NFL Power Rankings, Week 14: Biggest risers and fallers after Week 13
14. Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams just keep finding ways to stay relevant and they keep finding ways to keep me interested.
When you look at this team on paper, how can you not like the chances of a Sean McVay coached team with a healthy Matthew Stafford and top playmakers like Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp? The Rams have all the makings to be dangerous in the playoffs, but they have to get there first.
The Rams escaped New Orleans with a win on Sunday and it was a much-needed win to keep pace in their division. The Cardinals lost on Sunday for the second game in a row, giving the Seahawks a one-game lead in the division with a road trip to Arizona looming. Meanwhile, the Rams are either going to sink or swim in their next two games.
They play on Sunday against the Buffalo Bills (in LA, thankfully) before going on the road to face off against the San Francisco 49ers on a short week. The 49ers are getting healthier every week, even if they’re not the same team we’ve seen in recent years. The Rams need to win these next two games to prove they are a playoff-ready squad.
13. Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks have caught a little bit of fire in the last three weeks, winning three straight games and putting themselves back in the driver’s seat of the NFC West. With the Arizona Cardinals blowing their lead against the Minnesota Vikings, the Seahawks made a comeback against the Jets and found a way to not only beat the Jets but take hold of 1st place in their division.
The Seahawks are going to be an interesting team to monitor as the rest of the season progresses. It’s been a down year for the NFC West as a whole so far due largely to injuries in the division, and it’s still very much a wide-open race out there.
The good news for the Seahawks is that they can really stake their claim on the top spot in the West this coming weekend with a road trip to Arizona and division implications all over the place.
That game in Arizona will be massive because the Seahawks’ next two matchups are against the Packers and Vikings, two of the best in the NFC.