ALLCITY NFL Power Rankings: What Thanksgiving weekend told us about the good teams and bad

Thanksgiving weekend gave many teams an opportunity to show who they really are – both good and bad.

With that in mind, I’m not overreacting to the Rams’ loss, but am putting a lot of stock in wins by the Patriots, Bears, and Packers.

And it’s time we had a serious talk about the Chiefs and Ravens. Here’s how the ALLCITY NFL Power Rankings and tiers shake out as we move into December:

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Super Bowl Contenders

While more teams can still join the party, these four teams appear to have enough to make a run to Santa Clara.

1. Los Angeles Rams (1) (9-3) – Despite a bad loss in Carolina, the Rams still appear to be the most complete team in a pretty wide-open league.

2. Buffalo Bills (4) (8-4) – The Bills look like they are back on track and have the league’s No. 1 rushing attack – but we’ve said this before.

3. Seattle Seahawks (5) (9-3) – Seattle is well-rounded on both sides of the ball, and while I’m still not sure I trust Sam Darnold in big games, they need to be taken seriously.

4. New England Patriots (8) (11-2) – When you have 11 wins and your quarterback is the MVP favorite, you are a Super Bowl contender.

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More to Prove

These teams can’t be ruled out yet, but they have at least one major weakness and need to prove they are serious contenders.

5. Denver Broncos (6) (10-2) – The Broncos are creeping closer to reaching the Super Bowl-contender tier, but an overtime win over a bad Commanders team playing with a backup quarterback isn’t going to get it done.

6. Chicago Bears (11) (9-3) – The Bears took advantage of their “prove it” opportunity in Philadelphia and could keep rolling in Green Bay.

7. Green Bay Packers (12) (8-3-1) – Are the Packers rounding into Super Bowl form or are they still going to be inconsistent? Sunday’s game against the Bears will tell us a lot.

8. Philadelphia Eagles (3) (8-4) – A bad offense and Jalen Carter’s injury could derail this team’s momentum. You could argue they shouldn’t be in the top 10.

9. Detroit Lions (2) (8-5) – In the offseason, I wondered if the Lions had already missed their Super Bowl window. It’s now early December and I’m still wondering.

10. San Francisco 49ers (14) (8-4) – While I still question the 49ers’ defense, they’re proving to be well-coached enough to climb back into the top 10.

11. Houston Texans (17) (7-5) – The offense still has more to prove, but the Texans probably have the best defense in the league.

12. Dallas Cowboys (18) (6-6-1) – It’s probably time to take the Cowboys seriously. Quinnen Williams has changed that defense, and Matt Eberflus is still a good coordinator.

13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (13) (7-5) – The Bucs went through a tough three-game stretch, but they’re still a good team dealing with a ton of injuries.

14. Indianapolis Colts (9) (8-4) – Are the Colts going to miss the playoffs?

15. Jacksonville Jaguars (15) (8-4) – This feels like a must-win game against the Colts.

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Fatally Flawed

These teams are terribly flawed on one side of the ball.

16. Los Angeles Chargers (16) (8-4) – Losing both starting tackles has hurt this team all year, but a win over the Eagles on Monday night could change the narrative.

17. Kansas City Chiefs (7) (6-6) – OK, we gave the Chiefs the benefit of the doubt for long enough. I officially have a lot of doubt.

18. Baltimore Ravens (10) (6-6) – Same goes for the Ravens after correctly calling the Bengals’ upset last week. It’s just not Lamar Jackson’s year.

19. Pittsburgh Steelers (19) (6-6) – The Steelers are almost in false hope territory.

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Clinging to (False) Hope

You can’t rule these teams out yet, but you also shouldn’t get too excited.

20. Carolina Panthers (20) (7-6) – It’s no longer false hope to think the Panthers could win the NFC South, but anything beyond that is a major stretch.

21. Miami Dolphins (22) (5-7) – Apparently it wasn’t completely over for the Dolphins, but it still feels a little too late for a team that was left for dead.

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It’s Over

We can safely say none of these teams will make the playoffs and need to have hard conversations about the future.

22. Cincinnati Bengals (24) (4-8) – The Bengals can’t be completely buried with Joe Burrow back, but they have to get through the Bills first.

23. Atlanta Falcons (21) (4-8) – OK, that’s it. The Falcons are done.

24. Minnesota Vikings (23) (4-8) – At least J.J. McCarthy is back this week. They really need to see some development out of him in these final five games.

25. Arizona Cardinals (25) (3-9) – Jacoby Brissett makes the Cardinals more fun, but they still aren’t winning games.

26. Washington Commanders (26) (3-9) – At this point, it might make more sense to shut Jayden Daniels down for the season.

27. New York Jets (30) (3-9) – The Jets screwed around and got out of the race for the No. 1 pick.

28. Cleveland Browns (27) (3-9) – Sunday’s game against the Titans might be the last winnable game on the schedule.

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Race for No. 1

There’s not much left to say about these teams. At this point, securing the No. 1 overall pick matters the most.

29. New York Giants (28) (2-11) – The Giants continue to hover just above rock bottom.

30. Las Vegas Raiders (29) (2-10) – The Raiders need an offseason overhaul.

31. New Orleans Saints (31) (2-10) – There’s not a single position group on this roster that inspires optimism.

32. Tennessee Titans (32) (1-11) – The Titans are still covering spreads, but that’s about all they’re winning right now.

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Adam Hoge is the ALLCITY NFL Analyst and covers the Chicago Bears for CHGO. You can email him at hoge@allchgo.com and follow him on X @adamhoge.