NFL Power Rankings: Number 17, Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals get a passing grade after toppling the Dallas Cowboys during the first week of the preseason. The pressure cooker might be turned up on Kliff Kingsbury slightly. Entering his third season as this team’s head coach, he boasts a 13–18–1 win-loss total, this after he notched a .467 winning percentage (35-40) at the collegiate level.
His signal-caller is gifted. He has a lot of talent on this roster. The Cardinals play in what might be the NFL’s best division, the NFC West, but that’s no excuse. Arizona needs to put a winning season and maybe a playoff appearance together.
NFL Power Rankings: Number 16, Washington Football Team
You have to believe in Ron Rivera, don’t you? The Washington Football Team may still need a quarterback (Ryan Fitzpatrick isn’t the answer) and a few other key pieces, but they field one of the NFL’s best defenses while taking their cues from one of the best defensive-minded head coaches in all of professional football.
This team gave the eventual world champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers all that they could handle during the postseason, and Washington was playing with a second-string quarterback. Heading into 2021’s regular season, this is a young team that enters its second campaign under Rivera. No one will be pumped about seeing these guys on the schedule.