The power rankings are back after a one week hiatus. I want to apologize for that hiatus, but it really wasn't my fault. You see, I started writing the rankings last week and took a look at Brady Quinn's stat line from the Detroit game and immediately blacked out and fell face first on the keyboard. Luckily, I woke up just in time for the games this week, so let's get to it.

LEGIT SUPER BOWL CONTENDERS

1. New Orleans Saints (1) – Wow. What else can I say about the Saints? They took the biggest game of the season and simply blew New England out of the water. Take a quick peek at their remaining schedule and you'll see that they are a legit shot to finish 16-0. And with that, cue the Mercury Morris footage.

2. Indianapolis Colts (2) – Did anybody actually think Houston was going to beat Indianapolis? Even with the 20-7 lead at halftime, everybody had to know the Colts were going to come back. They are just too good and Matt Schaub is just too shaky to ever win an important game. The Colts are five games away from a perfect regular season but they still have some tough games remaining. Combine that with the fact that they already won the AFC South; I don't see 16-0 happening.

3. Minnesota Vikings (3) – The magic number for the Vikings and the NFC North crown sits at two. The next two games for Minnesota are clearly the hardest of the five remaining so they might have to hold off the celebration just a little bit (but they will win the division eventually).

POTENTIALLY FRISKY PLAYOFF TEAMS

4. Cincinnati Bengals (5) – The Bengals slipped up a bit against Oakland but slightly redeemed themselves against Cleveland on Sunday. They now have a full two game lead in the AFC North, actually 2.5 games if you factor in the division head-to-head tiebreaker, so they are sitting pretty right now. With a win this Sunday against Detroit they can officially clinch a winning season.

5. San Diego Chargers (8) – The Chargers have been on a roll lately and have already matched their win total from last season. Seeing how an 8-8 Chargers team upset the Colts last season in the Wildcard round, I wouldn't put it past the Chargers to really make some noise this year. I fear for whoever plays them in the opening round.

6. New England Patriots (4) – I really wanted to leave the Patriots at number four because quite simply, I still would have a very difficult time picking against them in the playoffs. Maybe it's me, but I just can never fully think that a Tom Brady team won't get it done when it truly counts. However, they had to drop for now because of their performance on Monday Night. I was willing to accept the loss to Indianapolis but they didn't even stand a chance in New Orleans.

For the time being, look at some of these results from last season:

- Pittsburgh (14) at Tennesse (31)

- Indianapolis (24) at Pittsburgh (20)

- Indianapolis (23) at San Diego (20)

- Arizona (7) at New England (47)

- Minnesota (35) at Arizona (14)

What is the point of this exercise? The point is to prove that regular season results don't always carry over to the playoffs. Indianapolis beat San Diego during the regular season but lost to the same exact team in the same exact stadium in the first round of the playoffs. Arizona got absolutely manhandled by one non-playoff team and one Tarvaris Jackson led team, yet still won the NFC Championship and came very close to winning the Super Bowl. My point is, don't be so quick to bury the Patriots just yet. I'll leave it at that.

7. Dallas Cowboys (9) – It's the dreaded month of December for the Cowboys and Tony Romo. The worst (or best) part is that the schedule isn't kind to them at all. The Giants aren't a good team at all, but never underestimate them in a division game at home. After that, Dallas has the Chargers and Saints in back-to-back weeks. If they win the division it will definitely be earned.

8. Denver Broncos (7) – Denver finally got back in the win column with a Thanksgiving blowout of the Giants. Three of their five remaining games are against the Chiefs and Raiders so a wildcard spot is looking pretty good for Josh McDaniel's bunch.

