NFL Power Rankings Week 16: Tuesday edition
Checking out the Power Rankings following Week 16 with a Tuesday edition.
Things are shaking out pretty nicely in the NFL. The NFC is more or less set, save for the Vikings and the jumbled up mess that is the NFC East (though kudos to Jay Gruden for turning s–t to copper and having Washington on the precipice of a playoff appearance).
As for the AFC picture, things are a little more muddled. The Pats and Bengals are top of the pops, and the Houston Texans beat the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday in the sloppiest, ugliest, most attrition-riddled game you’ll ever see. And then there’s the devil’s dance between the Jets, Steelers, Broncos and Chiefs. It’s that last team I’d like to do a deep-dive on before hopping into the rest of the power rankings.
Are the Kansas City Chiefs for real, or are they fool’s gold? On one hand they have rebounded in most impressing fashion after starting the year 1-5. The Chiefs were expected to be a solid team before the year began, but an early loss to Denver ripped their hearts out, and the team plodded through the first month and a half like they had in-game PTSD. That Andy Reid has turned them around is nothing short of miraculous – it’s no easy task to rally the troops and buoy spirits – and he’d be Coach of the Year if not for Ron Rivera down in Carolina.
On the other hand, the Chiefs have looked ugly in their last few wins. The Chargers contest was a thriller in sloppy weather. And against the Ravens, though the score was a blowout, only 14 the team’s 34 points came from the offense. The Raiders and Bills victories were both second-half rallies.
The Chiefs seem to be a squad that plays up to the competition (they beat the hell out of the Broncos), but tend to toy around with inferior competition. Reid sounded like he was giving coach speak on Monday when saying that it only now feels like his team reached .500, but he’s not entirely wrong. This squad is still rounding into form and needs to show some bite in the upcoming games against Cleveland and Oakland – two teams the Chiefs should greatly overmatch. Though on a hot streak, there’s still room for improvement.
And now, onward to the Week 16 NFL Power Rankings. Happy holidays.