Every year the NFL season comes and goes. From players to coaches, the teams change drastically each season. For many, the goal is to keep as many players from prior, while for others it is to bring in new talent. However, no matter the steps that are taken, every team’s goal is to eventually hoist the Super Bowl trophy overhead.
In the AFC, there are four divisions, the AFC East is made up of the Bills, Dolphins, Jets and Patriots. The AFC South is made up of the Jaguars, Texans, Colts and Titans. The AFC North is made up of the Browns, Steelers, Bengals and Ravens. Lastly, the AFC West is made up of the Chargers, Chiefs, Broncos and Raiders.
On the opposite side of things, is the NFC, made up of four divisions as well. Including, the NFC East which is made up of the Cowboys, Commanders, Eagles and Giants. The NFC South is made up of the Saints, Buccanneers, Falcons and Panthers. The NFC North is made up of the Packers, Lions, Bears, and Vikings. Lastly, the NFC West is made up of the Cardinals, Seahawks, 49ers and Rams.
With all 32 teams, we see an abundance of different roster talent and potential, however, that said, there can only be 14 total teams to make the post-season and have a chance come January of being crowned champions.
For the AFC East, I find that there are three teams with the potential to make the playoffs: Jets, Dolphins and Bills will make the playoffs. I think the Bills will make it as a second behind the QB-WR combo of Josh Allen and Stephon Diggs, with a great defense. And the Jets will make it as a sixth seed with new QB and hall-of-famer Aaron Rodgers at the helm. And lastly, the Dolphins will make it as a seventh seed behind their speedy offense and “heady” coaching.
In the AFC North, I find that there are two teams that will make this year’s playoffs. First, the Bengals as a third seed, leaving them to face the Jets, behind their high-tempo offense with playmakers across the board, from QB Joe Burrow to WR Jamaar Chase and RB Joe Mixon.
In addition to the Bengals, I think the Steelers will edge out the playoffs as a seventh seed behind their gruesome defense headlined by Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and DE T.J Watt, and their passion to win behind great coaching from long-tenured coach Mike Tomlin.
For the AFC South, I see a clear-cut division winner with the Jaguars. For the Texans, Titans, and Colts, all three teams will be dealing with rookie QBs and unproven offenses, while the Jaguars have a proven QB with a previous year’s playoff win to their name.
Lastly for the AFC, I think only the Chiefs will advance; however, I think they will receive the first-round bye and be the standout team in the AFC. With two Super Bowls to their name in the last four years, they have a dynasty and a proven path to victory. And, by keeping their core of QB Mahomes and TE Kelce, they have extreme Super Bowl potential.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, the NFC, like the AFC will have seven teams making the playoffs, with one of those seven getting a first-round bye.
Starting off in the NFC East, I think that two of four of the teams will make it, with the Eagles and Cowboys. I think the Eagles will make it as a third seed, with them making the Super Bowl last year, I think that they are destined for continued success this season. I think the Cowboys make it as a second-seed behind a winning culture, and elite playmakers offensively with CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott, and defensively with superstar Micah Parsons.
Then, in the NFC North, I think the Vikings and Lions will make the playoffs. With the Viking’s solid defense and the elite duo of Kirk Cousins and superstar Justin Jefferson, anything is possible for the team including the playoffs. For the Lions, the team barely missed the playoffs last year with a 9-8 record and they have filled in many holes and developed stars one year more.
In the NFC South, I think only the Saints will make it. With such little talent and a requirement of one team per division to make the playoffs, the Saints are the standout team with the most promise of the four, leaving them as the only choice to make it.
Lastly, in the NFC West, I find that the Seahawks and 49ers will make the playoffs. With eight players on the NFL’s top 100 players list, the 49ers are loaded with talent across the board, on both sides of the ball, leaving them with a great chance at doing special things. Then, the Seahawks were a borderline playoff team last year, and with the eighth easiest schedule league-wide, the “Hawks” have a great chance to compete for a playoff spot.
Then, in the playoffs, I think that the four-seeded Vikings will beat the five-seeded Saints, due to having more playmakers, leaving them to play the first-round bye team of the 49ers. Following that, I think that the six-seeded Lions will shock the world and take down the three-seeded Eagles in a thriller. Furthermore, I think that the two-seeded Cowboys will shred through the seven-seeded Seahawks behind their abundance of firepower.
Moving into the divisional rounds for the NFC, I think the 49ers will burn through the Vikings, and that the Lions will pull off another massive upset taking down the Cowboys.
After that, I think the 49ers will finally end the Lion’s Super Bowl aspirations and be crowned champions of the NFC.
Adjacent, on the flip side of things, I think the Jaguars will beat the Dolphins and then take on the Chiefs. Then, I think the Bengals will take down the Jets. Lastly, I think the Steelers will take down the Bills to play the Bengals.
Following this, I think the Chiefs will beat the Jaguars and the Bengals will beat the Steelers, leaving the AFC Championship to be played between the Chiefs and Bengals, where I think the Chiefs will take them down.
Then, in the grand finale of the Super Bowl between the Chiefs and the 49ers, I think the 49ers will finally win after years of heartbreaking defeats.
All in all, this year’s NFL Season will be one for the ages and a season of many exciting events.
Fantasy
Many people play fantasy football. Some take it to a deep extent by putting a lot of money on their own team. A rollercoaster of emotion will occur on Thursdays, Sundays, and Monday nights. This concept of football makes it so entertaining and really will enclose your mind on the game because of one player.
The most valuable position in each fantasy league is the running back position. The depth of running backs in the league is pretty slim. Some receivers will go pretty high but there’s three on each team. The best running backs to take this year are Christian McCaffery, Nick Chubb and Tony Pollard. These running backs will have upside in every category and lead their teams to the top of their division.
The second best position in fantasy is the wide receiver. They seem to be neck and neck with the running backs, but there’s so many young and old receivers in the league who can have a breakout season at any moment. The top three receivers are Justin Jefferson, Jamaar Chase and Cooper Kupp. The college teammates of Jefferson and Chase will plan to keep their spots as the league’s young stars this year.
Some could argue that the tight end position is the third most important because there’s so little available each week. But, I think that the quarterback is the third position. They put up the most points each week, but there’s 32 starting quarterbacks each week, so there’s many to choose from. The top three to choose from this year are Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts. These young quarterbacks plan to be starters and keep their young gunslinger style of play.
Fantasy football will continue to attract millions over the world. With fantasy football sites bringing in millions of dollars. The NFL will also be more interesting with a strong rookie class and other teams making a strong case to be in the playoffs.