9. Baltimore Ravens (10) – Baltimore got a huge victory Sunday night against the hated Steelers, but they will need to play much better if they want to continue their push for the playoffs. They won't get to face a third string QB making his first career start every week.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers (6) – The Steelers suffered a big letdown Sunday night but it was to be expected with Dennis Dixon making his first career start. I will give credit where credit is due and Dixon played well for the most part in getting the game to overtime which is more than I thought would happen at kickoff. However, when the going gets tough, the young QB usually makes a costly mistake that gives away the game, which is exactly what Dixon did. Pittsburgh has two easy games coming up against Oakland and Cleveland so you can't count them out just yet. One thing I'll be interested in seeing is how they respond from Hines Ward calling out Ben Roethlisberger. I guess the one thing I don't understand is if Ward is going to do all this talking about how it was essentially a playoff game; shouldn't he contribute more than three receptions and 47 total yards?

11. Arizona Cardinals (11) – Not only did the Cardinals completely screw over my picks by losing at Tennessee, but Kurt Warner completely screwed over my fantasy team with his late game scratch. Luckily I was able to put in Matt Leinart so I didn't completely lose out. On a side note, if it wasn't for having Twitter on my phone and following ESPN's Adam Schefter, I wouldn't have known in time that Warner was inactive. Just another advantage of new social media.

12. Philadelphia Eagles (12) – Believe it or not, the Eagles still control their own destiny. They sit only one game back of Dallas and still face the Cowboys at home in Week 17. According to my math, if the Eagles won out and the Cowboys only loss came against Philadelphia in the final week, the Eagles would own the tie-breaker due to the division record (since a win would give them a head-to-head split).

13. Green Bay Packers (14) – The Packers are hanging on to the last wild card spot in the NFC but they are going to have some tough games coming up, including this Monday night when the face Baltimore. If they can go 4-1 down the stretch then the playoffs shouldn't be an issue. Maybe at that point they will get a rematch against Minnesota. I bet FOX is praying for that right now.

14. Atlanta Falcons (13) – Atlanta is on the outside looking in, but are still being considering in the discussion for the playoffs. Personally, I'm not so sure right now. They have been struggling quite a bit and Matt Ryan has already been ruled out for the game against Philadelphia, which is a pretty big game in terms of the playoffs. I'll leave them in this bracket for now, but if the Eagles hand them another loss they will be finished in my eyes.

15. Tennessee Titans (23) – The Titans are rolling right now and have vaulted up my rankings since the last time I wrote them. I have no problem putting a 5-6 team in the frisky group because that is exactly what Tennessee is right now. After this week's game against Indianapolis, they have the Rams, Dolphins, Chargers, and Seahawks. Assuming at by Week 16 that San Diego has their division wrapped up, I can easily see the Titans finishing 9-7 and snatching up a wild card berth. In fact, beating Indianapolis is definitely in the discussion this week.

MATHEMATICALLY IN IT (BUT REALLY OUT OF IT)

16. New York Giants (15) – True story. I was finishing up my second Thanksgiving meal of the day last Thursday as the clock hit 7:45. Those of us at the table began discussing the game between the Giants and Broncos that was coming up. I began stating that the Giants are traveling to the West Coast on a short week and will most likely lose. I then added that I picked the Giants so they will definitely lose. I then proceeded to change my pick to Denver as fast as possible on my phone. Sometimes things are just too easy.

17. Jacksonville Jaguars (17) – Sometimes I need to trust my instincts a little more. For instance, I was ready to write off Jacksonville about five weeks ago but kept being talked back into them as they won a game here and there. Well, that is no more. I'm done with Jacksonville. It's not happening this year.

18. Houston Texans (16) – Have the Texans ever won a big game? Ever? Every time they put together a little winning streak and start discussing the playoffs, they immediately fall flat on their face. When you're at home and up 20-7 on the division leader, you don't blow that lead. Well, unless you're a Houston Texan.

19. Miami Dolphins (18) – If the Dolphins want to blame anybody for losing in Buffalo on Sunday, they can blame the coaches. How else do explain the decision to let Ricky Williams throw the ball after he had run all over the Bills to get inside the five? Not to mention he was still running them over in the second half before they started letting Chad Henne throw the ball and wheels came flying off. It's a simple concept. The Bills pass defense is good, their run defense isn't. If you want to beat them, run the ball.

