Another season is done and dusted for the NFL. Top teams that were supposed to dominate completely fell short (aka, the San Francisco 49ers, who played in last year’s Super Bowl) while others met their low expectations (Jacksonville Jaguars, Las Vegas Raiders, Cleveland Browns), but we’re not talking about them.
We’re talking about other teams who made their way to history. The teams who were able to defy those low beginning-of-the-season expectations. The ones who have weird but fun aspects to their game (or certain players). The ones who made a statement, and were able to stick to it.
These are the top stories from the 2024 season (playoffs included). Did the Lions actually have a chance at making their first Super Bowl? Did Aaron Rodgers face his final darkness?
Read on to learn more about the teams that are long lost, the ones that slayed their way well into January, and the biggest lessons we’ve learned from the 2024 NFL season.
The Chiefs are Squirming Their Way to a Three-Peat
Let’s get this out of the way. I’m listing this as the first top story of the season, not because it was THE top story, but because I’d rather talk about the Kansas City Chiefs and then move on with my life.
The Chiefs have the magic of their quarterback Patrick Mahomes (and some help from Taylor Swift), and as long as they have that, they’re golden. This team is chasing a little bit of NFL history—just a bit: No one has ever won three Super Bowls in a row. Ever. Think about how much we all hated the Patriots for what felt like 20 years straight. Even Tom Brady wasn’t able to hoist the Lombardi Trophy three times in a row.
Three-peating has been a big storyline, and question, that haunted the Chiefs the entire season. The good news? The Chiefs are slipping up and playing completely below their standards. The bad news? It doesn’t matter. Because they’re the Chiefs.
The team won an all-time record of fifteen straight games by less than one score. They got lucky on blocked field goals, botched snaps, toes barely out of bounds, and more. Yet here we are in another February with the Chiefs somehow remaining as the last AFC team standing and holding up their reputation as the greatest villains in the league.
While it may seem like the Chiefs continue to dominate, the reality is, they are sleazing and squirming their way to another Super Bowl. Sure, we can appreciate the history of it all… but we can still hate them for it.
Jayden Daniels is Something Special
Okay Washington. You got rid of the NFL’s worst owner last year, and no one expected much. We thought that maybe the Commanders would start off a new era slowly but surely, with some hopeless flailing and lots of time needed to establish a new identity.
Instead, Jayden Daniels arrived. In the new ownership’s first season with the team, the Commanders drafted Daniels at quarterback with the #2 pick in the draft. Thanks to the stars-still-in-his eyes rookie and new head coach Dan Quinn, the Commanders suddenly… did well? And won games? And they did this:
The Commanders also went all the way, not just to the playoffs, but the NFC championship. This is what happens when you do a root-cause analysis and get rid of the rot that’s affecting your franchise, apparently. Washington gives us all hope that maybe we can make a couple of good choices and it’ll improve everything.
Daniels truly had an incredible year. He wasn’t just a good rookie quarterback—he was one of the best quarterbacks in the entire league. (Totally unrelated, Daniels was the quarterback of my fantasy football team for most of the year and consistently helped me sometimes beat my sisters and in-laws. Thanks Jayden).
And now the Commanders have played their way to—almost—a Super Bowl. If they did so well in their first year with an all-around change, what will the future bring? There’s something special happening in Washington (and it’s not the new presidential administration).
The Lions are for REAL for Real
Ever since Dan Campbell said that his team would bite kneecaps, the Detroit Lions have been on an upward trajectory that’s gotten more and more gritty with each passing year. Could this year have led to the Super Bowl? Maybe. Probably. We all hoped.
The Lions won 15 games and crushed it all season as they set themselves up to be Super Bowl favorites and America’s darlings. The Lions have a cool story that anyone who has 2% of a heart can get behind—they’ve never even been to a Super Bowl, and when a team like that is riding on a magical season, you root for them.
The Lions have spirit, they have grit, and they get tricky with the best plays (also they have cool uniforms). Despite being hit with a brutal string of injuries, particularly among their defense, the Lions found a way to fight and bite their way to the NFC’s #1 seed—and the best teams are able to claw their way to wins despite their setbacks.
