Much like preseason and Week 1 college football polls, NFL power rankings don't mean much right now (or possibly not even as the season goes on), but they do give plenty of talking points to pick up on. ESPN already has its Week 1 power rankings out. To no surprise at all, the Denver Broncos check in near the bottom of the league at No. 27.
That's a justifiable position since it was where they ranked the team in their preseason rankings. The Broncos are coming off a 4-12 season that has made improvements on defense with the addition of rookie Von Miller and a revamped defensive line. The defense looked dominating during the preseason--when the first-teamers were in.
But Kyle Orton still remains the hot topic of conversation since Tim Tebow is with the team as well. As SB Nation's Joel Thorman writes in his first 2011 NFL power rankings:
QB Kyle Orton gets criticized too much, I think, and he'll make life difficult on more than a few teams.
Orton is brought down for what he isn't, but his numbers do tailor off during the second half of his seasons.
Time to find out what the Broncos have this season when they host the Oakland Raiders on Monday, Sept. 12.