Well, kids, it's finally here: The 2021 NFL season. You know exactly what that means: Prediction time! Football is thrilling in part because it's so unpredictable, but we all love a good forecast.
Speaking of, there's a running bit we have in our office Slack channel about my workroom alias, Dr. Clouds. Some of my colleagues probably don't even know why it exists. But the truth is, it stems from a string of assignments related to game-day weather forecasts. Well today, Dr. Clouds is in the house, but he's here not to project thunderstorms, but rather the entire 2021 season.
And I've got lots of help to do it! Here's the full cast of CBS Sports NFL experts who chipped in with predictions for all of this year's major awards: "Pick Six NFL Podcast" host Will Brinson, senior writer Pete Prisco and staff writers Cody Benjamin (yours truly), John Breech, Bryan DeArdo, Jared Dubin, Josh Edwards, Jeff Kerr, Tyler Sullivan, Chris Trapasso and Ryan Wilson.
Without further ado, our 2021 NFL predictions, headlined by a lot of love for the Buffalo Bills:
Super Bowl LVI champion
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | 49ers |
| Pete Prisco | Bills |
Cody Benjamin | |
John Breech | |
Bryan DeArdo | Packers |
| Jared Dubin | Chiefs |
| Josh Edwards | Chiefs |
| Jeff Kerr | Chiefs |
| Tyler Sullivan | Bills |
| Chris Trapasso | Bills |
| Ryan Wilson | Bills |
Final tally:
- Bills (4)
- Chiefs (3)
- Packers (2)
- Buccaneers (1)
- 49ers (1)
Excited for the biggest NFL schedule in history? Follow along on the CBS Sports app and get the latest insights from our team of NFL insiders, plus news from our team of experts, as well as data insights on every player. If you already have the CBS Sports app, make sure to favorite the your favorite team so you don't miss a thing!
Super Bowl LVI MVP
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Trey Lance |
Pete Prisco | |
Cody Benjamin | |
John Breech | |
Bryan DeArdo | Aaron Rodgers |
Jared Dubin | |
| Josh Edwards | Patrick Mahomes |
| Jeff Kerr | Patrick Mahomes |
| Tyler Sullivan | Josh Allen |
| Chris Trapasso | Josh Allen |
| Ryan Wilson | Josh Allen |
Final tally:
- Josh Allen (4)
- Patrick Mahomes (3)
- Aaron Rodgers (2)
- Tom Brady (1)
- Trey Lance (1)
NFL MVP
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Josh Allen |
Pete Prisco | Patrick Mahomes |
Cody Benjamin | Tom Brady |
John Breech | Josh Allen |
Bryan DeArdo | Patrick Mahomes |
Jared Dubin | Patrick Mahomes |
Josh Edwards | Josh Allen |
| Jeff Kerr | Patrick Mahomes |
Tyler Sullivan | Tom Brady |
Chris Trapasso | |
Ryan Wilson | Aaron Rodgers |
Final tally:
- Patrick Mahomes (4)
- Josh Allen (3)
- Tom Brady (2)
- Aaron Rodgers (1)
- Dak Prescott (1)
Offensive Player of the Year
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Alvin Kamara |
Pete Prisco | Patrick Mahomes |
Cody Benjamin | Dak Prescott |
John Breech | |
Bryan DeArdo | Dak Prescott |
Jared Dubin | Josh Allen |
Josh Edwards | |
| Jeff Kerr | Josh Allen |
Tyler Sullivan | |
Chris Trapasso | |
Ryan Wilson |
Final tally:
- Dak Prescott (2)
- Josh Allen (2)
- Patrick Mahomes (1)
- Matthew Stafford (1)
- Christian McCaffrey (1)
- Nick Chubb (1)
- Alvin Kamara (1)
- Justin Jefferson (1)
- Stefon Diggs (1)
Defensive Player of the Year
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Myles Garrett |
Pete Prisco | |
Cody Benjamin | |
John Breech | |
Bryan DeArdo | T.J. Watt |
Jared Dubin | |
Josh Edwards | |
| Jeff Kerr | Aaron Donald |
Tyler Sullivan | |
Chris Trapasso | |
Ryan Wilson | T.J. Watt |
Final tally:
- T.J. Watt (3)
- Myles Garrett (2)
- Aaron Donald (2)
- Nick Bosa (1)
- Danielle Hunter (1)
- Chase Young (1)
- Devin White (1)
Coach of the Year
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Kyle Shanahan |
Pete Prisco | Sean McDermott |
Cody Benjamin | Brandon Staley |
John Breech | Kyle Shanahan |
Bryan DeArdo | Bill Belichick |
Jared Dubin | Sean McDermott |
Josh Edwards | Kyle Shanahan |
| Jeff Kerr | Kliff Kingsbury |
Tyler Sullivan | Sean McDermott |
Chris Trapasso | Kyle Shanahan |
Ryan Wilson | Brandon Staley |
Final tally:
- Kyle Shanahan (4)
- Sean McDermott (3)
- Brandon Staley (2)
- Bill Belichick (1)
- Kliff Kingsbury (1)
Offensive Rookie of the Year
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Trey Sermon |
Pete Prisco | |
Cody Benjamin | |
John Breech | Mac Jones |
Bryan DeArdo | Mac Jones |
Jared Dubin | |
Josh Edwards | |
| Jeff Kerr | Najee Harris |
Tyler Sullivan | Mac Jones |
Chris Trapasso | |
Ryan Wilson |
Final tally:
- Mac Jones (4)
- Najee Harris (2)
- Trevor Lawrence (1)
- Trey Lance (1)
- Zach Wilson (1)
- Justin Fields (1)
- Trey Sermon (1)
Defensive Rookie of the Year
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Jamin Davis |
Pete Prisco | Joe Tryon-Shoyinka |
Cody Benjamin | |
John Breech | |
Bryan DeArdo | |
Jared Dubin | |
Josh Edwards | Micah Parsons |
| Jeff Kerr | Micah Parsons |
Tyler Sullivan | |
Chris Trapasso | |
Ryan Wilson | Joe Tryon-Shoyinka |
Final tally:
- Micah Parsons (3)
- Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (2)
- Kwity Paye (1)
- Jaycee Horn (1)
- Jamin Davis (1)
- Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (1)
- Patrick Surtain II (1)
- Jaelan Phillips (1)
Top teams on the rise
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Patriots |
Pete Prisco | |
Cody Benjamin | Chargers, Rams |
John Breech | Chargers |
Bryan DeArdo | |
Jared Dubin | Chargers, 49ers |
Josh Edwards | 49ers, Jets |
| Jeff Kerr | Dolphins |
Tyler Sullivan | Chargers |
Chris Trapasso | Chargers |
Ryan Wilson | Bills |
Final tally:
- Chargers (6)
- 49ers (2)
- Patriots (1)
- Bills (1)
- Cowboys (1)
- Jets (1)
- Dolphins (1)
- Rams (1)
Top teams on the decline
| Expert | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Will Brinson | Bears |
Pete Prisco | |
Cody Benjamin | |
John Breech | |
Bryan DeArdo | |
Jared Dubin | Colts, Saints |
Josh Edwards | |
| Jeff Kerr | Vikings |
Tyler Sullivan | Packers |
Chris Trapasso | |
Ryan Wilson | Packers |
Final tally:
- Colts (2)
- Packers (2)
- Saints (2)
- Seahawks (1)
- Ravens (1)
- Eagles (1)
- Raiders (1)
- Vikings (1)
- Bears (1)
