SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

CLEVELAND BROWNS

No matter if the 49ers play well this season or struggle, they must go through Cleveland again prior to the bye week. Amongst defensive coordinators that Kyle Shanahan faced throughout his tenure, Jim Schwartz’s Browns is the most challenging. Shanahan’s unsuccessful against him and the only way for the 49ers to go into a bye feeling good and finishing strong is defeating Cleveland in possible snowy conditions.

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS

LOS ANGELES RAMS

It’s possible Seattle’s battling for third place or worse in their division. Of all divisional teams Seattle deals with to try to climb the standings, the Rams are their biggest problem. They struggled more often against LA than other teams. They both are competitive in recent meetings, but Seattle falls flat more often than they used to when they dominated with Russell Wilson, Pete Carroll, Marshawn Lynch, and the Legion of Boom.

ARIZONA CARDINALS

NFC SOUTH

With all the mess that Arizona dealt with on their schedule, it feels like the NFC South could make or break their season. While the NFC West is the obvious challenge, Arizona hasn’t fared well recently against the South division. New Orleans and Carolina could even press on Kyler Murray and company. If Arizona doesn’t get one win against any of those opponents, more changes are coming.

LOS ANGELES RAMS

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

I had my eye on the Eagles, but LA’s divisional rival makes more sense. I’m bullish on both finishing the Top 2 of their division and potentially facing each other again in the postseason. While the Rams cooked at the right time making the postseason, the 49ers are looking for a healthy bounce back. Either way, every game is a battle for the division between those two and it’s expected to happen again this season.

DALLAS COWBOYS

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

In this matchup where Dak Prescott’s available, Dallas is 9-4 all-time against the Eagles. Without him, Dallas has little to zilch against Philly. Dak’s back and some of his teammates return too. However, Micah Parsons’ trade to Green Bay could potentially change how the Cowboys fares without him. Either way, every play against Philly is vital and the margin-of-error is zero. Can Dallas find a way to spoil the Super Bowl champs’ season opener and make a statement in their division?

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

NEW YORK GIANTS

While my 2024 Underrated Team Commanders had a surprisingly sensational run, let’s not get ahead of ourselves with a repeat. Of all teams they’ll be challenged against, the New York Giants are their biggest challenge. Why? For the last 10 seasons, Washington managed an 8-11-1 record against New York. Not many of their wins were blowouts and the offense struggled in losses. Jayden Daniels is the bright spot for the team, but the offense needs a solution, so they won’t rely on their kicker to kick seven field goals to win.

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

The Cowboys should be on there, but the Commanders are there for a reason. Despite the overwhelming record Philly has over them, Washington’s been a thorn in Philly’s side for the past few seasons. After winning six straight times between 2017 and 2019, Washington cut down on that streak since 2020 and even pushed Jalen Hurts and company to the brink several times. Philly destroyed them in the postseason, sure. But they have struggled at times and it’s best not to overlook Jayden Daniels.

NEW YORK GIANTS

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

Like Washington, New York had plenty of challenges against them. New York bested them for a while before Washington finally found an answer at quarterback. Now, New York’s at risk of being in last place for a while unless Russell Wilson somehow cooks statistically better, or Jaxson Dart is the answer that the offense so desperately needed.

GREEN BAY PACKERS

CHICAGO BEARS

Packer fans might think differently, but this is as true as it gets. Chicago’s finally breathing down their neck. After Aaron Rodgers’ departure, it was a matter of time. Chicago needed to rebuild their roster and find an answer on defense and find A quarterback. Now that they answered most of it (if not all of it), where does this leave Green Bay? There are questions that must be answered before December.

CHICAGO BEARS

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

After choking away an opportunity at the end when it looked like Washington choked theirs away, Chicago lost 10 straight since the aftermath. It must be on their mind as they’re scheduled to walk right back into their stadium post-bye week. Interesting fact, Chicago came off a bye going to Washington last season. They’re doing it again and will need plenty of motivation because their first four games are brutal.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS

DETROIT LIONS

They lost the divisional battle to Detroit last season and aim to equalize it with most of their roster and staff intact. If JJ McCarthy is as he was advertised when he defeated Bama and won the National Championship two seasons ago, they could finally close the season out on top in the division and maybe more.

