This week, we bring you the final NFL.com Power Poll of the 2011 season. No surprises at the top, where the New York Giants are the cream of the crop and the New England Patriots are runners-up.
That much was unanimous.
But the real debate begins at No. 3, where -- based on their remarkable 15-1 regular season -- the Green Bay Packers edged out two teams that advanced further in the postseason, the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers.
The Giants made the biggest jump in the rankings: In the previous Power Poll, taken just after the regular season concluded, the Giants were No. 7. Conversely, the New Orleans Saints dropped from No. 2 to No. 6.
At the bottom, the Indianapolis Colts took the "honors," with the St. Louis Rams finishing an inglorious 31st. The Colts also claimed the most last-place votes, with five to the Rams' three. Those teams tied for the NFL's worst record at 2-14, and barring a trade will pick No. 1 and No. 2 in April's NFL Draft.
One panelist, however, voted for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the NFL's worst team in 2011. The Bucs finished 4-12, but lost their final 10 games.
Disagree with NFL.com's final Power Poll of the 2011 season? Take a shot at ranking all 32 teams right here.
NFL.com Power Poll | ||||||
| Teams ranked Nos. 1 through 32, as voted on by a panel of nine NFL.com and NFL Network experts. Total points based on 32 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 32nd-place vote. | ||||||
| Rank | Previous | Team | W-L | First-place votes | Last-place votes | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | New York Giants | 13-7 | 9 | - | 288 |
| 2 | 3 | New England Patriots | 15-4 | - | - | 279 |
| 3 | 1 | Green Bay Packers | 15-2 | - | - | 263 |
| 4 | 4t | San Francisco 49ers | 14-4 | - | - | 259 |
| 5 | 4t | Baltimore Ravens | 13-5 | - | - | 254 |
| 6 | 2 | New Orleans Saints | 14-4 | - | - | 249 |
| 7 | 6 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 12-5 | - | - | 226 |
| 8 | 11 | Houston Texans | 11-7 | - | - | 223 |
| 9 | 9 | Detroit Lions | 10-7 | - | - | 219 |
| 10 | 8 | Atlanta Falcons | 10-7 | - | - | 206 |
| 11 | 10 | Cincinnati Bengals | 9-8 | - | - | 198 |
| 12 | 13 | Denver Broncos | 9-9 | - | - | 195 |
| 13 | 12 | Philadelphia Eagles | 8-8 | - | - | 172 |
| 14 | 14 | Dallas Cowboys | 8-8 | - | - | 171 |
| 15 | 16 | Tennessee Titans | 9-7 | - | - | 155 |
| 16 | 15 | San Diego Chargers | 8-8 | - | - | 142 |
| 17 | 20 | New York Jets | 8-8 | - | - | 141 |
| 18 | 17t | Oakland Raiders | 8-8 | - | - | 137 |
| 19 | 17t | Arizona Cardinals | 8-8 | - | - | 124 |
| 20 | 21 | Seattle Seahawks | 7-9 | - | - | 121 |
| 21 | 24 | Chicago Bears | 8-8 | - | - | 115 |
| 22 | 22 | Kansas City Chiefs | 7-9 | - | - | 95 |
| 23 | 19 | Miami Dolphins | 6-10 | - | - | 93 |
| 24 | 23 | Carolina Panthers | 6-10 | - | - | 89 |
| 25 | 25 | Buffalo Bills | 6-10 | - | - | 75 |
| 26 | 26t | Washington Redskins | 5-11 | - | - | 63 |
| 27 | 26t | Jacksonville Jaguars | 5-11 | - | - | 58 |
| 28 | 29 | Cleveland Browns | 4-12 | - | - | 48 |
| 29 | 30 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4-12 | - | 1 | 33 |
| 30 | 28 | Minnesota Vikings | 3-13 | - | - | 31 |
| 31 | 31 | St. Louis Rams | 2-14 | - | 3 | 17 |
| 32 | 32 | Indianapolis Colts | 2-14 | - | 5 | 13 |
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