20. San Francisco 49ers (21) – The Niners had themselves a nice little Sunday with a victory against Jacksonville and an Arizona loss against Tennessee. They are still a full two games behind Arizona with one game remaining against them, so they will need a little help. Luckily they still have Seattle, Detroit, and St Louis on their remaining schedule.

21. New York Jets (20) – Did the Jets actually win on Sunday or did Jake Delhomme just gift wrap the game instead? Hard to say but I'm going with the latter choice. Mark Sanchez should be thanking his lucky stars that this Thursday's game against Buffalo is in the dome in Toronto and not in Ralph Wilson Stadium.

22. Buffalo Bills (25) – It was nice to see a Bills victory but I think people are getting way ahead of themselves. Perry Fewell shouldn't (and won't) be the permanent coach once this season is over. He sure has the Bills looking better than they were under Dick Jauron, but I think it's more a lack of Jauron than Fewell himself. No offense to Coach Fewell.

23. Carolina Panthers (19) – The Panthers will be lucky to finish the season with six victories. After this week's game against Tampa Bay, they have the Patriots, Vikings, Giants, and Saints to finish off the season. At what point does Jake Delhomme get benched?

BOTTOM OF THE BARREL

24. Chicago Bears (22) – Jay Cutler has been awful for the Bears this season. This has been his worst season so far as his 20 interceptions are a current career high for one season and his 74.4 QB rating is currently a career low. As a Bills fan wanting Mike Shannahan to be the coach, the Bears concern me. Lovie Smith has to be on his way out and if he is, the Bears would be very smart to pair Shannahan and Cutler up again.

25. Seattle Seahawks (24) – I know the Seahawks won on Sunday but I really have no idea if they looked good or it was just because they played the Rams. I guess my lack of interest has to do with the entire NFC West. What a horrible division.

26. Washington Redskins (26) – Firing Jim Zorn is a foregone conclusion for the Redskins so they will be in the discussion for one of the big name coaches. For me personally, I don't understand what would attract them to the team. They have an owner who throws his money around more foolishly than a drunken guy at a strip club, they definitely don't have a QB, so what is so great about coaching in Washington? Bigger market? More media scrutiny? Higher expectations? Crazy owner breathing down your back? Please, enlighten me.

27. Kansas City Chiefs (28) – I can see the Chiefs finishing with four victories at a minimum which means my prediction before the season of 6-10 is looking pretty good with a few upsets along the way. They still have two games against Denver which means at the very least they could play spoiler and ruin a rival's playoff chances.

28. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (27) – The Bucs are one of those ferociously bad teams but you can tell they are just a little dangerous. Like if I'm the Jets and play them in two weeks, I'm not 100% sold on it being an easy victory. It's kind of sad that it took this long for them to start Josh Freeman but I guess it's better late than never.

29. Oakland Raiders (29) – The Raiders still have games against Washington and Cleveland remaining on the schedule, but my gut is telling me that they have maxed out their win total for the season. I would be nervous that they will take a QB in the draft that I'd like to see in Buffalo, but that would be banking on Oakland doing the right/smart/logical thing come April.

30. St Louis Rams (30) – I don't think I've seen one second of live Rams football this season and that is probably for the best. I did see the opening game for the UFL so I imagine it was about the same.

31. Detroit Lions (31) – The Lions almost made their Thanksgiving day game exciting and a huge upset, but they forgot to play the remaining 58 minutes. Oops.

32. Cleveland Browns (32) – I really have nothing to say about Cleveland at this point of the season. Just look at the picture of the "Mangenius" to the right. That says it all.

Miami Dolphins @ Carolina Panthers (Thurs)

The Panthers should win this game, right? They are at home. The Dolphins will be without Ronnie Brown. The Dolphins just barely beat the Buccaneers. The Panthers just beat a (possibly) good Falcons team. In case you're wondering, that was just me talking myself into picking the Panthers. I'm never confident picking a team that starts Jake Delhomme at QB. Never.

Washington Redskins @ Dallas Cowboys

After a shaking outing in Green Bay, a home game against the Redskins is just what the doctor ordered for Dallas. Granted Washington did beat Denver last week, but lightning isn't going to strike twice for the Skins. And if it does, I will never trust Tony Romo in the second half of the season EVER again.

