Week 1 Power Rankings

When we last left our story, the New York Giants were once again reminding us that it's not how you start, it's how you finish that counts for everything in the NFL. Of that, the Packers and Patriots need no further reminders. They dominated the discussion in their respective conferences last season, but both came up empty when the opportunity to end the Giants' storybook playoff run presented itself. Just as they did in 2007.

The regular season's 256-game schedule is always a mystery ride, but here's our up-to-minute projection of how the league's 32 clubs stack up at the close of another tedious preseason. Every Wednesday from now until January, we'll re-order the NFL landscape based on the previous weekend's games, ranking and remarking on the rising or falling fortunes as the football unfolds.

NFL Power Rankings