We’re just days away from the start of yet another exciting new NFL season, and as always, it’s hard to know what exactly to expect. Will the Kansas City Chiefs make it a historic three-peat, or will we see a quarterback other than Patrick Mahomes or Tom Brady lift the Lombardi Trophy for just the second time since the 2017 season? Let’s take a look at a bold prediction for each team as all 32 kick off yet another football journey.
Bold Predictions for All 32 NFL Teams in 2024
Arizona Cardinals: Kyler Murray Gets Benched
To be clear, we’re talking about an outright substitution. It might not be a permanent move, but the projection here is that Murray is at least momentarily removed for non-injury reasons amid a tough campaign. The Cardinals play a frontloaded schedule, with early games against the Bills, Rams, Lions, and 49ers to name a few.
There won’t be much time for Murray to develop a rapport with new weapons like rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who himself might need some time to acclimate to the pro game. The offensive line is also still not equipped to protect Murray, especially given his dynamic style of play. Desmond Ridder is waiting in the wings; Murray might be given a second to recalibrate at some point when the going gets particularly tough.
Atlanta Falcons: Win a Playoff Game
The Falcons are widely expected to win the NFC South after a great offseason, but that’s not their ceiling. With just about the easiest schedule in the NFL, this improved roster should be ready to bank enough wins to finish as the NFC’s third or even second seed, putting them in a great position to play a lower-level contender and win a first-round game at home.
Raheem Morris should be a major upgrade over Arthur Smith as head coach, and similarly, offensive coordinator Zac Robinson could better unlock the team’s offensive weapons.
Baltimore Ravens: Fail To Win a Playoff Game
The Ravens return most of the roster that got them within a few snaps of a Super Bowl berth, so why shouldn’t they be contenders once more? The roster is a great one, but a big part of how they topped the AFC North was, quite simply, by default.
They were the only team in the division to get a full season from their starting quarterback and generally stayed healthier than the competition. That should not be the case this year; they could very well be stuck in a Wild Card spot.
This team under Lamar Jackson has shown little ability to win in the postseason as a favorite, let alone as an underdog, so don’t expect them to pull off a road win in January. The book is slowly getting out in terms of how to slow down this offense in key games, and the elites of the AFC are sure to read it before this year’s playoffs.
Buffalo Bills: Miss the Playoffs
The Bills looked like they were on this path last year, sitting at .500 before an impressive winning streak lifted them not only into the playoff field but atop the AFC East as well. This year, the margins are no less thin, but the competition might be stiffer.
Aaron Rodgers should be back to make the Jets a serious contender in the AFC East, while Joe Burrow, Deshaun Watson, and Anthony Richardson will all make the AFC Wild Card race tougher by coming back from injuries of their own. Buffalo’s roster continues to erode as they experience the fallout of the Josh Allen contract, and this year just might be the breaking point.
Carolina Panthers: Win an Away Game
The Panthers went 0-9 on the road last season and 2-6 the year before; just a single triumph away from Charlotte, N.C., would be a step up for this squad. This season, they have plenty of away matchups with vulnerable opponents, such as the Raiders, Commanders, and Broncos.
Second-year quarterback Bryce Young showed some in-season improvement last year and should further develop under Dave Canales, one of the best head coach hires of the offseason; expect small but meaningful strides this year for Young and Carolina as a whole.
Chicago Bears: Win the NFC
No rookie quarterback has ever made it to the Super Bowl as a starter, but Caleb Williams is not an ordinary prospect. It’s also worth noting that he’s not entering an ordinary situation — Chicago picked him first overall by virtue of a shrewd trade with Carolina despite playing long stretches of good football themselves.
Williams enters a roster that was already poised for positive regression in many regards but also improved significantly over the offseason. In a wide-open NFC, few teams appear to be more well-rounded than Chicago, and if Williams can be an elevator at the quarterback position by season’s end, he’ll provide a major edge over many fellow contenders.
