NFL Week 17 Power Rankings 2023: How all 32 teams stack up

Welcome to Week 17 of the 2023 NFL season. A few exciting games over the holidays made an impact on playoff inspirations and the top 10 teams in this week’s rankings.

In addition to the updated rankings this week, our NFL Nation reporters name the rookie of the year for every team. We’ve seen some outstanding first-year performances this season, from No. 2 overall pick C.J. Stroud to Rams fifth-round pick Puka Nacua. Which 32 rookies stood out beyond the rest?

This week we are starting with a new team, as the Baltimore Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers on Monday night and are now our No. 1 squad.

Our power panel of more than 80 writers, editors and TV personalities evaluates how NFL teams stack up against one another, ranking them from 1 to 32.

Previous rankings: Preseason | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16

Jump to a team:
ARI | ATL | BAL | BUF | CAR | CHI | CIN
CLE | DAL | DEN | DET | GB | HOU | IND
JAX | KC | LAC | LAR | LV | MIA | MIN
NE | NO | NYG | NYJ | PHI | PIT | SF
SEA | TB | TEN | WSH

Week 16 ranking: 2

Best rookie: WR Zay Flowers

Flowers has become Lamar Jackson’s go-to target, especially after tight end Mark Andrews went down with a significant ankle injury. The rookie not only leads Baltimore in receptions (74) and receiving yards (752) but he is doing so by a large margin. No other Ravens player has more than 45 catches and 550 yards. Baltimore has had a history of not hitting on wide receivers in the first round. But Flowers looks like he will be the best wide receiver ever drafted by the Ravens. He’s already obliterated the Ravens’ rookie reception mark, and he needs 89 yards to surpass Torrey Smith for the rookie receiving yard record. — Jamison Hensley

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Week 16 ranking: 1

Best rookie: S Ji’Ayir Brown

A season-ending injury to starting safety Talanoa Hufanga in November thrust Brown into the starting lineup and made him the only Niners rookie not named Jake Moody to step into a pivotal role. There were a couple of early hiccups, but Brown has gotten better by the week and his lack of experience is rarely evident. For the year, Brown has 35 tackles and a pair of interceptions. A strong finish should position him well to become a full-time starter at one of the safety spots in 2024. — Nick Wagoner

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Week 16 ranking: 4

Best rookie: RB De’Von Achane

It’s a small group to choose from — the Dolphins only selected four players in the 2023 draft — but Achane is clearly the pick here. The third-rounder exploded with 518 total yards and 7 total touchdowns during a three-game stretch early this season, but a knee injury landed him on injured reserve for five weeks. He has operated as Miami’s change of pace back but is a threat to hit 100 scrimmage anytime he suits up. His durability is a bit of a concern, but he remains one of the most explosive backs in the NFL, regardless of experience. — Marcel Louis-Jacques

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Week 16 ranking: 6

Best rookie: TE Sam LaPorta

Straight out of the gate, LaPorta has been consistent and a safety net for Lions quarterback Jared Goff. Detroit’s second-round pick is enjoying one of the greatest seasons in NFL history for a rookie tight end. He tied the single-game record by a rookie TE with three receiving touchdowns in the Week 15 win over Denver. Also, his nine receiving touchdowns this season are tied for the third most by a rookie TE in NFL history. However, this isn’t an easy choice with fellow rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs coming on strong as of late and his usage increasing. The Lions are the second team in league history to have multiple rookies record at least nine touchdowns in a single season, and the first since 1960. — Eric Woodyard

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Week 16 ranking: 5

Best rookie: DT Jalen Carter

Carter started the season on fire, racking up 3.5 sacks and 25 pressures over his first five games. Corner Darius Slay called him «Mr. Unblockable» at the height of that stretch. Carter, the ninth overall pick, has had some splash plays since — most notably, a fumble return for a touchdown against the Cowboys in Week 14 — but his production overall has slowed, as he’s registered one sack and one QB hit in the last six games. His playing time has dipped as well. Still, Carter remains a Rookie Defensive Player of the Year candidate and has had a strong rookie season overall. — Tim McManus

