Editor’s Note: The NFL power rankings this season at This Given Sunday are a collaborative effort between Matt Clapp and Jay Rigdon. Feel free to tell them how much they hate your team on Twitter (@Matt2Clapp; @JayRigdon5).
Last year’s record in parentheses.
1. Arizona Cardinals (14-2)
The Cardinals! With Carson Palmer finding new life in the desert under Bruce Arians, a an aggressive and talented defense (featuring a returning Tyrann Mathieu), and the absence of any obvious super-teams this season, they’re a worthy preseason #1. -Jay
2. Carolina Panthers (15-1)
We’ll obviously have a better idea on this one after tonight, but this team looks poised for another run to the Super Bowl, and have to be looking for revenge after the opportunity they blew last time around. This is a loaded roster, and they should be quite a step above every other team in the NFC South. -Matt
3. Seattle Seahawks (10-6)
The Seahawks aren’t what they once were, with consecutive Super Bowl appearances (and what should have been consecutive Super Bowl wins). But they’re still very talented, and any criticism of Russell Wilson (the human hashtag) is only valid when applied to his off the field persona. -Jay
4. New England Patriots (12-4)
This was probably our hardest ranking, as we have no idea what this team is with Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback. Of course, everyone doubted the Patriots when Tom Brady was out in 2009 and Matt Cassel stepped in to go 10-5. We’ll have to wait and see if it goes as smoothly with Garoppolo for the four games Brady is out, but looking at the big picture this season, the Patriots appear to be the team to beat in the AFC (as usual). -Matt
5. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-6)
The Steelers are here because the roster is okay to pretty good to great across the board, their coach is solid, and their quarterback (personal grotesquerie aside) is still a good player. But they’ve underachieved with this group the past few years through a variety of factors, so it’s hard to predict. -Jay
6. Green Bay Packers (10-6)
Jordy Nelson is back and appears ready to go after missing all of 2015… and Aaron Rodgers is at quarterback. That alone probably gives the Packers a winning record, despite several question marks on the roster. -Matt
7. Cincinnati Bengals (12-4)
A good team still led by Andy Dalton and Marvin Lewis. But hey, maybe they’ll manage to actually win one playoff game! -Jay
8. Kansas City Chiefs (11-5)
Losing Justin Houston (PUP list with a knee injury) for at least the first seven games is a big blow. The 27-year-old star edge rusher is just two seasons removed from racking up 22 sacks. -Matt
9. Denver Broncos (12-4)
I just moved to Indiana from Denver, where I’d been since last summer. They do love the Broncos there, but even last year, I had guys at my office complaining that Tebow wasn’t given a chance. It was awful. They also were ready to dump Manning for Osweiler even before it was apparent that Manning was hurt, and then they cheered him wildly when he came back late in the season. It’s super fickle there. Also weed everywhere, and I’m not judging that. But it’s all over. That said, Trevor Siemian is a total unknown, so while the defense should still be solid to amazing, it’s tough to rank them much higher. -Jay
10. Oakland Raiders (7-9)
It seems the Raiders are everyone’s ready-to-breakout team, and for good reason. I’m not sure I’d take a trio over Derek Carr/Amari Cooper/Khalil Mack if I got to start a franchise tomorrow. The Raiders will likely rule the AFC West at some point in the near future, and don’t be surprised if that begins this year. -Matt
11. New York Jets (10-6)
The Jets! Everyone loves the Jets. They get a division featuring two probably not good teams in Miami and Buffalo, and a Pats team that won’t have Brady for four games. They also finally brought back Ryan Fitzpatrick after a ridiculous will they/won’t they thing. But my guess is that this is the year Brandon Marshall begins to wear on people. -Jay
12. Houston Texas (9-7)
They finally have a quarterback… maybe? We still don’t really know how good Brock Osweiler is, although the physical tools are certainly there. Regardless, he’s likely still an upgrade over the Brian Hoyer/T.J. Yates/Matt Schaub types we’ve seen over the last few years, and they have one of the league’s top defenses. The running game will also see a boost with the addition of Lamar Miller. -Matt
13. Minnesota Vikings (11-5)
It’s tough to have the Vikings down here, as without the devastating knee injury to Teddy Bridgewater, they’d have easily been in the top ten. But after paying a king’s ransom for Sam Bradford to avoid going into the season reliant upon Shaun Hill, they’re still faced with a lot of questions. But if Adrian Peterson falls off even a bit, they’re going to have real trouble moving the ball. (Unless Sam Bradford is good, somehow.) -Jay
14. Indianapolis Colts (8-8)
Let me say that I had this team a bit further down the rankings (This is Jay’s fault!), as it’s a roster with many flaws. But, they do have Andrew Luck. Of course, Luck wasn’t good last year, but that shoulder injury really seemed to be an issue and he had very little help around him. We’ll see if much changes this time around, but the Colts have a lot of cleaning up to do in order to win the AFC South this year. Related: They’re lucky to be in the AFC South. – Matt
15. Buffalo Bills (8-8)
The Bills start the year at fifteen, which is just about right for them. They feel very much like a high-floor/low-ceiling team, and here they are. -Jay
16. New York Giants (5-11)
