'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
As we leave Week 13 behind, we look at the Super Bowl pretenders who have flattered to deceive. Now, to be very clear, we are not looking at losing teams who have no chance of making the playoffs. Rather, our focus is on those teams that at one point looked like they were going to go all the way. They had the personnel and were playing well, but recent form has shown them more to be Super Bowl pretenders than contenders.
This list of Super Bowl pretenders is dominated by the AFC, as more teams have had uneven seasons than in the NFC, where there are clear leaders in three of the four divisions. Only one team from the NFC finds a place on the list of Super Bowl pretenders.
Super Bowl Pretenders after Week 13
#1 - Buffalo Bills
Perhaps no team has failed to live up to its billing more than the aptly named Buffalo Bills. Before the season, they were among the favorites to win the Super Bowl, given they had reached the AFC championship last year. They had a wide open division to aim for, in which none of their rivals were especially formidable. They had a settled team and their defense was getting better.
Initially during the season they lived up to expectations, but in the last few weeks it has all gone downhill. They have slipped to a 7-5 record, and in Week 13 they lost to the New England Patriots 10-14. Right now, they are two games behind the Patriots and look more like Super Bowl pretenders.
#2 - Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens had the chance to take control of the AFC and they failed to do so in Week 13, allowing the New England Patriots to take a march on them. And the reason we are calling them Super Bowl pretenders is not only because of one loss this week, but because of their play over the past few weeks.
They lost to the Miami Dolphins three gamedays ago. Since then, they have won against the Chicago Bears and the Cleveland Browns by less than one touchdown score. This week they lost 20-19 to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who were not in the greatest of forms either. In their last four matches, the Ravens have not faced premier opposition even once, yet their offense has failed to hit 20 points in any of those games. Because of their faltering offense, they are more Super Bowl pretenders at this point than genuine contenders, despite leading the AFC North with an 8-4 record.
More Super Bowl pretenders after Week 13
#3 - Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are next up on our list of Super Bowl pretenders. There was a time earlier in the season when they were being touted as the real deal. They looked to be on their way to the AFC North title with those around them faltering, and were looking like the best team in the AFC with a 5-2 record after beating the Baltimore Ravens.
But since then, they have lost to the lowly New York Jets and have been blown out by both the Cleveland Browns and the Los Angeles Chargers, the latter coming this week. In both games, the defense allowed 41 points, and a team with such a leaky defense can only be classified among Super Bowl pretenders. Their current record stands at 7-5, and they have to improve significantly to be considered serious again.
#4 - Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams have been built to win. Matthew Stafford has been brought in, Odell Beckham Jr. has joined, Von Miller is in town and none of them combined have helped the Rams become anything other than Super Bowl pretenders. Earlier in the season, when they defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, there were high hopes that they would go on to win it all this season.
It might seem odd to put them on this list of Super Bowl pretenders considering they won in Week 13, but their last three wins have been against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Houston Texans and the Detroit Lions; the three most hapless teams in the NFL right now.
Every time they have come up against a genuine challenger, they have fallen short, their last three losses coming against the Tennessee Titans, the San Francisco 49ers and the Green Bay Packers. Their current record of 8-4 puts them behind the Arizona Cardinals, to whom they also lost earlier in the season.
#5 - Las Vegas Raiders
Finally, on this list of Super Bowl pretenders, we come to the Las Vegas Raiders. Las Vegas is the city of luck, but it does not seem to be rubbing off on the Raiders. They now have a 6-6 record in a season that began 5-2. Their only win was against the Dallas Cowboys in overtime in that intervening stretch.
They lost to the New York Giants, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Cincinnati Bengals and most recently to the Washington Football Team in Week 13. There are mitigating circumstances in losing Jon Gruden and Henry Ruggs in the middle of the season, but they cannot change the reality on the ground. While they might yet make the playoffs, they are firm Super Bowl pretenders at this point.
