NFL Power Rankings Poll: The Top Teams Struggled, But…

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 (4 first-place votes), 220 points

Mike Tanier: Great work not falling for Recency Bias, folks! A two-point road loss to a tough opponent should not knock the 49ers below, for instance, the Dolphins, who got the tar kicked out of them a few weeks ago. 

Mike Renner: As the weeks go on, the harder I find it to separate the top-5 on this list. It would be hard for me to argue too strongly against putting any of them at No. 1.

2. Kansas City Chiefs (1 first-place vote), 213

Adam Ronis: The offense isn’t the same it's been in recent seasons. But they still have Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce and that’s better than most teams.

Tanier: After Week 6, the whole top of this list feels like a fading aristocracy trying to fend off a rising bourgeoisie. 

Kaelen Jones: The Chiefs almost look bored playing against bad teams. They have a bad habit of procrastinating or needing the thrill of a close game to play hard, but after five straight wins, it’s hard to argue against it.

3. Philadelphia Eagles (1 first-place vote), 206

Renner: The Eagles' 2022 schedule ain’t walking through that door. With the Dolphins, Commanders, Cowboys, Chiefs, Bills, and 49ers on tap for their next six games, the Eagles will have to earn their ranking here.

Jones: This squad is vulnerable as long as the quarterback isn’t playing at a consistently high level.

4. Buffalo Bills, 204

Ronis: That performance on Sunday night against the Giants better be due to playing in London the previous week, because it wasn’t encouraging.

Tanier: They saw the 49ers and Eagles fall down two flights of stairs on Sunday and said, “oh we simply must get a piece of that action.” No team fears success more than the Bills.

5. Miami Dolphins, 197

Ronis: Can’t wait to see this offense go against the Eagles Sunday night. 

Tanier: After that Jets loss, my only response to Adam is “Go Phillies!”

6. Detroit Lions (1 first-place vote), 190

Tanier: I referred to teams like the Lions as “the bourgeoisie” a few comments ago. Pretty sure Dan Campbell would drag me into the woods to die of exposure for that. 

Renner: The Lions have objectively looked amazing the past four weeks with four straight wins by 14-plus points. They also may only have one win over a 2022 playoff team and that was the Chris Jones and Travis Kelce-less Chiefs. 

Jones: If Detroit handles Baltimore, I think this ranking will change. Personally not sure how the Lions are ranked so low here. I get the hesitancy with Goff and the fact their schedule hasn’t been overwhelming, but this looks like a phenomenal team.

7. Dallas Cowboys, 178

Tanier: Playing down to the Chargers in a week when the Cowboys needed to issue a statement was very on-brand. 

8. Baltimore Ravens, 176

Ronis: They are really good at trying to give games away. It worked against Pittsburgh and Tennessee just wasn’t good enough to take advantage. So much for opening up the offense. They kept running the ball against Tennessee when everyone know their weakness is against the pass.

Renner: They have to be kicking themselves that they don’t have more of a stranglehold on the AFC North at the moment. 

9. Jacksonville Jaguars, 162

Ronis: The Jaguars scored 37 points and only had 233 yards of offense on Sunday. The defense forced four turnovers and has been better than expected. 

10. Los Angeles Chargers, 160

Tanier: When a social network dies, does the Herbert Hive die with it? Is it like a wizard and their magic? Please let this be true. 

Renner: I’d say this team is still dangerous once this offensive line gets healthy, but sadly this is the Chargers offensive line we’re talking about. 

11. Cleveland Browns, 158

Ronis: This defense is no joke. Holding the 49ers to 215 total yards is impressive.

Renner: This is the best defense in the NFL, and if they stay healthy all year they have a legitimate argument for the best defense since the Legion of Boom.

12. Cincinnati Bengals, 152

Ronis: The Bengals were fortunate to beat Seattle. Cincinnati had 214 yards of offense. 

