With the 2026 NFL Schedule Release happening on May 14th, the schedule rumors and leaks will continue happening until the real thing goes down. The NFC was quite good during the 2025 campaign, too.
We did see some shocking finishes. Not many predicted that the Seattle Seahawks, for example, would win 14 games, earn the NFC West title, and make a run to the Super Bowl. And after a hugely successful 15-win regular season in 2024, the Detroit Lions fell back down to earth and won just nine games after a solid 7-4 start.
Anything can happen in the NFL, and that is especially true in the NFC. Let's predict the record for each NFC team ahead of the schedule release.
Predicting every NFC team's record in 2026 as the NFL Schedule Release approaches
NFC North
Detroit Lions: 13-4
After a nine-win season in 2025, the Lions should be able to figure things out, as we did see this team emerge as one of the true juggernauts in the league. it's likely that the 2025 season was more of an outlier, as the collapse they sustained down the stretch was unexpected.
Having started 7-4 in 2025, the Lions are a great team and have one of the best rosters in the NFL.
Green Bay Packers: 11-6
Green Bay has been one of the more 'good not great' teams in the NFL for multiple years now, and it's been the case in each year that Jordan Love has started for the team. Funnily enough, in Love's three years as a starter, he's won nine games each time.
It's an odd era right now, as the Packers can hang with most teams, but they don't appear to have enough to get over the hump. An 11-win season is on the way for the Packers in 2026.
Chicago Bears: 10-7
Chicago won 10 games and the NFC North in an aggressive breakout season in 2025. They'll come back down to earn a bit in 2026. The defense, last year, was quite inconsistent outside of the turnovers, and Caleb Williams' completion percentage dipping below 60 percent was a major concern.
And if both Green Bay and Detroit do improve, as we indicate in our predictions, there may not be enough wins to go around. Chicago still being able to win 10 games is rather solid.
Minnesota Vikings: 6-11
Kyler Murray is likely starting for the Minnesota Vikings, but will that be enough? Minnesota did have to revamp the defensive line a bit, and it's not clear if Murray's fit is solid with this team. Sure, Minnesota won nine games in 2025 and actually ended the year on a five-game winning streak, kind of back-dooring themselves into a winning season.
The 2026 season feels like too heavy a lift, though. Minnesota regresses just a tad.
NFC South
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 10-7
It's not difficult to see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers getting back to the top of the NFC South in the 2026 NFL Season. This team has typically been able to win the division rather easily, but they seem to be capped at nine or 10 wins in the post-Tom Brady era.
In 2025, the Bucs faltered down the stretch and totally missed the playoffs, but avoiding that regressing could be firmly on the table given that this team does have a high-floor with this current set-up.
The Bucs aren't a great team and aren't a contender, but winning 10 games and getting back into the playoffs is realistic.
New Orleans Saints: 9-8
New Orleans is going to be a fun team in 2026. Having won four of their last five in the regular season last year, the Saints were clearly on the right track. In the offseason, General Manager Mickey Loomis added Travis Etienne, Jordyn Tyson, and David Edwards to the offense.
All three players could end up being major needle-movers in 2026, and the defense was quite frisky under Brandon Staley last year. The Saints are one of those teams set to breakout a bit in 2026, but the entire operation probably still needs another offseason.
Carolina Panthers: 6-11
Carolina won the NFC South with eight games in 2025, but I don't really think that's even in the realm of possibility for 2026. Bryce Young did play quite well last year, but given his physical and athletic limitations, what we saw from Young in 2025 could truly be his ceiling.
And given that the Saints and Bucs are both better at the moment and sport better rosters, Carolina taking a backseat and getting too third place is on the table. It'll be another year to forget for the Panthers.
Atlanta Falcons: 5-12
Atlanta does have a strong roster, but the quarterback situation is not known at the moment. Ideally, Tua Tagovailoa wins the job and looks competent, but that might not be realistic. Either way, Atlanta's quarterback situation could be the team's undoing, and with a new head coach in town in Kevin Stefanski, there's another wrinkle of no guarantees with that change for 2026.
