GWeek 17 started in the most insane way possible as the Seattle Seahawks defeated their divisional foe in the Los Angeles Rams even after wide receiver Puka Nacua had arguably his best game as one of the best receivers in the game. Sam Darnold, JSN, and the Seattle offense had an answer for the Rams almost each time and defeated them. Nonetheless madness continued to ensue in week 17 as we had the privilege of having Saturday Night football as Caleb Williams and DA BEARS defeated the Green Bay Packers to take control of the NFC North.
In Week 18 (the last week of the regular season) we had a little bit more meaningful games and we saw divisions close up with their division winners. Carolina had fallen short to Tampa Bay in Tampa but due to an Atlanta victory at home, Panthers won the division. We also saw Seattle take full control of the NFC West by defeating the 49ers in their own place. Finally, one of the biggest things to happen in week 18 and all season, Myles Garrett, star edge rusher for the Cleveland Browns, breaks the regular season sack record previously held by former Giants star Michael Strahan. Big 23 for Myles!
I figured for the last entry of my power rankings for the 2025-2026 NFL season, I would combine both weeks 17 and 18 as one volume and this is my first article of 2026. I hope everyone had a very happy holiday and a very happy new year. Without further ado, let’s take a look at every NFL team and let’s take a look at their season’s as a whole.
1. Patriots: The New England Patriots finished their season with a 14-3 record which was way more than enough to take control of the AFC East. The Pats finished their season in Foxborough dismantling the Dolphins and despite the game not having much meaning (implications wise) it was still a statement win with the Patriots also finishing with a divisional record of 5-1. New England’s new head coach as I have said time and time again (Mike Vrabe) has given this team new life. Almost completely flipping their record compared to last year at 3-14. All of this talk and we have not even talked about their first round draft pick Will Campbell! That’s how good this patriots team is and the run game of TreVeyon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson has been so strong for this offense. New England opens the playoffs as the #2 seed and I believe they can represent the AFC in the superbowl. There are other hot teams like the Jaguars sure, but I think in these playoffs coaching experience will be massive and that is one of the biggest reasons I could see the Patriots going very far this year. Drake Maye’s first playoff run is upcoming!
2. Seahawks: The Seattle Seahawks stay at my number two position and for me this is another team who has overachieved this year and they deserve it. They contain the best receiver in the game right now in Jaxon Smith Njigba, and like I have said in previous weeks their run game has improved and all season has been a lot healthier than seasons prior. Part of that is their offensive line improving and first round draft pick Grey Zabel has been an outstanding addition to that offensive line. When it comes to the quarterback play Sam Darnold has proven to us that he can play against anyone in this league and he showed us that when he defeated Matthew Stafford and the Rams last week. This defense also has been more than serviceable with Nick Emmanwori doing his thing. Seattle comes into the playoffs as the #1 seed and in my opinion, the only thing stopping Seattle from a Superbowl birth is that Sam Darnold has not won his first playoff game yet. I think this year, Sam Darnold is more than capable of doing so.
3. Rams: Los Angeles all season has dodged the precious bullet of their older aged quarterback Matthew Stafford not staying healthy and he has proven enough for me to be this year’s league MVP. With 46 touchdowns thrown on the year and the passing yards crown for the regular season, it is pretty cut clear for me. Devante Adams returns healthy in his first game back from a hamstring injury, and the Rams take on the Carolina Panthers for the second time this season for their first game of the playoffs. The last time we saw these two teams matchup, we saw Carolina upset the Rams and made Matthew Stafford turn the ball several times. This time around I find it very hard to believe that they would lose to Carolina a second time. It will be loud at the bank but give me the Rams to win. Not only that I think the Rams with Sean Mcvay and how explosive this offense has been all season, I hate to admit it but the Los Angeles Rams are my Superbowl winner for this year. Everyone would hate to see this team and the Patriots matchup again, but for me New England and Los Angeles seems inevitable.
