With how loaded the NFC appears to be, which isn't an inaccurate description of the AFC, there could be teams that finish with a winning record but miss the playoffs in 2026. That was the case in 2025, as, of note, the 9-8 Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings both did not get into the postseason.
With OTAs and minicamp now over across the NFL, and training camp set to begin in about one month, the NFL offseason is slowly but surely progressing, and it's not too far off from the start of the regular season in September.
It's really just about getting through this last lull of the offseason, where not much happens until camps begin in late July. Let's keep the train moving, though, and try to predict the seven NFC playoff teams, with seeding, for the 2026 season.
Predicting all seven NFC playoff teams for 2026 following OTAs and minicamp
7. Green Bay Packers
Once again, the Green Bay Packers have done enough to be a 'good' team in the 2026 season. The Packers have been a Wild Card team in each year that quarterback Jordan Love has started, and they have also gotten bounced out of the playoffs in the Wild Card Round the past two seasons. Love, as a starter, has missed four total regular season games since 2024, and he's actually never won more than nine games in a season in his starting career.
With Micah Parsons also not necessarily in a position to get back onto the field quickly, the Packers could be staring down another season where they win enough to get into the playoffs, but don't really accomplish much else.
It's not the worst spot to be in, but this team is far from a legitimate contender.
6. San Francisco 49ers
The San Franciso 49ers won 12 games during the 2025 season, but finished third in the loaded NFC West. Unfortunately for the Niners, that could again be the case in 2026. The roster is good, but it's not quite at the level of Seattle or Los Angeles, and this team has had an injury bug for years now.
The 49ers can absolutely make some noise when they get into the playoffs, but given our No. 6 seed prediction, it's going to be quite the heavy lift for this team to make a deep playoff run. They have done this, though, making the Super Bowl in the 2019 and 2023 seasons, so it is possible.
5. Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks come in with a No. 5 seed in our NFC playoff predictions following OTAs and minicamp. It would not be the worst thing in the world and would still represent a very strong season, but it's hard to disregard just how much better the Rams got this offseason.
If revamping the cornerback room with Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson was not enough, the Rams also pulled off what could be one of the biggest trades in NFL history, dealing for Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns.
The Seahawks are now, firmly, the second-best team in the division, as the Rams clearly have the roster advantage, and may also have a coaching advantage. They absolutely have the quarterback advantage, too.
It's going to be another double-digit win season for the Seahawks, as this team is still returning many of the same key players from the Super Bowl run in 2025, but a Super Bowl hangover is possible, and the sheer talent the Rams have will be enough to bump Seattle down to a still manageable No. 5 seed, which would mean they would travel to face the No. 4 seed in our predictions in what could turn out to be a very winnable Wild Card Round game for the defending champions.
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers get back into the playoffs in our predictions, securing the No. 4 seed. I can truly see all four teams winning the NFC South this year, but Tampa has been the mainstay atop the division in recent years outside of the 2025 season.
The Buccaneers don't have a high ceiling by any means, but the high floor should allow them to again finish with nine or 10 wins. The Carolina Panthers won the division with an 8-9 record in 2025, but Tampa Bay and Atlanta also both finished 8-9.
While not a great division, it's going to be a competitive one, and as of now, the Bucs are a more stable, proven franchise, so we'll defer to them in our playoff predictions. The Bucs winning the NFC South becomes even more likely if Baker Mayfield is able to play like he did in 2023 and 2024, as he endured a down year in 2025.
The Buccaneers are a playoff-caliber team, but this isn't a Super Bowl contender, so if our playoff predictions do come true, the Bucs could get throttled in the Wild Card Round by the Seahawks.
3. Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys come in at No. 3 in our playoff seed predictions for the NFC, and before you laugh, hear me out. The Cowboys had the best scoring offense in the NFL last year, ranking seventh in points scored per game.
Dak Prescott is clearly the best passer in the division, and the defense got a total makeover this offseason. Christian Parker is now in as the new defensive coordinator, and he has Vic Fangio ties. The team also had Quinnen Williams entering his first full offseason with the team, and other key additions like Malachi Lawrence, Rashan Gary, Caleb Downs, and Jalen Thompson present, at minimum, floor-raising performances in 2026.
With how good the offense is, you aren't going to be asking the defense to emerge as a top-10 unit, but a modest improvement is not only likely, but much more realistic now. Philadelphia has offense and quarterback concerns, as AJ Brown is gone and another new offensive coordinator is in the mix. Washington won just five games last year and only had Jayden Daniels for seven games, and New York isn't guaranteed to see quarterback Jaxson Dart take that next step.
Right now, the Cowboys are the most trustworthy team in the NFC East.
2. Los Angeles Rams
The Rams capture the No. 2 seed in our playoff predictions in the NFC. We briefly talked about the Rams earlier on, but as we said, this team is simply star-studded, and it'd be a shock if they didn't go far in the playoffs. On paper, this could be as close to an NFL super team as you could possibly get.
I guess the biggest unknown could be if Matthew Stafford's age catches up to him, but even a slight regression would still have Stafford playing at a top-7 level. Sean McVay is also as good a head coach in the NFL as we have seen in recent memory.
1. Detroit Lions
I am riding with the Detroit Lions as the NFC's top seed in our playoff predictions. The Lions did not make the playoffs in 2025, but the last time they did, in 2024, they went 15-2 and earned the top seed. This roster is simply too good and too secure at a ton of positions to miss the playoffs two years in a row.
Getting some better injury luck and perhaps an improvement in the defense would go a long way, and given how much this team has won over the last four seasons, head coach Dan Campbell is going to find a way, right?