NFL power rankings after week 11

New England Patriots

Sunday afternoon’s game against the Eagles was a tough display for the Patriots’ offense. Josh McDaniels had to go into the bag of tricks and have wide receiver Julian Edelman throw for New England’s only touchdown of the day. However, the Patriots’ defense got their revenge from Super Bowl 52. After the Eagles’ early 95-yard touchdown drive, their following drives ended in a series of punts, a fumble and a turnover on downs to end the game. New England’s defense bounced back after being run over by the Ravens.

Baltimore Ravens

Going into the week, it seemed like the Ravens and Texans matchup could have been the game of the week. We were expecting a shootout between quarterbacks Lamar Jackson and Deshaun Watson, similar to the one we saw in 2016 when the two faced off in college when Watson and Clemson University edged off Jackson and the University of Louisville in a thriller. This game was a Baltimore beat down from the opening kickoff and the Texans were never really in it after a questionable no call for pass interference on wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins in the end zone. The Ravens remain one game out of the AFC’s first seed.

New Orleans Saints

The Saints bounced back from last week’s hiccup against the then 1-7 Falcons. Drew Brees tossed three touchdowns, and wide receiver Michael Thomas caught eight passes for 114 yards and a touchdown. Thomas has more catches, amounting to 94, than all of the Philadelphia Eagles receivers combined who only have a total of 93. The defense picked off quarterback Jameis Winston four times and sacked him twice. With the Panther’s loss, the Saints have a stranglehold on the division but are currently third in the conference.

San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers needed their offense to get the job done in a shootout with Arizona, and Jimmy Garappolo pulled through to answer the call. Garoppolo threw for 424 yards and four touchdowns, however, he did have two bad interceptions. The 49ers’ offense relies heavily on their run game but the team couldn’t buy a yard on the ground against Arizona, with their running backs combining for 19 carries for 34 yards. The 49ers needed Garopollo to win the game for them, and he did, albeit in a flawed fashion.

Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks will come off the bye week and travel to Philadelphia in a game that is pretty much a must-win game for the Eagles, who are now 5-5. Quarterback Russell Wilson and the Seahawks are coming off a huge win against the 49ers and are competing for the division. They seem to have the momentum in their favor more than Philly has. Wilson is also competing for MVP as it has become a sprint between himself and Baltimore Ravens’ Jackson.

Green Bay Packers

The Packers are also coming off their bye this week and will turn their attention to their road trip to the bay area to attempt and knock off the top-seeded 49ers. This game will have major playoff implications for both teams. The Packers and Niners both essentially have playoff spots locked up, but each of the two only hold a small lead for their divisions. The Packers lead the Vikings by only half a game in the loss column. The Packers technically hold the tiebreaker over the Vikings because they beat them in week two, but they will have another matchup in week 16 which could very likely decide the division, and the Packers would like to go forward with more breathing room.

Minnesota Vikings

Coming into this week, teams that trailed by 20-plus points after halftime are 0-99 in the history of the league. It seemed like a dud game, as quarterback Kirk Cousins reverted back to his old self, but the Vikings turned it on in the second half and Cousins came to life, finishing with 319 yards and three touchdowns. The defense put their foot in the ground at the end of the game as well, coming up with a huge goal-line stand against running back Philip Lindsay, keeping the Broncos out of the end zone to secure to win. The Vikings go into their bye week half a game behind the Packers but may fall further in the divisional standings.

Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs delivered a big win over the Chargers in Mexico City on Monday Night. Patrick Mahomes caught fire in the second half, delivering strike after strike to guide his offense down the field. Once they got close to the goal-line, running back Damien Williams toted the rock up the middle for the score. Following a Chargers drive that resulted in a put, Mahomes connected with tight end Travis Kelce for a long touchdown to take a 24-9 lead. The Chargers would answer that score, as quarterback Phillip Rivers found wide receiver Keenan Allen for a touchdown followed by a two-point conversion to make the score 24-17. Kansas City leads Oakland by half a game in the AFC West heading into their bye week.

Houston Texans

The Texans had a call go against them early in the game when Hopkins had a clear pass interference that should have given the Texans an early lead. After the review did not go their way either, it seemed like they let that call kill them and it was all Ravens after that. Watson could not get in a rhythm, throwing for only 169 yards, zero touchdowns, one interception and was sacked six times.

Dallas Cowboys

Quarterback Dak Prescott continues to make his end of the bargaining table more powerful come the end of the season, putting on another excellent performance, throwing for 444 yards and three touchdowns. Prescott continues to show he can run the offense even when running back Ezekiel Elliot has an off game. At the end of the game when Dallas needed a first down to seal the deal against the Lions, Jason Garrett put his trust in Prescott who ran a play fake and found tight end Blake Jarwin to convert the second down, move the chains and win the game against Detroit. Despite Dallas’ imperfections this season, Dak Prescott is having an arguably MVP caliber season and is proving his worth in his contract season.