2018 NFL Odds to Win Each Division

2018 NFL Odds to Win Each Division

We’re just a couple of weeks away from the beginning of training camp in the National Football League, and there is a lot of excitement building, as quite a few teams who have dwelt in the basement of their divisions are coming out with new quarterbacks, as with Cleveland and Baker Mayfield. The Buffalo Bills are excited to return to the postseason after ending a lengthy drought in 2017. We’ve put together a list of your NFL odds for each of the 32 teams to win their respective divisions, along with some commentary about some of the contenders.

2018 NFL Odds to Win Each Division

AFC North

  • Baltimore                     +380
  • Cincinnati                    +750
  • Cleveland                    +900
  • Pittsburgh                    -380
Pittsburgh should win this, thanks to that terrific offense. Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell return to key the best offense in the division. Cleveland is gaining, with Tyrod Taylor caretaking the quarterback position until Baker Mayfield is ready, and they have Jarvis Landry and Josh Norman at wideout — and their defense is young and physical. Cincinnati is still looking at a tailspin, as they didn’t add much to get better. Baltimore is intriguing here, as they have a stout defense, and they added Lamar Jackson as their apparent quarterback to the future behind Joe Flacco. But without a solid tailback or wide receiver, it’s hard to see the Ravens taking advantage of Pittsburgh’s defensive woes enough to win the division.

AFC East

  • Buffalo                        +1000
  • Miami                          +1000
  • New England               -875
  • N.Y. Jets                     +800
Even if New England starts to see some signs that Tom Brady is slowing down, who’s going to catch them in the East? Buffalo got rid of Tyrod Taylor and will have an unproven quarterback. Miami might have Ryan Tannehill back — and their defense is good — but what can they do on offense? The Jets have Teddy Bridgewater on their quarterback depth chart, along with Josh McCown and Sam Darnold, so they could make some noise on offense, but their defense is still iffy.

AFC South

  • Houston                       +150
  • Indianapolis                 +380
  • Jacksonville                +150
  • Tennessee                  +300
Houston will have Deshaun Watson out at quarterback, and J.J. Watt back on the defensive line. Jacksonville turned some heads by making it to the AFC Championship — and leading the Patriots going into the fourth quarter on the road — but people will see through Blake Bortles this year, and the Jags will take a step back. Indianapolis has Andrew Luck throwing in front of the media, but will it be enough to overcome an iffy defense? Tennessee returns Marcus Mariota and DeMarco Murray, but I’m not sure they can make the postseason again with the return of Watson in Houston.

AFC West

  • Denver                        +260
  • Kansas City                +250
  • L.A. Chargers              +150
  • Oakland                      +220
Denver added Case Keenum at quarterback, but it might be too late as the Broncos’ defense is aging. Kansas City will start rookie quarterback Pat Mahomes II, but their defense isn’t the most solid either, as we saw when they collapsed against the Titans in the playoffs last year. Oakland brings in Jon Gruden to coach again and still has the talented Derek Carr at quarterback. But what about their defense? The Chargers look interesting, with their big win streak down the stretch and the resurgence of Phillip Rivers. I’m not sure they’re even enough to win this division, though.

NFC North

  • Chicago                       +580
  • Detroit                         +500
  • Green Bay                  +110
  • Minnesota                   +110
This will be a tossup between Green Bay and Minnesota. The Packers brought in tight end Jimmy Graham via free agency and added Marcedes Lewis as a backup tight end. Their defense is young but talented, as their first three picks went toward the defense, and they have a new defensive coordinator in Mike Pettine. The Vikings replaced Case Keenum with Kirk Cousins, and tailback Dalvin Cook should be back and healthy after his ACL tear. There are two stellar wideouts in Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs. They had the top defense last year, and they just made it stronger by adding defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson. Chicago is still in rebuilding mode, and Detroit added Matt Patricia at head coach from New England, but they still don’t have a defense.

NFC East

  • Dallas                          +280
  • N.Y. Giants                 +580
  • Philadelphia                 -220
  • Washington                 +580
You have to like Philadelphia here. Their defense was already top-five, and then they traded for Pro Bowl defensive end Michael Bennett, giving their pass rush even more excitement. We’re still waiting to see if Carson Wentz will return for the opener, but when your backup quarterback is the reigning Super Bowl MVP, you’re looking pretty good. Dallas spent some money on their defense, but they don’t have an elite wide receiver, and they don’t have a legitimate receiving tight end. Their O-line is back and healthy, but depth is still an issue. Washington basically traded one unproven quarterback for another, losing Kirk Cousins but gaining Alex Smith. And the Giants? They have an aging quarterback in Eli Manning and an iffy O-line.

NFC South

  • Atlanta                         +150
  • Carolina                       +200
  • New Orleans               +150
  • Tampa Bay                 +580
Atlanta gave Matt Ryan a huge contract extension, so now the Falcons need to lock down Julio Jones so that they will have a mentor for Calvin Ridley. Desmond Trufant has become an elite quarterback, and Deion Jones anchors the middle of the linebacking corps. New Orleans was a wacky play away from beating Minnesota on the road and heading to the NFC Championship, and they will still have an opportunistic defense and Drew Brees at quarterback. Carolina is still an interesting team with Cam Newton, but can they rebound from a disappointing 2017? Tampa Bay was a sexy pick until Jameis Winston got a suspension for his misconduct around an Uber driver.

NFC West

  • Arizona                        +900
  • L.A. Rams                   -150
  • San Francisco             +210
  • Seattle                         +300
The Rams brought in Brandin Cooks and sent Sammy Watkins out at wide receiver, which means that the offense should be multidimensional once again, with Jared Goff at quarterback and Todd Gurley at tailback. They brought in a new pair of cornerbacks in Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters and signed Ndamukong Suh to toughen up the pass rush — and they still have AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald. San Francisco is an interesting pick thanks to the arrival of Jimmy Garoppolo, who jump-started the offense and led the 49ers on a winning streak down the stretch. Arizona will have Sam Bradford or a rookie at quarterback, but they still have David Johnson at tailback — can their O-line hold up, though? Seattle will always be tough as long as Russell Wilson leads the offense, but the aging of the Legion of Boom signals that the Seahawks’ window is almost shut.