4. Jaguars: Jacksonville is the most surprising team to me from the 2025-2026 NFL season and they have earned their stripes. They finished their season with the most wins by a AFC South winner EVER with a record of 13-4 and that alone makes a strong case for your 2026 Coach of the year award to go to Liam Coen. All of what Trevor Lawrence and this offense has accomplished without their first round draft pick in Travis Hunter (Out due to injury all season) is truly impressive. Their run defense has been unstoppable led by Arik Armstead and Travon Walker, and will be an interesting matchup for Josh Allen and the Bills come wild card weekend. The Jaguars have home field advantage in the playoffs and finish with their best record in over a decade. What a time to be alive for Duval!
5. Texans: Houston could arguably have a better defense than Jacksonville but with closing out the season BARELY beating the Colts, I have them one spot under their divisional foe in the Jaguars. Regardless, C.J Stroud has silenced most critics this year as he has given consistent quarterback play to Houston all season and their defense has been lights out. To me this is the scariest defense in all of football with the Secondary depth they have and the line of scrimmage always crumbling for offenses against star edge rushers like Will Anderson Jr. The Texans have a hard task as they try to play spoiler against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Aaron Rodgers but with their defense playing how it is, I can see Houson making it all the way to the AFC championship. Now wouldn’t that be something after starting the year 0-3?
6. Bears: Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears are yet another team who greatly improved this offseason and that is due to the camaraderie and culture that Ben Johnson set from the get-go and has created. The defense is questionable at times but he has disciplined this squad and that has not been done in years. It’s the best record for Chicago in a while but they ended the season on a sour note with losing at home to their division rival in the Detroit Lions this past week. Jared Goff also had something to prove in that matchup after a putrid game versus the Vikings in week 17. Chicago earns home field advantage after winning the NFC north and they open the playoffs to play the Green Bay Packers. It’s hard not to pick the Bears to go all the way to the NFC championship to me because of how hot they have been as of recent. Come playoff time however, as we all know things will be very different and it will be the ultimate test for the first year head coach Ben Johnson and superstar Quarterback Caleb Williams.
7. Bills: The Bills are 0-8 in away playoff games in their last 8 away outings and that is an alarming stat to look at. Josh Allen and this Bills offense has mostly run through James Cook and that is what was expected and he has been a good bell cow back with Ty Johnson slowly making his way into the backup/RB2 role in the backfield. The main question with this Bills team is how Josh Allen will perform with Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, and Joe Burrow all watching the playoffs from home. This Bills team let the Patriots run with the division and while they did win the last matchup between the two, I think MIke Vrabel is already proving himself as a better coach than Sean Mcdermott and I think if Buffalo loses outright in the first round of the playoffs to Jaxsonville, he could potentially be fired. At that point what else would the Bills be looking to change or try? This is Josh Allen’s last shot to win the big one. Can he get over the hump?
8. Broncos: Denver earns their first round bye on the AFC side of things and they earn a spot to play at their home mile high for their first playoff game. Bo Nix all season has been up and down but what has not been up and down is that Denver defense. They are one of if not the fastest defense in the league and Patrick Surtain II is one of the best corners this game has to offer. Pair that with a solid offense led by rookie running back RJ Harvey who had nothing short of a first breakout year and you got yourself a dominant team. In my opinion however, they still have not proved too much and will most likely not make it to the superbowl. If they do it will be all because of that defense and if head coach Sean Payton has something up his sleeve for the NFL playoffs.
9. Steelers: Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers did the miraculous and defeated the Baltimore Ravens at home. The Steelers broke the Ravens so much that a couple days later head coach for the Ravens John Harbaugh was fired. Nonetheless this was a super impressive feat for Aaron Rodgers considering his top weapon on offense D.K Metcalf was out due to being suspended for his antics versus the Lions in Detroit. Aaron had a hard time finding his receivers without his top option the absence of D.K was felt. That did not stop Aaron however as he led a game winning drive with just about 2 minutes left down the field with no timeouts. The Ravens lost on a missed field goal but it was just enough to send the Pittsburgh Steelers into the playoffs. This is the first time we are seeing superstar quarterback Aaron Rodgers in the playoffs in almost 5 years and we could be in for a treat as football fans. Does he ride off into the sunset? Or does Houston take the cake versus the Steel wall during Wild Card weekend? Only time will tell and you cannot count out Aaron Rodgers in the playoffs but I have Houston devouring PIttsburgh’s offensive line. He still, no matter what, proved himself wrong and got the Steelers into the playoffs. Bravo Aaron!