A splashy offseason included big moves on defense, as well as a new head coach, of course. It’s hard to get a good read on how much the changes will pay off until we see them in action. We know that Odell Beckham Jr. is going to go off again, at least. -Matt
17. Washington Redskins (9-7)
Washington is placing a lot of faith in Kirk Cousins, which might not be the wisest of moves. But, then again, Washington gets a bit of a sliding scale when it comes to smart moves, seeing as how they’re generally run in incompetent fashion thanks to their thin-skinned and meddling owner. They also get to play in a very bad division, made worse by Tony Romo’s injury, so they have that going for them. – Jay
18. Miami Dolphins (6-10)
Quite possibly the most disappointing team in the NFL last season. Their record did not at all match their talent level, and when that’s the case, it’s frequently a result of poor coaching. So it’s no surprise that a new head coach enters Miami in Adam Gase, one of the game’s best offensive minds. It will be interesting to see how smoothly Gase can make that transition from coordinator to head coach, and if he can get more out of this roster than Joe Philbin and Dan Campbell could last season. -Matt
19. Chicago Bears (6-10)
The Bears! Remember when I called the Bills a high-floor/low-ceiling team? The Bears feel like the opposite, a team with an incredibly wide variance. Jay Cutler has been a bit underrated the past few years, and when he’s on the field, the Bears have tended to play some good football. Adam Gase departing is unfortunate, but they do retain Vic Fangio, who managed to turn a fairly poor defensive roster last season into something approaching respectability at times. They’re very thin at corner and on the offensive line (though they owe the Packers thanks for cutting Josh Sitton), and if Cutler misses any extended time they have no real shot at a Wild Card. But there’s still a lot of talent here, and Cutler’s capable of playing like a back-end top-10 quarterback. (Which he did for most of last season.) – Jay
20. Baltimore Ravens (5-11)
So many injuries last season. Even if they can have better fortune in that department this season, it will be tough to compete for the AFC North crown in a division that features the Steelers and Bengals. Of course, it also features the Browns. -Matt
21. Jacksonville Jaguars (5-11)
The Jags should be better this year, but it’s been so long since that’s been true that it’s hard to feel confident in that until we see it. –Jay
22. New Orleans Saints (7-9)
We know they’ll score points, but will they be able to stop anyone? The Saints allowed an NFL-worst 29.8 points per game last season. -Matt
23. Atlanta Falcons (8-8)
I don’t know what to make of the Falcons. Julio Jones is an absolute stud, and they have two solid running backs in Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman. Matt Ryan has at least been competent in the past. But it just doesn’t come together often enough. -Jay
24. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-10)
If the Bucs shot up these rankings quickly, I certainly wouldn’t be surprised. Jameis Winston showed some good things in his rookie season and there is a lot of talent on this team. A sleeper NFC Wild Card team. -Matt
25. Dallas Cowboys (4-12)
I’m so sorry, Dallas fans. Tony Romo deserved a year of full health, and yet once again he’s out for extended period, this time after a freak injury in the preseason. The Cowboys seem confident in rookie Dak Prescott, but that’s some ballsy and perhaps misguided confidence (typical of a Jerry Jones venture), and it’s hard to think this won’t be another disappointing year. -Jay
26. Detroit Lions (7-9)
While not the full-on Megatron we remember from a few years ago, Calvin Johnson was still a damn good wide receiver last season (88/1,214/9), and the main thing is you know that opposing teams gameplanned for him all week. “Prevent Calvin Johnson from going off” was every opposing defense’s goal when facing the Lions in recent years. Golden Tate is good, Marvin Jones is a solid pickup… but Calvin Johnson’s presence is likely to be very missed by Detroit this season. -Matt
27. Philadelphia Eagles (7-9)
The Eagles spent the offseason unloading Chip Kelly acquisitions at all costs, and then named rookie Carson Wentz the starting quarterback despite not really giving him a ton of work in the preseason. They’ll likely be drafting high again next year, which isn’t the worst outcome for a rebuilding team. -Jay
28. Los Angeles Rams (7-9)
So, when you trade up to take a quarterback with the No. 1 overall pick and he begins the year third on your depth chart (behind two backup-level quarterbacks)… that’s not good. –Matt
29. San Diego Chargers (4-12)
The Chargers are still in San Diego, which I guess some people are probably happy about. Phil Rivers is still around at quarterback. Mike McCoy is still the head coach. Frankly, it’s surprising how little turnover there was following a 4-12 season. McCoy has gone 9-7, 9-7, and 4-12. Any hot seat list has to have him on there. -Jay
30. San Francisco 49ers (5-11)
I actually had them dead last on this list. Blaine Gabbert is their starting quarterback. Is there much more that needs to be said? -Matt
31. Tennessee Titans (3-13)
And now, the Titans. Marcus Mariota might be okay, but it’s hard to think they didn’t ruin him last year. He had a fantastic week 1, then struggled, then got hit a bunch (38 times in 12 games played!) They still don’t really have much in place, on either side of the ball. Hopefully Mariota can stay upright more often this year and at least get some developmental experience. -Jay
32. Cleveland Browns (3-13)
Well, they’re at least going to be interesting to watch (for once) to see how RG3 looks as the starting quarterback. –Matt
