A funny thing happens when you look at the odds to make the NFC playoffs. There are way more playoff teams than playoff spots.

In the recent odds to make the NFC playoffs from Bovada, via OddsShark, nine teams are +150 (you’d be betting $100 to win $150) or better. A team set at +150 odds should feel it has a pretty good chance to make the playoffs. And the problem is, as everyone knows, there are only six spots.

Odds to make the NFC playoffs (@BovadaOfficial): PHI -295

LAR -230

MIN -215

GB -170

NO -140

ATL EVEN

SF +135

CAR +135

DAL +150

SEA +240

NYG +250

DET +250

TB +375

WSH +375

CHI +450

ARI +650 — OddsShark (@OddsShark) July 30, 2018





The NFC is as deep with playoff-quality teams as it has ever been. Philadelphia, Dallas, Minnesota, Green Bay, New Orleans, Atlanta, Carolina and the Los Angeles Rams have what should be considered playoff-caliber rosters. San Francisco might be in that group too, if you buy into their late winning streak. I can’t even rule out teams like Detroit, Washington, Chicago or the New York Giants being much better this season. On top of that, there are no hopeless teams from No. 1 to 16 in the conference. The Arizona Cardinals are probably considered the worst in the conference, and they went 8-8 last season and get David Johnson back.

The NFC is absolutely, positively loaded.

The playoff races should be incredible. Every division has some intrigue, with the NFC South and NFC North having very compelling races. There are only two first-round byes to go around, and definitely more than two elite teams. When we look up in January, we’ll find that multiple playoff-worthy NFC teams didn’t make the postseason. With the preseason about to start we find it impossible to believe a team like the Eagles or Packers or Saints will miss the playoffs, but someone really good is getting left out. Even when the NFC was dominating the league in the 1980s and early 1990s, with powerhouse teams like the Redskins, Giants, 49ers and Cowboys, the conference never had eight or nine high-quality teams.

[Yahoo Fantasy Football leagues are open: Sign up now for free]

There are a few NFC teams that could put together a special season, too. Four of the top five teams on our first stab at the 2018 NFL Power Rankings are all in the NFC. This list could change a lot over the next few weeks, as players rise and fall during the preseason and the inevitable injuries hit. But here’s how the teams stack up as we head into the preseason (for an in-depth breakdown on each team, click on the team’s name for our full preview):

Alshon Jeffery (17) and the Philadelphia Eagles will have a tough time repeating in a loaded NFC. (AP) More

32. Cleveland Browns



We don’t know what’s exactly going on with Josh Gordon’s absence from camp, but hopefully whatever he’s doing as par of his “overall health and treatment plan” allows him to get back soon. It’s just impossible to trust that everything will be fine after the last few years.

31. Indianapolis Colts

Andrew Luck says he feels no pain in camp, and that’s great. But after more than a year of unfulfilled optimism, let’s just wait to see him in games, shall we?

30. New York Jets

Sam Darnold’s short holdout won’t help his chances of starting Week 1, which seemed to be a decent bet for most of the summer. It would be strange if none of the five first-round picks start the season opener, but that seems to be possible.

29. Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals seem decided on Sam Bradford as their quarterback to start the season, but why? We all know what Bradford is. Josh Rosen is one of the more polished rookie quarterbacks to come out in a while. It seems like it would make sense to admit Bradford was a desperate free-agent signing when the team didn’t have a quarterback on the roster, treat it as a sunk cost and move on with the future.

28. Buffalo Bills