2014 NFL Power Rankings: Week 18 ESPN.com

Week: Select Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Should the Patriots be penalized for losing a meaningless game? According to ESPN's Power Panel (a group of more than 80 writers, editors and TV personalities), yes.

New England fell to No. 2 after dropping Sunday's regular-season finale, giving Seattle the No. 1 spot and Power Rankings "title" for 2014. Green Bay finished at No. 3, with Denver at No. 4.

But enough about the Pats and other teams that have playoff byes. Of the eight teams playing in this weekend's wild-card round, who's best equipped to go on a run? Our voters are highest on the Cowboys (No. 5). The Steelers are No. 6, followed by the Lions (No. 7), Colts (No. 8), Bengals (No. 9), Cardinals (No. 10), Ravens (No. 11) and Panthers (No. 15).

The playoffs rarely go according to form, so there's good chance someone on this list will spring an upset. Are any of these teams Super Bowl material? Maybe, but after 17 weeks, our money's on Seattle and New England.

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