JACKSONVILLE -- Here are senior writer John Oehser's Week 13 2014 NFL power rankings. And we all know how important these are:
1.New England Patriots (9-2) | 2 | Maybe they shouldn't bench Tom Brady after all
2.Green Bay Packers (8-3) | 3 | Is there a better team? They'll find out this week versus Patriots
3.Arizona Cardinals (9-2) | 1 | Was Sunday beginning of a slide?
4.Philadelphia Eagles (8-3) | 4 | When they're on, they're as good as anyone
5.Denver Broncos (8-3) | 5 | Gutty comeback puts them back atop AFC West
6.Dallas Cowboys (8-3) | 6 | Still have two games versus Philly remaining
7.Cincinnati Bengals (7-3-1) | 9 | Don't look now, but they're back on top in AFC North
8.Indianapolis Colts (7-4) | 10 | Regained a firm grasp of AFC South lead Sunday
9.Detroit Lions (7-4) | 7 | May need to win four of last five to get in postseason
10.Pittsburgh Steelers (7-4) | 11 | No one does the late-November bye week quite like these guys
11.Kansas City Chiefs (7-4) | 8 | Rivalry games are tough for all teams; really tough in AFC West
12.Seattle Seahawks (7-4) | 13 | Took a big step toward getting back in postseason Sunday
13.Cleveland Browns (7-4) | 14 | All they do is find a way to win
14.San Diego Chargers (7-4) | 15 | Way too early to forget about these guys
15.Baltimore Ravens (7-4) | 16 | All four teams in AFC North above .500
16.San Francisco 49ers (7-4) | 17 | Only Patriots have a longer winning streak
- Miami Dolphins (6-5) | 12 | One of their best offensive showings of season – and wasn't enough
- Buffalo Bills (6-5) | 18 | No home field? No problem on Monday
19.New Orleans Saints (4-7) | 19 | Still the NFC South-leading New Orleans Saints
20.Atlanta Falcons (4-7) | 20 | Squandered lead against Cleveland … will it mean squandered season?
21.Houston Texans (5-6) | 21 | Crucial home loss Sunday won't help playoff hopes
22.St. Louis Rams (4-7) | 22 | Oh-so close to being so much better
23.Carolina Panthers (3-7-1) | 23 | Got past that pesky bye
- Minnesota Vikings (4-7) | 25 | Very, very, very nearly beat Green Bay Sunday
- Chicago Bears (5-6) | 26 | Scraping their way back into playoff range
26.New York Giants (3-8) | 24 | Did you see that catch? Did you?
27.Washington Redskins (3-8) | 27 | Close not enough in California Sunday
28.New York Jets (2-9) | 28 | Doesn't look like anything can save Jets this season
29.Tennessee Titans (2-9) | 29 | Five consecutive losses have Titans reeling
30.Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-9) | 30 | Still making too many mistakes
31.Oakland Raiders (1-10) | 32 |Clawed their way out of No. 32
- Jacksonville Jaguars (1-10) | 31 | Oh goodness
