2021 NFL Preseason Power Rankings
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Until they get knocked off, I will keep them at the top spot. They had a season last year in which everything went right. Repeating is hard enough. Can they repeat the luck of everything going right? I doubt it, but they are at the top of my power rankings until their luck is proven to run out.
2. Kansas City Chiefs
I believe the Chiefs are the best in the NFL. Last year they faced the Buccaneers as a beat-up team. While I do think they are the best in the NFL, I do not believe they are insurmountable; last year proved that. They are No. 2 until they beat the Bucs.
3. Baltimore Ravens
This franchise again hovers near the top. The Ravens have a quarterback in Lamar Jackson who can create, but they are disciplined enough to eliminate mistakes. They are dangerous.
4. Buffalo Bills
The hardest part for young teams is learning how to win. Their youth has them slated in the fourth spot, but I wouldn't be shocked to see the Bills Mafia back in the Super Bowl. This roster and is loaded, and they have all of the intangibles.
5. Los Angeles Rams
The Rams got the best player available this offseason in Matthew Stafford, after he languished in the football purgatory known as the Detroit Lions. I do not have them higher because I am concerned over how quickly the new team acclimates to Stafford. They will love him, but it will be an adjustment.
6. New England Patriots
Everyone talks about the money they spent on free agents. No one is talking about the mass of players who opted out over COVID-19 last year that are back. The Patriots are back. If they get the QB situation fixed early, they could and should be higher than No. 6.
7. Cleveland Browns
If Odell Beckham Jr. is back physically and mentally, this team is dangerous. They are young, and I already mentioned the difficulty of young teams learning to win. The Browns can beat any team on any day, but they can also lose to any. They are their most significant obstacle moving up on this list, not an opponent.
8. Green Bay Packers
The drama with Aaron Rodgers has them lower on this list. Do I think they should be higher? Without the drama, yes. But it is there, and they have to deal with it. I expect the Packers to play hardball, and I do not think Rodgers will sit out.
9. Seattle Seahawks
Russell Wilson is still the quarterback, and the Seahawks are dangerous. I expect Wilson to play motivated and with a chip in his shoulder. That is a scary proposition.
10. Washington Football Team
The WFT will be my most controversial ranking of the top 10, and I am OK with that. We know what they have, and last season we saw what they didn't. The WFT now has a field general in Ryan Fitzpatrick, a gutsy, tough player who guys love to play next to.
11. Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys were disciplined in the draft and picked the young man who I think will be the front-runner for Defensive Rookie of the Year, Micah Parsons. They get back their quarterback who returns from injury, Dak Prescott, and they are ready to make some noise.
12. Indianapolis Colts
Carson Wentz is fortunate to be out of the dysfunctional Eagles' nest. I expect him to be healthy and on a team that is well-rounded and well-coached. Don't sleep on the ponies.
13. Miami Dolphins
This fascinating franchise has all of the intangibles. The Dolphins had 10 wins and didn't get into the playoffs. There was no unnecessary panic by the Dolphins, and that discipline is about to be rewarded with sustained success. Tua Tagovailoa has the support he needs to lead this franchise.
14. Las Vegas Raiders
Every year under Jon Gruden in his second term, the Raiders have improved. This year I think the team jumps from eight to 11 wins. They are significantly better, and they have the most underrated and underappreciated quarterback in the National Football League, Derek Carr. If they reach my 11-win prediction, they will make the playoffs.
If they reach what I have called their floor at 10 wins, they will be spending the postseason as a spectator. Either way, 10 wins are the minimum expectation for the Silver and Black.
15. San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers are a team that did everything they could this offseason to move on from a quarterback that now they will expect to lead them. They have the talent to be higher, but the locker room chemistry will have to prove to me, on the field, that it is legitimate.
16. Arizona Cardinals
This team is intriguing to me. Kyler Murray is fun to watch and a rising superstar. The most significant question mark is their first two NFL Draft picks. If they can have an immediate impact, they can be deadly. I never trust rookies and relying on two of them has them right here.
