There is no greater example of the volatility of the NFL than the Oakland Raiders. Just a few weeks ago, the Raiders were considered one of the best teams in the league. Week 16 rolled around and franchise quarterback Derek Carr fractured his fibula putting Oakland's title hopes in serious danger. Oakland still entered the final week of the season with a chance to secure the top AFC seed. By the end of the day, every possible worse-case scenario took place dropping the Raiders all the way down to fifth in the AFC. Instead of getting a week to rest, the Raiders will not only play but travel to Houston to take on the Texans. It is the Chiefs that wound up winning the AFC West as the Raiders faltered down the stretch. That being said, the Raiders are just one example of things not always going as expected. The Cowboys have questions of their own to answer as Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott play in their first NFL playoffs. After months of fighting for position, the NFL playoff matchups are finally set. The Patriots, Chiefs, Cowboys and Falcons all clinched a first round bye. They will wait to play the winners of Wild Card weekend. Teams like the Packers have gotten hot at just the right time as Aaron Rodgers is playing as well as any quarterback in the league. The Packers will host the Giants in one of the more intriguing upcoming matchups. The Seahawks host a Lions team that is backing into the playoffs. Pittsburgh will host Miami in the other AFC Wild Card game. Heavy explores these storylines and more in the playoff edition of our NFL power rankings. Click on the arrow on the right side of the above image to see our latest NFL power rankings. (Getty)
No. 10 Miami Dolphins
Record: 10-6
Last Week's Ranking: 6th
Last Game: Lost 35-14 to Patriots
Outlook: The season did not end the way the Dolphins would have liked, but had won three straight games before getting destroyed by the Patriots. Miami will go on the road to face the Steelers in Pittsburgh. The two teams have already squared off once this season and the Dolphins were victorious. It will be a much different experience this time around with a January playoff atmosphere in Pittsburgh. It will be Matt Moore leading the Dolphins from under center who replaced Ryan Tannehill after he went down with an injury. (Getty)
No. 9 Oakland Raiders
Record: 12-4
Last Week's Ranking: 3rd
Last Game: Lost 24-6 to Broncos
Outlook: No team in the playoffs had a worse weekend than the Raiders. Oakland entered the day with a chance to win the top seed in the AFC and ended the day with the fifth spot. Not only did the Raiders drop in the playoff standings, backup quarterback Matt McGloin injured his shoulder during the game. It remains to be seen whether McGloin can make the recovery in time to play on Saturday against the Texans. The good news for Raiders fans is they face a Houston team with quarterback problems of their own. Oakland still has a good chance to get the victory with the amount of talent on their roster. (Getty)
No. 8 Seattle Seahawks
Record: 10-5-1
Last Week's Ranking: 10th
Last Game: Won 25-23 Over 49ers
Outlook: Seattle survived against the 49ers but did not get any help from the Saints. The Seahawks needed the Falcons to lose to the Saints to get the second seed. Instead, the Seahawks are the three seed and will host the Lions on Wild Card weekend. The matchup to watch will be the Lions offense against the Seahawks defense. Seattle has been one of the most puzzling teams this season but have the experience that a deep playoff run would not be a huge surprise. However, with the way the Seahawks have been playing, it is no guarantee that they will win against the Lions even though they are playing at home. (Getty)
No. 7 New York Giants
Record: 11-5
Last Week's Ranking: 9th
Last Game: Won 19-10 Over Redskins
Outlook: After a surprising Week 16 loss to the Eagles, the Giants got back on track with a win over the Redskins eliminating them from playoff contention. Despite holding a better record, the Giants will go on the road to face the Packers at Lambeau Field since Green Bay won their division. The two teams played in Week 5 and the Packers won 23-16. It is not the matchup you want if you are a Giants fan with the way the Packers have been playing over the past month. However, if the Giants offense can play up to its potential New York will be in the game. (Getty)
No. 6 Pittsburgh Steelers
Record: 11-5
Last Week's Ranking: 8th
Last Game: Won 27-24 Over Browns
Outlook: The Steelers needed overtime against the Browns to come away with the victory. It has been a season of ups and downs for Pittsburgh. They now get to host a young Miami team in Pittsburgh on Wild Card weekend. Ben Roethlisberger has enough weapons on offense to keep teams on their heels. Miami defeated the Steeers 30-15 in Week 6. It will be a much different atmosphere at Pittsburgh during a playoff game than it was when the teams met at the beginning of the season. Pittsburgh will look for revenge when the two teams face off. (Getty)
No. 5 Atlanta Falcons
Record: 11-5
Last Week's Ranking: 6th
Last Game: Won 38-32 Over Saints
Outlook: The Falcons did what they needed to do to secure the two seed in the NFC and get a first round bye. While the score may look close, Atlanta was in control for the whole game. The Falcons offense is playing as well as any team in the league. A Seahawks victory against the Lions would send them to Atlanta to take on the Falcons in the Divisional Round. Matt Ryan threw for 4,613 yards, 34 touchdowns and just 7 interceptions in one of the best seasons of his career. If the Seahawks defeat the Lions, it would be the Seahawks great defense against the Falcons explosive offense. (Getty)
No. 4 Green Bay Packers
Record: 10-6
Last Week's Ranking: 4th
Last Game: Won 31-24 Over Lions
Outlook: With the way the Packers are playing, they could be the scariest team in the playoffs. The Packers have won six straight games after losing four straight games. Green Bay hosts the Giants on Wild Card weekend. The Packers won the initial matchup this season. Aaron Rodgers is playing as well as any quarterback in the league. If the Packers are able to win their opening round matchup, they would likely head to Dallas to take on the Cowboys for a rematch of the epic 2015 playoff matchup. First, they will have to get past a great Giants pass rush. (Getty)
No. 3 Kansas City Chiefs
Record: 12-4
Last Week's Ranking: 4th
Last Game: Won 37-27 over Chargers
Outlook: It was the perfect day for the Chiefs who won their final regular season game against the Chargers. Since the Raiders lost, Kansas City locked up the AFC West since they owned the tiebreaker after their season sweep of the Raiders. They get close to two weeks off before their Divisional Round matchup on January 15. While they could face any of the four teams playing this weekend, the Chiefs would play the Steelers if Pittsburgh wins against Miami. (Getty)
No. 2 Dallas Cowboys
Record: 13-3
Last Week's Ranking: 1st
Last Game: Lost 27-13 to Eagles
Outlook: Week 17 functioned as a preseason game for the Cowboys as they chose to rest their starters for the majority of the game. Dallas had already locked up the top seed and could not improve their seeding. The Cowboys will get next weekend off as they wait to see who they will face in the Divisional Round on January 15. The Packers, Giants and Lions are all possibilities. There is no doubt the Cowboys will be rooting for the Packers to take care of the Giants as New York has defeated the Cowboys two times this season. The rookie duo of Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott passed all the tests in the regular season, but the NFL playoffs are a much different animal. It will be interesting to see how Prescott is able to respond on the biggest stage. (Getty)
No. 1 New England Patriots
Record: 14-2
Last Week's Ranking: 2nd
Last Game: Won 35-14 Over Dolphins
Outlook: The Patriots have separated themselves from the pack as they move into the top spot in our rankings. New England wrapped up the top spot in the AFC and will have home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Patriots had no problem against a red-hot Dolphins team. Tom Brady has had one of the best seasons of his career, and it will take a special performance from a team to be able to knock them off in Foxborough. They have a little less than two weeks before they play again on January 14. With Brady in the lineup, New England only had one loss and looked near unbeatable aside from their loss to the Seahawks in Week 10.(Getty)
NFL Power Rankings Playoff Edition