The main favorites to win Super Bowl 58? We know who they are. The Kansas City Chiefs, Philadelphia Eagles, Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals.
But anything can happen in the unpredictable world of football. There are several clubs being greatly overlooked that, in reality, are more than capable of going on a run in January if everything comes together.
With that said, let’s dive into one dark-horse Super Bowl contender in each NFL division for 2023.
AFC East: New England Patriots
Honestly, there wasn’t much of a choice for us. The Buffalo Bills and New York Jets are bona fide championship contenders, and nobody should be overly-surprised if the Miami Dolphins make a run — especially if Tua Tagovailoa stays healthy.
On paper, the Patriots are the fourth-best team in their division. But they still employ the greatest head coach in NFL history in Bill Belichick, and one also can’t forget the successful rookie season Mac Jones displayed in 2021.
Jones has nowhere to go but up with Bill O’Brien mercilessly taking over the offensive play-calling duties over Matt Patricia and Joe Judge. O’Brien had mixed results as the Houston Texans’ head coach, but his success as an offensive coordinator cannot go unnoticed.
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So as usual, the Patriots will have a top 5-10 defense. Rhamondre Stevenson will put up close to 1,000 yards rushing again. The o-line will remain a strength, and Jones has some nice playmakers at his disposal in JuJu Smith-Schuster, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne, Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki.
With awful QB play last year, the Patriots still won eight games in a tough AFC East division. Everybody is writing them off now, but can you honestly be shocked if Belichick reworks his magic and brings New England back to championship heights in 2023? We know we wouldn’t be.
AFC North: Cleveland Browns
The Browns play in a division that features two premier NFL heavyweights in the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens. Hard to stand out when Joe Burrow and 2019 league MVP Lamar Jackson reside in your division.
Of course, the difficulty doesn’t end there for the Browns. The Pittsburgh Steelers, a model of consistency, haven’t had a losing season since 2003. They too can’t be slept on, especially if Kenny Pickett makes progress in year two.
The division is brutal, yes. But the Browns also have most of the pieces in place to actually make a run here in 2023, so bet against ‘em at your own risk.
Deshaun Watson can only improve after six lackluster performances last season. Jacoby Brissett fared better filling in for Watson during the latter’s suspension, but Watson should only get better with a full year experience in Kevin Stefanski’s offense.
Nick Chubb is still a top-five running back in the league. The Browns traded for Elijah Moore and drafted Cedric Tillman to improve the receiving depth behind Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones, so the offense shouldn’t miss a beat.
The defense added Dalvin Tomlinson, Za’Darius Smith and Ogbo Okoronkwo to fix up the front seven around Myles Garrett. So there’s no telling how much more dangerous this pass-rush can be now that Garrett finally has some support.
The secondary also looks scary-good on paper. Denzel Ward is a star. 2022 third-round pick Martin Emerson Jr. also held down his own and looks ready for a big second year. Throw in Greg Newsome and free agent pickup and safety Juan Thornhill, and the sky’s the limit for this group.
There’s no true glaring weakness on this Cleveland roster, folks. They’re being overlooked in favor of the Ravens and Bengals in the AFC North, but the roster talent and depth is there to help Cleveland go all the way in 2023.
AFC South: Tennessee Titans
The Titans seemingly had the division locked up when they won seven of their first 10 games. But a season-ending injury to Ryan Tannehill marked the beginning of the end for Tennessee, who dropped each of their final seven games — including a Week 18 win-or-go-home tilt against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
From the optimistic point of view, it’s impressive Tennessee won seven games with the fifth-worst scoring offense. Even if Tannehill can’t stay healthy and/or play up to his usual standards, the Titans can turn to promising rookie Will Levis — who somehow slipped to them at No. 33 overall.
Last year, Robert Woods led Tennessee with 527 receiving yards. Well, the Titans added five-time Pro Bowler DeAndre Hopkins in free agency — and they’ll obviously expect more out of 2022 first-rounder Treylon Burks. Derrick Henry will do his usual thing and put up around 1,500 rushing yards provided he’s healthy.
