The NFL Draft and free agency are largely completed. Most teams are -- right now -- what they will be heading into the season.
This is the time of year of eternal optimism no matter which team you root for. Your favorite team just had a wonderful draft and did great things in free agency. They are going to stay healthier than last year and players returning from injury won’t skip a beat.
Young players are only going to get better. Nothing is ever going to go wrong.
But the reality is, most things that happen between now and the Super Bowl will be negative for just about every team in the NFL. So, as it stands at the end of May, there should be great optimism surrounding most teams, as they have done good things to improve their roster. Most teams are better now than when we saw them last. But such optimism in the NFL is fleeting.
So, it's as good a time as any to reveal my first power rankings.
Not everyone does power rankings the same way, so here is what you are getting: How good are these teams right now. Right this minute. This isn’t a prediction or factoring in strength of schedule. It is just how good is every team in the NFL right now compared to the rest of the league.
Here we go ...
1. Bills -- The Bills have really built this thing right around who I feel is the most naturally gifted quarterback in the sport, Josh Allen. This offseason, Buffalo added Von Miller to mentor their young defensive line that is loaded with early draft picks and a first round cornerback to play opposite Tre’Davious White. The defense is loaded, and the Bills already had one of the NFL’s elite offensive units. 2022 could finally be their year in Buffalo.
2. Chiefs -- The Chiefs are going to look different this year. Few noticed how bad this defense was a year ago, but Kansas City really attacked that side of the ball in the draft. On offense, instead of giving Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes two elite receiving talents, Reid and Mahomes now have a great (but aging) tight end, a lot of question marks at wide receiver that could work out, and an exceptional offensive line. They will play things differently, but Kansas City is still going to be extremely difficult to beat.
3. Rams -- The Super Bowl Champs are stacked with some of the best players in the game and for whatever reason, the Rams avoid injuries better than any team in the league over the last handful of seasons. Their “stars and scrubs” roster building approach is a dangerous razor to walk, but it sure is paying off.
4. Buccaneers -- Tom Brady comes back and brings pretty much all his buddies with him for the third straight year. Bruce Arians is no longer in charge, but leadership in Tampa Bay is certainly not a problem. Hopefully for the Bucs, age regression doesn’t hit this team all at once. Otherwise, they will be right in the hunt.
5. Chargers -- The Chargers offseason was tremendous. They retained their own guys and added some big-time players like JC Jackson and Khalil Mack on defense. This team might be ready to explode. All that being said, the Chargers didn’t even make the playoffs last year and are very young at quarterback and head coach. You must learn to walk before you can run.
6. Packers -- Aaron Rodgers-led teams are always going to win a lot of regular season games. Just mark that down in stone. However, Rodgers’ pass catchers are very weak right now and the loss of Davante Adams will be very difficult to overcome. Don’t be surprised if Green Bay has the NFL’s best defense, though, in 2022.
7. Ravens -- Steelers fans won’t love hearing this, but Baltimore is a sleeping giant. This was one of the most injured teams in the last 20 years last season. And they still were competitive until down the stretch. The Ravens have a deep roster, but it is alarming what they are currently throwing out there at the wide receiver position after trading away Marquise Brown. It might be one of the leanest positions in the entire NFL right now.
8. Bengals -- The Bengals wisely attacked their offensive line needs in free agency and then addressed the secondary through the draft. However, Cincinnati is now the hunted rather than the hunter and history shows us that when an organization takes a massive leap like the Bengals did last year, they will likely take a step back the following year.
9. Broncos -- Adding Russell Wilson is great. Actually, it is tremendous, and it makes the Broncos a contender. But we are talking about a rookie head coach here and a quarterback changing teams. The Broncos now looks like a very good team. Not a great one.
10. Cowboys -- There is a lot of volatility with the Cowboys. They are ranked this high because I believe that Dak Prescott was still feeling the aftermath of his gruesome 2020 injury last year. CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons are on the cusp of superstardom, but Ezekiel Elliott has declined. The Cowboys need to be Prescott’s team.
11. Colts -- The Colts are solid. Their defense is very solid, and their pass-rush should be an improved from a year ago. Their offense is very solid, and their quarterback play should be improved from a year ago. Solid.
12. Eagles -- The Eagles are great on both lines of scrimmage and now have a wealth of pass catchers for Jalen Hurts, who improved last year but still is not a proven passer by any means. This is a very tough team to prepare for and play against though, especially considering how physical they are and how much the Eagles run the football.
13. Saints -- No franchise in the league is “in it to win it” like the Saints. They max out their credit cards in terms of future draft picks and salary cap space in order to win now. But Sean Payton is no longer in charge. That being said, this is a high-quality roster now on both sides of the ball. The Saints should be in the thick of the playoff hunt.
14. 49ers -- This is all about Trey Lance, who really hasn’t played extensively for two years now. Kyle Shanahan’s offense is complex, but when it is humming, is extremely difficult to defend and if Lance hits, that unit will be close to unstoppable. Lance’s level of play is just a huge unknown right now though.
15. Vikings -- “Middling Minnesota” is how I have referred to the Vikings of late and even with new people in charge, the Vikings still look like a middle of the road franchise. Kirk Cousins optimizes that, but this still could be a quality offense on the backs of Dalvin Cook and Justin Jefferson and they did add some intriguing pieces on defense.
