Myles Garrett, Patrick Mahomes and Jesse Minter: The NFL's biggest storylines on road to Super Bowl 61 in Los Angeles
From a Los Angeles Rams super-team to the return of Patrick Mahomes, we guide you through some of the biggest storylines heading into the 2026 NFL season on the road to Super Bowl 61 in Los Angeles.
The new campaign begins on Wednesday night when the defending champion Seattle Seahawks take on the New England Patriots, live on Sky Sports NFL from 1.20am in the early hours of Thursday.
The phrase 'all in' can be over-exhausted at times in the NFL, but rarely has it been as glaringly-fitting than in the case of the 2026 Los Angeles Rams. They made the biggest move of the offseason by acquiring reigning Defensive Player of the Year and generational pass rusher Myles Garrett in a blockbuster trade with the Cleveland Browns, traded for Kansas City Chiefs star cornerback Trent McDuffie, reunited him with free agent corner Jaylen Watson and welcomed back Aaron Donald as the three-time Defensive Player of the Year came out of retirement to forge one of the most frightening defensive tandems in NFL history alongside Garrett.
Stop them and there is already an existing core of Byron Young, Kobie Turner, Braden Fiske and chess piece safety Quentin Lake for which to account.
They enter the season led by reigning MVP Matthew Stafford at quarterback, have one of the league's most talented wide receivers in Puka Nacua, boast an upper-tier rushing attack of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum and just produced the NFL's most potent offense on the way to the NFC Championship Game last year, where they fell short against the champion Seattle Seahawks in a game more Super Bowl-esque than the Super Bowl itself. They are favourites for a reason.
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The Baltimore Ravens are desperate to cash in on the prime of their generational quarterback, and so moved on from head coach John Harbaugh after 18 seasons this year in view of a fresh look to their Super Bowl charge. They would turn to former Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter and former Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle as the men to help Lamar Jackson lead the Ravens over the line following a playoff-less campaign on the back of three Divisional Round exits and an AFC Championship Game defeat in six seasons.
Between Jackson, Derrick Henry and Doyle's offensive scheme, the Ravens have the potential to be one of the league's most destructive play-action run-heavy attacks. Questions remain of a receiving core spearheaded by Zay Flowers, but there are high expectations for third-round rookie Ja'Kobi Lane.
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A slow start and marquee injuries, namely to Jackson himself, cost Baltimore in 2025, so too one of the worst pass defenses in football. Minter had been instrumental in transforming the Chargers' defense during his time alongside Harbaugh, and arrives armed with the personnel to orchestrate one of the league's best units behind all-action safety Kyle Hamilton, a returning Nnamdi Madubuike and offseason addition Trey Hendrickson.
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Despite his demise in Miami, former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel remains one of football's most prized offensive architects as he takes his expertise over to California. There he has been tasked with unlocking the best of Justin Herbert as the new offensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers, whose franchise quarterback is yet to shake the monkey of a first career playoff win off his back. For all the blockbuster arm talent, Herbert's chief criticism remains his modest postseason record, but McDaniel and his whacky wizardry is in town to change that.
It remains a team somewhat built on 'ifs' as far as their AFC West challenge is concerned. 'If' star offensive tackle tandem Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater can rediscover their best after combining for just six games due to injury last season, 'if' running back Omarion Hampton can be a difference-maker, 'if' Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston is enough firepower for Herbert on the outside, 'if' first-round pick Akheem Mesidor can make an immediate impact to a slightly understaffed pass rush, 'if' Tuli Tuipulotu, Derwin James and a 35-year-old Khalil Mack can preserve Minter's influence with last season's top-10 defense.
Herbert is a freak, but he is not immune to queries, and this is his best chance yet to firmly nestle himself among the AFC's perennial contenders.
It was a strange 2025 season in Philly, where the Eagles clinched the NFC East division title amid a storm of locker room tension and frequent offensive sputters during the defence of their Super Bowl title. It would culminate in a wild-card round defeat to the San Francisco 49ers and the eventual departure of wantaway wide receiver AJ Brown, who appeared to drift from quarterback Jalen Hurts while being critical of Kevin Patullo's play-calling within an attack that slumped to 24th in total yards.
