With the stretch run of the 2025 NFL regular season here, we’re getting much-needed clarity about contenders and pretenders.
On the AFC side, the Houston Texans, powered by a special defense that plays everyone straight-up and timely playmaking from C.J. Stroud, might be a genuine Super Bowl contender. The same goes for a Jacksonville Jaguars squad that has found itself offensively. We could not say the same about Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs, who seem likely to miss the playoffs for the first time in over a decade.
Over in the NFC, even after a tough loss in Green Bay, Ben Johnson’s Chicago Bears showed us they aren’t going anywhere. Take them lightly at your own risk. Meanwhile, the down-and-out Detroit Lions will not go quietly into that good night. They will fight for their playoff lives until the very end. By contrast, it’s high time to be concerned about the free-falling Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
We unpack the questions concerning all of these teams and more in For The Win’s Week 15 NFL Power Rankings.
Last week: 31
The Raiders barely had over 200 yards of offense and turned to Kenny Pickett in a convincing home loss against their biggest rival. Whatever vision Pete Carroll had for Las Vegas, it’s not even discernible with a microscope. — Robert Zeglinski
Last week: 29
Arizona continues to play the most generic, uninteresting football possible. On the plus side, that’s allowed opponents to shine. In Week 14, that meant being the backdrop to a vintage Puka Nacua outing and the best game of Blake Corum’s budding career. — Christian D’Andrea
30. Tennessee Titans
Last week: 32
In between bouts of inconsistency, Cam Ward has enough “WOW” moments that make you think the Titans can build something sustainable, provided they pick the right coach in the offseason. Cleveland is Cleveland, but Ward overcoming Myles Garrett is a legitimate accomplishment that should be celebrated. — RZ
29. Cleveland Browns
Last week: 30
After two weeks of a screen-heavy offense, the Browns let Shedeur Sanders throw deep with some regularity against a bad Titans defense and were rewarded for their faith. The rookie threw 12 passes that traveled more than 10 yards downfield, completing five with one touchdown, an interception, and 149 of his 364 passing yards. There’s still a lot to clean up in his game, but he’s earned the chance to start the final four games of 2025 over fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel. — CD
28. New York Jets
Last week: 26
The Jets played Brady Cook — not to be confused with Brady Quinn or Greg Cook — in an actual 2025 game after Tyrod Taylor got hurt. The abyss this listless franchise can reach is truly and wholly bottomless. — RZ
27. Atlanta Falcons
Last week: 27
A promising start gave way to an embarrassing rout. Atlanta is trending toward a top 10 draft pick, which would be great except that’s headed to Los Angeles to fulfill the trade that made James Pearce (six sacks in 13 games) a Falcon. Oh, and the franchise has a bottom-10 salary cap position for 2026. Things are great otherwise, though! — CD
26. Washington Commanders
Last week: 24
Marcus Mariota had great numbers against the blitz and was set to face one of the league’s most blitz-heavy defenses. Despite that, Dan Quinn threw Jayden Daniels back into the lineup after his dislocated elbow… only for Daniels to struggle before leaving the game after re-aggravating that elbow injury. None of this needed to happen, but it’s comforting to see the new Washington ownership is still capable of finding ways to break young franchise quarterbacks. — CD
Last week: 28
Is Tyler Shough A Guy? He kind of seems like A Guy! OK, maybe a stretch of decent performances against teams like Carolina, Miami, and Tampa Bay isn’t necessarily the best sample size. But it’s impressive watching the 26-year-old orchestrate a semi-competent New Orleans offense bereft of talent. There is now, weirdly enough, something to be encouraged about for the Saints’ future. — RZ
24. Minnesota Vikings
Last week: 25
J.J. McCarthy took advantage of the league’s worst passing defense to have his best game as a pro, slinging three touchdown passes in a 31-0 stomping of the Commanders. It’s tough to tell if that actually means something or if it will merely give the young quarterback another opportunity to build hope, then knock it down like a toddler playing with blocks. — CD
23. New York Giants
Last week: 22
A bye week should give Jaxson Dart time to reconsider his stance on protecting himself more as a potential franchise quarterback who voluntarily exposes himself to way too many risky hits. That, or it might help learn New Jersey’s general geography. Both would be wins, albeit of different kinds. — RZ
