We’re a week away from the start of the 2026 NFL season. We did the spring workouts, the super boring part of the summer, training camp, and roster cuts … In a perfect world, every team would be set for the season. Well, it’s not a perfect world, and every team still has a pretty glaring issue.
For some teams, it’s a massive problem that we’ve known about for months. For other teams, it’s a big thing that has popped up in the last week or two. Regardless, these are the things that every team should be concerned with figuring out before they head into Week 1.
Arizona Cardinals
Biggest Concern: Jeremiyah Love’s workload
Was the Cardinals’ decision to draft Jeremiyah Love third overall a good one? Probably not, but they did it anyway, and now they have an RB1 for the next four or five years. The problem is that he has a high-ankle sprain right now, and he’s questionable for Week 1. In reality, he’ll play because painkillers exist, but those ankle sprains are injuries that end up lingering, and having one before the season even starts is going to be a real kick in the nards somewhere down the line.
The problem is that he’s not the only running back who is banged up. As a matter of fact, the only two who aren’t are Tyler Allgeier and Bam Knight. James Connor is unsurprisingly dealing with a foot thing, and Trey Benson (who was waived and returned to the team) is on the IR with a knee.
If Love is available, he’s going to play … But how much? Not only can leg injuries get worse, but they can also turn into bigger/worse things. Do you put your stud rookie on a pitch count, and let two lesser backs take the brunt of it all? That’d be the smart thing.
Atlanta Falcons
Biggest Concern: Who is QB1?
As of Friday, Aug. 28, Kevin Stefanski hasn’t named a starting quarterback … Which makes them the last team to do so.
Michael Penix, the Falcon’s oft-injured 2024 first-round pick, was just cleared for full practice on Monday, Aug. 24, after he partially tore his ACL last November. There was supposed to be an offseason/preseason battle between him and Tua Tagovailoa for the QB1 spot, but since Penix hasn’t practiced, Tua should’ve gotten a stranglehold on the job … He didn’t.
Tua started in their final preseason game. If recent history has told us anything about camp battles like this, it’s that teams who are confident in their starting QBs put them on ice during the final preseason games.
It sure felt like a final audition, and he continued to stink it up. Now you have to think Kevin Stefanski is going to have him on a short leash when the season comes around. That’s bad for everyone, and Atlanta would be smart to figure out what the game plan is.
Baltimore Ravens
Biggest Concern: What is Nnamdi Madubuike going to look like?
The Ravens defense was a hot mess in 2025, and a lot of that is because their studly, gut-ripping defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike had a pretty gnarly neck injury in Week 2. He went on IR, had neck surgery, and wasn’t cleared to play until the end of July.
That’s a long time off of football.
We’re talking about a neck injury, which means that there’s a non-zero chance that Madubuike doesn’t get back to the level he was playing at. Then you add in the part where he’s had a relatively small training camp, which means his conditioning is definitely in question … and buddy, that’s not a great equation.
Unfortunately, the only way to know what he looks like during a game is for him to play in a game. It’s a tough spot to be in, especially for such a key guy on the defense.
Buffalo Bills
Biggest Concern: What’s the deal with the safeties?
For about seven seasons, the Bills were set at safety with Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, but that combo came to an end in 2023. So for the last two seasons, they’ve been trotting out a few different combinations. This year, it’s looking like the starters in Week 1 will be Cole Bishop and C.J. Gardner-Johnson, which is a pretty solid duo.
The problem is that those two guys didn’t get a whole lot of time together during the training camp because of injuries … C.J.G.J. had a pair of leg injuries early in August, while Bishop’s shoulder and knee stuff came during the summer.
As a starting pair, they’re not the most durable guys. Behind them is Geno Stone, who is coming off a terrible season with the Bengals where he had the most missed tackles of anyone in the NFL, and Damar Hamlin. Not great depth there.
You’ve got to think they’ll be a team that grabs someone after roster cuts.
Carolina Panthers
Biggest Concern: How much do you need to help Monroe Freeling?
This offseason has been rough for the Panthers. They went into it knowing they wouldn’t have their starting left tackle, Ikem Ekwonu, because of a mucked-up knee … and then they got the news that their right tackle, Taylor Moton, would miss time because of blood clots in his lungs.
