When you put together NFL Power Rankings, there are usually a few strong teams at the top, then a few good teams, a middle class, a lower middle class and then the garbage at the bottom.

Not now.

Sure, there are a few good teams at the top -- especially the New England Patriots -- and a few bad ones at the bottom, but the rest of the league has become a giant middle class.

It wouldn't shock me to see teams as low as the mid-20s in my latest Power Rankings make the playoffs in 2017.

After a wild-spending free agency period, followed by a crazy and unpredictable NFL Draft, a lot of teams seem much improved from a year ago.

That's on paper.

We know what that means.

Weren't the Jacksonville Jaguars the paper champs last offseason? How did that work out?

That's part of what makes the league great, trying to identify teams on the rise and teams on the decline. It happens every year that a team emerges from a non-playoff season to a whole lot more, like the Atlanta Falcons last season.

I have my eye on a few possible teams in 2017, but it's early. I think the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be one of those teams, and I think the Arizona Cardinals are ready for a bounce-back season. In the AFC, it could be the Los Angeles Chargers.

Then again, it's only May. A lot can happen between now and the time camps open.

One thing that remains the same: The Patriots are still the team to beat.

Graphic illustration by Mike Meredith