4. New England Patriots
The New England Patriots had an absolutely phenomenal season with Drake Maye narrowly missing out on the MVP, Mike Vrabel winning NFL Coach of the Year (again), and Josh McDaniels winning Assistant Coach of the Year. It was a great season for New England, ending in embarrassing defeat in the Super Bowl. Now, the deck will get reshuffled, and the Patriots have to figure out how to better protect Drake Maye. That will be the team's top priority in the 2026 offseason.
3. Los Angeles Rams
There's no drama this offseason with Matthew Stafford and flirting with retirement. Coming off of an MVP season, Stafford has already announced that he's returning to the Rams in 2026, and we should get an aggressive offseason from Rams GM Les Snead, who has two first-round picks to work with. With the coaching, roster, and assets the Rams have heading into 2026, it's hard to see them being any worse than a top-3 team in the league next year.
2. Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos really were a Bo Nix playoff injury away from being in the Super Bowl. At least, that's what it looks like after watching New England in both the AFC Championship and Super Bowl. The Broncos have the majority of their roster coming back again in 2026, and they are finally free from the Russell Wilson dead cap this offseason. That will free up this team to be aggressive in filling any roster holes they have, which are already minimal.
1. Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks are the undisputed top team in the NFL after beating the Patriots handily in Super Bowl LX. Sam Darnold played out of his mind the last couple of years, but Seattle is quite possibly just getting started. Head coach Mike Macdonald is not even 40 years old at this point, the Seahawks are flush with cap space, and John Schneider has proven he knows how to build a contender. This team is already scary good, and probably just getting better this offseason.