NFL Fatal Flaws for Every Team in the NFC, Featuring Bears, Eagles, Cowboys and More

As the NFL season begins, we’re all trying to figure out which teams are the contenders and who are the pretenders. Regardless of which side of the fence you’re on, there’s no doubt that every team in the league has one fatal flaw that could end their season.

We’ve already looked at the AFC, so today we’re diving into the factors we think could define the NFC in 2024.

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys:Jerry Jones

Everyone else gets blamed for Dallas’ failures, when really the guy at the top is the one getting the blame. A lot of this depends on how the CeeDee Lamb situation plays out, but if he can’t be brought back into the fold, Jones will immediately become the Cowboys’ biggest failure. It’s the same old song and dance with Dallas: they should on paper to be the best in the NFC, but in the playoffs that never happens.

New York Giants: Literally everything

It’s unclear what the Giants’ plan is. It’s unclear if the Giants know what the Giants’ plan is. They kind of rolled the season back at the draft by passing on Daniel Jones, which was a commitment to mediocrity. Brian Burns makes the defense significantly better, but other than that the team has taken a step back and they’re already in a brutal division. It feels like the Giants are in for a long season.

Philadelphia Eagles: Can they push the butt?

The Eagles have already taken a big step back offensively in 2023 and it became clear that the team Real were missing former OC Shane Steichen. Now they must deal with the retirement of Jason Kelce, and with him a key part of their “tush push” strategy. The NFL’s most indefensible play has clearly weakened as the Eagles’ OL ages, and at this point it’s unclear whether Jalen Hurts can have the same success with the play this year.

Washington Commanders: Cliff Kingsbury

How do you say this in a nice way? Hiring Kliff Kingsbury as your OC is a… choice. He’s a guy with very strong opinions on how an offense should work, and he’s not great at adjusting when his Air Raid isn’t working. It’s a lot of pressure on a team to install a completely different offense, and to do that of a rookie QB is a big question. If it works, this team could really surprise the league, if not, it’s the biggest reason Washington takes a step back.

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals: The secondary

There are a few reasons to believe in the Arizona Cardinals this year. A fully healthy Kyler Murray throwing to Marvin Harrison Jr. is certainly a good start on offense. But defensively, if Jonathan Gannon’s defense is going to hold up their end of the bargain, they’re going to need the secondary to take a big step forward. Arizona added three cornerbacks and safety Max Melton in the 2024 NFL draft, and getting them up to speed as quickly as possible would be huge.

Los Angeles Rams: The secondary

Another team in the NFC West has some questions about its secondary. Like the Cardinals, the Rams made some improvements this offseason, but Los Angeles went the veteran route. Les Snead added Darious Williams and Tre’Davious White at cornerback, and Kamren Curl at safety. If these additions pan out, this could be a solid unit. But if it doesn’t…

San Francisco 49ers: Pass protection

San Francisco can still claim to have one of the best rosters in all of football. But if there’s a weakness, it’s along the offensive line. Brock Purdy was pressured on 20 percent of his dropbacks last season — 16th-most among NFL quarterbacks — and the young QB has struggled at times when pressured. According to chart data from Focus on professional football Purdy posted an adjusted completion percentage of 67.9% in the regular season when pressured (the fifth-best percentage in the NFL), but that dropped to 57.9% in the playoffs, which ranked 10th among postseason passers.

Seattle Seahawks: The learning curve

A new era is dawning in the Pacific Northwest as Mike Macdonald enters his first season as an NFL head coach. Macdonald isn’t the only new face, as Ryan Grubb takes over the offense after spending his career at the collegiate level. How these two get up to speed at the NFL level — and how their players get up to speed with their schemes — will be the biggest story of Seattle’s season.

NFC North

Chicago Bears: Lack of secondary edge defender

The Bears defense is ready to make the leap, with a young and talented secondary paired with star DE Montez Sweat. Their biggest issue, however, is that they currently lack a secondary pass rusher. The hope is that DT Gervon Dexter Sr. can be that player, but on the edge their options are Demarcus Walker and rookie Austin Booker. How they get the pass rush outside of Sweat will be a big thing to watch this season in Chicago.

Detroit Lions: Outdoor receiver

Call me crazy, but I think the Lions will miss Josh Reynolds a lot more than people think. The Lions’ offensive core is phenomenal, but their lack of an outside receiver to complement Amon-Ra St. Brown may be their biggest problem. Jameson Williams is incredibly talented, but he needs to put together a consistent season first. Outside of Williams, we’re getting into Donovan Peoples-Jones territory, which isn’t something many teams with the Lions’ aspirations want to be in.

Green Bay Packers: Offensive line

The Packers are similar to the Lions in many ways. Super Bowl aspirations behind an offense that could be the best in the NFL this year. Their biggest problem, however, could come on the offensive side of the ball in the form of their offensive line. Their problem is consistency and health, with most of the line missing time last year. If that group can’t stay healthy, the offense will take a big hit.

Minnesota Vikings:Sam Darnold

Are the Vikings cursed? After rookie QB JJ McCarthy lost a preseason game to a torn meniscus, the Vikings turned to Sam Darnold to keep their playoff chances alive. There’s a camp that still believes in Darnold, and for good reason. He’s played well over the last few years! But as a starter, the question is how long can he last before the wheels fall off?

NFC South

Atlanta Falcons: Kirk Neven

The Falcons’ biggest problem was their defensive line until their stunning trade for Matthew Judon on Wednesday. Now, that element of their team is should decent enough to get them through, which puts the pressure back on Kirk Cousins. At this point, we know who Cousins ​​is. He’s a great quarterback who falters under pressure. That leaves the Falcons on paper as a team that should be as good as anyone in the NFC, but they’ve looked more or less like the Vikings under Kirk Cousins, and we’ve seen how that’s played out.

Carolina Panthers: Can they score?

There are plenty of reasons to deride the Panthers, but defensively, the team was actually pretty good in 2023. The problem has been that they simply couldn’t score. Their 13.9 points per game last year was 31st in the league, and if they want to have any hope of growing this season, they’re going to need to score a lot more. This is bigger than just the receiver, Bryce Young, or Dave Canales’ new offense — it’s how everything works together. Right now, scoring is this team’s biggest problem, and it’s unclear whether that will get better.

New Orleans Saints: Offensive line

The Saints knew their offensive line was in trouble and that was before Ryan Ramczyk went to the PUP list. This team has been desperate to move players, draft replacements, and keep things moving. At this point, it’s really unclear if that’s enough to keep the Saints from being in trouble in 2024. Derek Carr doesn’t handle pressure well, even at the best of times, and that could really set New Orleans back.

Tampa Bay Book Hunters: The offensive shift

Baker Mayfield and Co. exceeded everyone’s offensive expectations in 2023, but it’s hard to imagine that will last. Former offensive coordinator Dave Canales is now the head coach in Carolina, bringing former wide receivers coach Brad Idzik with him. That leaves the Bucs with OC Liam Coen in his first year at Kentucky, and there are big shoes to fill. Canales has been a master at maximizing Mayfield’s potential, and the only way Tampa Bay can win this season is if Coen can keep it up.