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In four of the NFL power rankings we regularly check, writers nudged the Kansas City Chiefs up a little following their blowout win over the Oakland Raiders; the rest were unchanged from Week 13. Meanwhile, the New England Patriots took a serious fall in quite a few of the rankings after their 28-22 loss to the Houston Texans — almost as if the writers were just waiting for the Patriots to stumble! Next week’s power rankings should be quite interesting.
Here’s what we saw in Week 14:
NFL.com: 8
(unchanged from 8)
What a strange blowout win for the Chiefs. It was quite possibly the weirdest 40-burger in NFL history. Kansas City won, 40-9, on a day where Patrick Mahomes threw for just 175 yards, leading rusher Darwin Thompson managed just 44 yards and the Raiders outgained the Chiefs in total yardage, 332-259. Figuring out the blowout was more like piecing together a puzzle. Juan Thornhill had a pick-six. The Chiefs turned the Raiders’ lone PAT try into a blocked kick return for two points (39 and 40). And the Raiders had three turnovers and 12 penalties for 99 yards while the Chiefs went turnover- and penalty-free. The win essentially locks up the AFC West for the Chiefs, who have a two-game lead and the tiebreaker on the second-place Raiders. Up next: A huge showdown with the Patriots at Foxborough. A first-round bye could be at stake. — Dan Hanzus
ESPN: 6
(up from 8)
Who’s under fire: Andy Reid, head coach
Reid isn’t going to get fired for playoff failure, but the Chiefs have been waiting 50 years to get back to the Super Bowl. The AFC playoff field looks as though it will be filled with dangerous opponents in a one-and-done setting, but the Chiefs are talented enough to make a deep run. It’s Reid’s job to navigate them past the likes of the Texans, Patriots and Ravens. — Adam Teicher
Sports Illustrated MMQB: 5
(unchanged from 5)
That was a Chiefs-style blowout we haven’t seen since the kneecap game Week 7 against the Broncos. 40 points is an impressive output for a team that only totaled 259 yards of offense, but a pick-six from Juan Thornhill, efficiency on third down (7-of-11) and in the red zone (4-of-5) and zero K.C. penalties to the Raiders’ 12 helped widen the gap.
CBSSports.com: 10
(unchanged from 10)
They basically locked up the division beating the Raiders. The defense is showing big-time improvement by the week. — Pete Prisco
Yahoo! Sports: 6
(up from 7)
Next week’s matchup between the Chiefs offense and Patriots defense is fascinating. In the past two games, Patrick Mahomes has just 357 yards and two touchdowns, numbers that he routinely flew past in most games during his MVP season. But the Chiefs won both of their last two games. To win Sunday they’ll need a vintage Mahomes performance. — Frank Schawb
The Sporting News: 9
(unchanged from 9)
The Chiefs returned from a bye with a healthier Patrick Mahomes, and there was a lot less pressure on the QB with Kansas City’s running game continuing to churn out key yards. The defense is starting to make monster plays against the pass, too, developments that are well-timed for their shot at the Patriots in Week 14. — Vinnie Iyer
USA Today: 8
(unchanged from 8)
Promising sign with defense rounding into what could be winning form after generating seven takeaways and surrendering just 26 points last two games. — Nate Davis
The Washington Post: 6
(up from 7)
Few people are talking these days about Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. But Mahomes has 20 touchdown passes and only two interceptions for the season, and the Chiefs are playing well entering Sunday’s game at New England. — Mark Maske
Mile High Report: 3
(up from 5)
Patrick Mahomes looks like his old self and the defense is closer to average than abysmal. Nasty combination come January. — Just_JoRo
Bleeding Green Nation: 6
(unchanged from 6)
Surprise, surprise. Andy Reid’s Chiefs followed their bye week with a win. Who could’ve guessed? — Brandon Lee Gowton