Fortunately, they were smart in free agency and the draft by signing the veteran Rasheed Walker and drafting the developmental Monroe Freeling in the first round. Unfortunately, Freeling doesn’t get that developmental time and is going to have to go now.
During their joint practice with the Texans, there were all kinds of reports that Houston was absolutely eating his lunch.
Is that help going to come from chips? Is it combo blocks? How frequently does that need to happen? Can the running backs pick up the slack? Those are all things Dave Canales has to figure out to give Bryce Young a fair shot.
Chicago Bears
Biggest Concern: Is there a plan for a pass rusher?
The Bears’ defense is in trouble, and it’s purely because of talent. This offseason, the one thing that almost everyone agreed on was that they needed to get an EDGE/DE who is at least a high-end player. They didn’t. So this is boring to bring up again, but it’s got to be brought up again.
We’ve seen defenses make that work, but that involves absolutely smothering coverage from the defensive backs to give the pass rush time to get home. The Bears don’t really have those kinds of DBs, and there aren’t any who are available or who are going to be available.
They can always trade for someone (once again, I invoke Maxx Crosby’s name), or do the whole ‘One man’s trash is another man’s treasure’ thing after roster cuts. Whatever the case, they just don’t have the horses right now.
Cincinnati Bengals
Biggest Concern: Demetrius Knight, huh?
The Bengals made a lot of good moves on defense this offseason. At safety, they replaced Geno Stone with Bryan Cook. At Edge, they signed Boye Mafe. At defensive tackle, they traded for Dexter Lawrence and signed Jonathan Allen. At linebacker … They did nothing.
That means they’re going to run it back with some combination of Demetrius Knight and Barrett Carter, Oren Burks, and/or Joe Giles-Harris. That is a linebacker group that should be easily upgradable, whether it’s through a trade or getting a guy who didn’t make it on a 53.
If the guy in the guts of your defense has a performance floor as low as Knight’s, you’re not only asking for trouble, but you’re also putting a whole lot of stress and pressure on the people around him. We’ll have to see what they do … if they do anything.
Cleveland Browns
Biggest Concern: How long is Deshaun Watson’s leash
The Browns named Deshaun Watson their starting quarterback, and he flat out stinks … So in a season that is purely about losing games with simultaneously developing young guys, they put themselves in a rough spot.
Luckily, this whole thing is set up for him to start in Weeks 1 and 2 (at Jacksonville and at Tampa Bay), lose those games, and then get benched. That would mean Sanders would get the start for the Week 3 home-opener, and Browns fans wouldn’t have to deservingly boo their QB.
The little hiccup here is that this is the NFL … What if Watson shows a little bit of what he looked like in 2020 and the Browns are kind of forced to let him start more games? The powers that be need to have a conversation where they sit down and say, ‘It doesn’t matter if he throws for three touchdowns in September. If he’s not pushing the ball downfield with any consistency, efficiency, or effectiveness, he needs to get the boot … Regardless of a win.’
Splashes of goodness happen in professional football, and bad teams get fooled by them. If the Browns want their young dudes to stand a chance, they can’t be fooled if Watson somehow makes a splash.
Dallas Cowboys
Biggest Concern: Running back depth
After the roster cuts, the Cowboys only have two running backs on their 53: Javonte Williams and Malik Davis. The level of talent between those two is huge, and that combo certainly cannot be what they’re rolling with come Week 1.
In reality, they’re probably going to elevate someone from their practice roster (I imagine they hoped it was Jaydon Blue) on game days … But it’d be a football crime if Jerry Jones didn’t try to trade for an actual RB2, or another RB3-caliber guy.
Denver Broncos
Biggest Concern: What’s the plan at Edge?
Early this offseason, the Broncos’ pretty-good edge rusher, Jonathon Cooper, got hit with some pretty gnarly D.V. charges. On Aug. 30th, he got put on the NFL Commissioner’s exempt list (the list problematic/bad guys go on), and he’ll probably be suspended for a little bit at the beginning of the season.
