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Power Rankings are a way to gauge which teams are on the up in terms of form and results. Here I set out my early top 10 ranked teams after the Draft and Free Agency signings. These rankings will change as the season draws nearer and more injuries occur.
#10 Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons round out my early Power Rankings. They surprised everyone by drafting WR Calvin Ridley in the first round. He will go straight into a scary looking attack that includes Julio Jones, Sanu, Freeman and Coleman. Matt Ryan needs to find his 2016 form after having a down year last season.
Hopefully, another year in OC Steve Sarkisian’s scheme should help. Drafting Isaiah Oliver in the second round should help a defense that struggled to generate takeaways last season. If Ryan can reignite this offense, then I’d expect to see them climbing a lot higher on this list.
#9 Green Bay Packers
The Packers addressed their biggest weakness at Corner Back in this year’s draft, managing to draft both Jaire Alexander and Josh Jackson in the first two rounds. They will instantly upgrade a secondary that really struggled with injury and form last year. On offense, Aaron Rodgers is back to full health, so the offense will score points regularly, unlike when Brett Hundley was under center last season.
Jimmy Graham was signed in Free Agency to add another RedZone threat to Rodgers arsenal. The questionable release of Jordy Nelson has created a void at Wide Receiver, with Geronimo Allison or a rookie penciled in to fill the role. There are rumors that Dez Bryant could end up in the green and yellow? I can’t see it myself, but stranger things have happened.
#8 Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers had a great first day at the draft, when Safety, Derwin James inexplicably fell to them at pick 17. He could have easily gone in the top 8 picks and will fill a need straight away for the Chargers. Their defense was great last year with Ingram, Bosa and Hayward leading the way.
Their offense has taken a hit in the last 24 hours with Hunter Henry tearing his ACL in practice. He was projected to have a big year for them this year and will be sorely missed. Will this mean the Chargers re-sign Antonio Gates? It seems to make sense as he knows the offense already and can fit straight in. The Chargers have enough weapons with Rivers, Allen, Gordon, Williams and Benjamin to be able to put up big points most weeks.
#7 New Orleans Saints
The Saints had one of the most improved defenses in 2017, with Marshon Lattimore becoming the shut down corner they desperately needed. In the draft the paid up big time to secure the services of Marcus Davenport, who they see as the missing link in this defense. Time will tell if they gave up too much to get their man, who has a lot of raw talent, but a lot of improving to do.
On offense, they will continue their impressive form from last year. Alvin Kamara will be used more often in the first few weeks due to Mark Ingram’s suspension. I’m interested to see how the signing of Cam Meredith works out. If he’s fully recovered from his injury he could prove to be a great signing for this team on the outside.
#6 Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings are coming off the back of a highly impressive 2017, where they reached the conference finals. Since then, they’ve upgraded the QB position with the signing of Kirk Cousins to a big money deal. Cousins will take this offense to the next level. That’s no disrespect to Case Keenum who had his best season in the league last year. They also get Running Back, Dalvin Cook back from injury to help improve the run game.
On defense, they signed Sheldon Richardson who will improve that defensive line, and they drafted CB Mike Hughes who will immediately challenge for a starting job. It’s hard to see a weakness in this team.
#5 Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers still boast one of the best offenses in the league, with the 3 B’s’, Ben, Bell and Brown giving opposing defenses nightmares. Brown is the best receiver in the league and Bell could well be the best all round running back in the league. Add in impressive youngster JuJu Smith-Schuster and second-round rookie James Washington, and they have a strong WR corps for the coming season.
Their defense is much improved since the start of the last season, despite the loss of Ryan Shazier and the questionable first round reach for Safety, Terrell Edmunds. The Steelers will be in the playoffs again next season.
#4 Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars stunned everyone last year when they emerged as genuine SuperBowl contenders. They have the most dominant defense in the NFL with shut down corners Ramsey and Bouye forming the best CB pairing in the league. They have a destructive pass rush to go along with that pairing, as well as an improved offense.
Blake Bortles showed last season that he can play at a higher level than most expected. The team leaned on Leonard Fournette, who added a solid running game to ease the pressure on Bortles. I expect Bortles to keep improving his play this year and lead the Jags to another playoff run.
#3 New England Patriots
The Patriots won’t drop too far in most rankings as long as they have Tom Brady under center. The 40-year-old QB and reigning MVP will be back for another season, with no intention of retiring any time soon. The Pats offense has had some losses this offseason. They lost Danny Amendola to the Dolphins and Brandin Cooks got traded to the Rams. That being said, they get Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan and Malcolm Mitchell back from injury.
They replaced Free Agency loss, Dion Lewis, with 1st round draft pick Sony Michel who could be in line for a big workload. They also lost one of the best Offensive tackles in the league, Nate Solder, to the Giants. Despite these losses, the Pats will still be one of the best teams in the league.
#2 Los Angeles Rams
The Rams are in ‘win now’ mode. They’ve recruited some of the best players in the league to try and win the SuperBowl whilst Jared Goff is still on his cheap rookie contract. This offseason they have acquired two of the best corners in the league in Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib and paired All-Pro DT Aaron Donald with new signing Ndamukong Suh.
On offense they chose to let Sammy Watkins walk, whilst signing Brandin Cooks to take his place. Cooks can stretch the field and has regularly put up better numbers than Watkins. Looking at this team, it’s hard to see any weaknesses, as long as Goff can play as well as he did last year.
#1 Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles top my rankings after having a quiet, but strong offseason. Last years SuperBowl winners re-signed Line-Backer Nigel Bradham to a long-term contract and agreed on an extension with veteran RB Darren Sproles. They also acquired Michael Bennett from the Seahawks to add more grit to their Defensive Line.
They drafted exciting TE prospect Dallas Goedert in the second round to replace the Chicago bound Trey Burton. The best thing that has happened for the Eagles this offseason is the recovery of Carson Wentz. He is supposedly on track to get back on the field at some point during the preseason. He’s out running again and stepping up his rehab after his ACL injury. His return will boost a team who are still on a high after their SB win in Minnesota.
