With NFL free agency and the draft both now well in the rearview mirror, we have officially entered the "dead zone" of the NFL offseason. Yes, there are a few tidbits that will come out of OTAs or an occasional off the field story that will grab headlines for a day or two, but at this point NFL fans are in the speculation period. How good is my favorite team? How will they shape up with other teams now that free agency and the draft are over?
This week I thought I'd take a look around the NFL landscape and see if I could find a consensus of where teams stack up now that roster additions and subtractions are largely over. So I took a look at eight sets of NFL Power Rankings that have come out from major outlets since the draft ended. Those lists include:
- NFL.com's Power Rankings by Eric Edholm
- ESPN.com's Staff Power Rankings
- Pro Football Focus' Power Rankings
- USA Today's Power Rankings by Nate Davis
- Fox Sports' Power Rankings by David Helman
- Sports Illustrated's Power Rankings by John Pluym
- Bleacher Report's Power Rankings by Gary Davenport
- CBS Sports' Power Rankings by Pete Prisco
In addition to those eight NFL media power ranking lists, I also factored in the Super Bowl betting odds at both FanDuel and DraftKings as well. That gave me a nice even 10 rankings to average together to make these composite power rankings.
I've broken the list into six tiers based on where there were noticable jumps in the ranking averages. For each team I'll list what their composite ranking is, the average ranking they received, and what the high and low rankings for that team were.
Let's kick things off with the best of the best.
The Elite Super Bowl Contender Tier
This top tier is made up of the four teams that consistently ranked at the top of almost all the lists.
- Average Ranking: 1.2
- High Ranking: 1
- Low Ranking: 2
The Chiefs ranked first on eight of the ten lists and were the clear top team. You could even make an argument that they belong in a tier by themselves.
2. San Francisco 49ers
- Average Ranking: 2
- High Ranking: 1
- Low Ranking: 3
The 49ers received the only other first-place results. They edged out the Chiefs on PFF's list and in FanDuel's Super Bowl odds. Just like the Chiefs are the clear top team in the composite rankings, the 49ers are the clear consensus second team.
3. Baltimore Ravens
- Average Ranking: 3.9
- High Ranking: 3
- Low Ranking: 7
The Ravens finished in a tie with the Detroit Lions in their ranking average, but I gave them the nod over the Lions because they finished ahead of them on seven of the ten lists. Six of the ten rankings had the Ravens in this exact #3 spot.
4. Detroit Lions
- Average Ranking: 3.9
- High Ranking: 2
- Low Ranking: 6
The Lions were ranked fourth overall in seven of the ten lists. The three lists that had the Lions above the Ravens were Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, and Bleacher Report.
Now we're on to the second tier of the rankings.
The Consensus Top Ten Tier
The five teams in this tier were the only other teams to finish with averages inside the top ten. These are all teams that most still consider to be Super Bowl contenders, even if not as likely as the four teams in the top tier.
5. Philadelphia Eagles
- Average Ranking: 6.3
- High Ranking: 2
- Low Ranking: 11
The Eagles consistently ranked in the top ten, but where was a little all over the map. Fox Sports (2nd) and PFF (3rd) had them ranked the highest. Meanwhile, CBS (10th) and Bleacher Report (11th) did not have them ranked as high. Vegas was slightly lower on the Eagles than the media with them ranking 7th at FanDuel and 8th at DraftKings in Super Bowl odds.
6. Buffalo Bills
- Average Ranking: 6.7
- High Ranking: 4
- Low Ranking: 10
The Bills were slightly more consistent in the rankings than the Eagles were, ranking between 4th and 7th on seven of the ten lists. They also were tied for the 4th best Super Bowl odds at both FanDuel and DraftKings.
7. Houston Texans
- Average Ranking: 7.1
- High Ranking: 4
- Low Ranking: 11
The Texans consistently ranked within a pick or two of this position, with the extremes being Bleacher Report having them all the way up at 4th and Sports Illustrated being the biggest skeptic, ranking them 11th.