Patullo was fired as offensive coordinator this offseason and replaced by former Green Bay Packers quarterback coach Sean Mannion, who will turn to DeVonta Smith as his No 1 passing threat along with a new supporting cast of Hollywood Brown, Dontayvion Wicks and rookie Makai Lemon in the Eagles' bid to adapt to life without Brown.
Legendary coach Jeff Stoutland retired this offseason, but leaves what remains one of the league's most accomplished offensive lines. Behind it sits Saquon Barkley, whose cut exploits should thrive in Mannion's outside zone plant-and-go scheme as he responds to a perceived 'down' year. On the opposite side of the ball Vic Fangio still pulls the strings to one of the most talent-rich personnel groups among NFL defenses, for which there appears zero concerns. All eyes turn to the Hurts and Mannion marriage.
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The Kansas City Chiefs missed out on the playoffs for the first time since 2014 last season on the back of reaching seven straight AFC Championship games and five Super Bowls in six campaigns, three of which they won. It was also the first time since 2015 that they failed to win the AFC West, slumping to third with a record of 6-11 as offensive frailties finally caught up with them. To make matters worse quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a season-ending torn ACL and LCL in December, for which he underwent immediate surgery. He is back - but how back? And are THEY back?
Andy Reid's dynasty men had found themselves in a rare place on the periphery, Mahomes enduring his worst statistical campaign and a once high-powered attack finally fizzling out into nothingness having long-been rescued by Steve Spagnuolo's defense. You would be hard pushed arguing Mahomes is not still the NFL's best quarterback, and hard pushed believing he will not wrestle back his command of the league at some stage, but the Chiefs await to see just how quickly he can get back to being the same dynamic out-of-structure menace in the wake of his recovery.
Travis Kelce is not the same defining wrinkle to Reid's playbook at the age of 36, while Rashee Rice faces a 'prove it' year as Mahomes' lead receiver after playing just eight games in 2025. The Chiefs did, though, seek to ease their quarterback's return by signing Super Bowl MVP running back Kenneth Walker III as a new dimension to an uninspiring backfield, while replacing Matt Nagy with returning offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, a popular figure in their past Super Bowl success. A Mahomes, Reid and Spagnuolo trio might, meanwhile, still be the best in football.
Sean Payton's Championship-contender Denver Broncos will not give up the AFC West easily, though.
Joe Burrow insists he is tired of waiting, tired of kicking Cincinnati's Super Bowl can down the road, tired of saying 'next time'; for him, this is it, the chance to get back to the 'Big Dance', the chance to win it all. Rarely do you doubt his confidence, rarely do you not believe in his ability to lift a Lombardi, but between injuries, including to Burrow himself, and roster imbalance the Bengals have never quite worked it out since falling at the final hurdle against the Rams at Super Bowl LVI.
They have now missed the playoffs in three straight seasons, an astonishing mini-drought considering that, behind Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins can be one of the most explosive aerial attacks in football.
An apparent move towards more play-action and under-center looks is a fascinating and long-coveted wrinkle to a Bengals offense criticised for becoming stale at times under Zac Taylor. In truth, though, it has never really been deficiencies on offense to prompt their struggles, but instead their consistent issues on defense. They just traded a first-round pick for Dexter Lawrence and acquired edge rusher Boye Mafe - but is it enough?
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'Run it forward' was the term used by Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald this offseason as Seattle prepare to defend their Super Bowl crown following February's dominant win over the New England Patriots. And there is no reason they cannot map out a route back to February's finale.
Kenneth Walker's exit raises some fresh uncertainty in the backfield, but this is still a complete roster brimming with playmakers and overseen by perhaps the top defensive mastermind in the league currently. Sam Darnold is coming off a season in which he performed like a top-10 quarterback to shun critics for good, feeding Jaxon Smith-Njigba on his way to a league-leading 1,793 receiving yards.
Macdonald and Aden Durde's defense, meanwhile, ranked first in EPA per drive and first in points allowed with little evidence of a decline threat. Besides Walker and the addition of rookie running back Jadarian Price, the one sizeable change comes on the sidelines as Brian Fleury takes over play-calling duties fo
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8 of September 2026