They still have a pretty solid rotation, but this is one of their starters and the first stretch of their season is a slog. They have the Chiefs, the Jags, the Rams, the 49ers, the Chargers, and the Seahawks right out of the gate. Those are six quarterbacks who are somewhere between ‘above average’ and ‘NFL MVP.’ On a bad day (football-wise, not personal life-wise), Cooper affects the quarterbacks, and you’re not going to win games if those quarterbacks are allowed to be comfortable.
Jonah Elliss is certainly going to play a big role in replacing Cooper, but that’s not going to be a one-for-one replacement. Van Joseph is a smart guy who has done this for a long time, so this is just another thing for the 2026 Broncos where you can say, “I’m sure they’ll be fine.”
Detroit Lions
Biggest Concern: What if a team throws the ball?
Since Dan Campbell became the Lions’ head coach, their roster has been dealing with all kinds of injuries. You can’t blame him for those injuries (like Carlton Davis breaking his jaw in 2023), but he’s the guy at the top, so it does kind of fall on him.
Sure enough, they’re going into the 2026 season with a pretty rough-looking defensive backfield, and specifically safety group. Right now, both Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch are on the PUP list and won’t be able to play until at least Week 5. That means Avonte Maddox and Chuck Clark, Thomas Harper, and a practice squad elevation are going to be holding down the fort. In the year 2026, that’s not what you want.
On top of that, you’ll be counting on Rock Ya-Sin and D.J. Reed at corner to help those deep guys out. They’re good, but they’re limited. Asking them to do too much might end up biting you.
I can’t imagine the Lions are going to spend any real resources on DBs between now and Week 1, so this might just be a ‘close your eyes and hope the pass rush gets home’ type of thing.
Green Bay Packers
Biggest Concern: Early-season running game
Just like with the Broncos with Jonathon Cooper, the Packers also had a player put on the NFL Commissioner’s exempt list: their running back Josh Jacobs because of an alleged domestic violence incident.
We all kind of knew something like this was going to happen, and because Jacobs is a highly-drafted running back in fantasy, there’s been talk about the Packers' RB depth. It’s going to be Chris Brooks, who has 82 total carries in his three-year career, Kaleb Johnson (yuck), and MarShawn Lloyd.
Lloyd is the interesting guy here because he’s got a decent upside, but he’s just never been healthy; the only six carries of his career came in Week 2 of the 2024 season before he went on the IR. In college he had an ACL, and in the NFL he’s had a hammy, an ankle sprain, a groin, another hammy, and a calf. It’s been rough.
Without Jacobs, the guys who will take the mantle aren’t great. The Packers need to figure out if that’s who they’re going to roll with, and if it is, they need to find out a way to make three very untested guys be NFL-caliber starters.
Houston Texans
Biggest Concern: Offense, just like, in general
Let’s recap what’s going on with the Texans’ offense: The general vibes around C.J. Stroud are in the toilet. They’ve rebuilt their offensive line for the third straight season. The running game hasn’t been a factor for a hot minute now. Tank Dell just went on IR, so Nico Collins is going to be the only threatening wide receiver for at least four games. The tight end group is solid. It’s damn near impossible to consistently run an effective offense with all of that going on.
If you’re a defensive coordinator who is game planning for the Texans offense, are you really losing sleep over Nico Collins alone? Probably not. If you’re not losing sleep on him, are you losing sleep on Dalton Schultz or Foster Moreau as pass-catching tight ends? Doubt it. If you’re not worrying about any explosives in the passing game, you can focus on shutting down a questionable (at best) running game.
The Texans have had all spring and summer to find out what their weapons are going to be, and in the past two weeks, they lost two and gained a part of one in Kayshon Boutte. Nick Caley, their offensive coordinator, has a lot of work to do in the next few weeks. I imagine a bunch of that is going to involve turning the tight ends into weapons.
Indianapolis Colts
Biggest Concern: Can Daniel Jones actually handle pressure?
Chalk this one up as a concern that doesn’t have a resolution:
The reports coming out of Colts’ training camp said that Daniel Jones looked as good as new, and that his Achilles, which he tore nine months ago, doesn’t look like it’s bothering him at all. To that I say, “Show me,” because that’s simply unbelievable.
