Preseason Power Rankings: The TENacious 10

Training camp is in the rear view mirror. NFL's preseason is just underway, while the regular season looms off ahead in the distance. What starts now is the predictions. NFL analysts all across the country will start taking their best guess at who will win their division, who will win various awards, and who will win it all, this among other things. Here at Gridiron Gurus, we will start with our preseason edition of the "Guru Rankings." Every week, these power rankings will be updated (Also to 32 teams), based on many factors, most of which is whether the team wins or loses during that specific week. Without further ado, the first ever edition of the "Guru Rankings."



1 New England Patriots: Not only are they the New England Patriots, but they are a revamped squad. With the big additions of Adalius Thomas and Randy Moss, the Patriots immediately improved. After all, regardless of who's on the team, the coaching staff is still led by Bill Belichick.


2 Indianapolis Colts: The defending super bowl champions are back and ready to rumble. Even if the Patriots added to their artillery, the Colts still have the best weapons, with Manning, Addai, Harrison, and Wayne. What separates the Colts from the Patriots is defense, because, yeah, defense is kind of important.


3 San Diego Chargers: Overall, the Chargers could be the most talented team in the league. However, a peculiar offseason and a coaching change that still has people scratching their heads, could cause problems for the Chargers. But, then again, LaDanian Tomlinson can solve just about every problem the Bolts encounter.



4 New Orleans Saints: The offense was already the best in the league. The best got better with the drafting of Robert Meacham, who already has performed early this preseason. The Saints also made moves to strengthen their defensive backfield, but their success this season hinders on the heels of their run stopping defense, which remains weak.


5 Denver Broncos: Don't throw on them. With the best secondary in the league, the only thing keeping the Broncos from having the best defense is their not-so-good run defense. Jay Cutler has the pieces in place to be a star, now he just has to do his job. Plus, even if he isn't spectacular, when was the last time a Broncos run game was anything short of amazing?


6 Baltimore Ravens: Steve McNair and Ray Lewis aren't getting any younger, which means the guys leading the squad on their respective sides of the ball could be over the hill. McNair has battled injury in the past, making the Ravens a risky pick. Their defense remains solid, despite the loss of Adalius Thomas. The Ravens will remain steady, but they are just an injury or two away from being mediocre.



7 Chicago Bears: Thomas Jones is gone, Cedric Benson is in. Benson is unproven, but he will get his chance. The Bears defense remains the strongest defense, led by the man in the middle Brian Urlacher. Lance Briggs is now happy with his new contract, so the threat of a holdout has been quenched. What does this mean? Well, it doesn't really matter, because Rex Grossman is still the quarterback.



8 Philadelphia Eagles: The Eagles' success this season rides on the health of franchise quarterback Donovan McNabb. McNabb, who is seemingly unhappy and worried that the Eagles drafted Kevin Kolb, rookie quarterback from Houston, has what may be one final chance to prove his worth. But seriously, why should McNabb be worried about a rookie quarterback?



9 Cincinnati Bengals: Coach Marvin Lewis led his Bengals to their third 8-8 season in four years, this one being the biggest disappointment of them all. Last year, beyond the tough schedule, a bad defense and inconsistent offense were to blame. In the offseason the Bengals made no moves to make their defense better, other than going mostly defense in the draft. With the loaded offense and a presumably new attitude on defense, anything short of a playoff appearance would be yet another disappointing season in the Queen City, maybe the last under Lewis.


10 Dallas Cowboys: The Cowboys are happier under new coach Wade Phillips than they were under Parcells, but they won't be so happy if they don't win like last year. The main question in Dallas is how good will Tony Romo be? Early on he showed signs of being a star, but as teams began to figure him out, he began to struggle. If Tony Romo plays well, the tenacious Dallas defense could carry the 'Boys a long way.


There you have our first ever edition of the "Guru Rankings!" Stay tuned for more updates as the preseason comes to a close. I'd love to hear your comments (Or statements telling me how terribly done the rankings are.) Until then, enjoy the preseason. Team previews are in the works, all sorts of predictions are being made. Busy times in the life of one Brandon the blogger, but all that information will be spit out at you at a later date.

Brandon