DETROIT LIONS

MINNESOTA VIKINGS

In vice versa, Detroit has a challenge on their hands with coach K.O.C.’s offense and Brian Flores’ defense. It all depends on JJ McCarthy’s performance. Otherwise, Detroit has a massive challenge to overcome with breaking past Flores’ defense and hoping everyone on their own defensive side is healthy. Jared Goff and company will need a solid A+ game if they want to own the division again.

ATLANTA FALCONS

NFC SOUTH

It’s all self-explanatory. No matter how good an NFC South team is, they’re still in the NFC South. Atlanta only had one double-digit victory in the entire divisional campaign against the Panthers last season. They swept the Bucs to give themselves a chance to win the division, but they fell short of that and a postseason because they lost to New Orleans and Carolina in their second meeting. Not a good way to close out the season, and we’re about to find out how they fare with Michael Penix as the new starter.

CAROLINA PANTHERS

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS

The Panthers may not climb up the standings much. They’ll probably be in the same spot as last season even if they’re more competitive. They’ll fight hard to stave off New Orleans and hold third place at least (or at most). But with how they closed out last season, they should be optimistic to go out and play with a more confident Bryce Young hopefully. Tampa Bay’s their biggest challenge but playing them close four times in the last five games of the season sounds like an opportunity to play spoiler.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS

ATLANTA FALCONS

Tampa won four straight NFC South titles, tying for most next to the New Orlean Saints. However, Tampa should be very disappointed in themselves for not defeating the Falcons last season. Since Baker Mayfield became their quarterback, Tampa’s 1-3 against Atlanta and were swept last season in thrilling fashion twice. Tampa’s expected to win their division again, but their previous two titles came down to Week 18 games with either Tampa winning or Atlanta losing.

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

ATLANTA FALCONS

It’s possible New Orleans won’t go anywhere this season. It’s also possible they finish last place looking for answers while rebuilding their roster and their cap space. Meanwhile, the focus is how they leverage the division standings. Carolina’s easy enough, even with everything going on. They won three of the last five meetings against them. While they could get a shot at Tampa and force turnovers against Baker, the offense is too inept to keep up with. And then there’s Atlanta. Believe it or not, New Orleans haven’t lost a home game to them since 2021. Even before, they haven’t suffered many home losses to Atlanta, quarterback or not. If the Saints want to shock the entire NFL world, sweeping Atlanta would be the challenge to overcome.

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

DENVER BRONCOS

Yep. I would mark them on your calendar if you’re a Chiefs or Broncos fan. After last season, expect more of this. Denver’s defense is for real, and the offense looked promising with Bo Nix. If Nix doesn’t have a sophomore slump, Kansas City faces a problem. While the defense should still give the team a winning chance, the offense is faced with questions with outside protection, pass catchers outside of Kelce and Worthy, and the run game that isn’t sure if Pacheco can still be Pacheco. One loss to Denver could create uncertainty for Kansas City’s future.

DENVER BRONCOS

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

This should be Denver’s opportunity to shift power elsewhere after acquiring Sean Payton and Bo Nix with a vaunting defense. They were oh-so close to sweeping them if it weren’t for the field goal block due to a questionable blocking situation. They may have wrecked KC in Week 18, but that doesn’t count since KC didn’t play their starters. If Denver wants any attention as a postseason threat, defeating Kansas City “competitively” would be a start.

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

Just like Denver, if the Chargers want any respect after Brandon Staley blew it with them, it starts with defeating the Chiefs. They must find a way to outsmart both Andy Reid and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo to get anywhere.

LAS VEGAS RAIDERS

AFC WEST

While the Raiders signed Pete Carroll and brought in Geno Smith to reunite with him, where does the process for improvement begin? Their schedule’s daunting and the offense still has questions. The AFC West beefed up and the Raiders need to kill off one of the AFC West opponents to finally grow. Could it be their hated rival, Broncos? Could it be Pete’s nemesis, Jim Harbaugh? Or could it be the elusive Pat Mahomes and the Chiefs? Until we know who, the Raiders are still in the AFC West cellar.

BUFFALO BILLS

CINCINNATI BENGALS AND NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

Buffalo’s done enough to the Chiefs in regular season games, so they’re not included. However, the Bengals and Patriots should be considered. New England (good or bad) have presented a problem to Buffalo the past two seasons and made the series surprisingly 2-2. They might not win at Buffalo to start the season, but they roll back around December at Boston, and Vrabel could bring plenty of nostalgia when New England dominated Buffalo in his era with Tom Brady. Cincinnati has a healthy (hopefully) Joe Burrow and Buffalo faces them a week before the Patriots. Win or lose, Joe and Ja’Marr Chase could create issues for Buffalo’s defense and force Josh Allen to win the game for the team.

