NFL Power Rankings



My current NFL Power Rankings.

I’m going to use these rankings as the order for my 2019 NFL Mock Draft during the 2018 draft season. Follow @walterfootball.

I’ve gone from WORST to FIRST, so if you don’t see reverse numbering (via Javascript), don’t worry; the 49ers and Cardinals aren’t my top teams.

Updated: Jan. 21






  1. Arizona Cardinals (3-13) – Previously: 32.
    Holy hell, I can’t believe the Cardinals skirted with ruining their chances of securing the No. 1 overall pick by nearly beating Seattle. It seemed like the offense was on board with losing, but the defense and special teams, which produced 18 points against the Seahawks, didn’t realize what was at stake. Losing out on Nick Bosa would have been a disaster.

  2. Oakland Raiders (4-12) – Previously: 31.
    The Raiders hired Mike Mayock to be their general manager. I was hoping it wouldn’t happen because I’ll miss seeing Mayock on TV, but he’ll be a great addition to the front office. Imagine having the inside scoop on who the heavy-legged waist-benders are!

  3. Cincinnati Bengals (6-10) – Previously: 30.
    The Bengals were never down by more than three points against the Steelers, so can someone explain to me why Joe Mixon, the only offensive player on the field for Cincinnati with a Madden rating above 60, had just 13 carries? And it’s not like Mixon did nothing with those touches. He had 105 rushing yards!

    My guess? It was all an effort to tank. The Bengals wanted to be competitive, but not TOO competitive so that their draft positioning would be ruined.

  4. Miami Dolphins (7-9) – Previously: 29.
    The Dolphins should not have fired Adam Gase. The fact that Gase had the Dolphins competing for a playoff spot with this horrible roster is a miracle. Why didn’t the Dolphins allow Gase to work with a real quarterback for once?

    By the way, can anyone explain what is happening here?



    What was Kenyan Drake doing that was XXXX-rated? Whipping out his wang and penetrating the mascot?

  5. Jacksonville Jaguars (5-11) – Previously: 28.
    When the Jaguars are scouting quarterbacks this offseason, they should probably make sure they draft a guy who watches at least an hour of film each week. I doubt Blake Bortles even knows what film is. All he did was party hard in Jacksonville and London. Fortunately for the Jaguars, they won’t have to deal with that nonsense anymore.

  6. Washington Redskins (7-9) – Previously: 27.
    Let’s give a round of applause to Redskins team president Bruce Allen for not succumbing to dumb media pressure and giving Kirk Cousins tons of money. Everyone in the press criticized the Redskins for letting go of Cousins, but Allen and his staff knew what they were doing all along. They had a front-row seat to Cousins’ choking antics, so they were correct in letting him walk.

    Unfortunately, it didn’t translate into long-term success. The Redskins were 6-2 at one point, but Alex Smith’s season-ending injury derailed Washington’s chances.

  7. Carolina Panthers (7-9) – Previously: 26.
    Who is this Kyle Allen individual? Carolina’s third-string quarterback, Allen completed all four of his passes in Week 16, then went on to shred the Saints in the season finale. Granted, New Orleans sat some starters, but Allen looked good. He may have played himself into a No. 2 role next year. That is, of course, if the Vikings don’t give him a fully guaranteed contract.

    Hey, laugh all you want, but Allen has just as many Week 17 victories in his career as Kirk Cousins does. Allen is going to get paid lots of guaranteed money!

  8. Detroit Lions (6-10) – Previously: 25.
    The Lions had a top-five pick locked up. And then, they surrendered it because they wanted to have a meaningless victory over the Packers. Good job, guys! It’s not like you needed a blue-chip prospect or anything.

  9. Denver Broncos (6-10) – Previously: 24.
    Remember when the Broncos were courting Kirk Cousins? I imagine they’re extremely thrilled that they didn’t overpay for that overrated commodity. It’s not like Case Keenum has lived up to expectations either, but Denver didn’t sign him to a franchise-altering contract.

    Here are the 2019 NFL Draft Quarterback Prospect Rankings.

  10. San Francisco 49ers (4-12) – Previously: 23.
    Man, I thought the 49ers would be competitive against the Rams. Well, they sort of were. They were down big at one point, but they averaged more yards per play than Los Angeles. The problem was the four turnovers in the opening half. Nick Mullens absolutely murdered the 49ers’ chances with three give-aways, but at least George Kittle got the single-season tight end receiving yards record.

  11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-11) – Previously: 22.
    The Buccaneers did a good job of being the first team to fire their head coach at the end of the regular season. I think it was important to send a message.

    If you haven’t seen it yet, check out Charlie Campbell’s plan for the Buccaneers this offseason. It’s a great read.

