A bit of a consensus is forming in national NFL power rankings entering Week 13. The Los Angeles Rams are the top dog, No. 1 team, and the Green Bay Packers are among the many flawed but contender status teams chasing the Rams at the top.
After dominating the Minnesota Vikings using the run game and defense on Sunday at Lambeau Field, the Packers moved up in all seven power rankings reviewed and are now firmly placed inside the top 10 teams.
But everyone can see it: the gauntlet is coming for the Packers. The last six games will feature four games against current division leaders, including a pair of games against the upstart Chicago Bears and a pair of tough games against AFC heavyweights. The difficult path ahead begins Thursday in Detroit against the defending division champion Lions on Thanksgiving Day.
Can Matt LaFleur’s team get hot and go on a run against a difficult stretch to end 2025?
Here’s where the Packers stand in NFL power rankings after beating the Vikings in Week 12:
USA Today
Week 13 ranking: No. 5 (up 2 spots)
From Nate Davis: “A seven-week stretch with five games against NFC North foes − including all three away dates − rolls on Thursday in Motown, hopefully with RB Josh Jacobs back in the lineup.”
ESPN
Week 13 ranking: No. 7 (up 4 spots)
From Rob Demovsky on best Thanksgiving memory: “With an apology to history — the 1962 game against the Lions might be the most significant even though it was the Packers’ only loss in a championship season — recency bias gives the nod to this game. The Packers were 8.5-point underdogs yet pulled off a 29-22 win. The Packers opened the game with a 53-yard pass from Jordan Love to Christian Watson, and the victory helped turn around Love’s first season as the starter. It was part of a closing stretch in which the Packers went 6-2 to make the playoffs after starting 3-6.”
The Athletic
Week 13 ranking: No. 7 (up 3 spots)
From The Athletic: “In the three games since Tucker Kraft suffered a season-ending injury, the Packers have yet to put up 300 yards of offense in a game. They’re still 2-1 in those three because their defense is very good, but they’re going to need more from Jordan Love and a passing offense that hasn’t eclipsed 170 yards since Week 9.”
CBS Sports
Week 13 ranking: No. 7 (up 1 spot)
From Pete Prisco: “The defense was dominant in the victory over the Vikings, but now they have to carry that over to a tough road game against the Lions. The offense still isn’t clicking the way it should be yet.”
SI/MMQB
Week 13 ranking: No. 10 (up 1 spot)
From Connor Orr: “A great pickup here from Yahoo analyst Nate Tice. Jordan Love was handing the ball off with his off-hand all afternoon against a toothy Brian Flores defense to keep his separated shoulder from aggravating. This, in addition to the success of Emanuel Wilson shows just how capable this roster is of weathering the big storms.”
The Ringer
Week 13 ranking: No. 8 (up 2 spots)
From Diante Lee: “If this team has an extra gear, now would be the time to kick into it.”
Yahoo Sports
Week 13 ranking: No. 7 (up 2 spots)
From Frank Schwab: “The Packers’ defense looked great against the Vikings, though any defense might look good against J.J. McCarthy. Micah Parsons picked up two more sacks to get him to 10 this season, which would be getting more attention if Myles Garrett wasn’t having an all-time great season in Cleveland.”
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers among many teams chasing Rams in NFL power rankings entering Week 13
Reporting by Zach Kruse, Packers Wire / Packers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
