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Ranking all eight NFL divisions from NFC West to NFC South Every division in the NFL features four teams.
Every division is 1 of 4 in its respective conference.
That's about where the equality of NFL divisions end.
Not all divisions are created equal, and every year they vary in competitiveness.
Heading into 2026, only a few feature more than one true Super Bowl contenders.
There's at least one division that doesn't appear to include any legitimate contenders for the Super Bowl 61 Lombardi Trophy.
With two full months still to go before the start of the regular season, there's plenty of time for team (and division) outlooks to change.
Injuries can happen in training camp, free agents are still out there to sign and timelines for players returning from injury still need more clarity in the weeks and months ahead.
But for now, in early July, a few divisions clearly stand above the rest not only in terms of their viability to compete for a Super Bowl, but also in how tight the race could be for a division crown.
Here's how all eight divisions stack up, from best to worst, heading into the 2026 preseason: Ranking all eight NFL divisions entering 2026 1.
NFC West Teams: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks The team that features the reigning Super Bowl champion Seahawks also includes the NFC runner-up Rams.
The third-place team in the NFC West last year, the 49ers, had 12 wins and might have been even better if they weren't so heavily burdened by injuries in 2025.
All three of the top teams in the division won at least one playoff game the 49ers won one, the Rams won two and the Seahawks won the Super Bowl.
The division got even better in the offseason as well thanks to Los Angeles' trades for cornerback Trent McDuffie and star edge rusher Myles Garrett.
The Cardinals are a bit of a black sheep in the NFC West.
After a 2-0 start, Arizona finished the year 3-14, setting a franchise-worst mark.
The team fired head coach Jonathan Gannon in the offseason and brought in former Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur to helm the team.
They also drafted quarterback Carson Beck in the third round.
As bad as Arizona was and may be in 2026, the other three teams in the division are so good that they carry the NFC West to the top of these rankings.
2.
NFC North Teams: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings Only one division in football saw all four of its teams finish the year with a winning record.
Both the Vikings and Lions missed the playoffs in 2025 despite matching 9-8 records coming off of double-digit-win seasons.
The Bears took the NFC North crown and the conference's No.
2 seed at 11-6, while the Packers made the playoffs as a No.
7 seed at 9-7-1.
All four teams also have reason to believe they'll be even better in 2026.
Chicago added key defensive players, and quarterback Caleb Williams will get another year to progress under head coach Ben Johnson.
Detroit has a new offensive coordinator after struggling to match the (Ben) Johnson era of scoring prowess under John Morton.
The Packers will have a fully healthy Micah Parsons back after the star edge rusher's knee injury correlated with Green Bay's four-game losing streak to end the season.
Minnesota may turn to the incoming Kyler Murray after J.J.
McCarthy's limitations seemed to also limit the Vikings' offense in 2025.
3.
AFC West Teams: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Chargers The Broncos dethroned the Chiefs as kings of the AFC West last season as Bo Nix came into his own under head coach Sean Payton.
The Chargers won 11 games and made the playoffs for the third time in the last four seasons despite major injuries to their top offensive tackles significantly hindering the offense.
Those two teams may have been the top two in the division last year, but things are looking up for the other two.
The Chiefs can never be counted out as long as they have Patrick Mahomes under center, even as he comes off of an injury and the team comes off of a six-win season.
In signing reigning Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker to be their lead running back, they've addressed their biggest offensive shortcoming from the 2025 season.
Meanwhile, the Raiders just drafted quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the No.
1 overall pick and brought in free agent center Tyler Linderbaum to protect him up front.
Las Vegas won't be world-beaters in 2026, but the future is brighter after a 3-14 year.
4.
AFC South Teams: Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans This division features one of the league's best scoring defenses from the 2025 season (Texans: 17.4 ppg allowed) and one of its best scoring offenses (Jaguars: 27.9 ppg).
Both of those teams won at least a dozen games last year and made the playoffs after ending the regular season on respective long winning streaks.
Outside of those two teams, the Colts have a quarterback in Daniel Jones coming off of a comeback season albeit one cut short by an Achilles tear and the Titans have a promising second-year quarterback in Cam Ward.
Indianapolis held the AFC's No.
1 seed at one point last season before collapsing down the stretch and missing the playoffs.
Tennessee was let down by subpar head coaching that led to Brian Callahan's firing six games into the year.
The AFC South is an intriguing division with the Jaguars looking excellent under head coach Liam Coen, and the Texans continuing to dominate on defense under DeMeco Ryans though they have some questions at quarterback.
The Colts' case with Jones is continuing to develop as he enters his second season with Shane Steichen, and time will tell how Ward performs in his second season under head coach Robert Saleh and OC Brian Daboll while paired with Carnell Tate.
