Depending on who you ask, America’s middle class is dead. The same could be said for the NFL.
The 2015 season in particular has shown the stark contrast between the league’s haves and have-nots. We’re just about halfway through the season, and there are only 11 teams with winning records. There are 17 teams — including the entire AFC South — with losing records.
It also feels like we can say right now there are five or six legitimate Super Bowl contenders. Like, does anyone really think a team like the St. Louis Rams can win it all this season? The Minnesota Vikings? The Oakland Raiders?
Please.
Barring injury, the NFL’s upper class is going to continue to pick up wins and feast on the ever-growing lower class, and the gap will continue to widen. We need someone to make the NFL great again.
With that, on to another depressing installment of the NFL power rankings.
1. New England Patriots (Last week: 1): We’re only halfway through the season and I’m running out of things to say about the Patriots. They’re just really, really good.
2. Cincinnati Bengals (Last week: 3): The Bengals weren’t especially impressive Sunday in Pittsburgh, but they found a way to win a divisional game on the road against Ben Roethlisberger. That’s good for a 3 1/2-game lead in the North.
3. Denver Broncos (Last week: 5): We might have seen the Broncos’ ceiling Sunday night. They systematically destroyed the Packers, dominating in every facet of the game. If they play like this — especially Peyton Manning — they’re a legitimate power.
4. Carolina Panthers (Last week: 4):Â They’re undefeated and have a plus-55 point differential, so they’re good. But doesn’t it feel like we don’t know for sure how good they are? Sunday’s matchup with the Packers should be a good measuring stick.
5. Green Bay Packers (Last week: 2):Â For now, we’re chalking up Sunday night’s shellacking to one (really) bad week. But still, you’ve gotta wonder if there’s enough around Aaron Rodgers.
6. Arizona Cardinals (Last week: 6): The resurgence of Chris Johnson should be scary for the rest of the NFC. He’s now racked up at least 100 yards in three of his last four games.
7. Minnesota Vikings (Last week: 8):Â Like the Panthers, I’m still not sure how good the Vikings are. What is clear, though, is that they’re very much alive in the NFC North, just a game behind the Packers.
8. Atlanta Falcons (Last week: 7): After starting 5-0, the Falcons have lost two of their last three with an unconvincing 10-7 win over the Titans sandwiched in between. Sell their stock while you still can.
9. St. Louis Rams (Last week: 11): Todd Gurley is a monster, and the defense is relentless. This team is going to be a trendy pick to make an under-the-radar playoff run. They don’t look like they’re going away.
10. Seattle Seahawks (Last week: 12): The Seahawks had a brutal schedule to start the season. They’ve stayed afloat and made it to their bye; Seattle also has three straight home games out of the bye week.
11. New York Jets (Last week: 9): What the Jets do in the next couple of weeks is huge. They’ve got two straight losses against one really good team (the Patriots) and one maybe good team (the Raiders). Ryan Fitzpatrick is hurt. Can they stop the bleeding?
12. New Orleans Saints (Last week: 16): In terms of yards, the Saints have the NFL’s No. 2 offense and No. 30 defense. The offense has carried them recently, but that just doesn’t feel sustainable, although they don’t play another good team until Carolina on Dec. 6.
13. Oakland Raiders (Last week: 15): Derek Carr is good, and that’s making a huge difference for the Raiders. The only quarterbacks with a better passer rating are Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Carson Palmer and Andy Dalton.
14. New York Giants (Last week: 10): No team has ever needed a player who blew off his finger with fireworks back as bad as the Giants need Jason Pierre-Paul back. They could get just as much of a pass rush if they went without any defensive linemen whatsoever at this rate.
15. Pittsburgh Steelers (Last week: 13): Ben Roethlisberger returned and he stunk. The good news is that he’ll get better. The bad news is the Steelers lost Le’Veon Bell for the rest of the season.
16. Philadelphia Eagles (Last week: 15): In theory, the Eagles should win at least three of their next four games, as they come out of the bye with games at Dallas, home against Miami and Tampa Bay and then at Detroit.
17. Buffalo Bills (Last week: 17): Arguably no team needed a bye worse than the Bills did. They’re expecting to have Tyrod Taylor back, which is better than having to roll with EJ Manuel, I guess.
18. Washington Redskins (Last week: 21): The Redskins are the beneficiary of this week’s power rankings’ “lucky dog,” the team that moves up for no reason other than everyone else sucks and they had a bye last week.
19. Dallas Cowboys (Last week: 19): Of any team ranked this low that doesn’t play in the AFC South, the Cowboys still have the best chance to make the playoffs because of their division. But they have a ton of work to do.
20. Indianapolis Colts (Last week: 20):Â In 2011, the Colts’ unofficial mantra was “Suck for Luck.” This season, it ought be “Suck With Luck,” as the quarterback now leads the league in interceptions — despite missing two games.
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Last week: 27): We’ve already seen this team win in both Atlanta and New Orleans this season, which makes you wonder if maybe they aren’t that bad.
22. Miami Dolphins (Last week: 18): The Patriots aren’t the Texans or Titans, which is something the Dolphins learned the hard way, in the form of a 29-point loss to New England.
23. Kansas City Chiefs (Last week: 24): The Chiefs won, but they’re only moving up one spot because, is a win in London over the Lions really a win? Think about it.
24. Baltimore Ravens (Last week: 25): Has any team fallen so far in relevancy relative to the league faster than the Ravens this season? Nice win on Sunday, though.
25. Cleveland Browns (Last week: 23): The Browns looked like they were going to make a real upset bid (or at least a bid to cover) against the Cardinals until they turned back into actual pumpkins.
26. San Diego Chargers (Last week: 22): I kind of feel bad for Philip Rivers. In his last four games, the quarterback’s thrown for 1,505 yards, 10 touchdowns and three interceptions — and San Diego’s lost all four games.
27. Chicago Bears (Last week: 26): The Bears have been much more competitive lately — their two recent losses coming by a combined six points — but they just can’t close. That could get even more difficult if they’re without Matt Forte for an extended period of time.
28. San Francisco 49ers (Last week: 28): Things are going from bad to worse. Carlos Hyde is dinged up, Reggie Bush is done for the season, and some 49ers players reportedly are calling for Colin Kaepernick to be benched.
29. Houston Texans (Last week: 32):Â The Texans won Sunday, but they still suck. The fact that they’re tied with the Colts for the AFC South lead, after Week 8, is an embarrassment to the NFL.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (Last week: 29):Â Did you know that jaguars can see six times better than humans in the dark, despite the fact that baby jaguars are born with their eyelids shut and can’t see for the first two weeks of their lives?
31. Tennessee Titans (Last week: 31): Three AFC South teams accompany three of the four bottom spots on our list. Sweet division.
32. Detroit Lions (Last week: 30): It’s pretty messed up to say someone should be fired, but how exactly does Jim Caldwell still have a job? The Lions trailed 38-3 at one point Sunday, and you wonder when enough is enough.
Thumbnail photo via Erich Schlegel/USA TODAY Sports Images