17. Tennessee Titans
Derrick Henry should have been the NFL MVP last year. How long can he play the way he does and avoid injury? If rookie cornerback Caleb Farley can be what they think, this team is in the playoff hunt. To me, Farley has a monster upside, but he has too many questions to be selected where he was. We know what the Titans have, but we also know what they don't. I don't ever trust rookies.
18. Pittsburgh Steelers
To me, this team has a last run type feel. I think the Steelers have the most underrated and underappreciated coach in the NFL, Mike Tomlin. I have the Steelers out of the playoffs, but we all know betting against Tomlin is foolish. I am not betting against Tomlin; I am betting against the roster.
19. New Orleans Saints
They are loaded. I can hear the folks down on the bayou screaming at me. Sorry, Kendra, Kourtney, and Josh (my family in New Orleans), I'll buy the next round of crawfish etouffee, but replacing Drew Brees is too much. If they can get the QB position figured out, they leap a lot of people.
20. Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings could easily be a playoff team. Kirk Cousins is a solid quarterback, but the offensive line problems are the biggest reason I have them here. There is a lot of drama around this team.
21. Los Angeles Chargers
QB Justin Herbert is the real deal. He didn't play like a rookie, and this team is one year away from being very good. They still have some holes, but no doubt this team is on the rise.
22. New York Giants
This team, to me, is not what I remember the Giants of my youth to be. There are so many questions; a young offensive line and a franchise you once could count on as solid in the management has the feeling of teetering on mediocrity, not rising.
23. Carolina Panthers
I like everything this franchise is doing. The Panthers are doing a lot of what the Raiders are doing under Gruden. They are methodical, not risking the future and building for long-term and sustained success. I think they are one to two years away from the playoffs, but don't let their rank fool you. The Panthers are on the rise.
24. Atlanta Falcons
It simply feels like the gas tank is almost empty on this franchise. Matt Ryan is a talented quarterback, but this franchise seems stale. The Falcons could take flight, but to me, there are so many intangibles, and the amount of those question marks has them sitting right here in my rankings.
25. Chicago Bears
Andy Dalton and rookie Justin Fields are an upgrade at quarterback. Khalil Mack is the biggest question. He has to get back to being the monster he is paid to be. I don't see this team in the playoffs even if Mack returns to form, but they could be significantly better.
26. Denver Broncos
I like what the Broncos did in the NFL Draft. Their quarterback position is sketchy. Aaron Rodgers could be an upgrade, but Aaron Rodgers, while a fantastic quarterback, is not Tom Brady. He also is a Packer. This team doesn't have the weapons in place that the Bucs did, and Rodgers isn't going to bring many players with him. As for this ranking, the Broncos are in the right spot but rising.
27. Cincinnati Bengals
QB Joe Burrow got the weapon he wanted in the first round, the protection he needed in the second. Other than the Detroit Lions, the Bengals have the worst ownership group. If they can stay out of their own way, they could be higher than No. 27. Based on the years of evidence, I think they fit right here.
28. Detroit Lions
Rookie Penei Sewell was a great draft pick. The Lions had an excellent draft. They allowed a superior quarterback in Matthew Stafford to leave while accumulating a massive deal for an underachiever. I like the Lions' new brain trust, but the ownership remains. I still can't forget this team fired Jim Caldwell, and despite the new leadership, the Lions, in the words of a former player, "Are cursed."
29. Philadelphia Eagles
The leadership of this team is not impressive. The concern with the Eagles isn't about players, this is about leadership. For teams to be in the playoff hunt, you have to have the brain trust in the upstairs offices leading intelligently. Does anyone not related to that leadership or getting paid by them trust them to take this team forward? Is there anyone not rooting for Jalen Hurts? He is not only an incredibly talented player, but an amazing human being.
30. New York Jets
Everything that this franchise did once the season ended made them better. They are here because of the inexperience of crucial players and, of course, coaching. They are not here for lack of talent. The Jets won't stay bottom feeders for long. They are a franchise on the rise.
31. Jacksonville Jaguars
Urban renewal (Urban Meyer) is underway, and adding a generational talent at the most essential position in all sports is a huge deal. Trevor Lawrence is the real deal; the roster is, without question, improved, but this team is three years away from the playoffs.
32. Houston Texans
Deshaun Watson's future is at best up in the air. This franchise is a train wreck and could end up 0-16.
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