Cleveland Browns @ Detroit Lions

Sweet hellacious beast, this is going to be one terrible game. I know the Lions lost to the Rams at home, but there is no way they lose to Cleveland at home. If they do, I think they are actually worse off than they were last year.

San Francisco 49ers @ Green Bay Packers

I'm not crazy about San Francisco on the road and I'm even less crazy about them at Green Bay after the Packers just took down the Cowboys.

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Kansas City Chiefs

Even though the Steelers will most likely be without Troy Polamalu, they should be able to handle Kansas City. Does anybody think the Chiefs can win this game? Do the Chiefs players or coaches think they can win this game? Should we just call this one over before it starts and avoid any injuries? I say yes to the last question.

Atlanta Falcons @ NY Giants

Even though I've already ruled the Giants out, they are coming off a bye and the Falcons did just lose to the Panthers. Of course, this is the classic game that I get wrong because I'm not picking the road team that just suffered a terrible loss against the obvious home team that is coming off the bye and is well rested. Sometimes the NFL makes no sense at all.

New Orleans Saints @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Hopefully the Saints have enough sense in them to not overlook this game towards next week's matchup with New England and continue their undefeated quest. Josh Freeman has the Bucs playing much better as of late, but they still aren't anywhere near where the Saints are at. The real question for me is do I play Josh Freeman on my one fantasy team where I'm already eliminated from the playoffs. Wait a second, that is a terrible question.

Buffalo Bills @ Jacksonville Jaguars

Nobody has any idea how happy I am right now. As it stood, this was the hardest game to write anything about because I was running out of clever ways to bash the Jacksonville fan base and Dick Jauron. It was only a few short hours later that the news broke that Dick Jauron would no longer be ruining my life coaching the Buffalo Bills. Before I go any further, I want everybody know that this is a temporary happiness and the minute the Bills hire another unknown coordinator or another career loser, I'll be back to being bitter old Devin.

But for now, let me enjoy this. The man who guided the Bills to three consecutive 7-9 seasons and somehow managed to get a contract extension in the middle of it is finally gone. The man who showed such little emotion that people regularly had to take his pulse during the game is finally gone. The man who continually clapped on the sidelines as his team was imploding is finally gone. The man who sucked the life out of Terrell Owens is finally gone. The man who thought it was a good idea to move Langston Walker to left tackle and then release him right before the season is finally gone. The man who benched Trent Edwards and put Ryan Fitzpatrick into the game with a little over two minutes to go and facing a 17 point deficit is finally gone. Finally.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go pour Gatorade on my head and celebrate.

Indianapolis Colts @ Baltimore Ravens

We've reached that point in the season where I'm going to need to start taking chances to catch the leader. I can say in full confidence that I've tried this every season since I've been doing picks, and every season it blows up in my face. However, what choice do I have? In my current pick group I'm down seven games to the overall leader so I need to try and make up ground somewhere along the line. So with that in my mind, the Ravens over the Colts are my upset of the week.

The Colts should be flying high as they hit 9-0 thanks to a huge win over New England which eventually sets them up for the trap game. The road game. Against a sometimes tough Baltimore defense. Against a QB who has the ability to shred their suspect secondary. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Seattle Seahawks @ Minnesota Vikings

The cakewalk continues for the Vikings as they get another easy game at home. The best part about this easy schedule is the quicker they clinch the division, the closer we are to watching Tavaris Jackson play some football again. Fun times!

Arizona Cardinals @ St Louis Rams

This should be another easy win for the Cardinals. As long as they stop Steven Jackson (if it's possible), the Rams should never within 10 points of the lead.

NY Jets @ New England Patriots

Let's see; tough loss for the Patriots (check), people calling Bill Belicheck out (check), cocky Jets team reeling (check), Mark Sanchez playing in non-ideal weather conditions (check), and Patriots wanting to stick it to the Jets for talking trash (check). Yeah, this game isn't going to end well for the Jets.

