(Divison winners bolded)
AFC East:
1-Buffalo Bills
2-Miami Dolphins
3-New England Patriots
4-New York Jets
This division is much improved. The Patriots and Dolphins are both teams that can make some noise and make the playoffs. With that being said the Bills are clearly the team to beat in this division.
AFC North:
1-Cincinnati Bengals
2-Baltimore Ravens
3-Pittsburgh Steelers
4-Cleveland Browns
This division is nearly impossible to predict. You can make a case for all of these teams making the playoffs. Even the teams at the top, The Bengals and Ravens could have poor seasons if they can’t build on their prior successes. The Steelers and Browns both have major questions at Quarterback which makes it tough to see either of those teams win this division.
AFC South:
1-Indianapolis Colts
2-Tennessee Titans
3-Jacksonville Jaguars
4-Houston Texans
This is one of the weaker divisions in the league. I think the Titans will take a major step back this season after losing AJ Brown. The Colts’ addition of Matt Ryan makes them a favorite in this division. I’ll take Ryan and Taylor over Tannehill and Henry. I could see the Texans finishing higher than the Jags but neither team will likely challenge for the top spot.
AFC West:
1-Denver Broncos
2-Las Vegas Raiders
3-Los Angeles Chargers
4-Kansas City Chiefs
This is the top division in the NFL. You can make an argument that any of them will win it. All of them will likely deserve to be in the playoffs at the end of the year(Although only 3 likely would) I want to be clear that none of these teams are going to be bad. First place and last place might be just one or two games. With that out of the way let’s talk about the teams. I have the Broncos winning this division. The reason is pretty simple – they filled their biggest weakness last year with a star. Give Russell Wilson decent receivers and a good defense and he will take you places. I remember all last season all this team needed was a QB, they now have it. The Raiders are simply being slept on right now. Last season they finished 10-7 despite a ton of other issues impacting the team. All they did was go out and get the best receiver in the NFL and added him to the roster. This is going to be amazing to watch and tough to beat. I’m sure everyone is shocked that the Chargers and Chiefs are the bottom two in this division. I simply can’t get behind the Chargers right now. Will they be a very good team? Yes. Are they going to win the games they need to win this division? I don’t believe so. They play Denver in Week 18 I could see this game being for the division – I don’t trust them to win that game. I have the Chiefs last simply because they lost Tyreek Hill. He was so important to this offense. He was a scoring threat every time he was out there. This is just something that will be tough to replace. If the other teams in this division didn’t improve much I’d have given them the benefit of the doubt and had them at the top but with them losing Tyreek and all the other teams improving significantly it is tough for me to predict them at the top.
NFC East:
1-Dallas Cowboys
2-New York Giants
3-Philidpehia Eagles
4-Washington Commanders
This division is not as bad as many want you to believe. I think an argument can be made for every team in this division winning it. I have the Cowboys winning it because they have the best Quarterback and the best defense in the division. You might be surprised with me putting the Giants at second. The first thing is that I am a Giants fan, the second thing is that they are not being given a fair shake. The Giants have certainly been bad for a while but anyone who watched the team last season realized that this team had its chances and just didn’t play up to it. If they stay healthy I think they can be a very good team. The Eagles and Commanders are both teams I could see making some noise. This division is a complete toss-up and will likely come down to the wire. The fact the Eagles are being so hyped makes me think they might just have a down season even with the addition of AJ Brown.
NFC North:
1-Minnesota Vikings
2-Detroit Lions
3-Green Bay Packers
4-Chicago Bears
I have no clue what to expect from this division. We have a lot of unknowns. The Packers lost Davante Adams which is a huge loss. How big of an impact that will have is still to be determined. Watching the Packers last year was basically the Aaron Rodgers and Davanate Adams show. That is why I have them at third. I don’t think this team will be bad I just don’t expect them to be the same team we have seen for years. They are going to be heavily reliant on the defense, I’m not sure that will be enough. I have the Vikings winning because of the pure talent on this roster. This receiving core is stacked, Dalvin Cook is a flat-out stud at running back and Kirk Cousins is enough to get the job done. This is the Viking’s chance to win the division and I think they’ll take it. I have the Lions second because I am rooting for this team this season. I love Dan Campbell and there is a lot of talent on this roster for him to use. People forget just a few years ago Jared Goff was viewed as a quarterback with a bright future and even has played in a Super Bowl. He is good enough to use the weapons he has at his disposal. Don’t sleep on the Lions. I expect the Bears to be bad.
NFC South:
1-New Orleans Saints
2-Tampa Bay Buccaneers
3-Carolina Panthers
4-Atlanta Falcons
Look out for the Saints this year. I think they have a balanced team and I think they are the best in this division. I’m going to be honest, I think the Buccaneers are not going to be great this year. There is a ton of doubt surrounding the team right now I think it is for good reason. I wish I had the guts to put them lower than this but I don’t. I really like the Panthers this season. Everyone seems to forget that before Christian McCaffrey got hurt last year this team looked good. They upgraded at quarterback with the addition of Baker Mayfield so I think this team is going to be tough to beat every week.
NFC West:
1-Los Angeles Rams
2-San Francisco 49ers
3-Arizona Cardinals
4-Seattle Seahawks
I like the Rams to win this division. I think they are still the best due to the fact all the other teams have major questions. Trey Lance is simply unproven. Without good quarterback play it is tough to put them over the Rams. I’m honestly not sold on the Cardinals this season. There seems to be a lot of drama surrounding the team and I don’t think they can repeat what they did last year. The Seahawks are going to be the worst team in this division.