NFL Power Rankings: Patriots earn SB Nation's No. 1 spot

The latest SB Nation NFL Power Rankings were released Tuesday, and after 14 weeks of play, the New England Patriots are the league's best team, according to NFL editor Joel Thorman.

The Patriots (10-3) easily defeated the Houston Texans, 42-14, on Monday night and jumped two spots in the rankings, which had them No. 3 and the Texans No. 1 last week.

Here's what Thorman had to say about New England, which is currently on a seven-game winning streak.

1. New England Patriots (LW: 3, 10-3): Your new No. 1. The Patriots have now won seven straight. They're scoring 36 (!!) points per game, they're in the top 10 rushing and passing the ball, and they just beat our previous No. 1 team by four touchdowns. If you're into testing teams to see how good they really are, the Patriots play another elite defense in San Francisco next week.

Overall, the Texans fell to No. 2 in the rankings, while the Denver Broncos (10-3), Atlanta Faclons (11-2) and San Francisco 49ers (9-3-1) rounded out the top 5. The Patriots host the 49ers this Sunday (4:25 p.m. on CBS).

[The complete Week 14 NFL Power Rankings can be read here]

The other AFC East teams -- the New York Jets (No. 17), Buffalo Bills (No. 21) and Miami Dolphins (No. 22) -- were all ranked far below the Patriots.