NFL Power Rankings Poll: Cowboys Continue to Climb, Bills Sneaking Up

The Messenger’s NFL Power Poll will be published weekly during the NFL season. Each voter will rank teams 1 through 32, with first-place votes worth 32 points, second-place votes worth 31 points, etcetera, down to 32nd-place votes worth 1 point. The participants will then weigh in with commentary on the results…

1. San Francisco 49ers (unanimous first place), 192 points

Mike Tanier: Per the DVOA analysis of Aaron Schatz, the 49ers are the fifth-best team in the last 40 years of NFL history through 13 games.

Mike Renner: The 49ers are a steamroller at full strength. I don’t know if we’ve seen a collection of weapons this dangerous in NFL history. 

2. Dallas Cowboys, 181

Adam Ronis: Great win for the Cowboys and they needed to have it. It was their third consecutive home game and the last two games were on Thursday, so they had extra rest, while the Eagles were coming off a grueling stretch. Now, can Dallas win on the road against Buffalo and Miami? If they do that, then maybe this team is different from years past.

3. Baltimore Ravens, 179

Gary Gramling: The growing frequency of Lamar Jackson superhero moments is great for his MVP candidacy (it’s him or Dak!) but also a sign that the honeymoon phase for Todd Monken’s offense might be over.

4. Miami Dolphins, 170

Gramling: Sheesh, the speed with which the Tyreek Hill–less version of this offense devolved into “I dunno, just chuck it in Cedrick Wilson’s general direction” was disconcerting (especially because none of those heaves toward Wilson were actually completed, though one did draw a pass interference flag and one was ruled a catch when it actually wasn’t). And that Titans defense — in generous terms — currently consists of at least 50% backup-caliber players.

Renner: The Dolphins better hope they can secure homefield advantage throughout because this Jekyll and Hyde offense doesn’t look built to roll through three straight January games without one dud.

5. Philadelphia Eagles, 169

Tanier: Wow, overreact to losses to the NFL’s two best teams much, folks?

Ronis: I agree with Tanier. The Eagles completed an insane stretch against the Cowboys, Chiefs, Bills, 49ers and Cowboys for a second time and went 3–2. While they didn’t look good against the 49ers and Cowboys, both of those teams had extra rest playing the previous game on a Thursday.

6. Kansas City Chiefs, 164

Tanier: I’m just glad Sunday’s 100% accurate/appropriate call against Kadarius Toney happened to the Chiefs and not the Broncos. The Chiefs just whined to high heaven. Sean Payton would spend the next two years lobbying the competition committee to make offsides legal.

Ronis: Patrick Mahomes used the offsides call to channel his frustration about the Chiefs’ offense. Mahomes knows this team is in trouble and he lashed out. 

7. Buffalo Bills, 160

Ronis: If you want a more exciting playoffs in the AFC, we need the Bills in the postseason.

Renner: The Bills are still the team no one wants to face in the AFC come playoff time. They have more options offensively than ever before.

8. Detroit Lions, 144

Ronis: At least the final four games are indoors for Jared Goff.

Tanier: I cannot shake the feeling that Jared Goff has already signed a huge contract extension and the Lions are just waiting for him to have one good game in a row so they can announce it. 

9. Jacksonville Jaguars, 143

Renner: This was supposed to be the peak Super Bowl window for the Jaguars with Trevor Lawrence’s final two seasons of a relatively cheap rookie contract. They sadly don’t feel any closer to competing for the AFC crown than they did a year ago.

Gramling: The good news is that, even in a disjointed performance, Lawrence looked legitimately healthy on Sunday after last Monday’s scare. I’m much more worried about an overachieving defense that has now been carved up by Jake Browning and Joe Flacco.

10. Los Angeles Rams, 130

Ronis: The Rams are playing good football and this is one of the best jobs Sean McVay has done. 

Gramling: The Rams will win a playoff game.

11. Cleveland Browns, 129

Tanier: In a league where Tommy DeVito and Aidan O’Connell are now starters and can’t-miss first-overall-pick Bryce Young looks like a water boy who wandered onto the field, it’s O.K. to not resurrect decade-old jokes about Joe Flacco. 

Renner: Is Joe Flacco exactly what the Browns were missing? A strong-armed, quick decision maker who’s going to try and facilitate Cleveland’s playmakers at all costs. Consider me intrigued.

