2013 NFL Power Rankings: Week 17
Updated: December 24, 2013, 1:26 PM ET
ESPN.com
Week:
Are the Seahawks, coming off a second loss in three weeks, still worthy of the top spot?
Our voters (John Clayton, Ashley Fox, Dan Graziano, Jamison Hensley, Mike Sando and Kevin Seifert) say yes. Four gave the nod to Seattle at No. 1, meaning the status quo remains. Denver is No. 2 once again, followed by Carolina, San Francisco and New England.
How will things look in the final 2013 edition of these rankings next Tuesday? On the surface, a change among our top two seems unlikely. The Seahawks host St. Louis in Week 17, while the Broncos travel to Oakland.
Will Seattle really lose two games in a row at home? Don't bet on it. And with the AFC's No. 1 seed in the balance, odds are against Denver slipping up against the Raiders.
So if you're hoping for one final shake-up, you'll probably be disappointed. That chance might have come and gone in Week 16.
Note: The comments below are provided by ESPN Stats & Information.
• Reporters' analysis | S&I: Playoff hopefuls stumble | SN: Rank 'Em | Team Power Rankings charts since 2002
| 2013 Power Rankings: Week 17 | ||||
| RANK | TEAM / RECORD | TRENDING | COMMENTS | |
| 1 |  | -- Last Week: 1 | Before Sunday, the Seahawks hadn't lost a home game since 2011. Seattle went 14-0 at home in between those defeats. | |
| 2 |  | -- Last Week: 2 | How impressive are Peyton Manning's 51 touchdown passes? Twenty-one teams don't have 51 touchdown passes over the past two seasons combined. | |
| 3 |  | 1 Last Week: 4 | Luke Kuechly is a tackling machine. His 24 tackles Sunday tied for most in a game since the NFL started tracking the stat in 1994. | |
| 4 |  | 1 Last Week: 3 | Watch out for the 49ers. San Francisco has the longest current winning streak (five games) and can clinch a bye with a win and Seattle loss in Week 17. | |
| 5 |  | 2 Last Week: 7 | Julian Edelman has successfully morphed into Wes Welker's role. Over the past five weeks, Edelman leads the NFL in receptions (44), and he's just four shy of 100 on the season. | |
| 6 |  | 1 Last Week: 5 | Darren Sproles was limited to 20 yards from scrimmage in Sunday's loss to the Panthers. Sproles has averaged 56.8 yards per game this season, his lowest mark since joining the Saints. | |
| 7 |  | 2 Last Week: 9 | Cincinnati has scored 40 points in each of its past four home games. The Bengals average 34.4 points per game at home, compared to 19.4 points on the road. | |
| 8 |  | 2 Last Week: 10 | Andrew Luck was 16-of-22 (72.7 percent) targeting his wide receivers in Week 16. Luck had completed 53.7 percent of those passes in his first seven games without Reggie Wayne. | |
| 9 |  | 1 Last Week: 8 | The Cardinals are 7-1 in their past eight games and could finish with more wins than the eventual NFC North and NFC East champions. | |
| 10 |  | 4 Last Week: 6 | Where would the Chiefs be without Jamaal Charles? No player has accounted for a higher percentage of his team's yards from scrimmage this season (37.5 percent). | |
| 11 |  | -- Last Week: 11 | LeSean McCoy posted 162 yards from scrimmage in Week 16, and is now 92 yards shy of the Eagles' record, set by Brian Westbrook in 2007. | |
| 12 |  | 3 Last Week: 15 | The Texans (2-13) and Redskins (3-12) boast the two worst records in the NFL this season. The Chargers lost to both, as well as the 4-11 Raiders. | |
| 13 |  | -- Last Week: 13 | Remember when the Bears played defense? Opponents have scored at least 40 points against Chicago four times this season, the same number as the previous nine seasons combined. | |
| 14 |  | 2 Last Week: 12 | The Ravens badly needed a win in Week 16 to help their playoff hopes. Instead, they lost by 34, their worst loss of the Joe Flacco-John Harbaugh era. | |
| 15 |  | 3 Last Week: 18 | Dallas' 24-23 victory over Washington in Week 16 was its fourth game decided by one point this season, most in the NFL. The Cowboys were 0-3 previously in those games. | |
| 16 |  | 2 Last Week: 14 | Ryan Tannehill has taken at least four sacks in nine games this season. David Carr is the only other quarterback to reach that milestone since 2001. | |
| 17 |  | 1 Last Week: 16 | Packers quarterbacks have had three interceptions returned for touchdowns since Aaron Rodgers' injury in Week 9. Rodgers has thrown only one pick-six in 86 career starts. | |
| 18 |  | 1 Last Week: 19 | Antonio Brown has at least five receptions and 50 receiving yards in every game this season. Jimmy Smith was the last receiver to do that in 15 games (2001). | |
| 19 |  | 1 Last Week: 20 | The Rams are 4-4 since Kellen Clemens took over as starter, with six of those games played against teams currently with a winning record. | |
| 20 |  | 3 Last Week: 17 | The Lions led the NFC North following a victory against the Bears in Week 10. Since then, Detroit has gone 1-5, committing a league-high 21 turnovers. | |
| 21 |  | -- Last Week: 21 | What could have been? The Titans were 4-3 with Jake Locker starting this season, but are 2-6 under Ryan Fitzpatrick. | |
| 22 |  | -- Last Week: 22 | Jeremy Kerley leads the Jets with 483 receiving yards. There are 91 other NFL players with more receiving yards this season. | |
| 23 |  | 2 Last Week: 25 | The Bills lead the NFL with 56 sacks, setting a new franchise high in the process. The Bills had only 36 sacks last season. | |
| 24 |  | 2 Last Week: 26 | Eli Manning and Vinny Testaverde are the only two quarterbacks in the past 30 years to post two seasons with at least 25 interceptions. | |
| 25 |  | 2 Last Week: 23 | Cordarrelle Patterson is at least giving Vikings fans some excitement. He's the only player with multiple rushing (2), receiving (3) and return touchdowns (2) this season. | |
| 26 |  | 2 Last Week: 24 | Are we reaching the end of the Greg Schiano era in Tampa? Only the Browns, Raiders and Jaguars have worse records than the Bucs the past two seasons (11-20). | |
| 27 |  | 1 Last Week: 28 | Injuries have hurt the Falcons' offense, but the Falcons' defense has been a bigger problem. No team has allowed a higher opponent Total QBR (69.5). | |
| 28 |  | 1 Last Week: 27 | Seven different players have led the Browns in rushing in a game this season, including wide receivers Josh Gordon and Travis Benjamin and defensive back Josh Aubrey. | |
| 29 |  | -- Last Week: 29 | If the Jaguars lose by a touchdown in Week 17, they'll finish 4-12 with a minus-182 point differential -- their exact same record and point margin as last season. | |
| 30 |  | -- Last Week: 30 | The Raiders are riding a five-game losing streak with Peyton Manning and the Broncos coming to town in Week 17. The Raiders held Manning to "only" three touchdowns last time. | |
| 31 |  | -- Last Week: 31 | Pierre Garcon currently leads the NFL with 107 receptions, a Redskins record. So at least there's that. | |
| 32 |  | -- Last Week: 32 | The Texans' last win came in Week 2 against the Titans. Just one more loss or a Redskins win will clinch the No. 1 pick for Houston. | |
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| Glossary |
| The rankings were determined by ESPN's Power Panel, a group of more than 80 writers, editors and television personalities. |
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