And then there was one week. These rankings are more or less my Super Bowl favorites, in order. We know that the champs are ready to repeat. But what about the NFC? There are so many teams vying to be top dog. I simply can’t anoint any of them as top dog right now.
NFL Week 17 Power Index 2017
1- (1) New England Patriots – Another week and another game in which the champs look ready to begin the postseason.
2- (2) Pittsburgh Steelers – Now that’s how you destroy an opponent. Pittsburgh has no Antonio Brown right now and it doesn’t seem to matter.
3- (4) Minnesota Vikings – The Vikes are primed to beat anyone in the conference right now. They look absolutely fearless, with no apparent weaknesses. The only thing that could derail them is Case Keenum turning back into a pumpkin.
4- (3) Philadelphia Eagles – Nick Foles has some work to do in the final week to get himself ready for the divisional round of the playoffs. Still, this team can beat you in a few ways.
5- (6) Los Angeles Rams – Beating a playoff-minded team on the road tells me that this Rams team has no letdown in them as they approach the postseason. I like their chances hosting a playoff game.
6- (7) New Orleans Saints – Now that was a quality win against a good team. The Saints are ready for primetime and a chance at the Super Bowl. It’s a shame they won’t have home field advantage throughout.
7- (5) Carolina Panthers – They did what they had to do in Week 16, but it certainly wasn’t pretty. Still, a win’s a win and the Panthers are playoff bound.
8- (10) Baltimore Ravens – They really shouldn’t jump two spots on the strength of what we saw in Week 16. This is more a commentary on what the others below them did.
9- (NR) Kansas City Chiefs – Three wins in a row tells me that the confidence is back and they stand a good chance of winning their opening round playoff game in Arrowhead.
10- (9) Jacksonville Jaguars – Wow. Now that was a bad loss. I just don’t know what to think of it. Was it their first really bad letdown game? Let’s hope so.
Honorable Mentions
Atlanta Falcons (I’m still in shock that this team has collapsed the way that they have), Seattle Seahawks (Was their win versus Dallas an example of how bad the Cowboys have become, or how good Seattle can be?), Buffalo Bills (This fan base must be so incredibly frustrated at this point. So close and yet so far away), Tennessee Titans (A valiant effort in a game that they had to have. But they lost. And now they are on the verge of disaster).
Matthew Ross is a sports commentator and a radio host on TSN 690 Radio in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Follow him @MatthewWords.