Close the books on the 2022 NFL season! The Chiefs beat the Eagles 38–35 to win Super Bowl LVII and claim their second championship in four seasons. Sure, we are covering all angles of the game, from how Patrick Mahomes handled his ankle injury to the idea of a Chiefs dynasty to Andy Reid’s beautiful mind, but let’s not dwell too long.
We already have one prediction for each of the 32 teams and we are ready to offer up a fresh batch of power rankings looking at how they all stack up at the moment. The champs were a unanimous No. 1, the runners-up were a unanimous No. 2, and then things got more interesting.
49ers fans have been vocal for two weeks about how they should have beaten the Eagles, and they will likely be upset to see their team in fourth, behind the two AFC championship game opponents.
The Jaguars are surging after the first of what everyone expects to be many playoff wins with Trevor Lawrence. Teams like the Raiders and Jets are lurking, with a chance to move up the list after they settle their quarterback situations.
This week’s MMQB Power Rankings Poll voters:
Albert Breer, senior NFL reporter
Conor Orr, senior writer
Greg Bishop, senior writer
Michael Rosenberg, senior writer
Andrew Brandt, business of football columnist
John Pluym, managing editor
Gary Gramling, senior editor
Mitch Goldich, editor
1. Kansas City Chiefs (14–3)
Points in poll: 256
Highest-place vote: 1 (8 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 1 (8 votes)
In five years since Mahomes took over as QB1, the Chiefs have five home AFC title games, three Super Bowl appearances and two rings. He has two regular-season MVPs and two Super Bowl MVPs. Yeah, they might be No. 1 for a while.
2. Philadelphia Eagles (14–3)
Points in poll: 248
Highest-place vote: 2 (8 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 2 (8 votes)
The Eagles led the NFC wire to wire and had a 10-point lead in the Super Bowl. It’s a tough way for a magical year to end, but our panel was unanimous that they belonged on the big stage with Kansas City.
3. Cincinnati Bengals (12–4)
Points in poll: 237
Highest-place vote: 3 (6 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 5 (1 vote)
The Bengals won eight straight games to close out the regular season and then knocked off the Bills in Buffalo. There was no Super Bowl losers’ hangover for them, and we can look forward to many more showdowns between Mahomes and Joe Burrow.
4. San Francisco 49ers (13–4)
Points in poll: 234
Highest-place vote: 3 (2 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 4 (6 votes)
Niners fans won’t like this one, after two weeks of talk—including from the players themselves—about being better than the Eagles, but our panel has them ranked fourth as we head into yet another offseason of intrigue surrounding their starting QB position.
5. Buffalo Bills (13–3)
Points in poll: 224
Highest-place vote: 4 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 6 (1 vote)
The Bills had a long and trying season that ultimately ended in the same round as last year. Josh Allen & Co. still haven’t quite gotten over that hump to get out of the AFC, but everyone knows how good they are.
6. Dallas Cowboys (12–5)
Points in poll: 216
Highest-place vote: 5 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 7 (1 vote)
The Cowboys blew out the Buccaneers in the wild-card round but then scored only 12 points at San Francisco, a disappointing way to bow out for the season. Jerry Jones’s team will be under the microscope this offseason, as it always is.
7. Jacksonville Jaguars (9–8)
Points in poll: 194
Highest-place vote: 7 (2 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 13 (1 vote)
Look at the Jaguars, who snuck into our poll’s top 10 before the playoffs and have now climbed into seventh after a thrilling comeback win over the Chargers. The time is now to maximize the financial flexibility of having Lawrence on a rookie contract.
8. Los Angeles Chargers (10–7)
Points in poll: 193
Highest-place vote: 8 (3 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 10 (2 votes)
This is a fitting spot for the Chargers, one slot behind the Jaguars. L.A. dominated for 30 minutes of football, but that wasn’t quite enough. Now we get to see how Justin Herbert looks with Kellen Moore brought in as offensive coordinator.
