Fantasy Football

PA Power Rankings
Guest writer Andrew Meder (MNChamps) gives his power rankings each week!

WEEK #16

Rank
Team Rec Summary

1. 14-0 Once again, the Colts outlast everyone else and are the only remaining unbeaten team. It’s only worked out for them in the playoffs once, though. We’ll see if they can turn their postseason luck around come January.

2. 11-3 By far the hottest team in the league. Rivers and the passing game look unstoppable right now. A gritty win against Cincinnati showed that the Chargers can play in any kind of game. Hopefully that will translate into playoff wins.

3. 13-1 New Orleans has been limping to wins for a few weeks now and finally got tagged by Dallas. The Saints need to bounce back and desperately need better play from their defense if they plan on going anywhere significant.

4. 10-4 Philly keeps picking up big wins and now they’re in position to steal a first round bye from the slumping Vikings. McNabb has been dominant lately and still has the return of Jeremy Maclin to look forward to. Who needs a running game, anyway?

5. 11-3 The polar opposite of the Chargers and Eagles, the Vikings have looked awful two of the last three weeks. It’s not that Minnesota is losing tough games to tough teams; it’s that the Vikings don’t even seem to care. They had a huge chance to put some pressure on the Saints for the #1 seed and came out like it was the preseason. They need someone to get them fired up and prepared for big games… You know, the kind of thing a coach usually does.

6. 9-5 Dallas fans are hoping they aren’t being teased. The Cowboys have had two big problems as of late: winning big games in a playoff atmosphere, and winning games in December. Well, they made a huge statement by beating the Saints and, dare I say, look like they could make a run in the playoffs?

7. 9-5 Cincy played tough against San Diego but just couldn’t get over the hump. There’s no doubt in my mind that these guys can play with anybody. Coming out with a strong performance after an incredibly emotional week speaks volumes about the character of this team.

8. 9-5 Not exactly the dominant team we’re used to seeing, but a winner no less. The Patriots got a big boost this week in their quest for a division title with Miami and New York both losing. They’ll get a home game in January but the Patriots just aren’t playing championship-caliber football right now.

9. 9-5 Green Bay’s biggest asset, their pass defense, let them down when it really counted against the Steelers. I wouldn’t expect anything like that to happen again, though. The Packers are still one of the hotter teams in the league right now.

10. 8-6 Made a statement with a dominating performance against Washington, but it just might not be enough. That mid-season slump looks like it’s going to keep them out of the playoffs.

11. 9-5 The Cards damn near got beat by the Drew Stanton-led Lions. Not exactly an encouraging performance for a team that expects to see the Super Bowl again.

12. 8-6 Joe Flacco went crazy against the Bears’ secondary. Where has that been the past six weeks?

13. 8-6 Brandon Marshall showed why he should still be considered an elite receiver in this league. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to help the Broncos to a win against Oakland, and now they’re going to be riding a two game losing streak going into another harsh road game in Philadelphia.

14. 7-7 Had a golden opportunity to keep the pressure on New England, but choked it away and now it looks like they’ll be sitting at home in January.

15. 7-7 It sure wasn’t pretty, but the Falcons pulled off a win against a decent Jets team. It’s been a rough and disappointing season for Atlanta, but the pieces are still in place for a run next year.

16. 7-7 Tennessee gutted out a much needed win, but it might be too little too late. At least Vince Young should be starting at the beginning of next season. Maybe the Titans will be able to start out as hot as they played in the past couple of months.

17. 7-7 Jacksonville was able to hang with Indy, but couldn’t pull it off in the end. Unfortunately, that will probably end any playoff hopes that the Jags might have had.

18. 7-7 See Miami. 7 points against anybody just isn’t going to cut it.

19. 7-7 Sure glad Andre Johnson decided to start playing like an All-Pro when I’m already eliminated from the playoffs. The rest of his owners have to be thrilled with the fantasy playoff performances he’s had so far. Houston only scoring one touchdown against the Rams is a bit of a head-scratcher.

20. 6-8 San Francisco just ran into a hot Eagles team and couldn’t do anything about it. It seems that for every week that Alex Smith looks like a legit starter, he goes out and has an ugly 3-INT week right after it.

21. 7-7 Even with a phenomenal win, the Steelers just don’t have “it” this season. The days of a dominant defense in Pittsburgh are long gone.

