2010 NFL Power Rankings: Week 13

Updated: December 1, 2010, 5:58 PM ET

2010 NFL Power Rankings: Week 13

Week:

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Three games dominate the Week 13 landscape. These divisional rematches will provide a litmus test for the top of the latest ESPN.com NFL Power Rankings.

The Atlanta Falcons retain the No. 1 spot, but they must visit their NFC South rivals, the No. 13 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. On Nov. 7, the host Falcons won the first meeting 27-21.

The No. 2 New England Patriots and No. 3 New York Jets will meet on ESPN's "Monday Night Football" to establish, for one week at least, AFC East supremacy. The host Patriots will try to avenge a 28-14 Week 2 loss.

On Sunday night, the No. 4 Baltimore Ravens will play host to the No. 5 Pittsburgh Steelers in an AFC North rematch of a Week 4 battle the Ravens won 17-14. Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (suspension) did not play in that game.

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Editor's note: "LW" indicates each team's ranking in the Week 12 edition of the 2010 Power Rankings.

2010 Power Rankings: Week 13
RANK	TEAM / RECORD	TRENDING	COMMENTS
1	Falcons 9-2	-- Last Week: 1	Another home game, another victory for the top team in our Power Rankings. (Sando)
2	Patriots 9-2	-- Last Week: 2	The Patriots enter their game against the Jets playing their best football. (Clayton)
3	Jets 9-2	1 Last Week: 4	Rex Ryan said the Jets were built to beat the Patriots. Even after doing it earlier this season, they must beat New England on Monday night to prove it. (Clayton)
4	Ravens 8-3	1 Last Week: 3	The Ravens have a chance to sweep the rival Steelers for the first time since 2006. (Walker)
5	Steelers 8-3	-- Last Week: 5	Sometimes the best defense is an opponent (Steve Johnson) who can't catch. (Walker)
6	Saints 8-3	2 Last Week: 8	The Saints keep winning while searching for that championship formula. (Sando)
7	Bears 8-3	5 Last Week: 12	Big win over Philadelphia proves Chicago is a legit threat in the NFC. (Walker)
8	Packers 7-4	1 Last Week: 7	The Packers are very good, but they're not elite. (Walker)
9	Eagles 7-4	3 Last Week: 6	Minus defensive backs Asante Samuel and Ellis Hobbs, the Eagles were vulnerable to Jay Cutler's Bears. (Clayton)
10	Giants 7-4	-- Last Week: 10	Down five offensive starters and top offensive line backup Shawn Andrews, the Giants stood tall with their victory over the Jaguars on Sunday. (Clayton)
11	Chargers 6-5	3 Last Week: 14	By beating the Colts, the Chargers made a strong move into the upper echelon. (Kuharsky)
12	Chiefs 7-4	1 Last Week: 13	The Chiefs will play host to Denver, then travel to San Diego in the next two weeks in games that will shape the division. (Kuharsky)
13	Buccaneers 7-4	2 Last Week: 11	There's no shame in losing a hard-fought game on the road against Baltimore. (Sando)
14	Colts 6-5	5 Last Week: 9	The offensive line issues really showed in a bad loss to San Diego. When will the Colts fix this? (Kuharsky)
15	Dolphins 6-5	4 Last Week: 19	Chad Henne had a courageous performance, coming back early from a knee injury to win for the coach who had benched him. (Clayton)
16	Jaguars 6-5	1 Last Week: 15	The Jaguars fell apart at the very end against the host Giants, undoing a good effort. (Kuharsky)
17	Texans 5-6	3 Last Week: 20	In blanking the Titans, the Texans did what a quality team should against a rookie quarterback. But Michael Vick awaits. (Kuharsky)
18	Rams 5-6	4 Last Week: 22	The Rams have to like their chances with Sam Bradford going against Derek Anderson. (Sando)
19	Titans 5-6	2 Last Week: 17	The Titans looked flat and uninspired, as they failed to move the ball or score against a Houston defense that has struggled.
20	Raiders 5-6	4 Last Week: 16	The Raiders won some believers before two consecutive losses. The one at home to Miami was bad. (Kuharsky)
21	Redskins 5-6	3 Last Week: 18	Now that the Redskins are reduced to Keiland Williams and James Davis as their only running backs, why don't they bring back Larry Johnson or some other veteran? (Clayton)
22	Seahawks 5-6	1 Last Week: 21	The drop-off from surprisingly competitive to roadkill happens quickly for this rebuilding team. (Sando)
23	Vikings 4-7	2 Last Week: 25	The "interim" coaching trend continues to be successful with Leslie Frazier. (Walker)
24	Browns 4-7	1 Last Week: 23	Cleveland is developing a reputation as a team that plays down to its competition. (Walker)
25	49ers 4-7	1 Last Week: 26	The 49ers are one game off the division lead with three NFC West games remaining. (Sando)
26	Cowboys 3-8	2 Last Week: 24	Roy Williams' fourth-quarter fumble, which cost the Cowboys a Thanksgiving Day game, will be the lasting memory of how this trade failed. (Clayton)
27	Bills 2-9	1 Last Week: 28	Bills receiver Steve Johnson, a quiet success story, won more fans for how he handled his emotional five-drop game against the Steelers. (Clayton)
28	Broncos 3-8	1 Last Week: 27	Which would be worse, Josh McDaniels knowing about the taped 49ers walk-through or not knowing about it? (Kuharsky)
29	Cardinals 3-8	-- Last Week: 29	Six consecutive defeats leave the Cardinals reeling like never before under Ken Whisenhunt. (Sando)
30	Bengals 2-9	-- Last Week: 30	The Bengals have been outscored 58-3 in the second half of the past two games. (Walker)
31	Lions 2-9	-- Last Week: 31	It's never good when players inside the Lions' locker room begin questioning their teammates' effort. (Walker)
32	Panthers 1-10	-- Last Week: 32	Expect the Panthers to run, run, run the ball against Seattle's struggling defense. (Sando)
Biggest Jump: 5 Biggest Drop: 5

Glossary

The rankings were determined by a poll of five voters on ESPN.com's NFL staff: writers John Clayton (AFC South), Ashley Fox (AFC West), Dan Graziano (NFC East, NFC North), Jamison Hensley (AFC East, AFC North), and Mike Sando (NFC South, NFC West).

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2010 NFL Power Rankings: Week 13

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