NFL Power Rankings 2015: Examining League Hierarchy as Training Camps Begin

The beginning of training camps around the NFL means live football rests right around the corner.

As players battle it out in the throes of summer for a minute amount of roster spots, one factor rings true—the NFL's impressive rate of player and coach turnover has once again altered the landscape of the league.

New faces in new places and just new faces in general—both on the field and among coaching staffs—create a new level of intrigue as the calendar heads toward first cuts.

Below, let's look at a new set of power rankings based on each team's performance last year, additions and losses, on-paper outlook and thoughts coming out of camps.

2015 NFL Power Rankings 

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

Top Teams to Watch as Camps Start

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

In hindsight, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earned this label last offseason after splurging in free agency, including the signing of offensive tackle Anthony Collins and defensive end Michael Johnson.

Both are gone.

Still, the Buccaneers are quite the interesting team to watch. The front office didn't need to splash much, not with centerpieces such as tackle Gerald McCoy on defense and wideout Mike Evans.

Rookie quarterback Jameis Winston would make any team interesting, though. As NFL Network's Jeff Darlington showed, the Florida State product just made his debut:

Off-field stuff has come into the spotlight, too, of course.

ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas spoke with him on the matter: "I've matured since I was an 18-year-old kid, just getting into mischievous things. But now I love this opportunity that I've been given. It's a blessing. The best thing about it is my dream always was to be a professional quarterback, and I've achieved that dream."

As a whole, Winston is a great representation of a franchise in need of a maturity boost and image change ahead of next season. Should this summer go well, there could be another major threat in the NFC South.

Cleveland Browns 

Any team with Johnny Manziel on the roster should get plenty of attention, especially after the tumultuous ride to get here. 

Things are off to a rocky start for the young quarterback in his battle with veteran Josh McCown, though, as Rotoworld's Adam Levitan captured:

It's sure to be a camp-long battle, but it's far from the only reason the Browns are a team to watch. On defense, the team has a new nose tackle with rookie Danny Shelton, and on offense, the team has a talented running back by the name of Duke Johnson, who might have enough to push Isaiah Crowell and Terrance West.

There's also a guy by the name of Terrelle Pryor. After a brief stint with the Cincinnati Bengals, the Ohio State product is now on the Browns and trying to play wide receiver. As Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com revealed, he even ran with the first team:

It's a startling revelation given the fact Pryor has never played wideout at the pro level, but his career would have ended if he stayed put at quarterback. At 6'4" and 223 pounds, he has the frame to take advantage of smaller defensive backs.

Like Pryor, the Browns are still learning on the fly. As far as rebuilding efforts go, no team may be more interesting than the Browns this summer.

Buffalo Bills 

Quarterback battles rule all, so it makes sense the Buffalo Bills continue to capture the attention of the NFL world right now. 

Rex Ryan helps, of course.

The situation under center is more interesting than anything Ryan could say in an interview (well, maybe), as Matt Cassel, EJ Manuel and Tyrod Taylor continue to slug it out for the starting gig.

Yes, Taylor has a place in the discussion. As NFL Network's Ian Rapoport noted, Taylor is in the right situation:

ESPN's Mike Rodak reinforced the point with a reveal about playing time this summer:

Where is Manuel? In two years, he appeared in just 15 games and completed 58.6 percent of his passes for 16 scores and 12 picks. Cassel's numbers don't look much better (he hasn't appeared in double-digit games since 2012 in Kansas City), but it seems to be a matter of preference at this point.

No matter who ends up the starter, everyone can rest assured it's going to be quite a down-to-the-wire battle.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com and are accurate as of August 2. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.