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2002 NFL Power Rankings (week 12)

November 27, 2002 by Steel Haven

November 27, 2002
RnkTeam (Lst Wk)RecordComment
1.Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2)9-2The road to the NFC Championship now goes through Raymond James Stadium, not Lambeau Field.
2.Oakland Raiders (4)7-4Head into a Monday night showdown with the resurgent Jets on a serious roll.
3.Green Bay Packers (1)8-3Deserve to be lower after back-to-back terrible efforts on the road, I just can't find any other team I want to rank this high.
4.Philadelphia Eagles (10)8-3Quite a few teams have had a big game the week after their star is injured. Keeping the adreneline flowing for a second week is much more difficult.
5.Miami Dolphins (13)7-4Trying to reverse their history of December collapses with a healthy Ricky Williams.
6.Atlanta Falcons (6)7-3-1Dan Reeves continues to prove an old, conservative coach can change his ways and allow a young, talented QB to make plays.
7.Denver Broncos (3)7-4Leading by 3 with snow falling, the Broncos had a 3rd and 5 on the Colts 40 with just under 3 minutes remaining and Indy out of timeouts. Instead of running the ball and the clock, Mike Shanahan called a pass play. Incompletion, clock stops, 40 extra seconds given to Peyton Manning as a gift. Mike Vanderjagt kicked the game tying 54 yard FG with 8 seconds remaining in regulation. Shanahan got what he deserved.
8.San Fransisco 49ers (5)7-4After blowing a late lead against the Chargers you would think the 49ers wouldn't take anything for granted. They played like winning was guaranteed because Koy Detmer was the opposing QB and were never in the game.
9.Indianapolis Colts (12)7-4I'm far from convinced the Colts are a legitimate playoff threat, but sitting in 1st place after 11 games following last years 10 loss debacle is not a bad accompishment.
10.New England Patriots (14)6-5After taking a big lead the Patriots had to hold on for dear life against a Viking team not known for playing well on the road. Last years sense of urgency seems to still be missing in New England.
11.Pittsburgh Steelers (15)6-4-1The offense was not an issue even with Kordell Stewart at QB. Like in previous weeks with Tommy Maddox the Steelers got off to an early lead, looked dominant, lost the momentum with conservative playcalling, lost the field position battle due to poor kick coverage, and failed misserably to stop their opponent in third and long situations. The Steelers dodged a bullet when TJ Houshmanzadeh fumbled a punt in the fourth quarter that resulted in the go ahead FG that was followed shortly after by Jerome Bettis giving us a glimpse of past glories with a rumbling 24 yard TD run.
12.New York Jets (17)6-5The Jets and Raiders are the hottest teams in the AFC and meet next week in Oakland. Heartbreaking last second losses to the Chiefs and Browns mean the Jets have no margin for error.
13.Cleveland Browns (20)6-5The Browns may have found themselves a RB in William Green.
14.New Orleans Saints (8)7-4Not the same team with Duece McAllister on the sidelines.
15.San Diego Chargers (9)7-4A week after pulling an OT upset against San Fransisco the Chargers travelled across country and came out flat in Miami. A brutal schedule and tough division makes the Chargers the least likely of the 7 win teams to make the playoffs.
16.St. Louis Rams (7)5-6The Rams take a huge tumble down the rankings with their 6th loss. This team was walking a fine line trying to climb back into the playoff hunt and could simply not afford a loss in Washington.
17.Tennesee Titans (11)6-5Ugly loss in Baltimore combined with a shocking Colts comeback in Denver spells big trouble for Tennessee.
18.Washington Redskins (23)5-6For the first time this season Steve Spurrier called more running plays than passing plays in a game. The Redskins won as Stephen Davis bludgeoned the Rams defense.
19.Kansas City Chiefs (18)5-6Priest Holmes is on pace to break Marshall Faulk's single season records of 2,429 yards from scrimmage and 26 total touchdowns set in 1999.
20.Buffalo Bills (19)5-6The Bills acquisition of Drew Bledsoe for next year's first round pick is suddenly not looking like such a bargain.
21.New York Giants (16)6-5Listening to Micheal Strahan blame LS Mike Jones for losing this game with his snap over the head of punter Matt Allen for a safety at the end of the first half was sickening. Strahan needs to look in the mirror. The Giants still led by 7-5 at halftime. They thought they didn't need to show up in Houston to get a win, were wrong, and their season is over. Good riddance.
22.Baltimore Ravens (22)5-6Even with Ray Lewis out for the year and Marvin Lewis in Washington, the Ravens managed to pull out a win with a defensive score despite under 200 net yards of offense.
23.Jacksonville Jaguars (21)5-6Not a good sign when you have a sub-.500 record against the state of Texas
24.Seattle Seahawks (24)4-7The offense finally seems to have turned a corner with a nice collection of young skill position talent. Alas, it might have happened too late to save Mike Holmgren's job.
25.Dallas Cowboys (29)4-7After years away from football pitching in the St. Louis Cardinals' organization, a light seemed to come on for Chad Hutchinson last week. He was poised and made all the throws. Maybe the Cowboys have themselves a QB.
26.Arizona Cardinals (25)4-7Want proof that the NFL draft is a crapshoot. Former first rounder Thomas Jones is a total bust that has now been lost for the year after breaking his hand reaching for the phone in his kitchen. The Cardinals are better off. Undrafted free agent Marcel Shipp from UMass has outplayed Jones all seaon.
27.Minnesota Vikings (26)3-8Randy Moss flat out quit on his teamates at the end of this game failing to even run a route on the teams last offensive play trailing by only 7. A developing rift between Moss and Daunte Culpepper has supposedly been patched up after an hour long face-to-face meeting. Culpepper has had a disapointing season, but has every right to be furious with Moss.
28.Chicago Bears (30)3-8Finally broke their 8 game losing streak with a little help from Lions' coach Marty Mornhigweg in OT.
29.Detriot Lions (28)3-8Winning the toss at the start of overtime, Mornhinweg elected to kick. Hard to win in OT without the ball even in a game featuring two offenses as bad as the Lions and Bears. But wait, Mornhinweg had yet to make his biggest mistake. On the only possession in OT, the Bears threw an incompletion on 3rd and 8 from the Lions' 35. They were called for holding. Declining the penalty would have forced the Bears into 4th and long. The Bears were not about to try a 52-yard field-goal into the wind. Paul Edinger had missed a 35 yard FG kicking into the wind in the first quarter. Maybe Mornhinweg would not be punished for his original error. A punt would mean poor field position, but at least the Lions would get the ball. Mornhinweg accepted the penalty. The Bears completed a pass to the 30, converted on 4th and 3, and kicked the game winning FG from the 22 without the Lions ever touching the ball.
30.Houston Texans (32)3-8Let the Texans stay close through a half or so of football and they can become a very dangerous team.
31.Carolina Panthers (27)3-8John Fox has so far declined to name next week's starting QB. I wouldn't want to name a starter either if my only options were Rodney Peete, Chris Weinke, and Randy Fasani.
32.Cincinnati Bengals (31)1-10Defying conventional wisdom, I kept the Bengals out of my rankings cellar because of their head-to-head victory over the Texans. No more. The Bengals did not quit against the Steelers, but made the stupid plays everyone has come to expect down the stretch to waste another decent effort.
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