Power Rankings
Graphics: CB
Rankologist: Z
Analysis: Arod, Z, Fallen
1. Cleveland Browns (1-0): The Browns could have won their game this week late in the fourth quarter, but instead settled to kick a field goal with just under 30 seconds left, giving the Saints enough time to drive down the field and tie the game. In overtime, Cleveland won the game on a walk-off 60 yard touchdown, some believe that there was another agenda behind going into overtime, but nonetheless, the Browns continue their winning streak.
2. Los Angeles Rams (1-0): Cook looked sharp in week one taking down his new divisional ‘rival’ week 1 in their Super Bowl rebound game. You gotta love what Buckner and Donald are able to do playing at such a high level with their combined ages almost at 70 years old on that defensive line. Needless to say this may be the final ride for both of the future Hall of Famers.
3. Seattle Seahawks (1-0): Bo Nix was nearly flawless (21/24, 308, 1TD), and the defensive unit forced 4 interceptions and a score as the Seahawks continue to prove that this is the winning formula for a team that once seemed lost in the mix of the NFC. I have the Seahawks at 3-0 before two primetime showdowns against the Chiefs and Patriots week 4 and 5.
4. New England Patriots (1-0): New England punted the ball 6 times in their one point win over the Chargers and for a game where they scored 42 points, their offensive statistics look very pedestrian. However, rookie quarterback Wimsatt won the battle in camp and got the start this week. He only completed 50% of his passes, but with a 3 touchdowns to 1 interception ratio, we could see the rookie quickly rise up the charts. He connected with 7 of his receivers for at least one catch and that kind of balance is what pushed them over the edge this week.
5. Kansas City Chiefs (1-0): Chiefs secure their first victory of season 4, defeating their divisional foe KingMike and the Las Vegas Raiders. While things did look a little shaky early, the Chiefs went on a 31-7 run between the second and third quarter, helping them build a large enough lead to survive a late surge by the Raiders and win 38-33. The Chiefs will look to continue this performance as they visit Que and the Arizona Cardinals in week 2.
6. Houston Texans (1-0): You have to wonder how many teams are kicking themselves for letting Brock Bowers fall to the Texans at the 8th pick in the draft two seasons ago. He was a force to be reckoned with this week hauling in 9 catches for 200 yards, including a pass that set up the game winning field goal for the Texans. C.J. Stroud threw for 400 yards, he hasn’t missed a beat in the off-season, but this game was a lot closer than Houston wanted it to be. Houston has to have better protection up front because they allowed their quarterback to be sacked 4 times.
7. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0):Trevor Lawrence completed 92% of his passes this week and the Jaguars crushed a New York team that was feeling themselves in the off-season. After the first week, they have the second best defense against the run, but will need to make some improvements in their pass defense. Jacksonville is coming off that awful playoff loss, but this win helps boost their spirits.
8. Detroit Lions (1-0): Lions get off to a 1-0 start following their victory over their divisional rival the Chicago Bears. Rookie QB Nico Iamaleavea had a great NFL debut, throwing for 268 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions on the day. Jahmyr Gibbs chipped in with 79 carries and a touchdown as well as 122 receiving yards on the day. Chris Jones had a great day, notching 3.5 sacks and 4 tackles for loss on the day. The Lions host the Buffalo Bills in week 2.
9. Atlanta Falcons (1-0): Jayden Daniels inserts instant life into the Falcons rush attack as he goes for 121 yards highlighted by a 79 yard touchdown run. As we have seen Nef succeed in the past when he is able to utilize the quarterback’s legs, this may be the right fit for Daniels, who was halfway out the door season 3 with the Raiders.
10. Green Bay Packers (1-0): The Packers kick off the 2026 season with a win on the road over their divisional foe, the Minnesota Vikings. There was a lot of offseason chatter regarding the moves the Packers made, parting with Jaire Alexander, Quay Walker, and Ronnie Stanley. It didn’t seem to affect them in week 1, as they were able to force 4 interceptions on the day. We’ll see if Hypemike can keep the momentum up, as his Packers travel to Metlife for a matchup with the New York Jets in week 2.
11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0): Keaton Mitchell, the $24-million dollar dud? In his Bucs debut he went for -3 yards on 6 carries, and no yards through the air. Was the signing necessary at all? Milroe looked sharp as the Bucs get on the board this season behind a stout defense led by Devin Moore and his 3 interceptions. They look to remain in the win column with a week 2 matchup against the Falcons.
