The Super Bowl is not exactly won on paper, but there is always a lot we can learn from the NFL offseason. As the 2025 NFL offseason has progressed, we've been learning a lot about each team around the league and their chances of upending the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles this season.
The Eagles will have plenty of competition from AFC teams in 2025 as we look at the latest NFL Power Rankings, which feature four teams in the top five overall. Who is the biggest challenger to the Eagles coming out of the NFC? Are the Lions and Commanders in danger of regression years this year?
We have a lot of offseason thoughts, especially after the Steelers finally got a deal done with Aaron Rodgers. Where does your favorite team rank after all the latest offseason action?
NFL Power Rankings: Lions and Commanders both falling after tough offseasons
32. Cleveland Browns
The Browns have a horrendous quarterback situation, a rough-looking offensive line, one of the best players on their defense dealing with an injury, and they play in a very tough division. This is shaping up to be a brutal year for Cleveland, but someone like Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel figuring it out and becoming a viable long-term solution could turn the tide. The Browns had a decent draft class in 2025 overall and they’re going to need those guys to grow up fast. They could lose a lot of games in 2025 but still be one of the league’s most interesting and entertaining teams.
31. New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints were stuck in a tough situation this offseason because the status of Derek Carr has been up in the air. It’s fair at this point to say that was an ill-advised pickup, but remember at the beginning of last season when this team scored 91 points in the first two weeks? That feels like a lifetime ago. We saw last season that you can’t just plug any quarterback into the lineup and this team is going to have success. Some stability at head coach with Kellen Moore coming in could give this team a better chance, but it still feels like this is arguably the worst QB situation in the league, and that will have an effect.
30. Tennessee Titans
The Titans are in Year 1 of a true reloading phase, but it seems like the team itself refuses to truly acknowledge it. They brought in aging free agents last year, and they did it again in 2025. I don’t understand the strategy considering we’re talking about two different GMs running the team in 2024 nad 2025, but Mike Borgonzi has seen the way it's done before and seems confident he’s got the right ingredients to compete this season. Cam Ward could be the jolt this Titans franchise needed to take that next step, but I still think this team wins around 5 games in 2025.
29. New York Jets
The Jets went from having one of the most talented rosters in the NFL last year according to most metrics to having one of the worst situations in the league. It could be a tough first year on the job for new GM Darren Mougey as well as head coach Aaron Glenn, but this was always going to be a longer-term fix after the previous regime put all their chips in the center on Aaron Rodgers. The rebuilding process is going to take some time and the Jets took a calculated risk on Justin Fields.
I think this team is going to be jockeying for position at the front of the line for 2026 NFL Draft prospects at quarterback and will be a contender for most likely team to sell at the 2025 NFL trade deadline.
28. Carolina Panthers
We’ll see this season if the fences between Bryce Young and Dave Canales are truly mended. The Panthers had virtually no choice but to bench Young last year, and it seemingly did wonders for his overall projection and competitive edge. They were able to build around him this offseason as opposed to the alternative. The issue facing this Panthers team is almost exclusively on defense. They missed out on Milton Williams in free agency and have the look of a bottom-five unit there again. Can Ejiro Evero get his group to overachieve in 2025?
27. Jacksonville Jaguars
What are we supposed to put our faith in right now for the Jacksonville Jaguars? I wouldn’t be shocked to see this team be relevant in the AFC South, but are we supposed to think it’s because of Liam Coen? Trevor Lawrence? Travis Hunter and Brian Thomas Jr.?
There are pieces in Jacksonville, but it’s going to be a season-long question of whether those are all pieces of the same puzzle. The jury is out on this team, which has some nice foundational pieces right now. The big question mark is probably Lawrence, and if he can return to the form we saw at the end of 2022 and beginning of 2023, this team could have something brewing rather quickly.