Jones: I didn’t take the bait. And then I did. Credit to Cincinnati for clawing back after starting 1–3. How long can Joe Burrow stay healthy remains the biggest question.

Renner: The Bengals are like basically living out the NFL version of Groundhog Day where they play the same season every year. 

13. Seattle Seahawks, 141

Tanier: Geno Smith is the odds-on favorite for Go Back Player of the Year. 

14. Los Angeles Rams, 127

15. Houston Texans, 112

Tanier: For some teams, getting stuck in the NFL’s 3–3 quagmire is a problem. For the Texans, it’s a privilege. 

16. New York Jets, 110

Ronis: If only the Jets could play the top quarterbacks every week, they could be the top seed in the AFC.

Tanier: They’ve embarrassed every quarterback they faced! And employed!

17. Pittsburgh Steelers, 109

Tanier: Their offense looked really good during the bye. 

18. New Orleans Saints, 105

Renner: Derek Carr hasn’t even been an upgrade from Andy Dalton. At least with Jameis Winston they’d be fun to watch. 

19. Green Bay Packers, 99

Renner: By pretty much every team statistical measure, the Packers are as average a team as exists in the league right now.

Jones: Jordan Love fooled me. How soon before they play the Bears again?

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 97

21. Indianapolis Colts, 79

(tie)22. Atlanta Falcons, 77

Renner: How does this collection of playmakers lead to one of the more dull offenses around the NFL? 

(tie)22. Minnesota Vikings, 77

Tanier: Big win over an undrafted rookie quarterback on Sunday! Maybe you can keep the momentum up against the 49ers! (Narrator: They could not, but The Messenger kept ranking them in the mid-20s nonetheless). 

24. Washington Commanders, 71

Tanier: C’mon folks: they are better than at least the next four teams above them on this list. They’ll be 5–4 after their Giants-Eagles-Patriots run over the next three weeks. The defensive line and offensive playmakers are playoff caliber. Just don’t light a match anywhere near their secondary. 

25. Tennessee Titans, 62

Renner: The Titans feel as stuck in purgatory as any team in the NFL. They have almost nothing to show for their past few drafts and almost every talented player they have is on or nearing the backside of their career. It’s time to hit reset. 

26. Las Vegas Raiders, 57

Jones: “You are what your record says you are” has never felt so wrong. Somehow the Raiders are 3–3. The Chargers are 2–3. Maybe L.A.’s record isn’t wrong, but how on earth is Vegas .500?

27. New York Giants, 46

28. New England Patriots, 35

Ronis: People are finally realizing this team has no talent. That said, if you had Patriots +3 on Sunday, what a bad beat with Mac Jones taking a safety.

Tanier: If you blinked, you missed some Malik Cunningham Wildcat cemeos. They were the equivalent of grandpa taking the dance floor for five seconds of the Electric Slide, then slipping the wedding singer a fifty and whispering, “Nothing but Sinatra the rest of the night or you get a cinderblock through your windshield.”

29. Arizona Cardinals, 24

Tanier: Did you know that the Cardinals have 12 running plays of 20-plus yards in 2023? The same number as the Dolphins? Me neither: haven’t watched them since they beat the Cowboys.

30. Denver Broncos, 21

Jones: How many more L’s before Sean Payton calls this one of the worst coaching jobs in NFL history?

31. Chicago Bears, 16

Tanier: I’m still obsessed with Tyler Bagent’s tiny shoulder pads. When I was in kindergarten, my mom bought me a football uniform as a Halloween costume. Being my mom, she bought a Jets jersey (she wasn’t the attentive sort, and Joe Namath was a big deal then). It came with a helmet and little felt pads built into the jersey. Bagent looks like he is wearing that costume, size and all. 

32. Carolina Panthers, 15

Jones: At least the Panthers are giving Thomas Brown a shot at calling plays. The first two drives against Miami nearly tricked me into thinking there was hope for Carolina pulling off the upset. But it’s still difficult to project where this team picks up any wins this year.