During the divisional round of the playoffs, the Lions lost to a worthy opponent—Jayden Daniels. It says a lot that on January 19th, hearts broke not just in Michigan, but all across America. This was a special year for the Lions. The team proved it every single Sunday.
As soon as the Lions’ run was over, the team lost their offensive and defensive coordinators to head-coaching positions ASAP, because brilliant minds spur brilliant teams. But there’s still hope. The Lions have basically the same roster for next year; many core players will return, especially those coming off injury.
Can this team make another magical run? Absolutely. Will America be rooting for them? Absolutely. Good luck next year, Detroit.
Aaron Rodgers Didn’t Thrive in the Darkness
Aaron… Aaron. The NFL’s biggest diva. You can’t count on him to throw touchdowns, but you can count on him to throw shade.
The Jets were terrible this year, to no one’s big surprise, although we do have to cut quarterback Aaron Rodgers some slack for making a great comeback after tearing his ACL at 40 years old. He played just four snaps last season, and he was able to start every single game this season.
But Rodgers’ mediocre play wasn’t enough. The team ended with a 5-12 record and fired their head coach, Robert Saleh, just a few games into the season, a surprising move considering that Saleh had a defensive background and it wasn’t the team’s defense that needed improvement.
Maybe it’s not so surprising, though. Rodgers had some pretty public beef with Saleh; right before Saleh was fired, he said the team’s most recent loss was partly because there were issues with the pre-snap cadence. “That’s one way to put it,” Rodgers said when he was asked about the head coach’s comments. “The other way is to hold [the offensive line] accountable.”
It’s rare that a head coach and quarterback are publicly disagreeing. In typical over-dramatic New York fashion, the disconnect became a huge storyline. Just days later, Saleh was out. That was only the start to the Jets’ problems.
In week 8, when the Jets’ record was 2-8, Rodgers said the team was “making peace with the darkness,” a throwback to his own infamous darkness retreat in 2023 when the quarterback was contemplating retirement. “I’ve been in the darkness,” he said. “You’ve got to go in there, make peace with it.” Apparently, Rodgers couldn’t help his team out of their dark moments, and I don’t think the ACL tear was to blame.
Running Backs are What? Not Important?
A major storyline from the offseason was that the running back position was being majorly devalued as the NFL currently favors pass-heavy offenses. Running backs were having a tough time securing contract extensions, pay raises, or general respect.
While the position may not be as important as it once was, it remains one of the most demanding, as running backs take punishing hits and more wear-and-tear than other players. The impact on their bodies leads to shortened careers and early retirements—which means less money for their families. That’s why it’s so important that RBs are justly paid while they’re able to be on the field.
Need a reminder of what running backs can do? This:
In answer to the devaluing of the position, running backs made headlines this year—particularly, Saquon Barkley, the Eagles’ newly-acquired RB who helped elevate the team to reaching something called the Super Bowl. He wasn’t just good this year; he was unbelievable.
As the season went on, Barkley broke ankles, records, and the Giants’ spirit on his way to winning the Offensive Player of the Year award. He reached over 2,000 rushing yards, came just short of some famous guy named Terrell Davis, and he now owns the record of seven rushing touchdowns of 60 or more yards. 60 or more yards.
Barkley wasn’t the only running back who proved this year that the position is still essential. Other running backs that joined new teams and immediately elevated success included Derrick Henry, who helped bring the Baltimore Ravens to the divisional round of the playoffs, and Josh Jacobs, who made a statement with the Green Bay Packers after being traded from the Raiders.
So much for running backs not being important. Pay them.
The Broncos Made the Playoffs!
No, I’m not saying this just because I’m a huge Broncos fan and like to pretend that the Broncos haven’t just stared, lost, into the Rocky Mountain sunset ever since Peyton Manning left. Super Bowl 50 was only, like, two years ago, right? Right??
