NFL Power Rankings 2016: Latest Team Standings Ahead of Preseason Week 2

Every team is currently 0-0. Last year’s records don’t count anymore, and last week’s exhibition results are especially meaningless.

Let’s go out on a real limb and say the Arizona Cardinals wouldn’t lose 31-10 to the Oakland Raiders in a game that counts. Unless Matt Barkley also played in that contest.

So are 2015’s results entirely moot when assembling the current hierarchy? Not exactly, but the win-loss records play a small role. Given football’s smaller schedule, year-to-year results ebb and flow at seismic rates.

Washington went from 4-12 in 2014 to NFC East champions last season, and the New York Jets jumped six wins, although they narrowly missed the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions all plummeted from double-digit wins to losing records.

Some playoff teams will collapse, and clubs who scraped the bottom of the barrel last year will suddenly enjoy postseason revivals. Let’s take a look at the current order before identifying three potential risers capable of reversing their 2015 misfortune.

New York Giants

The New York Giants couldn’t win a close game last season, and their record suffered.

In Tom Coughlin’s final season as head coach, the G-Men dug his grave by suffering eight of their 10 losses by six points or fewer. This includes close calls against the New England Patriots and Carolina Panthers, both of whom entered undefeated before receiving their biggest scare to date.

Their league-worst defense deserves the blame for their fourth-quarter blunders. Time and time again, the unit couldn’t deliver a necessary stop. They threw money at the problem during the offseason, awarding defensive end Olivier Vernon, defensive tackle Damon Harrison and cornerback Janoris Jenkins massive free-agent contracts.

Vernon will especially prove pivotal to Big Blue regaining their reputation for pressuring the quarterback. They mustered 23 sacks last year, third-worst behind the Buffalo Bills (21) and Atlanta Falcons (21).

While Vernon only recorded 7.5 sacks for the Miami Dolphins last season, he still disrupted the pocket often, per Pro Football Focus:

Hitman!New #NYG DE Olivier Vernon had 30 quarterback hits last year, most by any edge defender. pic.twitter.com/80pnUfsbap

— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) July 25, 2016

General manager Jerry Reese once again ignored the team’s linebacker woes, and the right side of their offensive line remains a huge sore spot. The Giants are far from Super Bowl contenders, …

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