NFL power rankings, teams 8-5:
8. San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are extremely well-coached and have a very talented roster that just made the NFC Championship Game despite not having a great quarterback. That is also true in 2022 and we don't know who the quarterback is going to be for the Niners. But in typical 49ers fashion, they will still somehow piece together a winning record.
7. Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers actually got much worse this season despite the team keeping Aaron Rodgers in town. The receiving corps is a disaster for Green Bay and it will be interesting to see just how much a 38-year-old quarterback can elevate that roster. Luckily for them, they play in the worst division in football, so they will make the playoffs.
6. Denver Broncos
It is painful to say as a Chargers fan, but the Broncos are a really good football team and absolutely are in the crop of true contenders in the NFL. The problem is that they have two teams in their division who rank higher than them.
The only potential concern for Denver is whether or not the Russell Wilson regression is real or not. Russ has not been that great over his last 24 games played and while he had a horrible offensive line in Seattle, he also had elite weapons. I also would not say that Denver has an elite offensive line.
5. Kansas City Chiefs
There it is, I have the LA Chargers ranked ahead of every team in the AFC West. While the Chiefs still have the best quarterback in the league on the roster, they undoubtedly got worse everywhere else and have the hardest schedule in football (and it is not even close).
In the NFC North, the Chiefs would go 14-3. However, with their extremely tough schedule and tough division, there is actually a world in which they struggle to get to double-digit wins.