NFL Week 2 Power Rankings: Bears drop after loss to Rams |
One week of the 2021 NFL season has come and gone, and it did not disappoint. This year may look a bit different, with 17 games in 18 weeks and seven teams in each league earning a playoff berth. Nonetheless, we won’t have a week without football until February 2022, and we couldn’t be more excited to cover another year of NFL football.
We at BearsHQ decided to give our power rankings ahead of the NFL’s second week: (We decided to explain the top 16 and the Bears) 1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers It’s hard not to rank Tampa Bay number one in our rankings. First and foremost, the Bucs are our reigning Super Bowl Champion — and they did not lose a single starter over the offseason. The Bucs have a roster construction to win another Super Bowl, and Tom Brady is never content. The Bucs opened up the season with a narrow win over Dallas. 2. Kansas City Chiefs If they’re not number one, they’re number two, and frankly, it would be hard to imagine the Chiefs falling out of the top 2 this season so long as Patrick Mahomes is healthy. This team easily boasts the best offense in the league — while also adding to an offensive line that was exposed in the Super Bowl last year. Keep an eye on a motivated Chiefs team this season. A week one come from behind win from the Chiefs starts their season 1-0. 3. Los Angeles Rams The LA Rams may be the most improved team of the offseason just because of their upgrade at QB. Instead of Jared Goff, the Rams will have Matthew Stafford leading their speedy offense — and of course, still have Jalen Ramsey and Aaron Donald on the defensive side of the ball. Stafford’s debut was won in dominating fashion, leading the Rams to a week one victory and earning them a top-3 spot. 4. Cleveland Browns Yes, you read that right. After years of being the NFL’s laughing stock, the Cleveland Browns have constructed a roster good enough to win a division and make a run in the playoffs. Even after a loss, it’s obvious this team has all the makings of a top-five team in the NFL. 5. Buffalo Bills It may have surprised some people last year, but the Buffalo Bills being one of the league’s best teams this season should come as no surprise. Buffalo is led by superstar QB Josh Allen and a brilliant coaching staff. The Steelers gave the Bills some trouble in week one, but they are still a top-five team, I believe. 6. Green Bay Packers For most of the offseason, the Packers were one of the most questionable teams — and it all depended on reigning NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers. Well, he’s back… but the Packers were thumped by the Saints in Week one, dropping the Packers out of the top 5. 7. San Francisco 49ers It is important to remember that this team represented the NFC in the Super Bowl just two seasons ago. Last season the 49ers were decimated with injuries — but with those players back, the 49ers are once again a force to be reckoned with in the NFC. While the NFC West is loaded, the 49ers should turn heads in 2021, as they put up 41 points in week one. 8. Baltimore Ravens The Ravens quietly have one of the league’s best rosters. Despite not winning the division in 2020 and being in one of the NFL’s hardest divisions, the Ravens boast a legit chance to win a Super Bowl behind a star quarterback in Lamar Jackson and a defense that consists of the best secondary in the sport. The Ravens lost a stunner in week one against the Vegas Raiders, and the schedule won't ease up for a while, but they are certainly a top 10 team. 9. Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are one of the most exciting rosters in 2021 as they have added JJ Watt, AJ Green and will get top pass rusher Chandler Jones back from injury to a roster that was one game away from making the playoffs in 2020. This is the year for the Cardinals to make the jump into a playoff team, which may be hard to do in the NFL’s best division — although they certainly looked it in week one, destroying the Titans. 10. Seattle Seahawks As the reigning champions of the NFC West, the Seahawks come into the season as a borderline top ten team. What separates the Hawks from some of these other teams when decided the 10 spot — Super Bowl Champion Russell Willson. The Seahawks can win a game whenever he is under center — just like they did in week one against the Colts. 11. Pittsburgh Steelers The Steelers boasted one of the league’s best defenses in 2020 en route to an AFC North division win. While Ben Roethlisberger is one year older, this is still a team to look out for in the AFC. The Steelers rode their unbelievable front seven to a head-turning week one win over the Bills. 12. Tennessee Titans The Titans are the reigning AFC South champion. They have made the playoffs in consecutive seasons — oh, and they’ve added Julio Jones to an offense that already had Ryan Tannehill, AJ Brown, and Derrick Henry, who just ran for over 2,000 yards. In 2021, no team is going to be looking forward to playing the Titans. The Titans' 2021 season got off to a tough start, though, getting blown out by the Cardinals. 13. Los Angeles Chargers LA might have had the best offseason in the AFC. Justin Herbert is coming off of an impressive campaign in which he won Rookie of the Year, and the Chargers have added to his offensive line - while also making some key acquisitions to the defense, the team's weakness in 2020. That plus some opt-outs and injuries back leave stew Chargers with one of the most talented and intriguing rosters in 2021. It wasn’t particularly pretty, but the Chargers gutted out an impressive week one win. 14. New Orleans Saints Drew Brees is gone, but the Saints offense did not miss a beat in their week one blowout of the Packers. This team is loaded with talent on both sides of the ball, and if Jameis Winston can continue to make plays, the Saints could turn heads in 2021. 15. New England Patriots It’s not Tom Brady’s team anymore; it’s Mac Jones. While the Patriots’ defense has always been solid, the offense has not looked good since Brady left. The Patriots addressed that issue in the off-season, throwing money at weapons all over the offense. Don’t miss the Patriots' new look in 2021, despite them dropping a close game in week one. 16. Dallas Cowboys Fellow NFC East team Dallas is flying under the radar this offseason, but with a healthy offensive line plus Dak Prescott back from injury leaves Dallas with one of the best offenses in the NFL (which includes Ezekiel Elliot, Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup.) The defense is still the clear weakness of this team, but the Cowboys could have enough to win the league’s weakest division. The Cowboys gave the Bucs a tough fight, so let’s see if the Cowboys can keep it up. 17. Miami Dolphins 18. Washington Football Team 19. Indianapolis Colts 20. Las Vegas Raiders 21. Minnesota Vikings 22. Denver Broncos 23. Chicago Bears The Bears are now ranked 23 after a bad week one showing on prime time. The defense was very bad in week one, but at the end of the day, this Bears team will depend on quarterback play, whether that be veteran Andy Dalton or the talented Justin Fields who scored his first touchdown on Sunday. 24. Philadelphia Eagles 25. Carolina Panthers 26. Cincinnati Bengals 27. New York Giants 28. Houston Texans 29. New York Jets 30. Detroit Lions 31. Atlanta Falcons 32. Jacksonville Jaguars
