The 2025 NFL Season Begins Tonight... So Here Is How it Will End

Ladies and gentlemen, after 206 days of waiting, meaningful NFL football is finally back. The 2025 NFL regular season kicks off tonight when the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles host their NFC East rival, the Dallas Cowboys, in the first of 272 games that will decide the playoff field and the 14 teams vying for a trip to San Francisco in February for Super Bowl LX.

Every year, fans and analysts line up to make their bold predictions about how the season will unfold, and I’m no exception.

So here’s mine: I believe the 2025 NFL season will end with the Kansas City Chiefs reaching the Super Bowl for the fourth straight year and sixth time in the last seven seasons. Waiting for them on the NFC side will be a familiar foe—the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I see Baker Mayfield following up his career season from a year ago, taking the Bucs all the way to the big dance, setting up a rematch of Super Bowl LV, when Tom Brady's Buccaneers squad dominated Mahomes and the Chiefs 31-9.

Let's get into my quick reasoning for why I am picking a Chiefs-Buccaneers Super Bowl matchup, starting with my AFC champion pick, the Kansas City Chiefs. I believe, for the second year in a row, they will take down Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Title Game, this time on the road, in what will be the final game played at Highmark Stadium before the Bills move into their new stadium in 2026.

Yes, I know it’s nearly unprecedented for a team to make four straight Super Bowls, and ironically, it's only happened once in NFL history, when the Buffalo Bills did it in the 1990s—and they lost every time. But if we've learned anything about these Chiefs, it’s just dumb, in my opinion, to fade them in the AFC until someone actually knocks them off, especially when I believe they will be even better than they were a year ago.

Last season, many fans or "experts" were saying Kansas City was having a "down year"; the team still went 15-1 in the regular season games that their starters played. This year, they will be getting Rashee Rice back midway through the season after he missed most of last year with a torn ACL. Rice will begin the year on the sidelines while serving a six-game suspension. In his four regular-season games last year, Rice looked like he was becoming one of the game's best, and his presence should open up the field for second-year receiver Xavier Worthy, who stepped up big down the stretch of last year. They will also be getting a full season of Hollywood Brown, who missed most of last season. If this offensive line can perform much better than they did last year, expect this Chiefs offense to be humming by playoff time.

And, of course, looming over it all is Travis Kelce. Although he might not be as dominant as he once was, this is probably his last season in the NFL, so he should be more motivated than ever to give it his all for one final Super Bowl run. His presence and determination will, in my opinion, be a big narrative and emotional force for Kansas City come playoff time.

Not to mention Bills head coach Sean McDermott's remark from earlier this week. McDermott, for no reason, said, "No team will ever get back to four straight Super Bowls," while trying to defend the Bills' franchise history, during which they lost four consecutive Super Bowls in the 1990s. I am just confused as to why he felt the need to add fuel to the fire for a team that has dominated his squad in the playoffs. I think that statement will come back to haunt him when Kansas City breaks the Bills yet again in January.

In the NFC, the conference still really does feel like it is Philadelphia’s to lose. The defending champs are still the most complete team in the NFL, and I would not be shocked if we see them back in the Super Bowl. But I’m going with the team that has given them the most trouble over the past few years in the conference: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

I think the Buccaneers will defeat Jordan Love, the newly acquired Micah Parsons, and the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game to clinch their spot in Super Bowl LX.

Although I'm a little concerned about losing offensive coordinator Liam Cohen, who was hired by the Jaguars to be their next head coach, I think the weapons on this offense are simply elite. Baker Mayfield has grown into one of the NFL's top quarterbacks over his two years in Tampa Bay. They have a great offensive line, which will protect Mayfield and help running back Bucky Irving finish near the top of the league in rushing. Chris Godwin should return early to midway through the season, Mike Evans is still one of the game's best, and I believe first-round choice Emeka Egbuka will turn out to be one of the steals of this past draft class.

My biggest concern with the Bucs is their defense. That unit is a bit older and prone to injuries, and I still have concerns about Todd Bowles as head coach. However, I am confident in Bowles as a defensive play caller, and I think he will coach them up to a level good enough to get back to the Super Bowl with Mayfield and the offense leading the way.

In the actual game, I believe the Chiefs will avenge last year's Super Bowl blowout and take down Mayfield and the Bucs by a score of 30-24, in what will be Travis Kelce's last game before he rides off into the sunset and into marriage with Taylor Swift.

After an offseason filled with whispers that the dynasty was dead, Kansas City will shut everyone up once again and win their Lombardi Trophy with this core. Mahomes inches closer to Brady, Andy Reid gets even closer to Bill Belichick for GOAT coach status, and Kelce gets his fairy tale ending as the dynasty lives on.

Following that, I've included my full standings projections for the remainder of the NFL season.