Finally. The long painful seven-month wait is over. Football is back — and it’s time to start getting fired up for Sundays again instead of dreading them.
32 teams. 272 games. Only so many wins to go around — and only one club will hoist football’s ultimate prize when all is said and done.
Without further ado, allow us to present: Our final win-loss predictions for all 32 NFL teams in 2023.
Arizona Cardinals: 4-13
Even with Kyler Murray, Arizona might have the worst roster in football. Murray is going to miss a large chunk of the season, leaving the Redbirds with Joshua Dobbs or Clayton Tune at QB. Hardly inspiring, we know.
We’re sure Murray’s eventual return will help Arizona avoid the embarrassment of a 14-plus-loss season. But to us, there’s no doubt who the front-runner is here to win the Caleb Williams sweepstakes.
Atlanta Falcons: 8-9
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Atlanta has the easiest strength of schedule for 2023. Perks of playing in football’s worst division — but getting the entire AFC South and NFC North is a big win as well.
All of the Falcons’ final eight games are against teams who had losing records in 2022. So you figure they’ll at least be in contention for a wild card berth, but we’re still unsure about Desmond Ridder at quarterback. Not ideal to have a giant question mark at the game’s most important position…
Baltimore Ravens: 11-6
If Lamar Jackson is healthy, the Ravens will be a double-digit win team. The question, of course, is if the 2019 league MVP will stay healthy after missing 10 total regular season games over the last two years.
His body has to hold up eventually…right? With the Ravens rebuilding their receiving corps’ and transitioning to a more balanced offense, Jackson will at least be less at risk of taking hard hits. If things go accordingly, this is a playoff team with the pieces in place to go on a Super Bowl run.
Buffalo Bills: 12-5
The Bills may be playing in football’s toughest division, but they’re still the kings of the AFC East until proven otherwise. Top-five scoring offense and defense each year? We have no doubt they’ll hold up fine against football’s seventh-toughest strength of schedule.
Playing in both Cincinnati and KC for the second straight year– and even in Philadelphia — is ridiculously unfair. But Buffalo has won their last two regular season games at Arrowhead, and they’re too good to lose every tough game on their schedule. Put him down for a fifth-straight year of double-digit W’s.
Carolina Panthers: 7-10
The Panthers will be a fun team to watch with Bryce Young and Frank Reich leading the way, but they’re not quite playoff-ready. Young has no Pro Bowl-level passing options, the o-line remains an issue and the defense is still a work in progress.
But again…playing in the NFC South and having one of the easiest schedules means they’ll rack up enough W’s to stay in the division hunt.
Chicago Bears: 6-11
Few teams, if any, had a better offseason than Chicago. With their daddy, Aaron Rodgers, now out of the division, things are slowly-but-surely looking up again in Windy City.
One thing that works out nicely for the Bears here: They’ll only face one 2022 playoff team over their final nine games — the Vikings in Week 12. But there’s still a long way to go in Justin Fields’ development, and the secondary has too many holes.
This will be a year of modest improvement, but not a major jump reminiscent of what we saw from this club in 2018.
Cincinnati Bengals: 11-6
Cincy’s schedule is quite brutal following their Week 7 bye, with back-to-back contests against San Fran and Buffalo.
But guess what? Joe Burrow is the second-best QB in the game, and they have a top-10 offense AND defense to handle the gauntlet of a schedule. Once again, they’ll be in the running for the AFC’s top seed.
Cleveland Browns: 7-10
The Browns have the seventh-easiest strength of schedule…but they also play in an unfair division that features three teams that went above .500 last year — two of whom qualified for the postseason.
The softer part of their schedule – Weeks 12 to 16 — comes very late in the year. It might be too little too late for them to gain ground in the postseason standings. Especially if quarterback Deshaun Watson is as sluggish as he was on the field last year.
Dallas Cowboys: 11-6
The Cowboys are coming off a second straight 12-win season. With a top-10 offense AND defense, they should push for 12 W’s again.
Brandin Cooks and Stephon Gilmore were two savvy additions to an already-loaded Dallas roster. Regardless of how tough their schedule is, there’s too much talent for Dallas to finish below 10 wins again.
Denver Broncos: 8-9
There’s just no way a Russell Wilson-led Denver team can be as bad offensively as they were last year. No chance. Not with future Hall of Famer and head coach Sean Payton now calling the shots offensively.
Does that mean Denver makes the jump to Super Bowl contender? Not quite…but there will be some nice improvement on both sides of the ball here — just not enough to earn a playoff spot in a division with Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert.
Detroit Lions: 10-7
Aaron Rodgers is out of the division and the Lions made several big-time moves to upgrade their offense and leaky secondary. Coming off their first winning season since 2017, it’s time to take it a step further.
Like all NFC North clubs, the Lions have their fair share of flaws. The thing is, they have the best roster and the fewest flaws of the four. Honestly, it’d be a disappointment if they didn’t win the division this year.
Go get your guys to bite off those kneecaps, Dan.
Green Bay Packers: 7-10
Not sure what to expect of Jordan Love as a rookie, but we do know this: Matt LaFleur is a darn good coach, and the Packers still have a championship-level defense and two stud RBs in Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon.
The talent on this roster is deep enough to keep Green Bay far out of the NFC basement — even if Love struggles in his first season as a starter.
Houston Texans: 4-13
Everyone’s excited to see CJ Stroud play — and DeMeco Ryans just felt like the perfect head coach hire for this Texans’ squad. Doesn’t mean Houston will suddenly make the jump from irrelevant to playoff contender, though.
There are only a couple of “should-be” wins on this schedule. Houston may beat up on inferior opponents, but don’t expect them to improve TOO MUCH record-wise in what is still a rebuilding year.
Indianapolis Colts: 4-13
Like the Texans, the Colts are fortunate to have a soft schedule that will keep them away from 15-plus losses.
Anthony Richardson has a shaky o-line and little receiving help around him. This will be a year of learning for a rebuilding Colts’ squad that can’t possibly expect to compete much in a loaded AFC. Five wins or more should be deemed a success for first-year head coach Shane Steichen and company.
Jacksonville Jaguars: 11-6
The Jaguars overcame an ugly 3-7 start and finished 9-8 to win their first division crown in five years. Surely, they won’t start off so poorly this time around.
Playing in the AFC’s weakest division, there’s an easy path for Trevor Lawrence and this high-powered offense to lead the Jags to their first 11-plus-win season since 2007.
Calvin Ridley’s arrival makes this group all the more potent, and it’d be a shock if the Jaguars didn’t repeat as division champs.
Kansas City Chiefs: 12-5
The Chiefs have won at least 12 games every year with Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid. Why shouldn’t the streak continue?
Their strength of schedule ranks 16th. Fortunately, their three toughest games — vs. Buffalo, Cincy and Philadelphia — are all home contests. They should sweep the NFC North and win at least five divisional games en route to an eighth straight division crown.
Las Vegas Raiders: 5-12
The Raiders won just six games last year with a stable QB option in Derek Carr. Hard to see them improving with an inferior and injury-prone Jimmy Garoppolo succeeding Carr.
Good thing the Raiders have Josh Jacobs and Davante Adams, though. Those two alone will prevent the Raiders from sinking to the cellar dweller.
Los Angeles Chargers: 9-8
This win total may feel a little low for the super-talented Bolts…but something tells us they’ll have problems shaking off their humiliating wild card round collapse against Jacksonville.
Also, there is no easy stretch in their schedule whatsoever. Playing the entire AFC East plus the Chiefs twice? They’ll be in wild card contention but topping last year’s win total feels unlikely.
Los Angeles Rams: 6-11
A Sean McVay-coached team is surely embracing the underdog role. We hate betting against him, Matt Stafford, Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald…but it’s a top-heavy roster with ageing veterans and few proven young studs.
The 49ers and Seahawks also aren’t exactly pushovers in the NFC West. With the ninth-toughest strength of schedule for 2023, the Rams look poised to endure another frustrating year.
Miami Dolphins: 9-8
We’d love to put Miami down for more wins, but the AFC is just too stacked with contenders — and there are only so many wins to go around here.
If Tua Tagovailoa plays all 17 games, Miami will push for 11-plus wins. It’s just tough to bet on him staying fully healthy, and the secondary will have its work cut out for them with Jalen Ramsey out until December.
Nonetheless, Miami should finish with a fourth straight winning season.
Minnesota Vikings: 9-8
The Vikings won a single-season record 11 one-score games last year. Zero shot they come anywhere close to last year’s win total of 13 again.
Fortunately, they play in a wide-open division with no clear-cut favorite. As atrocious as that defense is, the Kirk Cousins-Justin Jefferson connection should be enough for them to be a playoff contender again.
New England Patriots: 7-10
We hate betting against a Bill Belichick-coached team. But Mac Jones is merely the fourth-best QB in his division. And the Patriots’ set of pass-catching weapons don’t exactly stack up with those of the Chiefs, Chargers, Bengals, Jets, Dolphins and Bills in the AFC.
Because Belichick is the GOAT of NFL coaches, he’ll help this not-so-star-studded roster win more games than they should. But getting back to the postseason? Seems unlikely.
New Orleans Saints: 10-7
The Saints won seven games last year with the Andy Dalton/Jameis Winston tandem. Surely, Derek Carr’s arrival increases the team’s ceiling…right?
Oh, and they play in football’s worst division and have the league’s second-easiest strength of schedule. Someone has to win the NFC South, so bet on the team with a four-time Pro Bowl QB, a loaded offense and a borderline top-10 defense.
New York Giants: 10-7
The Giants snuck into the postseason last year with a 9-7-1 record.
Why can’t the G-Men build off of it? Daniel Jones excelled in a game manager role under Brian Daboll’s guidance. Saquon Barkley is a top-five RB, and Don Martindale’s defense will always be a borderline top-10 group.
Playing in the same division as Dallas and Philly is no fun, but the G-Men have a grade-A coaching staff and enough talent in place to lock down a second straight postseason appearance.
New York Jets: 10-7
The Jets won seven games last year with Zach Wison, Joe Flacco and Mike White as their QBs. Swapping those three out for four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers means that big-time improvement is inevitable.
We aren’t putting the Jets in the same category as the Bills, Bengals and Chiefs in the AFC. But Rodgers’ arrival should be enough to win double-digit games and lock down New York’s first postseason berth since 2010.
Philadelphia Eagles: 12-5
The Eagles may have football’s deepest roster, but winning 14 games again is a tall task. They had good injury luck and a soft schedule. This time, they have the league’s toughest strength of schedule — with the AFC East, NFC West and the Chiefs on the schedule.
They’ll be in the running for football’s top record and of course contend for a Super Bowl. But 12 wins is a lot more likely than 14 in today’s ultra-competitive league.
Pittsburgh Steelers: 10-7
These guys won nine games last year with inconsistent QB play from Kenny Pickett and Mitch Trubisky. There’s nowhere to go but up if you’re Pickett. And then you throw in his set of playmakers and the Steelers’ dangerous TJ Watt-led defense.
It adds up to Pittsburgh’s first double-digit win season since 2020 and a return to the playoffs
San Francisco 49ers: 13-4
That’s right. The 49ers are the pick here to finish with the best record in the NFL. I mean, they won 13 games a year ago with three starting QBs and without Christian McCaffrey for six games.
The 49ers’ get the bulk of their tough opponents at home. And they should pick up four easy wins over the Rams and Cardinals. As long as Brock Purdy is fully healthy, you can argue that they’re the team to beat in the NFC.
Seattle Seahawks: 11-6
The 2022 ‘Hawks won nine games last year. The 2022 ‘Hawks didn’t have Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Devon Witherspoon, Bobby Wagner or Dre’Mont Jones. Plus young studs like Abe Lucas, Charles Cross, Tariq Woolen, Coby Bryant and Kenneth Walker are just gonna get better.
In other words, you ain’t seen nothing yet. This team will kick it into a new gear and go from playoff team to bonafide title contender in 2023. They’re barely a tier below the 49ers and Eagles.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5-12
The Bucs went 8-and-9 last year WITH the GOAT Tom Brady as their QB. Ahem, they didn’t exactly upgrade at the position by picking up Baker Mayfield.
Yes, they have a manageable schedule and play in football’s worst division. But the division sucked last year, and even with Brady, the Bucs were mediocre. We’d be shocked if they topped five wins in year one of the post-Brady era.
Tennessee Titans: 7-10
Dangerous to bet against a Mike Vrabel-coached team. But the Titans are no longer the class of the AFC South. Derrick Henry, DeAndre Hopkins and Ryan Tannehill are all injury-prone, and the secondary remains a giant weakness with holes all over.
The fifth-easiest schedule will help the Titans stick around in the wild card race, but it’s hard to bet on them qualifying for the postseason over all the more talented and deeper AFC clubs.
Washington Commanders: 6-11
Impressive that Washington went 8-8-1 last year while watching their three division rivals all qualify for the postseason. Ron Rivera can coach alright, but the cards are heavily stacked against his group this year.
They’re asking unproven 2022 fifth-rounder Sam Howell to carry the offense. Plus, yanno, playing six games against Dallas, Philly, the Giants plus the entire NFC West and AFC East is no joke. Expect them to fall back to earth this year.
What do you think will be your favorite NFL team’s record in 2023?
