There was a lot of parity present in the NFL in the 2025 season, and this could indeed spill into 2026. Not many people saw the Seattle Seahawks winning the Super Bowl, for example. Now that we're getting closer to training camp, there is surely optimistic swirling around most franchises, and I bet a ton of teams across the league think they can win it all.
But in reality, there may only be a few legitimate contenders in the league, and even the best teams struggle from time to time. We recently rolled out a 'best-case scenario' exercise for each team in the AFC, and we now have the NFC ready to roll here.
Let's get into it - predicting the best-case scenario for the 16 NFC squads.
Predicting the best-case scenario for every NFC team in the 2026 NFL Season
NFC North
Chicago Bears - Super Bowl appearance
The Chicago Bears won 11 games in the 2025 NFL Season, shockingly winning the NFC North. The Bears really took strides forward on offense, as we saw that entire unit be elevated by Ben Johnson. The defense was definitely a major issue outside of the turnovers, but we did see General Manager Ryan Poles go out and make some personnel changes this offseason. All in all, the Bears could squeak into the Super Bowl if things come together this year.
Green Bay Packers - NFC Divisional Round appearance
The Green Bay Packers have not been able to get past the Divisional Round of the playoffs in any of the prior three seasons, and I really do not see how that changes in 2026. The Packers have a really solid group of players and a lot going for them, but an overall lack of top-end talent and a quarterback who has missed four regular season games over the last two years is going to prevent them from advancing further.
Minnesota Vikings - NFC Divisional Round appearance
The Minnesota Vikings broke out big-time back in 2024 thanks to an unexpectedly awesome season from Sam Darnold. They did get trounced in the playoffs, though, failing to get past the Wild Card Round. The 2026 season could end up being slightly better, though. Kyler Murray is now in as the quarterback and does have a more complete skill set at the position than Darnold did.
I'd also argue that Murray has been a rock-solid quarterback efficiency-wise throughout his career thus far. With a playoff-caliber roster and a capable quarterback on the field, Minnesota could get somewhat deep in the postseason.
Detroit Lions - Super Bowl appearance
The Detroit Lions won 27 regular season games over the 2023 and 2024 seasons, also winning the NFC North during that time. Back in 2023, the Lions did get to the NFC Championship Game, and if not for mounting injuries on defense in 2024, they could have won it all. Quarterback Jared Goff also hasn't played all that well in the playoffs, as he has a 4-5 career record with a middling 85.1 passer rating.
Detroit has enough sheer talent to make a Super Bowl run, but they'd fall just short.
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