Craig: Week 13 Picks & Power Rankings

What would you rather do on a Sunday morning than wake up early and read weekly picks and power rankings involving 32 teams that basically are of equal strength and ability to beat, lose to or tie anyone on any given Sunday, Monday, Saturday, Thursday (and some day, when the revenue ceiling needs to be extended to a gazillion bazillion dollars, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday as well)?

CRAIG'S NFL POWER RANKINGS
BEST OF THE BUNCH
1. Patriots (9-2)
Why: The Packers are 5-0 at home, including a 53-20 rout of an Eagles team that's now 9-3. However, there's no other team in the league – the Denver Mannings included – like the Patriots when it comes consistency and the art of just doing what we all expect them to do once they make their September adjustments. Don't be surprised if the Brady-Rodgers matchup we're all hoping for gets turned into Bill Belichick abusing Green Bay's 30^th-ranked run defense.

THE REST

2. Packers (8-3); 3. Seahawks (8-4); 4. Broncos (8-3); 5. Cardinals (9-2); 6. Eagles (9-3); 7. Colts (7-4); 8. Ravens (7-4); 9. Cowboys (8-4); 10. Lions (8-4); 11. Browns (7-4); 12. Bengals (7-3-1); 13. 49ers (7-5); 14. Steelers (7-4); 15. Dolphins (6-5); 16. Chargers (7-4); 17. Bills (6-5); 18. Rams (4-7); 19. Texans (5-6); 20. Saints (4-7); 21. Bears (5-7); 22. Raiders (1-10); 23. Chiefs (7-4).

THE VIKINGS
24. Vikings 4-7 (Last week: 24): Vikings coach Mike Zimmer made sure to point out on Sunday and Monday that there are moral victories in the NFL. But that doesn't mean a team can't show some progress. Only an idiot wouldn't be able to see the differences between the Vikings' 42-10 loss to the Packers at Lambeau Field on Oct. 2 equal to last week's 24-21 loss to the Packers at TCF Bank Stadium. The Vikings were competitive against one of the best and hottest teams in the league last week. Teddy Bridgewater didn't play well enough to win, but showed the kind of perseverance that should convince us to observe a little more patience. And the defense failed against the run, but fought the Packers' scoring machine well enough to think that it's possible for Aaron Rodgers to actually be challenged when he plays the Vikings.

THE REST OF THE REST
25. Falcons (4-7); 26. Giants (3-8); 27. Buccaneers (2-9); 28. Redskins (3-8); 29. Panthers (3-7-1); 30. Titans (2-9); 31. Jaguars (1-10).

WORST OF THE BUNCH
32: Jets (2-9): First of all, congratulations to the Raiders for their temporary escape from the bottom three. The only rule here is you can't rank lower than the team you beat or higher than the team you lost to the week before. So that put the Raiders and their 1-10 record up to No. 22 and the Chiefs at No. 23. The Jets felt right as the Week 13 Worst of the Bunch winner. Having the mental weakness to follow up a win over the Steelers by going to Detroit to take a 38-3 pounding from the Bills was quite unimpressive.

THREE REASONS FOR VIKINGS FANS TO BE HOPEFUL

1, You don't have to call it a moral victory. But competing with the Packers and making them actually work for a 24-21 win is worth something considering where the two franchises currently stand. One is Super Bowl-ready with a great quarterback and a system that has been in place since 2006. The other is in Year 1 of rebuilding with an unproven quarterback and a new coaching staff.

2, Yeah, the Panthers are in a "playoff" race at 3-7-1. But they still haven't done squat in six weeks. They're 0-5 since tying the Bengals (and ruining some of our suicide knockout pools). Carolina doesn't run the ball particularly well or stop it particularly well. And today's projected high of 16 will be 20 degrees colder than anything Cam Newton has played in.

3, Jerick McKinnon won't play, but Joe Banyard showed last week that draft picks and big names aren't the only people who can run the ball effectively. Banyard touched the ball eight times. He had five of the team's 20 first downs and three of its five third-down conversions.

THREE REASONS FOR VIKINGS FANS TO BE NERVOUS

1, If Newton doesn't freeze and is healthy coming off a bye week, he definitely qualifies as the running quarterback the Vikings struggle with.

2, Greg Olsen leads the Panthers in receptions and has the size and athleticism to qualify as the pass-catching tight end the Vikings often struggle with.

3, Matt Kalil gets the bulk of the offensive line's criticism, whether it's smart fans or idiots who ambush him after games so they can get their 15 minutes in the idiot spotlight. But the bottom line is the offensive line as a unit just isn't good enough to win with. And it's not getting any better with right tackle Phil Loadholt on injured reserve and Mike Harris making his first start as a Viking. At this point, for anyone asking, the view from here is offensive line is the No. 1 priority heading into the offseason. Not sure what that means. If it's moving Kalil to guard and drafting a tackle, fine. If it's finding the best left guard high in the draft, fine. Whatever it is, the line needs fixed.

THE PICKS

VIKINGS
Panthers plus-2 ½ at Vikings. The pick: Vikings 27, Panthers 21.

Why?: Not that the Vikings were going to make the playoffs anyway, but the seventh loss can sometimes be the sign to let off the gas, try and stay healthy and look forward to next year. Unless, of course, you're in the NFC South, where seven losses on the eve of December is good enough for first place. The Vikings, however, don't feel like a team that's going to finish meekly. Not with a new coach who isn't going anywhere and won't stand for it and will get rid of players who quit on him. So the Vikings won't tank it. And they're coming off a solid performance against a very good team. And they're playing a team that's 0-5 over the past six weeks.

Last week: Packers minus-9 ½ at Vikings. The pick: Packers 37, Vikings 21. The final: Packers 24, Vikings 21. Vikings picks: 8-3.

UPSET SPECIAL

Bengals minus-3 ½ at Buccaneers. The pick: Buccaneers 27, Bengals 24.

Why?: If we're making a list of good teams we don't trust, the Lions and Bengals probably would finish 1 and 1a, or vice versa. Cincinnati is on the road and it's feels like the Bengals are due for one of those losses.

Last week: Cowboys minus-3 ½ at Giants. The pick: Giants 27, Cowboys 21. The final: Cowboys 31, Giants 28. Record: 4-8.

THE REST
Redskins plus-9 ½ at Colts: Colts by 7

Titans plus-7 at Texans: Texans by 10

Browns plus-3 at Bills: Bills by 6

Chargers plus-6 at Ravens: Ravens by 7

Giants minus-3 at Jaguars: Jaguars by 3

Raiders plus-7 at Rams: Rams by 10

Saints plus-4 ½ at Steelers: Steelers by 7

Cardinals minus-2 ½ at Falcons: Cardinals by 3

Patriots plus-3 at Packers: Patriots by 3

Broncos minus-2 at Chiefs: Chiefs by 7

Dolphins minus-7 at Jets: Dolphins by 10