p2. Los Angeles Rams: Three straight Super Bowls for Cook and the Rams, losing out on the potential 3 peat this past season in a losing effort to the Cleveland Browns. Nevertheless, they will remain the team to beat until further notice regardless of how pedestrian they may seem during the regular season.
3. Seattle Seahawks: Z ended the season on a disappointing note as it seemed to be the year the Seahawks were destined to make a Super Bowl run. They had a historic winning streak after starting the season off slow only to be upset by Fallen and the Lions in the divisional round of the playoffs. Is another deep playoff run in the cards for the Seahawks, or has the opportunity passed? Only time will tell.
4. Los Angeles Chargers – What a wild off-season for the Chargers. They traded all the way up to pick 5 in the draft hoping to draft an elite speed receiver only for him to get taken one selection before him, but drafting WR Chase Roberts is no consolation prize because they might have gotten the best receiver in the class with the best chance for superstar development. The Chargers have a dynamic receiver group and Justin Herbert has to be licking his chops, expect Herbert to throw for a league high in passing yards this season.
5. New England Patriots – New faces in New England. Riley Leonard was shipped off to Dallas and Desmond Ridder was signed in free agency on a one year deal worth $23M, but with a bonus of $300K. New England drafted Gavin Wimsatt who presumably will get the start, especially since he was drafted with their first round selection.
6. New Orleans Saints: Well we saw the Saints have a great regular season only to take the force loss in the opening round of the playoffs. This will remain as one of the biggest ‘what ifs’ of the cycle. Could the Saints have made the Super Bowl? Could they have upset the Cleveland Browns giving JC his first PML Super Bowl ring? The world will never know. Expect business as usual this season with the Saints competing for the first round bye.
7. Kansas City Chiefs – Kansas City went younger at the corner position, are they taking a big gamble? Rookie Tacario Davis looks like a steal in the second round, but can he replace Sneed? Starting a 77 overall corner in season 4 could present problems, but with Patrick Mahomes under the helm, Kansas City has the potential to match point for point with any team in the league.
8. Denver Broncos – Sitting at 84 overall, the Broncos as a whole, are one of the worst rated teams in the league. They have three receivers on the roster and $2M free in cap space and just 47 players. This is going to be a tough challenge for the Broncos to compete with the higher overall rated teams this season.
9. Houston Texans – Houston has one of the prominent teams in the league and they had a very strong off-season. They were active in free agency and Stroud is coming off a 54 touchdown and 5,400 passing yard season. I expect him to surpass those numbers this season, but with Benson breaking the record for receiving touchdowns last season, he’s only an 81 overall star dev receiver. I guess I expected more progression from a guy that had a chokehold on the record last season.
10. Chicago Bears: As we progress through the rankings, one thing that stands out is the NFC has a long list of teams that could represent the conference in the Super Bowl. Add Jefe and the Bears to the list of potential Super Bowl or bust coaches in the NFC. This off-season saw the progression of Justin Fields going from star to superstar as he now forms an even more dangerous tandem with Breece Hall. Looking forward to watching these two work this season.
11. Jacksonville Jaguars – The Jaguars are coming off a playoff berth, but they have a very pedestrian looking roster. They made the smart GM choice of selecting an offensive linemen with the first round pick, but they are going to need to play clean football to get back to the playoffs.
12. Pittsburgh Steelers – Can the Steelers get over the hump and ever get back to being competitive in their division? They are 1-1 in the playoffs, all of which came in season 1. But, after having two back to back losing seasons at 8-9, what do the Steelers have to do to win a few more games to get them back to the playoffs? Start by protecting the football. A 35 interception season is not going to cut it.
13. Minnesota Vikings: Who will be under center week 1? Tua or Milton? The NFC North has no margin for error, and the way I see things, the Vikings stand as the team that has to have everything go perfect for them to sneak into the playoffs come December. They have the weapons to do it, but they will need a little bit of luck on their side as well.
14. Detroit Lions: The Lions were a game away from a Super Bowl appearance. Many refuse to give them the credit they may or may not deserve, but he rolled with the punches and kept his team moving in the right direction. Was that the deepest we will see the Lions go this cycle? If I were a betting man, I would think so. But the truth is, Fallen is finally getting the recognition he deserves for not only his on the field play, but the off the field GM moves. Should we finally raise the bar a bit? This season will give us a better sense of who the Lions really are this cycle.
15. Atlanta Falcons: Man on man, where to even begin with their off-season. They gave Micah Parsons the bag, and forgot they had to pay 17 other men to fill the roster. What did they do? They acquired all the draft picks in rounds 6 and 7. Top notch GM’ing if you ask me. Saints have a time share this cycle, and I don’t see any of the other teams dethroning him. Nef was a hair away from a playoff berth this past season, and always seems to be in the thick of things for the final spot. This season should be no different, but I do think the NFC playoff picture is getting pretty crowded and the margin for error in Atlanta is slim.
16. Green Bay Packers: The biggest disappointment in season 3 hands down was the Green Bay Packers. They went all in on themselves dealing their 1st and 3rd for Ronnie Stanley, only to miss the playoffs for the first time in Hypes PML career. Not often we see a Super Bowl contender watching the playoffs from the couch. Many think he is locked in for season 4, but the bar has to be set a little lower now for Hype after their most recent showing.
