Colin Cowherd#54 of 87 NFL pundits · Sep 12, 2026
Cowherd unveiled his final preseason 'herd hierarchy' top 10 (plus the Chiefs 11th and Ravens 12th), made full division-by-division picks with all 14 playoff teams, took the Bills to reach the Super Bowl, and added several team and player calls (Texans having the league's best defense, Arizona potentially picking No. 1, DJ Moore as Buffalo's true No. 1 receiver, Courtland Sutton as a top No. 2 receiver).
Said on air or in an interview · The Herd with Colin Cowherd (podcast)Hear the original
What Colin Cowherd said
our reading, beside the words we read it fromSo the playoff teams in the NFC look like this. Eagles, Lions, Saints, and Rams win the division.
- Where it was said
- The Herd with Colin Cowherd (podcast)
- The episode
- HERD BEST OF THE WEEK: Herd Hierarchy: Broncos IN, Chiefs OUT | Final NFL Predictions | Sean Payton on Bo Nix & Jaylen Waddle
- The original
- Hear the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
- 1Detroit Lions to make the playoffs“Eagles, Lions, Saints, and Rams win the division.”
- 2New England Patriots to make the playoffs“So my playoff picture, Bills, Ravens, Texans, Chargers, Patriots, Bengals, Broncos”
- 3New Orleans Saints to make the playoffs“Eagles, Lions, Saints, and Rams win the division.”
- 4Power Rankings“Here's my herd hierarchy. We'll start at number 10 on the eve of the NFL season... Number one... the Seahawks... Where are the Chiefs? I have them in 11th. Where are the Ravens? I have them at 12.”
Box score
HitCloseMissWaiting| Verdict | Call | Kind | What happened | Score | Naive | Skill |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Lions to make the playoffs1 | Playoff Picks | — | — | — | — | |
| New England Patriots to make the playoffs2 | Playoff Picks | — | — | — | — | |
| New Orleans Saints to make the playoffs3 | Playoff Picks | — | — | — | — | |
| “Here's my herd hierarchy. We'll start at number 10 on the eve…”4 | Power Rankings | — | — | — | — | |
| 4 calls · 4 waiting | — | — | ||||
How each call scored
4 checkable claims — 3 playoff picks and 1 power ranking — 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.
None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.
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.
Their call against the record
Their call against what actually happened last time. Not yet settled.
Detroit Lions to make the playoffs
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
2Playoff PicksNew England Patriots
New England Patriots to make the playoffs
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
3Playoff PicksNew Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints to make the playoffs
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
“Here's my herd hierarchy. We'll start at number 10 on the eve of the NFL season... Number one... the Seahawks... Where are the Chiefs? I have them in 11th. Where are the Ravens? I have them at 12.”
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Who this take is about
Others on the same people
Christian Booher · Roster Spot Calls · Anthony Lucas · Miss 0
Booher previews the Lions' Week 9 trip to Miami, predicting Derrick Barnes takes over as the green-dot linebacker in Jack Campbell's absence, Juice Scruggs starts at center, and boldly forecasting Detroit's first defensive touchdown of the season on an Aidan Hutchinson strip-sack recovered and returned by Barnes.Pat Fitzmaurice · Score Predictions · New England Patriots · Miss 14
Fitzmaurice predicted a 24-21 Patriots win over the Packers, said they would not be surprised if Jonathan Taylor were inactive amid trade talk, pegged Jonah Coleman as an RB22 rest-of-season value, expected Evan Hull to be Arizona's backup back, and saw Kerby Joseph returning in Week 10 or 11.Kevin Wildes · Game Outcome Picks · New England Patriots · Miss 0
Wildes took Minnesota over Buffalo, predicted a comfortable roughly 10-point New England win over Green Bay, and switched their Super Bowl matchup to Jaguars–Bears.Nick Wright · Game Outcome Picks · New England Patriots · Miss 0
Wright argued the Jaguars are the AFC's most complete team, calling them the considerable favorite for the No. 1 seed and the only club essentially locked into the playoffs. They also picked Tampa Bay to upset Chicago, had Kansas City sweeping its next three games, liked New England over Green Bay by about a field goal, and updated their Super Bowl matchup to Chiefs–49ers.Eric Mangini · Game Outcome Picks · New England Patriots · Miss 0
Mangini picked New England to beat Green Bay by more than a field goal, flagged Tampa Bay as their upset alert over Chicago, expects Kansas City to handle the Jets, took Buffalo over Minnesota, backed Cincinnati over Atlanta in Madrid, and updated their Super Bowl to Rams–Bengals.Connor Rogers · Game Outcome Picks · New England Patriots · Miss 0
Rogers picked straight-up winners in every Week 9 game, agreeing with Simms on all of them, and gave a 24-20 Bills score over the Vikings on Monday night.
More playoff picks
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
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.