-down, it was all Buffalo Bills in their 26-point win over the Jets. While Josh Allen did throw another interception, his 290 total yards and three passing TDs helped overshadow his disappointing, early-season performance against the Jets this year.
The defense harassed Zach Wilson — and eventually Tim Boyle — into two interceptions, and the Jets had four total turnovers on the day, helping contribute to Buffalo's climb in our NFL Power Rankings.
13. Minnesota Vikings (-2)
It was a hard-fought loss for the Minnesota Vikings, as they dropped their Sunday Night Football matchup in Denver to the Broncos. Josh Dobbs had an alright performance, throwing for 221 yards and a score, but an interception set the Broncos up in the Minnesota red zone, turning the tide of the game away from Minnesota.
Still boasting an above-.500 record is impressive for this team, who should be getting Justin Jefferson back as soon as Week 12.
14. Pittsburgh Steelers (-2)
A typical AFC North slugfest did not go Pittsburgh’s way, as a last-second field goal from Dustin Hopkins sent the Steelers home with a loss.
Kenny Pickett (106 passing yards), George Pickens (37 yards), and Diontae Johnson (16 yards) all struggled in their Week 11 loss, but Jaylen Warren took 12 touches for 145 yards and a rushing TD, the lone offensive bright spot for the Steelers.
15. Indianapolis Colts (no change)
A bye week came at a good time for the Indianapolis Colts, who currently sit at 5-5 and two games back in the AFC South. With both the Jaguars and Texans winning in Week 11, the Colts will need to extend their winning streak to three games in Week 12 if they want to try and keep pace in the division.
16. Denver Broncos (+4)
Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos are cooking up quite a story as they ascended to second in the AFC West after their Week 11 win. Wilson played a quiet but efficient game, connecting with Courtland Sutton yet again for a fourth-quarter TD.
This is now Denver’s fourth consecutive win, and after their slow start this year, are firmly putting themselves into the race for an AFC Wild Card bid.
17. Las Vegas Raiders (no change)
There were surprising signs of improvement from rookie QB Aidan O’Connell, even though Sunday’s performance (271 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs) may not look like it. He seemed to showcase a fairly developed sense of the offense, even with the high number of turnovers, but his affinity to feed Davante Adams the ball (13 targets) likely will keep him as the starter moving forward.
18. New Orleans Saints (no change)
Sitting atop the NFC South feels weird for how the 2023 season has gone so far for the New Orleans Saints, but no one in the division seems like they want to win it. With Derek Carr having left New Orleans’ Week 10 loss with an injury, it will be interesting to see if he or Jameis Winston is the starter against the Falcons.
19. Cincinnati Bengals (-5)
There isn’t a lot positive to write about concerning the Cincinnati Bengals, especially with the season-ending injury suffered by Joe Burrow. His wrist injury paved the way for Jake Browning to step in, and while Browning showed he has a decent handle on the game plan, the offense is going to take a huge step backward.
20. Los Angeles Rams (+6)
A come-from-behind win for the Los Angeles Rams was a nice way to welcome Matthew Stafford back after his injury, but it was far from an easy victory. A 10-point fourth quarter was all it took for the Rams to earn their fourth win of the year, but they still sit three games back of the 49ers in the NFC South. Cooper Kupp left with an ankle injury, so something to keep in mind for Week 12 and beyond.
21. Green Bay Packers (+6)
Two wins in three weeks have given the Green Bay Packers a bit of progress in their ‘retooling’ year with Jordan Love, and Love’s career day (322 yards, 2 TDs) helped lead the Packers over the Chargers. An injury to Aaron Jones put a damper on the win for Green Bay, but signs are pointing to it not being super serious, which is exactly the news the Packers needed.
22. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-3)
It was an offensive struggle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 11, and their 13-point loss to the 49ers perfectly demonstrated that. Baker Mayfield connected with Mike Evans on a short score and Rachaad White found the end zone, but the offense as a whole was far less of a well-oiled machine than in previous weeks, sending them further down in our NFL Power Rankings.
