28. New York Jets
Last week: 29th
The New York Jets played some really good football against the Titans in Week 1, but they're only moving up one spot in this week's power rankings. Given some of what we saw around the league in Week 1, moving up a spot in this particular range was always going to be really tough.
The Jets got a really efficient performance from Geno Smith overall in Week 1. Smith didn't have a touchdown pass against the Titans, but he also didn't throw any interceptions, he wasn't sacked a single time, and he didn't lose his one fumble.
Based on what we saw last season from Smith with the Raiders, those are very notable stats.
Breece Hall had over 100 yards on the ground as well as a touchdown, and Braelon Allen looked really explosive in the opportunities he got. He would have had a long touchdown run late in the game but it was called back for holding.
The Jets' defense limited the Titans to just 11 first downs the entire game. The Titans had less than 200 yards of total offense overall (195). It was a pretty dominating performance for the Jets, who look like they have something to build on going forward.
And how about the impact of the team's top pick, David Bailey?
Jets rookie pass rusher David Bailey with a team-leading 6 pressures (23.1% pressure rate) in the season-opening win against the Titans.
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) September 13, 2026
Had a sack too (was just pushing Cam Ward out of bounds). But the impact was felt.
27. Carolina Panthers
Last week: 23rd
If you give up 59 points in the first week of the season, you're going to come tumbling down the power rankings.
The Carolina Panthers got absolutely blown out by the Chicago Bears, in what was actually a close game through the first half. And to be fair, we'll have some nice things to say about Carolina's offense, but where does Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero go from here? Does he burn this tape and move on?
The most embarrassing stat for this Panthers defense in Week 1 wasn't the 59 points they allowed to Chicago, but the 291 rushing yards. Chicago had 6 rushing touchdowns. That is absolutely disgusting.
Especially given how much the Panthers have invested in that defense over the past couple of years, Evero has to be on the hot seat after a game like that.
Seeing Bryce Young throw for 361 yards and 3 touchdowns is nice, but those stats feel hollow when the Bears were scoring at least 14 points in all four quarters.
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