NFL Power Rankings for Week 12: Broncos send Chiefs falling, Eagles' rise continues

NFL Power Rankings: Biggest risers and fallers

1. NFL Power Rankings for Week 12
2. Broncos are undeniable, but raise further questions about the Chiefs
3. Biggest risers and fallers in Week 12 NFL Power Rankings

NFL Week 11 was always going to have big-time consequences no matter which way the chips fell, and not just in our NFL Power Rankings. That certainly played out throughout Sunday's action, with the Denver Broncos delivering a statement that sent the Kansas City Chiefs to .500, with the Seattle Seahawks falling short to concede the NFC West lead to the Los Angeles Rams, and even with the Philadelphia Eagles winning a cold slugfest over the dome-happy Detroit Lions.

These are the types of matchups and results that shake up the playoff race and NFL Power Rankings alike. And while the teams already eyeing the 2026 NFL Draft are a different story, there was some shuffling there as well. But let's dive into the week that was and see how much these teams and the rest of the league are rising and falling in our latest power rankings.

NFL Power Rankings for Week 12

Broncos are undeniable, but raise further questions about the Chiefs

I've been at least among the biggest holdouts on the Denver Broncos all season long, despite their stellar record. Make no mistake, this hasn't been a feeling that the team is hopeless, bad, overly lucky, or anything of the sort. At the same time, when you look at the numbers, particularly with Bo Nix and the offense, they just simply haven't been efficient enough to believe that they could continue this throughout the course of an entire season.

But I'm not going to keep denying this team now. At the same time, they have also sounded the alarms regarding their bitter AFC West rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs.

On the Denver side of the equation, the formula is quite simple. This offense still isn't a world-beater by any stretch of the imagination. However, they are good enough, with Sean Payton dialing back of late on some of the wrinkles that were causing issues for Bo Nix. The Broncos are still just 14th in the NFL in EPA per play on offense. But when you pair an average offense with a defense that's first in Success Rate and third in EPA per play this season, that's a formula that can work.

Furthermore, you also can't discount the Broncos and their style of play being constructed to withstand the plethora of close games that they've played and emerge victorious. It might not be the most visually appealing brand of football, but they've played in nine one-possession games this season, and have emerged at 8-1 in such contests.

That brings us to the Chiefs, though, who dominated in close games last season — but the luck has flipped on its head this season. Perhaps what's most notable, though, is that Kansas City's defense just isn't at the level that we saw for much of last year, even if the offense has improved considerably, ranking third in EPA per play on offense this season so far.

Chris Jones becoming a lesser version of himself has highlighted the lack of a push on the defensive front in Kansas City, and while I believe in the secondary and coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, you're only going to go but so far in this league without a push from your front four/five. We're seeing that play out, especially as the Chiefs continue the trend of being in close games, and it could be a reason why they're sitting at just .500 and currently outside of a playoff spot.

There's still time for Kansas City to write the ship — and recent history would tell us that's probably a safer bet to bank on than the contrary. At the same time, it's not going to be the cakewalk into the playoffs for the Chiefs that we've become accustomed to witnessing, and part of that isn't just luck, it's the defense's own doing.

Biggest risers and fallers in Week 12 NFL Power Rankings

Riser: Philadelphia Eagles

Honestly not all that dissimilar to the conversation that we've had about the Broncos, the Philadelphia Eagles aren't going away either. Concerns about their offense are still warranted, even if the front office has talked to AJ Brown about airing out dirty laundry in public. They are 15th in the NFL in EPA per play on that side of the ball, and 24th in Success Rate. But the defense is still top tier, ranking seventh in EPA per play and 13th in Success Rate.

That being said, I'm still not entirely sure this year's iteration of the Eagles is decisively as good as the Super Bowl winner of a year ago. That's not to say they won't make it back to the Super Bowl, because they damn well could in a wide-open NFC. At the same time, though, they're just winning games ugly week after week right now, and given some of the cracks in the armor that we've seen, Nick Sirianni and Company deserve plenty of credit for just getting the job done, even if that doesn't eliminate all of the concerns about how this will hold up come the postseason.