Cincinnati Bengals @ Oakland Raiders

I'm not confident in this pick at all. On paper the Bengals overmatch the Raiders in even single aspect possible. But the Raiders always seem to have those few fluky home wins where the East Coast team is traveling out West. They already pulled one of those wins off this season against Philadelphia. Last season, they beat the Jets and Texans at home. In 2007, they beat the 10-6 Browns at home. In 2006, it was the defending Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers. It must be something about playing in the Black Hole.

On the topic of the Bengals, how lucky is Larry Johnson? The guy hasn't surpassed 1,000 yards in Kansas City since the 2006 season, does nothing this year, rips his coach on Twitter, gets released, and then gets signed on the division leading Bengals. Talk about winning the lottery. If he is a smart man (which I highly doubt), he should probably shut his mouth and be thankful that he is in this situation and use it to rejuvenate his career.

San Diego Chargers @ Denver Broncos

I'm doing an entire flip flop on the whole Chargers/Broncos scenario. Denver basically had the division in their control and then proceeded to lose three games in a row and most likely their division lead this weekend. Even worse for them is if Kyle Orton misses this game and Chris Simms is the starting QB. Who knows. Maybe Simms will play well and lead Denver to victory. After seeing his little bit of game action against Washington, I'm not totally banking on it.

Meanwhile, San Diego has been on fire. They've pulled off four consecutive victories and are starting to look like the team that we thought they were in the pre-season. LDT played probably his best game of the season last week after finding out that he was going to be a father, if he continues to play like his old self, look out AFC.

Philadelphia Eagles @ Chicago Bears

Both teams need this game bad but the Eagles should win. They have the better QB and the better coach and quite frankly, if Philly loses again they will have a tough time making the playoffs. Losing Brian Westbrook won't help their cause but I don't think anybody can actually say they are shocked by this news.

Tennessee Titans @ Houston Texans

Houston should be rocking and rolling this Monday night for a rare primetime appearance by the Texans. The Titans are much improved since making the switch to Vince Young at QB, but that doesn't mean much for them the rest of the season. A 0-6 hole isn't something easy to overcome.

On the positive side for Tennessee, Chris Johnson is a beast of a running back that can barely be stopped. He should give the Texans fits all night and as long as the Titans can keep it close, he should be a major deciding factor in the game. Also factoring into this game, Vince Young's return to his home state and facing the team that passed him over. Granted I don't think anybody blames Houston for doing it now when we look back on it, but VY still carries that grudge and will probably play his best game of the season for Tennessee.

Still, Houston is the better team. They are in a divisional tie with Jacksonville and if they have any realistic expectations of making the playoffs, they absolutely must win this game. I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt after a late bye week and the Texans should win this game.

Last Week: 9-6

NFL Season: 95-62

Scott's Picks:

Miami Dolphins @ Carolina Panthers (Thurs)

Washington Redskins @ Dallas Cowboys

Cleveland Browns @ Detroit Lions

San Francisco 49ers @ Green Bay Packers

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Kansas City Chiefs

Atlanta Falcons @ NY Giants

New Orleans Saints @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Buffalo Bills @ Jacksonville Jaguars

Indianapolis Colts @ Baltimore Ravens

Seattle Seahawks @ Minnesota Vikings

Arizona Cardinals @ St Louis Rams

NY Jets @ New England Patriots

Cincinnati Bengals @ Oakland Raiders

San Diego Chargers @ Denver Broncos

Philadelphia Eagles @ Chicago Bears

Tennessee Titans @ Houston Texans

Last Week: 10-5

NFL Season: 96-61

LEGIT SUPER BOWL CONTENDERS

1. New Orleans Saints (1) – It wasn't exactly pretty but the Saints got their ninth win in a row to extend their undefeated season. I really only see one more difficult game for the rest of the season and that will be played in two weeks against the Patriots. They should be able to beat Tampa Bay twice, Washington, Atlanta, Carolina, and Dallas. I'm definitely pulling for them since they are easily the most likeable team in this bracket from my vantage point.