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Week 16 ranking: 3

Best rookie: K Brandon Aubrey

The only answer is Aubrey, who is a rookie despite his different path to the NFL from MLS and the USFL. He has set an NFL record with 33 consecutive made field goals to start a career. He has set an NFL record for most touchbacks in a season with 90. His only misses have been three extra points. His 141 points are the most ever by a Cowboys kicker. All that said, the Cowboys wish they had more production from their top two picks, Mazi Smith and Luke Schoonmaker, to make this somewhat of a discussion. — Todd Archer

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Week 16 ranking: 8

Best rookie: G O’Cyrus Torrence

Really, this should be shared between Torrence and tight end Dalton Kincaid, but because offensive linemen often unfairly don’t receive the spotlight of other positions, we’ll go with Torrence here. The second-round pick has been part of a consistent offensive line that has seen all five starters start every game this season. The Bills trusted Torrence to start from the jump at right guard, and he’s played well with the second-best pass block win rate among rookies (92.6%) and the third-fewest sacks attributed among rookie offensive linemen that have played at least 700 snaps. — Alaina Getzenberg

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Week 16 ranking: 7

Best rookie: WR Rashee Rice

Rice, a second-round draft pick, has dominated the Chiefs’ wide receivers in terms of production. His 74 catches are more than twice the total for their next highest wide out. He is also second on the Chiefs in touchdowns with seven. The Chiefs have increasingly turned to Rice in big situations as the season has progressed. Rice is the easy choice here as none of their other rookies have had much of an impact. — Adam Teicher

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Week 16 ranking: 9

Best rookie: OT Dawand Jones

Jones was having an all-rookie-caliber year before undergoing season-ending knee surgery earlier this month. Jones, a fourth-round pick out of Ohio State, stepped into the starting lineup at right tackle in Week 2, following Jack Conklin’s season-ending knee injury in the opener. Jones was solid all year with a pass block win rate (86.8%) and run block win rate (74.5%). Jones looks like a long-term future Browns bookend. — Jake Trotter

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Week 16 ranking: 15

Best rookie: OLB YaYa Diaby

The third-round draft pick’s 6.5 sacks are tied for the league lead among all rookies and are the most on his team. Diaby leads all rookies in fumble recoveries (two) and has registered a forced fumble. Coach Todd Bowles said, «When we drafted him, the biggest thing for me was that he was a shutdown run defender and he could close off the edge … We knew he was very athletic and once we saw him when he got in and we saw the [pass rush] movements, we said, ‘This guy has a chance to be a very good football player.'» — Jenna Laine

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Week 16 ranking: 14

Best rookie: WR Puka Nacua

Nacua is one of the best rookies in the NFL this year and could be the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year. The fifth-round pick is the Rams’ leading receiver this season, and his 1,327 receiving yards are the fifth most by a rookie in NFL history, according to ESPN Stats & Information. He needs 147 receiving yards over the Rams’ final two games to break the rookie receiving record, one that’s stood since 1960. — Sarah Barshop

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Week 16 ranking: 16

Best rookie: WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Three weeks ago, this would’ve been an easy call in favor of cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who’s been among the leading candidates for Defensive Rookie of the Year. But the fifth overall pick has since missed most of the last three games (hip pointer) while Smith-Njigba has continued to come up big. The 20th overall pick made the winning touchdown catch against Philadelphia in Week 15 to become the only rookie since 1960 with two such scores in the final minute of the fourth quarter, per Elias Sports Bureau. A week later, he caught six passes for 61 yards vs. Tennessee, including a third-and-14 conversion on their winning drive. — Brady Henderson

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Week 16 ranking: 12

Best rookie: QB C.J. Stroud

Entering Week 14, the No. 2 overall pick led the NFL in passing yards before he suffered a concussion against the New York Jets. He has been sidelined for the last two games as a result. It has yet to be determined if Stroud will clear their concussion protocol and play in a pivotal Week 17 game against the Tennessee Titans, but the Texans are in playoff contention because of how well Stroud played throughout the season. He has 20 passing touchdowns, a 54.7 QBR and a 62.4% completion percentage on the season. — DJ Bien-Aime

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Week 16 ranking: 11

Best rookie: RT Anton Harrison

Harrison ranks fifth among rookie tackles with a 78.8% pass block win rate and only one rookie tackle (Chicago’s Darnell Wright) has played more snaps. Harrison’s pass block win rate is second best on the team behind only left tackle Walker Little (81%). — Michael DiRocco

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