12. Carolina Panthers (1-0): Their week 1 matchup against the Commanders turned into what seemed like two heavyweights exchanging blows in the final rounds. JT landing the last blow, prevailed 35-33 against the Commanders. Everyone ate in JT’s RB room as four backs were able to find the redzone. Is this sustainable?
13. Philadelphia Eagles (1-0): The Eagles ran all over the Cowboys in week 1, amassing over 240 yards on the ground. Newly acquired running back Saquon Barkley had a huge day, rushing for 188 yards and three touchdowns while also adding 104 on the ground. The Eagles clicked on all cylinders as they eye their first divisional title of the cycle. They host the Commanders next week.
14. Tennessee Titans (1-0): Whoever said a dual quarterback tandem couldn’t succeed? Tennessee used both of their quarterbacks this week and it helped them put up almost 600 yards of offense. Will Levis and Malik Willis had passer ratings that exceeded 130. The biggest drawback was the amount of pressure that their offensive line allowed, considering Indy sacked their quarterbacks four times. Tennessee is on a roll and will need to take that high powered offense into next week.
15. Arizona Cardinals (1-0): I’m sure it wasn’t fun, but the Cardinals take down the Miami CPU week 1 behind a steller game from Kyler Murray (372, 4TD). He seems to have developed a solid rapport with TE Trey McBride who was the beneficiary of Murrays play finishing with 153 yards and 2 scores. Is Que sitting up? Let’s find out week 2 when the Chiefs come to town.
16. Buffalo Bills (1-0): Buffalo gets the win over their division rival and is already on pace for more wins than last season. Buffalo moved the 3rd overall pick in the draft to enhance their defense and holding the Jets to 23 points is an impressive feat. The biggest struggle for Buffalo will be Josh Allen. On paper, he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the league, even without abilities. But, Beast overestimates his ability, similarly in week 1, because Allen dropped back 17 times and completed 10 passes but also threw 2 interceptions. Allen needs to focus on minimizing the risky throws in order for Buffalo to thrive.
17. Los Angeles Chargers (0-1): The Chargers suffer a tough loss in rainy Foxboro. This game was a shootout through and through, and came down to a missed extra point, allowing the Patriots to come out on top 42-41. While the Chargers have to be frustrated with the result, there was plenty to be happy about on the offensive end, as Justin Herbert and the young WR Chase Roberts connected numerous times down the field. The Chargers take on the Rams in the battle of LA next week.
18. New Orleans Saints (0-1): Saints kept it close, for what it’s worth, against the defending Super Bowl champion Cleveland Browns. There is a lot of drama that unfolded in this one, and I’ll steer clear of it and just acknowledge they went down in overtime. Saints are still my pick to win the NFC, this loss shouldn’t change that, nor alarm anybody.
19. Denver Broncos (0-1): A rough outing for the Broncos in week 1 that got worse with the injury to Javonte Williams. Trey Lance also threw 4 interceptions on the day and the defense gave up several rushing touchdowns. However, I think the Broncos will be just fine, as they shake the rust off post-Israel trip. They travel to Vegas to play the Raiders next week in a big game early.
20. Chicago Bears (0-1): The Bears suffer a tough loss to their divisional foe Fallen and the Lions. They had an opportunity late to tie the game but lost that opportunity due to a fumble on a punt return. The offensive line will have to be better after allowing Justin Fields to get sacked numerous times (3.5 to Chris Jones alone). With no time to waste in getting back on track, the Bears host the Saints next week in what should be a great game.
21. Pittsburgh Steelers (0-1): I fully expected the Steelers to come out swinging this week, especially against an Atlanta team that is cap strapped and seemingly going to rotate their starters to avoid injury. This was a back and forth game with minimal turnovers, but Chris Boswell botched a field goal that could have tied this game up. The Steelers lost by three and left three points off the board. In a division where the Browns are in a supposed timeshare, the Steelers need all the “gimme” games they can get and letting this one slide will hurt their playoff chances.
22. Minnesota Vikings (0-1): The Vikings drop a tough one at home to the Packers. Tua had a day to forget about, with three interceptions and less than 60% of his passes were completed. Bucky Irving only had 11 carries for 31 yards, not the formula for the Vikings to be successful. They have no time to hang their head as the Jaguars await in week 2 in what should be a really good matchup.
