NFL: Weekly Power Rankings
1. New Orleans Saints (12-2, +0): The Saints didn't play their best game, by any means, in the Week 15 win over the Carolina Panthers. However, the silver lining is that their defense allowed just nine points. In the 12-9 victory, QB Drew Brees compiled 203 yards, while RB Alvin Kamara ran for 67 yards. New Orleans did a pretty good job of limiting the Panthers' offense, who has lost six straight games now, which included focusing on RB Christian McCaffrey and making sure he didn't get loose in the run or pass game. McCaffrey ended up with 67 receiving yards, which led the team, but he didn't hurt them too much. New Orleans has won two straight after losing 13-10 to the Dallas Cowboys. They'll finish with a home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and on the road against Carolina.
2. Los Angeles Chargers (11-3, +4): The Chargers looked like their trend of failing to beat the Kansas City Chiefs was going to continue as they trailed 28-14 late in the fourth quarter, but then it finally clicked. QB Philip Rivers started to shred the Chiefs' defense and WR Mike Williams had arguably the best game of his career. He scored three touchdowns, two through the air and one on the ground, and that includes the game-winning score (and two-point conversion) with just four seconds remaining. Rivers totaled 313 yards, while Williams had 76 to his name. RB Justin Jackson, the rookie, has continued to look pretty good with 58 yards in this one, while they were able to contain QB Patrick Mahomes on the other end. Los Angeles hosts the Baltimore Ravens in Week 15 with an eye on their 12th victory.
3. Kansas City Chiefs (11-3, +0): The Chiefs continue to hang right around the top of the league, even though they have lost three games now. You can't fault them for the first two losses because they were against the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams, both on the road in instant classics. But this last loss does create some concern for Kansas City because all they needed to do was get one more first down in the final minutes, and they weren't able to do so. There are going to be pressure moments more and more often come playoff time, and they'll have to deal with that. It's nothing to worry about for the time being, especially since Mahomes still looks like the MVP. He has a remarkable 4,543 yards and 45 touchdowns heading into Week 16. Kansas City gets the Seattle Seahawks this weekend.
4. Los Angeles Rams (11-3, -2): The Rams don't look like the same team they did in October, and another loss will certainly send them tumbling out of our rankings. Because they have just three losses and still a good chance of earning a bye in the first round, they could still make noise in the playoffs, but not if they keep playing like this. Los Angeles has now lost two straight games, to the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles. QB Jared Goff did throw for 339 yards, but he hasn't looked comfortable in the pocket in nearly a month, and the defense has started to slack off even more than before. They might be able to get back on the right track with a pair of easier games over the next two weeks as they finish the regular season at the Arizona Cardinals and at home versus the San Francisco 49ers.
5. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-5-1, +0): The Steelers beat out the Chicago Bears and the Houston Texans for this last spot in the rankings, mainly because of their potential upside. While the Bears have clinched the NFC North with a 10-4 record, Pittsburgh has proved they can win in multiple ways with high scoring victories over the Atlanta Falcons (41-17) and Carolina Panthers (52-21) and low scoring tight ones in wins over the Baltimore Ravens (23-16) and this past week versus the New England Patriots (17-10). It seems like the Bears need to win one way, and that's a defensive battle which is played in the 20s. That might be their demise come playoff time. As for the Steelers, QB Ben Roethlisberger and WR Antonio Brown are extremely dangerous. But can they pull off an upset against the Saints this weekend?
MVP Rankings:
1. Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs)
2. Drew Brees (Saints)
3. Philip Rivers (Chargers)
4. Ben Roethlisberger (Steelers)
5. Jared Goff (Rams)
Photo Credit: Clutch Points.
