NFL Power Rankings shouldn't ruffle anyone's feathers all that much, because it's a well-worn exercise typically filled with hot takes and silly opinions. One way to garner attention these days is to make sure the angle is an obtuse one, which is why we wanted to leave the latest list of the league's best teams from NFL Spin Zone alone.
This time, we just can't help ourselves.
The Kansas City Chiefs have been to five of the last six Super Bowls and won 15 of 17 regular-season games last year despite dealing with myriad injuries. They return more talent on both sides of the ball than they had while chasing a historic three-peat in 2024. Despite all of that, however, somehow the Chiefs are ranked at No. 7 overall going into Week 1.
To the writer's credit, the majority of the list is comprised of NFC teams, with only the Baltimore Ravens and Buffalo Bills ranked above the Chiefs. AFC supremacy has been the Chiefs' calling card since Patrick Mahomes took over as the starting quarterback in 2018, so it feels silly to think the road to the Super Bowl doesn't run through K.C. until proven otherwise.
That said, the Ravens and Bills are both well-coached teams with talented rosters and MVP candidates leading the offense at quarterback. That's alwys going to be a recipe for contention, and the franchises warrant top-tier spots.
As for the other teams, the Philadelphis Eagles lead the pack, which is, again, well-deserved, since they stomped the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX just several months ago. However, from there, things get dicey. The Chiefs are still behind Green Bay Packers, L.A. Rams, and Detroit Lions.
Yeah, those don't even merit a defense.
None of this is even needed, however, when reading the reasons behind the Chiefs' disrespect here. "The reality is, the Chiefs have been carried the last two years by the defense. The offense has been great situationally, but middle-of-the-pack in scoring the football," writes Sayre Bedinger.
Maybe it's worth mentioning that the Chiefs were missing their WR1 (Rashee Rice), WR2 (Hollywood Brown), and RB1 (Isiah Pacheco) while cycling through four different left tackles.
No matter, power rankings are never worth the emotional investment. But it would at least be nice if whoever was making such lists would take in all of the relevant information before making their decisions.