2019 NFL power rankings, Week 16: Cowboys won, 49ers stunned

Recap: The Patriots haven’t lost three consecutive games since the 2002 season. And after setbacks to the Texans Chiefs, Bill Belichick’s club was looking to avoid such a fate when they traveled to Cincinnati to face the one-win Bengals. A victory would put the franchise in the playoffs for an 11th consecutive year, extending their own NFL record. New England actually trailed 10-7 in the second quarter but would limit the Bengals to a field goal the remainder of the afternoon. Belichick’s team came up with five more takeaways, including four interceptions of Andy Dalton. Cornerback Stephon Gilmore had two thefts, returning one of those picks 64 yards for a score.

Next Week: The Pats host the vastly-improved Bills on a Saturday afternoon and Belichick’s squad is in position to sweep this series for the third consecutive year. In Week 4 at Buffalo, New England’s defense picked off four passes in a hard-earned 16-10 victory. All told, the Patriots have won the last six games in this AFC East rivalry.

Playoff Hopes: As expected, Belichick’s club is headed back to the postseason again and the win at Cincinnati featured the club’s calling card this year in the form of opportunistic defense. The Patriots are now in position to claim the AFC East for the 11th consecutive season with a victory at home over the Bills next Saturday afternoon.

Recap: Winners of nine consecutive games and a victory away from wrapping up the AFC North, the Ravens took on the New York Jets on Thursday night at Baltimore. Last week during the team’s victory at Buffalo, Lamar Jackson and his team were limited to a season-low 118 yards on the ground. But against the Jets, the second-year pro not only established a new NFL record for rushing yards by a quarterback in a season (1,103 and counting), he threw for five more scores tied the franchise record for touchdown passes in a season (33). The Ravens rolled up 430 total yards in the 21-point victory. But John Harbaugh’s special teams were less than stellar in the prime time win.

Next Week: The Ravens and their 10-game winning streak head to Cleveland to renew acquaintance with the rival Browns, who happen to be the last team to hand Harbaugh’s club a loss this season. Back in Week 4 at Baltimore, Mayfield and company rolled to a 40-25 triumph. The Ravens own an impressive 30-11 lifetime edge in this series.

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Playoff Hopes: The Ravens have now won back-to-back division titles for the first time since the 2011 and ’12 seasons. That latter campaign resulted in a Super Bowl championship. Baltimore still owns the best record in the conference (12-2) and is closing in on one of the top two seeds in the conference when it comes to the playoffs.