| Rnk | LY* | Team | Record+ | Comments |
| 1. | 2. | Seattle Seahawks | 13-3 | Refs continuing to call illegal contact downfield more closely could throw a wrench into their plans. |
| 2. | 1. | Denver Broncos | 13-3 | Hard to envision Peyton and record setting offense playing better or as well as last year so defense must improve. |
| 3. | 14. | Green Bay Packers | 8-7-1 | Keep Rodgers on the field, rack up points and wins. |
| 4. | 8. | New Orleans Saints | 11-5 | Unbeatable at home, but a road playoff game in a bad weather site remains their Waterloo. |
| 5. | 5. | New England Patriots | 12-4 | How healthy is Gronk? Without him Brady lacks a true difference maker. |
| 6. | 10. | Philadelphia Eagles | 10-6 | Exciting to watch, defense will ultimately determine their ceiling. |
| 7. | 6. | Indianapolis Colts | 11-5 | Luck's will to win keeps them in games in which they have no business competing. |
| 8. | 3. | San Francisco 49ers | 12-4 | Defense likely to take a step back due to injuries, suspensions and free agent losses. Can Kaepernick take a step forward? |
| 9. | 7. | Cincinnati Bengals | 11-5 | New coordinator Jackson expected to lean more on the running game to take pressure off Dalton, defense. |
| 10. | 12. | San Diego Chargers | 9-7 | GM Telasco has done an admirable job adding talent around Rivers. |
| 11. | 13. | Pittsburgh Steelers | 8-8 | Will go as far as Roethlisberger and the no huddle offense can carry them at least in the early going. If the young defense can develop they have a chance to be at their best when it matters most down the stretch. |
| 12. | 17. | Baltimore Ravens | 8-8 | Need Flacco to play like a franchise QB which is likely asking too much of him. |
| 13. | 11. | Arizona Cardinals | 10-6 | Can the diminutive Ellington carry the load on the ground? |
| 14. | 9. | Kansas City Chiefs | 11-5 | Seem primed to take a step back although Reid knows how to win regular season games. |
| 15. | 26. | Atlanta Falcons | 4-12 | Return of Jones should rejuvenate Ryan. Running game and defense remain works in progress. |
| 16. | 19. | Chicago Bears | 8-8 | A lot of points are going to be scored in the NFC North, key will be preventing some. |
| 17. | 25. | Detriot Lions | 7-9 | Caldwell brings much needed discipline. |
| 18. | 4. | Carolina Panthers | 12-4 | Had a disastrous off season. |
| 19. | 15. | New York Jets | 8-8 | Can defensive front 7 overcome underwhelming secondary? |
| 20. | 16. | Dallas Cowboys | 8-8 | Historically bad 2013 defense seems like it will be worse in 2014. |
| 21. | 18. | Miami Dolphins | 8-8 | Tannehill has quietly developed into a solid pro, alas his supporting cast leaves something to be desired. |
| 22. | 20. | St. Louis Rams | 7-9 | Have defense and running game to overcome loss of Bradford especially considering Bradford has never played as well as his draft position or press clippings might indicate. |
| 23. | 21. | New York Giants | 7-9 | Eli and new coordinator McAdoo appear woefully out of synch. |
| 24. | 28. | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4-12 | Could surprise if McCown replicates last season's play. |
| 25. | 23. | Tennessee Titans | 7-9 | Whisenhunt takes over for Munchak, nobody cares. |
| 26. | 31. | Washington Redskins | 3-13 | Can Gruden get the most out of RGIII? |
| 27. | 24. | Minnesota Vikings | 5-10-1 | Treading water by starting Cassell, not that Bridgewater is necessarily the long term solution. |
| 28. | 32. | Houston Texans | 2-14 | Can O'Brien coax decent play out of Fitzpatrick and/or Mallett? Defense has talent if they can stay healthy. |
| 29. | 27. | Jacksonville Jaguars | 4-12 | Bortles gives them hope, unfortunately he starts the season behind Henne. |
| 30. | 22. | Buffalo Bills | 6-10 | Manuel not developing as hoped, signing Orton an obvious panic move. |
| 31. | 30. | Cleveland Browns | 4-12 | Why exactly is Pettine a better option as head coach than Chudzinski? |
| 32. | 29. | Oakland Raiders | 4-12 | McKenzie brought in Flynn last year and Schaub this year to start at QB. Allen should sue for lack of support. |
*Last year's final regular season ranking
+Last year's record