The Thanksgiving holiday was make or break for a lot of teams in the NFL. Some teams separated themselves with respect to playoff contention.
The Thanksgiving holiday weekend can jump-start a team’s playoff hopes and kill it for others. It happened again this year.
The Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles all made their Super Bowl aspirations known with key wins in big spots. The Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs were the first two teams to clinch playoff spots.
In the midst of everything else, the AFC and NFC North divisions are still as tight as ever. The Pittsburgh Steelers took the lead in the AFC North, and the Lions are looking to hold off the Minnesota Vikings.
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The NFC South is just as tight. The Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are both 6-6 with Atlanta having a slight edge.
The races will get tighter as the season continues.
Here’s who is on top of this week’s power rankings.
Thanksgiving got a little dicey, but the Lions can win in just about every way possible. They have a tough schedule to finish off the season that begins with a Thursday night meeting with Green Bay. This will be a good test to see where they are.
Last week: 1
The Bills dominated the 49ers in the snow and continue to show that they are the best team in the AFC, perhaps the best team in the NFL. Josh Allen should be the favorite to win his first NFL MVP award, but nothing matters to this team other than finally breaking through and reaching the Super Bowl.
Last week: 2
Can we fast-forward to Jan. 26 — Philly at Detroit — for the NFC championship? That will be a glorious game, and no other NFC contender holds a candle to these two teams.
Last week: 3
The Chiefs returned to their unconvincing winning ways on Black Friday, just squeaking by the last-place Raiders to stay atop the AFC at 11-1. Chiefs apologists predicted the team would be past the nail-biting wins against bad teams at this point in the season, but it’s still happening. It could either mean they’re tested to win competitive playoff games or simply a huge house of cards about to be blown over by the cold January wind.
Last week: 4
Russell Wilson had arguably his best game in a Steelers uniform. The Super Bowl winner finished the win over the Cincinnati Bengals with 414 passing yards and three touchdowns. After a Week 14 matchup with another AFC North rival, the Browns, the Steelers face the Eagles, Ravens and Chiefs in a challenging stretch.
Last week: 8
The Packers were not at all phased by the cold, and, heading to Detroit on Thursday, they’ll have a chance to prove how legitimate they are. If Jordan Love can limit the turnovers like he did on Thanksgiving night, they could be in serious business.
Last week: 6
Sam Darnold’s magic carpet ride might be over, but the Vikings are finding other way to eke out wins. However, this is a similar story to two years ago when they lost to the Giants in the first round of the playoffs.
Last week: 7
The Ravens’ 24-19 loss to the Eagles was a game they should have won. They won the time of possession battle, and they outgained Philadelphia, 372-252. The problem for the Ravens is one they haven’t had in a long time — a Justin Tucker problem.
The future Hall of Fame kicker missed two field goals and an extra point and continued the worst season of his career in the loss. Tucker is just 19-for-27 on field goals this year, while going 42-for-44 on extra points. At 8-5, the Ravens are in a wild-card spot heading into their bye week and then will face a lowly Giants team after their break.
Last week: 5
The Chargers are rested and ready for their second turn at dethroning the Chiefs this week. The bye week was fruitful for Jim Harbaugh’s team with the Ravens losing and vaulting LA a spot up in the wild-card race. They’re equipped to be a dangerous team down the stretch, but they haven’t shaken their underperforming label yet.
Last week: 9
Bo Nix has shown he can win a shootout. The Broncos’ defense, while shakier than usual Monday night, continued to make huge plays with turnovers. Sean Peyton has the Broncos ahead of schedule.
Last week: 10
11. Washington Commanders (8-5)
They got things turned around just before the bye and will get ready for the final stretch with games against the Saints, Eagles, Falcons and Cowboys. A 2-2 record likely brings a playoff berth, while 3-1 assures it.
Last week: 12
A dramatic win over the Jaguars Sunday helped the Texans hold their place on top of the AFC South. Joe Mixon rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown to redeem himself after a season-low 22 yards rushing in a loss to the Titans at home. The Texans head into their bye week on a high note.
Last week: 11
Jaxon Smith-Njigba has come into his own in his sophomore season, and his skills complemented Geno Smith, DK Metcalf and Kenneth Walker III in the team’s 26-21 win over the Jets. He led Seattle with 74 yards on just four catches as the Seahawks came back in the fourth to take a win over the Jets Sunday and retain their NFC West lead. Every game matters in such a close division race.
Last week: 13
They have Mike Evans back and their running game is humming. A little more help from Todd Bowles’ defense, and this team will make a playoff push.
