Ravens make a statement on road
Week 15 ended with the Baltimore Ravens blowing out the San Francisco 49ers Monday night.
Lamar Jackson enhanced his MVP chances, while Brock Purdy (4 turnovers) took a blow torch to his hopes for the award, as it was no contest between two teams that are the favorites to meet in the Super Bowl.
In other action on Christmas weekend, the Kansas City Chiefs were into gift-giving, with a turnover-filled loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. All’s not well with Patrick Mahomes & Co. The Miami Dolphins, meanwhile, earned a statement win over the Dallas Cowboys.
Here’s the Power Rankings heading into Week 17:
1. Ravens (12-3): As statement wins go, can’t get much louder, bolder or definitive than trouncing the 49ers on Christmas night.
2. 49ers (11-4): Just a blip on the screen? Maybe, but it’s hard to ignore the fact they looked like a JV team against the Ravens on Monday night.
3. Dolphins (11-4): They got the monkey off their collective backs. They finally beat a team with a winning record to silence the naysayers for a bit.
4. Lions (11-4): The NFC North title belongs to the Lions for the first time in 30 years. Landing the NFC’s top seed is another matter.
5. Eagles (11-4): They managed to stop the bleeding after losing three straight games. But they still don’t look like a team that’s headed back to the Super Bowl.
6. Browns (10-5): Joe Flacco is magic with the long ball. In Cleveland, he’s just magic, period.
7. Bills (9-6): You wouldn’t know this was the same team that destroyed Dallas a week ago.
8. Chiefs (9-6): More turnovers. More sideline outbursts — this time Travis Kelce pitched a fit. And more questions about an anemic offense.
9. Cowboys (10-5): Their road woes continued and that’s not the best sign given their playoff ride will largely be spent away from AT&T Stadium.
10. Rams (8-7): Winning six out of the past seven games has the Rams right in the thick of the playoff race.
11. Buccaneers (8-7): Between Baker Mayfield, and the defense, it’s clicking on all cylinders now for the Bucs, who finally have an outright lead in the NFC South.
12. Seahawks (8-7): Two straight last-minute wins with two different quarterbacks.
13. Steelers (8-7): You have to wonder why Mason Rudolph didn’t get the nod sooner. As for George Pickens, he might not block, but he can sure catch.
14. Bengals (8-7): Being swept by the Men of Steel in their season series, does not bode well for tie-breaker purposes.
15. Jaguars (8-7): Four straight losses, and Trevor Lawrence isn’t healthy. A disasterous turn of events.
16. Texans (8-7): Amari Cooper (265 receiving yards) out-gained the entire Texans offense. Enough said.
17. Colts (8-7): The overachieving Colts couldn’t have picked a worse time to lose two of their last three games.
18. Packers (7-8): The Packers offense produced its first 30-plus point game. Good thing because the defense barely held on against Carolina of all teams.
19. Raiders (7-8): Beating the Chiefs on Christmas day kept the Raiders slim playoff hopes alive. It also didn’t hurt Antonio Pierce’s hopes of removing the interim tag.
20. Falcons (7-8): Taylor Heinicke gave the Falcons some life with his first start, and kept them in the hunt for the NFC South crown.
21. Broncos (7-8): They had won five-in-a-row to get their sights on a possible playoff bid. With Russell Wilson & Co. hitting the skids, that’s one, big, fat never mind.
22. Vikings (7-8): Nick Mullins may have lit up the Lions defense for over 400 yards passing. But his four picks were deadly, leaving the Vikings needing a miracle to make it back to the postseason.
23. Saints (7-8): They rallied late, but the hole they dug themselves early was too much to overcome against the Rams.
24. Bears (6-9): They’ve doubled their win total from a year ago, but still have issues finishing off opponents.
25. Giants (5-10): Tommy DeVito has officially crashed back to earth after getting benched by Brian Daboll at halftime against the Eagles.
26. Jets (6-9): Only the Jets could blow a 20-point lead in wake of owner Woody Johnson declaring head coach Robert Saleh safe.
27. Titans (5-10): With Will Levis out, Ryan Tannehill came out of mothballs. Not that it made a difference.
28. Chargers (5-10): In their first game of the post-Brandon Staley era, they were actually quite competitive before ultimately losing to the Bills.
29. Patriots (4-11): The Patriots have won two of their last three games with Bailey Zappe at the helm. What that means going forward in 2024 is anyone’s guess.
30. Cardinals (3-12): Six games into his return, Kyler Murray still looks a bit rusty and not quite on the same page with his receivers.
31. Commanders (4-11): For the second straight week, Jacoby Brissett came on in relief of Sam Howell. Anyone else think he should start? He’s merely led five scoring drives in those two games.
32. Carolina Panthers (2-13): The Panthers are finally using Bryce Young more under center, which gives them more options on offense. They didn’t win, but his careerhigh 311 yards was a sign of progress.