With the field of 32 teams as deep as we've ever seen it going into training camp, there is no exercise more difficult (and potentially futile) than trying to make early predictions on which teams will make it to the playoffs, and where they will be seeded.
This is one of those years where it feels like multiple 10-win teams could be left looking forward to the 2027 NFL Draft after the regular season is over instead of preparing for a playoff game.
The competition in 2026 is going to be fierice, especially if all of last year's breakthrough teams have created a new proverbial floor for themselves, and all of the contenders who missed out on the playoffs last year get back to form.
We're going to take our first stab at making our bold NFL predictions for the 2026 season with just over two months before the start of the regular season. Who will be the 14 teams making the playoffs, and where will they be seeded? We're going to start with the 7th seeds in each conference and work our way to the top.
NFL Predictions: Predicting all 14 playoff teams ahead of the 2026 season
AFC 7th seed: Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars caught fire during the 2025 season and were one of the best teams in the second half. It seemed like they were destined for a deep playoff run before Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills went on the road and played the role of stopper.
But all things considered, year one of the Liam Coen era in Jacksonville was a resounding success. The Jaguars established themselves as a true contender in the AFC, but the reason they're dropping into the 7th overall seed is because of the lackluster offseason GM James Gladstone just put together.
The best thing the Jaguars could have done would have been just bringing the band back together. They decided to let both running back Travis Etienne and linebacker Devin Lloyd test free agency and leave for other teams. That could turn out to be an extremely short-sighted decision, and I almost put them off this list completely because of it.
Etienne accounted for nearly 1,400 yards from scrimmage with 13 total touchdowns and just one fumble. Lloyd accounted for five interceptions, 6 tackles for loss, and 10 QB hits. Those two guys signed with the Saints and Panthers, respectively, to the tune of $28 million combined average annual salary.
That would have been a tough price for the Jags to pay, but they probably should have paid it. They are banking on less experienced guys and didn't use their top draft capital (no first-round picks) on either of those positions. Fortunately for them, the foundation laid last season looks strong enough to get this team back to 10 or 11 wins and into the postseason.
NFC 7th seed: Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears were a really fun team to watch develop last season in the first year of the Ben Johnson era.
Caleb Williams took significant steps forward as a player, and the Bears' operation really took off as a result. Part of the reason why this team is dropping from NFC North champs to the last wild card spot in our upcoming playoff projections is the fact that there was too much turnover on the defense, and not enough added to the pass rush for this season.
It's difficult to bank on that kind of success year over year anyway, but with roster turnover -- especially the defensive backs taking the ball away -- it's even more difficult to project.
The Bears led the NFC in takeaways last season, but they also ranked 23rd in points allowed 29th in yards allowed, 22nd against the pass, and 27th against the run. The overall defensive operation is still a question mark, but the talent on this team looks good enough to win at least 10 games and get into the postseason.
AFC 6th seed: Baltimore Ravens
Are the Baltimore Ravens going to be able to get back to the postseason in the first year without John Harbaugh since 2007?
The Ravens moved on from Harbaugh after yet another disappointing year in 2025, hiring former Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter to take his place. Considering Minter is a branch of the Jim Harbaugh coaching tree, you can expect a lot of things to remain the same culture-wise for the Ravens.
This is a team with an established superstar at the quarterback position, all of the key premium positions filled with veterans, and both a rookie head coach and offensive play-caller. It's a fascinating combination, but the youth on the coaching staff combined with the veteran players on the roster is giving a little bit of the same vibe as the Houston Texans when DeMeco Ryans took over, although the inherited players and situations were a lot different in that scenario.
The point is, the Jesse Minter-led Ravens have one of the best players in the world, and if Lamar Jackson is hot, the Ravens are going to be good enough to make the playoffs or win the AFC North.
NFC 6th seed: Seattle Seahawks
The reigning Super Bowl champions dropping all the way to the 6th seed in the NFC?
This is not meant to be a hot take to disrespect the Seahawks, but simply highlighting the fact that getting back to the top of their division with a target on their back all season is going to be incredibly difficult.
Seattle still has one of the better rosters in the NFL, but they lost plenty of guys as well. Kenneth Walker, Riq Woolen, Coby Bryant, Boye Mafe, and others are gone. Klint Kubiak is no longer calling plays for the offense. Those things matter when it comes to trying to run it back in the NFL, and they could knock Seattle down a rung or two.