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In 19 of the past 21 seasons, a team has gone from finishing last in their division one year to winning it the next; expect the Bears to be this year’s “worst-to-first” team, and they could even go a step further by winning a trio of playoff games as well.
Cincinnati Bengals: Miss the Playoffs
This isn’t solely an indictment on Cincinnati; it’s also a comment on the strength of the AFC North, which should come as no surprise after all four teams finished above .500 in 2023. Even with Joe Burrow presumably set to be healthy, the Bengals are in no position to challenge the Browns and Ravens for the division title, and their brutal in-division slate will put them at a significant disadvantage compared to other teams in the AFC Wild Card race.
Cleveland Browns: Win the AFC North
As tough as the North is, somebody has to win it. That could very well be Cleveland, who pushed Baltimore last year despite getting just six games out of starting quarterback Deshaun Watson and two out of superstar running back Nick Chubb. Both key players, and several others who were hurt in 2023, should be ready to contribute again this season, with a loaded core remaining otherwise intact.
Dallas Cowboys: Dak Prescott Wins MVP
It could be easily argued that Prescott should have won this award last year as he led the league in passing touchdowns, finished third in yardage and second in passer rating. He also significantly cut down on turnovers, a major issue in the past.
It could be the case that rather than Prescott’s level of play it was the timing of a tough road trip that cost him the honor. This year, the Cowboys are positioned just as well to finish atop the NFC East, and with a relatively tame home stretch of the season, Prescott should be able to engineer no shortage of signature performances leading up to MVP voting.
Denver Broncos: Audric Estimé Leads Team in Rushing Yards
The rookie from Notre Dame showed steady improvement over his college career and displayed no lack of explosion in his final campaign. He was drafted in just the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft but should be given an opportunity for some carries early on in a very open and young Denver offense.
If he’s given an inch, expect him to take a mile, potentially even taking enough carries away from Jaleel McLaughlin and Javonte Williams to outrush the more experienced duo.
Detroit Lions: Sam LaPorta Leads Team in Receptions
After a first-team All-Pro campaign, Amon-Ra St. Brown is likely to finally receive the respect from opponents that he has so clearly believed he’s deserved all along. He’s still likely to lead the team in receiving yards due to his big-play ability, but with defenses so heavily focused on his portion of the field, there could be an opening for LaPorta to break out even further after a highly impressive rookie campaign.
Last season, as a rookie, he caught 86 passes compared to 119 for St. Brown. Increased volume in year two is very plausible for a player like LaPorta, while St. Brown could have a tougher job than he did a year ago.
Green Bay Packers: Miss the Playoffs
Year 1 of the Packers’ post-Aaron Rodgers rebuild was a resounding success as they won a playoff game and nearly another, but expect the honeymoon to turn into a swoon in Year 2 under Jordan Love. Green Bay doesn’t have the offensive skill firepower to keep up with divisional rivals like the Bears and Lions and did not do enough this offseason to shore up a secondary that remains vulnerable to the pass-catchers on those teams.
Houston Texans: Fail To Win the AFC South
After a huge first season with C.J. Stroud at quarterback, the Texans are being viewed as a relative lock in the South and a clear Super Bowl contender. It’s been astonishingly quick how it has been forgotten by many that this team was a few snaps away from losing the division in 2023, and perhaps even missing the postseason entirely.
Bringing in Stefon Diggs is an incredibly risky move. Receiver was far from a position of need, and if the aging star isn’t used as a top option right away, he could sow discontent in the Houston locker room. There are still plenty of questions on the defensive side of the football, another factor making Houston’s grip on the division much more tenuous than some might believe it to be.
Indianapolis Colts: Win the AFC South
If the Texans don’t win the South, it will of course have to be someone else, and the Colts are ready to step into the spotlight. With Gardner Minshew II at the helm, Indy came a dropped pass away from doing just that last year when little was expected of them. That was head coach Shane Steichen’s first year in such a role for any NFL team, and he did a tremendous job by all accounts.
