Author Topic: Vikes 16th in power rankings (Read 1651 times)

Lee Borgersen

Vikings rated only 16th in first NFL power rankings

There has been no shortage of optimism about the 2015 Minnesota Vikings from folks congregating at training camp in Mankato, but it appears Purple Fever has yet to spread far beyond the North Star State.

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The Vikings have been ranked 16th in the preseason NFL power rankings released Tuesday by the Associated Press Pro32 panel of a dozen league analysts, reporters and pundits.

While the return of Adrian Peterson and the continued maturation of Teddy Bridgewater have many Vikings fans thinking playoffs, the Pro32 voters rate the Vikings as only the eighth-best team in the NFC, and the No. 3 team in the NFC Central.

The Vikings' archrivals in Green Bay grabbed the top spot in the poll, edging out the Seattle Seahawks, who rallied late to beat the Packers in the NFC championship game in January.

Detroit, at No. 12, is listed as the second-best team in the NFC North, while the Chicago Bears (No. 26) are picked to finish in the cellar.

The rankings list the Dallas Cowboys (No. 6) as the top team in the NFC East and the Carolina Panthers (No. 14) as the NFC South leader. The early rankings put the ninth-ranked Arizona Cardinals and the No. 11 Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC wild card slots.

The defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots are rated the best team in the AFC again, third overall. The voters have the AFC South going to Indianapolis (No. 4), the AFC West to Denver (No. 5) and the North to Baltimore (No. 7).

AFC wild cards are predicted to be Pittsburgh (No. 8) and Cincinnati (No. 10). Nothing shocking there, as all six projected AFC playoff teams made the postseason in 2014.

Who's the NFL's worst? Pro32 voters, by a surprisingly substantial margin, have chosen the Tennessee Titans over the similarly inept Jacksonville Jaguars and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Here are the rankings in their entirety. Total points are based on 32 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 32nd-place vote:

1. Green Bay Packers (6) 375

2. Seattle Seahawks (4) 367

3. New England Patriots (2) 359

4. Indianapolis Colts 339

5. Denver Broncos 326

6. Dallas Cowboys 317

7. Baltimore Ravens 314

8. Pittsburgh Steelers 297

9. Arizona Cardinals 267

10. Cincinnati Bengals 262

11. Philadelphia Eagles 253

12. Detroit Lions 234

13. San Diego Chargers 222

14. Carolina Panthers 219

14. Miami Dolphins 219

16. Minnesota Vikings 214

17. Kansas City Chiefs 210

18. Houston Texans 204

19. Buffalo Bills 184

20. St. Louis Rams 162

21. New Orleans Saints 161

22. New York Giants 134

23. Atlanta Falcons 109

24. San Francisco 49ers 104

25. New York Jets 103

26. Chicago Bears 91

27. Oakland Raiders 69

28. Washington Redskins 66

29. Cleveland Browns 59

30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 41

31. Jacksonville Jaguars 35

32. Tennessee Titans 20