With you know who coming out of retirement for the Rams, it’s already a wrap for the Super Bowl … or is it? The Bears? Must-see TV. The GOAT of this generation? He’s coming back with a vengeance. Oh, and Joe Burrow is talking big.
There will inevitably be significant storylines this NFL season that we can’t predict. But we do have an idea of the narratives that will have the biggest impact on how we view this year.
Here are the top 13:
Aaron Donald’s return after two years in retirement is the cherry on the top for the Rams, who’ve built one of the most talented rosters in NFL history. They’ve revamped their defense in a significant way by adding Donald, Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett (trade), former All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie (trade) and cornerback Jaylen Watson (free agency).
And that’s on top of their top-ranked offense from a year ago that returns all 11 starters, including league MVP Matthew Stafford.
The Rams are the heavy favorite to win Super Bowl LXI. Anything less than a Lombardi Trophy would mark a major disappointment. But it’s certainly no lock: Over the past 30 years, the preseason Super Bowl favorite has entered the season with +500 or shorter odds 20 times. They’ve gone 0-for-20.
2.
Mahomes is coming off the first major injury of his career — and his first time missing the postseason. He suffered a torn ACL in a Week 15 loss to the Chargers that eliminated the Chiefs from playoff contention.
This generation’s most accomplished player, Mahomes intends to return to the postseason. With offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy back, the return of a healthy Rashee Rice as WR1 and the addition of Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III in the backfield, Kansas City could have its most dynamic offense in years around the three-time Super Bowl MVP.
(Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
3.
Released by the Cardinals in the spring after seven seasons, Murray signed a one-year deal at the veteran’s minimum with the Vikings and beat out 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy to become QB1. If the former No. 1 overall pick regains Pro Bowl form, Minnesota becomes a dark-horse contender to win the NFC North and one of the better teams in the conference.
Kyler Murray talks with Minnesota quarterbacks coach Josh McCown before a Vikings preseason game in August. (Kara Durrette/Getty Images)
4.
The Bears returned to national prominence in 2025 in Ben Johnson’s first season as head coach — 11 regular-season victories, an NFC North title and the franchise’s first playoff win since 2010. Second-year Bears quarterback Caleb Williams led Chicago to seven comeback victories after trailing in the final two minutes of regulation, the most since the 1970 NFL/AFL merger.
But will the Bears keep ascending in 2026? Or will they come down to earth? Reliance on late-game heroics isn’t a formula for sustained success. The Bears rebuilt their secondary this offseason but are already facing major injury concerns. Their marquee free-agent acquisition, safety Coby Bryant, will miss four to six months after undergoing knee surgery.
5.
The A.J. Brown shadow is gone, with the star receiver traded to the Patriots in the offseason. But the Eagles will have to replace his production and adjust to significant coaching changes, including yet another new offensive coordinator and the loss of legendary offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland, who stepped down.
First-time OC Sean Mannion will have to improve an offense that regressed last season from the unit that helped the franchise win Super Bowl LIX. Last season, the Eagles dropped from seventh to 19th in scoring and from eighth to 24th in total offense.
6. 
Josh Allen And Lamar Jackson’s Continued Super Bowl Pursuit
Even with Mahomes and the Chiefs out of the playoffs last season, neither Allen nor Jackson could take advantage. Allen’s Bills suffered an overtime loss to the Broncos in the AFC divisional round, while Jackson’s Ravens failed to even make the playoffs.
So the pressure continues to ramp up on the MVP quarterbacks, both entering their ninth season, to make a Super Bowl. The stakes are particularly high in Baltimore, considering that Jackson has no guaranteed money left in his contract after next season.
7.
Injuries have become an annual concern for the Niners, a perennial contender under coach Kyle Shanahan. San Francisco is hopeful that it will have tight end George Kittle (Achilles) and edge rusher Nick Bosa (ACL) for Week 1 in Australia, but their statuses remain uncertain. The team had 23 players sidelined in its final training camp practice.
Despite having one of the league’s oldest rosters, the 49ers should have one of the best teams in the NFL. But injuries can derail their hopes of a deep postseason run.
