| Rnk | LY* | Team | Record+ | Comments |
| 1. | 1. | Green Bay Packers | 15-1 | The NFL has clearly become a passing league and Rodgers is the top signal caller with the most explosive weapons. Still hard to believe the Giants walked into their building and beat them in the playoffs. |
| 2. | 3. | New England Patriots | 13-3 | Brady has the ability to mask offensive line woes. Infusion of youth through the draft can only help the defense. |
| 3. | 10. | Houston Texans | 10-6 | Finally took the next step last season despite a string of injuries that resulted in Yates starting a playoff game. Have the talent to go even further. |
| 4. | 7. | New York Giants | 9-7 | Rode Manning the younger and pass rush to a title. Repeat is unlikely although a better regular season should be expected. |
| 5. | 2. | New Orleans Saints | 13-3 | Can they overcome bounty-gate turmoil, Payton suspension? Having Brees should definitely ease the affects. |
| 6. | 8. | Atlanta Falcons | 10-6 | Koetter's spread offense should help get the most out of their skill position talent. |
| 7. | 6. | Pittsburgh Steelers | 12-4 | Offensive line and RB woes may waylay their desire to run the ball more. Given the weapons at receiver that is probably a good thing. |
| 8. | 9. | Detriot Lions | 10-6 | Stafford to Megatron can hide a lot of warts. |
| 9. | 5. | San Francisco 49ers | 13-3 | Harbaugh needs to work his magic for a second straight season with Smith under center. A step back is possible. |
| 10. | 11. | Cincinnati Bengals | 9-7 | Can they build on the momentum of last season? Lewis� history suggests the answer is no. |
| 11. | 4. | Baltimore Ravens | 12-4 | Need the aging defense to hold up for another season. Rule change allowing one player to be activated off IR could get Suggs on the field late in the season. |
| 12. | 18. | Denver Broncos | 8-8 | Everything depends on Peyton. |
| 13. | 22. | Chicago Bears | 8-8 | Injury to Cutler derailed last season. |
| 14. | 12. | Philadelphia Eagles | 8-8 | What did they learn from dream team debacle? |
| 15. | 16. | Dallas Cowboys | 8-8 | Perennial underachievers. Does that mean their talent is overrated? |
| 16. | 14. | San Diego Chargers | 8-8 | Can Turner survive his 6th season? Nobody but GM Smith can figure out how he survived his 5th. Window of opportunity seems to have closed as talent level has started to decline. |
| 17. | 13. | Tennessee Titans | 9-7 | Need Locker to grow up in a hurry. CJ having a full camp and Britt only being suspended one game are positives. |
| 18. | 17. | Kansas City Chiefs | 7-9 | Laid back Crennel should be a breath of fresh air after task master Haley. Will players still work hard or take advantage of the situation? |
| 19. | 21. | New York Jets | 8-8 | Dearth of offensive weapons is troubling. Tebow circus unlikely to help. |
| 20. | 25. | Buffalo Bills | 6-10 | Addition of Williams and Gilmore solidifies the defense. Need Fitzpatrick to play like he did before signing his extension. |
| 21. | 24. | Carolina Panthers | 6-10 | Can the defense catch up with the offense? Obviously can�t afford to have Newton suffer from a sophomore slump. |
| 22. | 23. | Seattle Seahawks | 7-9 | Undersized Wilson deserved to win the starting job. Will still need to count on defense and running game. |
| 23. | 27. | Washington Redskins | 5-11 | RGIII steps into a better situation than Luck. |
| 24. | 31. | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4-12 | Remember when they made the playoffs in 2010? Can no nonsense Schiano get them back on track? How quickly? |
| 25. | 15. | Arizona Cardinals | 8-8 | Offensive line is in shambles. Drafting Floyd over a lineman is looking like a mistake. |
| 26. | 19. | Oakland Raiders | 8-8 | How much does Palmer have left in the tank? Is surprise HC hire Allen ready to run his own program? |
| 27. | 26. | Jacksonville Jaguars | 5-11 | Gabbert has looked better this preseason. Unexpected return of MJD from holdout can only help. |
| 28. | 30. | Indianapolis Colts | 2-14 | Luck looks like the real deal. Conversion to 3-4 defense will take time. |
| 29. | 32. | St. Louis Rams | 2-14 | Can Bradford return to the form of his rookie year? Fisher has his work cut out for him. |
| 30. | 29. | Minnesota Vikings | 3-13 | Need Purple Jesus to hit the ground running in his return from ACL surgery. Literally. |
| 31. | 20. | Miami Dolphins | 6-10 | Starting over with a rookie QB and HC. No nonsense Philbin showing he won't shy away from getting rid of problem players with the release of the former player formerly known as Ocho Stinko and the trade of first round corner Davis. |
| 32. | 28. | Cleveland Browns | 4-12 | Homgren and Shurmur appear to be lame ducks with new ownership in place. If Richardson can stay on the field he should help them at least be mildly interesting. |
*Last year's final regular season ranking
+Last year's final regular season record