NFL Power Rankings entering Week 18 of the 2022 season (previous row in parentheses):
1. Bengals (2): They entered Monday night as the hottest team in the AFC, riding a seven-game winning streak. Cincinnati- the bengals and the city Then rose to the occasion from a human point of view by bearing witness to one of the scariest moments in NFL history. From a footballing perspective, questions abound – although a victory on Sunday would secure a second straight AFC North crown. It remains to be seen whether Cincy will get a shot at the conference’s top seed.
2. Heads (3): From QB Patrick Mahomes League-leading 40 TD assists This season, only 13 have gone to wide receivers. Throw a few more, and Kansas City will wait and see if that’s enough to give them the AFC regular season throne.
3. 49ers (4): Now on a league-best nine-game streak, although lucky to come out of Las Vegas with a win on Sunday, the Niners haven’t even had WR Deebo Samuel for their last three wins.
4. Invoices (5): If any organization is built to overcome the tragedy this group is grappling with as S Damar Hamlin fights for his life, it is this tight-knit team. Whether the AFC East champions can stage all of their playoff games is a matter that can wait.
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5. Eagles (1): Losing on the road to Dallas without QB Jalen Hurts is one thing. Being handled at home by an equally managed New Orleans team, with No. 1 seed poised, is something else entirely. Philly has the chance to face a Giants team in Week 18 that will likely rest its starters.
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6. Cowboys (6): For all the smoke around Odell Beckham Jr. in recent weeks, do they even need him? Newly signed WR TY Hilton performs as the perfect complement for this offense.
7.Jaguar (10): Yes, that sounds like high cotton for a team that is 8-8 and likely won’t make the playoffs if it loses to Tennessee on Saturday. But Jacksonville has won four in a row and six of eight and is certainly performing like it’s in the top quartile of the league.
8. Chargers (9): Is there a league player more underrated than RB Austin Ekeler, who was never named to the Pro Bowl? One of two undrafted players since 1967 with at least 1,500 scrimmage yards and 15 touchdowns in successful seasons, Ekeler will join the Lenny Moore Hall of Fame as the only players with 30 touchdowns both rushing. and receive him in their first six seasons if he catches one more.
9. Crows (8): One of many teams struggling due to the Hamlin incident, Baltimore can only win its division by beating Cincinnati. if the Bengals were then expected to lose to Buffalo if this contest resumed. All of this may be moot given the lingering mystery surrounding QB Lamar Jackson’s health.
10. Vikings (7): Incredible that a 12-4 team with a division title in hand was outscored by 19 points this season. Minnesota would have to win by 50 on Sunday to avoid owning the worst differential by a team with at least 12 wins since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger.
11. Leos (14): Rookie DE Aidan Hutchinson’s INT trio are tied for the most by any D-line player in a season in the Super Bowl era (since 1966).
12. Giants (12): Among the No. 6 seeded unsung heroes are WRs Richie James and Isaiah Hodgins, who share the club lead with four TD catches apiece.
13. Packers (17): Don’t RELAX Green Bay fans now, but one more win, and it will be time to CELEBRATE four trips to the playoffs in four years under head coach Matt LaFleur, who holds an 18-1 record. in the regular season after November.
14. Patriots (13): Another team potentially impacted by Buffalo’s situation, as it stands, a New England victory in Western New York on Sunday sends Pats to the playoffs.
15. Steelers (18): Beat Cleveland and Pittsburgh avoid HC Mike Tomlin’s first sub-500 season and maybe even sneak into the playoffs in the 11th hour for the second year in a row. Either way, it appears QB Kenny Pickett’s first-round selection — he’s thrown a game-winning TD at the last minute over the past two weeks — was wise by retired general manager Kevin Colbert.
16. Buccaneers (20): Not a huge surprise, they finally crossed the finish line limping for an NFC South Championship. But so does QB Tom Brady and WR Mike Evans eventually rediscovering their mojo is a warning sign for any wild card team – Dallas or Philadelphia – going to Tampa.
17. Dolphins (11): A team that was once 8-3 is down to .500. Even if Miami manages to get the last wild card from the AFC, they are almost surely unique – even if QB Tua Tagovailoa is able to return.
18. Panthers (19): Their belt training to steal the NFC South ended on Sunday. But thanks to interim coach Steve Wilks, who went 5-6 (he was 3-13 in one season at Arizona under tough circumstances) for a team that was left for dead after Matt Rhule was fired.
19. Saints (21): Taysom Hill continues to have one of the most compelling NFL careers in recent memory. Last Sunday, the QB/TE/FB/ST had a career-high 15 touches as New Orleans beat the Eagles in a last-ditch playoff bid that was later extinguished.
20. Seahawks (22): Take that? QB Geno Smith, a good bet as the league’s Returning Player of the Year, went 3-0 this season against his former teams (Chargers, Giants, Jets).
21. Jets (15): Mike White is clearly not recovered from his rib injury, but Sunday’s performance may have ended any hope he had of securing a QB1 spot for Gang Green in 2023.
22. Browns (24): Eighteen throws from QB Deshaun Watson suggest this offense is still not optimally tuned, but Sunday was the best since his return – and his three best TD throws of the season should fuel some optimism for the fall next.
23. Titans (23): What the hell? Journeyman QB Joshua Dobbs played well enough in his first NFL start in Week 17 to almost surely give Tennessee their best shot in a final bid for an AFC South hat-trick.
24. Commanders (16): What the hell? Fifth-round rookie QB Sam Howell played well enough, well, in the preseason, that he almost – well, maybe – gave Washington its best shot in a final offer for a season of .500.
25. Rams (25): The worst reigning Super Bowl champions of all time? Questionable given their crush on crippling injuries. But LA is the first to go from the Lombardi lift to (at least) 11 losses the following season.
26. Raiders (26): The first team in league history to lose five games in a season in which they had a double-digit second-half lead will now apparently try to trade QB Derek Carr for Carr’s brother David. Probably for the best.
27. Hawks (27): Not a ton to get excited about in Atlanta right now… but if you like good guards, Chris Lindstrom has become one of the best in the league?
28. Bear (28): Not a ton to get excited about in Chicago right now…but if you like good guards, has Teven Jenkins become one of the best in the league?
29. Foals (30): Interim coach Jeff Saturday is now 1-6 after winning his debut – pretty much what would happen after the death of Frank Reich.
30. Broncos (32): It took 17 weeks…but wasn’t this the Albert Okwuegbunam we all hoped to see in 2022? Right?
31. Cardinals (31): The “Hard Knocks in Season” team has to count the hours until this season-long debacle is over and they can book tee times.
32. Texans (29): Can they hold Chicago for the top pick in the 2023 draft? Stay tuned for Sunday massive game in Indianapolis!
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Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Nate Davis on Twitter @ByNateDavis.
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