Author: DrafttekStaff_McGlothlin | Filed under: 2009 NFL Regular Season

Rick McGlothlin / Drafttek.com Senior Writer

 

Two unbeatens still remain and three powerhouses fall in week 13, as the playoff plot thickens. The Saints nearly fell to a gallant effort by the Redskins, thanks to an incredible miss of a rather easy fieldgoal late in that game. Say goodbye to all the folks in Washington Mr. Suisham, as the Skins will probably no longer require your services. Pittsburgh continues its descent on defense, dropping yet another game and is now .500 on the season, while New England loses yet again on the road and the Vikings seemed rather inept on offense against the Cardinals Sunday night.

 
The Giants and Eagles take advantage of the Cowboys now that December has fallen once again, while Jacksonville, the Jets and Dolphins battle for the wildcard spots in the AFC. In the NFC, it’s wide open among a handful of teams for those wildcard spots, and the Packers must knock off Baltimore on Monday Night to stake their claim to one of the two.

 

 

Here’s a look at this week’s edition of Mac’s NFL Power Rankings

 

 

1. (1) New Orleans (12-0) – The Saints never led the Redskins the entire day…..until overtime. And two excellent moves by coach Sean Payton helped set up the final outcome. One, he brought Garret Hartley in as the Saints kicker to replace the struggling Jon Carney, and he called a timeout in overtime to allow the booth time to review the play that was ultimately ruled a fumble by Mike Sellers, giving New Orleans the ball in Redskin territory. The biggest play other than the missed field goal by Suisham was the strip of the ball by Robert Meachem from the DB who intercepted a Drew Brees pass. Oh yeah, speaking of Drew Brees, he just threw for over 400 yards and a couple of TD’s.

 

2.(2) Indianapolis (12-0) – Tied the NFL record for consecutive wins in the regular season and now can decide to either coast into the playoffs or continue playing for a perfect season. Perhaps they will go full tilt one more week as the Denver Broncos come to Indy next week. One thing is certain and that is the “Waiter” has been setting the table effectively for the Colts passing game lately. The Waiter? Pierre Garcon, who has to be one of the great underdog stories of the year. Peyton Manning now has at least 25 touchdown passes in each of his 12 years in the league, while the Colts defense holds MVP candidate Chris Johnson to a little over 100 yards but no scores on the day.

 

 

3.(3) Minnesota (10-2) – For the first time all year long Brett Favre, Adrian Peterson and the Viking defense looked like an average football team at best, failing to keep pace with the Cardinal offensive output. Favre threw two picks in the same game for the first time this year, while Adrian Peterson could generate little on the ground. Meantime, the defense allowed Kurt Warner to torch them for 3 scores in the first half to effectively put the game away by halftime. More importantly the loss drops the Vikings two games back of New Orleans in the battle for home-field advantage in the playoffs. Minnesota will face the Bengals next week in the dome, so this team will have their hands full yet again.

 

4.(5) Cincinnati (9-3) – Some big plays to Ochocinco and the steady running game allowed the Bengals to control the clock and build a lead after spotting Detroit the early 7-0 lead. Interesting stat on the NFL Network during Gameday: The Bengals are running the ball over 49% of the time offensively, which is quite a difference than what had been the case the past two or three years.

 

5.(6) San Diego (9-3) – . Nine straight years that Ladanian Tomlinson has rushed for multiple TD’s in a season and the Chargers stay a game ahead of Denver in the AFC West division by holding off a pesky Cleveland team. While the game against the Browns may have been a bit closer than many expected, San Diego had the game in hand and probably had a subconscious eye on the coming battle with the Cowboys in Dallas.

 

6.(14) Arizona (8-4) – The Cardinals are pretty inconsistent but definitely pounded the Vikings like no other team has this year. Arizona’s defense was the big story in this game, swarming and smothering the Viking offensive machine at all angles, rendering it nearly useless. Kurt Warner looks to have a clear head and was on target throughout the first half when the Cardinals jumped out to a big cushion, then dared Minnesota to try and come back. They couldn’t and they didn’t. Now we’ll see if they can remain consistent for another week as they travel to face division rival San Francisco.

 

7.(9) Philadelphia (8-4) – The big story wasn’t the return of Vick to the ATL, but rather the Eagles facing a nearly decimated Falcon offense. But Philly’s offense was just fine, and so did Michael Vick who scored a rushing TD and threw for his first TD pass late in the 4th quarter to help blow Atlanta out of its own dome. Mc5 and the Eagles overcame key injuries to its own offense, playing without DeSean Jackson and Brian Westbrook. The Eagles now have a divisional road matchup with the Giants which will certainly have playoff implications.

