Ty's 2026 NFL Preview: "Wild Wild Life" Division

Welcome to day five of my preseason NFL countdown. We are finally getting to the teams that should be competitive all season long.

At number 16 I have the Jacksonville Jaguars. Trevor Lawrence, while maybe not living up to the lofty expectations coming out of college, has been a serviceable starter in the NFL. He makes some solid throws, can run a little bit and his timing has gotten better every season. Sometimes you just have to be a little patient with rookie QBs, the Jaguars were, and now they have a guy they can trust behind center. I don't understand why they let Trevor Etienne Jr walk away. He and Lawrence made up for a nice duo in the backfield, and they have tons of camaraderie since they played college football together as well. Bhaysul Tuten is okay, but he was so much better as a backup, to give Etienne some much needed rest. I adore Travis Hunter. I love that he is good enough to play both ways in the NFL. That being said, I think he would be better served as a defensive back primarily, and maybe as a punt returner. They could put some packages for him on offense from time to time, but it feels like they want him to be a full time wideout. I don't know if that is where he thrives most. Brian Thomas Jr is legit. The dude can play. He is fast and has great hands. I also like that they brought in Jakobi Meyers. He's a solid number 2 wideout. The o line is decent as well. Hopefully they continue to protect Lawrence, and maybe they can turn Tuten into a 1,000 yard rusher this year. As for the defense, as mentioned above, I believe this is where Hunter would be best suited. He is so good at tracking the ball and making picks. He is a good tackler. He can cover most receivers. I think corner is his best position by a mile. Travon Walker seems to be figuring some stuff out and is a beast off the edge. Josh Hines-Allen has been the steady hand they need on that defense. I think Jourdan Lewis will help the secondary a ton. This team is going to be hard to pass for a lot of yards against this season. The Jags have some good things in place. They also seemed to have made the right hire for their head coach last year. They seem to be a team on the rise. They're not true contenders just yet, but they are a team that should finish above .500, and they can compete for the division title too.

At number 15 I have the San Francisco 49ers. I don't know what it is about this team, but I just can't get behind them being a Super Bowl contender, which means they'll probably win it all this season. I still don't believe the Brock Purdy hype. His game doesn't blow me away in the least. He is a game manager at best, and maybe that is all they need to win a bunch of games in San Francisco. I also feel like he opts to run far too often. Christian McCaffery is an all time player, but in a surprise to no one, he is hurt yet again. When he is on the field he is a total cheat code. He can do it all from the backfield. But he is too often injured now, and when he does suit up to play, he seems a little timid at the start. Getting Mike Evans was humongous for them. He is a 1,000 yard machine. He made Baker Mayfield look good. I don't know if he will produce like that with Brock Purdy. But if Purdy can get him the ball, he will make things happen after the catch. They brought Deebo Samuel back, they probably needed to with all the Brandon Aiyuk drama that has gone on, and I think he will be much better playing in a familiar system. Samuel is a nice gadget wideout. George Kittle is coming off an injury too. And, aside from Trent Williams, who is an all timer, the o line is not as dominant as years past. The defense should still be decent. I despise Nick Bosa the person, but the dude is a menace off the edge. Fred Warner is the legit best linebacker in all of football. That guy is a blast to watch. Dre Greenlaw is pretty good too. But the secondary has a bunch of new guys, and they have to prove themselves still. The 49ers made it to the divisional round of the playoffs last season, and then proceeded to get their faces stomped in by the Seahawks. The Seahawks and Rams are still in that division, and it is going to be a bloodbath. The 49ers will compete, but nine or ten wins feels like the absolute ceiling for this team.

At number 14 I have the Philadelphia Eagles. This is a team that seems to have drama follow them all the time. I think Jalen Hurts is a fine enough QB. But all that comes with him as your starter seems like a big headache. He is emotionless, which is good at times, but I never know what he is thinking. And the talk from the media out there is almost never positive. Saquon Barkley is one of the few current players that I think is a lock for the Hall of Fame. He is the prototypical 21st century running back. He is so good at everything you want a running back to do. He may be the best offensive player in all of football. AJ Brown is gone, I firmly believe everyone involved in that whole thing is happy, so now Devonta Smith takes over as the number 1 wideout. He is well suited and ready for that spotlight. I also like the Makai Lemon pick. He is going to be a good pro. Dallas Goedert is the perfect security blanket at tight end. And while the o line is still very productive and solid, you could tell they missed Jason Kelce a ton last year. The Eagles defense should be top tier. Jalen Carter is a monster on the d line. He eats up blockers. Jordan Davis may be even bigger. Nolan Smith Jr is finally making some leaps. Jihaad Campbell is a tackling machine. And Cooper Dejean and Quinyon Mitchell make for one of the best duos of corners in the league. The Eagles defense will win them some games this year. The Eagles should win their division and could make a deep-ish playoff run. But the Jalen Hurts and Nick Sirianni off field stuff could become a massive distraction. That being said, the Eagles should win double figure games yet again this year.

The final team for the day, and week for that matter, at number 13 I have the New England Patriots. I don't think there has been a team that competed in the Super Bowl the previous year that I believe in less than this team. Drake Maye is fine, but he is not an all pro. The Patriots didn't win because of him. The defense is what makes this team special. The Seahawks fully exposed all of Maye's flaws in last year's Super Bowl. Treveyon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson are going to split carries. This makes a ton of sense to me. They will form a nice 1-2 punch for a team that loves to run the ball. The aforementioned AJ Brown is now on the Patriots, and I bet he is going to miss playing with Jalen Hurts a lot more than he will let on. They also signed Romeo Doubs, and the thing with him, he never really lived up to my expectations when he was with the Packers. Hunter Henry is a solid and dependable tight end. The o line is very good and run blocks with some of the best teams in the NFL. The defense is this team's calling card. This is where they control the game. Christian Baramore is wonderful off the edge. The linebacking corps can tackle and cover guys out of the backfield. Christian Gonzalez is one of the best safeties in all of football. The secondary is young and mean and now experienced after playing in the Super Bowl. But the Patriots feel like a team that is going to take a big step back. Their coach is a sleazebag, I don't believe in Drake Maye and AJ Brown is most likely on the back end of his prime. I still think they will be competitive, but ten wins seems like the best they could hope for this season.

That's it for today and the week. Come back on Monday for my next four teams. We are getting to the true contenders now. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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