Just recently, we’ve seen Aaron Rodgers and Kirk Cousins try to play after their injuries, and they were pretty hampered by what was going on. We’re supposed to believe that Jones is immune to that? Fat chance.
Luckily, we’ll get to see that right out of the gate, because the Colts’ first game of the season is against the Ravens and their new toy, Trey Hendrickson. Jones is going to have to move in Week 1, and he’s going to have to do it a lot. Hopefully Shane Steichen and company have a plan, because if not, a bunch of reporters are going to look like ding-dongs. And we, who need to see it to believe it, have nothing to lose.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Biggest Concern: Travis Hunter’s usage
People forget about Travis Hunter and that he totally rocks. When the Jags traded up to get him at the beginning of the first round of the 2025 draft, they knew they were getting a special player … And then he got hurt seven games into his rookie career.
This offseason, the conversation around Hunter went right back to the old, ‘Is he going to play both ways?’ The incredibly smart thing to do is to just have him be an elite-tier corner and then involve him in the offense down the line … Since, you know, that’s the way that it works.
Deion Sanders was the best and most prolific two-way player in the history of the NFL, and he didn’t become a usable part of the offense until his eighth season in the NFL. It seems like a boneheaded move for the Jaguars to try to force Hunter into doing both things since we haven’t even seen him do just one thing for a full season.
If I were Anthony Campanile and Anthony Perkins (their defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach), I would get Hunter in a defensive meeting and then lock the door so he can’t go to an offensive one.
Kansas City Chiefs
Biggest Concern: Is Mahomes ready for hell?
Andy Reid plays his starters in the preseason; it’s kind of his whole thing. For the first time since the 2020 preseason, he didn’t play Patrick Mahomes.
That made sense: the dude is coming off of a brutal knee injury, and you don’t want to toss him out there for meaningless snaps against a defense playing a Devil May Care-style of football. However, that would’ve also been the only time for him to really test out his knee.
The mountain-sized elephant in the room is that the Chiefs' first game is against the Broncos and one of the most tenacious pass rushes in the NFL led by Nik Bonitto. That means that Mahomes is going to have to go from having the forcefield of practice to trying to buy time for a less-than-great group of wide receivers to get open. He’s been phenomenal at that in the past … but now? We’ll see.
Luckily, the pass rushes that the Chiefs see for the next four games are nothing like what the Broncos have going on.
Las Vegas Raiders
Biggest Concern: Understand Maxx Crosby’s value
When the Ravens traded two first-round picks for Maxx Crosby, it was the highest his trade value would ever be. When the Ravens backed out of that trade, it was the lowest his trade value would ever be. Ever since then, his value has been going the only way it can go: Up.
When Crosby steps on the field for the first time in Week 1, his value is going to go up again. When he gets his first sack, it’s going to shoot up even more … Yada yada yada … You get it.
John Spytek and the Raiders need to go into the season knowing what Crosby’s value is and be careful not to overstep. If the Bears call them after they dropped their fourth straight game in Week 5, and offer a 2027 third and a future 2028 first, they need to think about it. They can’t be killing themselves with a firm price.
Los Angeles Chargers
Biggest Concern: What’s the threshold for benchable guard play?
Most of the time, coaches and coordinators are hired for their brains and the system they’re bringing with them. Unfortunately, some of those guys get hired, and they want to bring a few players with them.
The Chargers were in that unfortunate situation when they hired Mike McDaniel to be their new OC. He’s an awesome mind who runs a dynamic passing offense and a devastatingly beautiful ground game … But one of the guys he brought with him was Cole Strange, Miami’s right guard from last year.
He’s not great. He wasn’t great last year when he was playing next to an All-Pro center (Aaron Brewer), and this year he’s going to be playing next to a rookie center (Jake Slaughter) ... So I would imagine that it’s going to look worse.
They need to go into the season with an understanding of what is benchable play from their right guard. If it were just a regular old free agent that we were looking at, this wouldn’t be an issue, but since Strange and McDaniel have a history … It’s just a little different.
Los Angeles Rams
Biggest Concern: What is depth?
The Rams’ roster is sick. I know it. You know it. We all know it.