22. 6-8 Something named Matt Moore looked like an All-Pro against a good Vikings defense and the Panthers looked like a legitimate team for one week. Julius Peppers is an absolute animal, but why does he just disappear some weeks?

23. 5-9 You know times are tough when you lose to Tampa Bay by three touchdowns. Matt Hasselbeck’s four picks doomed the Seahawks, and it might be time for him to call it a career.

24. 4-10 Washington might be one of the best 10 loss teams I’ve ever seen. Excluding that ass kicking they got on Monday night, they Redskins have been playing some pretty good football lately. It’ll be interesting to see if it’s enough to save Jim Zorn’s job.

25. 5-9 Add the Broncos to the impressive list of Raider victories this season. Somebody should let the Raiders know that they’re allowed to beat bad teams, too.

26. 5-9 The Bills actually beat up on New England statistically, but the scoreboard is the only thing that matters. And when you’re talking about the Buffalo Bills, the scoreboard isn’t a friendly thing.

27. 5-9 Jay Cutler looks beat up. It’s been a long season for Chicago, and he’s a huge reason why. What was supposed to be a dream pickup has turned into a nightmare. For the sake of everyone in the Chicago front office, Cutler needs some serious work on teammate recognition next offseason. Is that actually a skill? I don’t know. I just know that Cutler can’t seem to tell which team he’s on.

28. 3-11 Holy Jerome Harrison, Batman! You don’t run for 286 yards for no reason. That kid is the real deal.

29. 3-11 Jamaal Charles is another back that came out of nowhere. He’s looked almost unstoppable these past few weeks. It seems like the Chiefs have found their new franchise back.

30. 2-12 Showed some fight against a very good Arizona team, even without Matt Stafford. The future isn’t entirely bleak for the Lions and their fans.

31. 2-12 Well, they’re still playing hard, which is good for them and good for their coach. Maybe he can still salvage his job for next season.

32. 1-13 There is just so much going wrong in St. Louis that it would take me an hour just to write about them all. A good start is at QB, though, were the Rams need help desperately. Any kind of upgrade would do at this point. They’ll more than likely get to make the decision nice and early in April.

Thanks for reading and have a great holiday season!

Rank	Team	Rec	Summary
1.		14-0	Once again, the Colts outlast everyone else and are the only remaining unbeaten team. It’s only worked out for them in the playoffs once, though. We’ll see if they can turn their postseason luck around come January.

2.		11-3	By far the hottest team in the league. Rivers and the passing game look unstoppable right now. A gritty win against Cincinnati showed that the Chargers can play in any kind of game. Hopefully that will translate into playoff wins.

3.		13-1	New Orleans has been limping to wins for a few weeks now and finally got tagged by Dallas. The Saints need to bounce back and desperately need better play from their defense if they plan on going anywhere significant.

4.		10-4	Philly keeps picking up big wins and now they’re in position to steal a first round bye from the slumping Vikings. McNabb has been dominant lately and still has the return of Jeremy Maclin to look forward to. Who needs a running game, anyway?

5.		11-3	The polar opposite of the Chargers and Eagles, the Vikings have looked awful two of the last three weeks. It’s not that Minnesota is losing tough games to tough teams; it’s that the Vikings don’t even seem to care. They had a huge chance to put some pressure on the Saints for the #1 seed and came out like it was the preseason. They need someone to get them fired up and prepared for big games… You know, the kind of thing a coach usually does.

6.		9-5	Dallas fans are hoping they aren’t being teased. The Cowboys have had two big problems as of late: winning big games in a playoff atmosphere, and winning games in December. Well, they made a huge statement by beating the Saints and, dare I say, look like they could make a run in the playoffs?

7.		9-5	Cincy played tough against San Diego but just couldn’t get over the hump. There’s no doubt in my mind that these guys can play with anybody. Coming out with a strong performance after an incredibly emotional week speaks volumes about the character of this team.

8.		9-5	Not exactly the dominant team we’re used to seeing, but a winner no less. The Patriots got a big boost this week in their quest for a division title with Miami and New York both losing. They’ll get a home game in January but the Patriots just aren’t playing championship-caliber football right now.

9.		9-5	Green Bay’s biggest asset, their pass defense, let them down when it really counted against the Steelers. I wouldn’t expect anything like that to happen again, though. The Packers are still one of the hotter teams in the league right now.