12. Green Bay Packers, 128

Renner: The Packers will continue to pour every first-round pick they have onto the defensive side of the ball and never crack a top-10 unit on that side of the ball somehow.

Gramling: Monday’s loss was one of the weirdest games I’ve ever seen. And Matt LaFleur was back to full-on apoplectic mode, like he was early in the season. I’m more than a little worried about that guy’s blood pressure.

13. Houston Texans, 114

Tanier: I hope C.J. Stroud is O.K. With him and Justin Herbert out and Josh Dobbs benched, we’re left with no one to talk about except Brock Purdy. And no one likes talking about Brock Purdy. 

14. Seattle Seahawks, 111

Renner: If you swapped Seattle’s 2022 and ’23 seasons it would make a lot more sense. 

(tie)15. Cincinnati Bengals, 97

Renner: Where was this quarterback-friendly offense the first month of the season? Brian Callahan is scheming up more easy production for Jake Browning than we’ve ever seen for Joe Burrow. Maybe that’s by Burrow’s request, but there has to be a happy medium somewhere.

Gramling: I always believed this offense was customized to Burrow’s preferences in the same way Mike McCarthy’s no-motion, no-play-action, 11-personnel-forever offense in Green Bay was built because it’s what Aaron Rodgers preferred. Regardless, it’s been a really nice job by this Bengals staff.

(tie)15. Pittsburgh Steelers, 97

Tanier: Not the NFL’s worst offense, just the NFL’s worst offense with the fewest excuses. 

17. Denver Broncos, 92

Gramling: The Worst 7–6 Team in NFL History™ is going to make the postseason on the back of a million unforced opponent fumbles and Easton Stick appearances. And when they get there, it’s going to make us all wonder aloud why the NFL expanded to a 14-team postseason field.

18. New Orleans Saints, 87

19. Minnesota Vikings, 80

Renner: Vikings fans should enjoy this defensive turnaround while it lasts because Brian Flores will be a head coach somewhere else next season.

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 76

21. Indianapolis Colts, 75

Gramling: Hmmm. Needs more punt blocks.

Tanier: And more last-place opponents. 

22. New York Jets, 72

Gramling: If the Jets get through the next six months without doing anything stupid and rash and run it back with a (presumably healthy) Aaron Rodgers like they should, everyone in that organization should get, like, a hearty handshake.

23. Atlanta Falcons, 65

Gramling: Credit Desmond Ridder for a nice little fourth-quarter comeback. I liked when he just chucked the 50/50 ball to Drake London to get things started, and London made the catch, and that’s why the Falcons selected him very high in the draft.

24. Los Angeles Chargers, 63

Tanier: Let the record show that Justin Herbert failed to punch the ball in from inside the 10-yard line after a Broncos turnover and threw a tipped-at-the-line interception before getting injured. Just trying to forestall any “this team was good before SMQB got hurt” narratives. 

Gramling: With Herbert healthy, it’s a top-12 team. With Easton Stick under center, it’s the worst team in football. Worse than the Panthers and I don’t think it’s close.

25. Arizona Cardinals, 47

26. Chicago Bears, 45

Ronis: The Bears have won three of their last four games and could have won four straight. Chicago allowed 17 points in the fourth quarter to blow a lead in a 31–26 loss to the Lions in Week 11. The Bears’ defense has improved.

Gramling: Either Caleb Williams or Drake Maye is going to step into a situation that is sooooo much better than any No. 1 overall pick in recent memory.

27. Tennessee Titans, 43

Gramling: Now that’s the pesky Titans of years past. Pretty incredible to spot any opponent 14 free points in the fourth quarter of a previously tied game then go win it anyway.

Renner: The Will Levis-Mike Vrabel combination is a content gold mine. A pairing straight out of a football movie.

28. Washington Commanders, 37

29. Las Vegas Raiders, 35

Gramling: I want to get behind Aidan O’Connell, but this hasn’t gone very well.

30. New York Giants, 20

Renner: Tommy Devito’s agent alone bumps this team ahead of the Patriots.

Tanier: You can read my thoughts on the DeVito phenomenon here! 

31. New England Patriots, 16

32. Carolina Panthers, 7

Tanier: Bryce Young (with a little help from Andy Dalton) has thrown the ball away 49 times, per Pro Football Reference. No other team has more than 29 throwaways.