However, behind their starters there’s not a whole lot going on. That’s especially true on their offensive line, and specifically at tackle. Luckily, swing tackles exist, which means all they have to do is trade for a swing tackle and, in theory, you cover both bases. The problem is that they don’t really have an abundance of draft picks to throw at getting a guy.
However, if they wanted to part ways with one of their five tight ends and trade him for a swing tackle, it wouldn’t be the craziest thing in the world. One place I would look is in Philadelphia.
The Eagles rostered both Fred Johnson and the rookie Markell Bell. Johnson is a guy who they were comfortable parting ways with last offseason, and it sounds like he didn’t have a great training camp.
The bump in the road is that this would be two contending teams in the same conference trading with each other. That seems like a long shot, but it’s just an example.
Miami Dolphins
Biggest Concern: QB depth
When the Dolphins traded Jaylen Waddle to the Broncos, they got rid of the only starting-caliber wide receiver that Malik Willis could’ve thrown to. Now it’s going to be Chris Bell (rookie), Jalen Tolbert, Caleb Douglas (rookie), and Malik Washington. Bell and Douglas have relatively unknown upsides, but they do have upsides … unlike the other guys.
Then you mix that with a quarterback who’s very willing to tuck and run, which tends to happen more when a bad wide receiver room can’t get open on time … That’s trouble.
Willis isn’t some teensy guy like Kyler Murray or a twig like Jayden Daniels, but he’s not a hoss like Josh Allen either. We just don’t know if this guy’s body is going to be able to hold up from week to week, and if it doesn’t, you’re looking at Kyle McCord and Brady Cook as the backup quarterbacks.
If either of those two guys are playing meaningful snaps at quarterback, those young receivers aren’t going to develop the way they need to. This is a team that should be trading for a veteran guy (think Andy Dalton) who can throw in rhythm, is willing to check down to DeVon Achane, and knows how to protect himself.
Minnesota Vikings
Biggest Concern: End the Nine stuff before it turns into a thing
The Vikings will say that there was a quarterback competition between Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy, but the latter’s chance to win that battle was during the 2025 season; as soon as they signed Murray, the job was his.
Now we’re in a world where McCarthy is more than likely the QB3 behind Carson Wentz (who is still playing football).
I could be wrong about this, but McCarthy’s value probably isn’t going to get any higher than it is right now. The reason I say that is because as soon as Wentz takes the field before McCarthy, it’s going to show how little the Vikings think about him.
If they cut the guy loose now, it’d wipe the slate clean for Nolan Teasley, their new general manager, and it’d help them get something for the future. There are plenty of teams out there who think that they can fix guys … Zach Wilson is still getting paid by an NFL team (the Saints).
New England Patriots
Biggest Concern: What if Alijah Vera-Tucker goes down?
The big free agent move that the Patriots made this offseason was when they signed Alijah Vera-Tucker. He’s a really good guard when he plays … But in his five-year career, he’s played in 43-of-85 games. That means he’s missed more than he’s played.
He missed 10 games with a torn triceps in 2022. He missed 12 games with a popped Achilles in 2023. He missed the entire 2025 season with a torn triceps in 2025. That’s a rough résumé, and it’s not crazy to think that he’s going to miss some time. If that happens, there’s a potential spiral.
We know that the Pats’ left tackle, Will Campbell, had a really bad time in the postseason. Was that because he’s not all that good? Was that because his knee was a mess? Was it a mixture of both? Who knows?
Regardless, offensive linemen play better next to better players, and they play better when they’re used to playing next to the same guys. If AVT goes down, that means one of two things will happen, and both of them have the same result:
A backup guard is going to come in, and the left side of the line will be in trouble. Or Campbell could slide over to left tackle, which would mean a rookie would come in at tackle … and the left side of the line will be in trouble.
The Patriots need to figure out which of those two levels of trouble is better. That’s why they get paid the big bucks.
New Orleans Saints
Biggest Concern: How much does Kaden Elliss blitz?
This is more about the Saints' lack of a pass rush. Chase Young, Cam Jordan, and Carl Granderson all have a decent upside … But none of them are going to knock your socks off with any real consistency. Luckily, they re-signed a very good blitzing linebacker in Kaden Elliss.
