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NFL Power Rankings: June 29

nflmocks — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 22:38:26 +0000

My last power rankings had Indianapolis at #1 and New England at #2. In some places around the world I’m sure it is illegal to put a team that posted the second undefeated season in NFL history and a team that went a combined 18-1 at #2 in the first power rankings for next season.

I also broke another rule of mine when I put the defending Super Bowl champions at #7. Usually I put the defending world champs #1 in my initial power rankings but after reviewing the NFL’s crazy offseason I decided that Michael Strahan’s retirement, as well as everyone else getting better will probably be too much for New York to repeat.

And since I just said that, they probably will repeat.

Anyways, I’ve now composed my second edition of power rankings. Check it out:

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#	+/-	Team	Comment
1	–	Indianapolis Colts	Peyton Manning is the NFL’s best player, and I know this because I’ve even ranked him such. I just feel like Marvin Harrison will be back, and paired with Reggie Wayne they will return as one of the NFL’s top receiving duos. My early pick to win the Super Bowl.
2	–	New England Patriots	Alright trivia time. Is it worse to have a player who threw a record breaking 50 touchdowns as the NFL’s second best QB or having a team that went 18-1 and lost in the Super Bowl as the second best team in the league?
3	–	Dallas Cowboys	Terry Glenn’s contract situation is starting to cause a very uncomfortable stir in Big D. Just remember Cowboys fans, Dallas went 13-3 without Glenn in the regular season last year.
4	–	San Diego Chargers	In case anyone noticed the Chargers were the only NFL team with three players in my top 20 rankings.
5	+2	New York Giants	Michael Strahan’s retirement hurts the defensive line somewhat but as the veteran said in his final speech, it’s time for the other guys to show what they can do.
6	–	Jacksonville Jaguars	The Jaguars are just absolutely loaded with talent. It will be fun to see if Fred Taylor can have another great season at his age. I believe watching Maurice Jones Drew run the ball has refueled some of his fire.
7	-2	Pittsburgh Steelers	This is a team that has won the Super Bowl and knows how to handle adversity. Remember last season when Cleveland proved to be some unexpected competition in the AFC North? Pittsburgh won the division anyways.
8	+4	Green Bay Packers	The Packers could be anywhere from 8-14 on this list in my opinion but how much will Brett Favre’s retirement really hurt them? I have no idea but does anyone really know?
9	–	Philadelphia Eagles	Philadelphia has been very consistent for the last five years or so. Last season was a disappointment but they have too much talent to miss the playoffs again. Expect the Eagles to be as strong as ever in 2008.
10	+3	Cleveland Browns	The Browns have cracked my top ten. Wow. If you had told me this after the draft last year I would’ve told you it would be a few years. Let’s see if they can keep it up and become a consistent top NFL franchise.
11	-1	Seattle Seahawks	Does anyone else feel that by losing Shaun Alexander to free agency the Seahawks actually improved? It means they will rely less on Alexander, and Julius Jones should be at least a little of an upgrade.
12	+2	Tennessee Titans	I love their defense, but Vince Young has really got to start developing into more of a passer. He still relies on his legs entirely too much in a league where one hit can put you out for a year in the snap of your fingers.
13	-5	New Orleans Saints	I admit that New Orleans was probably ranked too high in my initial power rankings, but I love their offense and I see a big bounce back year coming for the Saints this year.
14	-3	Washington Redskins	All four NFC East teams are ranked in my top 14. Jason Campbell continues to develop and Clinton Portis is among the NFL’s best 10 running backs. The defense has a lot of talent. This team is going to help make the NFC East as competitve as ever.
15	+4	Minnesota Vikings	Adrian Peterson has already become one of the best running backs in the league. The offense needs to continue to grow under Tavaris Jackson.
16	–	Arizona Cardinals	Arizona is in the top half of my power rankings, and that means I probably just lost a lot of readers. Every year a team comes from nowhere to win a NFL dvision. The Cardinals are slowly building something in Arizona and I am picking them to win the NFC West.
17	+1	Houston Texans	Want to know how tough the AFC South is? Their four teams are all ranked in the top 17. Houston is very tough, and I expect them to challenge for a playoff spot again.
18	-3	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Before Tampa Bay can really compete for a playoff spot they have to figure out who their QB is. That along with Carnell Williams returning healthy from his ACL injury would make the Buccaneers an instant NFC contender.
19	-2	Denver Broncos	Everyone in the AFC West, including Denver, is trying to find a way to catch up to San Diego in the divsion. Jay Cutler has a lot of work to do to prove he can be successful in this league.
20	–	Cincinnati Bengals	Carson Pamer is ranked #8 in Pete Prisco’s Top 50 list (Sportsline.com). He’s a great QB but #8? I love Palmer but I don’t think he’s quite that good. If Cincy can find any defense then they will be playing for a chance to win the AFC North late in the season.
21	–	Chicago Bears	It’s a make or break year for the Bears. The Rex Grossman/Kyle Orton experiement will either finally fail completely causing Chicago to draft a QB in 2009, or the Bears will work themselves back into the mix in the NFC.
22	+1	Buffalo Bills	I really think Buffalo is an up and coming team in the AFC but the conference is loaded with talent already, meaning there isn’t much room for a young team like the Bills. In a few years we might be talking about how great a duo Trent Edwards and Marshawn Lynch are. Both looked great in year one (for rookies) to me.
23	+1	Carolina Panthers	Carolina is better than people think they are. Remember this same offense, led by Jake Delhomme and Steve Smith, played for the Super Bowl just a few years back. There’s no reason to believe they can’t find that magic again. It’s unlikely but not impossible.
24	-2	Detroit Lions	Jon Kitna will wear out his welcome in the Motor City quickly if he continues to come up short of his 10 win guarantee.
25	+5	Kansas City Chiefs	I think I had Kansas City a little too low in my initial rankings. I’m no Brodie Croyle fan, but Larry Johnson is still one a premiere running back. KC should contend for a playoff spot.
26	-1	St. Louis Rams	Last year was just embarrasing for a team I thought could be very successful in 2007. Instead I watched them start poorly and struggle the entire year. I don’t expect that to happen again, and neither do Rams fans.
27	–	Baltimore Ravens	I’ve read reports that Troy Smith is looking nice in Baltimore right now, and will probably start on opening day. If he plays well then the Ravens might be in a position like Cleveland is now with Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn. Joe Flacco or Troy Smith? I’m sure this is a problem the Ravens hope develops.
28	-2	San Francisco 49ers	This is probably Alex Smith’s last chance to impress anyone on the West Coast. He is very inconsistent and is really hurting the reputation of future NFL players like Tim Tebow, since both ran Urban Meyer’s college system.
29	–	New York Jets	The Jets had a very disappointing year after making the playoffs in 2006. Eric Mangini impressed during his first season but another bad year might mean a very hot season in the Big Apple.
30	-2	Oakland Raiders	I like the direction that Oakland is going. If both JaMarcus Russell and Darren McFadden develop into stars then the Raiders will be back in hurry. It’s just a big IF.
31	–	Miami Dolphins	Early reports make it look like Josh McCown will probably be starting for Miami on opening day. If the Jason Taylor situation works out then the Dolphins D-line will be as strong as ever.
32	–	Atlanta Falcons	Matt Ryan is going to need lots of time to develop in Atlanta but before they can truly be competitve they need to surround their young QB with many weapons.

