2024 NFL Divisional Rankings: Where does the NFC North stand?

With the NFL draft and free agency period concluded, training camp battles and depth charts are the main topics for each team heading into the spring. The NFL schedule was released, allowing fans to paint a picture of how their team will look this fall.

For most fans, however, the success of their favorite team doesn’t always solely rely on the team itself but often on the division in which it plays. Last season, a nine-win Buccaneers team hosted a playoff game and defeated the eleven-win Philadelphia Eagles. In the NFL, your division matters.

So, which divisions are the best in the NFL this season? Yep, I ranked them.

When ranking the divisions, the following scoring factors were used.

2023 Wins: Each team received one (1) point for every regular season victory

2023 Playoff Wins: Since playoffs are where the elites separate, each team received five (5) points for every playoff win

2023 Pro Bowlers: Each team received one (1) point for every Pro Bowler. However, it is not counted if that player is no longer on the 2024 roster. For example, Tennessee does not get a point for Derrick Henry because he is now on the Baltimore Ravens. Thus, that point would instead be counted for the Ravens. Also, only starters and reserves were counted as part of this exercise, no alternates were counted.

2023 Special Awards: Five (5) points were given out to the teams with the reigning Most Valuable Player (MVP), Offensive Player of the Year (OPOY), Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) and Coach of the Year (COY).

2024 Projected Wins: As this is a 2024 power ranking, projected wins (based on the over/under taken from FanDuel) were worth two (2) points each.

The totals from all the categories were added, and the accumulative score indicated the position for each division in the ranking. With that in mind, let’s dive into the division power rankings ahead of the 2024 season.

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8. NFC South – 96 Points

Unsurprisingly, the NFC South was the lowest-scoring division with 96 points. It was arguably the worst division last year and made a few strides this year. The only team with a significant upgrade was the Atlanta Falcons, with their acquisition of Kirk Cousins. Still, he is a 40-year-old veteran coming off an Achilles injury. New Orleans and Tampa Bay see their projected wins go down for the upcoming season despite largely returning the same teams. Carolina hopes Bryce Young can take a giant leap forward, but it would be hard to see them finishing anywhere other than last in the division and possibly again having the worst record in the NFL (FanDuel has their O/U tied for last with New England at 5.5). The NFC South finished last in 2023 wins (27) and 2024 Projected Wins (60). They also had the fewest amount of Pro Bowlers (4).

7. AFC South – 110 Points

Houston leads the way for the AFC South in what should be a very competitive division again in 2024. The Texans, Colts, and Jaguars could all easily win, but it would still be hard to see more than one team making the playoffs out of this group. The lack of star power hurt them last year, with only five (5) Pro Bowlers. However, if Anthony Richardson lives up to the hype, this could quickly turn into a very good division, as all four teams have promising young quarterbacks.

6. NFC East – 113 Points

Despite having two playoff teams last year, the NFC East is projected to be the third-worst division in football this year. They would have had a much better score if they had won a few of those playoff games, but alas, they got zero points to show for it. This division looks like a two-horse race between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles return mostly the same roster as last year, with a few changes in the trenches. The big addition was stealing away Saquon Barkley from the Giants. Despite winning the division last year, the oddsmakers have the Cowboys taking a step back with some of their losses, most notably, Dan Quinn as the defensive coordinator. The Giants and Commanders are two of the lower projected teams, and their success will depend on how their quarterbacks fare.

5. AFC East – 120 Points

The health and effectiveness of Aaron Rodgers will play a large role in the competitiveness of the AFC East. The New York Jets won seven (7) games last year despite having arguably the worst quarterback play in the league. Despite losing Stefon Diggs, the Buffalo Bills are still a quality team with Josh Allen behind center and have the highest current projected win total in the division. The Miami Dolphins should continue their offensive dominance as they kept the same core intact and upgraded their defense by bringing in Jordan Poyer and Kendal Fuller. New England is tied with Carolina as having the lowest projected win total for 2024. The Patriots were one of two teams (Packers) without any Pro Bowl players last year, and I would not be surprised if they continued that trend in 2024.

4. AFC West – 126 Points

Of all the divisions, the AFC West is the most dependent on one team. However, when that one team is back-to-back Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs, it certainly merits high praise. The difference between their 59 points and the second-place team (23 points) is 36. For context, nobody in the NFC or AFC South eclipsed 36 points for their team scores. While the Las Vegas Raiders and Denver Broncos look to continue their transition phases in 2024, the Los Angeles Chargers have a new coaching staff that could immediately vault this team into contention.

3. NFC North – 132 Points

The Detroit Lions were half a game away from heading to the Super Bowl, and you could argue they improved over the offseason. Their main competition will come from the Green Bay Packers, who, despite being the youngest team in the league, gained momentum towards the end of the season thanks to the stellar play of quarterback Jordan Love. If the young players from the Packers can build upon last year’s magic, they should be able to repeat a playoff birth. The Chicago Bears are perhaps the team that will look the most different in 2024. They significantly changed their offense and may now boast the best wide receiver trio in the league. Couple that with a surging defense, and this team could surprise in 2024. The Minnesota Vikings may struggle coming out of the gate, but if anyone can bring JJ McCarthy up to speed, it’s offensive guru Kevin O’Connell. The NFC North is a division on the rise.

2. NFC West – 133 Points

Similar to the AFC West (though not nearly as drastic), The San Francisco 49ers are the clear-cut favorite in the division. With Purdy having another year under his belt in the Shanahan offense, there is no reason to think the 49ers won’t be back in the Super Bowl mix. They also have reigning Offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffery. Their biggest competition is the Los Angeles Rams, who had a respectable 2023 campaign. The loss of Aaron Donald is a big one, but the Rams addressed the trenches in the NFL draft by adding Florida State teammates Jared Verse and Braden Fiske. The Seahawks will go into the season with head coach Pete Carroll for the first time in 14 years, while the Cardinals welcome back Kyler Murray and hope he can be the same dynamic player he was before his injury.

1. AFC North – 156 Points

The AFC North takes home the crown of the hardest division in football, and it wasn’t particularly close. This is the only division where all four (4) teams have Pro Bowl (and former Pro Bowl) quarterbacks as starters. All four (4) of their head coaches have also won Coach of the Year. They led the league in collective wins last year, with Joe Burrow being sidelined for most of it. They also had the most Pro Bowlers (17) last year and won three (3) out of the four (4) Special Awards last year. They have the reigning MVP, DPOY, and COY in the division. This will be an extremely competitive division with a pair of legit Super Bowl contenders and two other teams capable of making the playoffs.