A good move for them would be to enter the trade market for a talented defensive end (cap space could be an issue), but if they don’t, the real pressure they get is going to come from Kaden Elliss being their extra rusher.
Every single defensive coordinator in the history of football has wanted to win with four rushers, but that’s just not realistic for every defensive line. Does Branden Staley want to jeopardize the guts of his defense by sending a linebacker? Does he want to drop an outside linebacker into coverage … and also jeopardize the guts of his defense? Does he want to do something else that’s clever and super high-level? It’s certainly a less-than-ideal situation going into a season, but they’ve got to figure it out.
New York Giants
Biggest Concern: Arvell Reese is too good at too many things
When the Giants drafted Arvell Reese fifth overall, they drafted a guy who is as close to Micah Parsons as we’ve seen (it’s only been five seasons, but it’s still impressive).
If you remember Parsons’ rookie season, they started him as an inside linebacker, but moved him around the defense and lined him up as an edge ~40 percent of the time. Yada yada yada, Micah Parsons is one of the best edge rushers that we’ve ever seen. If Reese takes the pill from Limitless, he can reach that level.
I imagine Dennard Wilson and the Giants will at least try to see what they can get from Reese with that idea in mind … And that’s a bad idea. This is a guy (like Travis Hunter — scroll up and read the Jaguars section) who needs to get one thing down before he can take on another role … especially as a rookie.
Down the line? Sure, get weird with it. But putting too much on the guy's plate too early is a real ding-dong move, and it’ll hamper his overall development. The Giants are in absolutely no rush to do anything. Let the guy play football and see what happens down the road.
New York Jets
Biggest Concern: Who is the interim head coach going to be?
We all know that Aaron Glenn is going to get fired mid-season. It’s a bad team, and he’s a bad head coach. Those guys get fired. Honestly, he probably should’ve gotten fired this offseason … But if you’re a team building for the future, tanking via coaching isn’t a terrible plan.
They’re in a particularly unique position where they can build a contingency plan for their interim coach. It won’t have to be a thing where the Raiders had to see which guys the players like before they promote Antonio Pierce, or a thing where the Colts hired Jeff Saturday out of the blue (remember that fever dream?).
Frank Reich is their offensive coordinator, and he has head coaching experience. Seth Ryan is their passing game coordinator, and he’s got experience working with Ben Johnson. Bill Musgrave is their quarterbacks coach, and he’s had a whole bunch of experience as OC and interim jobs.
They have options, and they are in a solid position to think ahead. If they don’t, they’re running the risk of wasting a developmental year for some young guys.
Philadelphia Eagles
Biggest Concern: What does 12-personnel look like?
The weakest spot on the Eagles roster is their TE2. When Dallas Goedert has been healthy, he’s been somewhere between solid and amazing … For the most part. Last season, he wasn’t anywhere as close to being a good combo tight end as he had been in the past. He was still good as a pass catcher, but his run blocking was a big-time yuck.
The story of the Eagles' offseason has been entirely about the drastic scheme changes with their new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion. His wide zone running game is going to be waaaay more effective with two combo tight ends.
If the 2026 version of Goedert is closer to the 2025 version rather than the 2024 version, the Eagles won’t have any combo tight ends. If he is the 2024 version, they will only have one.
They drafted Eli Stowers in the second round. He’s a freak athlete and pass catcher, but he’s only been a tight end for a couple of years … and the Eagles never get any real production out of rookie tight ends. Thinking that he’s going to be a real piece of the offense this year is nuts.
All this to say, the Eagles need to trade for a tight end. He doesn’t have to be perfect, but he needs to be more of a pass catcher than Johnny Mundt, and more of a blocker than Stowers. I understand that they’re a conference rival, but the Rams would be a good team to start with.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Biggest Concern: Figure out who is exciting
On paper, the Steelers offense is ruthlessly boring. Aaron Rodgers is burnt toast. DK Metcalf is a perennial disappointment given his talent and skill set. Michael Pittman was the big offseason addition, but he’s just a possession receiver. Rico Dowdle has been great the last two seasons on bad-ish teams.
They’re all perfectly fine, but no one is really giving you goosebumps.
