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

Recap: Dan Quinn’s club headed west to San Francisco and faced one-time Falcons’ offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan’s and his impressive 49ers. And while it’s been a very long year for the team, it played hard and refused to go away against the talented Niners. Matt Ryan threw for a modest 210 yards and two scores without an interception. More significantly, he drove his team 70 yards in 10 plays with less than two minutes to play and found wide receiver Julio Jones for the game-deciding touchdown with two seconds to play. Quinn’s team tacked on a special teams score on the final play of the game and Atlanta won for the fourth time in their last six games.

Next Week: The Falcons host the Jacksonville Jaguars for the first time since 2011. These teams have split their previous six meetings but Atlanta has won the last two encounters, the latest a 23-17 win at Jacksonville four years ago. In the teams’ last clash at Atlanta, the home team rolled to a resounding 41-14 Thursday night victory in ’11.

Draft Talk: Last offseason, general manager Thomas Dimitroff and the organization made addressing the offensive line their biggest priority. And it still remains to be seen if the Falcons made the right choices. Meanwhile, the defense continues to a problem area for any number of reasons. And will Dan Quinn be back with the franchise?

Recap: The Eagles made their way to Landover looking to extend their recent winning streak vs. the rival Redskins. Thanks to a 32-27 win back in Week 1 at Philadelphia, the Birds were in position to sweep this series for the third consecutive year. Last Monday night, the Birds rallied from 14 points down to win in overtime and in this contest, trailed the ‘Skins by three points with less than five minutes to play. But Philadelphia got a gutty performance from Carson Wentz, who shook off his three fumbles (1 lost) and threw for 266 yards and three touchdowns. Rookie running back Miles Sanders had 122 of the team’s 157 yards on the ground. And the Eagles are back at .500.

Next Week: The Birds take on the rival Dallas Cowboys and look to get back on track in this bitter NFC East rivalry. Back in Week 7 on a Sunday evening at Arlington, the Birds were taken apart by Jason Garrett’s club, 37-10. Make it four straight losses in this series for Philadelphia, who has also dropped two straight at home to the Cowboys.

Playoff Hopes: Philadelphia’s come-from-behind victory kept the club’s hopes alive for a return to the postseason for the third straight year. But that could end next week if the team doesn’t hold serve and knock off the visiting Dallas Cowboys. The Eagles’ defense is still having its issues and will have to play better than it has in recent weeks.

Next: Nos. 16 and 15