Here we are, midway through the NFL season, and a plethora of interesting storylines are beginning to take place. The San Francisco 49ers are shocking everyone with their current undefeated season, the New England Patriots have been spectacular besides a loss to the red-hot Baltimore Ravens, the NFC is as strong as ever, and Patrick Mahomes has returned for the Kansas City Chiefs. It is nearly impossible to predict who will be in the playoffs at this point, never mind who will be standing at the very end in the Super Bowl. With that said, we certainly can discuss and speculate. 
While many believe Russell Wilson is the mid-season MVP, I think Lamar Jackson made a great case for himself with his win over the Patriots. He is putting up Michael Vick-like numbers, and is showing the world exactly how he can revolutionize the game with his speed. All year long he had been talked about as a special talent, but the vast majority of football fans expected the Patriots to slow him down. Jackson and the Ravens did just the opposite of that, playing their best game of the season by far. They won 37–20, and Jackson ran all over the field, while also making crisp passes against New England’s top defense. 
Patrick Mahomes has returned for the Kansas City Chiefs, and while he looked as good as new in his first game back, they fell to the Titans. At this point in the year, it really is safe to say that any team can win on any given week. The Patriots crushed the Browns, who had previously won by double digits against the Ravens, and then the Ravens shut down the Patriots. It is as clear as ever that the transitive property absolutely does not work in sports. In the AFC, I would expect the Patriots to finish as the top overall seed, followed by the Ravens, Chiefs, and Texans. 
As far as the NFC goes, there are some really strong teams. The 49ers sit at a perfect 8–0 heading into their marquee matchup against the Seattle Seahawks. One could argue that these are the two best teams in the entire NFL, and us fans will have the luxury of seeing them play each other at least twice this season. While they are the top two teams in the NFC West, the reigning NFC Champions, the Los Angeles Rams, are sitting in third place and are trending down. They lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in their most recent game and are currently 5–4. Unless they figure things out quickly, the Rams could be looking at their first playoff absence under Sean McVay.
The NFC South really is not much of a race, as the New Orleans Saints seem to be running away with the division. At the same time, they are coming off of a terrible 26–9 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Drew Brees is back, so it is safe to assume they will enter the postseason as a dangerous team. The NFC East is a two-team battle between the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles, who are both currently 5–4. Last but not least, the NFC North is going to come down to the wire. The Green Bay Packers are 8–2 and have been a tough team all year, but the 7–3 Minnesota Vikings are really coming along as of late. When it is all said and done, I would expect the Packers to prevail, but do not count the Vikings out. If Kirk Cousins plays to his potential, the Vikings offense can really go above and beyond.