Ricky Bobby once said it best: If you ain't first, you're last. Being in second place isn't always the worst thing in the world, but these teams that finished in second place last year are obviously going to be trying to get to that next level in 2025, and some are better equipped than others.
There were second-place teams in the NFL last season that wound up making some noise in the playoffs (Commanders), and there were others that were completely irrelevant in the playoff discussion (Dolphins). The Minnesota Vikings caused the NFL to potentially start rethinking playoff seeding after finishing in second place with a whopping 14 wins last year.
Unfortunately, other than the Commanders, every second place team in the NFL last season wound up being an afterthought following the Wild Card round of the playoffs. Last year was not a good year for these teams, so how do they get to that next level and actually compete in the postseason? Which teams are even equipped for that?
Our latest NFL Power Rankings will look at every team that finished in second place last season and rank them for 2025.
NFL Power Rankings: Ranking every team that finished in 2nd-place for 2025
8. Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a fascinating roster that could end up getting absolutely buried this season due to their quarterback situation. I think Shane Steichen is a good coach, and if one of the elite quarterbacks in the NFL had the weapons the Colts have, they'd probably win the MVP award.
That could end up being good news for someone like Daniel Jones, or it could end up highlighting just how badly this team fumbled the Anthony Richardson situation. Or perhaps how badly Richardson fumbled his golden opportunity.
7. Atlanta Falcons
I want to project the Falcons to be better than this in the 2025 season but they are in a 'guilty until proven innocent' category until the games begin. The Falcons have a young quarterback who showed promise last year, a lot of good weapons on offense, and a largely unproven defense.
The defense in Atlanta could once again prove to be this team's weakness in the armor, and ultimately that puts way too much pressure on your quarterback. The Falcons need immediate week-to-week growth from first-round picks Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr.