We’ve got football on a Wednesday this week, by design! We’ve got a Thursday night game from Australia, mate! The 2026 NFL season is upon us, finally, and it’s difficult not to be caught up in the spirit. Football is in the air. Hope springs eternal. And I’m feeling a little bold. Bold enough to make the case for some outcomes this season that will probably seem a little shocking.
But how many people had Seattle vs. New England in the Super Bowl at this time one year ago? How many had Drake Maye as MVP runner-up and Matthew Stafford setting records (remember his back situation last summer?) Did you have the Ravens — Super Bowl favorites last season with a roster people were fawning all over (despite an obvious lack of pass rush) — missing the playoffs entirely? What about John Harbaugh, Sean McDermott and Mike Tomlin all ending up being in their final year with their teams?
So, no, I’m not fishing for clicks here. And, yes, some of these outcomes I have dipped into my pocket and wagered a little pizza money on. After spending months talking to people around the league and pouring over rosters and data, and, yeah, paying some attention to the preseason too, there are bold calls for the 2026 season:
Jordan Love leads the NFL in touchdown passes
He is just about the best QB in the NFL from Week 10 on during his three seasons as a starter. So, like, what if he got off to a great start? He cut down on his turnover-worthy throws considerably last year; he is in an offense that doesn’t need a funnel to be productive and score the football and can spray it around (though tight end Tucker Kraft being healthy all season would be a big boost). Running back Josh Jacobs is going to be sidelined for a while after ugly allegations against him, and he was a TD vulture.
Love is plenty mobile but isn’t a guy to score a bunch of rushing touchdowns himself, which helps here too. Stafford is aging and the Rams schedule is brutal. Patrick Mahomes is coming off major injury. Josh Allen runs for tons of TDs. Lamar Jackson has an entirely new everything on offense, including a rookie play caller. I’m bullish on Love.
Lamar Jackson rushers for 1,000 yards
All the talk has been about Lamar being 29 and coming off a year when he ran less than ever and was beat up. Getting a little older. Yadda, yadda, yadda. I think this team is running the ball. When Jackson said, “I’ll do whatever it takes to win," I believe him. I also don’t trust many of his pass catchers and the offensive line was bad last year and they replaced an All-Pro caliber center with a journeyman who has played 11 snaps on offense.
Yesh, I think he’s going to be running and in the final real year of his contract, I think he’s taking games over and situations over and I think his coordinator, who is barely older than him, is going to lean into might-be offensive-line proof and Jackson scrambling for 50 yards on a bootleg checks that box. Jackson hasn’t run for 1000 yards since the Covid year of 2020 (when Wednesday games were common). I’m well aware.
Kyle Shanahan is in his final year in San Francisco
This will be a decade on the job in San Francisco. Two near Super Bowl wins. An older roster in decline and an owner who isn’t around the team facility that much anymore who got arrested for prostitution in Ohio. Deebo wasn’t twitchy or fast enough anymore a year ago but now he’s WR2? And in the toughest division in football?
Nothing lasts forever, his deal is up after 2027, there are whispers about ownership unrest and will he re-up for a long-term deal if indeed Deebo and George Kittle and Trent Williams and Christian McCafferey are all at the end after this and if Nick Bosa can’t stay healthy, man, what would he be signing on for? Bad vibes around this team and a brutal travel schedule. A return to Washington to work with Jayden Daniels would be something.
Liam Coen takes home Coach Of The Year
I think the AFC South could be pretty formidable. I also am buying the Jaguars picking up where they left off last season and having a very successful regular season. Could they be the top seed in the AFC? I wouldn’t be shocked.
Could he get Trevor Lawrence playing at a fringy-MVP level? This coaching staff has some secret sauce, people around the league believe, and there is a lot of belief after how well Coen’s rookie campaign went. Mike Macdonald won the Super Bowl in year two. I’m just sayin'.
Bears and Broncos meet in Super Bowl LXI
It’s going to be difficult for a team in the NFC to get by the Rams and Seahawks. But only one of them can be a division winner. I think Caleb Williams has a chance to be the MVP of this league and Ben Johnson absolutely has the goods. The defense gives me pause in Chicago but I just have a feeling they are a team of destiny and maybe they do something like trade for Maxx Crosby at the deadline — there’s another bold prediction for you — to get over the hump.
Denver is about as balanced a team as we have, Sean Payton is a Hall of Fame coach and they nearly made it last year. Frankly, this part of the prediction doesn’t feel nearly bold enough given this assignment, but it’s my hunch.
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