Analysis
9/8/22
3 min read
2022 NFL Predictions: Who Will Win Super Bowl LVII?
Here we go, the 2022 season starts now.
So, after 18 weeks and 272 regular-season games, which teams will make it through the playoffs and get to Super Bowl LVII in Glendale, Ariz., next February, and which one will ultimately be crowned champion of the 2022 season? That was the question we posed to our talent staff at The 33rd Team — eight former players, eight former NFL head coaches and an ex-team general manager.
While it wasn't unanimous, a sharp consensus was formed in the AFC. In the NFC? Well, that one — five months out, at least — appears more up for grabs. Here are the results:
>> Other Predictions: Division Winners | Individual Awards
AFC Champion
1. Buffalo Bills (15 votes: Matt Cassel, Charles Davis, Rich Gannon, Greg Jennings, Dirk Koetter, Marvin Lewis, Chris Long, Mike Martz, Marty Mornhinweg, Chuck Pagano, Wade Phillips, Robert Smith, Joe Thomas, Dave Wannstedt, Mike Zimmer)
2. Los Angeles Chargers (2 votes: Ronde Barber, Mike Tannenbaum)
Quotable: "I think they're the best team in the NFL. I think they have aspirations to host home games throughout the playoffs to get a bye in a very tough conference. But you gotta start the season hot, and you have to start in L.A. to play the defending champion. ... [With injuries in the secondary] there’s no team I’m more concerned about weathering that storm than the Buffalo Bills." — Chris Long
NFC Champion
1. Green Bay Packers (7 votes: Davis, Gannon, Lewis, Mornhinweg, Phillips, Smith, Zimmer)
T2. Los Angeles Rams (4 votes: Koetter, Martz, Pagano, Wannstedt)
T2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4 votes: Barber, Cassel, Tannenbaum, Thomas)
T3. New Orleans Saints (1 vote: Jennings)
T3. San Francisco 49ers (1 vote: Chris Long)
Quotable: "I think Raheem Morris is going to have to get [the defense] to play at a higher level if they are going to repeat. There are a lot of things going against you when you’re a Super Bowl champion. Everybody is gunning for you, and you have the toughest schedule. Defense has to win for them this year." — Ronde Barber
Super Bowl LVII Champion
1. Buffalo Bills (12 votes: Cassel, Davis, Gannon, Jennings, Koetter, Long, Martz, Mornhinweg, Pagano, Smith, Thomas, Zimmer)
T2. Green Bay Packers: (2 votes: Lewis, Phillips)
T2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2 votes: Barber, Tannenbaum)
3. Los Angeles Rams: (1 vote: Wannstedt)
Quotable: "A lot of the defense is back together, and then you add a star like Von Miller? It’s easy to see why this is a team people believe could get back [to] and win a Super Bowl for the first time." — Joe Thomas
>> Other Predictions: Division Winners | Individual Awards
