The NFC is loaded heading into 2026. The defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks return with most of their roster intact, the Rams just traded for the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, and the Eagles and Lions are both legitimate contenders. Further down the conference, young quarterbacks in Washington, Carolina, and New Orleans are at critical stages of their development, while Atlanta and Arizona are trying to find their footing entirely. From the top of the NFL standings to the bottom, every NFC team has a story worth watching this season. Here is how all 16 shake out before training camps open in July.
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16. Arizona Cardinals
New head coach Mike LaFleur takes over after a franchise-worst 3-14 season, with Kyler Murray gone and a quarterback room featuring Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew, and third-round rookie Carson Beck. Jeremiyah Love could be the best player on the roster, but this is a full rebuild pointed squarely at the 2027 draft.
15. Atlanta Falcons
NFL: Oct 19, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA. Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (9) drops back to pass against the San Francisco 49ers. During the second quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
New head coach Kevin Stefanski inherits a mess at quarterback. Kirk Cousins is now in Las Vegas, leaving Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa to battle for the starting job.
Penix was 30th in completion percentage and 24th in passer rating in 2025 before his season ended with a third career ACL tear. Bijan Robinson gives them a floor, but the QB room is a genuine problem.
14. Carolina Panthers
Carolina surprised a lot of people by winning the NFC South in 2025, and 2026 is about proving it wasn’t a fluke. Left tackle Ikem Ekwonu ruptured his patellar tendon in the playoff loss to the Rams and is expected to be out 9-12 months, which is a significant problem for a team whose ceiling still rides on Bryce Young’s continued development.
13. New York Giants
Coming off a 4-13 season, New York hired John Harbaugh, and the buzz around the franchise has picked up fast. Malik Nabers remains in recovery from a torn ACL and meniscus that required a second cleanup surgery in April, which is the biggest obstacle standing between this team and a legitimate playoff push behind Jaxson Dart.
12. New Orleans Saints
Head coach Kellen Moore enters year two with Tyler Shough as the unquestioned starter after the second-round pick went 5-4 down the stretch in 2025 and earned PFWA All-Rookie honors.
The Saints added first-round receiver Jordyn Tyson and Travis Etienne to surround Shough with weapons. One of the easier schedules in the NFC gives them a real path to the postseason.
11. Minnesota Vikings
Kyler Murray signed with Minnesota in March and is widely expected to win the starting job over J.J. McCarthy and Carson Wentz, with Kevin O’Connell likely to name a starter a week or two into training camp. Murray gives O’Connell his most mobile quarterback since taking the job, and a back-loaded home schedule sets up a strong finish if the offense gels early.
10. Washington Commanders
NFL: Dec 7, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) rushes the ball. Against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
Jayden Daniels missed 10 games in 2025 with a knee sprain, hamstring strain and dislocated elbow, and the Commanders went 5-12 without him. He’s been fully cleared and is making big throws at OTAs, and GM Adam Peters has praised his offseason work.
If Daniels stays healthy, Washington has the talent to compete for the NFC East.
9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Baker Mayfield enters his fourth season in Tampa on an expiring contract, with his camp and the front office described as “not anywhere close” on an extension. He passed for 3,693 yards and 26 touchdowns in 2025 but faded badly in the second half of the season.
New offensive coordinator Zac Robinson needs to find a system that plays to Mayfield’s strengths before the contract situation becomes a full-blown distraction.
8. Chicago Bears
Ben Johnson set the bar high in year one, leading Chicago to an 11-6 record, the NFC North title and the franchise’s first playoff win since 2010. Caleb Williams posted 3,942 yards and 27 touchdowns and is entering year two with a deeper comfort level in the scheme.
The Bears face the toughest schedule in the NFL in 2026, which will be the defining test of whether this is a real contender.
7. Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys led the league in yards per game in 2025 but fielded one of the worst defenses in football after trading Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers. New defensive coordinator Christian Parker, a Vic Fangio disciple, is tasked with fixing a unit that ranked last in scoring defense.
Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb give Dallas a legitimate offense, but the defense has to be at least average for this team to go anywhere in January.
6. Green Bay Packers
NFL: Nov 27, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA. Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) throws a pass against the Detroit Lions. During the first quarter at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
The Parsons acquisition looked like a championship move until he tore his ACL late in 2025, finishing with 12.5 sacks in 14 games before going down. He confirmed he will open 2026 on the PUP list and is not expected back until mid-October.
Jordan Love and a talented young roster give Green Bay a high ceiling, but surviving the first month without their most expensive offseason addition is the immediate concern.
5. San Francisco 49ers
Kyle Shanahan canceled mandatory minicamp after the team had perfect attendance at voluntary workouts, a small sign that the program has its footing back. Brock Purdy signed a five-year, $265 million extension and has been named a dark-horse MVP candidate heading into year five as the starter.
The 49ers open the season in Melbourne against the Rams, a brutal opener that will tell us quickly how ready this roster is.
4. Detroit Lions
Detroit finished 9-8 in 2025 and missed the playoffs, and Dan Campbell acknowledged it was time to shake things up, replacing offensive coordinator John Morton with Drew Petzing from Arizona. Jared Goff has led the league in passing yards over the past four seasons, and Jahmyr Gibbs is now the unquestioned bell cow after David Montgomery was shipped to Houston.
The sixth-easiest schedule in the NFL gives this roster every opportunity to get back to the top of the NFC North.
3. Philadelphia Eagles
A.J. Brown was traded to New England on June 1, ending a four-year run in Philadelphia that included a Super Bowl and more than 5,000 receiving yards. Jalen Hurts now enters his fifth season with his fourth different offensive coordinator in new play caller Sean Mannion, and DeVonta Smith steps into the WR1 role.
The roster is still championship-caliber, but losing Brown while adding another new system around Hurts is a genuine variable.
2. Seattle Seahawks
NFL: Feb 8, 2026; Santa Clara, CA, USA. Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) reacts after defeating the New England Patriots. Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
The defending Super Bowl champions lost offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to Las Vegas and running back Kenneth Walker to Kansas City, and Sam Darnold enters the season behind a first-year play caller in Brian Fleury.
Mike Macdonald’s defense remains among the best in football, with Devon Witherspoon, Nick Emmanwori, and a deep defensive line all returning. The biggest question is whether the offense can sustain without the two architects who got Darnold to this level.
1. Los Angeles Rams
The Rams were already the consensus Super Bowl favorite when they traded for Myles Garrett on June 3, sending Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, and additional assets to Cleveland for the reigning Defensive Player of the Year and NFL single-season sack record holder.
Matthew Stafford, the 2025 MVP, now shares a roster with the 2025 DPOY, marking the first time in NFL history that the previous season’s MVP and Defensive Player of the Year have been teammates. Les Snead pushed all his chips in, and there’s no rational argument against the Rams being the team to beat in 2026.
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