NFL Power Rankings 2016: Examining Super Bowl Favorites Following Preseason

What happened in the past four weeks does not matter. The preseason is over, which can only mean one thing: Football is (finally) back.

Thirty-two NFL teams will enter the 2016 season with hopes of lifting the Lombardi Trophy. But in reality, the majority of those outfits don't have a chance.

Robert Griffin III looked the part of a starting quarterback in the NFL during preseason, but that doesn't mean his Cleveland Browns will find much success this year outside of moral victories. The Minnesota Vikings could have been a dark-horse candidate to make a run in the playoffs, but that was before Teddy Bridgewater tore his ACL in practice. 

Here we will examine the three teams that are the most likely to contend for a spot in the Super Bowl this season. While there are plenty of other franchises that have the chance to make some noise in the playoffs—the Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks and Cincinnati Bengals—these are the three teams best equipped for a deep postseason run. 

But before we get to that, let's take a look at the power rankings heading into the regular season for all 32 teams:

Rank	Team	2015 Record
1	Carolina Panthers	15-1
2	Arizona Cardinals	13-3
3	Green Bay Packers	10-6
4	New England Patriots	12-4
5	Seattle Seahawks	10-6
6	Pittsburgh Steelers	10-6
7	Cincinnati Bengals	12-4
8	Oakland Raiders	7-9
9	New York Giants	6-10
10	Kansas City Chiefs	11-5
11	Denver Broncos	12-4
12	Houston Texans	9-7
13	New York Jets	10-6
14	Washington Redskins	9-7
15	Indianapolis Colts	8-8
16	Buffalo Bills	8-8
17	Minnesota Vikings	11-5
18	Jacksonville Jaguars	5-11
19	Dallas Cowboys	4-12
20	Detroit Lions	7-9
21	Baltimore Ravens	5-11
22	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	6-10
23	Atlanta Falcons	8-8
24	Miami Dolphins	6-10
25	New Orleans Saints	7-9
26	Philadelphia Eagles	7-9
27	Tennessee Titans	3-13
28	Chicago Bears	6-10
29	Los Angeles Rams	7-9
30	San Francisco 49ers	5-11
31	San Diego Chargers	4-12
32	Cleveland Browns	3-13

Carolina Panthers

When you have the reigning MVP on your roster, you're considered to be a Super Bowl contender. When the reigning MVP gets his No. 1 receiver back from injury, it’s hard to argue why Cam Newton can’t lead the Carolina Panthers to a second consecutive Super Bowl appearance.

Newton is coming off a historic 2015 season, during which he scored 45 total touchdowns (35 pass, 10 rush) for just 10 interceptions. And that was all without Kelvin Benjamin.

For those who have forgotten, Benjamin is a pretty dominant receiver, standing at 6'5". While his sophomore season was lost last year because of an ACL injury suffered in training camp, it’s important to remember Benjamin is only 25 and hauled in 73 receptions for 1,008 yards in 2014, scoring nine touchdowns in the process.

Ted Ginn Jr. overachieved last season but will be a nice complementary receiver to Benjamin on the opposite side of the field.

Oh, and let’s not forget about tight end Greg Olsen, either.

Josh Norman’s departure to Washington has left a void in the Panthers secondary, but that shouldn’t really matter as long as Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis lead the defense on the field. Throw in an intimidating pass rush, featuring Kony Ealy, Charles Johnson and Star Lotulelei, and the opposing quarterback may not even get the opportunity to test the Panthers secondary.

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots will always be a Super Bowl contender as long as Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are together. But this season is a little different than others in the past for the Pats, as Brady will miss the first four games of the 2016 season through suspension after announcing in a Facebook post that he will no longer pursue legal action against the NFL over Deflategate:

"

I'm very grateful for the overwhelming support I've received from Mr. Kraft, the Kraft family, coach Belichick, my coaches and teammates, the NFLPA, my agents, my loving family and most of all, our fans. It has been a challenging 18 months and I have made the difficult decision to no longer proceed with the legal process. I'm going to work hard to be the best player I can be for the New England Patriots and I look forward to having the opportunity to return to the field this fall.

"

When Brady missed the 2008 season because of an ACL injury, backup quarterback Matt Cassel led New England to an 11-5 record. Despite missing the playoffs that year, the Patriots have proved they can overcome adversity and replace their most valuable player outside of Rob Gronkowski.

Speaking of the larger-than-life tight end, Gronkowski is healthy. So too is Julian Edelman. It’s clear Gronkowski and Edelman are the Patriots’ two best receiving options, having hauled in over 133 receptions combined in 2015, according to ESPN.

What shouldn’t be overlooked, however, is the return of Danny Amendola, who was brought back on a substantial pay cut, giving Brady—and Jimmy Garoppolo—all of his weapons from a year ago.

Amendola, who filled the void left by an injured Edelman during his six-game absence in 2015, caught 65 passes last season, four more than Edelman.

If Garoppolo can steady the ship for the first four games of the season until Brady returns, then the NFL needs to be prepared for an angry, motivated Brady who will be ready to take New England back to the promised land.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Can the Pittsburgh Steelers stay healthy?

The Steelers likely would have been in serious contention for a championship last season had it not been for injuries to running back Le'Veon Bell and wideout Antonio Brown. Bell missed 10 games, including all of the postseason, after injuring his MCL against Cincinnati in Week 8, while Brown missed the team’s postseason matchup against the Denver Broncos because of a concussion suffered against, once again, the Bengals.

Though Bell will miss the first three games of the season through suspension, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, it’s a good thing in the long run for both Bell and Pittsburgh.

It’s hard to imagine the running back would've been 100 percent ready to play at a high level in Week 1, so when Week 4 rolls around, he should feel more comfortable taking the field without feeling worried about injuring himself again.

A healthy Ben Roethlisberger, as incredulous as that sounds, will be ready to take his offense to new heights, even without the likes of Martavis Bryant. 

Roethlisberger, who missed four games because of a knee injury last season, will have to lean even more heavily on Brown and Markus Wheaton in 2016.

The Steelers defense hasn’t been as dominate in recent years—ranking 21st in total defense last season, according to NFL.com—but with the likes of Ryan Shazier spearheading an improved linebackers unit, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Pittsburgh competing for the Lombardi Trophy in February.

It's been seven years since the Steelers last won the Super Bowl and the first time since the 2010 campaign that Pittsburgh has a roster ready to compete for a title.

But that's only if they can still healthy.