# John Middlekauff: Middlekauff also picks Seattle to repeat as Super Bowl champion, likes Denver to win the AFC West and the AFC with a Bengals-Broncos AFC Championship, and picks Seattle to beat New England in Week 1. They also predict the Falcons will be terrible and doubts Bill Belichick survives at North Carolina. **Claimed:** Sep 8, 2026 **Pundit:** John Middlekauff — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/john-middlekauff **Outlet:** The Colin Cowherd Podcast (podcast) — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/the-colin-cowherd-podcast-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air or in an interview **Original:** https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/arttrk.com/p/D5CA5/pscrb.fm/rss/p/prfx.byspotify.com/e/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/4013d28e-5f67-4885-bff1-ae3300346830/4cf7d267-9579-4d95-ab6f-b4bf0016e850/audio.mp3?in_playlist=e829cf60-fc06-4d61-8691-ae330034683e 5 checkable claims — 1 conference champion, 1 division winner, 1 game outcome pick, 1 super bowl pick and 1 surprise team call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. It names 3 players and teams, each linked to their own record. 1 of 5 have settled so far, averaging 100 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess at the same calls. > So I think Seattle goes back to back. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Seattle Seahawks to beat New England** - Kind: Game Outcome Picks · About: Seattle Seahawks - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess - Line: Closing line (Sep 9, 2026): Seahawks by 3 · favorite pick, Seahawks 60%. Source: nflverse; context only, never part of the grade. - **Denver Broncos to reach the Super Bowl** - Kind: Conference Champions · About: Denver Broncos - Verdict: not settled yet - **Los Angeles Chargers to beat expectations** - Kind: Surprise Team Calls · About: Los Angeles Chargers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Denver Broncos to win the division** - Kind: Division Winners · About: Denver Broncos - Verdict: not settled yet - **Seattle Seahawks to win the Super Bowl** - Kind: Super Bowl Picks · About: Seattle Seahawks - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Seattle Seahawks — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/seahawks - Denver Broncos — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/broncos - Los Angeles Chargers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/chargers ## What others said about the same people - Zack Kelberman on Sean Fresch Jr.: Kelberman expects Sean Fresch Jr. to clear waivers and return to the Broncos' practice squad, sees Riley Moss back from concussion for the Week 11 game at Las Vegas, and projects newly acquired Daiyan Henley to begin as the third inside linebacker behind Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad before likely moving into a starting role. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/978f775c-5611-4514-ad2f-b35a6eac0402 (scored 0) - Zack Kelberman on Sean Fresch Jr.: Kelberman writes that Riley Moss may sit out the preseason finale against Minnesota but should be available for the Week 1 opener at Kansas City; they also suggest undrafted corners Sean Fresch Jr. and Brent Austin are being evaluated for practice squad spots. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3c8c47b8-6041-4282-8d21-d21741d8f11b (scored 0) - Nate Gosney on Daiyan Henley: After the Broncos rescinded the trade, Gosney expects Daiyan Henley to remain with the Chargers for the rest of the 2026 season, but believes the awkward fallout has effectively killed any chance of them signing a new contract with Los Angeles after the season. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/60272861-4ad0-4749-b36a-dcdf09b9213f (scored 0) - Chad Jensen on Jordan Turner: Jensen predicts Daiyan Henley's arrival will cut into Justin Strnad's snaps while Alex Singleton keeps playing virtually every down, and that Denver will return to a three-linebacker rotation after the Week 10 bye. They also expect one of Jordan Turner or Karene Reid — most likely Turner — to be waived to clear a roster spot. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a84d2c6e-5554-46aa-95b1-620858d31e0f (scored 0) - Jeremy Brener on Drew Lock: Brener picked the Seahawks to beat the Cardinals in Week 9 by a multi-score margin, giving a final score of 27-13, and expressed confidence Seattle would be fine with Drew Lock starting at quarterback. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/7eb2d245-63d0-4be0-80ba-3f60197e2b16 (scored 100) - Albert Breer on Seattle Seahawks: Breer picks the Seahawks to beat the Cardinals in their Week 9 NFC West matchup. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/4d67a8a5-0c05-4abe-b2ca-f0cef8390b1d (scored 100) ## More conference champions The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Nick Wright on New England Patriots: The host picks the Rams to beat the Seahawks in the NFC Championship game and believes the winner of that game wins the Super Bowl, i.e. that this is the Rams' year; they also pick New England to win in Denver despite taking the Broncos with the points, and says Stafford is winning MVP. They call Sean McVay the second-best coach in the NFL. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/5d16f975-ba4e-46f4-8717-8962b81c5bdf (scored 100) - AJ Hawk on Los Angeles Rams: Hawk picked the Patriots to win in Denver despite liking Stidham and the Broncos defense, and in the NFC they stuck with the Rams, saying Stafford gets to the Super Bowl. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/70ca2972-53a1-4559-bd03-94c5fede2f4e (scored 50) - Connor "Boston Connor" Campbell on New England Patriots: Connor expects a tight first half in Denver before New England pulls away in the second half and advances to the Super Bowl. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c31dff9f-7c0a-422d-9df1-e7423b9edcc8 (scored 100) - Gregg Rosenthal on New England Patriots: Rosenthal picks the Patriots to beat the Broncos in a close, low-scoring AFC Championship in Denver (while liking Denver to cover the 4.5 points), takes the Seahawks over the Rams in a defensive NFC Championship they peg around 23-19, and forecasts a Patriots-Seahawks Super Bowl. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/830a8ed3-b98f-4161-a71c-4c7beb80f350 (scored 100) - Richard Sherman on New England Patriots: Sherman picks the Seahawks to beat the Rams comfortably at home, 27-17, with a defensive score, and says the winner of that NFC Championship game will win the Super Bowl. They also pick the Patriots to win comfortably in Denver, 21-15, and assumes Matthew Stafford will be named league MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/4711f09c-65e6-4c33-8374-9601a907fa43 (scored 100) - Mitchell Eisenstein on New England Patriots: Mitchell picks Seattle to beat the Rams by a touchdown, 27-20, and advance to the Super Bowl, picks New England to beat Denver and reach the Super Bowl, and calls Kenneth Walker as Super Bowl MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/fd716584-0e06-4a91-abb9-56f7d9e79b5d (scored 100) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=john-middlekauff