2. Indianapolis Colts (2) – The Colts also remain undefeated after a huge comeback victory against New England on Sunday. Is it possible that we could have two 16-0 teams at the end of the regular season? I'm sure it is, but I don't see it happening. It should be interesting to see who falls first considering Indianapolis just passed their toughest test yet.

3. Minnesota Vikings (3) – Not surprising at all but the Vikings continued their dominant season by plowing through the Lions and it's pretty much a two horse race for home field in the NFC. Regardless of who gets it, it will be a dome team so weather won't even be a discussion for the NFC.

4. New England Patriots (4) – Yes I'm leaving New England at number four and I'll explain why. I now believe in the Bengals as a legit team. However, I'm not fully convinced that they are a Super Bowl contender yet. The only playoff experience they've had didn't exactly go to well and I just don't know how well they will play when all the chips are on the table. If the Patriots were to face the Bengals in the playoffs, I would definitely be picking New England for the experience factor.

While we're discussing the Patriots, I'll join in and be the 10,385 person to voice my opinion on the decision of Bill Belicheck. I loved it. If they get those few yards, everybody would be praising him today. Sure he showed little to no confidence in his defense by going for it, but I would like to think that he knows his team better than all the "experts" that are slamming him today. He knew he was going to give Manning more than enough time to get the winning score and he rolled the dice. It didn't work out, but I still think it was the right decision. Everybody praised Mike Shannahan last season when he went for two instead of the tie against San Diego because it worked out. If that didn't work out, people would've bashed him. It's a double standard and it's pretty annoying.

POTENTIALLY FRISKY PLAYOFF TEAMS

5. Cincinnati Bengals (6) – The Bengals are easily the best team in this bracket and I mean no disrespect by not placing them higher. I would just like to see them finish this season strong and carry that into the playoffs first. I would still be pretty surprised if they were able to beat Indianapolis or New England. I just think experience carries a lot of weight in those situations. But for the record, THANK YOU CINCINNATI!!!!

6. Pittsburgh Steelers (5) –Despite being swept by Cincinnati and really digging themselves a hole in the AFC North, Pittsburgh still controls their own destiny and is clearly in the driver's seat for a wild card berth. Does anybody remember their first Super Bowl run? They were a six seed and won all three road games leading to the Super Bowl. This is exactly why they can't be ruled out at all. Pittsburgh will still be heard from before this season comes to a close.

7. Denver Broncos (7) – Oh my Denver. At least last season the Broncos waited until the very last season to completely collapse. They were in complete control of the AFC West a few weeks ago but they stand to lose that lead this weekend when they face the number eight team on my list. The good news for them is that the playoffs wouldn't be out of the question even if they did hand the AFC West title on a platter to San Diego. Of course, that is assuming they don't continue their collapse and finally win a game.

8. San Diego Chargers (13) – The Chargers have been the complete opposite of the Broncos in the past few weeks and it's exactly why they stand a chance to take sole possession of first place this weekend. Since losing to Denver in Week Six, the Chargers have reeled off four straight victories. If they beat Denver that would make five and they would then get number six and seven in the two weeks following. To make this easier to understand, the Broncos are screwed if they lose this weekend.

9. Dallas Cowboys (8) – I'm not dropping Dallas too far after their disappointing showing in Green Bay. However, I have a keen eye on them. I mentioned last week that I'll be interested to see how Dallas plays down the stretch because this is usually the time Tony Romo and company start to falter so I wasn't completely shocked they lost on Sunday. I'm avoiding the classic overreaction that I've been known to do in the past and I'll give Dallas a second chance. They have two incredibly easy games coming up so as long as they win those, they should be fine.

10. Baltimore Ravens (12) – Thankfully due to my Monday night TV schedule, I wasn't subjected to watching the first half of the Ravens/Browns game. The Ravens did eventually pull it out but they are going to need to be much better as we head towards the most important part of the season.