8. Cincinnatti Benglas
- Average Ranking: 7.3
- High Ranking: 4
- Low Ranking: 9
The Bengals finished just behind the Texans in their average rankings, but they finished 8th or 9th on six of the ten lists. One interesting note is that FanDuel was the highest on the Bengals, having them tied for the 4th best Super Bowl odds.
9. Green Bay Packers
- Average Ranking: 9.2
- High Ranking: 5
- Low Ranking: 15
The Packers could have been a tier of their own. They finished almost two full points behind the Bengals, but 2.7 points ahead of the next team in these rankings. I decided to include them in this tier because they still finished with an average ranking in the top ten and because I'm personally high on the Packers this season.
The next tier is made up of the last group of teams with any real Super Bowl dreams.
The Super Bowl Long Shots Tier
This tier is made up of teams that most rankings have in the playoffs, but we're starting to get into the range where the Super Bowl is more of a long shot.
10. Dallas Cowboys
- Average Ranking: 11.9
- High Ranking: 8
- Low Ranking: 18
The Cowboys finished in the 8-12 range on seven of the ten rankings. Sports Illustrated and USA Today are not believers, with both having them ranked 18th on their list, but both FanDuel and DraftKings have them with the 8th best Super Bowl odds.
11. Los Angeles Rams
- Average Ranking: 12.5
- High Ranking: 8
- Low Ranking: 17
The Rams are a team that most of the rankings have in the playoff range, but seven of the ten lists had them outside the top ten. Vegas is even lower than this average ranking, with them having the 14th and 16th best Super Bowl odds at FanDuel and DraftKings respectively.
12. New York Jets
- Average Ranking: 12.5
- High Ranking: 4
- Low Ranking: 21
The Jets finished with the same average as the Rams, but the Rams finished ahead of them on six of the ten rankings. The Jets ranking range were one of the most extreme on this list. PFF had them all the way up at 4th in their rankings. NFL.com was not near as convinced, ranking them all the way down at 21st.
13. Cleveland Browns
- Average Ranking: 12.8
- High Ranking: 10
- Low Ranking: 17
The Browns average ranking came in just below the Rams and Jets, but the Browns were much more consistently ranked. Nine of the ten rankings had the Browns between 10-15.
14. Miami Dolphins
- Average Ranking: 13.2
- High Ranking: 7
- Low Ranking: 25
The Dolphins close out this very closely packed tier with another extreme range of rankings placements. ESPN and Bleacher Report had the Dolphins ranked at 7th overall, but Sports Illustrated had them ranked all the way down at No. 25. That was eight full spots lower than any other ranking. If you throw out that one extremely low ranking it would move them up to 10th overall between the Packers and Cowboys.
The next tier of teams are those fighting just to make the playoffs.
The Hoping Just To Make The Playoffs Tier
This tier is made up of teams that most seem to think have a chance to squeeze into the playoffs, but it doesn't seem likely that these teams will do much beyond that this season.
15. Pittsburgh Steelers
- Average Ranking: 15.9
- High Ranking: 13
- Low Ranking: 19
The Steelers were one of the more consistently ranked teams in these consensus rankings. A six pick range in rankings is close for any team, especially this deep into the list.
16. Jacksonville Jaguars
- Average Ranking: 16.8
- High Ranking: 13
- Low Ranking: 21
The Jaguars are a team that nobody seems to think is one of the worst teams in the NFL, but few seem to think are much more than a fringe playoff team.
17. Chicago Bears
- Average Ranking: 17.2
- High Ranking: 14
- Low Ranking: 25
The Bears have a little wider range of rankings than the first two teams in this tier, but for a team starting a rookie quarterback this is a pretty strong ranking.
18. Atlanta Falcons
- Average Ranking: 17.8
- High Ranking: 11
- Low Ranking: 22
There was a pretty wide range in rankings for the Falcons. Vegas was a little higher on the Falcons than the media rankings with them finishing with the 11th and 12th best Super Bowl odds at FanDuel and DraftKings.
