Last year, an 8-9 record was enough for the Panthers to win the NFC South. It would have been the worst record in the NFC North, which became just the second division post-1970 AFL-NFL merger to have four teams with a winning record. Such is life in the NFL, where the power can swing wildly over the years.
Yes, the NFC North was historically strong one through four last year, but in 2021, it only had one team over .500. It can also swing unexpectedly year to year. In 2024, the AFC South had just one team with a winning record and had two of the five worst teams in the NFL.
In 2025, two teams -- the Texans (13-4) and the Jaguars (12-5) were two of the best teams in the NFL, and the Colts might have been, too, had Daniel Jones stayed healthy. So how will the conferences shake out this year? We've ranked them 1-8, with several tough calls up and down the rankings.
The NFC West went 29-15 against non-division opponents last year, the best mark in the NFL, and it went 4-1 against the NFC North, including playoffs. So, yes, while the Cardinals won't be very good this year, there might be three NFC West teams better than the best NFC North team. The Rams are the Super Bowl favorites.
They finished one possession short of a trip to the big game last year, and since then, all they've done is add one of the best defensive players of all time in Myles Garrett and overhaul their worst position group, trading for Trent McDuffie and signing Jaylen Watson. On paper, it's as talented as any team in recent memory. The Seahawks are the reigning Super Bowl champs, and yet they've been under-appreciated from the moment they lifted the Lombardi Trophy.
With Mike Macdonald calling the shots, the star-studded defense should be among the NFL's best. The 49ers, meanwhile, just won 11 games while being obliterated by injuries all year. They have Fred Warner and Nick Bosa back on defense.
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