 

8.(10) Denver (8-4) – It’s the best the Denver running game has looked since early in the season, as rookie Knowshon Moreno teamed up with Buckholter to pile up over 260 yards rushing. However, the koolaid drinkers should be mindful that it was the KC Chiefs that they dropped the 40-burger on. Then again, didn’t the Chiefs whip the Steelers and almost upend the Cowboys? So maybe it’s a bit better win than all the pundits will give Denver credit. And one final “Mile High Salute” to the “Bucket Man”, who passed away this week in Denver.

 

9.(12) Green Bay (8-4) – The Pack overcome several turnovers and penalties to stop the Ravens, 27-17. Green Bay’s defense was reminiscent of the Ravens D of old, holding  Baltimore to just 185 yards of total offense while Aaron Rodgers fought through two interceptions to deliver 3 touchdown passes to give Green Bay its fourth win in a row. Now we’ll see if they can maintain focus when they travel to Chicago to face their arch-rivals the Bears.

 

10.(14) New York Giants (7-5) – The GMen sweep the Cowboys on the season and find their running game. And despite some bad drops by Stephen Smith, they got just enough passing offense to help parlay a good defensive effort to stop the previously streaking Cowboys in a critical division game in New Jersey. The win for New York sets up a wild race to the finish in the NFC East, as Philly and Dallas are deadlocked at 8-4, while the Giants are right behind at 7-5 with four games to go. And speaking of the division race and the Eagles, Philly is up next for the New York at Giants Stadium.

 

11. (7) Dallas (8-4) – It’s December and you know what that means for the Dallas Cowboys. Well, so far so good on the recent tradition of dropping big games in the holiday month. Speaking of months of the year, November (of 2007) was the last time we witnessed Roy Williams snag two TD passes in a single game – whe he was a member of the Detroit Lions. Unfortunately for Dallas, the running game and the defense fizzled against New York.

 

12.(4) New England (7-5) – The Pats lose for the second week in a row, drop their 5th of 6 road games and the 3rd when leading by 10 points at one time. The so-called potent offense of the Patriots showed little power while the Dolphins scratched and clawed (or should it be flipped and swam) their way back into the lead late in the game. Methinks they’ll get a much needed breather next week at home against the Panthers. New England has now split the season series with both the Dolphins and the Jets, with a game remaining at Buffalo looming big. There is also a tough matchup with Jacksonville and a seaon finale at Houston. Next up, however, is Carolina.

 

 13.(19) Jacksonville (7-5) – David Garrard, tossed two TD passes and threw for over 238 yards on just 15 completions, while getting hit hard and often. Maurice Jones-Drew added 76 yards on the ground, but it was the Jags defense that clamped down enough to edge the Texans and hold onto the wildcard playoff spot for another week. Next up is a home game against in-state rival Miami who is also fighting for an AFC playoff spot of their own.

 

14.(7) Pittsburgh (6-6) – Hell was unleashed in Pittsburgh Sunday, and it came in the form of Pittsburgh native Bruce Gradkowski. Now the Steelers will have to do what they did a few years back – regroup and make a strong run into and through the playoffs. However, after four losses in a row, that resolve will be strongly tested. They’ll begin that test with a short week and a visit to Cleveland on Thursday – a team they have beaten the last 12 times they’ve met. But then they have tough contests at Green Bay, Baltimore and home to Miami to end the regular season.

 

15.(11) Baltimore (6-5) – Baltimore could not move the ball against Green Bay when it counted and the defense was missing two of its most important players on Monday night. Those two problems combined to give the Packers a decided advantage as the Ravens fell to .500 on the season, and dangerously close to out of the playoff hunt. Joe Flacco had a horrid night at QB, throwing 3 picks against one TD pass, completing only half of his passes. The running game wasn’t much better, not even reaching 100 team rushing yards, and fumbled the ball away once. The Ravens have a chance to change course starting next week as they host the Detroit Lions, then follow up with Chicago.

 

 

 16.(20) Miami (6-6) – Back to .500 and still hunting for a post-season berth, the Dolphins rebound from a 14-0 deficit to upend New England. The defense held in key moments in the 2nd half, while Chad Henne and the offense came back to get the go-ahead field goal late in the game. Next up is a huge battle with Jacksonville that will have a direct impact on who plays in the playoffs.

 

17.(18) Atlanta (6-6) – With the Falcons medical staff working overtime, it was fortunate for the Falcons to even be able to field a team against Philadelphia. But even though they had players on the field, it just didn’t look anything like the Falcon offense we’ve been accustomed to since Matt Ryan arrived on the scene. Looks like it’ll be a wait-till-next-year venture unless the Dirty Birds upset New Orleans.

