In the National Parity League, predicting the the Super Bowl winner before the first snap is little more than a wild guess. In the NFL (unlike other professional sports), any team that is good enough to get into the playoffs has a realistic chance of winning. Readers will be plenty bored with all the pundits who announce the Super Bowl before September’s first match, so I will refrain from adding to the din. 

The 2020 season proved once again that except for bragging rights, division titles don’t matter much. Getting the number one seed still offers teams a tangible advantage — a bye — but the other 12 teams must play on Wild Card Weekend. Despite the promise of a home game, a division title is no more valuable than a wild card. In January, the wild card Buccaneers upset four division champs to claim the title. Three other wild card teams have hoisted the Lombardi just since 2000.
 
And so, instead of predicting the division winners or the Super Bowl champion, here are my 14 playoff picks — not ranked in any way, but in alphabetical order:
 
NFC: Buccaneers, Cardinals, Cowboys, Falcons, Packers, Saints, Seahawks.
AFC: Bills, Browns, Chiefs, Colts, Dolphins, Ravens, Titans. 

And what about Week One? After all, the journey of 17 weeks begins with the first snap.

NFL 2021 Week 1 — My Picks     UPDATE: These picks went 10-6.

       Home                     Away              My Pick
 
1.    Cowboys                 Bucs                Bucs
2.    Jaguars                   Texans             Jaguars
3.    Chargers                 Washington      Chargers
4.    Seahawks               Colts                Seahawks
5.    Jets                        Panthers          Panthers
6.    Vikings                   Bengals            Vikings
7.    Cardinals                Titans              Titans
8.    49ers                      Lions               Lions
9.    Steelers                  Bills                 Bills
10.  Eagles                     Falcons            Falcons
11.  Browns                   Chiefs              Chiefs
12.  Packers                   Saints              Saints
13.  Broncos                   Giants             Broncos
14.  Dolphins                  Patriots            Dolphins
15.  Bears                      Rams               Rams
16.  Ravens                    Raiders            Raiders

The roar of the crowd may do little to sway the final scores, but it will be great to see and hear rabid fans once more. Enjoy!