[ad_1]

It wouldn’t surprise me to discover that the Broncos, Colts and Rams were the biggest underdogs in the NFL this season.

All three of these teams have played 5.5 games fewer than their 2022 preseason totals. After acquiring Russell Wilson from Seattle, Denver’s preseason total, along with Los Angeles, was 10.5 for him. These sums make sense. The Broncos had a star QB in him, paired with an excellent defense and the Rams missing out on a Super Bowl title. The team’s win count was the same as the Bills and Chiefs.

Instead, both Denver and LA went 5-12. A terrible, underperforming season saw Denver’s Nathaniel Hackett fired after just 15 games in his first season, as did the uncertainty surrounding Rams coach Sean McVay’s immediate future.

The Colts’ preseason totals were worse than the Broncos and Rams’ 9.5 a game. It also made sense pre-season. With AFC South looking his one of the weakest divisions in football, it was easy to imagine a scenario where Matt Ryan would provide stability in his QB position. Instead, Frank Reich was fired mid-season, Ryan was placed on the bench, and the Colts finished the season as a former player and television analyst with Jeff Saturday as interim head coach.

Los Angeles Rams running back Cam Akers (3) runs the ball for a touchdown during an NFL game between the Denver Broncos and the Los Angeles Rams on December 25, 2022 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. increase. (Photo by Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) — The Rams and Broncos had 10.5 combined preseason wins. During his NFL season in 2022, each team had his 5 wins and 12 losses. (Photo by Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The fourth-worst player also fired his coach. The Arizona Cardinals went 4-13 after closing out with his 8.5 preseason win total. Arizona fired coach Cliff Kingsbury on Monday and also resigned as general manager Steve Keim.

Conversely, two of the top three seeds in the NFC playoffs were the league’s biggest achievers. The Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings both finished his 4.5 games in total. The Eagles earned him the top seed in the NFC with his 14-3 record, and his preseason total was 9.5. The Vikings scored 8.5, easily surpassing that number despite their small gaps and uneven rankings on many advanced metrics. The Vikings are the No. 3 seed in the playoffs and will face another top performer at the New York Giants on Sunday. He had 1.5 wins over the Giants total of 7.5 wins.

Overall, just half of the leagues fell short of their preseason totals, and half of the leagues surpassed their totals. That his 50/50 split was made possible by the Baltimore Ravens’ late line move. The Ravens preseason totals he started with 9.5 and he increased to 10.5 just before the season started. Baltimore finished the season 10-7 after losing to the Bengals in Week 18.

The Ravens are one of six teams to finish in half a game of preseason totals. Four of those six teams (Ravens, Chargers, Dolphins, and Patriots) fell short of their totals, while the Panthers and Commanders each fell short their totals in the final week of the season.

Here’s how each team performed against their pre-season totals on BetMGM: