Really Cool Power Rankings!

[DeusExManning]

http://www.walterfootball.com/anal2007_pre.php

New England Patriots (Previously: #1)
What New England is doing is almost unfair. Randy Moss for a fourth-round pick? Obtaining San Francisco's No. 1 in 2008? How is this legal? The last time the Patriots were this serious during an offseason, they went 14-2 and won their second Super Bowl. I'd be very scared if I were any team on New England's schedule.


Denver Broncos (Previously: #3)
The Broncos could be one of the most improved teams in 2007. Not only did they sign numerous quality players -- Travis Henry, Daniel Graham and Dre Bly -- they'll have Jay Cutler back with half a year of experience under his belt. The moves they made in the draft to add talent to the offensive and defensive lines moves them up to No. 2.


San Diego Chargers (Previously: #2)
San Diego was the best team in the NFL last year, and it's a shame Marty Schottenheimer took the blame for his inexplicable loss to New England. Now, the Chargers have just three holes on their roster: Two at inside linebacker, where Randall Godfrey, Donnie Edwards and Steve Foley are now gone. The third is on the sidelines; I'm not confident in Norv Turner's ability to lead San Diego deep into the postseason. I know the Chargers drafted two rookie linebackers, but we have no idea how well they're going to play.


Indianapolis Colts (Previously: #6)
The Colts lost Cato June, Nick Harper, Mike Doss, Dominic Rhodes and Montae Reagor this spring. However, cornerback isn't an important part of Tony Dungy's defense; Reagor and Doss will be replaced by Quinn Pitcock and Brannon Condren, respectively; and Anthony Gonzalez and Roy Hall can only improve a receiving corps that was lacking depth. Will Indianapolis be a little lethargic in the wake of its Super Bowl victory?


New Orleans Saints (Previously: #4)
Joe Horn will prove to be a huge loss for the Saints, who drafted Robert Meachem to repalce him. That said, New Orleans made some key acquisitions like Brian Simmons, Kevin Kaesviharn, Olindo Mare and Eric Johnson. It's hard for me not to pencil in the Saints as NFC Champs, especially considering the poor draft Philadelphia had. I'm a bit surprised they didn't add talent to their defense.


Dallas Cowboys (Previously: #5)
Frankly, I'm disappointed with the Cowboys' offseason. They overpaid for Leonard Davis and signed only one quality player (Ken Hamlin). We'll have to see how Anthony Spencer pans out. On the bright side, they didn't lose anyone, plus Tony Romo will be back with a year of experience.


Chicago Bears (Previously: #7)
The Lance Briggs situation aside, the Bears haven't had anything go against them this offseason. I like the addition of Adam Archuleta; he played well for Lovie Smith in St. Louis. The draft was also solid. I still have reservations about Rex Grossman at quarterback, however.


Seattle Seahawks (Previously: #8)
No more Super Bowl Loser Curse or Madden Jinx for the Seahawks. They've done a good job bringing in quality players like Patrick Kerney and Deon Grant this offseason, while retaining Chris Gray and Pork Chop Womack. They still have some needs, but Seattle has had an excellent offseason thus far.


New York Jets (Previously: #11)
No one did more with less than Eric Mangini last year. With Thomas Jones in the backfield, Darrelle Revis in the secondary and David Harris in the middle, the Jets can only be better. It's too bad some guys named Bill Belichick and Tom Brady inhabit the same division.


Baltimore Ravens (Previously: #10)
Baltimore's offensive line and linebacking corps were decimated this offseason. Making matters worse, Steve McNair, who played horrendously against the Colts, is a year older. The Ravens had a solid draft, but I think they're a far cry from winning the Super Bowl.


Cincinnati Bengals (Previously: #9)
Besides drafting Leon Hall in the first round, what have the Bengals done to improve themselves? I can't think of a single thing.


