Who is the top team in the NFC West? Have the New England Patriots re-established dominance in the AFC East?
Those are the questions Colin Cowherd has answers to in the most recent edition of the “Herd Hierarchy.” Remember, Cowherd isn’t ranking teams based on what they’ve done lately or their record. Rather, it’s an encapsulation of where each team in the NFL stands, holistically, taking into consideration which opponents each team has beaten, how healthy they are and their ceiling for the rest of the year.
So, let’s take a look at Cowherd’s most recent top 10 heading into Week 18 of the NFL season.
Herd Hierarchy entering Week 18: Bears fall, Will the 49ers be on top? | The Herd
“They’ve trailed in each of their last nine games. Three of their losses have come to Philadelphia, the Texans and the Patriots. I don’t think they’re going to be able to beat top-end teams consistently. They can’t defend the run. They fall into holes. I don’t trust them situationally in big spots.”
Demeco Ryans and the Houston Texans have won eight straight games. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
“I do think the Texans could play for the AFC Championship. Eight-game winning streak, best fourth-quarter differential in the league. They wear you out physically, and can pull away in the final quarter… I like this team. I would not want to face this team in the playoffs.”
“They lead the NFL in big plays on offense, but they’ve given up the third most on defense. They don’t turn the ball over. They don’t take sacks nearly as much as last year. I think Caleb (Williams) has had a great season. I think Ben Johnson has an argument for Coach of the Year.
“Clinched their first AFC West title since 2015. They are 7-1 at home, and have been a great home team since Sean Payton arrived. They’re 12-1 at home the last two years at home, many of them close, come-from-behind wins in the fourth quarter. Teams that play them are 4-11 in the following week. That matters to me. What it says is, Denver beats you up physically.”
The Philadelphia Eagles are 8-3 when defensive lineman Jalen Carter is healthy. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
“Hard team to figure out. They are No. 1 in the red zone. And they’ve been the No. 1 scoring defense since they traded for linebacker Jaelan Phillips… Do you know [Jalen Hurts] is 7-0 against [Patrick] Mahomas, [Joe] Burrow, Lamar [Jackson], [Josh] Allen the last three years?”
“Don’t trust their special teams. Lost three of five. Have not been good in one-score games — all five losses in one-score games. And their defense, maybe it’s beat up, I don’t know, but it’s regressing … They’re very dependent on how Matthew Stafford plays.”
“Seven-game winning streak. During that streak, outscoring people by 17 points a game. Trevor Lawrence last five games, 109.7 passer rating. They’re for real … They’ve hammered good teams. They go on the road and win.”
3. New England Patriots
“Only team in the league (with a) top-five offense, top-five defense. Drake Maye is going to win the MVP and should. … They got a lockdown corner in Christian Gonzalez.”
Over the last three games, Brock Purdy has completed 74.2% of his passes for 893 yards and 11 touchdowns. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
“Six-game winning streak. Do they have a hole? Yeah. Opposing quarterbacks have a passer rating of 101. Caleb Williams had his best game as a pro. Robert Saleh has done a great job…But offensively, right now they’re on fire.”
“4-2 against winning teams. Sam Darnold is the winningest quarterback in the NFL in the last two years. Seattle may not be great at everything. They’re not bad at anything. They don’t have to have Darnold play great to win. They don’t need to have a bunch of sacks to win. They win at home. They win on the road.”
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