Faller: Minnesota Vikings

Hand up, J.J. McCarthy and the Minnesota Vikings fooled me. I saw all the warning signs with the quarterback coming out of Michigan, his lack of experience simply being asked to shoulder the load as a passer, his up-and-down mechanics largely stemming from that lack of experience, and so on. But I still bought in on his pedigree and the development under Kevin O'Connell.

And I was wrong.

While understanding that we're only five starts into McCarthy's career, it's been brutal outside of maybe three quarters in total of action. But what's most frustrating about this is that the Vikings handed the keys confidently to McCarthy over Sam Darnold and while showing Daniel Jones the door. This roster in Minnesota is constructed to win now and, while it's certainly not a perfect group top-to-bottom, the quarterback play is the primary reason why they're a disappointing 4-6 right now after winning 14 games last season.

Maybe McCarthy can start to turn it around, but that would feel like blind faith at the moment, because the evidence points to the Vikings likely regretting how heavily they banked on the second-year quarterback.

Faller: Seattle Seahawks

There's a good change — and by that I mean it's pretty certain — that having the Seahawks as the No. 1 team in these NFL Power Rankings last week was jumping the gun a bit. And while Seattle's two-point loss on the road against the Rams doesn't mean they aren't still a contender to take the NFC this season, they aren't as head and shoulders above the rest as we thought.

People are going to be quick to point out Sam Darnold's four-interception performance and, obviously, that didn't help matters. But if you're looking for a glass-half-full take when it comes to the Seahawks (which is what I subscribe to as a certified believer in this group), the fact that they had an attempt at a game-winning field goal while Darnold threw four picks speaks to the quality of this team.

Mike Macdonald's defense gave Sean McVay the toughest test we've seen in months, while the offense still clawed its way to keep the game close when it wasn't at its best. The Seahawks are falling in the power rankings, but in the grand scheme, they aren't going anywhere.

Riser: Miami Dolphins

While it would probably be a bridge too far to say that the Dolphins simply enjoy playing without Chris Grier in the front office, that certainly looks to be the case with the level of performance we've seen from this team since the former general manager's dismissal. After upending the Bills a week ago, they made a case in Madrid early on Sunday morning that this thing could keep rolling a bit with a gritty win over the Commanders.

Though Miami is just 4-7 on the season, there's a real case to be made that the Dolphins could at least push themselves into the playoff hunt now. They play the Saints at home and the Jets on the road in their next two games before visiting the Steelers. It's not inconceivable that they could complete a five-game winning streak to get back to .500. And while this team still isn't a world-beater, they deserve plenty of credit when no one would've blamed them for mailing in the rest of this season.

Faller: Atlanta Falcons

The optimism that I have for the new-look Dolphins is the antithesis of what I'm feeling for the Falcons right now. Point blank, the coaching regime needs to change immediately. Get Raheem Morris and Zac Robinson out of the building in Atlanta at the first opportunity to do so. While I understand that Michael Penix Jr. hasn't been playing at the highest level, the truth of the matter is that largely has to come down to coaching — and the rest of this team isn't playing up to its potential.

At the risk of being overly simplistic, the Panthers defense is middle-of-the-pack at best and the Falcons have first-round talent galore across the offense. How in the world were they rendered so ineffective in that loss when that's the case. And that's before we get into allowing Bryce Young to look like a superstar. The Falcons need a change, because this is just maddeningly disappointing right now in Atlanta.

Giving Up Trying to Figure This Team Out: Jacksonville Jaguars

I don't think I can remember a team that oscillates so wildly week to week quite like the Jaguars. Granted, a lot of their dominant win in Week 11 over the Chargers could potentially be attributed to the fact that LA's roster is basically an infirmary ward right now. At the same time, even a banged-up Chargers team might be better than some of the teams we've watched Jacksonville struggle against already this season.

Really, this largely comes down to Trevor Lawrence, who really embodies the hot-and-cold nature that we've seen from the Jags. There have been questions already this season about whether Jacksonville should consider moving on from the former No. 1 overall pick this offseason. At the same time, though, I believe in Liam Coen and there are truly enticing pieces on this roster. They're currently in line for a playoff spot, but it's absolutely impossible to trust them.