22. Miami Dolphins
Last week: 23
Credit where it’s due; after looking like one of the league’s worst teams early in the season, then losing Tyreek Hill, the Dolphins have taken advantage of a soft schedule to linger in the playoff race longer than most could have expected. Miami has won five of its last six games, though the only team with a winning record in that stretch was the Buffalo Bills. Games against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Cincinnati Bengals make it possible — but not probable — this team manages to go from 1-6 to a winning record, saving Mike McDaniel’s job in the process. — CD
21. Cincinnati Bengals
Last week: 21
Sunday’s defeat in Buffalo was a microcosm of everything that’s gone wrong for Zac Taylor’s Bengals over the past few years. Joe Burrow looks incredible early, then crumbles late as his porous defense can’t pull its own weight anymore. It’s just another reminder that it’s time for a hard reset in Cincinnati. Wasting the prime of this quarterback with this coach and this general manager would be a crime. — RZ
Last week: 19
Lamar Jackson can still will this team to an AFC North title — the whole division is a mess, honestly. That may be the Ravens’ ceiling as their star quarterback works through injury and their defense reckons with the fact it couldn’t bring down a 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers Sunday, registering zero sacks and a single quarterback hit against one of the league’s more statuesque passers. — CD
19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Last week: 18
Tampa Bay’s fall from grace is stunning, to say the least. After falling to the lowly Saints at home, that’s now five losses in seven games. Baker Mayfield has fallen back to Earth, and Todd Bowles’ defense can’t stop a nosebleed. All of a sudden, the NFC South is back in play. The upstart Carolina Panthers play the Buccaneers twice over the next month. If the Buccaneers aren’t careful, their extended reign atop the South could be coming to an end. — RZ
18. Indianapolis Colts
Last week: 15
Daniel Jones tried to play through a broken leg and wound up suffering a torn Achilles tendon in the process. The resurgent year that was primed to earn him a Sam Darnold-type free agent payday will instead likely result in a modest one-year deal this offseason. This all happened, incredibly, one week after Sauce Gardner, the All-Pro cornerback for whom the team traded at the deadline, was forced out of the lineup with a calf injury. The football gods were clearly offended by the Colts’ 7-1 start and have moved to correct it. — CD
17. Dallas Cowboys
Last week: 13
The Cowboys inarguably have one of the NFL’s best offenses. The combination of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and George Pickens is lethal together. The problem for Dallas is that its pass-rushless defense is coordinated by the inept Matt Eberflus. The Cowboys have a favorable stretch run schedule to make the playoffs. They play one team with a winning record over the next month. It’s hard to be confident they’ll take advantage of it after seeing their defense at its worst. — RZ
16. Los Angeles Chargers
Last week: 17
The Chargers are trying to prove that you can, in fact, make something of your season after losing both of your starting offensive tackles to injuries. This franchise’s curse is never-ending. — RZ
15. Pittsburgh Steelers
Last week: 20
With the AFC North on the line, Aaron Rodgers and DK Metcalf lined up their best performance of the season. Rodgers consistently gave his top playmaker chances at 50-50 balls, while offensive coordinator Arthur Smith found ways for Metcalf to eat in space en route to seven catches for 148 yards. The result is Pittsburgh taking back tenuous control of the North. A Week 18 rematch in Pittsburgh will loom large. — RZ
14. Carolina Panthers
Last week: 16
Carolina’s week off helped the Panthers gain half a game in the NFC South race when the Buccaneers failed to contain Tyler Shough. That gives Dave Canales an extra week to cook up a game plan that maximizes Bryce Young’s strengths with a full, healthy complement of skill players. — CD
13. Kansas City Chiefs
Last week: 14
Both Rashee Rice and Travis Kelce had big drops in clutch situations that let the Houston Texans off the hook and wasted a superb defensive effort from a unit that hit Houston like it stole something on a regular basis Sunday night. Any margin of error for a rally to the postseason is gone; The Athletic gives the reigning AFC champs a 14 percent chance to make the postseason field. — CD
12. Detroit Lions
Last week: 11