10. Eagles: The Eagles could very well be my dark horse pick to shock people and potentially make it to yet another NFC Championship and that is due to the fact of who they have at the helm. Previous Superbowl MVP Jalen Hurts looks to defend his title but it won’t be an easy task. The Eagles open up their playoff run at home against the 49ers and I like their chances against a California team traveling all the way out east. Especially, if it is a snowy game I like Saquon Barkley a lot to have another blowout snow game for the ages like how we saw last year against the Rams. Though, I think the falloff for the Eagles will be their coaching and ultimately how the playcalling goes. As for the players I think there is without a doubt a possibility that this group can make a good run again due to the simple fact that most of them are still there playing for Philadelphia. Love Hurts and it could potentially shock the league once again! Give me the Eagles over San Francisco.
11. Chargers: It would be a broken record if I talked about the injuries for the offensive line and how unlucky the Chargers have been with that and especially after losing to the Houston Texans in week 17 it showed. Despite that loss the bolts finished the season respectably taking the Broncos to the 4th quarter in the last game of the season. All of that and the only reason they really lost that Houston game was a couple missed kicks from kicker Cameron Dicker. I love what I have been seeing from the quarterback coach duo with head coach Jim Harbaugh and quarterback Justin Herbert and the offense has seen new life with rookie Omarion Hampton and breakout wide receiver Quentien Johnston. I don’t think the injury on Justin Herbert’s non throwing hand will slow down Herbert anytime soon because we have seen him play with this injury for weeks now, I just think that there are too many bad matchups for this offensive line and for that reason I have them losing pretty easily to the Patriots when they travel to Foxborough this weekend.
12. Packers: Another team that has been killed with injuries this season is the Green Bay Packers. Green Bay suffered a defeat in both weeks 17&18 to close out the season with two divisional losses to the Bears and the Vikings. The way Green Bay closed out their season does not give me high hopes for them in the playoffs considering they have to travel to Solder field AGAIN for wild card weekend. If there is one person however, who could give them a resurgence it would be Quarterback Jordan Love coming back from concussion protocol. Give this team their superhero back and I still like this Packers team even without Micah Parsons. Christian Watson has had a very good year and has established himself as Love’s favorite deep target and we could potentially be seeing that again versus the bears. If it does not go right yet again in Chicago there is not much to worry because your set stone pieces are more healthy and are back again next year. Go Pack go baby.
13. 49ers: San Francisco put on a show when they hosted the Bears in week 17 but in week 18 it was sort of the opposite against Seattle.Versus Seattle to close out the year it was a low scoring game and they did not put up much of a fight versus Seattle. The Seahawks looked like the clear winner almost all the way through after people gave them the benefit of the doubt to the 9ers for beating Seattle in their home turf all the way previously in week one of the season. Brock Purdy still has had a pretty solid year considering he was out for most of the year and after being injured he retakes his QB1 role even after Mac Jones won them a couple games. I still think however, that the injuries will eventually catch up to them on defense and the 49ers already have a tough matchup versus Philly in round one. Still a lot of progress was made this season for San Francisco as I had them as one of the worst teams coming into the year especially in a competitive NFC West division.
14. Ravens: Just days after losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers as I had just mentioned, it is the end of the road for head coach John Harbaugh after coaching the squad for well over a decade. It seemed like magic at first between him and quarterback Lamar Jackson but that final away game will always haunt them. The Ravens jumped out to an early lead with Lamar Jackson dropping an absolute bomb to wide receiver Zay Flowers who had seemed to have trouble finding the endzone almost all season. He had two touchdowns caught on the day but it was not enough as opponent Aaron Rodgers led a game winning drive late in the 4th quarter. It is going to be super interesting to see what way this Ravens team goes as their franchise has only had 3 head coaches EVER. For whatever coach they choose next however, it will be very big shoes to fill. This move to me came down to timing and the urgency of getting superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson a Superbowl ring before time potentially runs out.