23. Cincinnati Bengals (0-1): You mean to tell me that Joe Burrow was benched after throwing two interceptions, but his rookie replacement came onto the field and three 4 interceptions? What is going on with the leadership in Cincinnati? After seemingly botching their draft and mismanaging their off-season, the Bengals have an awful week 1 game. However, they only lost this game by a touchdown despite throwing 6 interceptions. The number 1 overall pick was seemingly lost and not a factor hauling in five passes for 88 yards. He did lead the team in receiving yards, but that stat line is not first off the board material.
24. Baltimore Ravens (0-1): Lamar Jackson completed almost 90% of his passes and ran the ball for almost 40 yards. He did have a fumble, but he didn’t throw an interception at all in this game. That gave Baltimore a fighting chance and it appeared as if they were going to pull off the upset, but a blown coverage late in the game set up the winning field goal for the Texans. Baltimore suffered three back-to-back injuries that derailed their last offensive drive, one of which was to leading receiver Anthony Schwartz. Despite the loss, the Ravens played solid, and had a shot in the end to win this game.
25. Dallas Cowboys (0-1): Not the debut Coach Bubba and the Cowboys wanted, but it’s to be expected in your first PML action after a long hiatus. The team the previous owner built is not necessarily a fit for Bubba’s preferred playstyle, but he will have to adapt if he wants to remain competitive. A matchup with the Seahawks looms in week 2.
26. New York Jets (0-1): Caleb Williams and Deshaun Watson both had a shot at the Bills this week. Williams threw 3 interceptions whereas Watson completed 9 of his 10 passes. The Jets suffered a loss in this game, but do we have a quarterback controversy on our hands? Caleb Williams has been less than stellar since being drafted by the Jets and you have to wonder if they question sending Sauce Gardner away for the opportunity to draft Williams. They allowed 326 passing yards to the Bills this week and that won’t cut it in their division.
27. Indianapolis Colts (0-1): You have to be impressed with the 542 yards of offense that the Colts put up this week. They had a very balanced approach with Richardson and Taylor rushing for over a hundred yards. However, with Richardson’s deadeye abilities, I figured he’d be more accurate with the football. Nonetheless, his three interceptions this week were a big reason why the Colts couldn’t bridge the gap against the Titans.
28. Las Vegas Raiders (0-1): The debut of Arch Manning was highly anticipated by the Raiders fandom. Outside of an errant pass that resulted in a pick 6 (more user lurk than bad pass), Arch made every throw a coach could ask for, completing 25 of his 35 passes for 284 yards and two touchdowns. He also added a touchdown on the ground. The real star of the day was rookie back Dylan Edwards, who had 4 touchdowns on the day. The Raiders will take on the Broncos in week 2 as they look to continue to build upon their week one performance, hopefully turning this one into a victory.
29. New York Giants (0-1): The Giants were dismantled in week 1 by the Jacksonville Jaguars. They weren’t able to get it going through the air or on the ground as Quinn Ewers threw 3 interceptions and Deandre Swift couldn’t get it going on the ground. It’s been a disappointing cycle for Coach Burn and the Giants and week 1 wasn’t an indication that anything was going to improve. The Giants will look to bounce back in week 2 against the Colts.
30. San Francisco 49ers (0-1): Welcome to the big leagues rook. Predicting 10-11 wins and a wildcard probably isn’t in the cards for Casper this season, but you have to love his competitive spirit at the very least. They gave up almost 300 yards on the ground, and if I am the rookie coach, adjusting the defensive scheme has to be a big priority heading into their week 2 battle against a Panthers team that just saw 4 different running backs score on the ground.
31. Washington Commanders (0-1): The Commanders were two yards short of their first victory of the 2026 season. Their offense played well enough to win, but their defense fell short, allowing Carolina to do whatever they wanted on the ground with whoever they wanted (although Braelon Allen did most of the damage). They will have to shore up their run defense as they travel to Philly to take on an Eagles offense that just destroyed Dallas on the ground.
32. Miami Dolphins (0-1): Miami has been neglected and it’s very tough to say when their owner will come back and if their owner will be able to repair the damage done to the team. Only time will tell if the Dolphins are going to sink or swim for the rest of the cycle.
