NFC EAST
Philadelphia Eagles
After a sketchy go of it last season with Carson Wentz coming back from his torn ACL and an aging roster, the Eagles couldn’t live up to their Super Bowl standards. This season, we should see Philly be quite special once again.
Prediction:Â 11-5
Dallas Cowboys
With the contract situations surrounding Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper and especially Ezekiel Elliott, there will be more headlines about the team’s off-field drama than its on-field performance. This is a team that won the division last year and should be in the playoff race this season, but only if everyone is on the same page.
Prediction:Â 9-7
Washington
When your team’s best offensive player might be a 34-year-old running back and the franchise left tackle has yet to report to the team, you’re in trouble. Washington is trotting out Case Keenum as the starting QB and that should tell you all you need to know about its hopes for this season.
Prediction:Â 6-10
New York Giants
The teardown is underway in New Jersey as the Giants should start their transition from Eli Manning to Daniel Jones. Whether they have a true heir is up for debate, but this isn’t a roster that looks good enough to trouble many teams.
Prediction:Â 5-11
NFC NORTH
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikes returned the key members of its solid defence and have the weapons on offence to make teams pay. With the offensive line looking better than last year, we should see Minny return to its 2017 form.
Prediction:Â 10-6
Chicago Bears
After winning 12 games last season, we see Da Bears taking a small step back. We’re still not sold on Mitchell Trubisky as a leader and we doubt the defence can repeat its dominance after coordinator Vic Fangio left for Denver.
Prediction:Â 9-7 (second wild card)
Green Bay Packers
The Pack finally made a change at coach, but did they get the right guy by hiring the Titans’ offensive coordinator? Aaron Rodgers is immensely talented and the Pack invested in some defenders in free agency, but is it all enough to earn a wild-card berth?
Prediction:Â 9-7
Detroit Lions
The Lions are likely to be the worst team in this division, but that’s not too much of an indictment considering the competition. They’ve made some good additions in free agency and should be a tough matchup every week.
Prediction:Â 6-10
NFC SOUTH
Atlanta Falcons
After Super Bowl heartbreak two years ago, the Falcons’ hopes were submarined by some key injuries early last season. With the defence health and investments made on the offensive line, it’s not exactly a stretch to see Atlanta back atop this division. After all, Matt Ryan essentially repeated his 2016 MVP numbers last year.
Prediction:Â 12-4
New Orleans Saints
With its defence stepping up last season, the Saints were a missed call away from going to the Super Bowl. The offence should remain among the league’s best when healthy and if there isn’t too much regression on D, another playoff run is certainly in the cards.
Prediction:Â 10-6
Carolina Panthers
The Panthers have the pieces to be a strong playoff team, but it all depends on the two men in the middle on both sides of the ball. As long as Cam Newton and Luke Kuechly are healthy, these Cats will roar. It’s just a shame that we don’t know if they can stay on the field.
Prediction:Â 9-7
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
New coach Bruce Arians and Jameis Winston were seemingly made for each other, but the Bucs defence is a huge concern. Coupled with the inability to stop opponents, Winston’s mistakes will doom this team in several games this season.
Prediction:Â 5-11
NFC WEST
Los Angeles Rams
There are worries about Todd Gurley’s knee and an offence that struggled down the stretch, but the main reason for the latter was Cooper Kupp’s absence. The Rams did well to get some insurance for Gurley and can now load manage him while Kupp is back and faster than ever.
Prediction:Â 12-4
Seattle Seahawks
Trading basically nothing for Jadeveon Clowney is a big win for a defence that needed another impact player. Russell Wilson is still running the show and the 12th Man advantage at home remains a huge factor. Seattle should at least be on the edge of the playoff picture if not in it.
Prediction:Â 9-7
San Francisco 49ers
Jimmy G is back from his blown-out knee, but there are plenty of questions in Santa Clara. Can the defence hold up? Does Garoppolo have enough weapons to work with? Is Garoppolo even as good as we expected him to be after his trade from New England? We’ll find out very soon.
Prediction:Â 7-9
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals aren’t going to be a good team, but they should be fun to watch. The Air Raid offence of Kliff Kingsbury led by first-overall pick Kyler Murray will be genuinely interesting to watch, but this isn’t going to be a playoff contender for at least a year or two – if it all works out.
Prediction:Â 3-13