Detroit made the Cowboys’ defense improvements look like an illusion to remain in the playoff hunt, though the Lions remain behind the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears in the NFC North. Concerns remain about a defense whose secondary has been ravaged by injury, especially with Brian Branch headed to injured reserve, after three straight games giving up 27 points or more. — CD
11. Houston Texans
Last week: 10
Houston’s defense is bordering on terrifying, even if it needed a few key drops to escape Kansas City with a win. Combine that with C.J. Stroud’s ability to show up when it matters most, and suddenly a Texans-Jags AFC South race is one of the most compelling divisional battles in the NFL. — CD
10. Jacksonville Jaguars
Last week: 12
The Jaguars are playing complete football thanks to an offense unlocked by Jakobi Meyers’ arrival. Jacksonville has scored 25 points or more in each of its last six games since a bye week. The defense has been occasionally glitchy — see the comeback allowed to Davis by-God Mills back in Week 10 or overtime wins against the hapless Cardinals or Raiders — but this is a team primed to make noise in the postseason. — CD
Last week: 9
A late-season bye week gives mad scientist Kyle Shanahan more time to coach up his sneaky elite offense to even more consistent success. Most of that success has come on the strength of a resurgent Christian McCaffrey, who has scored five touchdowns in his last three games. The 49ers are dangerous. We’re about to find out just how dangerous they really are. — RZ
Last week: 8
The Eagles are trying to keep their Super Bowl title defense from spiraling down the drain. It, uh, hasn’t been going all that well so far. — RZ
7. Seattle Seahawks
Last week: 7
Somewhere, Rashid Shaheed is still streaking through the Falcons’ kickoff coverage unit off one single cut. Week 14 was effectively a preseason tune-up game for a complete Seahawks team with bigger fish to try. Those “fish” are the Rams in a battle for the NFC West (and potentially the NFC’s top seed) taking place in Seattle in just about 10 days. — RZ
6. Buffalo Bills
Last week: 6
Josh Allen has his warts, and a little too much of his 2019 self has come out to play thanks to a limited supporting cast. But he’s capable of putting his team on his back, unlike anyone else in the NFL, rushing for 78 yards, including a 40-yard score and a game-sealing 17-yard scramble on third-and-15 late in the fourth quarter on Sunday. After giving up four Joe Burrow touchdowns in Week 14, his defense may need him to be Superman on a weekly basis to avoid another frustrating playoff exit. — CD
5. Chicago Bears
Last week: 5
Chicago couldn’t pull out a win in Lambeau, but there’s a lot to be encouraged about. Caleb Williams almost finished off a rally with a plethora of special throws in the second half. Meanwhile, Ben Johnson figured out a play-calling rhythm to keep Micah Parsons in check. In the end, even in a loss, the Bears scared their biggest rival enough to really make it think about the rematch in Chicago in two weeks. In other words: The Bears are legit. They aren’t going anywhere. — RZ
4. Green Bay Packers
Last week: 4
Green Bay’s defense continues to struggle against the run late in games — unless it’s facing Jahmyr Gibbs, somehow. That didn’t matter because Jordan Love can loft back-foot throws that could hit a moth with pinpoint accuracy from 50 yards away, and Josh Jacobs is a wizard. The Packers control the NFC North, but are one brain fart away from giving it right back. — CD
Last week: 2
Denver’s offense managed only two touchdowns against a bottom-five defense. This didn’t affect the outcome of a game the Broncos never trailed, but continues to make Bo Nix’s trick-or-treat passing game difficult to trust. The defense remains elite, regardless of what Kenny Pickett did in the final four minutes of a game that was 24-7 at the time. — CD
2. Los Angeles Rams
Last week: 3
Matthew Stafford threw another three touchdown passes without breaking a sweat. And the Rams’ defense treated Jacoby Brissett like a piñata at a 10-year-old’s birthday party. The Rams are the best team in the NFC and control their own destiny for the conference’s top seed and the all-important bye week. It will be a disappointment if they don’t make it to Super Bowl 60. — RZ
Last week: 1
The bye meant the Broncos took over first place in the AFC, which they did by beating one of the two teams to hand New England a loss (the Raiders, somehow). New England will return rested for a pivotal Week 15 game at home against Buffalo, then close out against the shaky Ravens and underwhelming Dolphins and Jets. A 3-1 finish would secure the Patriots’ first division title since 2019 … and maybe the AFC’s top seed as well. — CD