5.
AFC North Teams: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers On paper, the AFC North was an abject disappointment in 2025.
The Steelers were the division's lone playoff team after winning the AFC North crown on a missed field goal by Ravens kicker Tyler Loop to end the regular season.
Baltimore couldn't play its way out of a 1-5 start that included a Lamar Jackson hamstring injury.
Cincinnati managed to start 2-0 but sunk to 3-8 after Joe Burrow's turf toe injury.
And Cleveland, despite drafting two quarterbacks, failed to figure out its situation behind center while its defense dominated.
Entering 2026, three out of four teams have different coaches only the Bengals' Zac Taylor remains.
Burrow is expected to be fully healthy, and Cincinnati traded for Dexter Lawrence to improve its defense.
Jackson will be healthy as well, and new head coach Jesse Minter is expected to lead the Ravens back to the playoffs immediately.
The Steelers hired Mike McCarthy and are running things back with veteran Aaron Rodgers for what he has declared will be his final season.
The Browns are hoping for a brighter future after hiring Todd Monken and embraced something of a rebuild by trading Garrett to the Rams.
Assuming health, the AFC North's top three teams should be competing for playoff spots in 2026, and the Browns could take a step in the right direction offensively to set themselves up for a better 2027.
6.
NFC East Teams: Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Commanders The NFC East has one team coming off of a second straight division championship and three teams that could be poised for a big step forward in 2026.
After winning Super Bowl 59 after the 2024 season, the Eagles became the first team to win back-to-back NFC East titles since 2004.
They immediately followed that up with an offseason that saw them fire maligned offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo and trade away top receiver A.J.
Brown.
Elsewhere in the division, the Cowboys coming off of an excellent season offensively and putrid one defensively invested heavily in their defense in free agency and the draft.
They also managed to have George Pickens sign his franchise tag to remain in Dallas.
If their acquisitions pan out, Dallas could contend again for an NFC East title.
The Commanders and Giants, the two teams at the bottom of the division in 2025, each have their own reasons to believe in a bounce back in 2026.
Washington was unable to overcome injuries to starting quarterback Jayden Daniels and top wideout Terry McLaurin for large portions of the year.
New York struggled with late blown leads and poor coaching in 2025, leading to midseason firings of head coach Brian Daboll and defensive coordinator Shane Bowen.
If the Commanders stay healthy and Giants excel in their first year under John Harbaugh, the NFC East might start looking like the NFC Beast again.
For now, there are too many "ifs." 7.
AFC East Teams: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, New York Jets The Bills and Patriots might be two of the best teams in the NFL heading into the 2026 season.
Buffalo still boasts quarterback Josh Allen and won a playoff game despite losing the division crown in 2025 for the first time since 2020.
New England just made a Super Bowl in its first year under head coach Mike Vrabel, quarterback Drake Maye was an MVP runner-up in his second season and A.J.
Brown just raised the ceiling of the Patriots' passing offense.
But the Dolphins and Jets are expected to be two of the worst teams in the NFL if not the two teams competing for the No.
1 overall pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
Miami fired head coach Mike McDaniel after a season that also featured general manager Chris Grier stepping down.
Then, the Dolphins stripped down their roster cutting edge rusher Bradley Chubb, wide receiver Tyreek Hill and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and trading away wideout Jaylen Waddle.
New York reunited with old friend Geno Smith to play quarterback after he led the NFL with 17 interceptions in 2025.
He's expected to be the Jets' tank commander in 2026 after New York brought in offensive pieces to build up the roster before general manager Darren Mougey (presumably) drafts a quarterback with one of his team's three first-round picks in 2027.
8.
NFC South Teams: Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Only one division in football did not feature a single team with a winning record.
The Panthers won the division as the tiebreaker winners of a three-way tie with the Falcons and Buccaneers at 8-9 despite losing three of their last four games of the season including a Week 18 loss to the Bucs.
There are reasons for these four teams to be optimistic.
Maybe Carolina takes a big leap in 2026 thanks to savvy free agency signings from GM Dan Morgan.
Maybe Tampa Bay finds its footing with a new offensive coordinator and its complement of wide receivers healthy.
Maybe the Saints take the 2026 division title on the backs of rookie standout quarterback Tyler Shough and running back acquisition Travis Etienne.
And maybe the Falcons figure things out in their first year under head coach Kevin Stefanski.
For now, that's a lot of "maybes," and it's unclear which of these teams is "for real" going into next year.
Given the division's top-to-bottom mediocre performances in 2025, there's no other choice but to rank the NFC South the worst of all divisions.