Standout linebacker Harold Landry missed all of last year with a torn ACL. He returns to a scary front seven led by Jeffery Simmons, Denico Autry and 2023 free agent signing Arden Key. The secondary can only improve with slot corner Sean Murphy-Bunting joining forces with Kevin Byard and Roger McCreary.
The Jaguars are the favorites to win the division. Nobody is giving the Indianapolis Colts or Houston Texans a chance, either. That makes the Titans the true dark-horse Super Bowl contender of the AFC South.
AFC West: Denver Broncos
The Broncos were arguably football’s biggest disappointment last season. Not sure if they’ll suddenly re-emerge as contenders in a loaded AFC, but we can’t fully bet against a tandem of Sean Payton and Russell Wilson — both future Hall of Famers.
Yes, Wilson was awful in 2022. But the blame can largely go to inexperienced head coach Nate Hackett, who honestly hasn’t done a whole lot at the NFL level without Aaron Rodgers. Payton, one of the all-time great and creative offensive geniuses, is 10 times the upgrade.
The Broncos allowed 63 total sacks last season, but GM George Paton picked up two solid starters in Ben Powers and Mike McGlinchey on the free agent market. With RB1 Javonte Williams back to full health, this Denver offense should be a lot more balanced in 2023.
And then you have a defense that finished seventh in yards. Nevermind that they were middle-of-the-pack in scoring. That can be attributed to being on the field in too many unfavorable situations because of an inept offense.
Patrick Surtain and Justin Simmons lead a dangerous secondary that finished just outside the top-10 against the pass.
Wilson also has quite the three-headed monster at wideout in Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy and Tim Patrick — who missed all of 2022. With better health around him, Wilson can only get better under coach Payton.
Throw in that stingy defense, and you have the makings of a team that could really be a tough out in January. Just sayin’.
NFC East: New York Giants
It does feel a little weird putting a team that reached the Elite Eight a season ago under the list of “darkhorse” contenders.
But it just felt like the Giants never got enough credit all of last season, and they’re definitely being overlooked heading into 2023. Such is life, we suppose, when you play in a division with the NFC’s top squad — the Philadelphia Eagles — as well as the Dallas Cowboys.
Well, we got news for yeah: The Giants are for real. And they’re spectacular.
Coach of the Year Brian Daboll fully unlocked Daniel Jones, which was utterly impressive considering that Big Blue didn’t have any true impactful receivers. But the Giants traded for Pro
Bowl tight end Darren Waller and used a third-round pick on Tennessee speedster Jalin Hyatt, who should make plenty of explosive plays being paired with “Danny Dimes’” deep ball.
Saquon Barkley is still the nucleus of this offense. If healthy, he’ll be good for over 1,000 yards rushing as usual. Kayvon Thibodeaux, Dexter Lawrence and Azeez Ojulari should only get better on a stingy D led by veteran stalwart Leonard Williams.
The Washington Commanders won’t make much noise in the division with their QB situation. So forget about them. Everyone is going to be locked in on the Eagles and Cowboys in the NFC East, but this is a New York team that nobody should want to play come playoff time.
Jones should have a career year in 2023 after, well, having a career year in 2022. Barkley will do his thing, and the Giants’ suffocating defense should continue to flex its muscles all the way up to another playoff berth.
And considering that the Giants have won their last three Super Bowls as a giant underdog, we’re sure the organization would proudly embrace the David vs. Goliath mentality again — just as they did last year.
NFC North: Green Bay Packers
The Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions are the consensus favorites to win the division in 2023. With Aaron Rodgers no longer in the NFC North, it certainly makes life easier for the Vikings, Lions and Chicago Bears — oh my!
Well, we’re not here to make the case that the Packers are a better team without Rodgers. BUT…what if they are ready for crunch time here in 2023? I mean, it only took Rodgers’ third year as a starter to lead Green Bay to a Super Bowl championship. What if Love — also a former late-first round pick — is ready to go off?
