2021 NFL Power Rankings - Week Eleven

Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images Away from the piercing eyes of the general public, under the cloak of secrecy, the Texans dodged their ninth consecutive loss in their bye week. Playing no one, they successfully performed all tasks necessary to win a football game without the resistance of another team. They met together, decided on a game plan, and executed each play with impressive efficiency both on offense and defense. Under normal circumstances, we would collectively agree to call these actions “practice” or “scrimmage,” but these are not normal circumstances.

What does it mean to play a football game? The most common definition of football is for two teams of players to battle one…