NFL Power Rankings: Training Camp Edition

nflmocks — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 05:32:34 +0000

Now that both Peyton and Eli Manning have won their Super Bowl rings the NFL’s attention will swap to a new cast of players that have not yet reached and then won the big game. Peyton was said to fold under pressure early into his NFL career, but broke free last season when the Colts beat the Bears in the Super Bowl. Eli led his Giants past the NFC’s best, Dallas and Green Bay, before beating a team that many thought was unbeatable.

So who’s feeling the heat now?

How about a man named Tony Romo? We all remember last season in the wildcard playoffs when Romo dropped the snap on a game winning field goal attempt and Dallas lost to Seattle 21-20. This past season Dallas won the NFC and the right to have homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. That didn’t do them any good, because they lost to New York (a team they had already won twice against) at home 17-14.

Tony Romo and the Cowboys have not won a playoff game in a decade.

Donovan McNabb is another guy on the hot seat. A lot of people want him out of Philadelphia anyways and he still hasn’t won a Super Bowl after leading the Eagles to the NFC Championship four straight seasons.

Drew Brees and Phillip Rivers have both been very good during their NFL careers, Brees more than Rivers, but neither has played in a Super Bowl. Both have played in championship games, Brees in the 07 NFC Championship game and Rivers in the 08 AFC Championship game.

Then there’s the question of when the pressure starts to mount for guys like Derek Anderson. Anderson had his breakout season in Cleveland last year but is still probably closer to losing his starting spot to Brady Quinn than competing for a Super Bowl.

Does all this talk affect our power rankings? Not much, but if you are interested in seeing a NFL quarterback hot seat chart let me know and I will make one up for the site.

