(Note: broke this into 2 posts due to length – this is Post #2)
NFL power rankings: Sizing up No. 1 to No. 32
[San Francisco] Bay Area News Group: August 29, 2021
16. NEW ENGLAND
The Patriots underwent a major facelift in free agency – something that almost never works when attempting to turn a subpar team into a good one. Bill Belichick cut Cam Newton to go with first-round pick Mac Jones at QB in an attempt at cloning Tom Brady in a decision-making sense.
17. MINNESOTA
Kirk Cousins has been so-so. The Vikings need much more than that considering the $76 million their QB costs under the salary cap over the next two seasons. The Vikings were uncharacteristically poor defensively in 2020, but fear not – deposed Raiders coordinator Paul Guenther is on staff as a senior defensive assistant.
18. DALLAS
Mike McCarthy’s first year as head coach was a disaster, but not everything rests at the feet of Dak Prescott’s season-ending ankle injury. The Cowboys will score plenty, but they’ll give up just as many points. Not enough was done to upgrade a defense that allowed 29.6 points per game.
19. L.A. CHARGERS
Is QB Justin Herbert really as good as he looked in 2020? He flourished as a rookie, but it’s seldom a good thing to switch coaches and coordinators in the second year of a developing QB. Herbert will also be operating behind an OL that is returning only one starter.
20. NEW ORLEANS
Sean Payton has shown the ability to get the Saints through brief in-season absences of the now-retired Drew Brees. Depending on Jameis Winston with a dash of Taysom Hill, however, is a whole new ballgame. Coordinator Dennis Allen’s defense was among the NFL’s best, and will have to be even better to contend in 2021.
21. WASHINGTON
The defending NFC East champs are coming off a 7-9 season, mostly on the strength of a defense that ranked second in yards and fourth in points allowed under the direction of Jack Del Rio. But the offense remains suspect and a brutal schedule requires them to play each of last year’s semifinalists – two on the road.
22. CAROLINA
If Sam Darnold’s biggest problem turns out to be he was tied to the NY Jets, and Stanford alum Christian McCaffrey has a bounce-back year with 2,000 yards in rushing and receiving, the Panthers could be 10 spots better than this. The Carolina defense is deficient in terms of rushing the passer and making plays in the secondary.
23. ATLANTA
It’s been a slow decline for Matt Ryan since he was the NFL’s MVP in 2016, and a lot of that has to do with the QB’s supporting cast. The Falcons have moved on from Julio Jones, with Calvin Ridley and rookie TE Kyle Pitts expected to pick up the slack. There’s a new head coach in Arthur Smith.
24. CHICAGO
A Khalil Mack-led defense is only so-so at rushing the passer, with a combined 67 sacks over the past two years, and struggles to close out games. Coach Matt Nagy’s job will rest on his ability to get rookie Justin Fields up and running as an upper-tier QB as soon as possible.
25. DENVER
If the Broncos are depending on some combination of Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater at QB, they’ll be hard-pressed to compete in a division that includes Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert and Derek Carr. They’ll be solid on defense, but to even think about a title run, Von Miller needs to return from a foot injury and be a Hall of Fame-caliber player again.
26. PHILADELPHIA
The pressure is on Jalen Hurts to deliver the goods at QB, otherwise, it’s Joe Flacco to the rescue. It’s been a steady descent for Flacco since he delivered a championship for Baltimore against the 49ers nine years ago.
27. N.Y. JETS
New coach Robert Saleh should inject life and enthusiasm into a two-game winner, but has a rookie QB in Zach Wilson and a dubious supporting cast on offense and defense. It’s hard to imagine the Jets doing much better than doubling their paltry 2020 season win total.
28. N.Y. GIANTS
The Giants were actually ninth in the NFL in scoring defense at 22.3 points per game. Surprised? Unfortunately, unless Saquon Barkley can put up Tiki Barber-in his-prime numbers, it won’t be enough to compensate for a popgun offense and a QB, Daniel Jones, who has yet to prove he’s the future of the franchise.
29. CINCINNATI
Joe Burrow looked the part of a franchise QB until a knee injury ended the rookie season of the NFL’s No. 1 overall pick early. The Bengals got him a new weapon in rookie wideout Ja’Marr Chase, but at the expense of not selecting a top-shelf blocker in Round 1. There remains a dearth of talent on offense and defense, which ensures another sub-.500 season.
30. DETROIT
New coach Dan Campbell’s cartoonish opening news conference notwithstanding, the Lions are about as soft as it gets. They haven’t run the ball well since Barry Sanders retired and their defense gave up a staggering 519 points last season — the second-highest total in NFL history.
31. JACKSONVILLE
If QB Trevor Lawrence and coach Urban Meyer can get this one-win disaster anything more than six wins, then maybe the Jaguars are indeed off and running into something other than a dismal future. Many of the same suspects from the NFL’s 31st-ranked defense return.
32. HOUSTON
David Culley may be a great coach, but it’s unlikely he has the horses to prove it. Former coach Bill O’Brien ransomed the cupboard bare for now and the future; QB DeShaun Watson’s career is in limbo with legal troubles; and even franchise cornerstone J.J. Watt fled to Arizona to escape what looks to be a hopeless situation.
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