 

18.(21) N.Y. Jets (6-6) – Can’t believe the Jets coach and others criticize Mark Sanchez for trying to make a play on 3rd down. Talk about knuckleheaded. He should’ve slid and accepted 4th down, huh? Yeah, I guess that’s pretty much the way we ALL learned to play the game over the years. The Jets come out a winner over Buffalo and travel down to Tampa Bay for a warm vacation, er, a matchup with the Buccaneers.

 

19.(15) Houston (5-7) – With Steve Slaton out the Texans had to rely mainly on the arm of Matt Shaub. And give some props to Schaub for playing through a possible shoulder separation and trying to lead Houston to their own version of the 17-point comeback that they allowed Indy to do twice in two years. But it wasn’t to be and they fell a little short against Jacksonville, 23-18. It probably will seal the fate of coach Gary Kubiak, who has now had the exact same amount of time ( 4 years ) as Dom Capers had to get Houston to the playoffs.

 

20.(16) Tennessee (5-7) – Okay, can we now dispense with all the glorious talk about Vince Young and the unstoppable Tennessee Titans already? It was the most hyped 5-6 team in the history of sports, derailed by the most under-the-media-radar (and 12-0 team) in the history of sports. While Vince Young played well and Chris Johnson ran for over 100 yards, the Titans could not put the ball in the endzone enough, including a 1st and goal series that ended with an incomplete pass on fourth and goal.

 

21.(17) San Francisco (5-7) – Alex Smith threw for over 300 yards and two TD’s, but when the defense stopped Seattle late in the game the 49ers could not come up with at least a FG, and dropped a division game against the Seahawks that means no playoffs again this year. That’s both a shame and a surprise, as this team has lost to Minnesota, Houston, Indy, Tennessee and Green Bay by less than a TD in each game.

 

22.(22) Chicago (5-7) – Booed at various times by the home fans in the game, the Bears get just enough out of their offense and defense to hold off St. Louis and help to lower the decibel level of said booing. It was the Bears first win in the past five games and might give them a spark to help play spoiler next week when Green Bay comes to town.

 

23.(26) Seattle (5-7) – Seattle outlasts division rival San Francisco by taking advantage of the 49ers not taking advantage of Seattle, who did not take advantage of San Francisco mistakes earlier. Got all that? Despite the win over San Fran, I can’t move them up any further because they split with the Niners and lost to Chicago.

 

24.(27) Buffalo (4-8) – The up and down Bills go to Toronto to endure another down, this time to the Jets. By the way, what the hell is the deal going to Toronto for an NFL game? Canada has hockey and the CFL already, so isn’t this like trying to bring soccer to the U.S?  What’s that? We have soccer ?

 

25.(21) Carolina (5-7) – Is it a coincidence that Jake Delhomme doesn’t play and the Panthers win behind unknown QB Matt Moore? Moore threw ZERO interceptions, while the defense clamped down on the Bucs all day long. I think it was no mere coincidence. Matt will likely do battle in camp next summer with Colt McCoy or Tony Pike.

 

26.(27) Oakland (3-9) – Aright everybody, get off your butts and stand up…..and give a round of applause to QB Gradkowski and the surprising Oakland Raiders for one helluva comeback against the Steelers in Pittsburgh. ‘Ol uncle Al must surely be proud of that group out there for the silver and black.  He’s probably not the long-term QB solution for Oakland, but he sure did do the franchise proud with his 3 touchdown performance. This team really has nothing at all to play for except each other and the future, the latter of which perhaps became just a tad bit brighter. Maybe.

 

27.(28) Washington (3-9) – Were it not for a blown “chip shot” FG by kicker Suisham, we would be talking about the Saints first loss and a tremendous day for Jason Campbell. As it stands now, this is just another example of how Jim Zorn is going to be fired for a whole lot of on-field play that just isn’t his fault while the team gets a standout peformance from the much-maligned QB.

 

28.(26) Kansas City (3-9) – Were just blasted out of the stadium by the Broncos in all phases of the game. It’s the second week in a row they’ve been thumped, and it was by divisional opponents each time. Otherwise, the Chiefs have played everyone tough all year long.

 

29.(29) Detroit (2-10) – Like Oakland, big props to this team for battling and not just going through the motions and cashing a paycheck. They came out swinging (and scoring), kept fighting, but just couldn’t handle a clearly better team….but made the Bengals earn a victory in their own stadium.

 

30.(30) St. Louis ( 1-11) – The Rams, like they’ve done all year, made it more difficult for the opponent than many expect and like their fellow bottom-feeders, really have some talent to build upon. It’s just going to take that one exceptional player or coach or moment to get it started.

 

31.(31) Tampa Bay (1-11) – Could not get their offense untracked while the defense did a pretty fair job holding down the Panthers.

 

32.(32) Cleveland (1-11) – Brady Quinn came out on fire but the Chargers just have too much offense for the Cleveland defense to handle. Even so, the Browns hung in when they could’ve closed shop and allowed a blowout.