15. Panthers: “The Bank” as Panthers fans love to call it will be erupting come Saturday afternoon. It is the first playoff game for Carolina in quite some time and it’s a home game nonetheless. These fans have deserved this for so long and I am happy to say that I was one of the ones who saw Bryce Young’s emergence coming, especially after the addition of potential offensive rookie of the year Tetairoa McMillan. For the Panthers though, they are still a young team and still have work to do. Carolina is unlucky in the sense that they have the Los Angeles Rams coming to town but since Carolina beat them the first time around things can become interesting. Home field advantage is everything in the playoffs as I had just mentioned, but I doubt Matthew Stafford and the Rams do not lose twice in a row to this Panthers squad.
16. Lions: It’s back to the drawing board for Dan Campbell and the Detroit Lions. They miss the playoffs after the Packers claim their spot instead. Jared Goff and the Lions suffered some pretty close defeats especially towards the end of the season and this coaching staff we knew was going to be different from the get go from losing both coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn in head coaching free agency. It was going to be hard to repeat the same season they had last year as they had won well over 11 games, but we did not predict the fall off to be this hard as they finished the season 9-8. I believe however the highlight for them could be the re-emergence of star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson. He was out due to injury almost all of last year and this year he has taken a huge bounce back which is why he could be a very good candidate for comeback player of the year. Hope the division is even better next season and the fight for that NFC north division title again is not as hard for the Lions.
17. Bucs: Tampa Bay shot themselves in the foot numerous times this year in numerous games with the penalties and self inflicted wounds. If you told me coming into this year that the Bucs would start off the year EVEN hotter but then UNDER achieve even more than last season, I would call you crazy. This year is awfully similar for the Buccaneers last season as I had them as a top 10 team a couple weeks into the season. It was a combination of injuries for this offense and honestly poor coaching at times. Quarterback Baker Mayfield fought til the very end still and put his team in a position to still make the playoffs despite all of their struggles but, the Atlanta Falcons successfully play spoiler for them and take care of business at home versus the New Orleans Saints. It’s most likely legendary wide receiver Mike Evans last season as well so we have to remember what consistent and dominant of a player he was. Enjoy the offseason Tampa!
18. Vikings: The Minnesota Vikings have gained a lot of my respect this year as we have now seen a full season of what quarterback J.J McCarthy looks like. It was his first full year playing due to being out from injury years prior, and he gave this Vikings offense a new look. Justin Jefferson, the best receiver the game has to offer, barely hit over 1,000 yards for me this year but it was a more quiet year for me. This vikings defense was the main highlight for me as they played teams close time and time again. The defense definitely had the offense’s back this season but in my eyes I could see that change very quickly if the offense does not start to click. J.J got his first season out of the way and Minnesota will be looking for good quarterback play. Will he get the job done next year and progress or will we see Minnesota continue their Quarterback search? It would still be so interesting to me if Kirk Cousins was the quarterback of this team.
19. Falcons: Speaking of Kirk Cousins it was a pretty good year for him in Atlanta. After people thought he would get barely any playing time due to the Falcons drafting Michael Penix Jr. in the first round of the draft in 2024. Penix started a couple games but the injury bug caught up to him and Kirk Cousins was given the starting nod. The heart and soul of this team being sensational running back Bijan Robsinon had an absolute monster year finishing in the top 5 in rushing yards in the NFL. Tight end Kyle Pitts also had a huge bounce back year and we will certainly all remember the game he had a hat trick of touchdowns with 3 scores. Next year for Atlanta they will be looking for a new head coach after firing Raheem Morris. The thought next year for the Falcons is taking control of the division and making the playoffs with their new and improved defense having both rookies Malachi Starks and James Pearce Jr returning. It’s just so ironic to me to know too that if the Falcons would just have beaten the New York Jets in the meadowlands we would be talking about Atlanta as a playoff team.
