NFL power rankings, post free agency: Chiefs, Ravens loom

Atlanta may have an offense that boasts 11 former first-round picks, but it’ll take more than that to wash the taste of last year out of everyone’s mouth. Dan Quinn’s stay of execution stunned almost everyone, but the real shock will be if the Falcons can reverse course from what we saw out of them last year without any real substantial changes on the coaching staff.

The Raiders will look to kick off their first season in Las Vegas with a bang. The team has remade itself in free agency adding Cory Littleton, Marcus Mariota, Jason Witten, Nelson Agholor, Nick Kwiatkoski, Maliek Collins, Jeff Heath, Carl Nassib, Eli Apple, Erik Kush, Nick O’Leary, and Daniel Ross.

Will the new faces help the Raiders improve on their 7-9 record a season ago? It is too early to say now but all eyes should be on Marcus Mariota, who could unseat Derek Carr if he starts slowly.

The Browns have to prove it. Frankly, their roster deserves better billing than No. 21 in the power rankings, but they haven’t done anything on the field in decades. After hearing the hype last offseason, Cleveland staggered all year like a punch-drunk fighter.

First-time head coach Kevin Stefanski hopes he can finally get the Browns on track. The offense has more than enough talent, highlighted by Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, Baker Mayfield, Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt, Austin Hooper and David Njoku.

The Patriots haven’t been ranked this low since the Clinton Administration. Yet here we are, as owner Robert Kraft and head coach Bill Belichick live with the reality of not having Tom Brady penciled in at quarterback.

To replace him, it’s presently looking like Jarrett Stidham or Brian Hoyer, which is no way to live. The Patriots also lost Kyle Van Noy, Danny Shelton and Jamie Collins from its front seven, and didn’t upgrade their weapons. The team simply isn’t a good one right now.