Ballot and comments from AP Pro 32 panel voter Bob Glauber of Newsday:
Week 18
BOB GLAUBER (Newsday)
1. Denver Broncos - Peyton Manning makes his pitch for a fifth MVP and
Denver is in the driver's seat for the Super Bowl. About as perfect as
John Elway could have imagined when he signed Peyton on the dotted
line.
2. Atlanta Falcons - And now we find out the only thing left to know
about these Falcons: Are they finally ready to make a meaningful
playoff run after an 0-3 record in the Mike Smith-Matt Ryan era?
3. Seattle Seahawks - That's Pete Carroll's best coaching job at any
level. Just masterful work with a young team led by a rookie
quarterback.
4. San Francisco 49ers - Colin Kaepernick did about as well as anyone
could have asked. But the stakes get higher now. It's Super Bowl or
bust. Earning the bye week could be the difference.
5. New England Patriots - The Patriots sent the Texans into their
late-season tailspin and take advantage by getting the No. 2 seed and
the all-important playoff bye. A sixth Super Bowl appearance for
Brady-Belichick?
6. Green Bay Packers - Terrifically entertaining game against
Minnesota, even if the Packers lost. It'll all be forgotten if Green
Bay wins the rematch in the wild card round.
7. Washington Redskins - We knew RG3 would be special. But Alfred
Morris? The sixth-round sensation sets the single-season franchise
record for rushing yards and finishes it off with a flourish in a
winner-take-all against Dallas. Brilliantly done.
8. Minnesota Vikings - Adrian Peterson with one of the greatest
comebacks ever, and nearly breaks Eric Dickerson's record on the way
to clinching a playoff berth for the Vikes. A mind-boggling season
after ACL surgery.
9. Indianapolis Colts - The feel-good story of the year feels even
better after Chuck Pagano returns and leads his Colts to victory in
his first game back. #chuckstrong
10. Houston Texans - Just a stunning fall from grace with three losses
in their last four. Plenty of doubts about Matt Schaub heading into
the playoffs. Are the Texans one-and-done?
11. Baltimore Ravens - John Harbaugh backs off some key players in the
meaningless regular season finale, all in hopes of freshening up for a
playoff run that starts against the Colts.
12. Cincinnati Bengals - Marvin Lewis plays to win on the final
weekend, hoping some momentum heading into the playoffs will make
things turn out better this time around.
13. Chicago Bears - Lovie Smith is still the Bears' coach if the
Packers beat the Vikings. His run ends in Chicago after a 10-6 season.
Now the heat's on GM Phil Emery.
14. New York Giants - Giants play like champions in season-ending romp
over the Iggles. Too late. No chance for first Super Bowl repeat in
franchise history, thanks to four road losses since Nov. 11.
15. Carolina Panthers - Plenty to like about the second half of the
season. Now we'll see if it's enough for Ron Rivera to get another
chance in 2013.
16. New Orleans Saints - Saints finally get some good news with the
contract extension of suspended coach Sean Payton. He can't get back
soon enough. Plenty of work ahead, especially on defense.
17. Dallas Cowboys - Tony "Turnover" Romo strikes again. His three
picks against the Redskins matched his interceptions total from his
previous eight games. More questions heading into a second straight
off-season after losing out on the division the final game of the
season.
18. Pittsburgh Steelers - Stillers avoid first losing season in a
decade, but that's small consolation for missing out on the playoffs.
Time to re-tool the offensive line and get younger on defense.
19. St. Louis Rams - Plenty of optimism after a much-improved season
under first-year head coach Jeff Fisher. Another step forward in 2013,
and Sam Bradford gets to the playoffs.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Legitimate questions persist about Josh
Freeman, but at least there was improvement until another late-season
skid.
21. Miami Dolphins - Ryan Tannehill shows enough in a mostly promising
rookie season to provide hope for the future.
22. San Diego Chargers - The Norv Turner-A.J. Smith is done after
another season of disappointment. Don't expect an immediate turnaround
from the next coach-GM combo. Still plenty of holes on the roster and
plenty of questions about Philip Rivers.
23. Buffalo Bills - Chan Gailey is out after three seasons, and
another coach search is on. Quarterback search, too.
24. Tennessee Titans - Mike Munchak gets a reprieve from team owner
Bud Adams, but he could be in the same spot next year unless Jake
Locker takes a big step forward.
25. Arizona Cardinals - The Bidwills clean house after a disastrous
season. Is Andy Reid the man to right the ship? And if so, will he
trust Kevin Kolb to be his quarterback?
26. Cleveland Browns - Pat Shurmur didn't stand a chance with new
owner Jimmy Haslam.
27. Detroit Lions - Jim Schwartz goes from the playoffs one year to
the coaching hot seat the next. Put him near the top of the list
heading into 2013.
28. Philadelphia Eagles - The curtain comes down on the Andy Reid era,
and now Jeff Lurie finds a coach for the first time since 1999. Does
he go high profile with Chip Kelly or Jon Gruden? Or pluck another
coach out of obscurity like he did with Reid, a former quarterbacks
coach?
29. New York Jets - Mike Tannenbaum takes the fall for the Jets' 6-10
season. Will Rex Ryan be next? Depends on Woody Johnson's next GM.
30. Oakland Raiders - Questions at quarterback and on defense. Same
old same old for a Raiders team heading into the off-season after
another losing record.
31. Jacksonville Jaguars - Shad Khan is looking for a new GM and a new
quarterback. Looks like Tim Tebow will be one of them.
32. Kansas City Chiefs - Too bad there isn't another Andrew Luck or
RG3 to take with the first overall pick this time around.
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