NFL Power Rankings, Week 12: Rams take turn in No. 1 spot; Chiefs nosedive out of bye

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We’re still several weeks away from knowing the playoff field, but it might not be too soon to prepare ourselves for a somewhat unfamiliar-looking postseason grid.

Are you ready for, say, the Bills, Chiefs and Ravens as AFC wild-card teams? How about the Seahawks, Packers and Lions going on the road for the opening weekend of the playoffs? Of course, some of this is projection. As things stand right now, the Chiefs, Ravens and Lions aren’t even in the playoff field.

As for our little rankings, it’s Rams first, Colts second — and don’t etch it in the nearest stone, please. This is not a knock on the Rams, who are a darned-tough team, or Colts, who have fielded the best offense in the NFL to date. It’s just that we’ve seen how heavy the crown weighs in 2025. The Eagles started first to open the season. Three other teams have reached (and been booted from) the mountaintop since — including the Seahawks, after a two-week stay — and we could land back on the Eagles again if the offense can pick it up.

Bottom line: The field truly is wide open. Parity might sound like a cliché, but it has been the story again in the NFL this season. A little stability would make the rankings easier, but watching the chaos unfold has been fascinating.

NOTE: Up/down arrows below reflect movement from the Week 11 Power Rankings.

The Rams took a major step toward winning the NFC West with Sunday’s dramatic victory over the Seahawks, and they’re just behind the Eagles in the race for the top seed in the conference. That head-to-head loss at Philadelphia back in Week 3 could end up being the difference, but the Rams have now shown a few times this season against tough opponents that they can win games without the offense carrying the load. Forcing four Sam Darnold interceptions and keeping Seattle out of the end zone for the game’s first 57 minutes was a watershed performance for a defense that has generated eight takeaways in the three games since the bye. Matthew Stafford and the offense should be fine, although watching them struggle on third downs and get progressively worse as Sunday’s game went on was surprising.

The bye week allowed the Colts to recharge a bit after the loss to the Steelers and the close-shave win over the Falcons overseas, but they must hit the ground running this week, with a game against the desperate Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. There’s some mystery over the health statuses of two of their more important defenders, DT DeForest Buckner (neck) and CB Charvarius Ward(concussion), so the picture is muddled a bit. There are also offensive concerns over the play of Daniel Jones the past few weeks, as the quarterback has cooled off noticeably after a blistering start. But the Colts still have Jonathan Taylor and a beefy offensive line to fall back on, and it doesn’t feel right now like this Indy team will suddenly implode.

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