16. Cardinals -- This is a tough team to really get a handle on. There are some dynamic players in Arizona, but this also seems like an organization and coaching staff without a real plan. It could go well, but can the Cardinals really count on Kyler Murray, James Conner, DeAndre Hopkins (who is already suspended), and JJ Watt to stay healthy and play at a high level for 17+ games?
17. Browns -- The Browns are the hardest team in the league to rank right now and somewhat go against my rule of “how good are they right now”. The reasoning? Do they have Deshaun Watson or not? If they are without Watson, the Browns would rank in the mid-20s. With Watson, Cleveland would be around 12 or so. I took the easy way out and just stuck the Browns right in the middle of the league ... for now.
18. Titans -- Mike Vrabel is an impressive young coach and should continue to win a lot of games in this league. But his team is in flux a little right now. AJ Brown is now in Philadelphia and counting on Derrick Henry and Ryan Tannehill at this stage of their careers is a bit of risk.
19. Steelers -- The Steelers probably aren’t a Super Bowl contender at this point. But folks, they also aren’t going to be picking at the top of the draft, either. This has a chance to be one of the very best defenses in the NFL. Of course, there are quarterback questions but with all respect to Ben Roethlisberger, don’t be surprised if this very young offense is better in 2022 than it was a year ago. Also, the culture and coaching here is just so strong.
20. Raiders -- A playoff team a year ago, the Raiders took the approach this offseason that they might just be a player away, and therefore went out and traded for Davante Adams. Derek Carr is a fine quarterback, and his weapons are great, but Las Vegas’ defense and offensive line could be very problematic in a brutal division.
21. Dolphins -- With the addition of Tyreek Hill, Tua Tagovailoa now has a wealth of electric playmakers to which to throw. The Dolphins, with Mike McDaniel bringing the 49ers' run game with him to Miami, will be very technically sound with their ground attack and improved offensive line. Can Tagovailoa raise his play under such circumstances with a first-year head coach? This might be his last chance to prove he can be Miami’s franchise quarterback and contrary to popular belief, Tagovailoa isn’t overly talented.
22. Patriots -- This is a bad roster. Who are the Patriots’ star players right now? Having New England this high is just a testament to Bill Belichick the coach, who has greatly outperformed Belichick the general manager. New England is also set up to have amongst the most available cap space after the 2020 season. Hopefully, the Patriots use that money more wisely than they have over the past two offseasons.
23. Commanders -- The Commanders are a tough team. Their skill position players are well above average, and I expect their super-talented defensive line to get back to dominant play. But there are also as many questions as answers in Washington and is Carson Wentz going to upgrade the play of those around him? That seems unlikely at this point.
24. Lions -- Now in the second year of the Lions rebuild, things are really looking up in Detroit. There is now a culture that comes out of toughness and hard work, and while the defense still lacks talent, the Lions offense is now complete with the exception of their future franchise quarterback.
25. Jets -- It is sink-or-swim time for Zach Wilson, who had a very rough rookie season in the Big Apple. This front office has been very proactive of quickly building a respectable roster, especially on offense around Wilson. The Jets are improving, at least on paper.
26. Panthers -- If the Panthers were to secure Jimmy Garoppolo or Baker Mayfield, they would rise a handful of spots up this list. This isn’t a bad roster outside of the quarterback position and Christian McCaffrey does return from injury. But as it stands, this is an organization with a head coach on the hot seat and Sam Darnold or Matt Corral at quarterback. That doesn’t inspire confidence.
27. Giants -- Hiring Brian Daboll is going to pay off huge for the Giants. But it won’t happen overnight. This season will be all about getting out from under the mistakes made by the previous regime. Over the past five seasons, this team has only won 27 percent of their games. But Giants fans should now have hope ... and hopefully a little patience.
28. Bears -- This sets up to be a real long season for the Bears. Fortunately for Chicago, the Bears currently have about $25 million more in cap space to spend than any other team for next year’s offseason. Chicago just must get through what sets up to be a grueling 2022 without doing too much irreparable harm to Justin Fields, who the Bears did little to help this offseason.
29. Jaguars -- Ding, dong, the witch it dead! The witch here is Urban Meyer and moving on from him will be addition by subtraction. Going back recently and studying Jacksonville tape, it was rather amazing how much the Jaguars had Trevor Lawrence (in his rookie year) acting as the “adult in the room” and as a stabilizing force on the field. The disfunction ran rapid in what has been the league’s most losing franchise over the past five years. Turning it around will not be easy.
30. Seahawks -- Strong established coaching staffs carry a lot of weight with me in preseason power ranks. That being said, Seattle isn’t exactly a progressively thinking team. And now they are a team without a true starting quarterback. On the positive side of things, only the Bears have more cap space next year than Seattle.
31. Texans -- Exactly one year ago, this roster looked about as bad as any I could remember. Now, it is merely terrible with at least a sense of direction after shipping out Watson. This is going to take a lot of time to get back to respectability, but the foundation is currently being poured.
32. Falcons -- The Falcons won seven game last year, but still gave up 146 more points than they scored in 2021. They narrowly beat the bad teams they faced and got smoked by top competition. While this recent draft class is promising in the big picture, the Falcons are a roster still in need of just about everything.