1. Patriots (3 last week): Step into Bill Belichick's web, Colin Kaepernick.
2. Broncos (2): They need to beat the Ravens to keep their hopes alive for a first round playoff bye.
3. Packers (7): Mike McCarthy believes this team can be better than the 15-1 Packers of a year ago. Can the Bears make him look wrong Sunday?
4. 49ers (6): Beating the Dolphins was one thing; beating the Patriots would be something else.
5. Texans (1): In three of their last four games, they have a blowout loss to the Patriots and close call victories over the Jaguars and Lions. Any question about which direction the Texans are headed?
6. Falcons (4): Was their loss to the Panthers a blip, or was it the start of a tailspin?
7. Giants (13): If NFL teams had no secondaries, the Giants would be No. 1.
8. Colts (8): The best teams can win games in different ways. The Colts have done that.
9. Ravens (5): The Ravens defense needs a savior. What do you know, here comes Ray Lewis.
10. Seahawks (10): They are starting to have the look of a team you would not want to be playing in January.
11. Redskins (12): You know things are going their way when Kirk Cousins can lead them to an overtime victory over a formidable opponent.
12. Bengals (9): Their litmus test will be against the Steelers in two weeks, but they can't look past the Eagles on Thursday.
13. Bears (11): The more passes Bears receivers drop, the more the Bears drop in the power rankings.
14. Cowboys (16): Could they ride a wave of emotion all the way to the postseason?
15. Vikings (17): They have the best one-dimensional offense in the NFL.
16. Steelers (14): Against the Raiders, Browns, Titans and Chargers, they are 0-4. Good thing their next two games are against contenders.
17. Rams (18): It's not saying much, but this is the best Rams team that St. Louis has seen in quite some time.
18. Jets (21): The fact that they may be a playoff team does not speak well to the quality of the AFC this year.
19. Buccaneers (15): Any team that can blow a 21-10 lead with four minutes left against the Eagles is not a good bet to be playing on Feb. 3. Or Jan. 20. Or Jan. 12, 13, 5 or 6.
20. Browns (24): If the season started three weeks ago, they would be a top five team.