26. Las Vegas Raiders
For the short term, I actually don’t hate the additions we’ve seen from the Raiders this offseason. John Spytek is extremely sharp and will be a good GM for them. Pete Carroll is a culture changer and should help this team win more games immediately. Geno Smith is a huge upgrade. Ashton Jeanty is a huge upgrade. Yet the Raiders, defensively, are a train wreck. This team should be improved offensively but they might have the worst defense in the NFL on paper, and that’s being generous.
25. New York Giants
As good as the Giants should be on the defensive line, it’s hard to see them being anywhere near as bad this year as they were last year. And the Giants were really rough last year thanks to all of the quarterback shuffling they had to do. GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll are on the hottest of hot seats this year, as far as I’m concerned. They need to find a way to win at least 8 or 9 games this year, or we could see the Giants start completely from scratch in 2026.
24. Indianapolis Colts
Anthony Richardson’s latest injury has officially paved the way for Daniel Jones to give him the old “Wally Pipp” treatment, meaning Jones is going to take his job while he’s on the mend. The addition of Jones felt like a clear message to Richardson in the first place, but his shoulder issues continuing to be a hindrance at this point are likely the final straw. I think the only way we’re seeing Richardson start for the Colts this year is as an injury replacement. This is a talented enough roster for Daniel Jones to have a Sam Darnold-like bounce-back campaign.
23. Seattle Seahawks
Mike Macdonald will probably have that Seattle defense playing a lot better in year two under his watch, but the offense for Seattle is a big question mark. They moved on from Geno Smith, DK Metcalf, and Tyler Lockett. They brought in Sam Darnold, Cooper Kupp, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. It’s not the most inspiring renovation of an offense you’ll ever see, but you never know until you see how it works on the field. I’m guessing the Seahawks will need to make more adjustments on that side of the ball in 2026.
22. Atlanta Falcons
We’re all going to be interested to see how the Falcons fare with Michael Penix Jr. running the show. And as of right now, they clearly expect Kirk Cousins to be there backing him up. That weird dynamic is the type of distraction that usually doesn’t bode well for a team. Beyond the quarterback distraction, the Falcons have a lot of young pieces that need to step up for this team defensively. I have faith in Raheem Morris to get the most out of his guys, but they need a lot of different players to progress at the same time, and that’s tough to bank on.
21. Arizona Cardinals
We will see how the veteran additions on the defensive front can reshape the projection of this Arizona Cardinals team as a whole. Getting Josh Sweat to reunite with Jonathan Gannon was a good move, but older veterans like Dalvin Tomlinson and Calais Campbell might not be enough to move the needle for this team. The Cardinals can take a huge step forward this year if they get a breakout year from Marvin Harrison Jr., a can’t-miss prospect from the 2024 draft class.
20. Miami Dolphins
Perhaps the fact that the Dolphins have been so badly injury-riddled the past two seasons is clouding judgment here a bit, but the reality is that this team has far too many injury concerns to ignore. The Dolphins need Tua Tagovailoa to stay healthy, first and foremost, but with a revamped and reloaded offensive line, can that be expected? The defense has taken its share of lumps as well the last couple of years, creating a logjam at the EDGE position where Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips quickly went from building blocks to major question marks who might not be around much longer. They also need a young, unproven secondary to step up.
19. New England Patriots
The New England Patriots did a lot of things right this offseason. I love the hire of Mike Vrabel as the new head coach. I love the additions of Milton Williams and Harold Landry to the defensive front. I love the moves to upgrade the offensive line with Will Campbell and Morgan Moses coming in. The Pats might be cooking with something here, but they are still likely a year out from having a good enough roster to be anything more than a thorn in the side of other teams in the AFC.
They have the feel of a 7 or 8-win team that is going to drive playoff contenders nuts late in the season by upsetting some good teams.
18. Chicago Bears
Yes, the Chicago Bears have one of the most improved rosters in the league this offseason based on the additions they made to the offensive line alone. The fact remains that even with time last season, Caleb Williams took more sacks than any other quarterback in the NFL. We need to see proof that his internal clock has improved and that he’s not just out there trying to improvise as quickly as possible. If he takes that next step, so do the Bears.
17. Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys have quietly had a very interesting offseason with the recent arrival of their 2025 NFL Draft class along with the talented George Pickens at receiver. Pairing up Pickens with CeeDee Lamb could end up being a cheat code for Dallas and quarterback Dak Prescott, who has lacked a true #2 threat since Amari Cooper was traded to Cleveland a few years ago. The Cowboys are going to need everything to go right (injury-wise), but they should be competitive in the NFC East this year.
16. San Francisco 49ers
There’s probably not a more perfect spot for the 49ers right now. With some of the losses they’ve had this offseason, part of me wants to bury them in the late 20s of offseason NFL Power Rankings. And then the combo of Kyle Shanahan and Robert Saleh on this coaching staff again makes me want to put them in the top 12 overall. The Niners won’t be as bad as their biggest detractors think this season, but they might be scraping and clawing for a playoff spot instead of running through people like they have in recent years.
15. Los Angeles Chargers
I am lower on the Los Angeles Chargers than most. This is a team that had the #1 defense in the league last year and got better offensively in a lot of ways this offseason. They upgraded the overall depth at running back with Najee Harris and Omarion Hampton. They landed Mekhi Becton to slot next to Joe Alt on the offensive line. But the Chargers also lost quite a bit, especially on the defensive front. Joey Bosa and Poona Ford are both gone, and the team making investments to retain Khalil Mack and Bud Dupree could be a false sense of security.
14. Pittsburgh Steelers
We can finally speak of the Steelers with some certainty at the quarterback position, at least temporarily. Will Aaron Rodgers be more like 2015 Peyton Manning with the Steelers this year, or will he be more like Tom Brady with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? The Steelers are obviously believing he can elevate this entire roster, and they’ve taken some drastic measures offensively this offseason to improve. And I’m not sure they’re done yet.
13. Cincinnati Bengals
Defensively, are the Bengals better in 2025? They are obviously hopeful that a shift to Al Golden as the defensive coordinator is going to raise all boats here, but the personnel on that side of the ball remains an area of concern. The Bengals haven’t yet made Trey Hendrickson happy, and he might legitimately hold out of games if they don’t pay him. They have their first-round pick, Shemar Stewart, holding out. I still think this team is a 10-win team even if Joe Burrow and the offense have to score 40 a game, but the defense could be bad yet again.
12. Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an extremely talented team overall, but they have some weaknesses that could be exposed in a hurry this coming season. The Packers need someone like Lukas Van Ness to emerge off the edge, because they didn’t make any substantial additions there. They already haven’t done enough over the last two years at cornerback and they just cut Jaire Alexander. How is this team going to look in the secondary with both Alexander and former first-round pick Eric Stokes officially out of the building?
11. Washington Commanders
The more I think about their offseason in 2025, the less I really like the Commanders to duplicate their 2024 success. They didn’t exactly catch lightning in a bottle, but with one of the worst groups of edge rushers in the league and a defensive line in transition overall, I think the Commanders might struggle more in 2025 than many expect. Jayden Daniels played out of his mind last year and was clutch, and I do love the way GM Adam Peters fortified the offensive line with Laremy Tunsil and Josh Conerly Jr. coming in. We’re going to find out if that pass rush is a problem quickly.
10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers are not only running it back with one of the top passing attacks in the NFL, but they added one of the best receivers in the 2025 NFL Draft class in Emeka Egbuka. The offense is not a concern for the Bucs, but the defense needed help off the edge. It’s a huge question right now whether or not Haason Reddick is actually going to be able to be part of the solution there. But with the additions they’ve made and guys getting healthy after last season, the Bucs have one of the best rosters in the league.
9. Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos went from being sadsacks hamstrung with $85 million in dead cap from Russell Wilson alone to being in the playoffs and in the conversation among the best teams in the AFC. Sean Payton has transformed the franchise and Bo Nix has given them someone to build around, which they did this offseason. The Broncos crushed free agency, adding Dre Greenlaw, Evan Engram, Talanoa Hufanga, and perhaps soon JK Dobbins. This team is rising quickly and could be a problem in the AFC West.