But here’s another surprising theme to this year’s season: the Broncos are kind of good again. Maybe? Hopefully. That’s thanks to an incredible defense (what’s new) and another pairing that’s consistent throughout the NFL: a new-ish head coach in Sean Payton, who recently broke up with Russell Wilson, and a rookie quarterback, who happens to be Bo Nix.
The Broncos ACTUALLY made it to the playoffs this year, after a nearly ten-year drought, and that’s basically a championship victory to Broncos fans. The team lost immediately to the Bills, but we’re not gonna talk about that.
Is this a new era in Denver? Or will we all pretend the whole Nix thing never happened, the way we pretend Wilson was a fever dream? Can’t tell yet. But, in other promising news, Sean Payton was nominated for 2024’s coach of the year award. Are we witnessing another brilliant sunset we can ride our horses into? All signs are (hopefully) saying YES.
Honorable mentions
The Raiders Mess
Mark Davis has not changed his haircut. The Raiders couldn’t make a decision about their quarterback. They were not only the worst team in the AFC west, they were one of the worst teams in the entire NFL.
That’s it. That’s all you need to know. The Raiders are terrible, and so is their owner. Will that change soon? Unless they pull a Washington, nope.
The 49ers Mess
I said I wouldn’t talk about the 49ers, but I have to. They had a ton of injuries that decimated their roster this season. They started without star running back Christian McCaffrey for half of the season, then slowly lost almost all of their key players due to injury. For the first time since 2020, last year’s Super Bowl contenders were completely out of competition. It’s okay, the Rams can be our stand-in California heroes.
The 49ers’ woes are exactly like the brother-in-law of my brother-in-law (true story) on my fantasy team who nailed Christian McCaffrey with the first pick of the fantasy draft back in September… then did absolutely nothing to improve his roster as injuries kept key 49ers out of the picture for most of the season. That BIL-squared? Landed absolute last in our fantasy league. The 49ers? Dead last in the NFC West. Coincidence?
No One Cares About the Vikings…
I mean, I don’t care about the Vikings because I grew up as a grandfathered-in Packers fan, and Minnesota is a winter wasteland. But this year, the Vikings were the true forgotten team in the NFL. Completely overshadowed by the Lion’s success and at times overshadowed by the Jordan Love story in Green Bay, the Vikings were another team that were somehow really good, winning lots of games, and doing it all on the shoulders of a quarterback chasing a redemption story.
While there was talk of the Vikings making it all the way to the Super Bowl, I don’t think anyone really believed it, except for hard-core fans. I mean, the Vikings play in the same division as the Lions, and Dan Campbell’s over here biting kneecaps and winning America’s heart. How much can you rise above that as you rely on Sam Darnold? As it turns out, not much.
The NFL Continues to Explore Streaming Options
At some point this season, you were probably wondering how to find a live game. Netflix? Amazon Prime? Peacock? Sunday Ticket? NFL+?
After the league’s foray into having a streaming-only playoff game last season, and all the Thursday Night games only available through Amazon Prime, and Christmas games only on Netflix (theme? “only”) the streaming experiment is working out. Amazon Prime even claimed its stake in the playoffs by hosting a game that was only available through Prime (I guess Peacock got outbid this year).
The truth is, streaming services are making bank on hosting exclusive live content, and the NFL will continue to seek ways to expand its reach while raking in the dough. What else is new? So, you can count on continuing to search for the remote—and those account sign-ins you wrote on a sticky note and misplaced somewhere—for the future.
What’s Next?
This was the 2024 season. The drama! The villainy! The results of root-cause analysis. So much hope… What’s next? Super Bowl LIX, of course. Then the draft (which the Packers’ stadium will be hosting, god help Green Bay). Whatever’s remembered and lost, whatever lessons have been learned, this season has been one for history.
Next year, will the Chiefs be able to embark on chasing a four-peat? Can Jayden Daniels be even better? If the NFL doesn’t hide its content behind paywalls/streaming services, we’ll see. Here’s to another NFL season done and dusted.
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