Garrett Podell#78 of 87 NFL pundits · Sep 10, 2026
A CBS Sports column offering five bold predictions for the 2026 NFL season, including Jordan Love winning MVP, the Saints going worst-to-first in the NFC South, and Omarion Hampton leading the league in rushing.
Published in writing · CBS SportsRead the original
What Garrett Podell said
our reading, beside the words we read it fromWith Hampton, a first-round talent, McDaniel will have the Chargers' bell cow back winning the NFL rushing title at the end of 2026.
- Where it was published
- CBS Sports
- The piece
- Five bold predictions for 2026 season: New MVP title contender, Saints go from worst to first in division
- The original
- Read the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
- 1Omarion Hampton to finish top 1 at his position, by rushing yards“Omarion Hampton wins NFL rushing title ... McDaniel will have the Chargers' bell cow back winning the NFL rushing title at the end of 2026.”
- 2New Orleans Saints to win the division“New Orleans Saints go from worst to first to win the NFC South”
- 3Jordan Love to win MVP“Jordan Love wins MVP ... Love could have the opportunity to produce MVP-caliber numbers this season.”
Box score
HitCloseMissWaiting| Verdict | Call | Kind | What happened | Score | Naive | Skill |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omarion Hampton to finish top 1 at his position, by rushing yards1 | Positional Finishes | — | — | — | — | |
| New Orleans Saints to win the division2 | Division Winners | — | — | — | — | |
| Jordan Love to win MVP3 | Award Picks | — | — | — | — | |
| 3 calls · 3 waiting | — | — | ||||
How each call scored
3 checkable claims — 1 award pick, 1 division winner and 1 positional finish — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.
It names 5 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.
Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room.
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.
Where this call stands in the room
Omarion Hampton · 2026 season · positional finish4 calls from 3 pundits between 1 positional finish and 10 positional finish. Garrett Podell said 1 positional finish. the room's median is 5 positional finish. not settled yet
Every dot is a call somebody published on the same question. Where the dots land says where this take sits, not whether it is right — nothing here is settled yet. Hover a dot for the name and number; click it to read that take.
Their call against the room
positional finishTheir call against everyone else's, while this is still unsettled.
1Positional FinishesOmarion HamptonLos Angeles Chargers
Omarion Hampton to finish top 1 at his position, by rushing yards
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
2Division WinnersNew Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints to win the division
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
3Award PicksJordan LoveGreen Bay Packers
Jordan Love to win MVP
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Who this take is about
Others on the same people
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.Bill Huber · Game Outcome Picks · Green Bay Packers · Hit 100
Huber argues Green Bay has no excuses left and will beat New England in Foxborough, and expects Christian Watson to play despite their rib injury. They also sketch the projected interior offensive line, with John Williams at center and Laken Tomlinson at right guard.Derek Brown · Game Outcome Picks · Green Bay Packers · Hit 100
Brown picked the Bengals to beat the Falcons in Madrid, the Packers to win outright in New England and the Bills to beat the Vikings on Monday night. They were bullish on Jonah Coleman's rest-of-season value, expected Jonathan Taylor to play for the Colts, floated a Breece Hall trade, and did not expect DJ Reed to play in Week 9.Danny Parkins · Game Outcome Picks · Green Bay Packers · Hit 100
Parkins named the seven AFC teams they believe are already set as the playoff field, expects Chicago, Buffalo and Kansas City to win this week, took Green Bay over New England and Atlanta over Cincinnati outright, and kept Bills–Bears as their Super Bowl matchup with the Giants still winning the NFC East.John Middlekauff · Game Outcome Picks · Green Bay Packers · Hit 100
Middlekauff declared the AFC South over and the Jaguars the division champs, while listing several clubs they expect in the playoffs and pegging the Jets for a top-five draft slot. They also leaned Packers and Bears in Week 9 games, predicted roughly five or six wins for Washington, said Brandon Aiyuk is not coming back, and called Tyson Bagent's current deal the biggest they'll ever sign.
More division winners
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
Daniel DiBerardinis · Division Winners · Atlanta Falcons · Miss 0
Danny D predicts Sonny Styles goes in the top ten (maybe top five), doesn't think Ty Simpson goes before late first round, says Kenyon Sadiq lands with the Rams at 13, and picks the Falcons to win the NFC South while naming the Bengals an AFC bounce-back team. They also give a Final Four of Michigan, Florida, Purdue and Arizona with Michigan winning.Colin Cowherd · Division Winners · New York Giants · Miss 0
Cowherd projects the NFC East with the Giants winning the division ahead of Philadelphia, Washington and Dallas, pegging the Cowboys as a six- or seven-win team. They also expect Malik Willis to land a big free-agent deal, Kayvon Thibodeaux to be moved, and Baltimore to lose Isaiah Likely, and they float the Rams reaching on Ty Simpson late in round one.Colin Cowherd · Division Winners · Baltimore Ravens · Miss 0
Cowherd likes Jacksonville, Chicago and Pittsburgh (with DK Metcalf back) in the wild-card round, ranks the league's head coaches with McVay first and Ben Johnson seventh, and predicts Lamar Jackson has about two strong years left. They also name the Rams as a possible team to draft a receiver and floats next year's draft having seven first-round quarterbacks.Rich Eisen · Division Winners · Jacksonville Jaguars · 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.Rich Eisen · Division Winners · Jacksonville Jaguars · Hit 100
Eisen called the 49ers-as-NFC-favorites take an overreaction, picked the Jaguars to beat the Titans and win their division, leaned Ravens over the Steelers in the Week 18 Sunday night game, expects the Bills to beat the Jets even without Josh Allen, sees the Chargers as the AFC's seventh seed, agreed Tyler Shough could win Offensive Rookie of the Year with a good Saints 2026, said Malik Willis will be a starter somewhere next season, and insisted Detroit goes into 2026 with Goff.