Let’s take some swings on surprising outcomes in the 2026 NFL season. The player acquisition cycle is complete, coaching staffs are set, and it’s time to make some predictions. Here are four we feel strongly about!

Jayden Daniels will win OPOY without an MVP

Jayden Daniels doesn’t have a ton of big-time weapons at his disposal, but he proved in 2024 he doesn’t necessarily need them to perform at a high level.

When healthy, Daniels is one of the NFL’s most dangerous playmakers and I’d even say he’s in the top-5 at his peak. He just has an innate feel for the game and his ability to drop a 70-yard pass in the bucket, plus the fact he can take off for a 70-yard touchdown run on his own, are traits few quarterbacks in this league have.

That gives him the propensity to rack up numbers at will and he’ll do just that in 2026 to the point where he’ll win Offensive Player of the Year. I also think the Commanders defense will be a below-average unit due to their rough looking secondary and that’ll put him in situations where he has to accumulate yards and points at a fast pace.

Typically an MVP award is associated with the QBs that win OPOTY, but I don’t the Commanders will win enough games to put Daniels at the forefront of that decision. Therefore, he’ll be the first QB to win OPOTY without an MVP attached to it since Drew Brees back in 2011.

The Minnesota Vikings will make the playoffs with CPOY Kyler Murray

Get ready to see the 2026 Minnesota Vikings in the postseason, with Kyler Murray winning a trophy by the end of the year. No, it won’t be any kind of championship. But I do think that he should be this year‘s favorite for Comeback Player of the Year as the starter in Minnesota.

I’m much higher on this year‘s Vikings and the turnaround for Kyler Murray than most. Right now the Vikings are around +500 odds to win the NFC North, and they’re around +170 odds to make the NFC side of the playoff bracket. I’m predicting Kyler Murray will win CPOY and lead the Vikings to the playoffs.

This is as much a bet on my belief in Kyler Murray as it is a bet on my disbelief in J.J. McCarthy. I think we’re all about to be shown just how detrimental McCarthy‘s poor quarterback play was to Kevin O’Connell‘s operation. And I think we’re about to be reminded just how good Kyler Murray can be when healthy in a good offensive system. He has a fantastic arm and is one of the most slept-on scrambler in the league. All he has to do is stay on the field, and I think this Vikings team gets right back to winning double digit games.

The JJ McCarthy experience was just so terrible. I think back to the duct tape and popsicle stick version of Kevin O’Connell‘s offense with questionable quarterbacks like Josh Dobbs and Carson Wentz. Whenever anybody but J.J. was in the rotation, it felt like the floor rose somewhat significantly. And this offense is loaded with talent! This is the best wide receiver trio that Kyler Murray will have ever played with, and it’s one of the best units in the entire league. Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and Jauan Jennings will be a menacing team when all three are on the field. I’m betting heavy on this year‘s Vikings showing us just how bad J.J. McCarthy was.

Tyler Shough will cement himself as a top-12 QB

It was a smaller sample size, which included only nine starts, but New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough put together a really impressive stretch of football as a rookie in 2025. In fact, I would even say he was the best rookie quarterback of the bunch. That includes eclipsing the 300-yard mark as a passer in two out of his final three games of the season, and completing nearly 68 percent of his passes. With the additions of rookie wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, running back Travis Etienne, and offensive guard David Edwards, the arrow is pointing up for Shough going into next season.

Shough feels like a great fit with head coach Kellen Moore, and with him also going into his second season, this is a duo to bet on. The fact that Shough was as productive as he was without much of a run game last season is incredibly impressive. If Etienne is just a solid upgrade, there should be a lot more balance in 2026. That should unlock Shough’s ability as a downfield thrower when working off play action. The talent was always there for the 6-5, 225-pound passer, and he is finally starting to hit his upside. 

If Shough takes a good second-year jump after a full offseason as the starter, I would not be shocked if he ends up being a top-12 quarterback in the NFL. The quarterback landscape after about the top six or seven is in a bit of flux. Shough is one of the easy bets to take a big ascension next season. I also expect him to be the top quarterback in the NFC South this year.

RB Keaton Mitchell will lead the Chargers in rushing

Mike McDaniel sure loves him some speed. The new Chargers offensive coordinator wasn’t the general manager in Miami while serving as the Dolphins’ head coach — but he got plenty of input on personnel. Tyreek Hill and De’Von Achane were star acquisitions made during McDaniels’ time as the head man in Miami and Achane in particular quickly became a pet project. The objective? Find as many ways to use his threat of speed out of the backfield to manipulate opposing defenses.

Fast forward to today. McDaniel, now working in Los Angeles, still does not have player control. But his influence was still absolutely leading the Chargers to players this year in free agency. So much so that McDaniel put a wanted poster up in GM Joe Hortiz’s office for RB Keaton Mitchell in free agency. I’m not kidding!

I am fully expecting McDaniel to fall in love with Keaton Mitchell’s presence of speed in the same way he did for Achane. And, that being the case, I’d be willing to bet a healthy Mitchell leads the Chargers in rushing this season. Omarion Hampton’s first-round pick status be damned.