With this week marking the official start of the NFL season, and Week 1 games starting on Thursday, it's time for the first Phinsider set of Power Rankings for this season. These rankings will change dramatically over the next couple of weeks, I'm sure. But, here are my first cuts at a Power Ranking for 2011.
| Rank | Team | Remarks |
| 1 | Green Bay Packers |
At least for the preseason, the NFL champs get the first position. |
| 2 | Philadelphia Eagles | The "Dream Team" won the offseason and have placed all the pressure on themselves. We'll see if they can perform. |
| 3 | New England Patriots | The Patriots look to continue their domination of the AFC in 2011. |
| 4 | New Orleans Saints | The Saints are a year removed from winning it all. The Super Bowl hangover shoulg finally be gone. |
| 5 | Atlanta Falcons | Every year, the Falcons seem to get stronger and more explosive. 2011 will be no different. |
| 6 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Pittsburgh is the defending AFC Champions, and should continue to be a threat in the AFC. |
| 7 | Baltimore Ravens | The Ravens are going to be a player in the AFC this year. Their only limiting factor may be the play of Joe Flacco. |
| 8 | Indianapolis Colts | If the rumors are true, and Peyton Manning really will be out for a while, Indy won't stay anywhere near the top 10. |
| 9 | San Diego Chargers | Will Phillip Rivers finally get this team moving in the right direction? |
| 10 | New York Giants | The Giants are motivated this year following a year watching the playoffs. |
| Rank | Team | Remarks |
| 11 | New York Jets | The Jets aren't as good this year as they have been the last couple of years. I expect to see them take a step or two back in 2011. |
| 12 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | The Buccaneers are rapidly becoming a force behind the play of quarterback Josh Freeman. Unfortunately, they are in the same division as the Falcons and the Saints. |
| 13 | Houston Texans | With the Colts appearing to be on the way down, the Texans are chomping at the bit to replace them atop the division. |
| 14 | St. Louis Rams | The Rams are going to surprise some people this year. |
| 15 | Chicago Bears | The Bears have a lot of talent all over their roster. The question is, can they actually pull all that talent together on the field? |
| 16 | Kansas City Chiefs | The Chiefs finished 10&6 last season. Can they repeat that performance? |
| 17 | Dallas Cowboys | The Cowboys are a team that should be good, and never is. We'll see if 2011 changes this reputation. |
| 18 | Detroit Lions | The Lions are a team rapidly on the rise - assuming Matthew Stafford is on the field. |
| 19 | Miami Dolphins | The Dolphins are another team on the rise. The media hasn't bought into the franchise yet, but they should be improved over the last two seasons' 7&9 record. |
| 20 | Arizona Cardinals | With the addition of Kevin Kolb, the Cards have put themselves back into the fight for the NFC West - whatever kind of fight that is. |
| 21 | Seattle Seahawks | Pete Carroll is building something up in Seattle. It's just hard to buy into at this point. |
| 22 | Jacksonville Jaguars | Maybe a little high for the Jaguars, but their defense should keep them in games. |
| 23 | Tennessee Titans | Kerry Collins is in Indy. Vince Young is in Philly. What is happening in Tennessee? |
| 24 | Cleveland Browns | I was big on the Browns last year, and they tried to live up to that. I expect them to continue the battle towards relevancy this year. |
| 25 | Oakland Raiders | It's Oakland. A ton of potential talent - a ton of under performances. And now, no Nnamdi Asomugha. |
| 26 | Minnesota Vikings | What does it say about your team, when signing a 34-year old quarterback actually makes your team younger? |
| 27 | San Francisco 49ers | I want San Fran to be good. I think they could be good. But, I think they will have to wait until next year to actually be good. |
| 28 | Denver Broncos | Kyle Orton won't save the team when he is having to carry them all by himself. |
| 29 | Buffalo Bills | The Bills have a little potential for success. Not a lot, but a little. |
| 30 | Carolina Panthers | I can't imagine them getting the first overall pick again. |
| 31 | Washington Redskins | I hope the Redskins prove me wrong, especially if John Beck is starting, but I think it's another rough season in the Nation's capitol. |
| 32 | Cincinnati Bengals | This team looks more disorganized and talent-less than than the 0&16 Detroit Lions. They will win somewhere, but it's going to be a long season in Cincinnati. |