17. Cincinnati Bengals – The Bengals traded up to the number 1 overall selection in the draft and they gave up a lot without getting the return that they hoped for. Nyck Harbor was one of the most hyped up prospects before the draft, with many truly believing he was worthy of the number one overall selection and now he doesn’t even look like a top 5 receiver in the draft. The Bengals need to develop him into a superstar to get back the value they lost in the trade with the Commanders.
18. Baltimore Ravens – The Ravens were a few wins from making the playoffs last season and have been getting better since having the number one overall pick in the draft. I think they key for the Ravens is staying balanced and keeping Lamar Jackson on the move. He is the fastest quarterback in the league for a reason, let that man eat on the ground.
19. Dallas Cowboys: Big shake up in Big D sees Dramaman on the move and (inset anyone with a pulse) taking the reins. I don’t think it’s a hot take to say that (insert anyone with a pulse) will automatically become the clear favorite in the division. The team is built for him to win the division, but the bigger question mark is how will he compete with the who’s who of the NFC? Welcome back!
20. New York Jets – Caleb Williams hasn’t been the savior that the Jets were hoping for. After an 11 win season in season 1, the Jets haven’t quite gotten back to double digit wins. Their GM has built a roster to be reckoned with and despite not having a first round pick this season, the team hasn’t missed a beat. Can the Jets use their team advantages to overcome another season of misfortune?
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Clock is ticking on a playoff appearance for Cammy this cycle after a really hot showing the previous cycle. They went out and gave the bag to Keaton Mitchell this past off-season adding him to an already crowded running back room, and further putting the teams cap in jeopardy. Priorities Cammy, priorities!
22. Philadelphia Eagles: The Eagles finished a game out of the playoffs last season, at 6-10. Yes, you read correct. The team is regressing with each passing season, and the super stacked out the box Eagles, now stand at an 84 overall, and amongst the bottom percentile. The good news is Jalen Hurts is back from his injury, and the even better news is he managed to keep his dev someway, somehow despite being over the interception average last season. If I had one PML wish, I want HD’s pull.
23. Carolina Panthers: We are approaching that time of the cycle where we start looking for signs of JT’s magical season 5 power. I’m not sold. I’ll say it here first, I don’t think the Panthers climb out the bottom of the division, let alone produce a playoff appearance. I am however looking forward to seeing how they use Allen, Cook, Shenault, and Parrish as one this season.
24. Miami Dolphins – Deebo is on a silent retreat and his team has suffered because of it. He has one of the worst teams in the league and I can’t really see the Dolphins competing this season. Maybe we are looking at the number one overall selecting team for the season 5 draft? For all the good that’ll do for the team. Don’t look now.. Miami, you’re on the clock.
25. New York Giants: Giants ship off Saquan Barkely today and add Swift, Rogers Sr., and a draft pick. I loved the move and I think it not only cashes in on an older and expensive Barkely, but it very well may have improved their roster as well. Would love to see the Giants rise up and win the division, but they just haven’t shown that kind of fight this cycle.
26. Indianapolis Colts – CB has a squad, sitting at 89 overall, the Colts have not been neglected in the roster building portion of CFM. Anthony Richardson has the inside deadeye ability and he has had success in the league since throwing 41 interceptions his rookie year. Richardson is a force to be reckoned with on the ground and this season, CB is going to show out through the air with him.
27. Arizona Cardinals: Que took the safe route and drafted an offensive lineman with the 6th pick to help Murray and Demercado find some holes. Wasn’t the sexiest pick, but it needed to be done. Que has been as distant as ever from the league, so I really cant say what we will see out of the Cardinals this season. I do hope we get the playoff contending version of him back though this season.
28. Tennessee Titans – Throwing 42 interceptions between two quarterbacks will not elevate the Titans to the next level. However, the Titans have 5 superstars on the offensive side of the ball, they need to find a way to scheme those players into points. Will Levis is a solid quarterback and he has the weapons around him to be a star, Dlloyd has to manage his turnover ratio and the Titans will finally find some success.
29. San Francisco 49ers: Casper joins the 49ers organization fresh out of the carousel this season, and needless to say that he will have his work cut out for him as he gets his feet wet in the league. I do think he would have fit in nicely taking the Cowboys over, but I guess that is water under the bridge. New coach predicts 10-11 wins and a wildcard appearance. I am going to say top 5 draft selections. PML is a learning curve that takes some time.
30. Buffalo Bills – The Bills are very cap strapped due to Josh Allen’s massive contract, but they managed to make a few trades this off-season and add some quality players to their team. JT Woods should help Buffalo against the deep threat receivers in their division. However, Buffalo just hasn’t looked the same since Josh Allen lost his abilities. Can Allen and the Bills start to be more methodical on offense instead of chucking the ball downfield into coverage?
31. Las Vegas Raiders – The Raiders had one of the best drafts out of all the 32 teams in the league. They were fortunate enough to have Arch Manning fall to them at pick 2, but the knock on Manning is that he looks very pedestrian. Will an X-factor dev help elevate Manning? Will Manning help the Raiders win more than 6 games, which currently is their highest on the cycle.
32. Washington Commanders: And rounding out the Power Rankings is your main man Miles and his Commanders. Have we ever seen a team in season 4 under an 80 overall? Well the Commanders are currently a 79, and while they haven’t gotten better on the field, they certainly haven’t done any better off. I do anticipate improvement this season record wise for the Commanders, but with the new addition in the division, a division crown may be out of reach. p
