ESPN’s Football Power Index did not need much time to redraw the NFL’s early-season map.
After one Sunday of 2026 action, the computer has Miami at the bottom of the league, with Cleveland right behind it. Tennessee, Las Vegas and the Jets round out ESPN’s five worst teams after Week 1. The board updates daily, and the opening weekend gave it plenty of fresh evidence to chew on.
The results were ugly in a hurry. Jacksonville rolled past Cleveland 34-10.
Las Vegas beat Miami 27-13. The Jets went on the road and handled Tennessee 23-10.
Those games fed straight into the model, and the rankings moved accordingly.
Miami owns the lowest mark at minus 7.5. The Dolphins dropped their opener in Las Vegas and still look like a rebuild on both sides of the ball.
Cleveland is next at minus 7.1, and the Browns’ offense was graded as the weakest unit in the entire index. Tennessee comes in at 30th at minus 5.4 after its home loss to New York.
Then come the two teams that won and still landed in the basement. Las Vegas sits 29th at minus 3.6 after beating Miami, while the Jets are 28th at minus 3.2 despite winning in Nashville. The model still sees thin rosters and hard remaining slates, so those victories were not enough to lift either team out of the bottom five.
That group lines up with an earlier ESPN FPI forecast that had already singled out Miami, Cleveland and the Jets as long-term trouble spots. One Sunday did not change that picture. It sharpened it.
The top of the board shifted too. San Francisco jumped to No. 1 after beating Los Angeles 27-7 in Melbourne, and that same FPI Super Bowl shift knocked the Rams from first to sixth in one night.
The gap between the 49ers and the league’s weakest teams is already massive. San Francisco rates plus 5.6, while Miami sits at minus 7.5, a spread of more than 13 points against an average opponent on a neutral field.
Cleveland’s offense is especially hard to ignore. Its expected points rating is minus 6.2, and few NFL units open a season that far underwater.
Some of these teams were already showing up on disaster lists before Week 1. Miami’s quarterback change, Cleveland’s stalled offense and Tennessee’s early hole all fit that pattern.
The computer isn’t creating new problems. It’s putting numbers to the same ones that showed up on the field.
The index will move again after Monday night and throughout the season. For now, ESPN’s model says five teams are well below average, and three of them took double-digit losses on Sunday.
In Other News...
Browns Offense Had One Bright Spot Fans Should Notice After Week 1
Week 1 against Jacksonville did not give the Browns much to celebrate on offense, but the snap counts at least showed where the structure of the unit is headed. Cleveland leaned heavily on its offensive line, which was on the field for nearly every play, while Deshaun Watson had a few encouraging moments amid an otherwise sluggish day. The running back rotation and receiver usage were mixed, and the tight ends were barely involved, leaving a clear picture of an offense still searching for a rhythm.
For a team that came away with so little production, the encouraging part is that the alignment of the personnel suggests the Browns already know which pieces they trust most. The challenge now is turning that stability up front into something more functional everywhere else, because the passing game and the skill-position distribution left plenty of questions after the opener. The snap chart offered one useful clue, but it also hinted at how much work still sits ahead for Cleveland. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Could Give Shedeur Sanders A Familiar Option If QB Plans Change
Jimmy Horn Jr. is suddenly available, and that alone makes him a name worth tracking for a Browns team still sorting out its young skill positions. The former Carolina Panthers receiver was drafted in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, just after Cleveland took Shedeur Sanders, and the two already have built-in familiarity from their college days together at Colorado.
If the Browns decide to add more depth at wide receiver, Horn fits the profile of a low-cost, familiar option who could help a developing room. The connection becomes even more interesting if Sanders role changes and he ends up handling the offense, since Cleveland would then be looking not just for talent but for players who already know how to work alongside him. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Rookies Gave Fans One Reason To Watch After Week 1 Loss
The Browns opened on the road against the Jaguars with a first look at how several rookies might fit into the bigger picture, and there were at least a few encouraging signs amid the loss. Left tackle Spencer Fano had his hands full with the matchup, but he held up reasonably well for a young blocker, while wideouts KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston gave the offense some life with catches and a touchdown.
Emmanuel McNeil-Warren also got into the mix on the back end, and right guard Austin Barber was another rookie who stood out in a way Cleveland can build on. Barber posted the highest offensive grade among Browns players in the game, which is the kind of early showing that can matter for a team trying to sort out which first-year players are ready to contribute right away. [Read more 🡒]