12. Las Vegas Raiders
The Las Vegas Raiders have made some bold changes this offseason, but in the loaded AFC, it will not be enough. Hiring Pete Carroll was a wise move, and the trade for Geno Smith should give them a temporary and modest upgrade. The Raiders also took Ashton Jeanty in the 2025 NFL Draft and have an elite tight end in Brock Bowers.
The team could be efficient on offense, but the defense needs a lot of work and there just isn't much reason to believe a lot in Geno Smith, who was traded by the Seattle Seahawks for a third-round pick. Don't count on the Raiders in 2025.
11. Miami Dolphins
If nothing else, Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa is a winner when he can stay on the field. He's been in the NFL since 2020 and has never had a losing season in any year of his career. Tagovailoa is also efficient when he's on the field, but he's got a lot of 'Kirk Cousins' to him in that he can be efficient for years and stick around in the NFL, but he's not going to lead a team on any sort of deep playoff run.
The Miami Dolphins roster is also quite weak at many other positions, so 11th in the AFC feels right for them.
10. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars hired Liam Coen as their head coach, and all Coen did in 2024 was lead an elite offense with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They had a stellar rushing attack and saw Baker Mayfield throw for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns, which are insane numbers.
If Coen can come close to that with Trevor Lawrence in 2025, this team could be frisky, but there is a lot of unknown with the Jaguars, so they can't be ranked higher than this for 2025.
9. Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are now down at no. 9 in our AFC power rankings. Both Shemar Stewart and Trey Hendrickson do not have their respective deals, and it feels like the walls are closing in on this franchise. They were actually 4-8 at one ppoint in the 2024 NFL Season and needed to win five games in a row just to be the first team out of the playoffs in the conference.
Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase are an electric duo, but that's really about it. The Bengals are ninth in our AFC power rankings.