Our NFL Team Rankings are based entirely on the The Trench Counter, which is an objective formula measuring average yards per pass and run on both offense and defense, along with first downs registered and given up, turnovers for and against, and total penalty yards.
Over time, The Trench Counter rankings begin to closely resemble the standings but goes even further to determine which teams are truly the best when on the line of scrimmage.
The chief aim of the Trench Counter is to take the subjective out of the equation and even the somewhat fluky nature of teams actually scoring points, which is of course the whole point on a game-by-game basis.
Week 1 Rankings
1. Minnesota Vikings: 18.4
2. Detroit Lions: 13.6
3. Miami Dolphins: 12.0
4. Seattle Seahawks: 10.0
5. Tennessee Titans: 9.5
6. Arizona Cardinals: 9.2
7. San Francisco 49ers: 6.3
8. Chicago Bears: 5.3
9. New York Jets: 4.4
10. Houston Texans: 4.0
11. Cleveland Browns: 3.7
12. Carolina Panthers: 3.3
13. Philadelphia Eagles: 2.7
14. Denver Broncos: 2.5
15. New Orleans Saints: 1.0
16. Cincinnati Bengals: 0.8
17. Baltimore Ravens: -0.8
18. Atlanta Falcons: -1.0
19. Indianapolis Colts: -2.5
20. Jacksonville Jaguars: -2.7
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: -3.3
22. Pittsburgh Steelers: -3.7
23. Washington Redskins: -4.0
24. Oakland Raiders: -4.4
25. Buffalo Bills: -5.3
26. Dallas Cowboys: -6.3
27. San Diego Chargers: -9.2
28. Kansas City Chiefs: -9.5
29. Green Bay Packers: -10.0
30. New England Patriots: -12.0
31. New York Giants: -13.6
32. St. Louis Rams: -18.4