via i37.tinypic.com

Even more fun than a Billy Mays TV commercial, here are this week's numbers for your info-tainment.  Enjoy!

RATINGS COMPUTATION (must-read for newbies):

          At its heart, this is a VERY simple method of calculating ratings, using only two stats.  The results aren't meant to be a perfect reflection of the real world; don't focus too narrowly on exactly where each team's totals are ranked.  The two components (O and D ratings) are often more revealing than the totals, don't overlook those.

          Here's how the ratings are calculated.  The first step is to calculate two simple stats:  Points For per Game, and Points Against per Game, for each team.  These two leaguewide data sets for offense & defense both conform to a "Bell Curve", or Normal Distribution, that can be graphed.  Depending on where each team lies on that graph, they have a value between 0 and 1.  (This isn't something pulled from thin air.  It's a very common, standardized statistical analysis technique.  The purpose is to more accurately measure each team's position within the ‘population' of all league teams.)  You now have every team rated from 0 to 1, on offense and on defense.  Add those two numbers and you've got a total rating for each team.  Last, multiply by 50 to convert the ratings onto a 0-to-100 scale, making them more readable and intuitive.  There you go.  Simple, right?

The Falcons fell one spot to 19th, but New Orleans fell 2 spots in victory!  Go figure.  Someone must have put a "Voodoo Curse" on the Saints' ratings this week!  The Ravens' lopsided win over mighty Detroit did wonders for their ranking, leapfrogging them over a crowded field by 7 spots.  Not much noteworthy upward movement, otherwise; Titans up by 5, Browns 4.  Falling in the rankings were Seattle, down 6 slots, and Arizona, down 3.

That's it for week 14, gents.  Spreadsheet download here.  Na zdraví!