1. Eagles (9-1; last week No. 1): Step One for making the no-kicker strategy work? Get Carson Wentz to play quarterback.
2. Patriots (8-2; No. 2): La puerta esta abierta for a Super Bowl win.
3. Steelers (8-2; No. 3): They’re really good, but still not good enough to beat the Patriots in a playoff game.
4. Vikings (8-2; No. 5): Having Teddy Bridgewater looming over Case Keenum’s shoulder actually makes Keenum play better.
5. Saints (8-2; No. 6): The Saints justified their name with a miracle on Sunday.
6. Rams (7-3; No. 4): The loss in Minnesota could be the first of several cold splashes of water in the face of a team still clinging to the NFC West lead.
7. Panthers (7-3; No. 9): Advance scout/tight end Greg Olsen is back, which could make the offense better than ever (especially against the Vikings)
8. Jaguars (7-3; No. 10): If the Steelers stumble and the Jaguars don’t, Jacksonville could end up with a postseason bye.
9. Falcons (6-4; No. 12): “Here we go again” ultimately went nowhere, for a change.
10. Lions (6-4; No. 11): Win Thursday vs. Minnesota, and the Lions will win the NFC North.
11. Chiefs (6-4; No. 7): If dropping from No 1 to Alex Smith’s jersey number doesn’t spark a decision to let Patrick Mahomes show what he can do, eventually dropping to Mahomes’ jersey number possibly will.
12. Seahawks (6-4; No. 8): Maybe Russell Wilson’s One-Man Band should add kicking to the repertoire.
13. Ravens (5-5; No. 18): The Ravens are only 2-5 when the other team scores at least one point.
14. Titans (6-4; No. 13): They’ve come a long way, but they’ve still got a long way to go.
15. Chargers (4-6; No. 19): In the 25th anniversary of the only NFL team that made it to the playoffs after starting 0-4, this one could end up doing the same thing.
16. Cowboys (5-5; No. 14): Getting to the playoffs may be even more difficult than keeping the Commissioner from getting his extension.
17. Washington (4-6; No. 15): If you can’t close out a 15-point lead with three minutes left over a playoff team, you don’t belong in the playoffs.
18. Bills (5-5; No. 16): From 5-2 to 5-5 with a pair of blowouts and two games against the Patriots still left to play, that 18-year playoff drought seems destined to continue.
19. Buccaneers (4-6; No. 24): When a trip to Green Bay is the easiest game left of the schedule down the stretch, it’s not an easy schedule down the stretch.
20. Raiders (4-6; No. 17): The Black Hole may be nearly empty next year, if this continues.
21. Bengals (4-6; No. 25): They may win just enough games to convince Mike Brown to stay the course.
22. Texans (4-6; No. 26): Tom Savage may do enough to get someone to pay him way too much money to eventually be benched for a rookie.
23. Jets (4-6; No. 21): It still won’t be easy to avoid 4-12.
24. Packers (5-5; No. 20): “Did you not just listen to that question I just answered?”
25. Dolphins (4-6; No. 22): How big is the current gap between the Dolphins and the Patriots? They’re about to find out, twice.
26. Cardinals (4-6; No. 23): Blaine Gabbert gets another start, while Colin Kaepernick still can’t get even a phone call.
27. Bears (3-7; No. 27): Kicking changes always seem to come a week to late.
28. Giants (2-8; No. 31): Amazing things can happen when a team actually tries to win.
29. Colts (3-7; No. 29): They’ve come a long way from the annual talk of whether to rest starters.
30. Broncos (3-7; No. 28): Great quarterbacks make offensive coordinators look good, and vice versa.
31. 49ers (1-9; No. 30): The stadium will be only slightly less empty than it was during the bye week.
32. Browns (0-10; No. 32): “Why the NFL Should Consider Contraction.” Exhibit A.
