| CNN/SI Power Rankings |
| Rank | LW | Team |
| 1 | 1 |  | Jacksonville Jaguars 12-1 |
| They came out flat on both sides of the ball. The Broncos were smoking. At the end of the game, the Jags had enough left to close out a winner, and this, to me, is not a sign of slippage, but a reminder that good teams figure out a way to win, even on an off day, er, night. |
| 2 | 2 |  | Indianapolis Colts 11-2 |
| No real fireworks against the Pats, but a very stout defense, led by Cornelius Bennett, who has come alive just in time for the Winter Offensive. |
| 3 | 3 |  | St. Louis Rams 11-2 |
| I still haven't worked out details of my All-Pro team, but I'm beginning to think Marshall Faulk might be the running back. Haven't yet decided whether I'll go with an RB and a FB or two runners and a fullback, which Peter King tells me would be a major copout and not worthy of a man of my stamp. I'd be interested in hearing comments on this matter. Address your letters to me, care of the SI Honors Program. |
| 4 | 4 |  | Tennessee Titans 10-3 |
| Loved Eddie George vs. the Raiders. But Steve McNair, gimping around on that bad foot or whatever, was depressing. Wideout corps, minus Yancey Thigpen, is minor league. |
| 5 | 8 |  | Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-4 |
| Beware. Trap game coming up. Young Shaun King on the road vs. the Raiders. Could mean trouble. |
| 6 | 13 |  | Kansas City Chiefs 8-5 |
| I'll tell you why the Chieftains got the big upward hike: Three straight emotional games without a letdown. |
| 7 | 5 |  | Seattle Seahawks 8-5 |
| Well, I had to put them somewhere. Seven out of the eight teams immediately below them also lost, and the eighth, Tampa Bay, moved up to faster company. |
| 8 | 6 |  | Buffalo Bills 8-5 |
| Where was the zip on Doug Flutie's passes? His arsenal vs. the Giants consisted of softballs, carefully aimed. Could his arm be tiring a bit? |
| 9 | 7 |  | Miami Dolphins 8-5 |
| Of the four Marino interceptions returned for TDs, three have been by linebackers, one by a strong safety. I think I'm onto something here, just not sure what. |
| 10 | 9 |  | Detroit Lions 8-5 |
| I still think Gus Frerotte is the man who'll carry them into the playoffs. |
| 11 | 10 |  | Green Bay Packers 7-6 |
| Green Bay 7-6. I've seen that kind of clock gaffe, oh, maybe eight times this year, but usually it comes at the end of the first half. I've said it a million times: The head coach should be relieved of the responsibility of clock management. There should be a bright young clockologist at his side. |
| 12 | 11 |  | Minnesota Vikings 7-6 |
| Where was the pass rush Sunday night? How come the networks don't run all those nifty specials on John Randle any more? |
| 13 | 12 |  | New England Patriots 7-6 |
| Well, in the pre-Indy week there were all sorts of predictions about how the offense would really turn it on. Drew Bledsoe completed 13 passes in the first half, 12 of them for less than 10 yards, and the Pats kicked field goals. In the second half he went downfield, but the defense decided to fold. This seems to be a team that's kidding itself. |
| 14 | 15 |  | Dallas Cowboys 7-6 |
| Last week, in projecting the Cowboys to the NFC East title, I assigned them a win over the Jets. Now I'm not so sure. Depends on how the Jets feel like playing. Losing DE Greg Ellis, who was operating at pretty close to Pro Bowl level, is a crippler. |
| 15 | 16 |  | Washington Redskins 8-5 |
| Anything could happen at Indy. The book says that Peyton and Edgerrin and the boys should roll up around 450 yards, but the Colts are coming off two division crucials and might be a bit down for this one. |
| 16 | 20 |  | New York Giants 7-6 |
| I live in the land of exaggeration. It's called the New York-New Jersey Metropolitan Area. The Giants have been written off at least twice this year. Now we read that they are solid playoff contenders. If they beat St. Louis Sunday they'll no doubt be projected into the Super Bowl. Then it'll be talk of a dynasty. Ah, the dreams. |