8. Detroit Lions
I’m going to beat this drum all offseason, but I don’t think the Lions have done enough to boost their roster off the edge to make it past the final four in the NFC. Especially with Aidan Hutchinson coming off of such a gruesome injury, it’s a shame that this team hasn’t done more to upgrade their pass rush. I thought about dropping the Lions even further with the losses of Ben Johnson, Aaron Glenn, Frank Ragnow, and Kevin Zeitler, but 8th is a hot enough take for the moment.
7. Minnesota Vikings
I’m trying to do two things with the Minnesota Vikings. First and foremost, I’m trying desperately not to underrate them. I feel like I did that almost all of last year, constantly waiting for the clock to strike midnight on Sam Darnold’s Cinderella story. I’m also trying not to overrate them because I think there are significant questions with JJ McCarthy taking over as a first-year starter and coming off of a major injury. The Vikings also need help at corner, like a few teams near the top of this list. Still, they have one of the most well-rounded rosters in the league, and I think they’re the best team in the NFC North right now if McCarthy is the real deal.
6. Los Angeles Rams
With four of the top five spots going to AFC teams, the Los Angeles Rams are sitting right on the periphery. I feel like this is a team whose only weakness on paper is at the cornerback position, and not having the level of playmakers needed at that position group could be what sinks this team’s ship if injuries don’t. The Rams have to make a move for someone as this offseason progresses, and if they can get a Jalen Ramsey or Jaire Alexander, this team will be borderline without flaw.
5. Houston Texans
The pressure might have gotten to the Houston Texans a little bit last year. It felt like they were simultaneously one of the most improved teams in the league (on paper) and one of the most disappointing teams in the league as the season progressed. The Texans still managed to win a playoff game and turn it on when it mattered, but question marks on the offensive line right now have this team in a bit of a limbo state. I still feel like they are one of the most complete rosters in the league and CJ Stroud will have a huge year.
4. Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills look about as good as they ever have on paper going into the dog days of the offseason, yet you can’t help but wonder if it’s truly enough to get them over the top in the AFC this season. The Bills, unfortunately, play in the same conference as their kryptonite (the Chiefs) and arguably the most talented all-around team in the league (the Ravens). You don’t get better efforts from your quarterback than what we saw from Josh Allen last year, and it still wasn’t enough.
The Bills are going to have to hope for a little luck to be on their side this season, on top of being one of the best teams in the league.
3. Kansas City Chiefs
I don’t think you can bury the Kansas City Chiefs too far down the list, even though some people are trying desperately to make it seem like this Chiefs team is on a downward spiral. I will say, the offensive line could be in the worst shape it’s been throughout the Patrick Mahomes era, and the Chiefs have lost some key guys in the secondary over the last few years. They need new players to step up at left tackle and left guard this coming season but with Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, you already know this team is going to be relevant in January.
And that wide receiver room being healthy could be a game-changer for the offense as a whole…
2. Baltimore Ravens
There are no real weaknesses on the Baltimore Ravens’ roster going into the remainder of the offseason program. There’s no such thing as a “perfect” roster in the NFL, but the Ravens are about as close as you can get. They’ve got experience, they’ve got depth, they’ve got star power, and they’ve got continuity. They are well-coached. They have a tremendous culture of winning and maintaining success. This is a team that has absolutely no excuses in 2025.
1. Philadelphia Eagles
Not much is going to change with the Philadelphia Eagles regarding the way this team dominates week in and week out. The Eagles do have some question marks offensively with the departure of Kellen Moore (head coach in New Orleans) as well as replacing Mekhi Becton, who was great for them last year. But with Vic Fangio calling the shots defensively, you just get the sense that the floor is extremely high for this team. But the key personnel hasn’t changed much. Philly needs some young guys to step up off the edge, but the talent is there to repeat.