NFL 2025 Season Division-By-Division Predictions

Division-by-division analysis includes Bills continuing AFC East dominance, Chiefs ruling best division and a Giants surprise

PublishedSeptember 2, 2025 9:45 AM EDT•UpdatedSeptember 2, 2025 10:48 AM EDT

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The NFL regular season opens on Thursday night with the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles going for a repeat, comes back on Friday night with an International Series game, and then gives us all we can handle with a full slate on Sunday and more next Monday.

We’ve arrived at the NFL season, everybody. And now it’s time to tell you what’s about to happen.

So here we’ve got OutKick’s 2025 Season Standings Predictions. This is my 35th season covering the NFL and I’ll have you know I’ve never gotten any of these predictions wrong.

Maybe.

American Conference

Bills Still Own The AFC East

AFC East

1. Buffalo Bills

2. Miami Dolphins

3. New England Patriots

4. New York Jets

Comment: Josh Allen remains the best quarterback in the division and one of the best in the NFL and until that changes, the Bills will continue to own the division. The Dolphins have secondary and culture questions. The Patriots are now well-coached but have to figure out whether Drake Maye is good, while the Jets may or may not be well-coached and have to figure out that Justin Fields is not good. 

Texans Defense Is Dominant

AFC South

1. Houston Texans
2. Indianapolis Colts
3. Jacksonville Jaguars
4. Tennessee Titans

Comment: The Texans have a fine defense, which is unsurprising because that’s what head coach DeMeco Ryans established as the club’s cornerstone beyond quarterback C.J. Stroud. The rest of the division have offenses that may or may not be merely adequate. The Titans are hoping rookie Cam Ward gets off to a good start, and he believes things will be great, but the WRs are a question mark beyond Calvin Ridley. The Colts think Daniel Jones is good and will soon learn why he’s on his third team in two years. And we’re all wondering when/if Trevor Lawrence will be more about production than promise.

Ravens Most Complete Team

AFC North

1. Baltimore Ravens.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers.
3. Cincinnati Bengals.
4. Cleveland Browns.

Comments: Let’s start with the fact the Browns this year are working toward finding a quarterback to reset for next year. The Ravens, Steelers and Bengals, meanwhile, all have Super Bowl aspirations. Not playoff, but Super Bowl aspirations. The Steelers believe they’ve solved their QB problems with Aaron Rodgers. I agree, contrary to the pundits, as long as Rodgers stays healthy. The Bengals believe they’ve upgraded the defense with Al Golden as the new DC. Nope. Disagree. The Ravens are simply the most complete team in the division and Lamar Jackson is one of the league’s best quarterbacks.

Chiefs Still Rule NFL’s Best Division

AFC West

1. Kansas City Chiefs.
2. Denver Broncos.
3. Los Angeles Chargers.
4. Las Vegas Raiders.

Comment: This was the best division in football a season ago, with everyone except the Raiders making the playoffs. It would not surprise if we see a repeat because the Broncos will have perhaps the best defense in football and the organization thinks Bo Nix is ready for a big second-year leap. The Raiders, the doormat of this division, is not likely to be a doormat. Pete Carroll is a fine coach and the club has a quarterback in Geno Smith who won’t lose games for the club – unlike the quarterbacks the past couple of years..

National Conference

Eagles Defend Title While Giants Surprise

NFC East

1. Philadelphia Eagles
2. New York Giants
3. Washington Commanders
4. Dallas Cowboys

Comments: It sounds surprising picking the Giants to jump from last in the division to second this season but they have addressed a ton of depth problems and have perhaps the best pass rush in the NFL. The Commanders were in the NFC Championship game last year, but unless Jayden Daniels shows he can once again put the team on his shoulders, it would not surprise me to see them take a step back. The Cowboys will be solid as long as Dak Prescott stays healthy but that defense is about to take a step backward.

Bucs Right To Have Super Bowl Hopes

NFC South

1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2. Atlanta Falcons
3. Carolina Panthers
4. New Orleans Saints

Comment: The Bucs have Super Bowl aspirations and those come primarily from an offense that has benefited from the continued rise of Baker Mayfield from draft bust to consistently outstanding starter. The Bucs have surrounded Mayfield with a unit whose only real issue is the knee surgery return of offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs. While the Bucs have won the division four consecutive years, none of the other teams have made the postseason since the 2020 season, when the Saints did it. The Falcons believe this is their year to return to the postseason for the first time since 2017, but the defense was, well, bad last season with the league’s 29th-worst pressure rate. Does rookie James Pearce fix that? 

Micah Parsons Tilts Division To Packers

NFC North

1. Green Bay Packers
2. Detroit Lions
3. Chicago Bears
4. Minnesota Vikings

Comment: The Packers weren’t my pick until the Micah Parsons trade made them just as disruptive on defense as the Vikings have been, except they also happen to have an offense with no yeah-buts. Every other team in the division must overcome yeah-buts. The Vikings were great last season. Yeah but, is J.J. McCarthy, who hasn’t started an NFL game, even good? The Lions have been the class of the division for a couple of years and continue to be very talented. Yeah but, they had considerable brain drain from their coaching staff in the offseason. And the Bears added new coach Ben Johnson and addressed the offensive line. Yeah but, is Caleb Williams good? And is he committed to doing what is necessary to make things right?

49ers Worst To First

NFC West

1. San Francisco 49ers
2. Los Angeles Rams
3. Arizona Cardinals
4. Seattle Seahawks

Comment: An NFL team has gone from last to first in its division eight out of the last nine years, with 2019 being the exception. The San Francisco 49ers, last in the NFC West last season, are making the climb this season. The only reason they didn’t succeed last year was a slew of injuries. And while there have plenty against this offseason, most should be overcome by late October. The Rams will be relevant as long as Matthew Stafford’s back holds up. The Seahawks have a fine defense again, but the offense is a question mark.