Review-Journal NFL rankings to end 2017 regular season

Las Vegas Review-Journal NFL reporter Gilbert Manzano’s weekly rankings to end the 2017 regular season, with last week’s ranking in parentheses.

1. Patriots 13-3 (1). Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are looking for ring No. 6.

2. Steelers 13-3 (2). The Steelers couldn’t get home field advantage over the Patriots. Will this be the year they beat their rival to get to the Super Bowl?

3. Vikings 13-3 (3). The Vikings could be the first team to play a home game in the Super Bowl.

4. Rams 11-5 (4). Jared Goff and Todd Gurley will make their first playoff appearances.

5. Saints 11-5 (5). Let’s see if “Boom and Zoom” will carry the Saints out of the first round.

6. Chiefs 10-6 (8). Kansas City ended the regular season on a four-game winning streak.

7. Falcons 10-6 (11). Atlanta earned a shot to defend its NFC title after taking the final playoff spot.

8. Panthers 11-5 (6). Carolina lost to the Saints twice during the regular season. They meet again in New Orleans for the wild-card round.

9. Eagles 13-3 (7). A lot of room on the Eagles’ bandwagon after another poor performance from Nick Foles.

10. Jaguars 10-6 (10). Blake Bortles is back to missing throws. Which Bortles will show up for the playoffs?

11. Seahawks 9-7 (9). Was 2017 the end of the Legion of Boom era?

12. Bills 9-7 (16). Buffalo, rejoice! The Bills’ 17-year playoff drought is over.

13. Chargers 9-7 (13). The Chargers never made it out of their 0-4 hole to start the season.

14. Titans 9-7 (15). The Titans don’t feel like a playoff team, but they made it for the first time since 2008.

15. Ravens 9-7 (12). The Ravens couldn’t beat the lowly Bengals to punch a ticket into the postseason. That loss is going to sting all offseason.

16. Cowboys 9-7 (14). The Cowboys’ season ended when Ezekiel Elliott started his six-game suspension.

17. 49ers 6-10 (19). Jimmy Garoppolo still hasn’t lost a game. The Niners could be a playoff team in 2018.

18. Lions 9-7 (17). Jim Caldwell is on his way out, but will the Lions finally give Matthew Stafford a running game?

19. Cardinals 8-8 (21). Arizona needs a coach and quarterback after Bruce Arians and Carson Palmer announced their retirements.

20. Redskins 7-9 (20). Let the Kirk Cousins sweepstakes begin.

21. Packers 7-9 (18). Aaron Rodgers covered the Packers’ holes for years. It was noticeable after Rodgers went down and it cost Ted Thompson his job.

22. Bengals 7-9 (24). One week Marvin Lewis is quitting and the next he’s getting a two-year extension. OK, Cincy.

23. Raiders 6-10 (22). Going to miss Gruden’s Grinders on Monday nights. Chucky appears headed to Oakland.

24. Dolphins 6-10 (23). Do the Dolphins go back to Ryan Tannehill or look elsewhere?

25. Broncos 5-11 (25). John Elway gave Vance Joseph another shot after the Broncos endured one of their worst seasons in franchise history.

26. Jets 5-11 (26). Full speed ahead for the Jets’ quarterback search.

27. Buccaneers 5-11 (29). Dirk Koetter and Jameis Winston will give it another go in 2018.

28. Texans 4-12 (27). The Texans were one quarterback injury away from calling rapper “Quavo” to play under center.

29. Bears 5-11 (28). John Fox got fired, but somehow Ryan Pace got an extension. What has the Bears general manager done right in the past three years?

30. Colts 4-12 (30). Questions about Andrew Luck’s injury could affect the team’s coaching search.

31. Giants 3-13 (31). Let the rebuild begin now that the Giants have hired a general manager.

32. Browns 0-16 (32). The Browns accomplished something this season … a winless year.

Contact Gilbert Manzano at gmanzano@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GManzano24 on Twitter.