Trade Deadline:
Leading up to the NFL’s trade deadline, a handful of contending teams made moves to try and bulk up their rosters in preparation for a playoff run. Most of the notable acquisitions were made by NFC teams, such as the Seahawks acquiring Leonard Williams and the Eagles acquiring Kevin Byard. With the deadline now in the rearview mirror, I'd like to take a look at what the NFC playoff picture may look like. The current standings are as follows.
Division Leaders:
EAGLES: 7W - 1L - 0T - -GB
LIONS: 6W - 2L - 0T - -GB
SEAHAWKS: 5W - 2L - 0T - -GB
FALCONS: 4W - 4L - 0T - -GB
Wildcard teams:
COWBOYS: 5W - 2L - 0T - 1.5GB
49ERS: 5W - 3L - 0T - 0.5GB
VIKINGS: 4W - 4L - 0T - 2GB
Smelling blood in the water:
SAINTS: 4W - 4L - 0T - 0GB
BUCCANEERS: 3W - 4L - 0T - 0.5GB
RAMS: 3W - 5L - 0T - 1GB
I will break down each relevant team, some in more depth than others. After that I will list my predictions as of what the NFC playoffs picture will look like after week 18.
Read “Post Deadline NFC Playoff Picture Pt.1” for the first 6 teams.
VIKINGS:
The Minnesota Vikings’ 2023 got off to a very slow start, as they dropped all three of their first games. In week 4 the Vikings got hot and won 4 of their next 5 games with their only loss coming against the reigning Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs.
In the 4th quarter of the Vikings' week 8 win over the Packers, after the game was pretty much already in hand, disaster struck. Vikings’ star quarterback, Kirk Cousins, while in an awkward position, put slightly too much pressure on his Achilles causing it to snap. The injury effectively ended Kirk’s season immediately. The Vikings’ defense and run game have both been subpar this season as their passing game was the team’s only real strength. Minnesota’s backup quarterback is currently 5th-round rookie, Jaren Hall. The Vikings did acquire Josh Dobbs from the Arizona Cardinals on October 31st, before the trade deadline, but he isn’t any better. I don’t have faith in Hall or Dobbs and I’m counting out the Vikings. Kirk Cousins’ contract expires after the 2023 season so a rebuild might be on the horizon in Minnesota. The Vikings do have quite a few good pieces already on their roster so the best move may be tanking to draft Kirk’s replacement. There are a couple of elite quarterback prospects in the upcoming draft and if the Vikings find the right guy they can pick up right where they left off weeks 4 through 8.
SAINTS:
The New Orleans Saints are currently tied with the Falcons for the lead of the NFC South and tied with the Vikings for the final wildcard spot (as of November 2nd). They’re just a tie-breaker out of two playoff spots. The Saints have had a very talented roster for the past few years, however ever since Drew Brees retired they haven’t been able to get proper production out of the quarterback position. This past offseason the Saints signed Derek Carr to a four-year, $150 million contract. In my opinion that was a massive waste of money and cap space. Derek Carr simply isn’t good. Carr has a career record of 67W-83L and at age 32 is done developing. I did really like the way the Saints’ offense used Taysom Hill in their week 8 win over the Colts. It would be nice to see him utilized on a more consistent basis. The Saints have a relatively easy schedule and might be able to squeeze into a wildcard spot just to get blown out in their first playoff game.
BUCCANEERS:
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are still adjusting to life without Tom Brady. If the Bucs’ post-TB12 is anything like the Pats’ one, it’s going to be a rough couple of years in “Tom-pa Bay”. The Buccaneers signed Baker Mayfield as a bridge quarterback until they found a new franchise guy. Mayfield has been a pleasant surprise and the Buccaneers' defense has been great. The issue is the run game. The Buccaneers are 30th in the NFL in rushing yards and 31st in yards per carry. Along with the inability to run the ball, Baker Mayfield’s lack of consistency causes this offense to become completely incompetent at times. The 2023 Buccaneers are just bad enough to miss the playoffs and just good enough to miss out on a top-10 draft pick.
RAMS:
The Los Angeles Rams are a much better team than what their 3W-5L record suggests. During the first half of the season, all but two of the Rams’ opponents were teams that currently have a winning record (as of November 2nd). Cooper Kupp missing 5 of those 8 games didn’t help either. Over their remaining 9 games, the Rams will face under “500.” teams 5 times. Now that Cooper Kupp is healthy, those games should be a walk in the park. I’ve always been a big fan of Matthew Stafford and have full faith in his ability to right the ship. If he was able to carry Jim Caldwell and the 2016 Lions to the playoffs he should have no issue carrying Sean McVay and a solid Rams team. I don’t know if the Rams have enough depth to go on a playoff run but with the Vikings and 49ers crashing fast, don’t be shocked if the Rams sneak into the playoffs. Stafford did pick up his play and minimize turnovers once the Playoffs started a couple of years ago and that led to a Super Bowl run. Who knows how far the Rams can go if they get in this year?
MY NFC PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS:
1. Seed
DETROIT LIONS
7. Seed
LOS ANGELES RAMS
2. Seed
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
6. Seed
DALLAS COWBOYS
3. Seed
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
5. Seed
SEATTLE SEAHAWKS
4. Seed
ATLANTA FALCONS
MY 2023 SEASON NFC CHAMPIONS:
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
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