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    • Chiefs fall after loss, Lions now number 1
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    Chiefs fall after loss, Lions now number 1

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    NFL power rankings entering Week 12 of the 2024 season (previous rankings in parentheses):

    1. Detroit Lions (2): Now that KC has finally disappeared from the ranks of the undefeated – no matter how weak the champions’ ‘perfection’ was – there is no denying that Motown is currently the epicenter of the NFL universe. The Lions’ +159 point differential is more than 50 points greater than the others. Their 46-point win over Jacksonville on Sunday was the largest in the franchise’s 95-season history, and the 645 yards gained were also Detroit’s most ever. They are only the third team in the Super Bowl era (since 1966) to win three of their first ten games by at least 35 points and the second since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to score at least 50 points in back-to-back – home games back. Good luck, Indy.

    2. Buffalo notes (4): Their regular-season dominance of the Chiefs continued Sunday, for whatever that’s worth — and the Bills will tell you, not by much. But Buffalo is getting healthier and hotter, now winners of six in a row while scoring at least 30 points in the past five games. The AFC East is basically in the bag – again – but the goal is to host the first AFC championship game in 31 years… and much, much more.

    3. Philadelphia Eagles (5): If anyone other than the Lions wants to be the kings of the NFC jungle, it might be these increasingly strong birds — who, remarkably, have posted five winning streaks of at least five games over the last three seasons. They’ll likely continue to lean on their best player, RB Saquon Barkley (the first Philly in a decade with at least 100 yards in eight games) as this show takes a tough road that then winds through LA (Rams) and Baltimore. .

    4. Kansas City Chefs (1): “The undefeated thing was cool. But that’s not our ultimate goal.” Well said, Mr. Mahomes. Home field advantage is cool, too, and three of the next four games are against teams playing at least four games under .500 – which should mean bonus tickets to Arrowhead in late January.

    5. Pittsburgh Steelers (6): Regardless of who is behind center, the problems in the red zone remain: the Steelers are the fifth team this century to win multiple games in a season without reaching the end zone.

    6. Baltimore Ravens (3): Thirteen touches for RB Derrick Henry? None in the fourth quarter? From a two-point loss? Didn’t we learn this lesson last season?

    7. Minnesota Vikings (8): They are the best in the league against the AFC at 5-0. If only those wins didn’t count so little in terms of the tiebreaker.

    8. Washington Commanders (7): The team claims there is nothing wrong with rookie QB Jayden Daniels, even though he has played his least efficient (59.1% completion percentage, 74.9 passer rating) and impactful (23 rushing yards, 1 TD generated) football during the current losing streak of two games.

    9. Green Bay Packers (9): QB Jordan Love has picked in nine straight games dating back to the 2023 playoffs. But he’s also starting to get some production from WR Christian Watson, which helps since the defense hasn’t played well in a month.

    10. Arizona Cardinals (10): The NFC West leaders come out of their bye with a one-game division lead, but two of their next three games are against Seattle, which has defeated the Cards in five straight.

    11. Los Angeles Chargers (13): Sunday night saw their best offensive performance of the season… and worst performance on defense. But teammates pick each other up and overcoming Cincy gives the Bolts an almost ironclad hold on a wild card berth.

    12. Houston Texans (12): Officially Lone Star State champions, they can nearly secure back-to-back AFC South championships by defeating Tennessee and Jacksonville in the next two weeks.

    13. Denver Broncos (16): Perhaps the AFC version of the Vikes, the Broncos went 4-0 against the NFC South, beating those teams by an average of 22 points.

    14. Atlanta Falcons (14): Hardly ideal to enter your week off on a two-game skid, further accentuated by a 32-point loss to a rookie quarterback (Denver’s Bo Nix). But the Dirty Birds better rest and recharge while the Bolts and Vikes lurk on the other side of the break.

    15. Cincinnati Bengals (15): Crushing losses over the past two weeks significantly reduce their chances of surviving in the postseason. But no one wants Joe Burrow and Co. see, the quarterback who becomes the first in the Super Bowl era to lose three games in a season when throwing for at least 300 yards, three TDs and zero INTs, according to NFL Media.

    16. Miami Dolphins (18): QB Tua Tagovailoa has played extremely well since returning from his last concussion, completing 77% of his passes for 960 yards with seven TDs and one INT. His passer rating in that four-game stretch is 112.2. A Finnish club that has yet to finish on a strong run under HC Mike McDaniel must continue to swim against the tide, though a forgiving schedule should help.

    17. Los Angeles Rams (19): After throwing three TD passes in the first six weeks, QB Matthew Stafford has put up 10 in the last four weeks – coinciding with a 3-1 mark and return to relevance. Now 10th in league history with 370 career TD strikes, Stafford needs 12 more to overtake Matt Ryan.

    18. San Francisco 49ers (11): TE George Kittle is injured. DE Nick Bosa is injured. Their pride is hurt after Seattle’s fourth-quarter collapse. And heading into Green Bay and Buffalo could hurt their already dwindling playoff prospects even more.

    19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (17): They entered their bye on a four-game slide. They’ll come out of it facing the NFC’s easiest remaining schedule and, apparently, with WR Mike Evans back in the lineup.

    20. Seattle Seahawks (20): Did you know QB Geno Smith holds the franchise single-season record with 4,282 passing yards in 2022? He’s on track for 4,728 this year.

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    21. Indianapolis Foals (21): Did you know that QB Anthony Richardson leads the league with 15.6 yards per completion? Or that WR Alec Pierce leads the NFL with 22.7 yards per catch? Still, with a combined passer rating of 79.4, only one AFC team (Tennessee) is less efficient than Indy.

    22. New England Patriots (22): Given how poorly the offensive line is blocked, could it be time to convert LT Vederian Lowe to a wideout?

    23. Chicago Bears (23): The changing offensive coordinators ended their touchdown drought at 25 possessions, dating back to their Hail Mary loss at Washington. But the Da Bears will need a Hail Mary to reach the postseason, as they’ve spent the last seven weeks playing what is by far the toughest schedule (.729 opponents winning percentage) in the league.

    24. New Orleans Saints (27): The interim coach is 2-0.

    25. New York Jets (24): The interim coach is 1-5.

    26. Carolina Panthers (25): Their three wins already exceed the 2023 total (2). And the good vibes should increase on Sunday with rookie RB Jonathon Brooks set to make his long-awaited debut in what is shaping up to be a pretty good backfield, along with the newly expanded Chuba Hubbard.

    27. Las Vegas Raiders (32): Turner and son’s newly installed offense is the best the Silver and Black have fielded all season.

    28. Cleveland Browns (26): In 2023, they had the league’s No. 1 defense. Now? It’s just a unit that doesn’t want Taysom Hill stopped.

    29. Dallas Cowboys (29): The sky is literally falling at AT&T Stadium, where “America’s Team” has now lost its last six games…and trailed by at least 20 games in all of them. Even worse Monday night? Houstonians largely took over North Texas.

    30. Tennessee Titans (30): They don’t score much — their 18 TDs are the second-fewest in the AFC — but they get their money’s worth. WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine’s 98-yarder Sunday was the longest touchdown reception in the league this season.

    31. New York Giants (31): Will QB Daniel Jones ever play for this team again? He was effectively sacked coming out of the bye week, demoted to the third string and likely out the door within a few months.

    32. Jacksonville Jaguars (28): Will HC Doug Pederson ever work for this team again? It’s entirely possible he’ll be fired at some point during the day the bye week after the 2-9 Jags suffered the worst loss in their 30-season existence. But no doubt he could head for the door at any time.

    ***

    Follow Nate Davis of USA TODAY Sports on X, formerly Twitter, @ByNateDavis.

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