Jacksonville Jaguars (Previously: #12)
Not a bad offseason and a great draft, but I'm disappointed that the Jaguars haven't signed more quality players. Plus, their quarterbacking situation remains unresolved.


Pittsburgh Steelers (Previously: #13)
Ben Roethlisberger will be better than he was in 2006, but the Steelers' lack of cap space has restricted them from satisfying any of their offseason needs. The only player they signed in free agency was interior lineman Sean Mahan. Pittsburgh also lost some leadership, as Joey Porter signed with Miami.


San Francisco 49ers (Previously: #15)
San Francisco has had one of the best offseasons and drafts in the NFL this spring. Without losing anyone, they acquired Nate Clements, and Michael Lewis, both of whom will transform the 49ers' secondary into one of the league's best. Patrick Willis and Joseph Staley were great prospects taken in April. Role players like Tully Banta-Cain and Aubrayo Franklin were also added. People forget San Francisco nearly won the NFC West in 2006.


Carolina Panthers (Previously: #20)
It looks like Carolina's window of opportunity has closed. With tons of needs, the only player the Panthers signed this offseason is David Carr. A great draft may have saved them, but I still don't like their chances.


Philadelphia Eagles (Previously: #14)
I loved the Takeo Spikes trade, but I hated the Eagles draft. Kevin Kolb? He may not contribute until the year 2010. If Andy Reid wanted to take a quarterback in the third round, I would have been fine with that. But you can't waste your first pick on a signal caller when you already have three capable veterans on the roster. The Tony Hunt selection saved the Eagles from earning an F in my Draft Grades, but the damage has been done.

By the way, how much sense does my prior McNabb trade proposal make right now? I recently stated that I was in favor of trading McNabb to Minnesota for two first-round picks. I would have kept Jeff Garcia for a few years, drafted LaRon Landry, and obtained a young signal caller to groom. Well, the Eagles took Kevin Kolb, which doesn't make any sense if McNabb stays around for another five seasons. If Philadelphia was concerned about McNabb's ability to return from a knee injury, the team should have dealt him. Besides, Reid said he liked Kolb since December or January. The bottom line is, the Eagles should have either traded McNabb or passed on Kolb in the draft. They did neither.

For more on why I thought the Eagles should have traded McNabb to Minnesota for two first-round picks, check out the April 9 entry of my Draft Mailbag.


Atlanta Falcons (Previously: #22)
It's a shame. I'd really like this Falcon squad if they had another quarterback. You know, a signal caller who could actually hit an open receiver, and not flip off fans, quit on his team and support family members who force neglected dogs to kill each other.


Kansas City Chiefs (Previously: #18)
The Chiefs aren't a bad team, but they are clearly light years behind Denver and San Diego. For some reason, they refuse to address their offensive line even though two future Hall of Famers retired in consecutive years. Oh, and their coach is a raving maniac who has no idea what he's doing. Not good.


Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Previously: #19)
The Buccaneers have chosen to go for one last hurrah instead of rebuilding. They will be a lot better in 2007, though I would have opted to start over.


St. Louis Rams (Previously: #21)
St. Louis hasn't done enough to surpass Seattle or keep itself from getting eclipsed by San Francisco. Most of the players they've signed this offseason -- Drew Bennett, James Hall, Chris Draft, Lenny Walls and Mike Rumph -- are has-beens. I didn't include Randy McMichael, who has legal issues. Adam Carriker was a great addition via the draft, so I moved the Rams up a bit.


Green Bay Packers (Previously: #17)
I was ready to name the Packers as my sleeper next season in the wake of last year's hot finish. With $20 million in cap space, I thought they'd make some improvements to their roster. The only player Green Bay signed was Frank Walker. A horrible draft doesn't help matters either.


Tennessee Titans (Previously: #16)
I was dead wrong about Vince Young. It's amazing that the Titans nearly qualified for the playoffs despite having a horrendous defense and coming off of such a slow start. I can't wait to see how Young will play with some talent at the receiver position. Oh wait... the Titans didn't acquire anyone who can help him. Sorry, I forgot.