11. Arizona Cardinals (10) – The Cardinals are starting to get their legs under them and that is a dangerous sign for the other teams in the NFC. I still can't figure out if they are really good, just ok, a decent team that takes advantage of a bad division, or all of the above. Does that make any sense? I swear it did in my head. One thing is for sure, I won't completely rule them out come January this time around.

12 Philadelphia Eagles (9) – The Eagles are slipping further and further away as the season moves on. They really need to get it going this week or things will only get worse for Philly. It doesn't help that Brian Westbrook is probably finished for the season, but I'm thinking LeSean McCoy should be a very fine replacement for him.

13. Atlanta Falcons (11) – The Falcons have really had a rough time recently and it won't be any easier if Michael Turner is out for an extended period of time. We'll know all we need to know about Atlanta after the next three weeks are played out. If they go 3-0, they are definitely in it. If they lose even one of the two games against the Giants or Eagles, they are moving down to my mathematical bracket.

MATHEMATICALLY IN IT

14. Green Bay Packers (15) – Huge win for the Packers when they needed it most. I'm refraining from moving Green Bay up to the next bracket until I see them win on a more consistent basis. They are tied with the Eagles and Falcons for what would be one of the two wild card berths, but I can't fully trust a team that lost to the Buccaneers. Not just yet anyways.

15. New York Giants (14) – The Giants got a little help as they were off and the Eagles and Cowboys both lost. If they corrected things on the bye they should still be in good shape but they can't afford to lose this coming Sunday again.

16. Houston Texans (17) – The Texans were off but the Colts won to extend their division lead. The combination of a Colts collapse and Texans run isn't happening, sorry Houston.

17. Jacksonville Jaguars (19) – The Jags are quietly playing themselves back into playoff contention which each passing week. They should be able to handle Buffalo with a fair amount of ease this weekend. It's just a shame nobody will get to see it. Well, nobody in the Jacksonville area anyways.

18. Miami Dolphins (18) – The Dolphins pulled out a squeaker against Tampa Bay. That loss would have been crushing to any chances that they have this season, which aren't much. With the wild card looking like one of the teams sitting at 6-3 right now, Miami is going to have to pull off a long run of wins to get back into the thick of things.

19. Carolina Panthers (21) – The Panthers are making things interesting as the season goes on. I can easily see them falling just short of the playoffs though. It would probably be at that time that the Panthers would like to have one of those bad losses back, like the game against Buffalo.

20. New York Jets (20) –Ouch. Another rough outing for the Sanchize. The Jets have now lost five out of their last six games and are pretty much finished in the AFC East. They are only one game ahead of the cellar dwelling Bills and the Bills already beat them once. It should be fun to watch the Jets continually go down in flames since Rex Ryan found it necessary to run his mouth so much before the season and people were so quick to anoint the Sanchize as a Hall of Fame quarterback.

21. San Francisco 49ers (22) – The 49ers got a big win on Thursday night to keep themselves (slightly) in the race out West. They currently stand two full games behind Arizona with a chance to play them once more. If they could even their record or even cut the lead to one, it would end up being a very big game considering that they already beat the Cardinals once this season

22. Chicago Bears (16) - I still don't know why people are shocked over the struggles Jay Cutler is having. Granted the struggles the Bears are having aren't necessarily all his fault, but he is getting most of the blame since he was supposed to be the savior for Chicago. I'm thinking unless the Bears pull off two consecutive upsets in the upcoming weeks, you can officially stick a fork in their season (not that I haven't already).

23. Tennessee Titans (24) – Don't let the 41-17 score fool you. This game reminded me of a Madden game where you struggle for almost the entire afternoon to win a game you should, then grab a bunch of garbage touchdowns right at the end to pad the stats. Chris Johnson ran well as expected, but the Titans were very beatable on Sunday. I'd be more upset about the Titans owner Bud Adams flipping the Bills sideline the bird, but I pretty much did it all afternoon so I think it would be a bit hypocritical of myself.

BOTTOM OF THE BARREL

24. Seattle Seahawks (25) – Seattle gave Arizona a game for a little bit before finally slinking back down and losing yet another game. While Seattle isn't out of it technically, they actually are. They are 1-3 in their (crappy) division and with a three game deficit already, it would take an epic collapse by Arizona to not win the division this year.

