Schuyler Callihan's Post-Draft NFL Power Rankings
1. Buffalo Bills
The most talented roster in the NFL got even better this offseason with the addition of Von Miller. The AFC is loaded with teams that could compete for a spot in the Super Bowl, but to me, the AFC runs through Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in 2022.
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With Tom Brady back for at least another year, the Bucs have a chance of winning its second Super Bowl in three years. They were able to bring back Chris Godwin and added Russell Gage in free agency, giving Brady a healthy corps of receivers to go along with Mike Evans. Playing in a weak NFC South could give them an opportunity to earn the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
3. Los Angeles Rams
The Rams window to win is closing with each passing year. They gave up the future of Matthew Stafford and don't have much cap space to work with. Thankfully for the Rams, the ROI on the Stafford trade paid off in year one with a Super Bowl title. They lost some pieces off of that team, but are still in position to make a run to get back.
4. Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers at four? FOUR?!?! Yes, I'm THAT high on the Chargers in 2022. Justin Herbert is going to take yet another massive leap this season and more importantly, the defense is much improved thanks to the additions of Khalil Mack, J.C. Jackson, and Sebastian Joseph-Day.
5. Kansas City Chiefs
How does Patrick Mahomes respond without having Tyreek Hill on the roster? We don't have a damn clue. Kansas City did pick up JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdez-Scantling, but it's not going to make up for what they lost in Hill. Now that L.A. has a defense, I have the Chiefs just a hair behind them.
6. Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals are here to stay. Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase are rapidly turning into one of the best duos the NFL has to offer. If Cincinnati had an offensive line in the Super Bowl, the outcome could have been different. After taking a beating in his first two years in the league, "Joe Shiesty" finally has some protection with the additions of Ted Karras, Alex Cappa, and La'el Collins.
7. Dallas Cowboys
At times, the Cowboys appeared to be the best team in the NFC a year ago. As long as they are ravaged by injuries, they'll be in a great position to compete for a No. 1 seed. Could this finally be the year the Cowboys make a run in the postseason? I get that feeling.
8. Indianapolis Colts
This Colts team is built to win and has been for the last three years or so. Inconsistent quarterback play has been what has held this team back. They traded for Matt Ryan earlier this offseason who could be the answer to their problems. Ryan was a good quarterback stuck on a really bad team. Indy's defense added Stephon Gilmore and Yannick Ngakoue to an already stout unit. A lot to like with the Colts.
9. Green Bay Packers
Aaron Rodgers is the best quarterback in the league, but with Davante Adams now in Vegas, who is going to throw the ball to? Allen Lazard? Sammy Watkins? The rookie, Christian Watson? If one of those guys can emerge into a true No. 1, then it's a different story. I just don't see it happening.
10. Baltimore Ravens
A healthy Lamar Jackson and a killer draft class will get the Ravens back on track in 2022. Jackson only played in 12 games last season and when he's not on the field, this team is going to have a hard time competing. I like what they did by trading away Hollywood Brown for a first round pick which turned into Tyler Linderbaum. They got arguably the most talented player in the class midway through the first round in Kyle Hamilton AND beefed up the tight end room with Charlie Kolar and Isaiah Likely to go with Mark Andrews.
11. Las Vegas Raiders
Everyone is talking about Davante Adams being reunited with Derek Carr and rightfully so. However, the Raiders got my attention by what they did on the other side of the ball. Maxx Crosby is already one of the NFL's best pass rushers and now you have Chandler Jones lining up on the opposite side? Sheesh.
12. Tennessee Titans
For the first time in his career, Derrick Henry missed a substantial amount of time due to injury. My fear is that if he goes down again, the team will go with him. They are not as strong as they were a year ago offensively having shipped off AJ Brown to the Eagles and of course, Julio Jones no longer on the roster. Being too dependent on Henry could end up being a big problem for their offense.
13. Cleveland Browns
I'm conflicted on what to do with the Browns, largely because no one has any idea what is going to happen with Deshaun Watson. If he's on the field for over half of the season, I could see them finishing in this 13-15 range. The ground game and the defense they've built is good enough to win them games even if Jacoby Brissett is under center.
14. San Francisco 49ers
Jimmy Garoppolo is still a 49er and that's why I still have them in the top half of the league. No, he's not going to singlehandedly win games, but he's a much safer option than Trey Lance, at least at the moment. It seems like the Deebo Samuel situation has calmed quite a bit and feels as if he will be back in San Fran. Unless something changes with these two, I like the 49ers' chances of putting together a decent year.
15. Minnesota Vikings
Can the defense come to play? If so, the Vikings have something cooking here. You don't have to worry about moving the ball/scoring points with Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and Dalvin Cook. It's just a matter of whether or not they have to outscore people to win. Adding Za'Darius Smith was a nice pick up, but how much will it help the overall defense?
16. Denver Broncos
I'm sorry. I'm just not all of a sudden sold on the Broncos. I'm just not. Wilson is clearly an upgrade at quarterback, but DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett aren't in that Denver receiving room and there's no one remotely close to either one of those guys. The o-line is better, but not by a landslide. The Broncos will be more competitive in 2022, but not quite on the level of duplicating what Stafford did in his first year with the Rams.
