NFL Power Rankings, Week 1: Where do Chiefs begin title defense?
By Grant Tuttle
13. Minnesota Vikings
Kirk Cousins will likely lead the Vikings to a great regular season this year. Unfortunately, they seem to always come to a bitter end in the playoffs. While Brian Flores is an intriguing hire, the Vikings had struggles stopping opposing offenses all year last season. Flores's work will certainly be cut out for him. With some very good playmakers on offense, can they balance themselves into being a functional unit?
14. Green Bay Packers
Green Bay might be better now without Aaron Rodgers than they were with him last season. Rodgers sustained a hand injury early last year that saddled the quarterback with lingering problems all season. Now the question is, can Jordan Love step in and be more functional and potentially become the next top-tier Packers quarterback? If so, the Packers could make a push to win their division.
15. New York Jets
I get it. The media wants you to believe in the Jets. What do you expect? A team that has been starved of good quarterback play since Chad Pennington just acquired a future Hall of Famer at the position. When the Jets should have told fans to pump the breaks, they poured gasoline onto the fire. Now anything less than making the NFC Championship game would be a disappointment. I'll believe it when I see it from the lowly Jets.
16. New York Giants
Daniel Jones got a nice extension this offseason that locks him up through 2026, but no one is seeing him as a serious threat to take the Giants to the Super Bowl this season. While they may be a team that is competitive every week, they certainly seem like a team loading up for the future. Jalin Hyatt, Deonte Banks, and John Michael Schmitz Jr. are moves that the Giants made for the future. In another year, they may be ready to compete for the NFC, but it seems as though they need some time to mature and add more depth before they can get to that point.