We’re a month into the 2024 NFL season at this point. It’s been an interesting start, that’s for sure – we’ve seen some sloppy offense or stout defense depending on how you look at it. It’s been a fun conversation. Teams are playing more two-high safeties. There’s more Cover 3. It’s been successful, and teams are trying to run the ball, but these hybrid quick/powerful/explosive interior defensive linemen are making that hard. Will offenses adjust? Or, is this simply just the result of cutting back on training camp practices and preseason games? Maybe that just made it so that it took longer for offenses to jell. We did see a little more scoring in Week 4, after all. I digress. Regardless, let’s take inventory of what we have in the NFL as we get into October.
Contenders
I’ve got six Super Bowl contenders right now – go ahead and get ready to hurl your tomatoes at me for a couple of the names you’ll read on this list.
- Buffalo Bills – I’m not deterred by Sunday night’s performance and weird game plan. This is still a talented team playing some good football.
- Detroit Lions – It felt like a lot of things came together for this team in 2023, and it doesn’t look like they’ve taken a step back. They’re well built from the trenches out.
- Kansas City Chiefs – “They don’t quite look right yet, but they keep winning.” Yep – same old Chiefs.
- Minnesota Vikings – Sam Darnold is leading the league in touchdown passes and passer rating. Justin Jefferson is Justin Jefferson. But, Brian Flores is on another planet in terms of how he’s coordinating that defense right now.
- Pittsburgh Steelers – They’re just a well-put-together team like they always are. They have the offensive line and defense have the capability of controlling the game on going on a run when the weather gets cooler.
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Yeah, baby. I’m a fan of what Baker Mayfield is doing – he’s playing the best football of his career. The defense is firing. This looks like a complete team that can stockpile wins in a weak division.
Fun Potential
- Baltimore Ravens – Since they’ve figured out what they have in Derrick Henry, they’ve started to take flight. The offensive line seems to be sorting itself out, meaning it could only be up from here.
- Green Bay Packers – They need to get Jordan Love fully healthy in order to realize their full potential.
- Houston Texans – Super talented, but they’ve played one good team and were beat 34-7. I want to see more before I’m confident in saying they’re among the contenders.
- New York Jets – The defense is good, but the offense just isn’t as deep as we thought it’d be.
- Seattle Seahawks – See the Houston Texans.
Surprises
- Arizona Cardinals – The definition of fun feisty. There’s a ton of talent on that roster.
- Denver Broncos – Undoubtedly the sicko team of the year so far.
- Los Angeles Chargers – They’ve tapered off a bit after a good start. This roster is gross.
- New Orleans Saints – Despite losing two in a row, the Saints look a lot better than I thought they would.
- Washington Commanders – Perhaps the biggest surprise of all, Kliff Kingsbury is calling his ass off right now. Washington is getting a ton of contribution from their young players, and Dan Quinn’s presence has been stabilizing.
Purgatory
Will they snap out of it in time to get things going this season?
- Atlanta Falcons
- Chicago Bears
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Cleveland Browns
- Dallas Cowboys
- Indianapolis Colts
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Los Angeles Rams
- New York Giants
- Philadelphia Eagles
- San Francisco 49ers
- Tennessee Titans
Maybe Next Year
It feels a tad premature here at the beginning of October, but man, there are a handful of teams that feel like they’re reeling at this point. The book may be written on these four already.
- Carolina Panthers
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Miami Dolphins
- New England Patriots
Awards
- MVP: Sam Darnold
- Off. Player of the Year: Nico Collins
- Def. Player of the Year: Aidan Hutchinson
- Coach of the Year: Dan Quinn
- Off. Rookie of the Year: Jayden Daniels
- Def. Rookie of the Year: T’Vondre Sweat
- Super Bowl prediction: Chiefs-Vikings
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.
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