From Jason Kroulik (@crowlick):
Jason, yes, I can …
1) San Francisco 49ers:They’re still the most complete team in the conference. And if they hit on first-round receiver Ricky Pearsall, who’s older and more NFL-ready than a lot of his peers, and Brock Purdy takes another step, look out. Health, to me, is really the only question because it’s the one thing that can take down any team.
2) Detroit Lions:Yeah, it’s chalky to put last season’s conference finalists first and second. But so many of Detroit’s top players are still ascending—Aidan Hutchinson, Brian Branch, Jack Campbell, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jahmyr Gibbs, just to name a few—and the staff, incredibly, returns intact. It’s hard not to see a heck of an encore to last year’s breakthrough for Dan Campbell’s crew.
3) Philadelphia Eagles:The team needs young guys to step up on the lines of scrimmage, with bedrocks Jason Kelce and Fletcher Cox retired. A lot rides on guys such as Cam Jurgens, Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter living up to their potential. There are also two new coordinators. But the ceiling here is still sky-high.
4) Los Angeles Rams: The loss of Aaron Donald makes me a little nervous about putting Los Angeles this high. Obviously, that’s no small loss. Still, Sean McVay guided a team undergoing an extensive cap reset (carrying $75 million in dead money) to the playoffs, and guys such as Puka Nacua, Byron Young, Kobie Turner and Kyren Williams should only get better. I love Jared Verse and Braden Fiske coming aboard, too.
5) Green Bay Packers: Jordan Love made a major leap late in the year, and I think you can take his trajectory and—without calling him Aaron Rodgers—compare it favorably to Rodgers in 2008 and ’09. Also, I love the young skill group that’s going to grow up with him, and defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley will supercharge a talented defense. The big question lingering from there, then, will be how things shake out along the offensive line.
While we’re here, I did toy with the idea of throwing the New York Giants into the mix, because I think their strength on the lines of scrimmage should give them a chance. But in the end, I do think these five teams have earned the right to be separated from the pack in a strengthened NFC.
