NFL Pre-Season Power Rankings 2024: Teams 25-32

We’re entering training camp in this NFL offseason, which means football is truly right around the corner. There’s been plenty of roster shakeups, free agent signings, big draft selections, and offseason buzz to keep the scent of football in our noses, but it won’t be long until we’re finally able to scratch out any Sunday plans for five straight glorious months.

As a result of all the noise that comes with the NFL offseason, each team has once again found their places among the rankings of all 31 of their respective competitors. Luckily for you, I have that correct list for you right here! Let’s see how each squad stacks up ahead of the 2024-25 season, starting with picks 32 to 25.

32. Carolina Panthers

Notable Additions: WR Diontae Johnson, OG Robert Hunt, OLB Jadeveon Clowney, LB Josey Jewell

Notable Departures: WR DJ Chark, TE Hayden Hurst, OLB Brian Burns, S Vonn Bell, C Bradley Bozeman

Before you say the Panthers should’ve drafted CJ Stroud in last year’s draft, it seemed like no quarterback would’ve been set up to succeed in the situation Carolina crafted. While the defense held its own, there was no sign of life on offense all season amid finishing dead last in both total offense and in the league (2-15).

While it’s obvious they’re making an effort to improve the weapons around Bryce Young, some key losses on defense and the offensive line make for another long season upcoming for Carolina if you ask me. I think they’ll improve with a new head coach in Dave Canales, but not by much.

31. New England Patriots

Notable Additions: RB Antonio Gibson, WR K.J. Osborn, TE Austin Hooper, QB Drake Maye

Notable Departures: RB Ezekiel Elliott, WR Davante Parker, TE Mike Gesicki, OT Trent Brown, DL Lawrence Guy, CB Jalen Mills, ST Matthew Slater

Exit: The days when New England enter a new year as a surefire Super Bowl contender.

Enter: A complete and utter rebuild.

Following a lackluster season on offense (2nd highest three-and-out rate, 8th highest turnover rate), the Patriots are turning the table again with a rookie head coach, quarterback, and receiving core. QB Drake Maye will have to watch and learn from Jacoby Brissett for a bit, so we’ll have to wait and see what the future holds for New England until Maye takes over.

New England has always had a gritty defensive core, but with a terrible offensive line and rookies everywhere, it’ll be an uphill battle on both sides of the ball for sure.

30. New York Giants

Notable Additions: WR Malik Nabers, WR, Allen Robinson, RB Devin Singletary, OLB Brian Burns

Notable Departures: RB Saquon Barkley, WR Sterling Shepard, TE Darren Waller, CB Adoree Jackson, S Xavier McKinney

On paper, the Giants overall got better and did a good job addressing the holes and mistakes made in last year’s injury-ridden season. Revamping their offensive line and secondary, replacing key departures, yet will any of it be enough to lift them from underneath the Cowboys and Eagles in the NFC East?

QB Daniel Jones is running out of time to prove that he is the Giants’ franchise guy, and while there was a miraculous run to the playoffs in 2022, the departure of RB Saquon Barkley means Jones will have a lot more on his shoulders in terms of running this offense, which he hasn’t been able to prove he can do to this point.

29. Denver Broncos

Notable Additions: QB Bo Nix, QB Zach Wilson, CB Levi Wallace, S Brandon Jones

Notable Departures: QB Russell Wilson, WR Jerry Jeudy, C Lloyd Cushenberry, LB Josey Jewell, S Justin Simmons

The Patriots just started a rebuild. I’m not sure what to call whatever it is the Broncos are doing.

After releasing QB Russell Wilson and eating the biggest dead cap hit in NFL history, Sean Payton hopes to start over with rookie QB Bo Nix out of Oregon and almost-veteran Zach Wilson from the Jets.

There was a short glimmer of promise last season when they strung together a few surprising wins, but an abundance of defensive departures leaves little hope for that to happen again. If I’m a Broncos fan, I’m only hoping QB Bo Nix hits his stride at some point during the season just to have some sort of confidence in moving forward with the “rebuild.”

28. Washington Commanders

Notable Additions: QB Jayden Daniels, RB Austin Ekeler, TE Zach Ertz, LB Bobby Wagner, S Jeremy Chinn

Notable Departures: RB Antonio Gibson, WR Curtis Samuel, CB Kendall Fuller, S Kamren Curl

Similarly to the Patriots, a lot of change happened in Washington during this offseason. After bringing in Dan Quinn as the team’s new head coach, they went ahead and took a stab at finding their next guy in Heisman-winner QB Jayden Daniels.

What’s missing from this new-look team is certified playmakers outside of Terry McLaurin, even with the veteran players they managed to scoop up in free agency. I like them over the Giants in the NFC East, but cap them at 6-7 wins.

27. Arizona Cardinals

Notable Additions: WR Marvin Harrison Jr., WR Zay Jones, DT Justin Jones, LB Mack Wilson

Notable Departures: WR Marquise Brown, WR Rondale Moore, OT D.J. Humphries

It’s obvious the Cardinals are throwing all their cards onto the table in attempt to escape the basement of the NFC West, with a massive draft haul and QB Kyler Murray fully healthy. However, their offseason acquisitions seem like free agency scraps that’ll give their rookies a run for their money at best.

This isn’t to say I don’t think this team will be improved from last season, I just think there are still generous holes they need to fill before they have a chance at surpassing Seattle, LA, and San Francisco.

26. Tennessee Titans

Notable Additions: RB Tony Pollard, WR Tyler Boyd, WR Calvin Ridley, CB L’Jarius Sneed, S Jamal Adams

Notable Departures: RB Derrick Henry, C Aaron Brewer, LB Azeez Al-Shaair, S Terrell Edmonds

Quarterback Will Levis showed some flashes during his rookie year, but the pressure’s on now that he’s entering his first year as the full-time starter. While expectations may not be very high, some sneaky good offseason acquisitions may allow the Titans to surprise a few people.

Like most teams near the bottom of this list, the offensive core looks almost completely different along with a new head coach. RB Derrick Henry is gone, but Tony Pollard still has some juice left in the tank. A revamped WR trio in DeAndre Hopkins, Calvin Ridley, and Tyler Boyd also provides some life for what was a disappointing scoring offense last season.

They won’t make the playoffs, but they could easily turn into a fun team to watch.

25. Minnesota Vikings

Notable Additions: QB J.J. McCarthy, RB Aaron Jones, OLB Andrew Van Ginkel

Notable Departures: QB Kirk Cousins, RB Alexander Mattison, WR K.J. Osborn, OLB 

Danielle Hunter, LB Anthony Barr

Two years ago, the Vikings were sitting atop the NFC North with a bright future ahead behind Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson. Fast forward to now, and J-Jettas is now establishing new chemistry with a rookie as well as, you guessed it, another new look offense.

With arguably the top wide receiver in the league on your team, it’s tough to predict you won’t at least put up some competitive scoring in most weeks of the season. But with a bottom-of-the-bin passing defense (dead last in the league last year) that just took some significant hits, it’ll be a rough showing for Minnesota.

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Stay tuned for picks 24-17 coming this week!