In a very balanced division, expect him to find even more success with most of last year’s contributors still in town and high-upside quarterback Anthony Richardson back from an injury that cut his intriguing rookie season short.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Finish .500
This wouldn’t have been a bold prediction in years past, but we’re going to put a tie on the ledger for Jacksonville, perhaps the most average team in the NFL. They don’t fit into the tier of true playoff contenders, but it’s impossible to lump them in with cellar dwellers like the Patriots or Titans.
Quarterback Trevor Lawrence has largely failed to live up to the billing that made him the first overall pick in the 2021 Draft, but he’s still had some stretches of really solid play, which should continue into this season. Overall, this schedule is littered with both real challenges and winnable games, ranking right around league average in strength; expect Jacksonville to finish dead even.
Kansas City Chiefs: Fail To Win the AFC
Of course, this wouldn’t be a bold prediction for many teams in the NFL, but the Chiefs are a decidedly abnormal franchise these days. They’ve reached four Super Bowls in the six-year Patrick Mahomes era, including each of the past two, and the argument could easily be made that they were a few snaps away from six consecutive appearances. So why shouldn’t they make it again?
Simply put, it’s likely to be a tougher path than usual. The Miami Dolphins withered in the cold last season, the Buffalo Bills limped into the postseason, and the Baltimore Ravens did not force the Chiefs to score a single second-half point as they gave just six carries to running backs in a puzzling contest.
With Baltimore set to contend again and teams like the Browns, Jets, and Texans on the rise, the Chiefs won’t be able to play subpar football and still make it to the end this season.
Las Vegas Raiders: Brock Bowers Makes the Pro Bowl
We’re going to stop short of projecting Bowers to win Offensive Rookie of the Year — especially if Caleb Williams and the Bears fulfill their own bold projection — but it could be a big first season for Vegas’ rookie tight end. Bowers is an extremely pro-ready prospect and should have plenty of opportunities with defenses focused on the likes of Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers.
Luke Getsy’s offenses aren’t always prolific, but as we saw with the Bears and Cole Kmet, he gives opportunities to tight ends — expect Bowers to produce from Day 1. Bowers is dealing with a bit of a foot injury right now, but if he’s able to get on the field relatively soon, he should be able to put up big enough numbers to contend for this honor.
Los Angeles Chargers: Earn a Top-Five Pick in the 2025 Draft
The Jim Harbaugh era could prove to be a success in Los Angeles, but don’t expect the winning to start in Week 1. Just as was the case with Michigan — where he took nine years to win a national championship — he’s inheriting a very challenging situation, and he’s once again started by stripping things down to the studs.
Los Angeles’ offensive skill group is not ready to play competitive NFL football, and the line isn’t going to protect Justin Herbert well enough to give him the time to create on his own. Expect serious growing pains for Harbaugh’s group as they position themselves to bring in another high-end talent in a loaded 2025 NFL Draft class.
Los Angeles Rams: Win the NFC West
The 2022 season held nothing but a truly embarrassing title defense for Los Angeles, but 2023 was a much stronger campaign. Even with health issues for stars like Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp, L.A. made it to the postseason and even almost won a game as they pushed the Lions to their breaking point in Detroit.
With much of the core back, other than the legendary Aaron Donald, this team is ready to pull off another surprise and beat the rival 49ers to the division crown.
Miami Dolphins: Win a Playoff Game
Dating back to 2001, the Dolphins have lost five consecutive playoff games, including one in each of the past two seasons. However, in Year 3 of the Mike McDaniel era, they’ll once again crack the playoff field — doing so for the third time in a row, a first since that same ’01 season — and actually live to see the second round. The talent has long been in place, and with multiple years of big-game experience, this core is ready to break through.
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As we’ll discuss before long, the Dolphins aren’t the pick to win the division, so to pull off this feat, they’ll have to win on the road. Late-season play has been a challenge for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, but a couple of our projected division winners could give the Dolphins a chance.
