6. Washington Commanders
What in the world is Dan Quinn doing right now? Quinn is firing so many of his coaches after an injury-plagued year, so you can't help but wonder what's going on behind the scenes with that team. It doesn't seem like the decision to let offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury leave is being overly well-received, and it's hard to blame everyone for disliking that move.
The Commanders reached the NFC Championship Game in 2024. They obviously had a lot working for them at the time, and with Jayden Daniels suffering through injuries all throughout the 2025 season, how can Kingsbury possibly be a fall guy? Why would he not want to work with Quinn anymore if there was some kind of power struggle?
This is all very interesting, and the Commanders aren't far off from being a contender. Quinn will need to pull all the right strings for the staff while Adam Peters needs to get on the pass rush situation.
5. Cincinnati Bengals
Although there's also a lot to dislike about the Bengals' situation, there's plenty to love about it as well. The Bengals need Joe Burrow to stay healthy. It's really as simple as that. Whether or not that happens is irrelevant to the discussion of how good this team can be. You have to operate organizationally as though Burrow is going to be out there leading your team all year, and that's the biggest reason for optimism for this team moving forward.
It seems simple enough, doesn't it? Fix the defense. If the Bengals can add to the defense and offensive line in the 2026 offseason, they should be good, right?
Time will tell, but the impending departure of Trey Hendrickson feels like it could be a necessary separation for both sides.