20. Colts: It was a red hot start for the Indianapolis Colts but their starting quarterback Daniel Jones suffered a torn ACL towards the mid half of the season. Jonathan Taylor at one point could make his case for MVP but with the Colts RAPIDLY falling out of playoff contention that would soon change. Nonetheless this Colts offense still had a huge year especially with the new addition of rookie tight end Tyler Warren and at one point this Colts team was a very scary team to play. After the injury of Daniel Jones we of course saw the comeback of retired quarterback Phillip Rivers and boy was that a treat to see. He went 0-3 as their starter and it was a “failed” experiment and the Colts missed the playoffs but he will always be remembered for his courage to come back to the game at such an age.
21. Cowboys: Dallas certainly had a “Dallas” season especially after trading their cornerstone on defense Micah Parsons to start the year. Nonetheless though I have to start with quarterback Dak Prescott. Who I believe has done everything this year to silence the critics and make his presence in the league known yet again. He had a monster year throwing for over 4,500 yards and 30 touchdowns both top 5 in their respectable categories. Though for the rest of this team specifically the defense they were awful. Jerry Jones did however trade for former Jets star edge rusher Quinnen Williams who did in fact make the defensive line a lot better. BUT with the defensive mind of Matt Eberfluis the defense was still awful, letting up almost a league worst in points allowed. The biggest addition in being wide receiver George Pickens however, may go down as the best offseason addition as he finished top 5 in the league in receiving yards. I don’t think anyone saw that coming and he was certainly a force to be reckoned with this season. For the Cowboys it may be rinse and repeat but boy at least is it entertaining!
22. Chiefs: This was the worst possible outcome for the Kansas City Chiefs. But hey all good things come to an end right? Their franchise quarterback in Patrick Mahomes is being sent to rehab after a torn ACL and MCL. They were still in the hunt in the middle of the season but it is the first time the Kansas City Chiefs missed the playoffs in over 10 years. It will certainly be a different year for the Chiefs next season without Patrick Mahomes to start the season but this sort of slump was inevitable for the Chiefs dynasty. It may have been the last season for Hall of Famer Travis Kelce as well who still rides into the sunset having one of the best careers ever for a player at his position. There will be a lot of new faces in Kansas City next year and it will be clear that they will be climbing up back to the top. In the meantime the Broncos and the Los Angeles Charges get a crack at the NFL playoffs along with Josh Allen trying to win his first Superbowl ring with his Kryptonite Patrick Mahomes sitting at home.
23. Bengals: “Off to Cancun” as Jamar Chase expressed in the last Bengals game of the year. It’s the third year ina row with no playoffs and I was expecting this for Cincinnati after the way their offseason went and this year was another failed year for the orange and black. Joe Burrow suffered half the season with a turf toe injury and Joe Flacco was acquired from the Browns to take his place. Running back Chase Brown had a solid year and so did Jamar Chase but this was clearly another disappointing year. Head Coach Zac Taylor keeps his duties but things could get ugly fast in Cincinnati next year if it is just rinse and repeat.
24. Saints: The New Orleans Saints are another team who greatly gained my respect more this season. A big part of that reason is rookie quarterback Tyler Shough giving this offense some new “oomph” and the way this team played at home for the most part this season. New head coach Kellen Moore gives this team a respectable divisional record of 3-3 and going into next year the Saints aim to further improve with stars like Chris Olave and company returning. This was a successful first year for new Head Coach Kellen Moore after many did not give this Saints team any light of day in the beginning of the season. They might have a lot of work to do but I have liked what I have seen so far.
25. Dolphins: The Dolphins might be in full rebuild mode now after it was yet another unsuccessful year with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa at the helm. They started rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers in his place but the product was mostly the same and that were blowout losses. Due to that reason and various others I think that’s what led to parting ways with head coach Mike McDonald and next year for the Phins they will be looking for a new head coach and most likely a new quarterback to start for them. Runningback Devon Achane however, should be a cornerstone for this offense and he was an animal this year getting in the endzone time and time again.