  12. Atlanta Falcons (7-9) – Previously: 21.
    As I wrote last week, I like the Falcons to bounce back next year. They suffered so many injuries this season. They almost have to experience better luck in 2019. If they fire Steve Sarkisian and find someone who knows what they’re doing to be the offensive coordinator, they’ll be that much more appealing to bet on as a Super Bowl prop.

  13. New York Jets (4-12) – Previously: 20.
    Again, I think the Jets might be my sleeper team in 2019. It was the Bears this year, of whom I have a 100/1 Super Bowl ticket. If the Jets hire a good coach to replace Todd Bowles, I’m going to bet the Jets to win the Super Bowl if the price is right.

  14. Buffalo Bills (6-10) – Previously: 19.
    Underrated NFL Team: See why the Bills are an underrated NFL team in our new Overrated-Underrated page.

  15. New York Giants (5-11) – Previously: 18.
    Underrated NFL Team: See why the Giants are an underrated NFL team in our new Overrated-Underrated page.

    Oh, and we got to see one more Eli Face for the road:



  16. Green Bay Packers (6-9-1) – Previously: 17.
    Oh, how nice of the Packers to try so hard against the Jets and ruin my +3 bet with a touchdown in overtime! Hey, a**holes, why not try harder versus a divisional opponent who beat you earlier in the year!!?!?!?

    I’m done with this team. The fact that the Packers allowed Aaron Rodgers to play is a disgrace. They’re probably going to hire Jeff Fisher to replace Mike McCarthy and interim head coach/scarecrow Joe Philbin.



  17. Minnesota Vikings (8-7-1) – Previously: 16.
    I CAN FINALLY TAKE THE VIKINGS OFF THE OVERRATED LIST! IT TOOK A FULL SEASON, BUT PEOPLE HAVE FINALLY REALIZED THAT THEY ARE NOT A GOOD FOOTBALL TEAM!!!

    It’s a freaking miracle. Like, really. Why did people think the Vikings were going to be good after signing Elvis Grbac to an $84 million contract? Grbac is going to cost lots of people their jobs, like Brian Billick, and, I mean, whoops, wrong purple team.

    Speaking of the perennial Week 17 choker, I knew this picture looked familiar:



    Well, at least the Vikings can get out of the Kirk Cousins deal in two more years…

  18. Cleveland Browns (7-8-1) – Previously: 15.
    It’s a shame that the Browns couldn’t get to .500, but they nearly won in Baltimore against a red-hot Ravens squad, so that was impressive. Also, remember that if the Browns had fired Hue Jackson prior to this season, they would’ve likely beaten the Steelers (season opener), Saints and Raiders, giving them a 10-6 record. That would be good enough to win the division over the Ravens because of tie-breakers.

  19. Tennessee Titans (9-7) – Previously: 14.
    If the Titans don’t find a better backup quarterback for Marcus Mariota than Blaine Gabbert this spring, it’ll be an utter failure of an offseason. It’s become clear that Tennessee cannot count on Mariota being available for important games, so the team has to overpay for a premium backup.

  20. Houston Texans (11-6) – Previously: 13.
    Well, I guess I can’t call the Texans overrated anymore following that showing. They were overrated since their Monday night win over the Titans. That seemed pretty obvious. Houston needs to upgrade its offensive line and find a real coach to help Deshaun Watson take the next step.

    Before we move on, Facebook friend Nathan T. posted this on my wall:



  21. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6-1) – Previously: 12.
    The Steelers did not deserve to make the playoffs after the absolute s**t they took on the field against the Bengals. I just wish I knew about the Ben Roethlisberger-Antonio Brown drama ahead of time to save myself $330.

    By the way, I imagine the person who put this on the Jumbotron will be fired, but it was still funny nonetheless:





  22. Seattle Seahawks (10-7) – Previously: 11.
    I imagine that it would suck to be a Seahawks fan, as their team has gotten jobbed in some big games over the years. Their loss to Dallas was no different, as all four key calls down the stretch went against them. This was not a surprise, given that the officials were given these special uniforms to take home prior to the game:



  23. Dallas Cowboys (11-7) – Previously: 10.
    Overrated NFL Team: See why the Cowboys are an overrated NFL team in our new Overrated-Underrated page.

