1. Chiefs: The kings of the hill stay there until someone knocks them off.
2. Eagles: They’re the best team in their conference, by far.
3. 49ers: They’d be the best team in the conference (and maybe the league), if they had a high-end quarterback.
4. Bengals: They will continue to bedevil the Chiefs, and potentially win a Super Bowl as soon as this year.
5. Bills: The pressure can’t get much higher to make a deep postseason run. The road gets a little rockier given the Stefon Diggs drama.
6. Jaguars: Get used to the Jags being among the best of the best in the NFL.
7. Dolphins: As Tua goes, so go the Dolphins.
8. Ravens: Big changes are coming to the offense. If it works, the Ravens could win it all.
9. Cowboys: Dak Prescott’s long-term future and Mike McCarthy’s short-term future hover over the franchise.
10. Jets: On paper, everything is on place. Now, they need to do justice to the paper.
11. Lions: Expectations are a bit high for a team that hasn’t won a playoff game since the first Bush administration.
12. Giants: It feels as if a correction could be coming.
13. Chargers: The seat will be blazing hot for Brandon Staley.
14. Steelers: They haven’t finished in last place in their division since 1988. It will take some work to avoid it this year.
15. Vikings: They seem to be taking one step back, in the hopes of taking two steps toward a franchise quarterback.
16. Seahawks: They’re moving in the right direction, and could be a real factor this year.
17. Titans: They’re in a transition from the old-guard roster to a new approach.
18. Packers: They’ll be better without Aaron Rodgers than many believe.
19. Saints: They’re higher than any other team from the NFC South, and they barely made the top 20.
20. Buccaneers: Tommy is gone. That could actually give them a little lift, since it removes plenty of distractions.
21. Patriots: Last year’s disastrous approach to offense did damage that can’t quickly be repaired.
22. Browns: The Browns could go either way this year; much depends on what Deshaun Watson does.
23. Broncos: This is it for Russ. If he stumbles again, he’ll fall right to the bench.
24. Commanders: Too many eggs are in Sam Howell’s basket.
25. Panthers: It could work well with Bryce Young at quarterback, but it likely will take time.
26. Falcons: It all comes down to Desmond Ridder.
27. Raiders: It already feels like it could be another long year.
28. Rams: They have a pretty good chance to be better than they were last year. They can’t be much worse.
29. Bears: The development of Justin Fields as a passer is the thing that can push them into contention.
30. Colts: The revolving door of bad veteran quarterbacks has stopped. They now need Anthony Richardson to develop, quickly.
31. Texans: They’re becoming less dysfunctional. Which technically counts as progress.
32. Cardinals: From 10-2 in the 2021 season to the depths of the league, the fall has been stunning and 100 percent deserved.