Now onto the rankings:

#	Team	Comment
1	Indianapolis Colts	The Colts over the Patriots, I’m sure I will get some flack for that. San Diego put them out in the playoffs but you have to figure Manning will lead them back.
2	New England Patriots	18-1 last season, but now they have to face something they’ve never faced before. Losing a Super Bowl, can the Patriots recover mentally?
3	Dallas Cowboys	If Tony Romo can perform in the postseason like he does in the regular season then Dallas will be playing for the Super Bowl.
4	San Diego Chargers	They are loaded with talent but when you play in the same conference as Indy and NE talent just isn’t enough.
5	Pittsburgh Steelers	Big Ben knows how to get to the Super Bowl. If he hopes to get back Santonio Holmes is going to have to continue developing into a top receiver.
6	Jacksonville Jaguars	If only this team didn’t play in the AFC South. The Jaguars have become one of the NFL’s most consistent franchises.
7	New York Giants	I’ve never had a Super Bowl champion ranked this low but the NFC is weak and top to bottom the Cowboys are just better than the Giants.
8	New Orleans Saints	Drew Brees is one of the NFL’s première QBs but he can’t do it alone. The Saints need their defense to improve in a hurry to get back to the top of the NFC.
9	Philadelphia Eagles	A lot of experts like this team to make the playoffs after missing them last season. I agree with that statement, they just have too much talent.
10	Seattle Seahawks	Not sure what to expect from the Seahawks this year. No Shaun Alexander but still enough talent to be the overwhelming favorite in the NFC West division.
11	Washington Redskins	How good is the NFC East? I have the four teams ranked 3-11. This is partly because the NFC is the weaker conference and partly because of the division’s strength.
12	Green Bay Packers	The Packers begin their first season without Brett Favre in the time I’ve been alive, and they fall to #12 because of it.
13	Cleveland Browns	The Browns came just one game from the playoffs last season and look to compete for them this season. I expect them to go around 8-8.
14	Tennessee Titans	This is really a huge year for Vince Young and his time to develop into a passer. If Tennessee is ever going to win with him then his time is now.
15	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Can the Bucs win the NFC South again? Jon Gruden hopes he can find his QB and that whoever that guy is can lead his team. Good luck.
16	Arizona Cardinals	Shhh…..don’t say it too loudly but I actually like Arizona to win the NFC West this year.
17	Denver Broncos	Denver always finds a way to field a winning football team. Playing the Chiefs and Raiders four times it shouldn’t be hard to win 8-10 games again.
18	Houston Texans	If Houston played in the NFC then they’d probably be a playoff team every season. In the AFC South 8-8 is good enough for the cellar.
19	Minnesota Vikings	It look Adrian Peterson just one season to become the NFL’s best running back. Now if he could only find the QB to make the Vikings real contenders.
20	Cincinnati Bengals	The offense is still explosive. The defense is still the problem here. Can Cincy turn it around in time to become contenders in the AFC?
21	Chicago Bears	We’ve been saying the same stuff about the Bears for years and it’s still the problem in Chicago. Can Rex Grossman finally become the answer at QB? Probably not. The guy has had three years.
22	Detroit Lions	Jon Kitna is guaranteeing that the Lions will win 10 games again this year. Good luck Jon.
23	Buffalo Bills	Trent Edwards will begin the season as the starter for Buffalo. His development will show the Bills success.
24	Carolina Panthers	Steve Smith needs to get back to the top of his game. Of course that means Jake Delhomme will have to get the ball to him.
25	St. Louis Rams	The Rams have too much talent to limp through another season.
26	San Francisco 49ers	Alex Smith is probably looking at his last opportunity to show he is a NFL caliber quarterback.
27	Baltimore Ravens	If Joe Flacco doesn’t turn their offense around then Baltimore is in trouble. Another four years waiting for another QB to develop…well that would be terrible.
28	Oakland Raiders	JaMarcus Russell handing off to Darren McFadden. If both become what Oakland believes they can then the Raiders are an up and coming franchise.
29	New York Jets	The Jets have to find their quarterback before they can even get a sniff at the postseason.
30	Kansas City Chiefs	Living in Alabama I will be the first to tell you that Brodie Croyle is not the longterm answer at QB for the Chiefs.
31	Miami Dolphins	Yes the 1-15 team from last year isn’t even last in my power rankings. Bill Parcells will turn them around, and they start one spot at a time.
32	Atlanta Falcons	I love the pick of Matt Ryan. Michael Vick is no longer the face of their franchise. A great first step.