# Rich Eisen: Eisen picks the Bengals to win the AFC North, has the Browns finishing fourth, sees the Steelers as a 10-win playoff team, and expects the Patriots to win somewhere in the 11-13 range. **Claimed:** Sep 3, 2026 **Pundit:** Rich Eisen — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/pundits/rich-eisen **Outlet:** The Rich Eisen Show (podcast) — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/outlets/the-rich-eisen-show-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air, transcribed by us **Original:** https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.megaphone.fm/ESP9878258172.mp3 5 checkable claims — 2 season win totals, 1 division winner, 1 playoff pick and 1 power ranking — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 3 players and teams, each linked to their own record. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the rest of the room. > So I'm going to Bengals to win the division. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **New England Patriots to finish with ? wins** - Kind: Season Win Totals · About: New England Patriots - Verdict: not settled yet - **Cincinnati Bengals to win the division** - Kind: Division Winners · About: Cincinnati Bengals - Verdict: not settled yet - **Pittsburgh Steelers to finish with 10 wins** - Kind: Season Win Totals · About: Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **The Browns, as much as I'm, like, talking about them as a sleeper team, I just I just can't choose them anything but fourth... So I'm going to Bengals to win the division.** - Kind: Power Rankings - Verdict: not settled yet - **Pittsburgh Steelers to make the playoffs** - Kind: Playoff Picks · About: Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - New England Patriots — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/patriots - Cincinnati Bengals — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/bengals - Pittsburgh Steelers — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/steelers ## What others said about the same people - Jason McIntyre on Baker Mayfield: Filling in for Colin Cowherd, McIntyre argued the 49ers' window is closed amid a brutal injury list and record travel, floated a Bijan Robinson trade to the Bears, predicted the Lions can win the NFC North, doubted Atlanta is even a playoff team, said Baker Mayfield's Tampa run ends after this season, and delivered a top-10 quarterback ranking. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/3fa10b83-c7a3-489f-a011-76f2eb991e81 (scored 0) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Trey Hendrickson: Fitzmorris made picks 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28 and 31 in the 2026 mock, ranked the top three receiver prospects Tate-Lemon-Tyson, said Caleb Downs won't fall to Day 2, and predicted Trey Hendrickson won't be back in Cincinnati. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/c3d0242f-bda2-45fd-82b3-7782bd29c69f (scored 0) - Evan Silva on Pittsburgh Steelers: In his 2020 fantasy defense/special teams rankings, Silva puts the Steelers first, the 49ers second and the Ravens third, citing pass rush, favorable early schedules and game scripts. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/180b1036-60e5-494b-9b4d-90b5dc3d6528 (scored 100) - Jordan Dajani on Pittsburgh Steelers: Dajani expects the Steelers to comfortably beat the Falcons in Week 1, arguing Atlanta's quarterback situation under Tua Tagovailoa is a mess; he also picks the Vikings to beat the Packers in a low-scoring game. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/aa3d04bb-6a56-4202-9f05-36e5bda5d05f (scored 100) - Chad Millman on Pittsburgh Steelers: Millman backed several week one sides outright: Miami to beat the Raiders straight up, the Jets over the Titans, an underdog money line parlay of Houston and the Giants, and a favorites money line parlay of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Detroit. He also stands by his preseason take that Drake Maye is a top-five NFL quarterback. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/de991e27-ec15-4c6e-ad88-b55bdaea8665 (scored 100) - Simon Hunter on Pittsburgh Steelers: Hunter picked Houston and the Giants as underdog money line plays, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Detroit as favorites, and used Pittsburgh plus the Chargers as his survivor picks for week one. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/5ac46502-b65b-469b-befc-16fbc672b011 (scored 100) ## More season win totals The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - JP Acosta on New York Giants: Acosta expects John Harbaugh's Giants to jump to roughly seven wins in year one, and forecast several offseason moves: Aaron Rodgers returning to Pittsburgh, Daniel Jones returning to the Colts, Kirk Cousins being released by Atlanta, and Brandon Aiyuk leaving San Francisco. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/17ab1ec5-a2f1-41c6-a6df-a0e6d949351b (scored 40) - Chris Brockman on New Orleans Saints: Brockman floated the 49ers as the team to beat in the NFC after their Sunday night win, predicted James Cook would lead the league in rushing, and said Tyler Shough will win Rookie of the Year with the Saints finishing above .500 next season. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/e393bfed-202c-4c67-9054-793f6bdad096 (scored 40) - Chris Brockman on Jacksonville Jaguars: Brockman argued the Seahawks are the NFC's best team and will land the No. 1 seed, that Jacksonville will reach 11 wins and steal the AFC South from Indianapolis, that JJ McCarthy will lead the Vikings to the playoffs, and that Matthew Stafford will be an MVP finalist. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/c16dfbcb-8010-440d-9408-61df080434c8 (scored 60) - Andrew Santino on Chicago Bears: Santino, as recounted on the show, predicted in May that the Bears would finish 11-6. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/65024252-a89e-4e70-8764-459113ce0a69 (scored 100) - Dylan O'Brien on New York Jets: Playing the win-loss game for the 2025 Jets, O'Brien went game by game through the schedule and landed on an 11-6 season, opening 0-2 before a long late-season winning streak. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/00f47095-c3ef-4500-a45d-fa58d97676b1 (scored 0) - TJ Jefferson on Dallas Cowboys: TJ Jefferson picked the Lions to win the NFC North, with the Packers second, Vikings third and Bears fourth, and also raised his Cowboys win total prediction to 12-5. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/6ab9b77d-c811-432c-8c59-a515a51ad0f3 (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. 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