NFL Power Rankings: Biggest risers and fallers throughout league after Wild Card

We rank all 32 teams after Wild Card Weekend and the latest rumors around the league

NFL Power Rankings
NFL Power Rankings | Kevin Sabitus/GettyImages
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16. San Francisco 49ers

Scoff at this ranking for the 49ers all you want, but we all know that if this team would have been healthy in 2024, they would have probably ended up winning and dominating the NFC West.

Unfortunately, injuries are part of the game and you need your depth to show up and show out. Most importantly, I think the 49ers really needed Brock Purdy to elevate the guys around him this year and it didn’t really happen. Despite that, GM John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan doubled down on their commitment to Purdy.

And to be fair, you shouldn’t just give up on a young guy at the QB position who just had a 30-touchdown season after one bad year. Purdy has shown he can operate the Shanahan offense with a high level of efficiency and he could just as easily have a bounce-back year in 2025 as he had a down year in 2024.

But the 49ers have to find a way to upgrade the depth on their roster and stay healthy, or it’s going to be disastrous again next year.

15. Pittsburgh Steelers

As complimentary as we have been about Mike Tomlin here over the years, I think it’s also fair to be critical of how his team has played in big games in recent years. At least when it comes to the playoffs, the Pittsburgh Steelers have done nothing but book their tickets since Ben Roethlisberger left.

There’s something to be said for this team just getting to the dance with regular season success, but there’s also something to be said for the fact that they just are barely competitive in games like we saw against the Baltimore Ravens.

Especially considering that was their third shot at Baltimore.

Now, the Steelers once again enter the offseason with major quarterback questions. There are going to be questions about whether or not George Pickens is back. This team feels like it’s due for a big regression year in 2025.