NFC East
Dallas Cowboys: 10-7
The Dallas Cowboys do have what it take to win the NFC East in 2026. Dallas sports the best quarterback in the division in Dak Prescott, the most prolific offense, and suddenly, a defense that actually looks solid.
As long as the offense remains efficient, and the defense can just get up to an average level, this team is in business. Given that the rest of the clubs in the NFC East all have some notable question marks, it's not going to take a 14-win season to capture the division.
Philadelphia Eagles: 10-7
Philadelphia has some offensive concerns. Not only is Jalen Hurts limited as a passer, but it seems rather likely that AJ Brown is sent to the New England Patriots at some point. The Eagles have yet another new offensive coordinator, so there could be a period of personnel adjusting to yet another new scheme.
Philly is talented enough to stack some wins, but a 10-7 season is on the docket in a rather underwhelming year.
Washington Commanders: 10-7
The Washington Commanders won just five games in the 2025 NFL Season, so potentially doubling their win total would be ideal. Washington did come within one game of the Super Bowl, but it feels like a stretch that we'd see that again unless Jayden Daniels has an MVP-caliber season.
The Commanders did spend a good bit in free agency to rebuild the defense and, if they get better roster health, would be able to stack some wins together.
New York Giants: 6-11
The New York Giants are on the right track, but it might take a year or two for this operation to get off the ground fully. John Harbaugh is in as the head coach, which was a stellar hire. However, the Giants do feel like they're the worst team in the NFC East, rather comfortably. Sure, a lot could change and we could be talking about the Giants as a sleeper team, but for now, we have them pegged at six wins.
NFC West
Los Angeles Rams: 12-5
The Los Angeles Rams get a bit of revenge and win the NFC West this year. The Rams have made the most notable improvements of any team in the division this offseason, having added a pair of much-needed cornerbacks in Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson.
The Rams sport the best roster in the division and have the reigning MVP as well. They were also on pace to win the NFC West last year before a shaky finish. Los Angeles bounces back in our predictions.
Seattle Seahawks: 12-5
There is such a thing as a 'Super Bowl hangover,' but I'm not sure the Seattle Seahawks endure that too much. Not winning the division is on the table, given how much better the Rams got, but Seattle is so strongly built and so well coached that it'd be borderline impossible for this team not to win a ton of games.
Just barely missing out on the NFC West title, the Seahawks still snag 12 wins in our predictions and have another playoff berth coming.
San Francisco 49ers: 12-5
The third 12-5 team in the NFC West, the San Francisco 49ers also lose five regular season games in our predictions and again finish in third. The Niners do have a strong team, but the group has been bitten by the injury bug for years now, and this keeps occuring, so you have to wonder if whatever they are doing in terms of practice, recovery, or something else is simply not working.
Arizona Cardinals: 2-15
Perhaps the worst team in the NFL this year, the Arizona Cardinals finish 2-15 in our predictions and could earn the first overall pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, which could be for a top quarterback prospect like Arch Manning. It's going to be a major struggle for Arizona to earn just one win this year.
NFC Playoff Picture
1. Detroit Lions
Getting back to the top seed in the NFC, the 2026 season could be the year that the Lions get over the hump and advance to the Super Bowl.
2. Los Angeles Rams
Los Angeles wins the NFC West in our predictions and would have a formidable opponent in the Wild Card Round.
3. Dallas Cowboys
A shocking NFC East division title for the Cowboys in our predictions would see them wrapping up the third seed and being in a great position to win a playoff game.
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The NFC South winners, Tampa Bay could earn the fourth seed and again have a home playoff game, but that does seem to be this team's ceiling.
5. Seattle Seahawks
One year after winning it all, the Seahawks could regress a tad and settle into a Wild Card seed, making another Super Bowl run very difficult.
6. San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco can't capture the NFC West in our predictions, but earning the sixth seed in the NFC playoffs would still be quite the accomplishment.
7. Green Bay Packers
Green Bay, yet again, is a Wild Card team. Our predictions sees the Packers earning the seventh seed and again facing an uphill battle for a Super Bowl push.