    Yes, the Cowboys are still overrated despite losing. They were the worst team in the divisional round of the playoffs, though they could’ve been more competitive had Jason Garrett given his players rest in Week 17. Instead, Garrett stupidly ran his starters into the ground, and Cole Beasley could barely play against the Rams as a result. But thank goodness Garrett won that Giants game and… ummm… made the Giants’ draft pick better as a result… uhh…

    Speaking of Garrett, Ezekiel Elliott was yelling for more touches during the game, and Garrett didn’t look too happy. He didn’t even clap:



  24. Philadelphia Eagles (10-8) – Previously: 9.
    The Eagles looked like they were going to upset the Saints, but then Alshon Jeffery happened. It’s just as well though, as the Eagles with Fletcher Cox, Jason Peters and Brandon Brooks would’ve had a difficult time against the Rams.

    The silver lining with the Jeffery interception is that some awesome person did this on Wikipedia:





  25. Baltimore Ravens (10-7) – Previously: 8.
    Back in 2007, Vince Young had a great season. Then, he reached the playoffs and battled the Chargers. He lost 17-6 and looked awful. He was never the same since. For Lamar Jackson to avoid the same fate, he’ll need to watch countless hours of film and work extensively with a quarterbacks coach this offseason. He had some nice, early success, but it’s clear that he’s far from a finished product.

    If you somehow missed it, Jackson was awful. Facebook friend Nathan T. posted the following:



    I like John Harbaugh, but switching to Joe Flacco was a no-brainer.

  26. Indianapolis Colts (11-7) – Previously: 7.
    It was shocking to see the Colts struggle so much at Arrowhead. The defense looked completely bewildered at times, while there were way too many drops. Adam Vinatieri couldn’t hit a kick to save his life. Then, there was Andrew Luck, who skipped plenty of passes into the ground.

    Luck didn’t look too good in the post-game interview, by the way:



  27. San Angeles Chargers (13-5) – Previously: 4.
    What the hell were the Chargers doing against the Patriots? They couldn’t get to Tom Brady, they couldn’t stop the run, and they didn’t cover anyone. The Patriots basically did whatever they wanted to. It was embarrassing.

    Call me crazy, but this Chargers defensive formation was not a very good one:



  28. Los Angeles Rams (15-3) – Previously: 6.
    If you’re calling the officials who missed the call on Nickell Robey-Coleman incompetent, you’re incorrect. They knew exactly what they were doing, as we learned when this photograph was taken after the game was over:



  29. Chicago Bears (12-5) – Previously: 5.
    So much for my 100/1 ticket. Stupid kicker, you could at least take the blindfold off!



    What’s most frustrating is that the Bears could’ve set it up to play the Vikings in the opening round. They could’ve pulled their starters in the second half of Week 17 once they saw the Rams were way ahead of the 49ers and made sure they had an easier opening-round game. Instead, they allowed Nick Foles to make it into the playoffs and paid the price.

  30. New England Patriots (13-5) – Previously: 3.
    It must be nice to get all the calls. I mean, Tom Brady might as well wear this on the field:



    Regardess of getting the benefit of the most ridiculous roughing-the-passer call you’ll ever see, Brady must be given credit for three awesome drives late in the game to lead his team to victory.

  31. New Orleans Saints (14-4) – Previously: 2.
    The Saints had the win. The officials gave it to the Rams. If I were the Saints, I’d fly to Atlanta and take the field at the Georgia Dome and refuse to leave until the NFL allows them to play. That would be the correct thing to do, as the NFL absolutely screwed the Saints.

    Meanwhile, people have been trying to tell me that the Saints weren’t extremely unlucky in the NFC Championship. I mean, the proof is right here (thanks, Harth M)…



  32. Kansas City Chiefs (13-5) – Previously: 1.
    I don’t know if there’s a point in analyzing football anymore with the officials basically deciding everything. I mean, look at this: This is roughing the passer, apparently:



    So stupid. I might as well do nothing but post interesting pictures, like this one:



    Don’t be fooled. Andy Reid was not pissed that his Super Bowl aspirations were slipping away because of that horrible call. It was because he was realizing that he wouldn’t be able to partake in the feast that President Trump would provide for him during the White House visit.


    The MVP race:

    1. Drew Brees
    1. Patrick Mahomes
    3. Philip Rivers
    4. Russell Wilson
    5. Andrew Luck

    I’ve come around to thinking we should have co-MVPs this year. I know that’s a cop-out, but the NFL has done it before, and both Brees and Mahomes are extremely deserving of the award.










2024 NFL Mock Draft - March 26


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NFL Picks - Feb. 12









2022 NFL Power Rankings. Week: Post-Super Bowl Power Rankings | Post-Free Agency Power Rankings | Post-NFL Draft Power Rankings | Post-Preseason Power Rankings | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17

2021 NFL Power Rankings. Week: Post-Super Bowl Power Rankings | Preseason Power Rankings | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Playoffs |

2020 NFL Power Rankings. Week: Post-Super Bowl Power Rankings 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Playoffs |