NEW YORK JETS

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

I can’t look past Week 1 because Justin Fields faces his former team with Aaron Rodgers visiting his former team as well. Pressure has mounted on Fields to defeat Rodgers to put the past behind him. Defeating the Steelers sets the tone for a few days before possibly getting a reality check against Buffalo next week.

MIAMI DOLPHINS

THEMSELVES

With a lot going on during the offseason, it feels more pessimistic about Miami’s 2025 season. They lost so many key pieces on the roster and Tyreek Hill must earn his place back in the locker room after making comments about leaving Miami. Tua can’t stay healthy for one season, which makes it more complicated to believe Miami can maintain consistency. If Miami wants to be relevant again, Tua must stay healthy for one entire season of his career.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

BUFFALO BILLS

And it’ll continue being their biggest challenge. However, there’s a chance they upset Buffalo at least once this season. It probably won’t be in the first meeting, but the second meeting after the bye week will tell how much progress New England made under coach Mike Vrabel.

BALTIMORE RAVENS

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Ravens swept Pittsburgh for the first time since 2019. However, they’ve struggled against them in the past for a while. Even with Lamar Jackson and a stacked roster, Pittsburgh was their bugaboo, and it could be that way again with key additions to Pittsburgh’s roster. Their divisional matchup starts in December and Week 18.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

AARON RODGERS’ HEALTH

Pittsburgh could finally have a shot at winning a playoff game and maybe think Super Bowl this season. They could challenge any team they want with experience everywhere on their roster. However, father time’s undefeated. Keeping Rodgers healthy and upright is their priority all season long. I do have a chaos theory on him involving Will Howard, but I’m not making a paragraph out of it. Just imagine it.

CINCINNATI BENGALS

JOE BURROW AND THE DEFENSE

Now that the Trey Hendrickson contract’s resolved and Joe Burrow made it this far without an injury, let’s talk Cincinnati themselves. Joe Burrow had slow starts consistently in his career and hopes that ends in Week 1. As for the defense, Hendrickson and draftee Shemar Stewart must set the example for a group that’s struggled and had to watch Burrow save them. Both issues must be resolved to where the Bengals can be a deep postseason/Super Bowl contender again.

CLEVELAND BROWNS

DESHAUN WATSON

The quarterback conversation in Cleveland is a circus. It’s always entertaining to watch the organization clown around their QB decisions. Even if they know who their starter is, Deshaun Watson might still take the field if he’s good to go. He’s still under contract unfortunately, so he must start. Sucks to be Cleveland, but they did this to themselves by giving Baker Mayfield the boot.

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

ANTHONY RICHARDSON

And yes, I will talk about this quarterback too. I wasn’t a fan of Indy drafting Richardson so high. That’s even worse than Cleveland or Denver drafting Johnny Manziel or Tim Tebow so high and both had more college reps as starters. Richardson played one and a half years of football at Florida. He didn’t get his first touchdown pass in his last season until the fourth game. What’s worse is that he can’t stay healthy and suffered another injury during preseason. Danny Dimes could lead Indy, but what does it say about Indy’s handling of their first-round quarterback?

TENNESSEE TITANS

AFC SOUTH

Since 2022, Tennessee struggled against their own division. It had plenty to do with Mike Vrabel being let go, Derrick Henry eventually leaving for Baltimore last season, and the roster not finding a quarterback during that stretch. If Cam Ward’s the answer, that makes life easier for their defense and the entire organization.

HOUSTON TEXANS

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

We would think by now that the Texans are dominating the division since drafting CJ Stroud. That’s not the case when dealing with the Colts for the division title. Most of that reason comes from Houston themselves. The Colts could’ve been division champs multiple times, but they cost themselves at the end nearly every time. If Houston’s offense can maintain, so will their AFC South title hopes.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

In order for Jacksonville to climb up the AFC South standings, they must take out Indy this season. Indy’s vulnerable at quarterback, which gives Trevor Lawrence a chance to redeem himself. Despite their recent struggles, they have a better matchup record at 12-7 since 2015 and have not lost a home game to Indy since 2014. Funny how Pat McAfee called Jacksonville’s stadium a clown town. Jokes on him for not seeing that history lol Anyway, they need a healthy Trevor and a revamped defense to have any shot at better positioning in the standings.