Arizona Cardinals (Previously: #23)
I like Arizona's offseason. Terrelle Smith, Mike Gandy, Al Johnson and Rod Hood are all quality additions. Levi Brown and Alan Branch were also decent draft picks. If the Cardinals weren't the Cardinals, I'd predict a winning record for them.


Buffalo Bills (Previously: #24)
I understand letting London Fletcher go because he's old. I understand trading Takeo Spikes because of his injury history. I understand not re-signing Nate Clements because the 49ers overpaid for him. I understand getting rid of Willis McGahee because of his character issues. But the fact remains that all of these moves have made the Bills worse. They had a decent draft, but that was simply to cover up all of the holes created this offseason.


New York Giants (Previously: #25)
Tiki Barber is gone. So is Luke Petitgout. So is LaVar Arrington. So are the Giants' playoff hopes for 2007. So are Eli Manning's chances of surviving without a quality left tackle.


Detroit Lions (Previously: #28)
I can't believe I'm saying this, but it looks like Matt Millen has had a decent offseason. I love the acquisitions of George Foster and Dewayne White. And how dangerous will Mike Martz's offense be with Calvin Johnson and Shaun McDonald joining Roy Williams and Mike Furrey? That said, the Lions will probably win only five games this year because, well, they're the Lions.


Minnesota Vikings (Previously: #26)
Adrian Peterson makes the running game stronger, but the Vikings have no aerial attack. Tarvaris Jackson throwing to busts Troy Williamson and Billy McMullen, and rookies Aundrae Allison and Sidney Rice? Doesn't sound too promising.


Oakland Raiders (Previously: #27)
Let me quote what I wrote last year: "Aaron Brooks at quarterback + Randy Moss on the roster + Warren Sapp as a defensive leader = Another 4-12 season." This year's equation: "A rookie quarterback + Ronald Curry and Mike Williams as starting receivers + a horrendous offensive line that has stayed intact = A maximum of zero points scored every week. And another 4-12 season."


Cleveland Browns (Previously: #31)
A backfield comprised of Charlie Frye and Jamal Lewis didn't sound too promising, so it's a good thing the Browns drafted Brady Quinn and Joe Thomas. We'll probably have to wait until 2008 for the Browns to improve, given that both of their "saviors" are rookies. It's too bad they don't have a first-round pick next April...


Washington Redskins (Previously: #29)
Way to address your horrendous defensive line this offseason, Dan Snyder. Washington's success this season hinges on how well Jason Campbell will play. He showed some promise toward the latter stages of 2006, but I'm not completely sold on him just yet.


Miami Dolphins (Previously: #30)
The Dolphins, who don't exactly have the best cap situation in the world, gave $20 million guaranteed to Joey Porter, a 30-year-old linebacker. They also lost Wes Welker, Randy McMichael, Damion McIntosh, Kevin Carter and Olindo Mare. Their quarterback is still Daunte Culpepper. They spent their first-round pick on an injured kick-returner. Oh, and they'll probably have to settle for the fossilized and vastly overrated Trent Green.


Houston Texans (Previously: #32)
Houston had a solid draft in my opinion, but the fact remains that Charley Casserly's moves have set the Texans back a decade. It doesn't even matter what they do until 2017. But seriously, Ahman Green? Jordan Black? Jeff Zgonina? Shawn Barber? Danny Clark? Jamar Fletcher? Trading a handful of picks for Matt Schaub? I guess Casserly is still running this organization.

[DeusExManning]

I totally agree with this power ranking, and Shanny has BC's number, we definitely can make the super bowl this year.

[BroncoInferno]

More Pats shlong sucking based on spurious reasoning. They made one no risk, quality signing this offseason in Thomas. Stallworth is injury prone and had all of 36 grabs last season, Washington has never done one single freakin thing, Welker is a glorified punt returner...what have they done to make their offseason so epic?

