AP Pro32 ballot from Brown

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Ballot and comments from AP Pro 32 panel voter Clifton Brown of Sporting News:

Week 12

CLIFTON BROWN (Sporting News)

1. New England Patriots -- Losing Rob Gronkowski is tough, but Tom Brady will adjust.

2. San Francisco 49ers -- Colin Kaepernick. Talk about making a good first impression.

3. Denver Broncos -- Von Miller is keeping opposing quarterbacks awake at night.

4. Houston Texans -- The defense had a letdown against Jaguars, but Matt Schaub didn't.

5. Green Bay Packers -- A five-game winning streak has made them the NFC North favorites.

6. Baltimore Ravens -- On track for another division crown after gritty win against Steelers.

7. Chicago Bears -- After that Monday night whipping, Jay Cutler can't return too soon.

8. Atlanta Falcons -- Matt Ryan keeps winning games, but five-picks games make him MVP.

9. New Orleans Saints -- A win over 49ers on Sunday would position Saints for stretch run.

10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- They're tough and they can score. Josh Freeman is fulfilling promise.

11. New York Giants -- Need to get offense back on track. We'll see if the bye helped.

12. Seattle Seahawks -- Just 1-4 on the road, they can't afford a road loss to Miami on Sunday.

13. Pittsburgh Steelers -- Playoff hopes could rest on whether Charlie Batch can be effective.

14. Minnesota Vikings -- To make playoffs, Christian Ponder must become more consistent.

15. Indianapolis Colts -- Andrew Luck had a hiccup vs. Patriots, but Colts are still in hunt.

16. Cincinnati Bengals -- This team has made a nice resurgence -- a serious threat to Steelers.

17. Dallas Cowboys -- It was an ugly win over Browns, but Tony Romo made some huge plays.

18. Washington Redskins -- They have not packed it in, and with Robert Griffin III, they won't.

19. San Diego Chargers -- Philip Rivers isn't playing well enough to save Norv Turner's job.

20. Carolina Panthers -- Losing close games has become a specialty. That's not good.

21. Detroit Lions -- Loss to Green Bay was a crusher. Getting back to playoffs will be tough.

22. Tennessee Titans -- Responded to owner's challenge, but will it carry over after bye?

23. Buffalo Bills -- Mario Williams looks healthier, which makes the Bills defense better.

24. New York Jets -- When Mark Sanchez avoids turnovers, offense can be effective.

25. Cleveland Browns -- You can see this team improving, but coach Pat Shurmur needs wins.

26. Arizona Cardinals -- How often does Ken Whisenhunt dream about having Peyton Manning?

27. Miami Dolphins -- Wheels are coming off the offense. Ryan Tannehill needs to regroup.

28. St. Louis Rams -- Still need more overall talent to compete at on a consistent basis.

29. Philadelphia Eagles -- Watching the Andy Reid era end looks like it will be ugly.

30. Jacksonville Jaguars -- Their entire offense looks better with Chad Henne at quarterback.

31. Oakland Raiders -- Hard to win when your defense is getting regularly shredded.

32. Kansas City Chiefs -- Worst quarterback situation East of Arizona.

---

Online:

http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

This story is from ESPN.com's automated news wire. Wire index

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