The Red Zone Report

While the Saints comeback and win over the Washington Redskins in overtime normally would be the story of the week in the NFL, it holds no water compared to the suddenly very interesting division races in the AFC and NFC East.

The Giants got past the Cowboys and Tony Romo’s fantastic day of 392 yards and three touchdowns to pull within one game for the division, putting them in prime position with four game remaining. Sunday’s win game them a sweep over Dallas for the season, which gives them the tie-breaker.

The Philadelphia Eagles also kept pace, making it a strong three-way race for the division with four games left, and just one game separating the division leader from the third place team.

As for the AFC East, the Miami Dolphins squeaked by the New England Patriots, 22-21, to even the season series and pull one game away from a tie for the division. Needless to say, even without discussing the Cardinals, Vikings, Bengals, Colts, and Saints, this figures to be a very interesting stretch run.

Read on to see where your team ranks in Week 14‘s NFL Power Rankings:

1. Indianapolis Colts (12-0)

They took care of a red hot Tennessee team when many (including this writer) doubted them. While the Saints proved yet again that they are worthy of the top spot, the Colts’ performance was more convincing.

2. New Orleans Saints (12-0)

Yes, they’re undefeated, and yes, they were on top last week. But narrowly escaping the Washington Redskins has to count against them somehow.

3. Minnesota Vikings (10-2)

Minnesota showed up for the first series and then proceeded to get dominated in every facet of the game for the final three quarters. They still might be a better team than the Cardinals, but they sure didn’t even show a glimpse of that fact on Sunday night.

4. San Diego Chargers (9-3)

Every week we think they’ll show their “true colors”, but all they do is continue to show how dominant they can be against lesser teams. As great as they’ve been playing, they still need to stay focused to wrap up the division.

5. Cincinnati Bengals (9-3)

They handled the Lions fairly well and allowed it to look close near the end. They’ll get a true test when they travel to Minnesota to face an angry Vikings squad.

6. Arizona Cardinals (8-4)

Just when you thought this team was a champion in a trash division and nothing more than an average playoff contender, they completely dismantle a very good Vikings team. They may not find their way back to the Super Bowl, but they definitely showed that they have the talent to give it a good run.

7. Philadelphia Eagles (8-4)

After a dominant performance on both sides of the ball against Atlanta, the Eagles have put themselves in prime position for a shot at the division.

8. Green Bay Packers (8-4)

The Packers have proven themselves with four straight wins as strong contenders for the playoffs. While a shot at the division is almost certainly out of the question, another shot at the Vikings in the playoffs may not be.

9. Dallas Cowboys (8-4)

Getting swept by the Giants means that this team, no matter how good they can look at times, is very close to missing out on the playoffs. With tie-breaker losses to the Giants and the Packers, winning out now becomes very important.

10. Denver Broncos (8-4)

Two straight dominant wins are showing us that their four straight losses may have been a blip on the radar. The division is still within reach, and if they keep playing like this, earning a bye is still a real possibility.

11. New England Patriots (7-5)

Despite a great effort by Tom Brady, the once elite New England defense buckled and gave up a game-winning field goal. Don’t look now, but the Patriots are now fighting for the division with Miami.

12. Jacksonville Jaguars (7-5)

They need to make up their mind on what kind of team they want people to believe they are. But really, the important thing is, regardless of a decent record, do they really stand a chance against the other contenders in this conference? I say no.

13. New York Giants (7-5)

Just when you thought they were dead, both sides of the ball come to life and the Giants make the NFC East a very interesting division race.

14. Miami Dolphins (6-6)

That just happened. With a dramatic win over the “big dogs” in the division (Patriots), these Dolphins just made the final four games of the season very interesting.

15. Baltimore Ravens (6-6)

We knew the pass defense wouldn’t be able to contain Aaron Rodgers, yet even without Ed Reed, they still intercepted Rodgers twice. Joe Flacco had many opportunities to keep his team in the game, and had a really poor performance. Interestingly enough, playoffs still aren’t out of the question.

16. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6)

So much for Mike Tomlin’s vow for vengeance. This team is sinking fast.

17. Tennessee Titans (5-7)

It was a nice run, but Sunday’s loss almost surely ended their faint playoff hopes. At least we can cheer Chris Johnson on in his race for the single-season rushing yardage record.

18. New York Jets (6-6)

The Jets stuck to the run and it paid off. For an inconsistent rookie who sometimes forgets how to manage games, would losing Mark Sanchez for any amount of time actually hurt this team?

19. Atlanta Falcons (6-6)

Chris Redman wasn’t able to live up to his Week 13 heroics against a very solid Philadelphia Eagles defense. Atlanta is suddenly looking for answers with Matt Ryan’s and Michael Turner’s statuses uncertain heading into Week 14.

20. Houston Texans (5-7)

So much for “this being the year” The Wild Card hopes are gone, and sadly, so too might Gary Kubiak be.

21. Carolina Panthers (5-7)

True, it was the Buccaneers, but Matt Moore did offer a different feel to the offense. This team really didn’t miss a beat with Jonathan Stewart filling in for the injured DeAngelo Williams, did they?

22. San Francisco 49ers (5-7)

They would have been looking a huge Monday night division battle with the Arizona Cardinals had they pulled this one out over Seattle. Now they’re just scrambling in an up-hill battle for a Wild Card spot.

23. Chicago Bears (5-7)

Jay Cutler and the offense didn’t play “lights out” football, but they got the job done. Considering how awful they had been playing, that’s almost cause for a parade in Chicago right about now.

24. Oakland Raiders (4-8)

It’s getting to the point where we need to stop looking at these wins over solid teams as “upsets” and just accept that this Raiders team might be growing into a competitive team. Oh, and how awesome was Bruce Gradkowski’s spirited performance?

25. Buffalo Bills (4-8)

This is what you can grow to expect from Ryan Fitzpatrick. He has enough smarts and talent to look good for a couple of weeks, but a decent defense can make him look like what he is: a below-average quarterback who belongs on the sidelines.

26. Seattle Seahawks (5-7)

Seattle showed up and beat a 49ers team that was just as desperate as they were. The real question is, were they just playing spoiler, or do they have a real shot at making the playoffs?

27. Kansas City Chiefs (3-9)

They really took it to the chin against San Diego on Sunday. What a beat-down. They were showing some true grit in the past few weeks. Has that all been erased, or can they regroup and get to respectability?

28. Washington Redskins (3-9)

You have to hand it to this team for fighting hard, and not just in this past week. They still blew a huge game, which exposes their youth, but playing the Saints into overtime has to count for something.

29. St. Louis Rams (1-11)

It becomes more clear with each loss that the only good thing about this team is Steven Jackson, And unless this team wants to look at a 2010 season with a 3-13 record as an improvement, they need to address the talent on their roster, and fast.

30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-11)

Josh Freeman played as you expected him to against an elite pass defense. Despite his flashes of brilliance, games like these need to be excused for the sake of his development.

31. Detroit Lions (2-10)

The Stafford to Johnson connection to start the game was nice, but ultimately was a huge tease. This team needs to show some growth and start showing up to compete in their final four games.

32. Cleveland Browns (1-11)

They really didn’t stand much of a chance against the Chargers, but at least Brady Quinn showed his performance two weeks ago was no fluke. Believe it or not, Cleveland fans, but you very well could be looking at your franchise quarterback.