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I've never been a big fan of the notion that, when it comes to rankings, when you lose matters so much. We've all seen it before. Team A loses in Week 3. Team B loses in Week 10. Team A goes higher in the Week 11 rankings because Team B's loss was more recent. It doesn't make any logical sense. Neither does the idea that when the No. 1 team in college football or basketball rankings loses, it has to move down. So I'm not doing that here. The Carolina Panthers have been the best team in the NFL this season, and they're not moving out of the No. 1 spot just because they lost last week. Sunday's 20-13 loss at the Atlanta Falcons wasn't pretty, but it wasn't that damaging. The Panthers are still a home win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers away from clinching the No. 1 seed in the NFC. That would make them the sixth 15-1 team in NFL history. The Panthers haven't shown too many cracks all season. Losing by a touchdown at a division rival with little to play for other than the chase for 16-0 isn't some sign of impending doom. It was just a loss. Everyone else has at least two of them this season. [ Yahoo Daily Fantasy: $10 could win you $20K in our $200K contest for Week 17 ] The Panthers were getting everyone's best shot, especially as they got deeper into the season without a loss. In many ways the loss could help them, because now the undefeated sideshow is over. Instead of being asked constantly about a perfect season, they can just go back to being a normal (and very good) football team heading into the playoffs. It's not to say the Panthers are unbeatable, especially if and when they face another very good team like the Arizona Cardinals, because we've seen 15-1 teams and a 16-0 team lose in the playoffs. But when you look at entire canvas, the Panthers are still the No. 1 team in the NFL. And Cam Newton is still the MVP. That doesn't change just because their loss came more recently than losses by other teams. Here are Shutdown Corner's power rankings after Week 16: 32. San Francisco 49ers (4-11, Last week: 31) Jarryd Hayne is back on the active roster, and he had 27 rushing yards and 20 receiving yards on five carries in Sunday's game. I hope he keeps getting chances as he learns American football, because his story is really fun . 31. Cleveland Browns (3-12, LW: 30) Johnny Manziel went 13 of 32 for 136 yards on Sunday. If this last stretch was an audition, I think he needs a strong finish. Too inconsistent for a team to feel good building around him next offseason. 30. Tennessee Titans (3-12, LW: 29) At the end of the day, losing is beneficial for the Titans because of draft position. But that was one terrible, uninspiring performance. Oh well, most things in Tennessee will look different next season anyway. 29. Dallas Cowboys (4-11, LW: 28)
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