Week 14 power rankings: Rams no longer the best team in the NFL

The Los Angeles Rams went from easily the No. 1 team in the NFL heading into Week 13 to possibly, maybe, likely among the top contenders in the league heading into Week 14. That's how much their loss to the Carolina Panthers hurt.

L.A. gave up sole possession of both the No. 1 seed in the NFC as well as the top spot in the NFC West with their first loss in seven games. Luckily, the season isn't over yet and there are still five more games to play before the playoff picture is officially set.

Next up: A divisional match with the Arizona Cardinals. The Rams have a great opportunity to right the ship and get back on the winning side of things in the final month of the season.

Most experts gave the Rams some grace despite the loss. L.A. still ranked inside the top-5 of the power rankings we collected from other media sites, and a few even kept the Rams at the top spot.

Here is a roundup of power rankings heading into Week 14 from around the NFL.

USA Today Sports: No. 1

Yeah, they lost … on the East Coast … in a rain storm … QB Matthew Stafford uncharacteristically throwing as many interceptions (2) in the first quarter as he had all season entering Sunday. Maybe the only concerning red flag here was how what the defense was gashed on the ground. Otherwise, we're giving LA a mulligan on this one.

ESPN: No. 2

This Sunday showed just how important the Rams' pass rush has been to their success on defense. That group has been particularly helpful to an injury-riddled secondary by pressuring opposing quarterbacks. [Byron] Young is the leader -- at least in sacks -- of their pass rush with a career high of 10 this season. The 2023 third-round pick is also setting himself up for a big contract extension, which he's eligible for after the season.

The Athletic: No. 2

Despite losing in Week 13, the Rams still look like one of the best teams in the NFL. And in a year where Matthew Stafford looked primed to win the MVP award — perhaps until his two untimely interceptions Sunday — there’s only one best-case scenario for the Rams, and it’s hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

CBS Sports: No. 3

Losing to the Panthers on the road is not a good look. Matthew Stafford turned it over three times, which can't happen no matter who you are playing.

Yahoo Sports: No. 1

Yes, the Rams lost at the Panthers on Sunday. If we penalized teams for a bad performance this season, we’d have crossed them all off the list by now. Someone has to be No. 1, and the Rams still have a good résumé that includes three close losses by a combined 13 points, all against teams above .500. The Seahawks have a claim to the top spot too, but let’s not forget the Rams just beat Seattle (barely) a little more than two weeks ago. The Rams keep the top spot, though that’s partially because no other team is stepping up to take it.

Fox Sports: No. 4

What a disappointing way to end their six-game winning streak: two uncharacteristic interceptions by Matthew Stafford and a complete meltdown on both sides of the ball in the second half in Carolina.

Sports Illustrated: No. 1

Two things can be true: this can be a program-defining victory for the Panthers and a loss for Los Angeles that, unless it provides a blueprint on how to attack the Rams’ secondary, won’t be brought up again until the Rams’ Super Bowl parade.

NFL.com: No. 1

I checked the manual, and it turns out that Super Bowl contenders are allowed to lose close, late-season games on the road to teams fighting for their playoff lives. It's never encouraged, of course, but also not prohibited. Still, the Panthers did expose some potential weaknesses for these Rams. If you can harass Matthew Stafford into making some bad throws, have success running the ball and hit on some key third and fourth downs, you can beat this team. The Rams were actually rolling offensively for most of Sunday, but their drives all seemed to end in either a touchdown or a turnover. Carolina played Russian roulette and won. What can you do? That's now three losses for Los Angeles this season, by 13 total points. Sunday's defeat dealt a blow to the Rams' hopes of earning the NFC's top seed, even if that remains very much within reach. Everything largely boils down to that huge, short-week game at Seattle in Week 16. Despite the loss, the Rams remain atop this pecking order.

Bleacher Report: No. 3

So, Matthew Stafford isn't a pass-throwing robot from the future.

After 28 straight touchdown passes without an interception, Stafford was picked off twice Sunday in Charlotte—including a pick-six by Panthers cornerback Mike Jackson. The Rams defense allowed over 350 yards of offense and seven third-down conversions in 15 attempts.

It was a surprisingly sloppy performance on both sides of the ball from a Rams team that had been lethally efficient over the past month-plus. And the loss (for now, at last) cost the Rams the NFC's No. 1 seed.

The Rams have two games left with the hapless Cardinals and a trip to Atlanta left on the slate. But after visiting Arizona next week the Rams host the Lions before a road date in Seattle.

Those two games are going to decide where the Rams slot in the NFC once the postseason revs up.

The Ringer: No. 2

After the Rams easily dispatched several teams during their seven-game winning streak, it was inevitable that their good luck would take a turn. That happened on Sunday, as the Panthers tipped a pass, jumped a route, and forced a strip sack to cost Los Angeles scoring opportunities. Even with those mistakes, the Rams still held the lead midway through the fourth quarter.

I’m not budging on my belief that Los Angeles will be the team to come out of the NFC, but this slipup was bad enough to cost the Rams the top spot in our rankings for at least this week.

This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Week 14 power rankings: Rams no longer the best team in the NFL