| 17 | 14 |  | Oakland Raiders 6-7 |
| Eddie George killed them, running weakside against undersized DE Lance Johnstone and LB Richard Harvey. The Tampa Bay ground machine figures to try to do likewise, so the Raiders will go into an "under" defense, shifting weakside, bringing up a safety and defying Shaun King to beat them with his subpar wideout corps. This sounds exactly like the kind of handicapping you get on the pregame studio shows, and for this I apologize. |
| 18 | 19 |  | Baltimore Ravens 6-7 |
| Tony Banks ran up the kind of stats you see in church-league ball: eight completions for 268 yards, an average of 33.5 yards per completion. If he'd only have connected on nine more he'd have broken Norm Van Brocklin's alltime record. These are the kind of stats some people actually take seriously. |
| 19 | 18 |  | Denver Broncos 4-9 |
| A fighting team with a fighting heart. I salute the job Mike Shanahan's doing this year. |
| 20 | 23 |  | San Diego Chargers 6-7 |
| Strange, isn't it, the way they own Seattle? Now they have a chance to ruin someone else's hopes -- Miami this weekend. Anyone with an active defense and serious pass rush has a chance against the Dolphins, but I just can't see the Chargers getting enough done when they have the ball. |
| 21 | 17 |  | Arizona Cardinals 6-7 |
| Last year Jake Plummer changed from a down-the-field thrower to a dinker. And this year his yards-per-completion average is down from last year. What, under the wide desert sky, are they doing to this kid? |
| 22 | 24 |  | New York Jets 5-8 |
| I have to be cautious in elevating or lowering this team by too many notches because I never can tell what it will do the following week. They enjoy tormenting me. |
| 23 | 25 |  | Carolina Panthers 6-7 |
| Steve Beuerlein's quietly putting together a career season. Defense generally keeps the enemy in the game. Just about what a 6-7 team is supposed to look like. |
| 24 | 21 |  | Chicago Bears 5-8 |
| I know, I dropped them three spots after the bye week, but that's what happens when three teams below them (Jets, Panthers and Chargers) all post serious upsets. |
| 25 | 22 |  | Pittsburgh Steelers 5-8 |
| Now we're in the dungeon and I can hear the doors clanking shut. This is a team that's just counting the days till it's packing time. |
| 26 | 27 |  | Cincinnati Bengals 4-10 |
| No sooner do they assign Riverfront Stadium a new name, Cinergy Field, than they say goodbye to it. Hey, I can remember when it was built. I can remember Nippert Field. Hope I'm around three or four years down the road when their new stadium becomes obsolete. |
| 27 | 26 |  | Philadelphia Eagles 3-11 |
| This is a team that continually breaks my heart and screws up my forecasts. Yes, I honestly believed they'd upset Dallas last weekend and I even mentioned to my wife how clever I was in picking the upset. Hey, Eagles! If you break up my marriage, my revenge will be terrible indeed. |
| 28 | 31 |  | San Francisco 49ers 4-9 |
| Remember when they said Charlie Garner was too fragile to hold up? Well, he's carried the ball 202 times so far, and in another two weeks he'll double the number of carries for his most prolific year. I'd like to see him make the Pro Bowl, but it won't happen unless a couple of guys in front of him go down and he gets in as an alternate. |
| 29 | 28 |  | Atlanta Falcons 3-10 |
| So who's gonna be the Falcons' top draft choice this spring? Well, you're going to have to wait until Round 2 to find out. They traded their No. 1 to Baltimore for the chance to draft Reggie Kelly, a blocking tight end. (Reggie who?) |
| 30 | 29 |  | Cleveland Browns 2-12 |
| Ah, the drama for the 31st spot. The Browns have a real shot, with games against Jacksonville and Indy remaining, while the Saints ... well, I'll hold off for a moment because I still have to find something to say about them. |
| 31 | 30 |  | New Orleans Saints 2-11 |
| The Saints finish up with Baltimore, Dallas and Carolina. |
