The 8 Most Interesting Teams in the NFL Entering 2025 Season

The NFL is loaded with intrigue on an annual basis. But each year, some teams are particularly interesting. 

Usually, that’s because they have more on the line than others. Sometimes, it’s because they’ve rebuilt and the expectations are high. 

Here are eight teams—one from each division—that are of particular national interest entering 2025.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars

(AP Photo/John Raoux

This is mainly about Trevor Lawrence and Travis Hunter. 

The highly paid and highly touted Lawrence is entering a critical season with a lot to prove under the tutelage of new head coach Liam Coen, while Hunter is one of the most intriguing and uniquely talented members of this rookie class. 

Will Lawrence finally break out in his fifth season? Will Hunter actually become a two-way sensation while making a push for Rookie of the Year honors on either side of the ball? 

The Jags certainly have a nice mix of talent, experience and promise on offense and defense, and the AFC South could be up for grabs, depending on how well the Houston Texans deal with a disappointing 2024 campaign and significant offseason changes. 

There are plenty of directions this could go, which makes it quite interesting.

7. Chicago Bears

AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh

This recipe is similar in that you have a young No. 1 overall pick at quarterback trying to take a big step forward with a new offensive guru of a head coach. 

The Caleb Williams-Ben Johnson combination makes the Bears a big draw in a tough NFC North in 2025, especially considering that Chicago has entirely retooled its offensive line and already has young weapons (Rome Odunze, Colston Loveland) as well as tons of defensive talent. 

This developing and reshaped team will get a baptism by fire with the Vikings, Lions and Cowboys right out of the gate in September. How it handles that stretch could dictate how relevant the Bears are for the remainder of 2025. 

Without skin in the game, you’d have to admit the season would be more enjoyable with a competitive Bears squad making the NFC North a gong show.

6. Atlanta Falcons

AP Photo/Mike Stewart

The Falcons are gambling that sophomore first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. can do more with a stacked group of offensive weapons than Kirk Cousins could in 2024, but with the tantalizing caveat that the expensive Cousins also remains on the roster. 

Bring on the drama. 

Penix looks fun and brings plenty of promise, and the defense—long starved for front-seven playmakers—will finally benefit after the front office spent significant draft capital on first-rounders Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr.

Throw in that the NFC South is expected to be anyone’s to win, and the high-ceiling/low-floor Falcons could be a hot story throughout the ‘25 campaign.

5. Arizona Cardinals

AP Photo/Rick Scuteri

The Cardinals doubled their win total from four in 2023 to eight in 2024 before continuing their rebuild with the addition of several potential immediate-impact defenders, including key draft picks Walter Nolen III and Will Johnson. 

Meanwhile, on offense, they’re praying that veteran quarterback Kyler Murray stays healthy and takes another big step forward with shiny sophomore receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and revelation tight end Trey McBride. 

This team would still likely have its work cut out for it in tougher divisions, but the 49ers are dealing with substantial losses after a disastrous season and the Rams and Seahawks are fringe contenders at best. 

Arizona could easily be positioned to make a surprise run at the NFC West crown and could even be a potential playoff spoiler. 

And at the very least, I’d expect to see plenty of fireworks in Cards games in 2025.

4. New England Patriots

AP Photo/Charles Krupa

Drake Maye’s promising rookie season is enough to make the rebuilding Patriots an intriguing watch in 2025. 

The return of Mike Vrabel (this time as head coach) and major additions throughout the offense (namely fourth overall pick Will Campbell and the acquisition of veteran wideout Stefon Diggs) work as cherries on top. 

Are the Patriots suddenly a Super Bowl contender again? Hell nah. But could a well-coached team with decent talent and sneaky experience on both sides of the ball shock the football world and help Maye become a bona fide franchise quarterback? Absolutely. 

Don’t be surprised if this squad leapfrogs the Jets and Dolphins and works its way into the wild-card mix with a campaign that includes some stirring upsets.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers

AP Photo/Matt Freed

Whether it’s because you’re rooting for Aaron Rodgers to pull a late-career rabbit out of his hat or hate-watching Rodgers and the oft-inflammatory Steelers, there’s little doubt that one of America’s most polarizing sports teams will draw plenty of attention while it is quarterbacked by one of the nation’s most polarizing stars. 

If the whole Rodgers experiment blows up, it’s intriguing. If Rodgers somehow gets back on track and helps the Steelers contend in a jacked division, it’s intriguing. 

And even if the 41-year-old fails to captivate audiences with extreme good or extreme bad, the Steelers are likely to be a factor if not a potential spoiler while battling their hyped AFC North rivals as well as the entire NFC North, the Bills, the Dolphins, and each of Rodgers’ previous two teams. 

Altogether, it’s worthy of several popcorn-eating gifs.

2. Denver Broncos

AP Photo/David Zalubowski

Are the Chiefs finally and truly at risk of being dethroned? If so, the Broncos could be the team to do it. And even if they fail, this ascending group has a very good chance at making major waves in 2025. 

It starts with sophomore first-round pick Bo Nix, who posted a 126.0 passer rating in the final three games of his rookie season as Denver’s quarterback and should benefit from continuity following his first full offseason. 

But this is also about the league’s third-ranked scoring defense from 2024—a unit that added high-potential corner Jahdae Barron in the first round of the draft and stole veterans Dre Greenlaw and Talanoa Hufanga from the 49ers. 

This team very well could be ready to disrupt it all, and Sean Payton is a coach who has been there, done that. This might be real fun.

1. Washington Commanders

AP Photo/Nick Wass

The Commanders are on a similar trajectory to Denver’s, but with a sophomore first-round pick at quarterback who was even more awesome than Nix in 2024 and with more significant offseason additions following a shocking run to the ‘24 AFC Championship. 

What might Jayden Daniels have in store for us in ‘25 as Washington tries to knock off the defending Super Bowl champions in the NFC East, the highest-profile division in sports? The additions of Deebo Samuel and Laremy Tunsil could be game-changers for him and that offense, and the D is at the very least not a liability. 

The Commanders’ schedule is basically a string of blockbusters, and the entertainment value will be there throughout the campaign for a rising squad that could also be a legitimate contender this winter.