17. Arizona Cardinals
Am I the only one who is still trying to figure out how Kliff Kingsbury landed an NFL head coaching job? Sure, the dude is pretty sharp offensively but the rest...well, there's a lot to work on. With DeAndre Hopkins being suspended for the first six games of the year, it could force the Cardinals to play catch up all year.
18. New Orleans Saints
The Saints were 5-2 with Jameis Winston as the starting quarterback a year ago. After missing out on Watson, Winston is once again their guy and the Saints seem to be comfortable with it. Losing Terron Armstead is a huge blow, but the offensive line as a unit is still pretty strong. On the defensive side, New Orleans bolstered its secondary with Marcus Maye and Tyrann Mathieu. If Winston stays healthy, the Saints should 100% compete for a playoff spot.
19. Philadelphia Eagles
It feels like this is the last go around for the Jalen Hurts experiment. If he doesn't elevate his game to the next level, Philadelphia will start looking at other options. That said, getting A.J. Brown in that draft day trade is huge. It allows for things to open up for Devonta Smith on the other side, forcing defenses to cover the entire width of the field. Defensively, Philly got a shot in the arm with the free agent signings of Haason Reddick and Kyzir White and then in the draft with Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean.
20. New England Patriots
Mac Jones had a terrific rookie season, but I'm not quite ready to fully believe in him just yet. Now that teams have a year's worth of tape on him, it'll be interesting to see if he can avoid the sophomore slump. He still needs a strong supporting cast to be successful and this team just doesn't have it. A good roster, not a great one.
21. Miami Dolphins
I questioned the hire of Mike McDaniel, but I do like what he is doing in terms of constructing the offense around Tua Tagovailoa. He loaded up on running backs with Chase Edmonds, Raheem Mostert, and Sony Michel to go with Salvon Ahmed and Myles Gaskin. They traded for Tyreek Hill and signed Terron Armstead to anchor down the left side. Similar to Jalen Hurts, this feels like the last chance for Tua to prove himself with the Dolphins.
22. Pittsburgh Steelers
Kenny Pickett will compete with Mitchell Trubisky for the starting QB job, but my attention is more on the defense. The Steelers got to the quarterback more than anyone with 55 sacks last year. As good as that sounds, you would think the defense was one of the best in the league. Nope. They struggled against the run, and when the quarterback wasn't laying on his back, the secondary gave up a number of big plays. Mike Tomlin is on the verge of having his first losing season as a head coach.
23. Washington Commanders
Carson Wentz isn't a top tier quarterback by any means, but he is an upgrade over Taylor Heinicke. The front four of Chase Young, Daron Payne, Jonathan Allen, and Montez Sweat will keep them in a lot of games. Can the offense score enough points?
24. New York Jets
Everyone seems to think the Jets are all of a sudden going to go from what they've been to a Cincinnati-like jump in 2022. They are heading in the right direction, sure, but it's going to be a multi-year process. The offense shouldn't have many issues with an improved o-line, better receivers, and Breece Hall splitting touches with Michael Carter. The defense is just extremely young and will take some time to grow.
25. New York Giants
Similar to the Jets, the pieces are starting to come together for the Giants offensively. The defense got a boost with Kayvon Thibodeaux, but they clearly need more help in the second and third levels of the defense.
26. Carolina Panthers
Scott Fitterer has done a really good job building this roster. He pieced together one of the most talented, yet young defenses in the league and significantly improved the offensive line this offseason with Ikem Ekwonu, Bradley Bozeman, and Austin Corbett. Sam Darnold is still in line to be QB1 which is why I have the Panthers as low as I do. If they can find a veteran QB or perhaps Matt Corral becomes the gem of the draft, this team will need to be taken seriously.
27. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars absolutely crushed it in free agency, despite overpaying for Christian Kirk. They completely transformed the defense by snagging Folorunso Fatukasi, Foyesade Oluokun, and Darious Williams. In the draft they took Travon Walker No. 1 overall and traded back into the first round for Devin Lloyd. It's an improved roster for sure, but they are still in a division with the Colts and Titans.
28. Seattle Seahawks
These bottom five could be interchangeable if I'm being completely honest. The Seahawks aren't going to be competitive this year regardless if it's Geno Smith or Drew Lock at quarterback. Big rebuild coming for Seattle.
29. Detroit Lions
The Lions are going to shock some people with how competitive they are in 2022. Now, they may not win a bunch of games but I do think they're going to give a lot of teams trouble. They just don't have the talent to outplay others just yet.
30. Atlanta Falcons
Marcus Mariota gets his second chance at being a starting quarterback in the NFL - good for him. The only problem is that it's with arguably the worst offense in the entire league. Other than Kyle Pitts and rookie Drake London, I don't know who he is going to throw the ball to. Long year ahead for the Falcons.
31. Chicago Bears
I may be proven wrong, but I don't think Justin Fields is the answer at quarterback. Well, let me back up for a second. No one can be successful in Chicago until they get some playmakers on the perimeter and a line that can actually hold up in protection. Sorry, but 25-year-old rookie Velus Jones Jr. isn't going to replace Allen Robinson.
32. Houston Texans
The Texans are so far away, man. Unless Davis Mills somehow evolves into the best second-year quarterback, this is going to be an eyesore for Texans fans. Buckle up because it's not going to get any better any time soon.
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