The AFC has definitely seen some wild results thus far. Let's power rank the conference approaching Week 3. There only appears to be two legitimate contenders in the AFC through two weeks, but a lot can change.
With Joe Burrow set to miss a few months and the Kansas City Chiefs not being relevant, the AFC might end up being wide open when the playoffs roll around. Furthermore, there also appears to be a good chunk of flat-out bad teams in the conference as well.
It's early, but anything is on the table with the AFC right now. Let's power rank the conference as Week 3 quickly approaches.
Power ranking the AFC ahead of Week 3 in the 2025 NFL Season
16. Tennessee Titans (0-2)
Through two weeks, there isn't much to like with the Tennessee Titans, but some have said that rookie QB Cam Ward looks the part. It is way too early to tell, as we really won't know for sure until about halfway through his second season, so let's pump the brakes. Furthermore, are we sure this is the right coaching staff?
15. New York Jets (0-2)
The New York Jets are an awful football team, and their valiant Week 1 effort against the Pittsburgh Steelers was definitely an outlier. New York will struggle to win a few games this year and will be a staple this low in our power rankings.
14. Miami Dolphins (0-2)
One team hurdling toward being massive sellers at the NFL trade deadline in a month or so is the Miami Dolphins, a horrific football team. Two-straight losses to begin the year already has us wondering when the changes will begin.
Head coach Mike McDaniel appears to be on the hot seat, and GM Chris Grier could soon follow in his footsteps. The Dolphins aren't going to make the playoffs this year and absolutely must build for the future, so there could be many significant players on the roster available for trade.
13. Cleveland Browns (0-2)
The Browns have enough talent to hang around in most games, but they won't be able to close many out and are obviously building for 2026 and beyond.
12. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-1)
Nearly beating the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2, the Jacksonville Jaguars are in for a long rebuilding process, and I would take it a step further and wonder if Trevor Lawrence can actually be the team's franchise QB.
The Jaguars could remain in contention in the AFC South, though, given how weak the Houston Texans have looked this year, and the Tennessee Titans are going to be a non-factor. This might be a division where nine wins is enough to finish in first place.
11. Las Vegas Raiders (1-1)
The Las Vegas Raiders got throttled on Monday Night Football against the Los Angeles Chargers and got exposed for how weak of a team they really are. Geno Smith was a disaster and threw three interceptions in one of the worst games you'll see from a QB in today's NFL.
The Raiders aren't going to win many games, as the roster is simply below-average and missing a ton of talent in the trenches and in the secondary. Vegas is no. 11 in our updated AFC power rankings approaching Week 3.
10. Houston Texans (0-2)
Houston, we have a problem. Now 0-2 and already two games behind the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South, the Texans are a mess on offense, period. The offensive line is a disaster, and CJ Stroud just has not been anything close to his rookie season self.
This franchise is barreling toward needing to do some serious rebuilding on offense, and as time passes, is CJ Stroud's long-term viability going to come into question? Houston is 10th in our power rankings.
9. Kansas City Chiefs (0-2)
Another team that has major problems is the Kansas City Chiefs. This team is now 0-2 for the first time in the Patrick Mahomes era and just do not have many players worth talking about on their roster. The years of having picks at the bottom of each round is catching up to this franchise.
KC has serious roster holes and don't have a clear avenue to get significantly better this season. I would take this another step further and say that the Chiefs will struggle to get into the postseason this year.
8. New England Patriots (1-1)
A nice bounce back win for the New England Patriots gets Mike Vrabel his first win as their head coach. The Pats are still a year or two away but are going to be a frisky football team this year. Vrabel knows how to get the most out of his players, and we'll see this team mesh a lot better as the season goes on.
Furthermore, second-year QB Drake Maye is going to get a lot better as well. He's got Josh McDaniels as his offensive coordinator, and McDaniels is a Hall of Fame mind in that regard.
7. Cincinnati Bengals (2-0)
The Cincinnati Bengals' season just got a lot more interesting, as Joe Burrow is now set to miss multiple months with a turf toe injury. With that being said, Cincy is 2-0 and do have a capable backup in Jake Browning. The reasonable expectation for this team is that they lose more than they win while Burrow is out.
If you ask me, the team needs to hit the trade market to try and bring someone like Kirk Cousins in, as this team is 2-0 for the first time in the Zac Taylor era and finally seem to have figured our how to avoid the slow starts. As time goes on, the Bengals will likely fade out of the AFC playoff picture, but for now, they are seventh in our updated rankings.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-1)
A brutal loss in Week 2 drops the Pittsburgh Steelers in our AFC power rankings. Pittsburgh get did into a shootout with the New York Jets in Week 1 but fell back down to earth in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks.
The team's defense has been bad through two weeks, but Aaron Rodgers stil appears to have enough left in the tank. I would expect the Steelers to hang around in the AFC playoff picture, as they've done that just about every single season.
However, this team is obviously not a Super Bowl team and aren't good enough to win a playoff game. Pittsburgh is sixth in our power rankings.
5. Denver Broncos (1-1)
It's been two weeks of two ugly games for the Denver Broncos, but despite them playing poorly in Week 2, they nearly beat the Indianapolis Colts, but a penalty against the Broncos gave the Colts another shot at kicking a game-winning field goal.
The Broncos and Sean Payton have typically started slow - in 2023, they were 0-3 before their first win, and they lost their first two games in 2024. Them being 1-1 is an improvement from previous years, so there's no reason to hit the panic button with Denver at the moment.
Denver is likely hitting at least 10 wins and should once again be in the playoffs.
4. Indianapolis Colts (2-0)
You have to give credit where it's due - the Indianapolis Colts have looked a lot better than we thought, and specifically, Daniel Jones has looked like a franchise QB. The one issue I can potentially see with the Colts is this team being the 2025 version of the 2024 New Orleans Saints.
In 2024, the Saints started 2-0 and looked unbeatable, but their season collapsed in the following weeks. Given that Indy does have a similar setup, they could be in for the same demise. Daniel Jones is still Daniel Jones, and is Shane Steichen actually good enough as a head coach to keep this team in their winning ways?
3. Los Angeles Chargers (2-0)
Two great divisional wins for the LA Chargers has this team atop the AFC West and third in our AFC power rankings approaching Week 3. The Chargers have beaten the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders in Weeks 1 and 2. In Week 3, they host the Denver Broncos.
Two rock-solid wins like this might mean that the Chargers are due to drop a game to Denver, and when you consider the way in which the Broncos lost in Week 2, they are going to be desperate for a win. For now, though, LA is third in our power rankings.
2. Baltimore Ravens (1-1)
Getting back on track in Week 2, the Ravens are second in our power rankings and are too good to not win a ton of games this year. Given how the Pittsburgh Steelers look and the Cincinnati Bengals now without Joe Burrow, another AFC North title is coming for Baltimore.
1. Buffalo Bills (2-0)
Two wins to begin the season has the Buffalo Bills atop the AFC, and it's pretty clear that Buffalo is the top team in the conference right now. With the Chiefs not nearly as good as they've been and the Bengals now down and out, this could finally be the year for the Bills to make a run to the Super Bowl.