John Breech#34 of 87 NFL pundits · Sep 7, 2026
A CBS Sports annual Labor Day predictions column forecasts every team's 2026 record, all eight division winners, both playoff fields with full bracket scores, individual award winners, and the top five picks of the 2027 draft, ultimately picking the Bengals to beat the Cowboys 27-23 in Super Bowl LXI.
Published in writing · CBS SportsRead the original
What John Breech said
Super Bowl LXI prediction: Bengals 27-23 over Cowboys
- Where it was published
- CBS Sports
- The piece
- 2026 NFL predictions: Final record for all 32 teams, Super Bowl LXI pick, playoff matchups and MVP winner
- The original
- Read the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
- SaidSep 7
- PlayedSep 14–Oct 11
- GradedSep 16–Oct 12
Box score, by kind
HitCloseMissWaiting| Group | Hits | Close | Misses | Waiting | Calls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game Outcome Picks | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Score Predictions | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | |
| Award Picks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| Playoff Picks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | |
| Season Win Totals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | |
| Division Winners | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| Seeding, Byes and Home Field | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Super Bowl Picks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Coach Award Picks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Positional Finishes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Team Draft Slot Calls | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |
| Conference Champions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| All | 1 | 0 | 1 | 83 |
How each call scored
85 checkable claims — 32 season win totals, 14 playoff picks, 13 score predictions, 8 division winners, 5 team draft slot calls, 3 award picks, 3 game outcome picks, 2 conference champions, 2 seeding, byes and home field, 1 coach award pick, 1 positional finish and 1 super bowl pick — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.
It names 36 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
2 of 85 have settled so far, averaging 57.1 out of 100, against 26 for a naive guess at the same calls.
Of the 39 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the room on 12 and below it on 27.
Each call is scored 0 to 100 against what happened, on its own, by the published methodology. The naive guess is what knowing nothing would have scored on the same calls; the gap, weighted by how hard the call was, is the skill.
Game Outcome Picks1 hit · 2 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Detroit Lions to beat Cardinals
“DET: at Cardinals, Giants, Titans ... I feel like the Lions will go 3-0 with their slate”
Lions 45–21Lions at Cardinals100Hit100 − 0 naive = 100 × 2 difficulty = +200 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- won:
- DET
- score:
- 45-21
- skill:
- 200
- they picked:
- DET
- season:
- 2026
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive pick:
- ARI
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Detroit Lions to beat Titans
“DET: at Cardinals, Giants, Titans ... I feel like the Lions will go 3-0 with their slate”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Detroit Lions to beat Giants
“DET: at Cardinals, Giants, Titans ... I feel like the Lions will go 3-0 with their slate”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Score Predictions1 miss · 12 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
- Chiefs 31–10called Broncos by 6 · lost by 2114.29Miss
14.29 − 51.93 naive = −37.64 × 2 difficulty = −75.3 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- score:
- 10-31
- skill:
- −75.3
- they picked:
- DEN
- season:
- 2026
- accuracy:
- 14.29
- baseline:
- 51.93
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- actual margin:
- 21
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- naive home margin:
- 0.81
- predicted margin:
- 6
- —Waiting
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Cincinnati Bengals 27 — Cowboys 23
“Super Bowl LXI prediction: Bengals 27-23 over Cowboys”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- —Waiting
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Award Picks3 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
De'Zhaun Stribling to win Offensive Rookie of the Year
“NFC West bold prediction: 49ers second-round pick wins Offensive Rookie of the Year ... so I'm going to go with the guy who recently made the switch to Love's number: De'Zhaun Stribling.”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Cashius Howell to win Defensive Rookie of the Year
“AFC North bold prediction: Bengals second-round pick wins Defensive Rookie of the Year ... this year, I'm jumping on the Cashius Howell bandwagon.”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
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Playoff Picks14 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
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Season Win Totals32 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
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Division Winners8 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
- —Waiting
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Denver Broncos to win the division
“AFC West bold prediction: Broncos repeat as AFC West champs and win the division by multiple games”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Detroit Lions to win the division
“And if you're wondering why I like the Lions to win the division.”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- —Waiting
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Seeding, Byes and Home Field2 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
- —Waiting
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- —Waiting
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Super Bowl Picks1 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Cincinnati Bengals to win the Super Bowl
“Playoffs bold prediction: Bengals finally get their first Super Bowl win in franchise history”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Coach Award Picks1 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Kellen Moore to win Coach of the Year
“NFC South bold prediction: Kellen Moore wins Coach of the Year with a losing record”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Positional Finishes1 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Trevor Lawrence to finish top 1 at his position, by passing interceptions
“AFC South bold prediction: Trevor Lawrence leads the NFL in interceptions”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Team Draft Slot Calls5 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Tennessee Titans to pick at number 2
“2027 NFL Draft order for the first five picks 2. Titans”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Las Vegas Raiders to pick at number 4
“2027 NFL Draft order for the first five picks 4. Raiders”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Cleveland Browns to pick at number 5
“2027 NFL Draft order for the first five picks 5. Browns”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Miami Dolphins to pick at number 1
“2027 NFL Draft order for the first five picks 1. Dolphins (Hello, Arch Manning!?)”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Arizona Cardinals to pick at number 3
“2027 NFL Draft order for the first five picks 3. Cardinals”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Conference Champions2 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Cincinnati Bengals to reach the Super Bowl
“AFC Championship (5) Bengals 22-19 over (1) Broncos”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- —Waiting
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The games in this take
every pundit’s pick on eachWho this take is about
Detroit Lions, Denver Broncos, De'Zhaun Stribling, San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans, Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings, Washington Commanders, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Cincinnati Bengals, Philadelphia Eagles, Buffalo Bills, Kansas City Chiefs, New Orleans Saints, Los Angeles Chargers, Baltimore Ravens, Las Vegas Raiders, Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tennessee Titans, Green Bay Packers, Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers, Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks, Cashius Howell, Carolina Panthers, Indianapolis Colts, Jared Goff
Others on the same people
Zack Kelberman · Roster Spot Calls · Sean Fresch Jr. · Miss 0
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.Zack Kelberman · Roster Spot Calls · Sean Fresch Jr. · Miss 0
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.Chris Clark · Trade and Signing Calls · Nikko Remigio · Miss 0
Clark expects the Chiefs to bring back exclusive-rights receiver Nico (Remigio) and long snapper James Winchester, to re-sign JuJu Smith-Schuster as a cheap veteran fifth receiver, and not to bring back Hollywood Brown, Josh Dobbs-type depth, Gardner Minshew, Janarius Robinson or Mike Caliendo; they also say the Chiefs will not use a franchise tag and believes Bryan Cook won't return.Nate Gosney · Trade and Signing Calls · Daiyan Henley · Miss 0
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.Sam Monson · Game Outcome Picks · New York Giants · Miss 0
Monson picked every Week 10 game, taking the Giants, Lions, Packers, Panthers, Colts, Texans, Bills, Chiefs, Jaguars, Seahawks, Rams, Cowboys, Bengals and Ravens, and also suggested the Chargers' only likely wins the rest of the way come against the Jets and Dolphins.