2017 NFL Power Rankings: Week 4
Teams Ranked 12th to 1st
There are some interesting teams in the top third this week, such as Carolina and Buffalo, whose strong defensive performances have made up for weak ones on offense. But it is hard to look at this list and not see Jacksonville’s climb as the most fascinating.
| Rank | Team | nERD | Rec | Playoff Odds | Off. NEP Rank | Def. NEP Rank | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Carolina Panthers | 1.43 | 2-1 | 37.2% | 25 | 4 | -9 |
| 11 | Buffalo Bills | 2.33 | 2-1 | 53.6% | 21 | 3 | +1 |
| 10 | Green Bay Packers | 2.35 | 2-1 | 53.0% | 10 | 14 | -1 |
| 9 | Minnesota Vikings | 2.75 | 2-1 | 57.8% | 5 | 28 | +6 |
| 8 | Philadelphia Eagles | 2.95 | 2-1 | 62.2% | 11 | 11 | 0 |
| 7 | Atlanta Falcons | 3.56 | 3-0 | 75.7% | 7 | 15 | -1 |
| 6 | Washington Redskins | 3.95 | 2-1 | 56.6% | 16 | 5 | +8 |
| 5 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 4.04 | 2-1 | 72.1% | 12 | 8 | +2 |
| 4 | Kansas City Chiefs | 4.84 | 3-0 | 81.8% | 1 | 18 | 0 |
| 3 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 4.91 | 2-1 | 59.6% | 9 | 1 | +17 |
| 2 | New England Patriots | 4.96 | 2-1 | 75.4% | 2 | 32 | -1 |
| 1 | Denver Broncos | 5.01 | 2-1 | 62.0% | 13 | 7 | +1 |
No, the Jaguars are probably not actually the third-best team in the NFL, but they’ve certainly impressed. They rank first in Defensive NEP and while some of their rankings in terms of raw statistics are inflated by opponent (they played Tom Savage in Week 1 and a Flacco that has not been remotely "elite" since his improbable Super Bowl run), this is really a continuation of a strong showing in 2016.
Jacksonville is tied for first in yards allowed per play (4.2) and alone at the top in net yards per drop back (3.6) but was also third and fifth, respectively, in these areas last season. After years of stocking up on high draft picks, this unit looks poised to be truly scary for opponents.
At the same time, they probably should not get too comfortable with the top-10 ranking on offense. As good as Bortles looked Sunday (and he was one of the four most valuable quarterbacks of the week), his track record suggests this is not something that will continue.
Still, if Bortles can just be mediocre as opposed to the awful version of himself we saw in 2016, it will be hard to ignore the Jaguars.
Other teams of note here include Washington -- which moved into the top 10 after a big performance against the Raiders -- and Minnesota. Case Keenum, who was filling in for an injured Sam Bradford, turned out to be the single most valuable passer of the week, throwing for 369 yards and 3 scores while accumulating 28.71 Passing NEP in the Vikings’ 34-17 win over Tampa Bay.
The performance, combined with a solid effort from Minnesota's defense, moved them back into the top 10 after a one-week absence.
