JACKSONVILLE – Senior writer John Oehser's post-Week 15, pre-Week 16 2017 NFL power rankings. And we all know how important these are:
Rank.Team (record) | Comment
1.Philadelphia Eagles (12-2) | 1 | The grasp on No. 1 stays firm
2.New England Patriots (11-3) | 3 | No. 1 seed now looks very, very likely
3.Pittsburgh Steelers (11-3) | 2 | Sunday could sting for a while
4.Minnesota Vikings (11-3) | 4 | A home game in February very possible
5.Carolina Panthers (10-4) | 5 | Signs point to huge finale in the ATL
6.Los Angeles Rams (10-4) | 6 | Win Sunday and they're in
7.Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4) | 8 | Magic Number for AFC South now one
8.Atlanta Falcons (9-5) | 7 | If they win their final two games, they win the South
9.New Orleans Saints (10-4) | 9 | Huuuuuuge game Sunday versus Falcons
10.Baltimore Ravens (8-6) | 13 | Methodically moving closer to playoffs
11.Kansas City Chiefs (8-6) | 18 | Remember these guys?
12.Dallas Cowboys (8-6) | 14 | Zeke's back, but a lot of help still needed
13.Detroit Lions (8-6) | 16 | Need help, but they have a real chance to get in
14.Buffalo Bills (8-6) | 17 | They'll have many, many fans in Jacksonville Sunday
15.Seattle Seahawks (8-6) | 10 | Fading fast
16.Los Angeles Chargers (7-7) | 11 | May now need too much help
17.Tennessee Titans (8-6) | 12 | West Coast trip proved very damaging
18.Green Bay Packers (7-7) | 15 | They're out
19.Miami Dolphins (6-8) | 19 | All but out of it now
20.Arizona Cardinals (6-8) | 20 | Officially eliminated Sunday
21.Oakland Raiders (6-8) | 21 | Still hanging on … but barely
22.San Francisco 49ers (4-10) | 26 | May be league's fastest-improving team
23.Washington Redskins (6-8) | 22 | Out of playoffs for third time in four seasons
24.Cincinnati Bengals (5-9) | 23 | Era ending?
25.Houston Texans (4-10) | 24 | They'll have many, many fans in Jacksonville Monday
26.Denver Broncos (5-9) | 27 | Too little way too late
27.New York Jets (5-9) | 25 | Early-season fight looks gone
28.Chicago Bears (4-10) | 28 | Limping to the finish
29.Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-10) | 29 | Plenty fight, not enough finish
30.Indianapolis Colts (3-11) | 30 | Second-half fades defined the season
31.New York Giants (2-12) | 31 | Blue Christmas
32.Cleveland Browns (0-14) | 32 | Two games away
