NFL 2018 Division Predictions: Cowboys, Steelers, Chiefs, Patriots, Among Playoff Picks

Heading into the start of the 2018 NFL season, half of the league’s divisions have a team that’s an odds-on favorite. The other four divisions are expected to be more competitive with two or even three teams given a realistic shot to finish in first place.

Below are predictions for every NFL division winner in the upcoming season. Betting odds are provided by Bovada.lv.

NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles -155, Dallas Cowboys +375, New York Giants +500, Washington Redskins +750

Every team in the division has its questions marks. Carson Wentz might not be ready to start the season after tearing his ACL in September, and Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles had a disastrous preseason. Dallas can win the division if their offensive line stays healthy, but the unit suffered several injuries over the past few weeks. New York’s defense could be bad again, and Eli Manning isn’t the same quarterback that won two championships. The Redskins didn’t improve much after finishing 16th in offense and 21st in defense.

No NFC East winner has repeated since 2004, and Dallas has a better chance to finish ahead of Philadelphia than what the odds suggest. They went 9-7 last season despite losing Ezekiel Elliott for six games and suffering a couple of offensive line injuries. Something between the rookie version of Dak Prescott and what we saw last year could be enough to make the Cowboys the division’s best team.

Prediction: Dallas Cowboys

NFC North: Minnesota Vikings +115, Green Bay Packers +155, Detroit Lions +650, Chicago Bears +800

The NFC North is a two-team race. Maybe Mitchell Trubisky will take the next step and propel Chicago to a .500 record and a third-place finish, but it’ll be either Minnesota or Green Bay that takes the divisional crown. A bet on Green Bay is essentially a bet on Aaron Rodgers, who just signed the biggest contract in league history because he’s the best quarterback—at least in the regular season—in the NFL. The Vikings are much better defensively, and they’ve got more weapons on offense with Adam Thielen, Stefon Diggs and Dalvin Cook.

Kirk Cousins is no Aaron Rodgers, but he’s probably a top-10 quarterback and helps give the Vikings one of the most loaded rosters in all of football. Rodgers can’t win the division by himself.

Prediction: Minnesota Vikings

NFC South: New Orleans Saints +155, Atlanta Falcons +185, Carolina Panthers +275, Tampa Bay Buccaneers +950

Don’t expect the NFC South to have three playoff teams for a second straight year. The Bucs seem destined to finish in last place since they return the NFL’s worst-ranked defense and will be without Jameis Winston for the first three games. The Panthers could take a step back after winning 11 games in spite of a second straight down year from Cam Newton. It’ll probably come down to the Saints and Falcons, who both have top quarterbacks and underrated defenses.

If Matt Ryan can come close to looking like his 2016 MVP self, Atlanta might be the NFC’s best team. Drew Brees is the safer bet to have an MVP-caliber season, and New Orleans could have a top-10 defense in 2018.

Prediction: New Orleans Saints

NFC West: Los Angeles Rams -160, San Francisco 49ers +300, Seattle Seahawks +450, Arizona Cardinals +1600

Only unforeseen injuries should stop the Rams from winning a second straight division title. Aaron Donald is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year and he leads arguably the NFC’s best defensive line. Reigning Offensive Player of the Year Todd Gurley is a game-changing playmaker, and the team traded for Brandin Cooks, who’s better than any wide receiver Los Angeles had last year. Former No.1 overall draft pick Jared Goff could put up even better numbers in Sean McVay’s offensive system after his breakout sophomore campaign.

Jimmy Garoppolo’s five-game winning streak to end 2017 has given the 49ers plenty of buzz, but they aren’t nearly as talented as Los Angeles. The Seahawks lost so many stars on defense that it could be a long season in Seattle. Arizona’s 2018 season will largely be about what Josh Rosen can do when he inevitably becomes the starting quarterback.

Prediction: Los Angeles Rams

AFC East: New England Patriots -800, Miami Dolphins +1100, Buffalo Bills +1400, New York Jets +1500

There might be no safer prediction in all of sports than taking the Patriots to win the division. They’ve done it in each of the last nine years, winning no fewer than 12 games in every season since 2010. The rest of the AFC East might be worse than ever in 2018, and if you combined the rosters of Miami, Buffalo and New York, they still might not finish ahead of New England.

New England is difficult to bet on with such astronomical odds, though it’s about as safe of a four-month investment that you’re going to find.

Prediction: New England Patriots

AFC North: Pittsburgh Steelers -210, Baltimore Ravens +350, Cincinnati Bengals +750, Cleveland Browns +1000

The AFC North is Pittsburgh’s to lose, though getting to 10 wins might be more difficult than some believe. Coming off a 9-7 season, Baltimore should be better offensively with the potential to have one of the league’s best defenses. Cincinnati will score points if the additions to their offensive line work out, and they’ve got plenty of talent on defense, especially up front. Cleveland won’t go 0-16 again, but they’ll probably stay in last place.

Pittsburgh is the only NFL team that had both a top-four offense and a top-four defense in 2017. They’ve got a Hall-of-Fame quarterback, the league’s best wide receiver and possibly the best running back. The Steelers have won at least 10 games in each of the last four years, and that probably won’t change in 2018.

Prediction: Pittsburgh Steelers

AFC South: Jacksonville Jaguars +175, Houston Texans +185, Tennessee Titans +325, Indianapolis Colts +550

The division that seemed to always be the NFL’s worst for a decade straight now has some interesting teams. A healthy Andrew Luck could give the Colts a chance to make some noise in the AFC South, though we’ve yet to see the quarterback look like his old self. The Texans are in a similar situation, hoping Deshaun Watson can put up the MVP-caliber numbers he did as a rookie before tearing his ACL for the second time. Jacksonville remains loaded on defense after winning the division in 2017, and Tennessee hopes a new coaching staff can propel them higher than last season’s nine wins.

It’ll be difficult for the Jaguars to replicate their defensive dominance from a year ago, especially considering they suffered virtually no major injuries on that side of the ball. The Titans only finished a game out of first place, going 9-7 for a second straight year. There’s a lot of value in getting Tennessee at better than 3/1 odds now that Marcus Mariota will be in a modern offensive system.

Prediction: Tennessee Titans

AFC West: Los Angeles Chargers +150, Kansas City Chiefs +265, Oakland Raiders +325, Denver Broncos +400

You’ll be hard-pressed to find better value in any division than Kansas City at nearly 3/1 odds. Every year, Andy Reid finds a way to make the Chiefs winners. The head coach has never gone worse than 9-7 in his four seasons with the team, and he should be able to do the same with no other surefire playoff teams in the division. Pat Mahomes has enough weapons that he doesn’t need to be great in his first season as a starting quarterback.

Injuries and poor coaching seem to always prevent the Chargers from reaching their potential. The team has already lost some key players as they hope to avoid a fifth straight year of missing the playoffs. Denver will be competitive if Case Keenum can come close to replicating his 2017 season. No Khalil Mack to start the year and some questionable decisions by Jon Gruden could put Oakland in the basement of the AFC West.

Prediction: Kansas City Chiefs