Colin Cowherd#54 of 87 NFL pundits · Mar 13, 2025
Cowherd laid out his full NFC projections: division order in all four divisions, four division winners (Eagles, Lions, Falcons, Rams), three wild cards (Commanders, Bears, Seahawks), and predicted the Falcons, Bears and Seahawks as new playoff teams. He also predicted Tennessee would be a surprise team with Cam Ward.
Said on air or in an interview · The Herd with Colin Cowherd (podcast)Hear the original
What Colin Cowherd said
So my division winners Eagles, Lions, Falcons, Rams, Falcons are a new playoff team, wild Card Commanders, Bears, Seahawks both squeak in.
- Where it was said
- The Herd with Colin Cowherd (podcast)
- The episode
- Hour 2 - NFC predictions
- The original
- Hear the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
The page this came from has changed since we captured it on Aug 5, 2026. The quote and evidence here are from our capture, not from what the page says today.
- SaidMar 13, 2025
- GradedAug 7–Sep 18, 2026
Box score, by kind
HitCloseMissWaiting| Group | Hits | Close | Misses | Waiting | Calls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trade and Signing Calls | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Division Winners | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| Playoff Picks | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Power Rankings | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Season Win Totals | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Positional Finishes | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Surprise Team Calls | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Depth Chart Calls | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| All | 9 | 1 | 11 | 3 |
How each call scored
24 checkable claims — 11 playoff picks, 4 division winners, 3 power rankings, 2 trade and signing calls, 1 depth chart call, 1 positional finish, 1 season win total and 1 surprise team call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.
It names 16 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
21 of 24 have settled so far, averaging 46.2 out of 100, against 42.6 for a naive guess at the same calls.
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.
Trade and Signing Calls1 miss · 1 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
- Ended up with ATL0Miss
0 − 100 naive = −100 × 2 difficulty = −200 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- −200
- player:
- Kirk Cousins
- season:
- 2025
- claimed:
- he leaves
- was with:
- ATL
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 100
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- he stays where he is
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- ended up with:
- ATL
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Aaron Rodgers to move
“Aaron Rodgers is gonna go somewhere, Russell's gonna go somewhere.”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Division Winners1 hit · 3 missesShow ▸Hide ▾
- 0Miss
0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- method:
- division winners read off the bracket: the bye teams and the wild-card hosts
- they picked:
- DET
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive pick:
- DET
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- last season's winner of the same division
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- won the division:
- no
Philadelphia Eagles to win the division
“So my division winners Eagles, Lions, Falcons, Rams”
100Hit100 − 100 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- method:
- division winners read off the bracket: the bye teams and the wild-card hosts
- they picked:
- PHI
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- the naive pick:
- PHI
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- last season's winner of the same division
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- won the division:
- yes
Atlanta Falcons to win the division
“So my division winners Eagles, Lions, Falcons, Rams”
0Miss0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- method:
- division winners read off the bracket: the bye teams and the wild-card hosts
- they picked:
- ATL
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive pick:
- TB
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- last season's winner of the same division
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- won the division:
- no
- 0Miss
0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- method:
- division winners read off the bracket: the bye teams and the wild-card hosts
- they picked:
- LAR
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive pick:
- LAR
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- last season's winner of the same division
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- won the division:
- no
Playoff Picks6 hits · 5 missesShow ▸Hide ▾
- Made the playoffs100Hit
100 − 100 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- LAR
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- yes
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Philadelphia Eagles to make the playoffs
“So my division winners Eagles, Lions, Falcons, Rams”
Made the playoffs100Hit100 − 100 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- PHI
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- yes
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Atlanta Falcons to make the playoffs
“So I have three new playoff teams, the Falcons, the Bears, and the Seahawks.”
Missed the playoffs0Miss0 − 100 naive = −100 × 2 difficulty = −200 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- ATL
- skill:
- −200
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 100
- the naive guess said:
- no
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- no
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Seattle Seahawks to make the playoffs
“wild Card Commanders, Bears, Seahawks both squeak in”
Made the playoffs100Hit100 − 0 naive = 100 × 2 difficulty = +200 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- SEA
- skill:
- 200
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive guess said:
- no
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- yes
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Chicago Bears to make the playoffs
“wild Card Commanders, Bears, Seahawks both squeak in”
Made the playoffs100Hit100 − 0 naive = 100 × 2 difficulty = +200 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- CHI
- skill:
- 200
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive guess said:
- no
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- yes
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Detroit Lions to make the playoffs
“So my division winners Eagles, Lions, Falcons, Rams”
Missed the playoffs0Miss0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- DET
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- no
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- Missed the playoffs0Miss
0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- KC
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- no
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- Made the playoffs100Hit
100 − 100 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- BUF
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- yes
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- Missed the playoffs0Miss
0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- BAL
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- no
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- Made the playoffs100Hit
100 − 100 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- HOU
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- yes
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Washington Commanders to make the playoffs
“wild Card Commanders, Bears, Seahawks both squeak in”
Missed the playoffs0Miss0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- WAS
- skill:
- 0
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- the naive guess said:
- yes
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- made the playoffs:
- no
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Power Rankings2 hits · 1 close callShow ▸Hide ▾
“NFC West, so I have the Rams winning it... Seahawks, Niners, like Bears, Packers... Arizona. No massive upgrades are what they are.”
