When it comes to the NFL it’s easier to parse the teams that are being underrated ahead of the season, rather than predict which of the elite teams will actually live up to their potential. Every year we have a host of organizations that have made significant upgrades through free agency and the draft, yet somehow get saddled with being viewed as middling, or even bad — simply because they had a bad season the year prior.
There are two NFC and two AFC teams that are flying under the radar outside of their own fanbases and warrant more recognition than they’re getting right now. It’s important to note that being underrated doesn’t mean they’re a lock to go on a Seahawks-esque Super Bowl run, but more that the perception of these teams is simply too low. Check out our four most overrated teams heading into the season. Now, here are our four most underrated teams.
No. 1: San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers were an injury-riddled shell of a team and still managed to go 12-5 on the season. It was a coaching masterclass from Kyle Shanahan, and honestly, he was my Coach of the Year in 2025 for how the team handled the cards it was dealt.
There have been some nagging injuries return once more (queue substation joke), but San Francisco is healthy this season for the most part. That’s why it’s so mystifying to see them 11th in Super Bowl odds and I widely predicted to be the third best team in the NFC West. There is no team that stands to gain more from doing absolutely nothing than the 49ers — and they are poised to really shock people this season.
Adding Raheem Morris as defensive coordinator for the outgoing Robert Saleh was a brilliant stroke, and I don’t think there will be the kind of drop off people have predicted. Similarly, the offense is essentially the same with Christian McCaffrey being the nexus and Brock Purdy moving the chains with his accuracy. It would not surprise me to see the 49ers win the NFC West this year.
The Broncos have nonsensically been flying under the radar for two years now, seemingly because all the focus remains on the Chiefs in the AFC West. While that makes sense, at some point you have to give Sean Payton’s team the credit they deserve.
It’s tough to find many teams in the NFL that are better defensively, especially against the pass. The offense is good enough to win games, and Bo Nix has shown a knack for being surprisingly good in the clutch. Moreover, this team won 14 games last season, and yet they’re currently 8th in the AFC in Super Bowl odds behind the Bills, Ravens, Patriots, Chiefs, Chargers, Texans, and Bengals. Those are the trappings of an underrated team.
Not saying that I think the Broncos are true Super Bowl contenders yet, as they have some offensive wrinkles that need to be ironed out, and a true three-down running back is a core need moving forward — but there are so many traits that position Denver as a team with potential to really make noise this season. Right now it’s all quiet around them.
I’m firmly on the record saying that everyone is sleeping on the Minnesota Vikings this year. Again, not saying this is a Super Bowl caliber team — but they’ve collectively been penciled in to finish last in the NFC North without a lot of justification for why.
This team was disastrous offensively last season as they learned J.J. McCarthy was useless under center — and they still finished 9-8 on the season. That’s a testament to how good they are defensively with Brian Flores at the helm. The team should be as good defensively as they were a year ago, and significantly better on offense thanks to Kyler Murray, who is a major upgrade at QB.
Murray is one of those quarterbacks who is neither as good as his best showed, nor is he near as bad as people believe. Truth be told, he’s an above-average quarterback who can absolutely win games with a good supporting cast and coaches around him. That’s exactly what he’s getting in Minnesota. Don’t be surprised if the Vikings end up being a 12 or 13 win team and making the playoffs.
No. 4: Indianapolis Colts
The Colts might be the third-best team in the AFC South on paper, but it’s like we collectively forgot that for a good chunk of the 2025 season they were playing like one of the best teams in the league until Daniel Jones was hurt. This was also an organization that made a big splash to land Sauce Gardner at the trade deadline, and it didn’t pay off initially — but towards the end of the season he returned to form.
There’s reason to believe the Colts can be a very good team once more. There have been some changes on both sides of the ball, but assuming that Daniel Jones is healthy and Jonathan Taylor can keep being a focal point the offense should be able to be solid once more. The defensive side of the ball is a little more iffy, but the AFC South is a fairly weak division where there’s no clear-cut favorite.
It would not be a surprise to see the Colts come out and win 10 games to get a Wild Card spot.