The Colts come to mind, due in large part to their indoor stadium, as do the Chiefs of all teams; the roster is vulnerable, and if the weather is a tad warmer than it was last time around, Miami could surprise an overconfident Kansas City squad.
Minnesota Vikings: Make a Quarterback Trade
The Vikings were set to be a quiet dark-horse playoff contender until the devastating news that rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy would miss the season with a knee injury. Now, Minnesota is left with Sam Darnold under center.
After seeing teams in recent years finding success by bringing in quarterbacks viewed as short-term replacements — think of the Browns with Joe Flacco, the Buccaneers with Baker Mayfield, and the Seahawks with Geno Smith — the Vikings could make a move and try to get the most out of this year.
Big names won’t be on the table, especially with McCarthy waiting in the wings, but players like Mac Jones and one of Russell Wilson or Justin Fields could be on the table.
New England Patriots: Stay Winless Through October
This would mean a season-opening losing streak of at least eight games for New England. That stretch includes six games against teams that made the playoffs in one or both of the past two seasons, including contenders like the 49ers, Bengals, Dolphins, and Texans, and the other two contests are against a Jets team that looks like it could be veritably elite.
Whether it’s Drake Maye or Jacoby Brissett at quarterback — or some combination of the two — the New England offense has a very good case of being the worst in the NFL. The skill group is all but devoid of productive players, while the line is thinner than it should be. With star edge rusher Matthew Judon gone, a promising young defense won’t be enough to lift this team to wins against higher-level NFL teams.
New Orleans Saints: Start Three or More Quarterbacks
Year 1 of the Derek Carr experiment in New Orleans was somewhere between an abject failure and a resounding success. Carr was reasonably efficient but didn’t create much volume, and the Saints missed out on the postseason for the third straight year, a streak that coincides with the departure of Drew Brees.
This year, things could be even worse as the NFC South — easily the league’s worst division last season — looks poised to take a collective step up. Jake Haener is an intriguing prospect who could be given a chance at some point, as is fifth-round rookie Spencer Rattler, while Taysom Hill always remains a candidate to be given snaps for one reason or another.
New York Giants: Finish With the Worst Record in the NFC
Things are looking truly dismal for the G-Men right now. The offense is unlikely to improve with Daniel Jones at the helm, and there’s no viable second option in the building as of now. Rookie receiver Malik Nabers should provide a boost, but he can only provide so much help on his own; there’s not much else to boast about in New York’s offensive skill group.
The defense is also very much light on talent and isn’t likely to improve with Don “Wink” Martindale making a move over to Michigan. The NFC is not generally viewed as being as stacked as the AFC, but it’s relatively devoid of true bottom-feeder teams, and the Giants are stuck in a division with two possible contenders; they could struggle to a conference-worst season.
New York Jets: Win the Super Bowl
This might appear as perhaps the boldest projection on the list, but after getting over the initial shock of a potential championship for a team with the longest postseason drought in major North American sports, there’s plenty of reason to believe.
The biggest tangible question mark is the health and ability of Aaron Rodgers at the age of 40 as he recovers from a major injury, but he doesn’t need to quite be his best, MVP-caliber self to win a ring this year; he just has to deliver the football and take what’s given to him.
In Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall, the Jets possess a pair of genuinely elite offensive playmakers, giving Rodgers more than he’s had to work with in some of his best years. On the other side of the football, the New York defense is close to the league’s best; if the offense can be even noticeably better than it was last year, it will take pressure off of the unit and allow them to flourish even more.
Philadelphia Eagles: Jalen Hurts Sets a Career High in Passing Yards
Philly’s star quarterback has yet to throw for over 4,000 yards in a season, but that could change this year. The team made it clear that they’re ready to throw the ball by making a trade for receiver Jahan Dotson, a great complement to the stud duo of A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, as well as securing a huge upgrade at offensive coordinator with Kellen Moore.