90Hit90 − 90 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- method:
- spearman
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 90
- baseline:
- 90
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- teams ranked:
- 4
- weeks left when called:
- 18
“The Lions have the best roster, I'll pick them one. The Vikings have the worst roster, I'll pick them four... I have Chicago second”
70Close70 − 10 naive = 60 × 2 difficulty = +120 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 120
- method:
- spearman
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 70
- baseline:
- 10
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- teams ranked:
- 4
- weeks left when called:
- 18
“I'll pick them over the Commanders... Dallas third... I'll pick the Giants for fourth”
90Hit90 − 90 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- method:
- spearman
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 90
- baseline:
- 90
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- teams ranked:
- 4
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Season Win Totals1 missShow ▸Hide ▾
Seattle Seahawks to finish with 10 wins
“that Seahawks schedule is screaming ten to eleven wins”
14called 1020Miss20 − 5 naive = 15 × 2 difficulty = +30 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- team:
- SEA
- naive:
- 9.25
- skill:
- 30
- what happened:
- 14
- season:
- 2025
- zero credit this far off:
- 5
- accuracy:
- 20
- baseline:
- 5
- they said:
- 10
- difficulty:
- 2
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks left when called:
- 18
Positional Finishes1 missShow ▸Hide ▾
Michael Penix Jr. to finish top 1 at his position, by an unstated measure
“I think Fennix has a chance to be the best quarterback in that division.”
Finished #29called #1 · by passing yards0Miss0 − 0 naive = 0 × 2 difficulty = 0 skill
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Michael Penix Jr.
- season:
- 2025
- zero credit this far off:
- 12
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- position:
- QB
- ranked by:
- passing yards
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- where he finished last season
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- naive finish:
- 45
- actual finish:
- 29
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- predicted finish:
- 1
Surprise Team Calls1 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Tennessee Titans to beat expectations
“I think Tennessee is actually going to be one of the surprise teams you watch.”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Depth Chart Calls1 waitingShow ▸Hide ▾
Michael Pratt to be 1st on the depth chart
“In that division, you're gonna start owing too.”
—WaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Who this take is about
Kirk Cousins, Detroit Lions, Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, Michael Penix Jr., Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans, Washington Commanders, Tennessee Titans, Michael Pratt, Aaron Rodgers
Others on the same people
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.Jordan Dajani · Score Predictions · Washington Commanders · Hit 95
Dajani picks the Commanders to edge the Giants 21-20 on Thursday and the Chiefs to beat the Falcons 26-20 in Week 10.Tyler Sullivan · Score Predictions · Washington Commanders · Hit 100
Sullivan takes the Commanders 24-21 over the Giants on Thursday night and calls for a Steelers upset of the Bengals, 27-24, in Week 10.John Breech · Score Predictions · Washington Commanders · Hit 90
Breech picks the Commanders to upset the Giants on Thursday night, 24-17, and takes the Texans to beat the Browns 24-16 in Week 10 behind a pass rush that should batter Deshaun Watson.Jordan Dajani · Score Predictions · Washington Commanders · Hit 95
Dajani picked seven Week 10 games with final scores, including a Commanders upset of the Giants, Lions over the Patriots in Munich, Chiefs over the Falcons, Packers edging the Vikings, 49ers over the Cowboys, Bengals over the Steelers and Ravens over the Chargers. They also suggested Joe Burrow could win MVP this season.Eva Geitheim · Game Outcome Picks · Washington Commanders · Hit 100
Geitheim picked the Commanders, Lions, Chiefs, Texans, Vikings, Jaguars, Colts, Panthers, Bills, Seahawks, Rams, 49ers, Bengals and Ravens in Week 10.
More playoff picks
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
Ross Jackson · Playoff Picks · New Orleans Saints · Miss 0
Jackson projects a big sophomore jump for Saints QB Tyler Shuck, laying out a Drake May-style stat line (17 starts, 72% completions, ~4,601 passing yards, 24 TDs, 9 INTs) or a Bo Nix-style consistency line (over 4,000 yards, over 20 TDs, ~10 INTs), and says either path means a playoff season for New Orleans in 2026.Rich Eisen · Playoff Picks · Minnesota Vikings · Miss 0
Eisen argues Ohio State will produce multiple top-10 picks — Sonny Styles, Arvell Reese and Caleb Downs — becoming the first school with three defensive players in the top 10, and that Styles will not be available at No. 12 to the Cowboys. He also thinks Fernando Mendoza is worthy of the No. 1 overall pick and expects the Raiders to draft him, and picks Trey Lance over Anthony Richardson to start a game first, Micah Parsons to fetch a bigger trade return than Maxx Crosby, Kirk Cousins as the released QB most likely to reach the playoffs, and J.J. McCarthy as the Vikings' Week 1 starter.Rich Eisen · Playoff Picks · Carolina Panthers · Hit 100
Eisen forecast the Week 18 results and the entire wild-card field: Buccaneers over Panthers but Carolina still gets in as the 5 seed when Atlanta beats New Orleans, 49ers over Seahawks, Ravens over Steelers, Jaguars beating Tennessee to win the AFC South, and six wild-card matchups (Seahawks-Panthers, Bills-Jaguars, Texans-Ravens, Packers-Bears, Chargers-Patriots, Rams-Eagles), with Houston upsetting Baltimore. They also tabbed Saints rookie Tyler Shough as a possible Offensive Rookie of the Year.Chris Brockman · Playoff Picks · Pittsburgh Steelers · Hit 100
Brockman argued the road to the Super Bowl in the AFC goes through Foxborough, meaning the Patriots will finish as the No. 1 seed, and called their shot that the Chargers beat Denver in Week 18. They also declared the Bears a team of destiny who will win the NFC, said the Steelers will end their playoff win drought, and that Trevor Lawrence is playing like a top-five quarterback.Rich Eisen · Playoff Picks · Green Bay Packers · Hit 100
Eisen agreed the Bears are a team of destiny who will win the NFC, insisted the Packers will make the playoffs and won't lose at home to the Ravens, said the Steelers should make the playoffs, and endorsed the view that Trevor Lawrence is playing like a top-five quarterback.