Football season is right around the corner, and we are more than ready. Brian, Pat, and I (Alex), have decided to release power rankings for each week of the NFL season, as a means of stimulating discussion and keeping track of the rise and fall of teams during the 2010 season. Here’s how it works: the three of us rank all the teams 1-32 and we average him out and then we write a sentence or two about what’s been going on with each team. To make that part easier, we’ve divided up the divisions, and we’ll each be “covering” those divisions for the entire year. The breakdown is as follows:
- Alex – AFC North, NFC East
- Brian – AFC East, AFC South, AFC West
- Pat – NFC North, NFC South, NFC West
So, check it out, leave a comment, or hit us up on our respective Twitter accounts and call us out on our biases.
| Ranking (Last Week) |
Team | Commentary |
| 1 | New Orleans Saints | The defending champs are loaded with talent and an excellent system behind coach Sean Payton. This year they will have to survive the season with a target on their back. |
| 2 | Indianapolis Colts | Hard to argue against Peyton Manning in the regular season. That said, watch out for a potential Super Bowl hangover after one of the toughest interceptions of the franchise’s history. |
| 3 | Minnesota Vikings | Assuming Favre is back the Vikings will be a force to be reckoned with. Adrian Peterson is still a top RB and there are several weapons on both sides of the ball. If coach Brad Childress can utilize the talent he has, the Vikings are a contender. |
| 4 | Baltimore Ravens | Baltimore took significant steps toward improving their offense this offseason with much needed addictions at WR and TE. While injuries in the secondary may hamper the defense in the first part of the season, the offense, likely the best in franchise history, should be enough for them to be playing well into January. |
| 5 | Dallas Cowboys | The Cowboys are clearly the class of the NFC East. They are clearly one of the more talented teams in the league, but recent chemistry issues between Roy Williams and Dez Bryant threaten a team without a vocal on-field leader. |
| 6 | New England Patriots | New England still has Tom Brady and Randy Moss, among others, but are continuing to show their age. Wes Welker will have to be ready early on to help offset a defense which has had issues in recent years. |
| 7 | New York Jets | The Jets are easily the “paper champions” of the NFL offseason; time will tell, however, if filling the locker room with aging superstars will be the right approach to helping Mark Sanchez avoid a sophomore slump. |
| 8 | Green Bay Packers | The Packers are expected to slug it out with the Vikings for the NFC North crown and with rising star Aaron Rodgers at QB, it’s definitely possible. This team is solid on both sides of the ball and is poised for a deep playoff run. |
| 9 | San Diego Chargers | Losing LaDainian Tomlinson may not be a big deal, but issues with star wide receiver Vincent Jackson have planted seeds of doubt in Chargers camp. Philip Rivers will have less room for error as he tries to put San Diego in the Super Bowl before the window of opportunity slams shut. |
| 10 | Cincinnati Bengals | The Bengals should continue to contend for the AFC North title, especially with the issues that face the Steelers, but the real test comes after Week 17 as they haven’t won a playoff game in 20 years. |
| 10 | Houston Texans | The Texans are always a sexy pick to succeed; if QB Matt Schaub puts together another big year with help from star WR Andre Johnson, they might be playoff-bound for the first time in franchise history. |
| 12 | San Francisco 49ers | The 49ers are another team whose season hinges on the production of an unproven and young QB. Playing in the worst division in the NFL will help their playoff odds. |
| 13 | Pittsburgh Steelers | If the Steelers can survive Ben Roethlisberger’s suspension, there’s no reason they can’t make some noise in the AFC North. Big Ben & Co. are always a threat if they make the postseason. |
| 14 | Philadelphia Eagles | New quarterback Kevin Kolb will have to perform in order for the Eagles to succeed. There is plenty of talent around him, but the pressure is on. |
| 15 | Atlanta Falcons | The Falcons are coming off a season that they didn’t live up to expectations and hope to change that this year. A lot will depend on Michael Turner and his ability to return to 2008 form. |
| 16 | New York Giants | Just two years removed from their dramatic Super Bowl victory, the Giants must stay healthy and improve defensively to challenge their rival Cowboys. |
| 17 | Miami Dolphins | Brandon Marshall signing is huge; but questions abound as to whether taking focus away from a Wildcat run-first scheme to improve the pass attack will lead Miami to the playoffs. |
| 18 | Tennessee Titans | Tennessee might have been better off turning to Vince Young earlier in 2009; the question is whether starting him in 2010 will pay immediate dividends, if he’s even eligible to play given offseason issues. |
| 18 | Denver Broncos | Another promising start in Denver was wasted in 2009; hope remains in the form of a deeper QB chart, though losing Brandon Marshall leaves the receiving corps thin. |
| 20 | Arizona Cardinals | The Cardinals are an interesting team. Just two years removed from their Super Bowl appearance, they have some great talent and veteran players. If Matt Leinart can reenact his USC days, Arizona could be dangerous. |
| 21 | Washington Redskins | If the new McNabb-led offense clicks, the Redskins and their solid defense could be a sleeper in the NFC East. Look for them to exceed their 4 wins from last season. |
| 21 | Chicago Bears | Year two of the Jay Cutler era in Chicago should be an improvement on last year’s up and down sub .500 season. They added Julius Peppers to an already solid defensive cast, but will there be enough offensive firepower to keep up with the Vikings and Packers? It seems unlikely. |
| 23 | Jacksonville Jaguars | David Garrard may have been an unlikely Pro Bowler last year thanks to injuries and indifference, but the Jaguars and their fans don’t have much reason to hope in 2010; Maurice Jones-Drew can only do so much in a city that seems to no longer care about the NFL. |
| 23 | Carolina Panthers | The expectations for the Panthers aren’t that high entering this season and for good reason. The most interesting story line here will probably be trying to guess when Jimmy Clausen gets his chance to start. |
| 25 | Oakland Raiders | The departure of JaMarcus Russell and addition of Jason Campbell provides instant legitimacy for Oakland at QB. If everything falls into place, a return to the playoffs for the first time in years might not be completely out of the question. |
| 26 | Detroit Lions | Luckily the Lions have the Rams on their schedule this year, because they may be heading for another long season. Matthew Stafford has a year of experience under his belt and Ndamukong Suh should cause some havoc, but the Lions are many pieces away from putting together a playoff contending team. |
| 27 | Kansas City Chiefs | The addition of Thomas Jones shores up a running game which already featured a strong young back in Jamaal Charles to end 2009; the truth remains that it may not be enough, even in a weak AFC West. |
| 28 | Cleveland Browns | The Browns’ struggles will likely continue this season, in large part due to inconsistency at the quarterback position. The Anderson-Quinn era is over, but the Delhomme-Wallace-McCoy debacle has only just begun. |
| 29 | Seattle Seahawks | Another year, another weak NFC West team. If Seattle were in a tougher division you could write them off right now, but they have some good players and that may be enough to contend for the division crown. |
| 30 | Tampa Bay Bucs | Tampa Bay fans may be in for a long season. Their starting QB is coming off of a 10 TD – 18 INT season and their lineup in general is lackluster. Consider it a building year. |
| 31 | Buffalo Bills | Not much to hope for when the biggest offseason move was hiring an unproven head coach; the Toronto Series continues this year to further rub salt in Bills’ fans wounds. |
| 32 | St. Louis Rams | Woe is the Rams. Steven Jackson is an elite RB stuck on an awful team which is an unfortunate situation for him. Sam Bradford may be a great QB someday, but no single player could turn this ship around. |
