# Ralph Vacchiano: Vacchiano declares the 4-0 49ers the best team in the NFL and the league's team to beat, while arguing the Jaguars — behind Trevor Lawrence and a top-notch defense — deserve to be treated as a genuine Super Bowl contender. **Claimed:** Oct 5, 2026 **Pundit:** Ralph Vacchiano — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/ralph-vacchiano **Outlet:** Fox Sports — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/fox-sports **How it reached us:** published in writing **Original:** https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/nfl-fallout-week-4-rams-remind-why-theyre-scariest-team-nfl 2 checkable claims — 1 power ranking and 1 surprise team call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. > In fact, the 4-0 49ers are looking down at everyone. They're the best team in the league. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Jacksonville Jaguars to beat expectations** - Kind: Surprise Team Calls · About: Jacksonville Jaguars - Verdict: not settled yet - “In fact, the 4-0 49ers are looking down at everyone. They're the best team in the league.” - Kind: Power Rankings - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Jacksonville Jaguars — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/jaguars ## What others said about the same people - AJ Hawk on Jacksonville Jaguars: Hawk picked the Jaguars to beat the Ravens on the road, predicting roughly a 17-point margin. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/0abbd638-5ccf-408e-864d-bd5651044b3d (scored 100) - Connor "Boston Connor" Campbell on Jacksonville Jaguars: Connor believed Baltimore would keep it close but still said Jacksonville wins the game outright. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/377a2765-5130-479c-8d47-e62f64fff35b (scored 100) - Nick Wright on Jacksonville Jaguars: Wright expects the 49ers to release Brandon Aiyuk once they report, predicts Jacksonville blows out Baltimore on Thursday night, sees the Jaguars finishing around 13-4 or 14-3, and thinks Seattle's defense carries them past Arizona even with Drew Lock starting. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/ca08b414-c136-4da2-9805-d9bada155854 (scored 100) - Connor Rogers on Jacksonville Jaguars: Rogers agreed the Bears have the NFL's best offense, picked Minnesota as the league's best total defense, and picked Jacksonville to beat Baltimore on Thursday night. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/f137eeee-71a3-4de4-bfa0-50699d23e147 (scored 100) - Chris Simms on Jacksonville Jaguars: Simms named the Bears the NFL's best overall offense and best rushing offense, the Bengals the best passing offense, Seattle the best total defense, Minnesota the best pass defense and Tampa Bay the best run defense; they also called Tristan Wirfs the league's best offensive lineman, projected Miami's Malachi Toney as a top-15 pick, and predicted a 30-14 Jaguars win in Baltimore. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c0fd4647-2de8-4a5f-bac2-950fed303ee9 (scored 83.33) - Mark Morales-Smith on Jacksonville Jaguars: Within a Week 9 fantasy sleeper column, they state that Jacksonville is almost certain to blow out Baltimore, with the Jaguars running the ball through the second half and fourth quarter. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d03c86f1-c1e9-4280-b6be-5f6fc9de7f6e (scored 100) ## More power rankings The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Chris Brockman: Brockman argued the Broncos are headed to the AFC Championship Game, that the Cowboys will win the NFC East, that Green Bay is the NFC's best team, and that the Bears will finish no worse than the No. 2 seed in the NFC. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/285842c7-abd9-43fa-a0c0-e8138a392658 (scored 0) - Rich Eisen: Eisen said the Texans can win the AFC South and make the playoffs, called the Rams the best team in football, predicted Aaron Rodgers will start against the Bears, and said they believe Joe Burrow returns for the Patriots-Bengals game. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d7b170ab-fe27-4fe3-8c47-116548754dd1 (scored 50) - Rich Eisen: Eisen endorsed the Eagles' defense carrying them to the NFC championship and the Rams being the NFL's best team, but predicted the NFC North sends only Green Bay and Detroit to the playoffs, that Kansas City wins five of its last seven, that the 49ers make the playoffs, that Baltimore wins the AFC North, and that Tampa Bay wins the NFC South with both the Bucs and Panthers losing their upcoming NFC West road games. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/f7e77ff9-c596-4b8e-a10d-989cd6fa12a9 (scored 50) - Chris Brockman: Brockman argued the Eagles' defense is the NFL's best and will drag a mediocre offense to the NFC championship, that the NFC North sends only two teams to the playoffs with the Bears among them, that the Rams are the league's best team, that a healthy Brock Purdy makes the 49ers an NFC threat who will beat the Saints and Falcons, and that the Panthers win the NFC South. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/58252eec-2c8f-4cfe-b95e-247dd9ce8f0e (scored 50) - Rich Eisen: Eisen ranked their top five matchups of Week 11, and along the way said the Rams sit atop their power rankings as the best team on both sides of the ball, and praised RJ Harvey as Denver's path forward. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/50af1258-bdeb-4451-b159-5d48efa94795 (scored 50) - Nick Wright: The host's five Week 9 NFL picks: Detroit over Minnesota, Pittsburgh +3 vs. Indianapolis, San Francisco over the Giants, Kansas City over Buffalo at Buffalo, and Seattle over Washington. They also call the Chiefs the best team in the league and Jonathan Taylor the NFL's best running back this year. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2fd2d221-42c7-422d-bd99-8a7e8e6dd1df (scored 0) --- 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=ralph-vacchiano