But this team is still good enough to compete for another championship, especially if the offense can cut down on the turnovers. Their 28 giveaways were the 2nd-most in the NFL last season. Thankfully for them, they also ranked 6th in the league with 25 takeaways.
AFC 5th seed: New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are the reigning AFC Champions, and they have a chance to repeat in that category, but the road is going to be a lot tougher in 2026.
The Patriots' schedule did them a lot of favors last season, and that's not just an arbitrary way of trying to paint last year's success negatively. The Patriots' opponent win percentage in 2025 was 39.1 percent. They were the only team in the NFL to play a schedule in which their opponents had fewer than 100 wins on the season (91). Essentially, the Patriots played the equivalent of a 6-11 or 7-10 team on their schedule each week.
That lack of true testing came back to bite them badly in the playoffs, at least on the offensive side of the ball. They found ways to win in the first three games, but got smacked around by the Seahawks.
We'll see how the Patriots are able to use that disappointing drubbing in the Super Bowl as motivation going forward, and how much Mike Vrabel's job is impacted -- if at all -- by the off-field headlines in 2026.
Still, adding AJ Brown and Romeo Doubs at receiver gives this team a huge boost to an already dynamic passing game. The Patriots have one of the best secondaries in the league, and if they can clean up their league-worst sack differential (sacks allowed vs. sacks defensively), they'll be a factor deeper into January.
NFC 5th seed: San Francisco 49ers
Nobody can accuse the San Francisco 49ers have having too good of health luck the past couple of seasons. In fact, the 49ers have had some of the worst.
It's been so bad that people are blaming an electrical substation near the training facility for the team's inability to keep players on the field. That list has grown to abnormal lengths in recent years, and includes some of the 49ers' top star players (George Kittle, Fred Warner, Nick Bosa, etc.).
Even Brock Purdy missed a bunch of time last season.
Still, the 49ers found a way to endure. Christian McCaffrey remained a cheat code. Mac Jones filled in admirably and reminded people that he's a quality starter option in the league. The 49ers are now getting players back healthy for the 2026 season and appear reloaded for another playoff run.
The question will remain the health of the roster, but even with all of the upgrades the Rams made this offseason, I expect the 49ers to contend for a division title. I wouldn't be shocked if the top Wild Card spot in the NFC is their worst-case scenario.
AFC 4th seed: Cincinnati Bengals
The 4th seed in the AFC is one of our first real "surprises" of the list here. The Cincinnati Bengals have not made the playoffs since the 2022 season, which is rather shocking when you consider the core of offensive players they have.
Joe Burrow's injuries and the defensive issues have plagued this team, but they're primed for a return to the postseason in 2026. Again, with all of these teams, health is the primary concern going into the season. But as far as the defense is concerned, the Bengals have done what they need in order to get back to a postseason berth, and even win the division.
Trading the 10th pick for Dexter Lawrence was huge, but the Bengals also landed Boye Mafe in free agency, they signed Jonathan Allen on the defensive line, and have young players like Shemar Stewart and Cashius Howell ready to contribute.
A healthy Joe Burrow alone should put the Bengals back in the AFC title discussion.
NFC 4th seed: New Orleans Saints
And here we have one of our biggest surprises of the playoff predictions. The New Orleans Saints winning the NFC South. And is it really that far-fetched, when you think about it?
A lot of this prediction will be based on how well Tyler Shough progresses in his second NFL season. He had a great finish last year, but he's not going to be catching anyone off-guard and teams have a lot of film on him from last year. He'll need to show plenty of progress, but the Saints have done a lot to help him out.
Getting David Edwards to start at the left guard position, a massive upgrade next to 2025 1st-round pick Kelvin Banks, and then they added weapons galore. They signed Travis Etienne to join a talented backfield, then added Jordyn Tyson and Bryce Lance at receiver in the 2026 NFL Draft.
The Saints already had a really strong defense last season, one of the most underrated in the league. They ranked 9th in points allowed, 4th against the pass, 3rd in 3rd-down efficiency, and 10th in red zone efficiency. If that unit improves again, this team will easily win 10 games and possibly the division as well.
AFC 3rd seed: Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos were the top seed in the AFC last season, and only an injury to Bo Nix prevented them from likely representing the AFC in the Super Bowl against Seattle.
