Column by Jeff Budlong, On the Rebound

Because I am in the mood for some football &8212; although not necessarily Monday Night Football &8212; I think this week is a good time to break out the NFL offseason power rankings.

Training camps are still more than a month away, but is it really ever too early to start a little discussion?

So here is the list of the top 20.

1. New England Patriots &8212; Their secondary may still be a question if Asante Samuel holds out and with the seemingly yearly tradition of serious injuries that happen to Rodney Harrison and others. However, they upgraded the defense with Adalius Thomas and Randy Moss will be a major impact player. A 14-2 record is not out of the question.

2. Indianapolis Colts &8212; They have Peyton Manning and anytime you can say that you are a title contender. It will be interesting to see if the defense can sleepwalk through another regular season and still win a title.

3. San Diego Chargers &8212; The best team in the league last year dumped a useless coach and then hired a guy who flamed out in Washington and Oakland. Of course, who hasn&8217;t bombed in Oakland.

4. Baltimore Ravens &8212; I still love the defense and it is going to carry them far. Willis McGahee is going to be a beast behind the offensive line, but does Steve McNair have the ability to lead the offense?

5. New Orleans Saints &8212; I think the Saints will be hard pressed to recreate all the good vibes from a year ago, but there is a lot of talent on this team. The NFC is the weaker of the two conferences and Brees, Bush and Co. should be a high-flying offense.

6. N.Y. Jets &8212; Gang Green was a surprise last year, but a strong draft added with &8220;Mangenious&8221; could make for a good year in New York.

7. Chicago Bears &8212; The Bears are coming off a Super Bowl season, but Lance Briggs is threatening a hold out and Rex Grossman is still at QB. Could be a bad year for Chicago.

8. Denver Broncos &8212; It is early in his career, but this is already shaping up to be a make-or-break year for Jay Cutler.

9. Cincinnati Bengals &8212; Carson Palmer is a stud at the QB position, Ocho-Cinco is a top WR, but head coach Marvin Lewis still has plenty of issues to deal with on the defensive side of the ball.

10. Philadelphia &8212; I believe McNabb is going to bounce back with a strong season. Brian Westbrook will get the running game going, but the defense will have to step up.

11. St. Louis Rams &8212; Everyone is talking about the upstart 49ers. Everyone knows about Seattle. That&8217;s why I pick the Rams to win the division.

12. Dallas Cowboys &8212; Romo or Rom-no. That is the question the Cowboys will have to answer this season. If it is the latter the &8216;Boys are in big trouble.

13. Seattle Seahawks &8212; You know the names like Alexander, Hasselbeck and Jones, but Seattle needs a jolt to get back to Super Bowl level.

14. Tennessee Titans &8212; Vince Young. Enough said.

15. Jacksonville Jaguars &8212; This is Byron Leftwich&8217;s last chance to lead this team, but this time around everyone knows David Garrard isn&8217;t a great QB in waiting.

16. Kansas City Chiefs &8212; They still have Larry Johnson and he is a beast who will win games, but QB, WR and defense all have question marks.

17. San Francisco 49ers &8212; Great finish to last year but I think they are still one year away from being a real force in the league again.

18. Tampa Bay Bucs &8212; I love the drafting of Calvin Johnson and between Garcia and Johnson this team is going to win a lot more this year.

19. Pittsburgh Steelers &8212; If the Steelers pressure the QB under new coach Mike Tomlin &8212; and I mean really pressure him &8212; the Steelers will be back in the playoffs.

20. Detroit Lions &8212; Hey, we all need to laugh, right?

Sports editor Jeff Budlong&8217;s column appears every Wednesday.