NFL Power Rankings: Rams back in top three before Championship Sunday; Broncos fall with Bo Nix out

This was the kind of performance that made you think the Seahawks are destined to win the Super Bowl. That obviously remains to be seen, but Sam Darnold and his injured oblique were not even asked to do that much, and Seattle still had a three-score lead by halftime. The 'Hawks dominated from the opening kickoff return, which allowed their pass rushers to torment Brock Purdy and the 49ers all game long. Kenneth Walker III looked fresh as a daisy, rushing for a season-high 116 yards and three touchdowns, though Seattle lost complementary back Zach Charbonnet to a torn ACL. On a more positive note, it appears Charles Cross (foot) avoided serious injury, with Mike Macdonald calling the left tackle day-to-day. All in all, the Seahawks clearly are the favorites right now, given the way they're playing, although they are about to face the one team that might be able to get them, if their first two showdowns with the Rams are any indication. The initial bout resulted in a two-point L.A. win, while the second showdown went Seattle's way on a two-point conversion in overtime. Buckle up for what could be a classic rubber match.

Though they were far from spectacular in their win over Houston, the Patriots nonetheless find themselves one game from the Super Bowl again. Their defensive performance on Sunday gets as much credit as (if not more credit than) the offensive effort, and now they are the favorites in the AFC title match vs. the Bo Nix-less Broncos. You can talk about the Pats' "easy" path, and it's worth mentioning the breaks they've caught in terms of their schedule and opponents' injuries; it's all accurate. This is not a juggernaut. Then again, neither was the Patriots squad that shocked the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI with Mike Vrabel as a player. Today, the coach and Drake Maye have turned this into a team that believes in itself. Amazingly, the pressure is squarely on the AFC upstarts, who are suddenly in line to face Denver backup Jarrett Stidham, a former New England second-stringer who threw 48 forgettable passes for the Pats back in the day. Maye and his pass protection have to be better than they were against the Texans, but this is now viewed as their game to win, even if it will take place in a stadium that has been historically wicked to New England. 

The Rams won a road playoff game in overtime despite their offensive-whiz coach and MVP front-runner quarterback having the kind of night that inspired them to deliver quotes like "I have to be better for our group, I will be better for our group" (Sean McVay) and "Obviously, I can be better" (Matthew Stafford). Still, Stafford hit on enough big throws when they counted, finishing the job after Los Angeles' defense made the key takeaway in overtime. And McVay finally turned to the run game, handing off 19 times in the fourth quarter and overtime after ignoring the ground attack for most of the first three quarters. Now, L.A. gets a chance at redemption after the painful loss at Seattle in Week 16, which tilted the NFC West and the conference's top seed in the Seahawks' direction. That game came down to just a few missed plays by the Rams, including Harrison Mevis' errant 48-yard field goal attempt late in the fourth quarter. It was his only miss so far this season, and his game-winner in Chicago set up the showdown that felt inevitable. The Rams might be underdogs, but they looked like the best team in football at one point this season, and they have a chance to be that again.

Bo Nix's broken ankle has to be one of the cruelest injuries in recent memory. Nix and the Broncos started hot in Saturday's game against the Bills, went into a lull, then engineered go-ahead and game-winning drives in the fourth quarter and overtime in a terrific showing. Sean Payton showed trust in his young quarterback, and Nix delivered. Now, with Nix done for the season, it'll be Jarrett Stidham, who hasn't attempted a regular-season pass in two years and who has never played in a playoff game before. And at center, Denver could be down to its third-stringer, depending on the health of Alex Forsyth, who suffered an ankle injury of his own. I can't wait for Payton to lay it on thick all week with the disrespect card, and I also can't wait to see what kind of offensive plan he cooks up against a Patriots defense that has come to play in two postseason games so far. It might take a special effort by Denver's defense, which has been very good all season, to beat Drake Maye, but it's an assignment this unit can carry out on its best pass-rush day.

This was supposed to be the season Josh Allen got it done, with Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow unable to hurt the Bills in the playoffs. Instead, it’s another season falling short of a Super Bowl title -- and it cost Sean McDermott his job. The Bills didn’t punt once in their overtime loss at Denver. Everything was either a touchdown, field goal or turnover. There were five of the latter, and only one turnover for the Broncos, which ultimately did Buffalo in. You can talk about non-catches and shaky penalties until you’re royal blue in the face, but the giveaways were killers. James Cook’s fumble was a huge early turning point, and Allen’s two fumbles led to six painful Denver points. The Bills rang up 449 yards of offense and went 10-for-15 on third downs, 1-for-1 on fourth down and 3-for-5 in the red zone -- and they still lost. The late flags were also hard to ignore. After only 15 penalty yards in the game’s first 54-plus minutes, the Bills drew four flags in the final six snaps of the game, costing them 53 yards. This was a game the Bills could have -- perhaps should have -- won, and that’s why Buffalo will have a new coach in 2026.

C.J. Stroud followed up his five-fumble game against the Steelers with a four-interception first half against the Patriots, and we’re left to wonder if the quarterback who looked so precocious as a rookie will ever return to that form. He’s played below that level in the two seasons since, reaching a new low with the two recent playoff games, and the timing couldn’t be worse. The summer following a first-round QB’s third campaign is typically when contract-extension talks begin. Is Houston ready to lock up Stroud at more than $45 million per year? That’s a big commitment for a quarterback seemingly going in the wrong direction. The Texans’ world-class defense gives them a shot to be title contenders, and Stroud can’t be blamed for the lack of offensive options, with all the injuries that hit late in the season and at New England. But Houston has to know that Stroud can reverse this trend before feeling too good about making a significant financial commitment at the game’s most important position.

The Bears couldn’t go down without giving the Solder Field crowd one more heart-stopper, with Caleb Williams slinging his fourth-down miracle to Cole Kmet. But their magic ran out in overtime with Williams’ third pick -- a play heavily dissected for DJ Moore’s route, too -- and not enough stops on defense. The Bears were clearly a flawed team, but also one brimming with self-belief and clutch playmaking ability, and they milked it to the last drop. There’s obviously a bright future in Chicago with Ben Johnson and Williams and the rest of the crew, but there’s also work needed to make this team a true Super Bowl contender. Chicago’s defense turned in a valiant effort in the Rams loss, but that’s the unit I would be seeking to upgrade first this offseason, even with a few lingering offensive issues. I can’t wait to see what the Bears do to try to address it, but I am also realistic about the idea that progress is rarely linear. That's very important context to keep in mind, especially for a team so wholly dependent on defensive takeaways and late-game heroics.

The season ended with a giant thud, with the last bollards collapsing under the weight of injuries and shortcomings against a superior Seahawks squad. We know about all the defensive losses the 49ers had suffered en route to the Divisional Round, and then the offense was served a dose of pain with George Kittle already out and Christian McCaffrey and Jake Tonges barely making it through the loss. Kyle Shanahan did nothing short of a masterful job with this team amid all the chaos. His job might not be any easier next season, with stellar DC Robert Saleh taking the Titans' head-coaching job, and the Niners have to figure out how to avoid the wave of injuries that seems to cripple them every year. Brock Purdy showed some stuff this season, but he naturally remains at his best with a strong group around him. With only decent salary cap space and limited draft resources, can San Francisco make enough foundational improvements to help the quarterback and team as a whole?