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2026 NFL Season Incorrect Picks - NFC

  • Writer: Tim Brusveen
    Tim Brusveen
  • 2 days ago
  • 3 min read

Join me for a tour of season predictions that will be comically inaccurate by Thanksgiving.


The Cowboys and the Bengals seem to be kindred spirits whose stories are similar. A revamped defense and already excellent offense finally comes together to create one of the best teams in football. The desire for the Eagles to go away in fan and media circles is strong but betting against the Sirianni program and the Roseman model, no matter how messy at times, would be foolish. The Commanders remain stuck in neutral with one of the league’s oldest rosters and one of the league’s worst offensive lines. They’ll also start to have uncomfortable conversations about the long term viability of Jayden Daniels. The Giants go into the season feeling good about John Harbaugh but in his range of outcomes; a Pete Carroll/Raiders type season is more likely than a return to glory. The Ravens were more than ready to get rid of Harbaugh, paired with three of the least reliable skill players in football in Dart, Skattebo and Nabors, the bottom could really fall out.
The Cowboys and the Bengals seem to be kindred spirits whose stories are similar. A revamped defense and already excellent offense finally comes together to create one of the best teams in football. The desire for the Eagles to go away in fan and media circles is strong but betting against the Sirianni program and the Roseman model, no matter how messy at times, would be foolish. The Commanders remain stuck in neutral with one of the league’s oldest rosters and one of the league’s worst offensive lines. They’ll also start to have uncomfortable conversations about the long term viability of Jayden Daniels. The Giants go into the season feeling good about John Harbaugh but in his range of outcomes; a Pete Carroll/Raiders type season is more likely than a return to glory. The Ravens were more than ready to get rid of Harbaugh, paired with three of the least reliable skill players in football in Dart, Skattebo and Nabors, the bottom could really fall out.
The Lions are in a make-or-break year. The Dan Campbell ethos is under the microscope. Is biting kneecaps a binding cultural tie or a joke that gets less funny as talented coordinators and players exit the team? Their schedule has them positioned for an excellent year and if they don’t have one there might be a reckoning coming in Detroit. The Packers continue to make a play for the 7 seed with a roster that looks mostly maxed out. The Bears ride their offense to another winning season and the incredible PR coverage that Kevin O’Connell gets for some reason starts to fade away. It’s interesting that the three non-Bears teams in this division are teetering on big changes. Obviously in this scenario, the Lions avoid that but if Dan Campbell is just a guy without Ben Johnson his job is much less secure. Matt LaFleur is almost certainly fired without a convincing playoff run and Kevin O’Connell, noted QB whisperer, who chose JJ McCarthy over Sam Darnold, might end up on the hot seat after the year.
The Lions are in a make-or-break year. The Dan Campbell ethos is under the microscope. Is biting kneecaps a binding cultural tie or a joke that gets less funny as talented coordinators and players exit the team? Their schedule has them positioned for an excellent year and if they don’t have one there might be a reckoning coming in Detroit. The Packers continue to make a play for the 7 seed with a roster that looks mostly maxed out. The Bears ride their offense to another winning season and the incredible PR coverage that Kevin O’Connell gets for some reason starts to fade away. It’s interesting that the three non-Bears teams in this division are teetering on big changes. Obviously in this scenario, the Lions avoid that but if Dan Campbell is just a guy without Ben Johnson his job is much less secure. Matt LaFleur is almost certainly fired without a convincing playoff run and Kevin O’Connell, noted QB whisperer, who chose JJ McCarthy over Sam Darnold, might end up on the hot seat after the year.
The Saints are a very likely worst to first team this year with head coach Kellen Moore looking like someone who truly belongs. If Tyler Shough wasn’t a one-year wonder they likely have the best roster in the division. The Panthers will very much be the Panthers of last year without some of the close game luck, another team that will have to ask hard questions about their quarterback after the year. The Bucs are a sneaky candidate for an implosion. Baker Mayfield wants more money despite never really playing at a level high enough for an entire season to merit that kind of investment. Todd Bowles has not done very much to indicate he’s a quality head coach and their aging roster needs Reuben Bain and Emeka Egbuka to be stars right now. The Falcons are going to be awful.
The Saints are a very likely worst to first team this year with head coach Kellen Moore looking like someone who truly belongs. If Tyler Shough wasn’t a one-year wonder they likely have the best roster in the division. The Panthers will very much be the Panthers of last year without some of the close game luck, another team that will have to ask hard questions about their quarterback after the year. The Bucs are a sneaky candidate for an implosion. Baker Mayfield wants more money despite never really playing at a level high enough for an entire season to merit that kind of investment. Todd Bowles has not done very much to indicate he’s a quality head coach and their aging roster needs Reuben Bain and Emeka Egbuka to be stars right now. The Falcons are going to be awful.
The Rams are predictably excellent, anything short of a division championship, first round bye and a Super Bowl appearance will be a catastrophic failure and likely a soft reset around Ty Simpson. The Seahawks are still good but the thing about those types of historical defenses is that they are usually only that for one year. Guys leave, injuries are more frequent and they’re just good instead of great. It happens. The 49ers fall into the Chargers and Steelers category of “teams who played a season of football and were not bad.” Kyle Shanahan is starting to look like the third best coach in this division. We saw some coaches get fired last year, not for incompetence but for things just kind of running their course: Tomlin, Harbaugh, McDermott. Shanahan might find himself on that watch list after the year. The Cardinals are predictably terrible.
The Rams are predictably excellent, anything short of a division championship, first round bye and a Super Bowl appearance will be a catastrophic failure and likely a soft reset around Ty Simpson. The Seahawks are still good but the thing about those types of historical defenses is that they are usually only that for one year. Guys leave, injuries are more frequent and they’re just good instead of great. It happens. The 49ers fall into the Chargers and Steelers category of “teams who played a season of football and were not bad.” Kyle Shanahan is starting to look like the third best coach in this division. We saw some coaches get fired last year, not for incompetence but for things just kind of running their course: Tomlin, Harbaugh, McDermott. Shanahan might find himself on that watch list after the year. The Cardinals are predictably terrible.

 
 
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