8.
With quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receivers CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, the Cowboys had one of the NFL’s elite offenses last season. But they were held back by a porous defense — ranked last in points allowed and third-worst in yards allowed — leading Dallas to miss the playoffs for a second straight year.
The Cowboys, though, poured significant resources into that side of the ball this offseason. Five of their seven draft picks were defensive players, including first-rounders Caleb Downs, an All-American safety out of Ohio State, and Malachi Lawrence, a star defensive end from UCF. Dallas also added a slew of veterans — safety Jalen Thompson, cornerback Cobie Durant and edge rushers Rashan Gary and Von Miller among them.
On paper, the Cowboys have one of the more complete teams in the NFC.
Caleb Downs (left) and Malachi Lawrence pose with their first-round jerseys after the draft in April. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News via Getty Images)
9.
Owning one of the NFL’s most lethal offenses, the Bengals are viewed as a major AFC contender for the first time in years after the upgrades they’ve made on defense. Cincinnati traded the 10th pick in the draft to the Giants for star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II, and also added edge rusher Boye Mafe, defensive tackle Jonathan Allen and safety Bryan Cook in free agency.
Quarterback Joe Burrow says this year’s Bengals team reminds him of his legendary 2019 LSU team, which went 15-0 and won the CFP national championship. The three-time Pro Bowler is “trying to manifest” a return to the Super Bowl.
If Cincinnati returns to prominence in 2026, the AFC landscape becomes significantly more competitive at the top.
10.
A future first-ballot Hall of Famer, Rodgers will spend his 22nd and final NFL season with new Steelers coach Mike McCarthy, who was his coach in Green Bay for 13 years. Rodgers will have a deeper cast of wide receivers around him than he had a year ago — the Steelers traded for Michael Pittman Jr. and drafted Germie Bernard in the second round — as Pittsburgh begins the post-Mike Tomlin era and aims for its first playoff victory since 2016.
11.
Since putting together one of the best rookie quarterback seasons in NFL history in 2023, Stroud has regressed in consecutive years. His uninspiring playoff run last season, including a four-interception performance in the Texans’ division-round loss to the Patriots, has thrust his future in Houston into question.
The franchise picked up the fifth-year option in his rookie contract, which will pay him $25.9 million fully guaranteed in 2027, but a long-term deal doesn’t appear to be imminent. Texans general manager Nick Caserio said Tuesday that if a deal isn’t reached before Week 1, all contract talks will pause until next offseason.
An improved Stroud would make the Texans one of the top Super Bowl contenders, as they already have one of the NFL’s most feared defenses.
In 2023, C.J. Stroud looked like the NFL’s next superstar quarterback. Now his future in Houston is uncertain. (Tim Warner/Getty Images)
12.
New Browns coach Todd Monken named veteran Deshaun Watson the starting quarterback for Week 1 over second-year pro Shedeur Sanders following a months-long competition. But the 30-year-old Watson, who’s appeared in just 19 games for Cleveland since signing a five-year, fully-guaranteed $230 million deal with the franchise in 2022 due to suspension and injuries, has long been a shell of himself. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Browns turn to Sanders at some point this season.
Cleveland currently holds two first-round picks in the 2027 draft (one was acquired in the Myles Garrett trade), so the team is positioned to land a quarterback of the future next spring.
13.
Mayfield will play out the final year of his contract, as the former No. 1 overall pick and the Bucs failed to reach agreement on a multi-year extension before his self-imposed training camp deadline.
Apart from being a rare situation — established starting-level quarterbacks and their teams typically stay multiple years ahead of contract expiration — it also represents a big gamble for both sides. Mayfield risks injury or a downward trajectory before he can get a big-money deal next offseason, while Tampa risks Mayfield playing himself out of its price range and hitting free agency.
The Bucs could franchise-tag him next spring to prevent that from happening, but that would limit their salary cap flexibility for 2027.
Throughout his college and NFL career, Baker Mayfield has bet on himself multiple times and come out on top. Will that be the case again in 2026? (Mike Carlson/Getty Images)
