2012 NFL Power Rankings: Week 11

Updated: November 13, 2012, 1:44 PM ET

ESPN.com

Week:

Earlier in the season (Week 7 to be exact), the Atlanta Falcons supplanted the Houston Texans at No. 1 following Houston's first loss of the season.

Now the roles are reversed.

Coming off a weekend that saw Atlanta lose for the first time and Houston prevail in a grudge match against Chicago, our voters (ESPN.com's John Clayton, ESPN.com's Ashley Fox, NFC East blogger Dan Graziano, AFC North blogger Jamison Hensley and NFC West blogger Mike Sando) had no choice but to hand the top spot back to the Texans, now winners of three straight.

Is Houston a lock for the long haul, or is it only a matter of time before Atlanta regains control? No matter which team you favor, don't expect an immediate shakeup.

The Texans host the one-win Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 11, while the Falcons host the reeling Arizona Cardinals. So barring unlikely upsets, the top two spots will remain the same until at least Week 12. Beyond that is anyone's guess, with neither team having a huge advantage in terms of schedule difficulty.

Is there anyone else in the mix as a future No. 1? Anything's possible (such as the Green Bay Packers continuing their recent tear), but most signs point to a two-horse race to the finish.

And chances are Houston and Atlanta aren't done trading places.

2012 Power Rankings: Week 11
RANK	TEAM / RECORD	TRENDING	COMMENTS
1	Texans 8-1	1 Last Week: 2	The Texans' defense knocked out Jay Cutler and the Bears, proving the AFC has some clout. (Clayton)
2	Falcons 8-1	1 Last Week: 1	The Falcons are returning home, where QB Matt Ryan has a 30-4 regular-season record as a starter. (Sando)
3	Bears 7-2	-- Last Week: 3	The defense is clearly elite and reliable. The offense will need to catch up if the Bears are going to make a Super Bowl run. (Graziano)
4	49ers 6-2-1	-- Last Week: 4	The 49ers have given up a 100-yard rusher in three of their past four games, a big change from previous form. (Sando)
5	Ravens 7-2	2 Last Week: 7	Baltimore finally looked like one of the top teams in the AFC by scoring 55 points, the most scored by any team this season. (Hensley)
6	Packers 6-3	-- Last Week: 6	They won four straight before the bye and now are only a game out of first. Getting healthier, they're as scary as anyone. (Graziano)
7	Broncos 6-3	1 Last Week: 8	The Broncos have won four straight since a Week 5 loss at New England. Only two of their seven remaining games are against teams with a winning record. (Fox)
8	Patriots 6-3	1 Last Week: 9	The Patriots have won five of their past six games and have scored more than 30 points four times during that hot streak. (Hensley)
9	Steelers 6-3	1 Last Week: 10	The last time Pittsburgh lost at Heinz Field was Nov. 6, 2011, against the Ravens, the Steelers' Week 11 opponent. (Hensley)
10	Giants 6-4	5 Last Week: 5	The bye comes at the perfect time for the reeling defending champs, who look like they need a reboot. (Graziano)
11	Colts 6-3	-- Last Week: 11	By picking up two road wins in a five-day span, the Colts have a solid shot at the playoffs. (Clayton)
12	Seahawks 6-4	-- Last Week: 12	The Seahawks, like the 49ers, did not allow an offensive touchdown against the Jets on Sunday. (Sando)
13	Buccaneers 5-4	-- Last Week: 13	The Buccaneers have scored at least 28 points in each of their past five games, a franchise record. (Sando)
14	Vikings 6-4	2 Last Week: 16	No one in the league has earned a bye week more than the incredible, unstoppable and apparently bionic Adrian Peterson. (Graziano)
15	Cowboys 4-5	3 Last Week: 18	They won the battle of the disappointments Sunday in Philadelphia. Can they play well enough to push Giants? (Graziano)
16	Saints 4-5	6 Last Week: 22	The reeling Raiders are all that stand between the Saints and a .500 record with six to play. (Sando)
17	Lions 4-5	3 Last Week: 14	Still too many holes, on offense and defense. In their division this year, you've got to be great. They're not. (Graziano)
18	Dolphins 4-5	3 Last Week: 15	The Dolphins allowed an opposing rusher (Chris Johnson) to gain 100 yards for the first time in 23 games, ending the longest streak in the league. (Hensley)
19	Bengals 4-5	4 Last Week: 23	Cincinnati had lost 10 straight times to Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks before beating Eli Manning. (Hensley)
20	Chargers 4-5	3 Last Week: 17	Losing to Tampa Bay 34-24 was, as Chargers coach Norv Turner said, unacceptable. So is a 4-5 record with that roster. (Fox)
21	Commanders 3-6	2 Last Week: 19	Their next three games, and five of their final seven, are against NFC East teams. They could wreck the race. (Graziano)
22	Cardinals 4-5	2 Last Week: 20	Just what the Cardinals need: a road trip to Atlanta for a game against the ticked-off Falcons. (Sando)
23	Rams 3-5-1	1 Last Week: 24	The Rams have scored at least 24 points in three of their past four games against the 49ers. (Sando)
24	Eagles 3-6	3 Last Week: 21	Andy Reid is likely to last the rest of the season as coach. A concussed Michael Vick may already be done as QB. (Graziano)
25	Titans 4-6	2 Last Week: 27	Colin McCarthy's tough play on a bad ankle inspired the Titans' defense against Miami. (Clayton)
26	Jets 3-6	1 Last Week: 25	The Jets, who next play the Rams in St. Louis, are 3-10 in their past 13 road games, allowing an average of 27 points in those games. (Hensley)
27	Bills 3-6	1 Last Week: 28	The Bills have given up an average of 34.3 points in their past six games, going 1-5 in that span. (Hensley)
28	Raiders 3-6	2 Last Week: 26	The Raiders have averaged 48.5 points allowed in their past two games. New Orleans, which is averaging 27.7 points per game, is up next. (Fox)
29	Panthers 2-7	-- Last Week: 29	The Panthers are riding a four-game losing streak at home, their longest since 2006-2007. (Sando)
30	Browns 2-7	-- Last Week: 30	Rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden hasn't thrown a touchdown pass in his past nine quarters. (Hensley)
31	Jaguars 1-8	-- Last Week: 31	The Jaguars appear to have no home-field edge in front of their fans, which is sad. (Clayton)
32	Chiefs 1-8	-- Last Week: 32	Bright spot for the Chiefs: Their next three games are at Arrowhead Stadium, against Cincinnati, Denver and Carolina. (Fox)
Biggest Jump: 6 Biggest Drop: 5 Make your own Power Rankings