Last week: 15
Kyler Murray and the Cardinals’ offense looked to be back in form after a clunker against the Seahawks, but they were unable to put together a game-winning drive against the Vikings, who beat them 23-22. Back-to-back losses for Arizona put them in second place in the division, but they have a redemption game upcoming with the Seahawks Sunday.
Last week: 14
A big bounce-back game for the Rams came on the road in New Orleans as they took down the Saints, 21-14, to remain in the NFC West hunt. But all eyes will be on SoFi Stadium at 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday, as the 10-2 Buffalo Bills arrive.
Last week: 19
Kirk Cousins is in a terrible slump as he prepares for a game against his former team, the Minnesota Vikings. You think he’s got stuff on his mind this week?
Last week: 16
They’re technically still in the division race, but the 49ers didn’t just lose badly to the Bills in snowy Orchard Park Sunday. They lost Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason for the remainder of the season. McCaffrey and Mason landed on the IR with a PCL injury and high ankle sprain, respectively, leaving rookie Isaac Guerendo to lead the way in the backfield. Brock Purdy & Co. will need to step their game up to snap this three-game losing streak. Could time be running out on the reigning NFC champion’s playoff hopes?
Last week: 18
A gutsy play by Colts coach Shane Steichen executed well by Anthony Richardson is giving Indianapolis a real chance at the playoffs. They’ll go into their bye week at the perfect time. A win in Denver after their return could play a big role in determining the final AFC playoff spots.
Last week: 21
Miami showed its main weakness against the Green Bay Packers in the freezing cold temperatures in Wisconsin. The Dolphins are a soft team. That starts with head coach Mike McDaniel, who might already be on the hot seat after a disappointing season that’s almost certain to end without a playoff appearance.
Last week: 17
The Bengals’ 44-38 loss was more of the same for the Bengals. Joe Burrow and the offense plays fantastic, the defense plays awful and they lose in a high-scoring affair. Sunday’s loss was the fourth of this season in which the Bengals have lost despite scoring 33-plus points.
If the Bengals’ record was flipped and they were 8-4, Joe Burrow would be a frontrunner in the MVP conversation. Instead, the Bengals are 4-8 with their playoff hopes on life support.
Last week: 20
A two-game winning streak is a positive step, but is it worth getting excited about? Knock out two more against Cincy and Carolina to get to .500 and then let’s talk.
Last week: 24
The comeback on Thanksgiving should be looked at as a step in the right direction for this team. The Bears did the same against Minnesota earlier in the week. Slow starts are killing this team, but the offense looks much better after changing OC’s, and it could take another jump now that Matt Eberflus is gone.
Last week: 22
The Darren Rizzi magic wore off a bit last week in a loss to the Rams, so now it’s about seeing how the team responds to that setback and the loss of emotional leader Taysom Hill.
Last week: 23
Jameis Winston had a classic Jameis Winston game. The Browns quarterback set a personal best for passing yards in a single game, finishing with just under 500 against the Broncos. Meanwhile, Jerry Jeudy exacted some revenge against his former team, finishing with 235 receiving yards.
Last week: 25
The Jets have less than a 1% chance to make the playoffs in what should be considered one of the all-time failures. Things have gotten so bad that Aaron Rodgers, who previously said he wanted to play several years in New York, is now going back to a “will he, won’t he” offseason where he contemplates retirement. Again.
Last week: 27
Bryce Young continues to show some promise in his starts and the remainder of this team’s season is all about how Young performs.
Last week: 28
A loss is a loss, but some are uglier than others. The Titans experienced this Sunday with a 42-19 loss to the Washington Commanders. The game was riddled with turnovers, sacks and penalties and ensured the Titans a third straight losing season.
Last week: 26
The Patriots lost on a last-second two-point conversion against the Colts, but that had to be the perfect game for them. Drake Maye continued to play well, the team fought hard and losing the contest only helps their draft stock for next year. If there’s such a thing as a “good loss,” that was definitely it.
Last week: 29
The remainder of this season should be focused on getting Trevor Lawrence healthy again. The young quarterback returned Sunday after missing time with a sprained left shoulder only to sustain his second concussion in less than a year. The Jaguars should pivot to thinking about their long-term success with the playoffs essentially out of the picture.
Last week: 30
Antonio Pierce once again accomplished the best outcome for the prospects of his coaching future, a competitive loss against a quality team. It once again keeps the Raiders in the Shedeur Sanders sweepstakes while still showing the team can play hard for their coach.
Last week: 31
How obviously can a team tank without making it too obvious? The Giants will try to find out over these final five games.
Last week: 32
The Fox News Digital Sports NFL power rankings were compiled by the Fox News Digital Sports staff and the OutKick.com staff.