10.		8-6	Made a statement with a dominating performance against Washington, but it just might not be enough. That mid-season slump looks like it’s going to keep them out of the playoffs.

11.		9-5	The Cards damn near got beat by the Drew Stanton-led Lions. Not exactly an encouraging performance for a team that expects to see the Super Bowl again.

12.		8-6	Joe Flacco went crazy against the Bears’ secondary. Where has that been the past six weeks?

13.		8-6	Brandon Marshall showed why he should still be considered an elite receiver in this league. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to help the Broncos to a win against Oakland, and now they’re going to be riding a two game losing streak going into another harsh road game in Philadelphia.

14.		7-7	Had a golden opportunity to keep the pressure on New England, but choked it away and now it looks like they’ll be sitting at home in January.

15.		7-7	It sure wasn’t pretty, but the Falcons pulled off a win against a decent Jets team. It’s been a rough and disappointing season for Atlanta, but the pieces are still in place for a run next year.

16.		7-7	Tennessee gutted out a much needed win, but it might be too little too late. At least Vince Young should be starting at the beginning of next season. Maybe the Titans will be able to start out as hot as they played in the past couple of months.

17.		7-7	Jacksonville was able to hang with Indy, but couldn’t pull it off in the end. Unfortunately, that will probably end any playoff hopes that the Jags might have had.

18.		7-7	See Miami. 7 points against anybody just isn’t going to cut it.

19.		7-7	Sure glad Andre Johnson decided to start playing like an All-Pro when I’m already eliminated from the playoffs. The rest of his owners have to be thrilled with the fantasy playoff performances he’s had so far. Houston only scoring one touchdown against the Rams is a bit of a head-scratcher.

20.		6-8	San Francisco just ran into a hot Eagles team and couldn’t do anything about it. It seems that for every week that Alex Smith looks like a legit starter, he goes out and has an ugly 3-INT week right after it.

21.		7-7	Even with a phenomenal win, the Steelers just don’t have “it” this season. The days of a dominant defense in Pittsburgh are long gone.

22.		6-8	Something named Matt Moore looked like an All-Pro against a good Vikings defense and the Panthers looked like a legitimate team for one week. Julius Peppers is an absolute animal, but why does he just disappear some weeks?

23.		5-9	You know times are tough when you lose to Tampa Bay by three touchdowns. Matt Hasselbeck’s four picks doomed the Seahawks, and it might be time for him to call it a career.

24.		4-10	Washington might be one of the best 10 loss teams I’ve ever seen. Excluding that ass kicking they got on Monday night, they Redskins have been playing some pretty good football lately. It’ll be interesting to see if it’s enough to save Jim Zorn’s job.

25.		5-9	Add the Broncos to the impressive list of Raider victories this season. Somebody should let the Raiders know that they’re allowed to beat bad teams, too.

26.		5-9	The Bills actually beat up on New England statistically, but the scoreboard is the only thing that matters. And when you’re talking about the Buffalo Bills, the scoreboard isn’t a friendly thing.

27.		5-9	Jay Cutler looks beat up. It’s been a long season for Chicago, and he’s a huge reason why. What was supposed to be a dream pickup has turned into a nightmare. For the sake of everyone in the Chicago front office, Cutler needs some serious work on teammate recognition next offseason. Is that actually a skill? I don’t know. I just know that Cutler can’t seem to tell which team he’s on.

28.		3-11	Holy Jerome Harrison, Batman! You don’t run for 286 yards for no reason. That kid is the real deal.

29.		3-11	Jamaal Charles is another back that came out of nowhere. He’s looked almost unstoppable these past few weeks. It seems like the Chiefs have found their new franchise back.

30.		2-12	Showed some fight against a very good Arizona team, even without Matt Stafford. The future isn’t entirely bleak for the Lions and their fans.

31.		2-12	Well, they’re still playing hard, which is good for them and good for their coach. Maybe he can still salvage his job for next season.

32.		1-13	There is just so much going wrong in St. Louis that it would take me an hour just to write about them all. A good start is at QB, though, were the Rams need help desperately. Any kind of upgrade would do at this point. They’ll more than likely get to make the decision nice and early in April. Thanks for reading and have a great holiday season!