With the NFL offseason winding down, its always interesting to look ahead to next year. The consensus surrounding the NFC which I agree with is that its a pretty weak conference. I agree with this 100%, as the AFC has a greater number of good teams. With that said, lets break down the contenders and pretenders in the NFC. Stay tuned for an AFC edition as well.
NFC East
Philadelphia Eagles: Hopeful Contenders – Howie Roseman is building a great roster. He has shored up the team’s perimeter with flashy offseason acquisitions of AJ Brown and James Bradberry. The team now has two legit corners and receivers which is a huge plus. They also have improved the team’s defensive line with the signing of Hassan Reddick and drafting Jordan Davis. This team has an easy schedule and I expect them to make the playoffs with relative ease. My only concern is the QB situation, as I am not a believer in Jalen Hurts being a Super Bowl level quarterback. However, aside from safety, this is a deep roster.
Dallas Cowboys: Should be contenders – Coming off a disappointing end to their season I think the Cowboys got worse as the offseason went along. It doesn’t help that they lost Connor Williams and La’el Collins. I don’t think losing Amari Cooper will be that big a deal, as having Ceedee Lamb develop as the team’s lead receiver will be fine. Signing James Washington as the team’s 3rd receiver should be suitable. While I think this got worse, with Dak, Zeke, and Ceedee, the pressure will be on per usual in Dallas.
Washington Football Team: Likely Pretenders -This team starts with its defense which was a top 3 unit two years ago. They still have a lot of their core guys from that unit. However, this team likely won’t have the offensive firepower to make a deep playoff run. I could see them making the playoffs possibly, but not going far. Reports have said Wentz is on a shorter leash, and if he doesn’t perform well, expect this team to look elsewhere.
New York Giants: Pretenders – his roster is not badly structured, with improving offensive and defensive lines given their additions this offseason. However, their lack of personnel in the secondary, and the fact that Daniel Jones is their quarterback warrants me to deem them pretenders.
NFC South
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Super Bowl or Bust Contenders- One of the most obvious choices to make here. The goal for this team is for Brady to get one last Super Bowl and likely ride into the sunset towards his lucrative broadcast career with FOX. With Brady, Evans, and Godwin, and Fournette the team has its core offensive players in place. We still are waiting to what happens with Suh, Sherman, JPP, and Gronk. Nonetheless, when a team has Brady, its Super Bowl or bust.
New Orleans Saints: Could be Sneaky Contenders – This might seem a little bold, however, I love this team’s weapons surrounding Jameis. Michael Thomas, Jarvis Landry, Chris Olave, paired with Kamara in the backfield isn’t too shabby. Signing Tyrann Mathieu also helps shore up the team’s back end. While I’m not sold on this team overthrowing the Buccaneers, if Jameis turns things on, things could get interesting.
Atlanta Falcons: Obvious Pretenders – With one of the worst rosters in the league, and the team’s longtime QB Matt Ryan out the door, this team is going to begin its rebuilding stage. Fans however can look forward to the development of Kyle Pitts and Drake London.
Carolina Panthers: Pretenders – This team has shown a strong lack of interest in Sam Darnold as their QB. I can imagine this team rolling over if they feel inclined to do so. Not a lot to expect with this team, they seem to be in the hunt for a QB next year.
NFC North
Green Bay Packers: Super Bowl or Bust – It’s clear how this team is now building around Aaron Rodgers. They likely now want to win on the strength of this team’s defense and running game. Expect AJ Dillon and Aaron Jones to create a monster backfield. With two first round defensive picks and Christian Watson in the second round, I like their draft. While Aaron Rodgers won’t have strong offensive weapons, its still Aaron Rodgers, and with a strong defense and running game, this team still should be contenders.
Minnesota Vikings: Hopeful Contenders – This roster is fairly underwhelming to call them contenders. However, the reason I say hopeful is because of the monster combination of Justin Jefferson and Dalvin Cook. Kirk Cousins had a decent year last year, year,but this team would be nowhere near contention if they were in the AFC. The NFC is just simply a weak conference.
Chicago Bears: Pretenders – Losing two of their better players in Allen Robinson and Khalil Mack does this team no favors. Much of the players from their vaunted defense under Vic Fangio is gone. This team lacks many good players on both sides, so expect to see another year of mediocrity in Chicago. Poor Justin Fields, his top 2 receivers are Darnell Mooney and Byron Pringle.
Detroit Lions: Pretenders – I liked this team’s draft as they got two building blocks in Hutchinson and Williams. This team however is still rebuilding, all signs point to them being in the QB sweepstakes in next years NFL draft.
NFC West
Los Angeles Rams: Super Bowl or Bust Contenders – The Rams had a good offseason, managing to likely replace OBJ with Allen Robinson and signing Bobby Wagner. Losing Von Miller is a blow, but they did manage to make some small improvements to an average offensive line. Losing Whitworth is tough, I expect to either sign another offensive lineman or trade for one during the season. They will also get a healthy Cam Akers. With Donald, Wagner, and Ramsey this defense is loaded.
San Francisco 49ers: Major Contenders – We don’t know who the team’s starting QB will be, or whether Deebo will be there, however this is a solid roster. They’ve made a Super Bowl and NFC Championship in the past three years. While the offensive line likely will be a tad worse, this team should still be major contenders per usual.
Arizona Cardinals: Hoping to break through Contenders – It was an eventful offseason in Arizona, with rumors of Kyler wanting to be traded paired with DeAndre Hopkins 6 game suspension. Aside from losing Chandler Jones and adding Hollywood Brown, they didn’t do much in the offseason. It feels like this team will break through as contenders as far as Kyler can lead them.
Seattle Seahawks: Rebuilding Pretenders – They just traded the franchise’s best player, but their rebuild has a lot of assets from trading Russell Wilson. They will be in the running for a QB in next year’s draft, as they are in year one of a rebuild away from the Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner era.