9. Baltimore Ravens (10–7)
Points in poll: 191
Highest-place vote: 7 (3 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 11 (3 votes)
After yet another promising season derailed by a Lamar Jackson injury, we walk into yet another offseason in which the QB’s contract status will be a top headline. The franchise tag is an option, but there’s a wide range of possibilities for how this could play out.
10. New York Giants (9-7-1)
Points in poll: 186
Highest-place vote: 7 (2 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 13 (1 vote)
Brian Daboll won the Coach of the Year award in his first season in New York, after snapping his franchise’s string of five straight 10-plus-loss seasons with a trip to the playoffs, then won a postseason game in Minnesota. The team was outclassed against the Eagles in the divisional round, but this is a rebuild that’s ahead of schedule.
Abbie Parr/AP Photo
11. Minnesota Vikings (13–4)
Points in poll: 183
Highest-place vote: 6 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 15 (1 vote)
The Vikings have been one of the most confusing and polarizing teams to rank all year, with their 13–4 record and negative point differential. In the end, a playoff loss to the Giants showed their true colors.
12. Detroit Lions (9–8)
Points in poll: 167
Highest-place vote: 9 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 18 (1 vote)
The Lions did not make the playoffs, but our panel does view them as a top-14 team in the league. Expectations will be much higher next season for the feel-good team that charged into contention late in Dan Campbell’s second season.
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13. Seattle Seahawks (9–8)
Points in poll: 147
Highest-place vote: 12 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 18 (1 vote)
The Seahawks have to be feeling good about the 2022 season. They have the No. 5 pick from the Broncos and an outstanding rookie class that got great experience, and they are trying to sign Geno Smith to stick around in the Pacific Northwest.
14. Miami Dolphins (9–8)
Points in poll: 145
Highest-place vote: 12 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 17 (2 votes)
It must be hard for Dolphins fans not to be wondering what could have been, given how well the team played with Tua Tagovailoa in the lineup and how much their season was derailed by his multiple concussions. Still, the first year under Mike McDaniel looks like a real step forward for the organization.
15. Green Bay Packers (8–9)
Points in poll: 144
Highest-place vote: 12 (2 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 20 (1 vote)
The Packers, like the rest of us, must now wait for Aaron Rodgers to spend four days in the dark before getting on with offseason plans. Every other domino of their offseason must wait for the QB to make his decision.
16. Pittsburgh Steelers (9–8)
Points in poll: 142
Highest-place vote: 13 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 18 (1 vote)
The Steelers’ transition out of the Ben Roethlisberger era looks to have gone well. Mike Tomlin didn’t want to rush Kenny Pickett onto the field in Week 1, but the rookie eventually got playing time, and the wins followed. Pittsburgh clawed back from 2–6 to keep Tomlin’s streak of never finishing below .500 alive.
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8–9)
Points in poll: 141
Highest-place vote: 12 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 19 (1 vote)
Tom Brady’s retirement creates some interesting questions for a team that has a lot of proud veterans, a lot of talent and Kyle Trask as the only quarterback on the roster.
18. New England Patriots (8–9)
Points in poll: 126
Highest-place vote: 13 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 23 (1 vote)
The Patriots have shaken up the staff and brought back old friend Bill O’Brien to be offensive coordinator, but there will still be pressure on a team that has now missed the playoffs in two of three seasons since Brady skipped town.
Mark Konezny/USA TODAY Sports
19. Washington Commanders (8-8-1)
Points in poll: 99
Highest-place vote: 17 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 24 (2 votes)
The Commanders have Sam Howell at QB1, but it would surprise no one if this team chases a veteran option this offseason. Questions swirl about the team’s ownership situation this offseason, but what else is new?
20. Tennessee Titans (7–10)
Points in poll: 97
Highest-place vote: 19 (2 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 24 (1 vote)
The Titans took a massive step backward in 2022, trading away A.J. Brown, firing their GM midseason and losing seven straight games to close out the year. This could be a pivotal offseason for a team that could decide on which direction it wants to go.