Last year, Kenneth Gainwell was the guy who actually played like his dad could beat up your dad. He made plays, and there was electricity whenever he touched the ball … But going into the season, you never would’ve thought he’d be their guy, especially since he was sharing the running back snaps.
Someone on this offense needs to be that guy. The sooner the team figures out who that is going to be, the better. If they don’t, there will be five brutal primetime games that we all have to watch.
San Francisco 49ers
Biggest Concern: Is George Kittle good to go?
When George Kittle is on, the 49ers offense is a force to be reckoned with. He lines up tight to the offensive line, and he’ll either be a bunker buster when he run blocks or a heat-seeking missile when he runs a route; defenses have no idea what he’s doing every single play.
The issue is that he’s coming off an Achilles that he popped in January. That was eight months ago, and he’s going to be turning 33 years old in October. He’ll play, and he has a floor of just being good … But there's a massive difference between ‘good Kittle’ and ‘top-notch Kittle.’
This is a season-changing player that we’re talking about. He’s changed the season for the better most of the time, but this injury that he’s coming back from is a whole different beast; he could be changing it for the worse.
The 49ers need to look themselves in the mirror and decide if a (let’s say) 60% Kittle is more effective than a 100% Jake Tonges. That’s a tough decision to make, and time is running out.
Seattle Seahawks
Biggest Concern: Is Nick Emmanwori going to be good to go?
Nick Emmanwori is the ‘do everything’ defensive back in Seattle, and he’s really good at doing everything … but he had an offseason surgery on his ankle that kept him off the field during training camp.
There are some players who don’t need a training camp, and even though his 2025 season was sick, it was still just his rookie season; training camp is definitely still important for him.
Now he’s going into Week 1; he’s arguably the most important player on a defense that’s got a handful of new characters, he’s probably not completely comfortable playing next to them, and he’s probably not going to be in 100% playing shape. That’s a lot for him, but it’s even more for Mike MacDonald to figure out.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Biggest Concern: Are the Buccaneers ready for a disrespected Baker Mayfield?
Baker Mayfield didn’t get the contract extension that he wanted this offseason, so he’s going to be walking on the field with either a metaphorical or literal middle finger in the air. That’s dangerous.
Two things can happen, and they’re not mutually exclusive: he can be the world-beater that we’ve seen him be, and/or he can get himself hurt. Hopefully the second part doesn’t happen, but playing hurt (and playing relatively poorly while hurt) has kind of been a fog that’s lingered over his nine-year career.
During roster cuts, the Buccaneers opted to make their QB2 Jalon Daniels, a rookie UDFA, over Jake Browning, a veteran (and not very good) backup. Behind him is Easton Stick on the practice squad. That seems like a room that can be upgraded fairly easily.
This is a division that can be won just as easily as it can be lost. Throwing out a QB2 whose performance floor is a trainwreck (a UDFA) is an easy way to lose a season.
Tennessee Titans
Biggest Concern: Carnell Tate
Did you know that Carnell Tate didn’t have a catch in the preseason? He was targeted five times (four times by Cam Ward and once by Will Levis), and never came down with anything. Going back and rewatching them, they weren’t all good balls, but at least half of them were balls that you would hope your fourth-overall pick would come down with.
The Titans can’t go into a Week 1 game against the lowly Jets and leave with Tate having laid a turd in the box score. How about some easy completions? Get some confidence growing between Ward and his WR1.
Washington Commanders
Biggest Concern: A whole lot of things
The Commanders’ biggest concern could easily be that they don’t have an offensive line, but that’s not something that they’re going to be able to address in a week and a half. Another concern could be that David Blough’s had very limited coaching experience. He needs to get Jayden Daniels back on track so the team can figure out if they’re going to exercise his _th year option or to pivot if they get a high draft pick.
Let’s just mix the two: Can David Blough coordinate an offense without an offensive line, and then use it with any real efficiency against Vic Fangio in Week 1 … and then Christian Parker in Week 2 … and then Mike MacDonald in Week 3? I don’t know how they address this, but it’s pretty important for that season to not get thrown off the tracks with an 0-3 (or worse) start to the season.
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