Going into the 2025 season, it looked like the AFC was going to be head and shoulders above the NFC as far as the total number of true quality, contending teams. Halfway through the season, the NFC has flipped that narrative on its head.
Obviously, injuries play a factor here, but the NFC is much better than almost anyone expected this season, especially with teams like Seattle playing as well as some of the best teams in the league, and the Lions maintaining a dominant level of play after losing multiple coordinators.
Our latest NFL Power Rankings ahead of Week 9 are taking a look at every team in the NFC and how they stack up against each other. Obviously, these rankings will factor in each team's record, some head-to-head matchups, their future outlook for the season, as well as how well they're all passing my personal "eye test" so far.
NFL Power Rankings: Teams fighting with Packers for top spot entering Week 9
16. New Orleans Saints
After a couple of glimpses of brilliance, the luster around Spencer Rattler disappeared as quickly as it appeared. Not everybody agreed with this decision, but at the midway point of the season, the Saints had seen enough of Rattler that they decided to bench him in favor of second-round pick Tyler Shough, who will presumably be the starter for the remainder of the year.
The Saints are expected to be a major seller at the NFL trade deadline, which would make sense with just six draft picks currently in 2026, but time will tell.
15. Arizona Cardinals
The expectation in the second half of the season is going to be that the Arizona Cardinals figure out a way to finish games, but the injury bug has bit this team hard. The interesting thing is going to be what the Cardinals decide to do when Kyler Murray is fully healthy, because Jacoby Brissett had the offense playing a bit better, if you're asking me.
The losses this team has had to deal with in the injury department might be too much to overcome over the long haul of the season, but Arizona has been competitive. Still, the expectation wasn't just to look good relative to injuries, the expectation was to win games and get to the postseason.
14. New York Giants
The New York Giants undoubtedly had a stretch of excitement when Jaxson Dart initially took over as the starting quarterback, but that excitement has faded a bit due to the injuries to both Malik Nabers and Cam Skattebo. This team simply cannot have nice things, or at least, that's how it feels.
The Giants still might have their future franchise QB, and they are deep on the defensive front. Hopefully, ownership in New York sees the vision and allows Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll to build around their guy in 2026.
13. Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings are currently hanging on by a thread. Carson Wentz is now out after trying to keep the ship afloat for a few weeks, but the NFC North is just too competitive.
The Vikings are going to be welcoming JJ McCarthy back to the fold, and honestly, what are we even supposed to expect there? McCarthy was good for about a quarter so far this season, and injuries have unfortunately defined his career so far. It will at least be exciting to (hopefully) see him play extensive snaps. At 3-4, the Vikings are by no means out of it yet.