With a presumed emphasis on keeping both Hurts and Saquon Barkley healthy, expect both to be used in the air game more and as rushers less as compared to previous seasons in their careers.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Justin Fields Makes the Pro Bowl
This would require quite a few opt-outs — think back to Tyler Huntley making it in 2022 — but it would still signify a step up for Fields after a really challenging start to his career in Chicago. The AFC is full of veteran quarterbacks who have made multiple Pro Bowls, consistently struggle with injuries, or both, meaning that plenty of players could decline invites, paving the way for a comeback player like Fields to earn a replacement selection.
But why Fields? Pittsburgh’s receiving group is filled with polished pros with on-ball skills like those possessed by previous targets with which Fields has had some success, and a new offensive scheme under Arthur Smith could really help to further maximize Fields’ singular rushing ability.
San Francisco 49ers: Make a Coaching Change
No, Kyle Shanahan is not going to be a midseason firing, making this more of a postseason prediction. Even so, such a move would be a direct result of a disappointing 2024 season, which could very well be on the horizon for San Francisco.
Shanahan has gotten phenomenal results out of lots of players in San Francisco and helped the team to be a perennial contender, but he’s shown a staggering inability to close out big games in the postseason.
It may seem like a distant memory now, but before the Rams won the Super Bowl in 2022, there were calls for Sean McVay’s job as he struggled to win the big one; this situation isn’t too different. If Shanahan comes up short yet again this season, especially if it’s any earlier than the Super Bowl, it’ll be hard for him to make a case that he’s getting any closer to winning a championship for the Niners.
Seattle Seahawks: Jaxson Smith-Njigba Leads the Team in Receptions
After a relatively quiet rookie campaign, expect the Ohio State product to break out in Year 2. Smith-Njigba finished with 63 catches as a rookie, just below deep threat DK Metcalf’s 66 and farther behind Tyler Lockett’s team-best 79. With Smith-Njigba getting more comfortable in the offense and Lockett getting farther beyond the age of 30, expect the target share to shift, especially when it comes to short, inside passes.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Mike Evans Fails to Record 1,000 Receiving Yards
Coming up short of an elite production milestone is not an incredibly shocking development for many players, but Evans is one of a kind. He’s had a four-digit receiving yardage total in each of his 10 NFL seasons, a completely unprecedented run.
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Of course, all things must come to an end, and Evans’ streak could end this season. It’s already survived a couple of close calls — 1,006 yards in 2020 and 1,035 in 2021 — and he’s now on the wrong side of the age of 30. Evans did lead the league in touchdowns for the first time last year as he developed a strong rapport with Baker Mayfield, but he did not display the same contested-catch dominance he had in years past.
With passing game guru Dave Canales out of town, and rookie receiver Jalen McMillan ready to take a share of the targets, things could be slightly different for Evans this season.
Tennessee Titans: Earn the First Pick in the 2025 Draft
The AFC South is a tougher division than many give it credit for, and the Titans are in an absolutely horrible situation. They replaced a top-tier head coach in Mike Vrabel with the inexperienced Brian Callahan, who did not have a tremendous amount of responsibility under Zac Taylor in Cincinnati. They also lost Derrick Henry, who is past his elite, league-best peak but still chipped in 2,705 rushing yards over the past two seasons.
Tennessee is stuck with one of the toughest schedules in football and doesn’t have the firepower to navigate it; they’ll struggle to win any number of games this season.
Washington Commanders: Finish .500 in Divisional Play
With Ron Rivera out of the building, Washington could be set to take a small but noticeable step forward. Last season, the Commanders only won four games, a total further harmed by an 0-6 record against NFC East competition. They’re bringing back a quietly strong offensive skill group, and they drafted a dynamic young quarterback, Jayden Daniels, who could help maximize those players
The NFC East is wider-open than it might appear, and with the intensity level always high between all four teams in the division, the Commanders could pull off splits with any of their three rivals or even a sweep of the Giants.