Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Wild NFL stat shows emergence of surprising NFC teams vs. AFC struggles

By Jeff Smith | Last updated 9/19/23

Through two weeks of the 2023 NFL season, the results (at least on paper) have largely pointed to a successful start for the NFC while there have been a few more up-and-down results for the AFC thus far.

While that stands out from the eye test and the success of a few surprising undefeated teams, one interesting stat jumped out about how the unbeaten teams on both sides compare.

As seen in the breakdown below , the three undefeated teams in the NFC East — the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders, along with the NFC South — Atlanta Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints, are two conferences that each has more unbeaten teams than the entire AFC does.

Mind-blowing stat: The NFC East (PHI, DAL, WSH) and NFC South (ATL, TB, NO) each have more undefeated teams than the entire AFC (Ravens, Dolphins). pic.twitter.com/kqNdqyRMHZ
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) September 19, 2023

It’s a pretty impressive comparison, and one that specifically highlights two teams widely viewed as likely playoff squads in the Cowboys and Eagles, but also shows the intriguing emergence of a division that many viewed as one of the worst in the NFL.

The NFC South and specifically the Falcons and Buccaneers have been extremely impressive. Led by quarterbacks Desmond Ridder and Baker Mayfield, neither team was a popular pick to make much noise this year, but both have looked good, along with the Saints and new quarterback Derek Carr after their Week 2 "Monday Night Football" victory over the 0-2 Carolina Panthers.

To go even one step further, it’s noteworthy that those six teams across two divisions in the NFC also are just one combined win shy (12) of the entire AFC (13).

Whether this trend continues in the coming weeks (or anything close to it) is a bit of a long shot, especially when considering the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Chargers are 0-2 and the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs (among others) are 1-1 currently.

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