23. Los Angeles Chargers (-1)
In a one-score, winnable game for the Los Angeles Chargers, they turned into the typical Chargers and fell yet again, this time on the road to the Packers. While the Justin Herbert-Keenan Allen connection pretty much was the offense, a costly red-zone fumble by Austin Ekeler and a costly late-game drop by rookie Quentin Johnston buried any chance of winning.
24. Atlanta Falcons (no change)
The Atlanta Falcons were one of two teams from the NFC South on bye in Week 11, and their QB situation will likely look different coming out of the bye in Week 12.
With Taylor Heinicke having stepped in for a few games with Desmond Ridder going to the bench, reports of Ridder being given the starting role back have surfaced before their match-up with the Saints.
25. New York Jets (-4)
An absolutely dreadful performance from Zach Wilson actually saw backup Tim Boyle step in, which is the opposite of Robert Salah’s comments earlier this week about his confidence in his starting QB.
Six lousy points was all the Jets could muster to put up on the Bills, and when Wilson ran into his coach on the sideline, it pretty much summed up his 2023 season.
26. Washington Commanders (-3)
A disastrous Week 11 game for the Washington Commanders produced basically no positives in their loss to the Giants, and both Washington and the Giants will easily take up both the rear in the NFC East and in our NFL Power Rankings.
Sam Howell connected with members of the Giants for three interceptions, and there were some ejections handed out near the end of the game after Howell found the end zone on a rushing score, which basically sums up how bad this game was.
27. Chicago Bears (28 +1)
Justin Fields’ return was an impressive one, as he threw for 169 yards and ran for another 104, but allowing 17 points in the fourth quarter to the Lions buried the Chicago Bears and their upset bid.
DJ Moore was able to continue his strong season (7/96/1), but a defensive collapse in the second half was enough for the Bears to drop their eighth game on the season.
28. Tennessee Titans (-3)
It wasn’t any sort of a special performance by Will Levis (158 yards, 2 TDs), but the rookie’s ability to avoid turnovers and only throw four incompletions is one of Tennessee’s lone bright spots from their 20-point loss. In their loss to the Jaguars, the Titans failed to get Derrick Henry going (44 total yards) at all, and their spot at the bottom of the AFC South division — and these NFL Power Rankings — looks quite safe for the time being.
29. New York Giants (+2)
The best and most unforeseen performance of the 2023 NFL season has an early clubhouse leader — Tommy DeVito. His 246-yard, 3-TD performance against the Commanders helped spark the Giants to their third win of the year.
This likely will be an anomaly, but it was at least encouraging to see that DeVito has some promise to him as an NFL signal-caller.
30. New England Patriots (no change)
A Week 11 bye week for the New England Patriots may help them figure out their next steps at quarterback, as it has become very evident that Mac Jones should not be the starter moving forward.
The future of Bill Belichick is likely up in the air as well, as he has made quite a few questionable personnel decisions as the head coach and general manager for the Patriots, so it will be interesting to see how the rest of the season plays out.
31. Arizona Cardinals (-2)
Even after earning their second win of the year in Kyler Murray’s 2023 debut, the Arizona Cardinals were not able to turn it into a winning streak, dropping their Week 11 game to the Texans.
Murray accounted for over 250 yards of offense by himself, connecting with Rondale Moore on a 48-yard bomb for the first score of the game. The re-acclimation of Murray will be one of only a few storylines worth following for Arizona the rest of this season, as this roster is a few years away from being competitive.
32. Carolina Panthers (32)
Another dreadful performance helps the Carolina Panthers earn the bottom spot in our Week 12 NFL Power Rankings, and their showing against the Cowboys deserves it.
In Frank Reich’s first game back as the offensive playcaller, Bryce Young barely eclipsed the century mark in passing and the offensive line allowed seven sacks. While the two-headed rushing attack of Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders combined for 100+ rushing yards, it was another gross performance by the offense.
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