26. Browns: The firing of head coach Kevin Stefanski is one that I agree with due to the greatly poor playcalling sometimes but it is still surprising after he won the coach of the award less than 5 years ago. Rookies like running back Quidshon Judkins and of course starting rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders should give this offense new light and if you draft an offensive line for Shedeur Sanders, I believe he can be the quarterback this team needs. Just got to believe and I think the Browns if they find the right head coach could see great improvement in the near future. Let’s see how the Cleveland Browns draft after they killed their draft last season! Keep having hope Browns fans! Perfect timing has arrived.
27. Giants: I was not wrong about the New York Giants and I stand by that. Coming into this year I said they would be lucky to win 3 games and what do you know they won 4! After the firing of head coach Brian Daboll it will be shocking to see this head coach vacancy not be filled in fast due to the pieces already had on this Giants team. It was a shaky start for quarterback Jaxson Dart due to injury but he has given this New York football team a new sense of mobility and charge. With rookie running back Cam Skattebo returning next season along with star receiver Malik Nabers it would be hard for me to see the regressing any further than what they put out this year for next season.
28. Commanders: Another team that I can’t see regressing any worse than this year is the Washington Commanders. Their story for 2025-2026 is a rather short and boring one. Superstar Quarterback Jayden Daniels suffered a season ending injury in Week 9 of the NFL season dislocating his elbow and ever since the Commanders could not recover and were not the same team without their star quarterback. Next year I would like to see this defense greatly improved and this team desperately needs a star “bell-cow” running back.
29. Cardinals: Arizona had yet another year of a failed Kyler Murray experiment and the quarterback was injured yet again. I would be a broken record if I discussed the problem with the Arizona Cardinals but now it seems they are listening and starting to finally try and change this ship around. First year head coach Jonathan Gannon was released and for the rest of the squad it should see major change soon. Considering the draft position of the Cardinals however and the fact that they have to trade quarterback Kyler Murray, I wonder if the Cardinals wish to select their next hopeful franchise QB via free agency or the draft.
30. Titans: I feel genuinely bad for previous number one overall selection Cam Ward. This season the Titans did a horrible job in protecting the line of scrimmage and he was one of the most if not the most sacked quarterback this season. Give this young Quarterback an offense to play behind and this team could improve. They already have a solid defense led by star edge rusher Jeffrey Simmons so build on the offensive side of the football and find a coach for this young QB.
31. Raiders: The Las Vegas Raiders are your first number one selection for the 2026 Draft and it is well deserved. Edge rusher Max Crosby was sat out in the final couple games of the season due to an injury and the Raiders really got beat on this season. Geno Smith threw an interception in nearly every single game this year and the Pete Caroll Head coaching experiment was not successful. Get a proper offensive line behind star rookie runningback AShton Jeanty paired with a serviceable or rookie quarterback if they go that route and this team could be a lot better come next year. With Tom Brady being part owner they are certainly lucky to get his assistance and help throughout this process.
32. Jets: Another year of missing the playoffs for the New York Jets. Is anyone surprised? After Aaron Glenn promised everyone that this was not your same New York Jets team they proved just that. The defense even managed to finish the year with a historic 0 interceptions. I thought in week one of the season this team had flipped the switch and began playing actual football but after that first week against the Pittsburgh Steelers nothing was ever the same on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. The biggest storyline for the Jets this year is trading Star cornerstone pieces on the defense cornerback Sauce “Ahmad” Gardner to the Colts and Defensive edge rusher Quinnen WIlliams to the Cowboys gaining even more draft capital. This franchise needs to figure it out quickly and after benching Justin Fields it made no difference as this coaching staff seems to have no idea what it’s doing and seems to never be able to coach a quarterback. General Manager Darren Mougey and head coach Aaron Glenn will be looking to improve this squad greatly through free agency and the draft, but as everyone knows. Just because you win in the offseason doesn’t mean you’ll win in the regular season. If the football gods are generous to the Jets they get their next franchise quarterback and that question they won’t have to ask anymore but the question is. Who will save this football team? Can Anyone?
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