LAS VEGAS -- The New England Patriots blew out the Denver Broncos 43-21 and took the lead in the race for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, but the Broncos remained atop the NFL Vegas Rankings.
The handicappers' panel -- which includes Erin Rynning of sportsmemo.com, Sal Selvaggio of madduxsports.com and yours truly, Dave Tuley, and combines our personal power ratings -- dropped the Broncos' power rating and raised the Patriots' number, but Peyton Manning & Co. stayed 2.5 points ahead. That might not seem right with New England's dominance on Sunday -- though it was at home in less-than-ideal conditions that favored Tom Brady and the Patriots -- but it seems in line with the fact that Denver is still the 7-2 favorite to win the Super Bowl at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, with New England at 5-1.
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The NFL Vegas Rankings are used to compare two teams to the current point spread as if they were meeting on a neutral field then factoring in home-field advantage. The industry standard is 2.5 points for home field, but teams such as Green Bay, New England and San Francisco are typically given a full field goal, while Denver and New Orleans are closer to 3.5. Seattle is given the biggest home-field advantage in the league (about four to 4.5 points).
Below is a look at the power ratings for all 32 NFL teams, along with Week 10 games where there appears to be value in the current lines. As always, these are not my personal plays (though I did go with both Arizona and New England last week, and both underdogs won outright) or those of any of the other handicappers, but rather the collective group as a whole. I'll post my thoughts in the Tuley's Take column on Friday.
NFL Vegas Rankings
1. Denver Broncos (Power rating: 27.5)
Denver drops a full point after its 43-21 loss as a 3-point favorite at New England. The Broncos have had a great season so far, but they're only 4-4 ATS.
Previous rating: 28.5