21. New York Jets (7–10)
Points in poll: 93
Highest-place vote: 17 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 25 (1 vote)
The Jets swept the Rookie of the Year awards with Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson, and will get Breece Hall back from injury next year, too. If they land one of the available quarterbacks they covet, they will be a preseason darling next year.
22. Carolina Panthers (7–10)
Points in poll: 92
Highest-place vote: 18 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 25 (1 vote)
The Panthers chose to hand over the keys to Frank Reich instead of keeping interim coach Steve Wilks. If Reich can turn the offense around, we know this team has a defense to compete for a wide-open division.
23. New Orleans Saints (7–10)
Points in poll: 86
Highest-place vote: 20 (2 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 25 (1 vote)
The Saints traded their own top-10 pick to the Eagles, but got a late-first-rounder from the Broncos for Sean Payton. Now they need to come up with a long-term solution at quarterback after a year with an Andy Dalton–Jameis Winston depth chart.
24. Cleveland Browns (7–10)
Points in poll: 79
Highest-place vote: 21 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 26 (1 vote)
Deshaun Watson’s trade, contract, suspension, ongoing lawsuits and return to the field was one of the biggest stories of the last year in the NFL. Then he played so poorly upon his return that on many of his six game days, he and the Browns were afterthoughts. This year he won’t have rust as an excuse, and the team surely expects more from him.
Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports
25. Las Vegas Raiders (6–11)
Points in poll: 71
Highest-place vote: 19 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 28 (1 vote)
With Derek Carr on his way out of town, and Brady now retired, it’s hard to know what this team will do if it misses out on Davante Adams’s preferred QB target (hint: They played together in Green Bay).
26. Atlanta Falcons (7–10)
Points in poll: 60
Highest-place vote: 23 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 27 (1 vote)
Arthur Smith now has a pair of 7–10 seasons under his belt as he goes about a rebuild no one expected to take place overnight. If Desmond Ridder has a strong second season, this team could be a good turnaround candidate in a weak NFC South.
27. Los Angeles Rams (5–12)
Points in poll: 47
Highest-place vote: 25 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 32 (1 vote)
The Rams just had the worst season a defending Super Bowl champ has ever had. We knew the all-in strategy would catch up to them at some point, but few thought it would come this soon. But Sean McVay is returning, which offers some hope for a return to contention.
28. Denver Broncos (5–12)
Points in poll: 36
Highest-place vote: 27 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 31 (1 vote)
After an astonishingly bad season from Russell Wilson, the Broncos are upgrading from one-and-done Nathaniel Hackett to Payton. Will the former Super Bowl–winning coach be able to “fix” Wilson? It will be one of the biggest questions of the NFL offseason.
29. Arizona Cardinals (4–13)
Points in poll: 30
Highest-place vote: 27 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 31 (1 vote)
The Cardinals’ coaching search was delayed by league rules around interviewing assistants in the Super Bowl, but figuring out which coach will try to turn things around when Kyler Murray returns from his torn ACL is too important a decision to rush.
30. Chicago Bears (3–14)
Points in poll: 25
Highest-place vote: 29 (4 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 32 (1 vote)
The Bears have an interesting decision ahead, after locking up the No. 1 pick with Justin Fields already on the roster. They could draft some elite help for their young QB or find plenty of trade partners that might be interested.
31. Houston Texans (3-13-1)
Points in poll: 19
Highest-place vote: 28 (1 vote)
Lowest-place vote: 32 (2 votes)
A thrilling, last-second win in Week 18 cost the Texans a shot at the No. 1 pick, and it may have ripple effects that haunt the team for a decade or more. But spirits seem to be very high for the start of the DeMeco Ryans era, so maybe the karma will all work out.
32. Indianapolis Colts (4-12-1)
Points in poll: 16
Highest-place vote: 29 (2 votes)
Lowest-place vote: 32 (4 votes)
The Colts did not finish with the worst record in the league, but they earned a spot in dead last thanks to the comically hapless way the Jeff Saturday interim era went. The team is still searching for its next identity.
