While it’s still a little too soon to know for sure, six weeks into the season it’s fair to start wondering about some of the most overrated NFL teams in 2022.
Some teams may be overperforming or underperforming, but there are others that aren’t nearly as good as their record or place in the standings might suggest. It’s this group of teams that make up the most overrated NFL teams right now.
Overrated NFL teams 2022
What does it mean to be one of the most overrated teams in 2022? Well, it probably means that a team is going to fall apart late in the season or perhaps get to the playoffs and utterly collapse.
More importantly, it means that they tricked fans into thinking that they were better than they actually were. Let’s take a closer look at five teams we think are a little overrated after the first six weeks of the season.
Dolphins
In fairness to the Dolphins, injuries (especially at quarterback) have thrown their season off the track. But after that win over the Bills and a 3-0 start, a lot of people had Miami near the top of the power rankings. But after three straight losses, they’ve quickly turned into one of the most overrated NFL teams in 2022.
Regardless of who’s been at quarterback for Miami, the Dolphins have only scored more than 21 points once in six games this year.
In retrospect, far too much was made of Tua Tagovailoa and that epic comeback over the Ravens in Miami’s 42-38 Week 2 win. The truth is that Miami is still one of the worst rushing teams in the league despite bringing in Raheem Mostert and Chase Edmonds during the offseason. That hasn’t provided much assistance for the revolving door of quarterbacks.
The Miami defense hasn’t provided much support in recent weeks either when the Dolphins have needed to be good on that side of the ball the most. Miami’s saving grace is a schedule that will see them play the Steelers, Lions, Bears, Browns, and Texans between now and the end of November. But if the Dolphins can’t win at least four of those five games, we’ll know for sure that they’re overrated.
Titans
If the Titans win the AFC South again, it’ll likely be by default because the rest of the division is even less worthy of reaching the playoffs. Even with three straight wins, nobody should be buying stock in the Titans. Tennessee isn’t even averaging 20 points per game on the season, ranking in the bottom five in the NFL in passing yards.
Derrick Henry is supposed to be the team’s workhorse, but he’s yet to get going, averaging just 3.9 yards per carry through five games. There’s no way that Ryan Tannehill can carry the Tennessee offense if the Titans can’t get more out of Henry. Even if they currently sit atop the AFC South standings, that doesn’t mean the Titans are worthy of the same respect that other teams at the top of their division receive.
Vikings
It’s still too early to jump to conclusions about Minnesota’s 5-1 start to the season. Granted, the Vikings have positioned themselves to win the NFC North. But winning that division doesn’t make them serious contenders in the NFC. They also shouldn’t be on the same level as some of the other NFC teams with four or more wins.
Minnesota’s schedule has been a favorable one with wins over the Lions, Saints, Bears, and Dolphins in consecutive weeks. All four of those wins have come by eight points or less, so they’re not exactly blowing out subpar teams.
Minnesota was also out-gained by over 200 yards in a 24-7 loss to the Eagles in Week 2. As far as 5-1 teams are concerned, the Vikings aren’t that good, making them overrated if anybody thinks they’re poised to make some noise in the playoffs.
Packers
Elsewhere in the NFC North, the Packers are also overrated. This is a far cry from the team that’s won 13 games in three consecutive seasons. Having Aaron Rodgers just isn’t enough to consider the Packers a serious contender in the NFC. That certainly can’t be the case after back-to-back losses to the Giants and Jets.
Even with wins over the Buccaneers and Patriots, the Packers haven’t shown enough to prove that they should be considered a serious threat in the NFC.
Rodgers alone isn’t going to turn the tide for them, especially since he’s apparently battling a thumb problem. He’s also lacking talent at wide receiver around him, making it hard to believe in Green Bay right now.
Buccaneers
It’s shocking to say, but after losing to the Steelers in Week 6, the Bucs are the most overrated NFL team currently. Worse than that, Tom Brady has turned into one of the most overrated NFL players this season.
We keep expecting the Tampa offense to get things turned around under Brady, but it isn’t happening. The Bucs have scored 21 points or less in five of their six games and have the fewest rushing yards in the league.
Granted, the Tampa defense looks like it could be something special. But the Buccaneers entered the season as the overwhelming favorites in the NFC South. Right now, they don’t look anything close to a dominant force in a division in which no team has a winning record after six weeks. It’s possible that we’re finally starting to see Brady’s decline and that the Bucs are great defensively but relatively average overall.