25. Buffalo Bills (23) – Even though I knew the Bills are a terrible team, I still had them in the above bracket because I thought they did just enough to always be "in the hunt" or "mathematically in it", like they have been in every year of the Dick Jauron era. It's probably a good thing the Bills lost the game though, since it means the odds increase of both Jauron and Edwards being gone after this season. With every win they gain some credibility back, so it's better for the future if they continue to get rolled over on Sundays.

And just a little side note about the game on Sunday. I mean this with all my heart; Rich Gannon is by far the worst commentator that has ever done an NFL game. The guy is so incredibly biased and his opinions are terrible. Almost everything he says is the complete opposite of the truth. For instance, Trent Edwards "lit it up" against New England in Week One. WHAT?? He did? I must have missed something. Coming from a guy who didn't even understand the basic rules of NFL overtime earlier this season, I feel insulted when he gets his know-it-all attitude going and tries to educate everybody on the game of football. My favorite part when he does a game is when he slams a quarterback for a mistake and points out every little thing a player did wrong. Maybe he forgot about his impressive Super Bowl performance. You know, the game where he threw five interceptions and got completely shellacked by the Buccaneers. Remember that Rich?

And one more side note. If Jairus Byrd doesn't win the Defensive Rookie of the Year, I will have officially lost faith in the system. This kid is amazing.

26. Washington Redskins (31) – I wrote about it in my picks and it happened, the classic trap game for the Broncos and a big win for the Redskins. Washington isn't going anywhere but for at least one week they can stake their claim to a solid victory against a team with a winning record. They can also be proud that they just about finished off anybody that was remaining in any eliminator leagues.

27. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (27) – The Bucs almost won and got their second straight victory in the Josh Freeman era. However, usually the bad teams find a way to still lose the game and the Buccaneers did just that on Sunday. After taking a 25-23 lead with 1:14 left on the clock, they allowed Miami to come right back down the field and win the game with only 10 seconds remaining. I've seen it a million times which watching the Bills. I believe the term is snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

28. Kansas City Chiefs (28) – In their first game since releasing Larry Johnson, the Chiefs got the win and improved their record to 2-7. The biggest highlight from the day was a 44 yard touchdown run by Jamaal Charles as he finished the day with 103 yards. For all of you fantasy owners that picked up Kolby Smith early Sunday morning, that must really suck for you.

29. Oakland Raiders (26) – Sometimes I feel like I'm especially hard on certain players when they don't always deserve it. In the case of JaMarcus Russell, he completely deserves it. After playing horrendously bad against the Chiefs earlier this season and someone still winning the game, Russell was determined to not only play bad this past Sunday, but also make sure that the Raiders lost the game too. His line from the game is as follows. Nine for 24, 67 yards, zero touchdowns, zero interceptions, and a 45.8 QB rating. He is jaw dropping bad. If he isn't playing in the UFL next season, I will have lost a little more faith in the NFL.

30. St Louis Rams (29) – Read what I wrote below about the Lions and you'll see what I mean when you look at the Rams/Saints game. I didn't think St Louis would stand a chance with the Saints but they at least hung in the game and made things interesting for the fans involved. When your team is as bad as the Rams are, a good honest effort is about all you can ask for.

31. Detroit Lions (30) – The game against the Vikings was one of those games where you knew Detroit didn't even stand a chance. Even so, usually those games are close for at least a half while Detroit puts a scare into Minnesota and all those people who bet on the Vikings or picked them outright to win. However, the Lions couldn't even pull that one off on Sunday. From the moment the clock hit 1:00, it was my impression that the Lions were already losing and they weren't even in the game. Granted I didn't watch the game, but I never for a second thought it was even in doubt.

32. Cleveland Browns (32) – 13 for 31, 99 yards, zero touchdowns, two interceptions, and a 23.5 QB rating. Ladies and Gentleman, the 22^nd overall pick of the 2007 draft from Notre Dame, Brady Quinn!!