Denver's magical run last season is being perceived by many as a happy accident because of their unreal record in one-score games. But the Broncos' ability to finish games last season felt a lot different than the 2024 Kansas City Chiefs, who felt like they were teetering on the brink of disaster each week.
There is an art form to finishing in the NFL, where most of the games come down to one score anyway. The Broncos mastered it.
They know they have to be better (and more balanced) offensively this season after finishing 1st in the league in pass attempts and 19th in rushing attempts. But this team returns 94 percent of its snaps from a season ago, and added star receiver Jaylen Waddle to help Bo Nix entering his 3rd NFL season.
They'll be a tough team to take down every week, especially with the continuity and star power they have on that defense.
NFC 3rd seed: Green Bay Packers
Predicting the winner of the NFC North is a really tough race to call before the season gets going. Every team seems to have some distinct strengths, and every team seems to have a fatal flaw.
The Vikings' current issue is at quarterback, so they were almost immediately ruled out. The Bears' defense needs to take a significant step forward. The Lions have plenty of issues on the defensive side of the ball as well, especially in the defensive backfield.
The Packers lost a number of key veterans this offseason, but I see this team flipping the script late in the season. Maybe Green Bay takes a while longer to get going this season, but unlike in the last couple of seasons, maybe they finish hot instead of on a losing streak. Including playoffs, they lost three straight games to end the 2024 season and five straight to end the 2025 season.
With Micah Parsons likely opening the year on the PUP list, the Packers will need a strong October and November to keep pace in the North, but I think they finish strong and win the division this season.
AFC 2nd seed: Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills should be considered a mortal lock for one of the top two or three seeds in the AFC this coming season.
Buffalo was the top Wild Card team in the AFC last year, and the only reason they didn't win the AFC East is because the Patriots simply went through a long stretch of games where they couldn't lose. These two teams split games against each other last season, and the Bills are going to have to rely on some youth on the coaching staff for the first time in a long time.
Joe Brady is taking over as the head coach for Sean McDermott, who was fired after yet another disappointing playoff finish. The Bills' defense also has a rookie play-caller in Jim Leonhard, the former Denver Broncos DBs coach and pass game coordinator.
Buffalo's youth on the coaching staff is the one question mark on an otherwise extremely well-constructed team. They have veteran leadership, quality starters everywhere, and depth.
NFC 2nd seed: Philadelphia Eagles
Out of all the predictions I'm making for the NFC, picking the Eagles to win the NFC East is the one I'm least confident in. So let's break down why I picked them.
The two primary reasons are their championship experience and defense.
The Eagles, for all of their faults offensively, have one of the best defenses in the NFL. And despite underachieving last season, they still won 11 games. If the offense is back to even the top 12 after finishing 19th in points scored last year, they should be able to win at least 12 games.
That defense is still going to be elite under Vic Fangio. They got Jonathan Greenard to come be the leader off the edge, and that defensive front is still nasty.
The one thing that will swing the pendulum for this team is the performance of the offense. They were downright bad at times last season, and as a result, Sean Mannion is now calling plays for the offense. Mannion has a huge job ahead of him after only just getting into coaching in 2024. If he can revive the Eagles' offense, especially without AJ Brown, he's going to get some looks as a head coach in 2027.
AFC 1st seed: Houston Texans
I don't know why, but you really don't hear a lot of people talking about the Houston Texans as the best team in the AFC entering the 2026 season. They've got a real case to be made.
Not only do the Texans have the best defense in the NFL, but they have one of the most complete rosters in the league.
There is no such thing as a perfect roster in the NFL, and the Texans are no exception, but if they get the type of performance they're expecting out of high draft picks on the offensive line, then this team is about as good as it gets.
The big question mark, ironically, is quarterback CJ Stroud. Stroud has not played even close to the level we saw from him as a rookie back in 2023. With that said, the Texans have still done extremely well over the last two years, and they could be poised to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history.
NFC 1st seed: Los Angeles Rams
Was there really any question about which NFC team was going to be represented as the #1 seed on this type of list?
There's not even really just "hype" to buy with the Rams. They simply have assembled an Avengers-level roster in terms of the star power on both sides of the ball. For the first time in league history, a team has the reigning MVP and Defensive Player of the Year on its roster.
The Rams getting Myles Garrett overshadows the fact that they had already addressed their biggest weakness defensively by trading for Trent McDuffie.
This team has playmakers galore, they have elite coaching, and they have the best players. at QB and off the edge. It will be an upset if they're not hoisting the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season.