The last two NFC champions have come from the NFC West — but both have lost the Super Bowl to the AFC’s representative, as the Rams went down to New England in Super Bowl LIII, and the 49ers lost to Kansas City in January. The AFC seems to have several teams right now, including the Chiefs and Ravens, who are more complete as far as championship contending is concerned, but a number of the NFC teams did quite well in the draft, so it will be interesting to see how that comes together in a regular season that will likely have little in the way of on-field work in training camp. Take a look at the latest NFL betting odds for each NFC team to make it to Super Bowl LV, as well as our thoughts on some of the contenders.
NFC Championship Odds After the 2020 Draft
- San Francisco 49ers +460
- New Orleans Saints +650
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers +700
- Dallas Cowboys +850
- Philadelphia Eagles +1000
- Seattle Seahawks +1000
- Green Bay Packers +1200
- Minnesota Vikings +1300
- Los Angeles Rams +1400
- Chicago Bears +2000
- Atlanta Falcons +2200
- Arizona Cardinals +2400
- Detroit Lions +3200
- Carolina Panthers +3400
- New York Giants +4000
- Washington Redskins +7000
The San Francisco 49ers lost left tackle Joe Staley, a member of the All-Decade team, but they were able to get Trent Williams, with three Pro Bowl appearances, to replace him, so Jimmy Garoppolo should still have comfort in the pocket. They lost Emmanuel Sanders to New Orleans via free agency, but they have other receivers, including first-round draft choice Brandon Aiyuk. Aiyuk has huge shoes to fill, but he will have help from the likes of Deebo Samuel and George Kittle in giving Garoppolo targets down the field.
The New Orleans Saints are a bit of an enigma to me. It was odd to see Drew Brees sign a broadcast deal that starts as soon as he retires…while he’s still in the league. How present will Brees be mentally after three playoff runs that ended in disappointment? The Saints did upgrade their offensive line by picking center Cesar Ruiz in the first round, and he should help free up Alvin Kamara and the rest of the running game. The addition of Sanders to their wideout squad is promising, but I’m not sure Brees has another elite year in him.
Yes, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be better. They have a quarterback who won’t throw 30 interceptions this year, and they have resurrected Rob Gronkowski from retirement. Wide receiver Tyler Johnson joins an elite crew of burners, and they added two intriguing running backs in Ke’Shawn Vaughn and Raymond Calais. But can they ride this all the way to a Super Bowl? It’s not like Jameis Winston couldn’t move the ball at all — he also threw for over 30 touchdowns and was much more mobile than Brady will be. These odds are skewed because of Brady’s six rings; I don’t see the Bucs as a smart pick here as they will have to work in a new quarterback with limited on-field preparation time in the summer.
It’s pretty funny to see the Dallas Cowboys in fourth on this list. Quarterback Dak Prescott is asking Jerry Jones for $40 million a year on the strength of one playoff victory. The team has added a backup plan by signing Andy Dalton to the roster, and with the receiving corps consisting of CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup and Amari Cooper, Prescott has a trio of targets arguably better than what Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman had. The offensive line remains strong, Ezekiel Elliott is still in town to carry the ball, and former coach Jason Garrett has been replaced by Mike McCarthy. The defense is in tatters thanks to losses from free agency, though, and the Cowboys won’t be able to score 40 points a week.
