NFL Power Rankings: Championship-winning Chiefs finish top of the pile

The 2023 NFL season has concluded with the Kansas City Chiefs as champions, and it’s time to take a look at the final NFL Power Rankings from a campaign full of surprises.

As the dust continues to settle on the thrilling finale in Nevada and the season as a whole, here are the end-of-season power rankings.

1. Kansas City Chiefs (11-6)

Becoming the first team to win back-to-back titles since the Patriots in the 2003 and 2004 seasons, it was a superb achievement for the Chiefs to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy at Allegiant Stadium.

Fighting back to claim the victory in overtime, quarterback Patrick Mahomes again showed why he is the best QB in the league, under arguably the best coach in Andy Reid.

The Chiefs deservedly finish top of the NFL Power Rankings.

2. San Francisco 49ers (12-5)

The 49ers will be left wondering about what might have been after their heartbreaking defeat to the Chiefs in Nevada.

Quarterback Brock Purdy looked to have done enough to get San Fran over the line but great teams find a way, and that’s exactly what the Chiefs did.

The 49ers walked away from Las Vegas empty-handed and finish runners-up in the NFL Power Rankings.

3. Baltimore Ravens (13-4)

It was great to see the Ravens back as a force in the NFL, with quarterback Lamar Jackson enjoying an excellent MVP-winning season.

Their journey wended with a 17-10 defeat to the Chiefs in the AFC Championship game but the Ravens have a foundation to build on for next season, albeit with plenty of free agency decisions to make this offseason.

4. Detroit Lions (12-5)

Arguably the biggest success story of the campaign, the Lions finally gave their long-suffering fans something to cheer about this season.

Battling their way past the LA Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the postseason, they also just fell short of the big one, with a 34-31 loss in San Francisco in the NFC Championship game.

Keep an eye out for the Lions next season.

5. Green Bay Packers (9-8)

The same can be said for the Packers, as they showed towards the end of the season what they are capable of with their rising star, quarterback Jordan Love.

Green Bay blew away the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington in the Wild Card playoffs, before again being edged out by the 49ers.

Love seems to have a bright future ahead of him and there’s more to come from this team, which only had a couple of players over the age of 30.

6. Buffalo Bills (11-6)

The Bills almost knocked the Chiefs off their stride in the Divisional playoffs but Kansas City got the job done at Highmark Stadium with a 27-24 win.

Buffalo will just have to dust themselves off and go again next season.

7. Houston Texans (10-7)

Another of the surprise packages this season, the Texans reached the Divisional Round of the playoffs before their 34-10 defeat to the Ravens.

Led by Offensive Rookie of the Year Award-winning quarterback C.J Stroud, it could be exciting times ahead for this franchise.

8. Miami Dolphins (11-6)

The Dolphins were found out in the Wild Card playoffs with a 26-7 defeat to the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium after struggling against playoff-caliber teams in the regular season.

The Dolphins need to figure out how to take the next step.

9. Dallas Cowboys (12-5)

Once again it looked like it could be the Cowboys year as they came from behind to claim the NFC East.

In an all-too-familiar story, the Cowboys faltered when it mattered most with a heavy defeat to the Packers.

10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-8)

The Buccaneers managed to win the NFC South title before beating the flailing Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs.

Tampa Bay’s journey ended in Detriot and now the Bucs need to figure out how they can keep making ground on the favorites next season.

11. Los Angeles Rams (10-7)

Playing second fiddle to the 49ers in the NFC West, the Rams nearly stunned the Lions in the playoffs but were beaten 24-23 at Ford Field.

Some reason for cautious optimism for next season.

12. Philadelphia Eagles (11-6)

At 10-1 at one stage of the season, the wheels fell dramatically off for the Eagles this year. Nick Sirianni has a big job ahead of him to try and get Philly back to an NFL Championship game.

13. Cleveland Browns (11-6)

The Browns were hoping to go deep into the playoffs but their dreams were cut short with a 45-14 defeat to the Texans in the Wild Card Round.

14. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)

A 31-17 defeat in the Wild Card Round to the Bills was the end of the road for the Steelers. Back to the drawing board for a team that needs to find a quarterback if it wants to contend with divisional rivals the Ravens again next season.

15. New Orleans Saints (9-8)

Four wins in their last five games will give the Saints fans hope of what could be achieved next season but a slow start to the campaign meant no playoff football this year.

16. Seattle Seahawks (9-8)

Showed better signs towards the end of the season with three wins in their last four but a poor spell in the middle of the campaign cost the Seahawks.

17. Jacksonville Jaguars (9-8)

Trevor Lawrence and Doug Pederson make for a solid quarterback-head coach duo, but they did not bring the best out of each other this season.

18. Indianapolis Colts (9-8)

Anthony Richardson went down with a season-ending shoulder injury after an impressive first month of the season, but backup QB Gardner Minshew made sure coach Shane Steichen's first season at the helm was not a total lost cause.

19. Cincinnati Bengals (9-8)

Something of a lost season due to QB Joe Burrow missing half the campaign.

20. Las Vegas Raiders (8-9)

Things improved after Antonio Pierce took over as interim head coach. He's seen the interim tag removed, and the team needs to find a quarterback.

21. Denver Broncos (8-9)

The Russell Wilson experiment failed.

22. New York Jets (7-10)

Aaron Rodgers suffered a torn Achilles on the first drive of the season, the team didn't sign a replacement, and it was a season of mediocrity. They'll try again in 2024.

23. Minnesota Vikings (7-10)

Justin Jefferson missed half the season. Kirk Cousins suffered a torn Achilles midway through the campaign and is a free agent this offseason, meaning this team needs to find a QB.

24. Chicago Bears (7-10)

There wasn't much to write home about for the Bears this season, but two top-10 draft picks - including first-overall - will have them in the headlines all season long. They have a decision to make regarding Justin Fields at QB.

25. Atlanta Falcons (7-10)

Neither Desmond Ridder nor Taylor Heinicke were convincing under center, and the consensus is that high draft picks Bijan Robinson and Kyle Pitts didn't see enough of the ball.

26. New York Giants (6-11)

Tommy DeVito winning a few games while Daniel Jones was injured became a nice story, but that's by far the biggest positive.

27. Tennessee Titans (6-11)

Will Levis likely earned the starting QB spot with his performances while Ryan Tannehill was injured. But a poor season cost 2021 Coach of the Year Mike Vrabel his job.

28. Los Angeles Chargers (5-12)

It was a bad season for the Chargers long before Justin Herbert's season-ending hand injury, and this franchise will regroup under new head coach Jim Harbaugh.

29. Arizona Cardinals (4-13)

The Cardinals can take more positives from this season than the average four-win team. New head coach Jonathan Gannon had his guys playing hard every game, and things improved when Kyler Murray returned from a long-term knee injury.

30. New England Patriots (4-13)

A solid defense but no ideas on offense. Bill Belichick is out and Jerod Mayo is in.

31. Washington Commanders (4-13)

The Commanders started a new era in the middle of the season when a new ownership group took over. They have a lot of work to do this offseason, but the second-overall pick is a good starting point.

32. Carolina Panthers (2-15)

A porous offensive line made it tough for this team to do anything on that side of the ball. Protecting Bryce Young should be the team's top priority this offseason.