10. Minnesota Vikings
The closer we get to the 2026 season, the more I like the possibility of Kyler Murray finding a way to bounce back with the Minnesota Vikings. He's got to "officially" beat out JJ McCarthy for the job, but that seems to be only a matter of time at this point.
The Vikings were one of the NFL's best teams in 2024 with 14 regular season wins before the clock struck midnight in the playoffs. And ultimately, the Vikings then made a horrendous organizational decision to just ignore Sam Darnold's success that season, giving the ball to JJ McCarthy coming off of a major injury.
This year is the shot at redemption. The biggest question mark outside of the quarterback position for the Vikings is going to be on the defensive front. There were a ton of notable veteran departures from that unit for DC Brian Flores, including Jonathan Allen, Javon Hargrave, and edge rusher Jonathan Greenard.
If the Vikings can get the Kyler Murray of old, they'll once again be a factor in the NFC North, but that division might be too stacked regardless.
9. Carolina Panthers
It wasn't exactly consistent, which is why a lot of people in the NFL world aren't talking much about Bryce Young's improvements last season.
Maybe even just as notable for the Panthers, though, were the improvements on the defensive side of the ball.
Carolina made substantial improvements on both sides of the ball in the second year under head coach Dave Canales, and even with a bunch of really awful injuries to kick off training camp, they are poised to make even more waves in 2026.
This is a Panthers team that showed its full potential in two of the biggest games they played last year against the Los Angeles Rams. Very quietly, Bryce Young has put together 10 game-winning drives in each of the last two seasons. And even if you want to discount their appearance because of the fact that they backed into the playoffs with a losing record, that experience in a postseason game (against a top contender) is extremely valuable.
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