Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season is finally here, and the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks will begin their title defense with a rematch against the New England Patriots.
It's finally time to stop projecting what this season could be and start talking about what we're actually seeing on the field, and everybody is excited for that. But for now, we've got to take one last look at how each team in the NFC stacks up before the games get underway.
Everyone has their gut feelings about what teams might do this upcoming season, but the beauty of the NFL is that nobody really knows for sure. With the games about to begin, let's take one final look at each team in the NFC. This will be our final NFC Power Rankings list before the start of the season, and we start reacting to the actual games.
NFL Power Rankings, Week 1: Final NFC Power Rankings before the games begin
16. Arizona Cardinals
To say I'm skeptical that Mike LaFleur is going to be able to prove himself worthy of sticking around as the Arizona Cardinals' head coach beyond this season would be a massive understatement.
To be fair to LaFleur, however, it didn't look like any coaches truly wanted this job in the offseason. It was easily the least-coveted job in the NFL, and Cardinals' ownership has to take the lion's share of blame for that. It felt like they were dragging their heels in the hiring process before ultimately "settling" on LaFleur as the guy.
Just like a lot of other teams at the bottom of the league, you have to look for silver linings with this Arizona team. They need young players to step up this season desperately, so they can enter the 2027 NFL Draft with confidence that there are foundation pieces in place.
15. Atlanta Falcons
Things are progressing toward a rough year for the Atlanta Falcons in 2026. The process of determining the starting quarterback was just a small dose of the misery this fan base is likely going to have to endure this season.
Tua Tagovailoa looked completely lost during the preseason. Michael Penix Jr. is trending toward being a draft bust. James Pearce Jr. is suspended for half the season. Jalon Walker is already out for the year.
What could turn things around in year one of the Kevin Stefanski era? It feels like any form of competitiveness this team could show in 2026 will be short lived, at best.
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