The 2026 NFL regular season arrives with the Los Angeles Rams claiming the top spot in power rankings as a star-laden roster, while the Dallas Cowboys climb following a defensive overhaul and the Kansas City Chiefs open outside the top tier amid quarterback recovery questions.
The 2026 NFL regular season is underway, bringing a fresh set of expectations, division battles, and roster experiments across the league. Analysts have spent the summer dissecting what changed since the previous campaign, and the consensus opening power rankings reveal a clear tier of heavy favorites alongside plenty of uncertainty in the middle of the pack. Plenty will transpire between now and January as favorites falter and sleepers rise through the tumultuous ride of an 18-week campaign.
Every week during the season, Chad Graff and Josh Kendall rank and analyze all 32 teams from first to worst. The excitement kicks off with a Super Bowl rematch Wednesday night between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks. The next day, the Los Angeles Rams will face the San Francisco 49ers in Australia. After that, the normal Sunday slate awaits.
Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks Set the Pace in the NFC West
Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks
At the very top of the league, the Los Angeles Rams enter the new season as a heavily favored superteam. Powered by an offseason that brought in Myles Garrett and Trent McDuffie, then brought back arguably the best defensive tackle of all time in Aaron Donald, who came out of retirement after sitting out two seasons, alongside reigning MVP quarterback Matthew Stafford, the Rams drew the highest projected win total in analytical simulations by analyst Austin Mock at 11.7 victories.
Yet that lofty status comes with a warning label from some analysts. The team that is crowned in August usually doesn’t win it all. Plus, their division is brutal, housing the Super Bowl-champion Seattle Seahawks. Seattle starts the season at No. 1 in my Power Rankings because the champs always start at the top, returning a very similar roster with the same coach, though the big question is how Sam Darnold and the offense look after losing offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.
Dallas Cowboys Make Defensive Moves While Facing Early Lineup Hurdles
Dallas Cowboys
The dust from a drama-free offseason has settled, and now it’s time for the Dallas Cowboys to put in the real work. The Cowboys were already good on offense, but now will be much better on defense with a new coordinator in Christian Parker and a lot of new, talented faces.
Kansas City Chiefs Navigate Patrick Mahomes’ Return and Roster Reset
Kansas City Chiefs
The 2026 NFL regular season begins this week and ends with a Monday Night Football
matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos. A smooth offseason and seemingly successful return to action for Patrick Mahomes has Kansas City in a place of relative stability entering 2026. There is valid concern regarding left tackle Josh Simmons’ status, though, which isn’t great news for those hoping for a safe start to the season for Mahomes. There’s also the new-look secondary, which hasn’t been tested yet, leaving plenty of questions for the Chiefs to answer when they welcome the AFC West rival Broncos to Arrowhead Stadium on Monday night.
Entering this season, Kelce has 13,002 receiving yards. All he needs is 45 yards to surpass Jason Witten for the second most by a tight end in NFL history. Fans can expect Kelce to reach this next accomplishment in the Chiefs’ season opener against the Broncos, a rival he has tormented throughout his Hall of Fame-worthy career. Mahomes, who is expected to be ready for Week 1 after knee surgery, has always made Kelce his go-to pass catcher on third down. It’s possible Kelce passes Witten on a third down before the Monday Night Football
halftime show.
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback
AFC Contenders and Division Shifts Shape the Opening Slate
Buffalo Bills
Elsewhere in the AFC, the Buffalo Bills pushed the right buttons in keeping Joe Brady to lead the offense while also staying as head coach and flipping to a more aggressive defense under Jim Leonhard. Buffalo’s shakeup can pay off big-time in Josh Allen’s prime, landing them second in Sporting News’ power rankings. The Jacksonville Jaguars also command attention, ranking third to open the season in some projections following a 13-win campaign.
As the 18-week campaign gets underway with matchups ranging from international showdowns in Australia to traditional division clashes, the gap between paper favorites and actual on-field results will begin to shrink.
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