JACKSONVILLE – Here are senior writer John Oehser's Week 1 2016 NFL power rankings. And we all know how important these are:
The Top 10
Rank. Team (Rec) | Last season ranking | Comment
1.Carolina Panthers (0-0) | 1 | Cam's back … Luke's back … yeah, the Panthers will be fine
2.Arizona Cardinals (0-0) | 2 | Few seem to want to rank them high. All they do lately is win
3.New England Patriots (0-0) | 3 | Hard to rank them higher until Brady returns
4.Seattle Seahawks (0-0) | 5 | Still young, still talented – and still very, very good
5.Cincinnati Bengals (0-0) | 8 | All of the (experienced) pieces are in place
6.Green Bay Packers (0-0) | 10 | Rodgers is an elite quarterback in his prime – so Packers are elite, too
7.Denver Broncos (0-0) | 7 | Defense gives them a chance … if quarterback isn't a liability
8.Kansas City Chiefs (0-0) | 4 | Don't forget this team was league's hottest late last season
9.Pittsburgh Steelers (0-0) | 9 | There may not be a better offense in the NFL this season
10.Houston Texans (0-0) | 12 | Is Brock Osweiler elite? Texans' season could depend on the answer
11.Minnesota Vikings (0-0) | 6 | Even without Teddy Bridgewater this is a deep, talented team
12.Washington Redskins (0-0) | 11 | Seeking an NFC East repeat
13.New York Jets (0-0) | 13 | Getting Ryan Fitzpatrick re-signed gives them a chance to be competitive
14.Dallas Cowboys (0-0) | 26 | No Romo, no high ranking for the 'Boys – yet
15.Atlanta Falcons (0-0) | 19 | Last season's hot start could be more this team's identity than the finish
16.Baltimore Ravens (0-0) | 25 | Joe Flacco's back – and that should prevent a repeat of last season
17.Indianapolis Colts (0-0) | 17 | Was 2015 about no Andrew Luck – or did it go deeper than that?
18.Oakland Raiders (0-0) | 16 | A lot of talent on this team. Is it time for Raiders to shine at last?
19.New York Giants (0-0) | 21 | The Giants were oh-so-close to being oh-so-much better last season
20.Buffalo Bills (0-0) | 15 | They've been close the last several years. Do they rise or fall?
- Jacksonville Jaguars (0-0) | 28 | We'll start them here and see where they go
22.Philadelphia Eagles (0-0) | 20 | Quarterback concerns make season openers uncertain stuff
23.New Orleans Saints (0-0) | 18 | Can the defense improve? If not, even Drew Brees isn't enough
24.Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-0) | 19 | The Bucs showed real signs last season. They could rise fast
25.San Diego Chargers (0-0) | 27 | Philip Rivers plays for this team, so they have a chance to move up
- Miami Dolphins (0-0) | 29 | QB Ryan Tannehill is the key for this talented team
27.Detroit Lions (0-0) | 14 | How much will Calvin Johnson loss hurt? Can't move them up until we know
28.Los Angeles Rams (0-0) | 23 | A lot of talent and a lot of questions at quarterback
29.Chicago Bears (0-0) | 22 | Preseason was a struggle. There's enough talent that that needn't continue
30.Tennessee Titans (0-0) | 32 | If they're good as they looked in preseason, they could move up … "if"
31.San Francisco 49ers (0-0) | 30 | 'Niners are on board the Blaine Train
32.Cleveland Browns (0-0) | 31 | The long rebuild has begun