19. Los Angeles Chargers
- Average Ranking: 18.5
- High Ranking: 9
- Low Ranking: 26
The Chargers are right up there with the Dolphins and Jets for the widest range of rankings on this list. Sports Illustrated actually had the Chargers all the way up at 9th, but four of the rankings had them in the 20s somewhere.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Average Ranking: 18.6
- High Ranking: 14
- Low Ranking: 24
While there is a 10 spot range in the Buccaneers rankings, six of the ten rankings had them in the 18-21 range.
21. Indianapolis Colts
- Average Ranking: 18.9
- High Ranking: 14
- Low Ranking: 22
The Colts consistently ranked in this range, finishing between 18-22 on seven of the ten rankings. Personally, if Anthony Richardson stays healthy, I wouldn't be surprised to see them outperform this spot.
The next tier are probably long shots to make the playoffs.
The Not Awful, But Not Playoff Caliber Tier
This tier is made up of teams that aren't as bad as the teams in the bottom tier below this, but most rankings have them outside of the range where the playoffs seem possible. As you can see if you look at the pick ranges of this tier, the teams are very similar. Not a single ranking has any of these teams in the top half of their rankings. Since there weren't any outlier rankings that really stood out as significant in this tier, I'll skip the comments on each individual team.
22. Seattle Seahawks
- Average Ranking: 21.6
- High Ranking: 17
- Low Ranking: 25
23. Minnesota Vikings
- Average Ranking: 22
- High Ranking: 17
- Low Ranking: 26
24. New Orleans Saints
- Average Ranking: 23.8
- High Ranking: 19
- Low Ranking: 27
25. Las Vegas Raiders
- Average Ranking: 24.8
- High Ranking: 23
- Low Ranking: 29
26. Arizona Cardinals
- Average Ranking: 25.3
- High Ranking: 22
- Low Ranking: 29
This bottom tier is not the one you want to see your favorite team in.
The Bottom Tier
This tier is obviously the teams that the consensus feels is at the bottom of the league. A few of these teams are simply auditioning their coaching staffs and quarterbacks to see if they are the future.
27. Tennessee Titans
- Average Ranking: 27.1
- High Ranking: 21
- Low Ranking: 30
The Titans average ranking puts them at the top of this tier, but personally I think they belong in the tier above this.
28. Washington Commanders
- Average Ranking: 27.4
- High Ranking: 25
- Low Ranking: 31
The Commanders were consistently ranked in this tier, but if Jayden Daniels has a solid rookie season it wouldn't be hard to see them outperform this ranking.
29. New York Giants
- Average Ranking: 27.8
- High Ranking: 20
- Low Ranking: 31
Eight of the ten rankings had the Giants between 27-31. I'm not sure what Sports Illustrated was thinking putting them as high as 20th (4 spots ahead of the Dolphins?).
30. Denver Broncos
- Average Ranking: 29.1
- High Ranking: 26
- Low Ranking: 32
The Broncos ranked consistently at the bottom of the rankings. This season will be about proving that Sean Payton and Bo Nix should be trusted with the future of this team.
31. New England Patriots
- Average Ranking: 30.3
- High Ranking: 29
- Low Ranking: 32
Every single ranking had the Patriots in one of the bottom four spots. Like the Broncos, this season is more about them seeing if they have the right coaching staff and drafted the right rookie quarterback.
32. Carolina Panthers
- Average Ranking: 31.7
- High Ranking: 30
- Low Ranking: 32
The Panthers finished dead last in eight of the ten rankings and the other two still had them in the bottom three. Once again, we've got a team that's just playing to see if they have the right coach and quarterback for the future.
So there are the consensus offseason power rankings. What teams surprised you? What teams are ranked too high or too low in your opinion? You can find me on X (formerly Twitter) @LyleGraversen if you'd like to share your thoughts.