New Orleans Saints at No. 22 in NFL.com’s latest power rankings

Dec 21, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints running back Mark Ingram (22) carries the ball as Atlanta Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant (21) defends during the first quarter at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

24. New York Giants (6-10 in 2014)

"Mentioned this at the NFL Network studios the other day, but why not the Giants in the NFC East in 2015? What if Dallas has trouble running the ball with DeMarco Murray gone and Run DMCgiving them, like, seven games? What if the Sam Bradford experiment fails miserably for theEagles? Just saying. No matter what transpires in pro football’s big-name division, Big Blue has to get a safety and some help on both lines."

23. San Francisco 49ers (8-8 in 2014)

"Imagine becoming a full-time, bona fide NFL head coach for the first time, and then in your first month on the job, watching your roster slowly come apart. Patrick Willis is done. Justin Smith is likely to follow him out the door. Frank Gore is gone. One of the best guards in football ( Mike Iupati) is gone. Both starting corners from last year have peaced out. And now Chris Borland retires. Although, in his case, I applaud the courage it takes to quit something you love, and to have the confidence to pursue something else. No matter what, Jim Tomsula is fielding a weaker team today than Jim Harbaugh did in December. That’s why it is so important that theTorrey Smith and Darnell Dockett signings, as well as the 2015 draft, work out for the franchise."

22. New Orleans Saints (7-9 in 2014)

"The video of the little girl getting darn near vitriolic, then sad, then mad, then fighting back tears over the trade of Jimmy Graham was the best entry in the “child getting worked up over the NFL” genre since this masterpiece. But she shouldn’t be upset; what the Saints are doing makes a lot of sense. The top priority for the organization was to re-sign running back Mark Ingram. Done. We should point out New Orleans ranked sixth in the NFL in rushing in 2009, the season the Saints won the Super Bowl."

21. Atlanta Falcons (6-10 in 2014)

"Still love the Dan Quinn hire. Don’t love where the pass rush is coming from. Adrian Clayborn? Jerry Hughes — the second-best 4-3 pass rusher on the market — stayed with the Bills, while Michael Johnson — probably a (very) distant third in that category — signed with the Bengals. So Atlanta is either relying on the draft or hasn’t completely ruled out Greg Hardy — or maybe a trade is in the cards.. Of course, D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported earlier this month that the Falcons’ front office isn’t interested in Hardy. We’ll see. On another note, I bet Falcons fans are really going to miss Harry Douglas, even if he wasn’t the best wideout on the team."

20. St. Louis Rams (6-10 in 2014)

"Either GM Les Snead will be getting rid of one of the Rams’ defensive linemen, or they’re about to have the most fearsome defensive front since, well, the Fearsome Foursome of Rams lore.Chris Long, Robert Quinn, Aaron Donald, Michael Brockers, Nick Fairley … come on. The team might as well move back to Los Angeles, if only to make travel easier for NFC West rivals San Francisco and Arizona, who would surely be able to use the shorter flight after Reggie Bush andCarlos Hyde average 1 yard per carry for the Niners and Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmergets faceplanted 15 times in their respective visits. Still waiting to see what this offense can do, however."

19. Minnesota Vikings (7-9 in 2014)

"So the Vikings lost out on the Michael Johnson sweepstakes — which means they won’t be able to pay $5 million per year for a guy who makes a million dollars per sack. I think they’ll be OK. The real deal is this: What’s happening with Adrian Peterson? He’s either really upset with the team, or he’s screaming softly that he wants to have an opportunity in Dallas. Regardless, Minnesota would be smart to sign Stevan Ridley. He’s a good back, someone they could team with Jerick McKinnon."

18. Miami Dolphins (8-8 in 2014)

"The addition of Ndamukong Suh makes this team interesting. But how contender-ish are theDolphins, really? They still need help at linebacker and in the secondary. Not that relinquishing Dannell Ellerbe and Philip Wheeler — who signed on with the Dolphins as free agents just two years ago — was a bad thing. On average, Wheeler was making over $5 million per year; Ellerbe was even more expensive than that. For all that money, Miami got less than 50 tackles, no sacks, and no interceptions out of Wheeler and Ellerbe last season. So you figure the draft can at leastreplace that level of production. But is Kenny Stills a WR2? Is Lamar Miller an RB1? Lots of questions, and not too much money left to throw at them. This is an important draft for this organization."

17. Buffalo Bills (9-7 in 2014)

"It’s hard not to be fired up for Bills football in 2015. Love the LeSean McCoy acquisition. Love re-signing Jerry Hughes. How about adding a true fullback in Jerome Felton, too? Yep, Rex Ryan is fired up. That is, following the good six-hour cry he had after hearing Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartiesigned with the Jets. That must be like your ex-fiancée deciding she wants to get married after you cancelled a $100,000 wedding. Not that I know anyone like that."