NFL power rankings: Where all teams stand approaching Week 1 of 2024 season

24. Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings will not have QB JJ McCarthy at any point in the 2024 NFL Season.  The rookie does not get to play in a regular season game in year one, as a torn meniscus will keep him sidelined.  Honestly, the Vikings roster is quite solid and they could have made some noise this year if McCarthy proved to be a quick study.  It’s the Sam Darnold show now, and that might not be great.

Minnesota is likely going to load up next offseason and hand the reigns over to McCarthy, who is just 21 years old.  In a way, the Vikings did not lose a year of JJ McCarthy given how young he is, and how some other rookie QBs are 23 or even 24 years old.  Losing the QB is quite the blow though, as McCarthy does lost that valuable time on task he could have gotten in year one.

23. Arizona Cardinals

The Arizona Cardinals are one team that will be a lot better than we think at the moment.  I cannot rank them any higher than this though until they prove me right.  They won four games in 2023, and I have maintained that they will double their win total in 2024 and come away with eight victories.  Watching Arizona in 2023 made me think that they were the best four-win team in NFL history.

Furthermore, QB Kyler Murray is also another year removed from his 2022 torn ACL.  This should only help him return to his old form.  The Cardinals also took Marvin Harrison Jr in the 2024 NFL Draft, so Murray also has what could be an elite target as well.  Cards GM Monti Ossenfort added Jonah Williams to the offensive line as well.  All in all, this team has a sneaky-good formula in place that could see them shock the league in 2024.