Meanwhile, we signed the premier blocking TE in the league (yes, Chef fans, he is clearly better than Dunn), a RB perfect for our down hill scheme, a ball hawking CB to compliment Bailey, etc.

[freak6]

Shanny needs to prove he can win a playoff game w/out Elway before I rank us in the top 4. But I can see us in the next 4 after that.

[atomicbloke]

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

San Diego still scares me. That 1st round playoff loss to New England at home sure reminds me of our loss at home to Jacksonville in '96 ... and then we changed our uniforms too, and then we ....

But we had Shanny and they have Norv Turner.

[BroncoBuff]

Don't agree. We should be 4th, behind San Diego and Indy. Maybe behind the Ravens too.


The Chargers definitely worry me - as they should any sane Bronco fan. Their 1st round playoff loss to New England at home reminds me of our loss at home to Jacksonville in '96. Then we changed our uniforms too ... and then we .... well, you know.

[BroncoBuff]

Originally Posted by atomicbloke

But we had Shanny and they have Norv Turner.

Excellent point ... but I wonder if maybe Norv has got a bad rap. THe Oakland experience was similar to Shanny's Oakland experience, and I don't quite remember the Redskins time. He was before Schottenheiner, right? He seemed a bit too low key to me ... but, like Shanahan was, he's a successful O-Coordinator.

That Chargers team is so loaded, it's hard to find a flaw. They're one WR-KR short of a full boat.

[BroncoInferno]

Originally Posted by freak6

Shanny needs to prove he can win a playoff game w/out Elway before I rank us in the top 4.

I can't recall John playing in 2005 when we beat the Pats in a divisional playoff game.

[elsid13]

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

Excellent point ... but I wonder if maybe Norv has got a bad rap. THe Oakland experience was similar to Shanny's Oakland experience, and I don't quite remember the Redskins time. He was before Schottenheiner, right? He seemed a bit too low key to me ... but, like Shanahan was, he's a successful O-Coordinator.

That Chargers team is so loaded, it's hard to find a flaw. They're one WR-KR short of a full boat.

Norv is pretty good OC, but as HC he sucks. The only reason he stayed so long as the Skins coach was that Cook's kid liked him and felt he need to be loyal to the coach is late daddy hired.

[Drek]

Originally Posted by BroncoInferno

More Pats shlong sucking based on spurious reasoning. They made one no risk, quality signing this offseason in Thomas. Stallworth is injury prone and had all of 36 grabs last season, Washington has never done one single freakin thing, Welker is a glorified punt returner...what have they done to make their offseason so epic?

Meanwhile, we signed the premier blocking TE in the league (yes, Chef fans, he is clearly better than Dunn), a RB perfect for our down hill scheme, a ball hawking CB to compliment Bailey, etc.

Are you really trying to argue that we have a team comparable to the Pats right now?

Its a hell of a lot easier to put NE at #1 than Denver in the top 5 if you ask me. They went to the AFCC last year and were a few minutes away from another victory (and surefire SB win since Grossman was choking that game away against a high school club). In the off-season they added one of the top 3-4 OLBs, kept all their key players except Graham, and added three WRs who were better than anyone they had last year. Welker might be the worst one of the bunch but he'll also offer exceptional KR/PR work, better than what Troy Brown and co. has been doing the last few years.

They were great last year and took it up another notch this off-season. The step up they took isn't as big as ours but they were well ahead of us last season.

[Bob's your Information Minister]

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

Don't agree. We should be 4th, behind San Diego and Indy.

[Bob's your Information Minister]

Jesus Christ. Who is this kid? What a maroon.

[-Slap-]

The scariest thing NE did was transform the 28th pick in a weak as hell draft into San Francisco's pick in a much deeper draft next year. Plus whatever else they gained in that deal which I'm too lazy to look up. Probably another second rounder they'll eventually flip for a future first rounder.

