The NFL season is fast approaching! It is at this point in the season that many people are making predictions of who will make or miss the playoffs. The playoff picture in the AFC versus the NFC is drastically different. It’s hard to pick AFC teams because of how many good ones there are. In the NFC, so many teams have questions that it is hard to see the playoff picture. This leads to the question: who are the playoff teams in the NFC?
The Favorites
The Buccaneers, Rams and Packers are the teams that I have slotted in as, barring disaster, shoe in playoff teams. These teams have too much talent to not make the playoffs. However, disaster is not hard to see for these teams with the news coming out of preseason. Tampa Bay lost their starting center and have had a slew of other injuries. The news about Matthew Stafford’s elbow is concerning especially if that lingers throughout the season. The Packers offense has many questions at wide receiver and the lingering injuries to David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins are concerning. Despite this I think all of these teams we will playoff teams in the NFC.
The Next Tier
Just outside the favorites, I have the Vikings and Eagles as NFC playoff teams. The Vikings are the sexy pick to unseat the Packers atop the NFC North. Mike Zimmer is gone and the offense is loaded with talent. The question for the Vikings is whether they can stop opposing teams and whether Kirk Cousins can win big games. The Eagles got better at a lot of positions. The offseason acquisition of AJ Brown helps the receiving corps and the defensive line looks ready to wreak havoc. The biggest question for them is whether Jalen Hurts can be a elite level QB. What keeps me from putting them in the favorites is my lack of faith in Cousins and Hurts as QBs.
The Final Two Spots
Every other team in the NFC I have serious questions about. The Cowboys got worse and the first third of their schedule is brutal. The Commanders have Carson Wentz who couldn’t beat the Jaguars to get a playoff spot. The Giants have an improved roster but I’m not putting my money on a playoff push. Carolina, Seattle. and Atlanta are in rebuilding mode. The Saints have some good pieces but Sean Payton is no longer there which I think a lot of people are overlooking. The Lions are another sexy pick to sneak into the playoffs and while I see a path, it is a longshot. The Cardinals have had an offseason of bad news and I can’t say I am optimistic the season will be any different. The Bears are a mess and are a top pick candidate.
The Biggest Wild Card: The 49ers
The 49ers are probably the easiest team to put in the paragraph above but I need to see some more out of Trey Lance before I am confident in doing so. By week 6, the 49ers could emerge as favorites in the NFC if Lance is as advertised. His ceiling is a lot higher that Jimmy Garoppolo. The flip side of that is his floor is way lower. It will probably be really good at times and really bad at others. If there can be more good than bad, the 49ers will find themselves at the top of the NFC. If not, the 49ers will be more middle of the pack.
Who will be the NFC playoff teams? No clue. All of these teams have so many questions you could tell me any combination of teams and I would be able to see that scenario as possible. It will be very interesting to see how the season unfolds in the NFC.