Our NFL Team Rankings are based entirely on the The Trench Counter, which is an objective formula measuring average yards per pass and run on both offense and defense, along with first downs registered and given up, turnovers for and against, and total penalty yards. 

Over time, The Trench Counter rankings begin to closely resemble the standings but goes even further to determine which teams are truly the best when on the line of scrimmage. 

The chief aim of the Trench Counter is to take the subjective out of the equation and even the somewhat fluky nature of teams actually scoring points, which is of course the whole point on a game-by-game basis.

- Playoff teams in bold.

Final Rankings After Week 17

1. Arizona Cardinals: 11.4
2. Carolina Panthers: 8.4
3. Seattle Seahawks: 7.3
4. Pittsburgh Steelers: 6.3
5. New York Jets: 5.4
6. Cincinnati Bengals: 5.2
7. New England Patriots: 4.8
8. Kansas City Chiefs: 4.4
9. Houston Texans: 2.3
10. Denver Broncos: 2.0
11. Minnesota Vikings: 1.5
12. Green Bay Packers: 1.0
13. New York Giants: 0.1
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: -0.3
15. Buffalo Bills: -0.5
16. Washington: -0.8
17. St. Louis Rams: -1.8
18. Philadelphia Eagles: -2.0
19. Oakland Raiders: -2.0
20. Atlanta Falcons: -2.1
21. Chicago Bears: -2.4
22. Detroit Lions: -2.5
23. Jacksonville Jaguars: -2.6
24. San Diego Chargers: -2.9
25. Indianapolis Colts: -3.0
26. Dallas Cowboys: -3.7
27. Tennessee Titans: -4.3
28. Miami Dolphins: -4.8
29. New Orleans Saints: -5.2
30. Baltimore Ravens: -5.8
31. San Francisco 49ers: -6.4
32. Cleveland Browns: -7.0