[CHANGSTER]

Originally Posted by DeusExShanahan

Kansas City Chiefs (Previously: #18)
The Chiefs aren't a bad team, but they are clearly light years behind Denver and San Diego. For some reason, they refuse to address their offensive line even though two future Hall of Famers retired in consecutive years. Oh, and their coach is a raving maniac who has no idea what he's doing. Not good.

Its awesome for this alone.

[DenverDuo]

Detroit Lions (Previously: #28)
I can't believe I'm saying this, but it looks like Matt Millen has had a decent offseason. I love the acquisitions of George Foster and Dewayne White. And how dangerous will Mike Martz's offense be with Calvin Johnson and Shaun McDonald joining Roy Williams and Mike Furrey? That said, the Lions will probably win only five games this year because, well, they're the Lions.

This guy has no idea what he's talking about.

[CHANGSTER]

Originally Posted by DenverDuo

This guy has no idea what he's talking about.

Yeah, its like no one in the world knows foster was a forced play backup last year.

[footstepsfrom#27]

There must be a good reason why I should care what Walter Cherepinsky thinks...what is it?

[Bronco Billy]

Originally Posted by footstepsfrom#27

There must be a good reason why I should care what Walter Cherepinsky thinks...what is it?

Does anyone even now who this guy is?

[400HZ]

Funny but full of inaccuracies. Putting a team who didn't make the playoffs ahead of the SB Champs is just a little premature imo.

[BroncoInferno]

Originally Posted by Drek

Are you really trying to argue that we have a team comparable to the Pats right now?

I was talking about the quality of their offseason, not about where they are ranked. As I said, Only one of their signings (Thomas) was a true impact player. Stallworth and Washington are injury prone career underachievers, Welker is a solid utility man and that's about it, Moss hasn't play well in several seasons...I don't see what was so great about it. Having them ranked above us is fair enough, though. I think by the end of the season we will be the better team, but we will have to prove it, of course.

[loborugger]

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

Excellent point ... but I wonder if maybe Norv has got a bad rap. THe Oakland experience was similar to Shanny's Oakland experience, and I don't quite remember the Redskins time. He was before Schottenheiner, right? He seemed a bit too low key to me ... but, like Shanahan was, he's a successful O-Coordinator.

That Chargers team is so loaded, it's hard to find a flaw. They're one WR-KR short of a full boat.

The point you are missing is this. Norv was brought into to be a care taker in Oak and DC. He wasnt brought in to be a strong leader and brilliant head coach.

And now he has the same task in SD. Except now instead of being the horse-holder for the over active owner, he is going to be the horse-holder for the over active GM. And while I hold AJ Smith in higher regards as a GM than I hold Snider and Davis as owners, I bet he will make a lousy proxy head coach.

Interestingly, two of the three teams where Norv has been a HC have also had Marty as a HC, DC and SD. And in both cases, Marty had success, albeit late in short tenure as the Skins HC. I sincerely doubt we will see Norv fired in SD for standing up to a over active GM, just as he wasnt fired in DC for standing up to Snider.

[loborugger]

Originally Posted by Bob's your Information Minister

Jesus Christ. Who is this kid? What a maroon.

You can spot your own pretty quickly cant you Bob.

[loborugger]

Originally Posted by 400HZ

Funny but full of inaccuracies. Putting a team who didn't make the playoffs ahead of the SB Champs is just a little premature imo.

I agree. But its May, and since we cant actually watch the games play out on the field, we have to read about what "experts" speculate should happen. Personally, we Bronco fans can get all fired up about our team - which has a lot of high point IMHO - however, we still have to deal with the fact that we essentially have a rookie QB out there.

[Northman]

We are too high, but ill take it. We have far too many unproven commodities right now to be ranked that high.

[PatsWin2002]

I love what the Pats have done - and we didn't mortgage the future to do it like so many other teams do.

If nothing else, Belichick/Pioli stockpile and move draft picks like magicians.