By Matthew Serocki, Lead NFL columnist | Sept 17, 2026
Week 1 of the 2026 NFL Season is in the books. Some teams looked as advertised
while others surprised in other ways. Here are the power rankings after one week of
games.
Seattle Seahawks (1-0)
Will stay on top until someone knocks them off their perch.
Buffalo Bills (1-0)
Won in a spot that’s been unforgiving for Josh Allen.
San Francisco 49ers (1-0)
Won against the Super Bowl favorites on another continent.
Baltimore Ravens (1-0)
A new head coach? No problem. Just run Derrick Henry 30 times a game.
Kansas City Chiefs (1-0)
Patrick Mahomes looked like he did last year, but still won by 21 points.
Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)
Held on against Washington thanks to a top-level defense.
Minnesota Vikings (1-0)
Lost Kyler Murray but still managed to beat Green Bay by double digits.
Chicago Bears (1-0)
Scoring 59 points was impressive, but neither defense showed up.
New England Patriots (0-1)
Drake Maye and company almost beat the Super Bowl Champions in Seattle.
Houston Texans (0-1)
Almost beat a perennial MVP, but CJ Stroud couldn’t match Josh Allen.
Los Angeles Rams (0-1)
They laid an egg across the world, but still one of the best rosters in the NFL.
Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0)
A dominant win over the lowly Cleveland Browns isn’t top-10 material.
Cincinnati Bengals (1-0)
The defense didn’t give up 500 yards and 40 points, so that’s good.
Detroit Lions (1-0)
Almost blew it against the Saints, but held on like winning teams should.
New York Giants (1-0)
Everything clicked in a dominant win over Dallas.
Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0)
Beat a third-string quarterback.
New Orleans Saints (0-1)
Almost came back after 400 yards passing from Tyler Shough.
Arizona Cardinals (1-0)
Picked up one of the biggest upsets of the weekend.
Green Bay Packers (0-1)
Looked good early on, but it fell apart in the second half.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-1)
Baker Mayfield fumbled three times, helping a traditionally bad Bengals’ D.
21. Washington Commanders (0-1)
Almost won late in the game, but too little too late.
22. Carolina Panthers (0-1)
The offense surprisingly kept up, but the defense was atrocious.
23. Las Vegas Raiders (1-0)
Beat the team that could be picking first next April.
24. Dallas Cowboys (0-1)
So much for the greatest offense in 2026.
25. New York Jets (1-0)
Beat a quarterback who looks lost.
26. Denver Broncos (0-1)
A far cry from the team that made it to the AFC Championship Game.
27. Indianapolis Colts (0-1)
Shane Steichen’s hot seat gets hotter.
28. Los Angeles Chargers (0-1)
That Mike McDaniel effect didn’t do anything.
29. Atlanta Falcons (0-1)
Was bad from start to finish.
30. Tennessee Titans (0-1)
Looked lost all day against the Jets.
31. Miami Dolphins (0-1)
No weapons? No problem! It will be a heavy load all year for Malik Willis.
32. Cleveland Browns (0-1)
It doesn’t really matter who’s under center. A bad team with some good players on defense.