Love isn’t going to be short on weapons here. The Packers wisely decided to keep the Aaron Jones-AJ Dillon tandem intact. Those two should make life easy for Love as he transitions over to starting duties.
Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs both shined as rookies last year. They don’t have A-Rod anymore, but both could easily pop off as sophomores with more NFL experience under their belts.
And then there’s that defense. The unit underachieved last season, but a healthy Jaire Alexander makes all the difference back there. As well, 2022 first-rounders Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt should enjoy more playing time alongside veteran stars De’Vondre Campbell, Preston Smith and Rashan Gary.
Love has had three years now to get ready for this moment, and it helps playing under one of the game’s best offensive-minded coaches in Matt LaFleur. With so many weapons around him,
and with a dynamic defense capable of stealing games to lead the way, Love doesn’t even have to be a star in 2023.
Simply playing like a game manager could be enough for the Packers to make a deep playoff run without Rodgers.
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons
It’s pretty impressive how Arthur Smith squeezed out consecutive seven-win seasons on an Atlanta team that hasn’t exactly been loaded with Pro Bowl talent. Mediocre QB play, a leaky offensive line and a bottom-10 defense hasn’t been enough to prevent Smith from keeping his Falcons competitive every year.
Atlanta missed out on the NFC South by only one game last year. And with Tom Brady no longer under center for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the division is up for grabs.
The New Orleans Saints are the heavy favorites to win the division, so we can’t call them a darkhorse. The Bucs aren’t winning anything with the Baker Mayfield-Kyle Trask tandem, and we expect some growing pains for a rebuilding Carolina Panthers team with a new head coach and a rookie QB.
But the Falcons? Oh yes sir, these guys can do something special in 2023.
Desmond Ridder takes over an offense loaded — and we mean loaded — with skill position weapons. It starts with tight end Kyle Pitts, 2022 rookie standout receiver Drake London, 1,000-yard rusher Tyler Allgeier and of course rookie RB Bijan Robinson.
That’s four guys right there who could each put up over 1,000 yards of offense if they all stay healthy. Throw in the Chris Lindstrom and Jake Matthews offensive tackle tandem, and you’ve got a more-than-steady o-line in place.
Atlanta added Calais Campbell, Jessie Bates III and Bud Dupree to a defense that didn’t offer much outside of Grady Jarrett and AJ Terrell. The Falcons also traded for 2023 third overall pick Jeff Okudah, who could do wonders lining up beside Terrell.
We have no doubt Atlanta will move the ball and score a lot of points. It just comes down to how their defense will fare in 2023. If it can make the jump from awful to average, they’ll definitely contend for the division — and perhaps more.
Oh, and to put the cherry on top of this Falcons’ praise: They have the easiest strength of schedule for 2023.
NFC West: Los Angeles Rams
The San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks are both contenders, and the Arizona Cardinals will be lucky to top four wins in 2023. So quite frankly, there’s no other choice here except the Rams.
But the thing is…the Rams kinda-sorta are a darkhorse contender IF their core players are healthy. You really think a Sean McVay and Aaron Donald-led team is closer to a five-win team than the consistent playoff contender we’ve seen in La La Land? Think again.
Matthew Stafford was never really 100 percent last season, and losing Cooper Kupp for eight games left this offense with little hope of succeeding. That much hurt.
But when healthy, Stafford and Kupp are a top-five QB-WR tandem. And after breaking out in 2021, Van Jefferson struggled and missed six games. If healthy, he too is a 1,000-yard threat for the Rams.
Yes, they lost Bobby Wagner and Jalen Ramsey on defense. But we’re sure McVay and Raheem Morris will find ways to get production out of their rookies — namely defensive ends Kobie Turner and Byron Young.
Again, it all comes down to health here. Kupp, Stafford and Donald all missed considerable time in 2022. BUT if they all play, say, at least 14 games apiece, these Rams will be locked and loaded and ready for a return to the postseason.
And given their championship experience, they’d be a scary team for anybody to play in the postseason.
