The NFL preseason kicks off Week 2 on Thursday, and ESPN has updated their NFL power rankings to get us ready. They last put together power rankings in May following the 2016 NFL Draft, and so plenty has changed.
The San Francisco 49ers remain a big question mark, and so it is no surprise they are at the bottom of the rankings. And by at the bottom, I mean the very bottom. A group of 80 writers, editors, and TV personalities voted, and the 49ers came in No. 32. They were No. 31 after the draft, one spot ahead of the Cleveland Browns. Here’s what the rankings had to say about the 49ers and Browns:
49ers
Blaine Gabbert is 8-27 in his career as a starting quarterback and has the worst completion percentage and Total QBR since he entered the NFL. He is currently in contention for the 49ers' starting job. That's ... not good.
Browns
In the Browns' preseason debut, Robert Griffin III threw an interception and Cody Kessler ran out of the back of his own end zone for a safety. It's good to see the Browns got their quarterback situation figured out.
I’m not entirely sure what the Browns did to move past the 49ers, but when we’re talking about the bottom of the rankings, quibbling is pretty useless. The 49ers are not viewed as a good team, for very good reasons. They have a lot to prove, and until they show something consistent on the field in September, they’ll remain at the bottom.
The Seattle Seahawks have moved to the top of the rankings, climbing from No. 4. The Arizona Cardinals follow them, climbing up from No. 5. The Tom Brady suspension dropped the New England Patriots to No. 3, and they are followed by the Green Bay Packers and Carolina Panthers.