10 Bold NFL Predictions for 2026 Regular Season: From All-Pro Traded to Division Winner

The 2026 NFL season kicks off on Wednesday, September 9, and we’re expecting plenty of surprises this year. While the teams that everyone expects to compete for the Super Bowl this season will likely be the ones in the mix at the end, we are anticipating a few unexpected outcomes in this wild year.

Let’s dive into our bold NFL predictions for the 2026 regular season.

Atlanta Falcons Trade Jessie Bates to Philadelphia EaglesMandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images

All-Pro safety Jessie Bates is in a contract year and there’s no viable path this season, given the issues at quarterback and edge rusher, for the Atlanta Falcons to be a true contender. With money already spent on Bijan Robinson, Chris Lindstrom, Kyle Pitts and Drake London, it’s also much harder to pull off re-signing Bates. So, we think Atlanta shops him midway through the season. A bidding war between the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles seems likely, as they both have some of the worst situations at safety in the NFL. An aggressive move is right up the alley of general manager Howie Roseman, and adding Bates to this defense would turn an outstanding unit into potentially the league’s best. Philadelphia only has one top-100 pick in 2027 (second-round), but it could offer a 2028 second-round pick to entice Atlanta.

Read More: 2026 NFL Power Rankings Before Week 1

Jahmyr Gibbs Puts Up 2,000+ Scrimmage Yards, 20 Total TDs and Finishes Top-5 in MVP VotingDetroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (0) celebrates a touchdown against Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at Ford Field in Detroit on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025.

Since 2010, only three running backs have put up at least 2,000 scrimmage yards with 20-plus total touchdowns in a single season. This fall, Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs will join David Johnson, Jonathan Taylor and Christian McCaffrey. Gibbs is now the featured back in Detroit’s offense with David Montgomery gone, and the state of the Lions’ secondary means the All-Pro offensive weapon will be essential to winning some high-scoring games. We’ll note this achievement is pretty doable for Gibbs, given he had 1,929 scrimmage yards and 20 total touchdowns on 302 touches in 2024. This time around, Gibbs reaches the milestone and he leads the Lions to an NFC North crown. It will land him top-five in MVP voting.

Related: Dark-Horse NFL MVP Candidates

Will Anderson Jr Leads NFL in Sacks, Wins Defensive Player of the YearMandatory Credit: Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images

Considering that Houston Texans edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. has the second-best odds to win NFL Defensive Player of the Year, we felt we had to add to this prediction. Entering his fourth NFL season, Houston’s 6-foot-4 pass rusher has never reached 13 sacks in a single year. However, he’s missed time with injury (14 games played in 2024) and had to split takedowns with teammate Danielle Hunter. The face of the league’s best defense is going to record 20 sacks this season, also setting career highs in forced fumbles (five), stuffs (12) and snagging his first career interception. Because Houston’s defense will be the biggest reason it earns a top-three seed in the AFC, Anderson Jr. will win DPOY comfortably.

Jordan Love Sets Career High in TDs, Matthew Golden Snaps Packers’ 1,000-yard StreakMandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

With Josh Jacobs potentially facing a suspension this year and the Green Bay Packers likely to struggle defensively, Matt LaFleur should be having Jordan Love throw it a lot more this fall. Advanced metrics adored Love in 2025, as evidenced by him ranking second in EPA per Play. However, the veteran quarterback only had 23 passing touchdowns in 15 games. We think Love starts all 17 games this season, putting up 35 passing touchdowns to blow past his career high (32 in 2023). Meanwhile, second-year wide receiver Matthew Golden will become the first Packers receiver since Davante Adams (2021) to eclipse 1,000 receiving yards in a season.

Related: Game-by-Game Green Bay Packers Predictions 2026

Dan Quinn Is First NFL Coached Fired During the SeasonMandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders shocked the football world in 2024, going 12-5 during the regular season and reaching the NFC Championship Game in Dan Quinn’s first year on the job. Regression felt inevitable and reality hit hard in 2025 (5-12 record), but Quinn was kept around. Unfortunately for the long-time NFL head coach, we think he’ll be the first proverbial head that will roll during the regular season. The Commanders offense already looks like it could be a mess thanks to injuries on the offensive line. That puts a bigger spotlight on Quinn’s defense, which isn’t well-equipped to handle that added weight. When Washington is five-plus games below .500, Quinn gets the axe and we’ll be reminded that he’ll have had five losing records in his last six seasons as a head coach.

New York Jets Double Their Win TotalMandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

We understand why many are expecting the New York Jets to be in the mix for the first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. While Aaron Glenn might not necessarily be the long-term answer for the franchise and Geno Smith certainly isn’t, we do see reason for optimism this fall. The Jets’ offensive line is better than it’s given credit for, and that foundation can help Smith, Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson and Kenyon Sadiq all have some success in Frank Reich’s offense. Plus, after being historically bad defensively in the second half of last season, New York actually added starting-caliber talent at all three levels during the offseason. Six wins is doable for the Jets.

Brock Bowers Breaks Single-Season TE RecordsMandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders’ receiving corps this season is terrifyingly bad. For first-year head coach Klint Kubiak to salvage this passing game, first with Kirk Cousins as his starter then eventually Fernando Mendoza, he’ll have to use Bowers in the Jaxon Smith-Njigba role that we saw during his time as play-caller for seminary or Seattle. That means 160-plus targets, which Bowers can turn into NFL single-season records for receptions (surpassing Trey McBride’s 126 in 2025) and receiving yards (Travis Kelce’s 1,416 in 2020).

Dallas Cowboys Win the NFC EastMandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Call it the Christian Parker effect. It will also be the reason why he only sticks around as defensive coordinator for a single season, coveted by teams in the NFL coaching carousel with the same fervor as Mike Macdonald (2024) and Jesse Minter (2026). Parker’s remarkable background with defensive backs is precisely what Dallas needed for its secondary after so many coverage busts and miscommunication issues last year. As for the defensive line, a front of Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark, Rashan Gary, LT Overton and Von Miller can wreak plenty of havoc in the backfield. Dallas will have a top-15 defense this season and, with the offense it already has in place, the Cowboys pull off the surprise NFC East division crown and host a playoff game in Jerry World.

Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns are Winless Entering DecemberMandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

The Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns don’t play each other this season, so we can’t guarantee that one of the worst teams in the NFL doesn’t win a game this year. With that said, Cleveland and Miami both being winless entering December is on the table. The Dolphins open the season against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1, and the New York Jets twice, but those truly feel like their only shots at victory on the entire schedule. As for Cleveland, it might have chances against the Jets (Oct. 11), the Tennessee Titans (Oct. 25), the Raiders (Nov. 29) and the New York Giants (Dec. 20). Given the state of both rosters, we’ll just predict that the two teams don’t have a win through the end of November.

Kansas City Chiefs Miss the PlayoffsMandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Entering Week 1, we view the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers as the two best teams in the AFC West. With the Cincinnati Bengals and one of the New England Patriots or Buffalo Bills likely taking the other two Wild Card spots, that leaves Kansas City out. Our issue right now comes down to all of the youth on Steve Spagnuolo’s defense and the transition period that unit will have to go through, all the while Patrick Mahomes works his way back to 100 percent behind a below-average offensive line. The Chiefs’ future is bright once the youngsters develop on both sides of the ball, but this feels like a development and recovery year for Kansas City.

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