4. Drake Maye/Mike Vrabel, New England Patriots
Drake Maye and Mike Vrabel are No. 4 in our power rankings, and it’s clear that the New England Patriots are quite the controversial team. The Patriots won 14 games in 2025 and rode through a rather easy playoffs until the Super Bowl, where they got throttled by Seattle.
Many had wondered if this team wasn’t nearly as good as the record indicated, as the schedule was insanely easy. What can’t be disputed, though, is just how good Maye played. He finished second in the MVP voting, which is significant, and Vrabel continues to be a great head coach and stack wins.
This is his second stint, as he was a successful head coach for Tennessee. Maye and Vrabel are nearly as good as it gets in the NFL. Not many would be shocked if a tougher schedule led to a bit of a regression, but getting a taste of that type of winning can help this team replicate it in the 2026 season.
3. Sam Darnold/Mike Macdonald, Seattle Seahawks
How many of you truly thought Seattle was going to win the Super Bowl in 2025? After not making the playoffs in 2024, the Seahawks made a major quarterback change, signed Sam Darnold, and rode that, coupled with a great defense, to a Super Bowl title.
While Darnold did turn the ball over more times than you would like, he’s won 28 games as a starter in the regular season the past two years and has emerged as one of the best throwers in the game.
Darnold has finally put it together, which started back in 2024 with Minnesota. While not an elite player, he’s quite good. Mike Macdonald, on the other hand, could be a top-3 head coach in the sport right now. He’s a wildly intelligent defensive mind and runs the type of defense that will continue to sustain in the NFL.
Given how good the roster is, too, it is not hard to see how the Seahawks could flirt with repeating in 2026.
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