Is The NFL Better Without A Top Team?

Over the past few years, the same teams have dominated everyone's top 4 playoff expectations. These teams are usually the New England Patriots, the Pittsburg Steelers, the Seattle Seahawks or the Green Bay Packers. These are a few of the most established teams in football that have remained consistently relevant off of either good coaching, good quarterback play, good defense, or a mixture of the three. Due to these teams, the narrative of the NFL has always been to answer the question of, who can beat these teams and create diversity in the playoffs and Super Bowl?

It has been a while since the NFL has been this wide open in regards to competition. We are about halfway through the season and most predictions for the top teams this year have fallen flat on their face before they could even start walking. Many predicted that New England Patriots would be the team to beat and that with their new acquisitions during the offseason would propel them to an undefeated super bowl run. However, with barely squeaking by the New York Jets and struggling with average teams they are sitting at 5-2, which is misleading to anyone who hasn't watched the team and how bad their defense has been playing. The Green Bay Packers have taken a sharp fall from grace as well now that their elite quarterback Aaron Rodgers is out for the year, almost guaranteeing them to miss the playoffs this year. Seattle has been on the decline over the past few years due to their inability to focus on building an offensive line for Russel Wilson, their QB, to be protected during games. However, they have been able to stay afloat and a constant contender to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl due to their elite, ball-hawking defense year in and year out. But with the L.A Rams on the rise, it is not a guarantee that Seattle will make the playoffs. The Steelers, with an impressive win over the Kansas City Chiefs, are the only one of the top teams that still looks like they are the team to beat coming out of the AFC. They too are dealing with their own adversities within their own locker room. Players are taking shots at one another in public via social media. So we’ll see how things pan out and if Coach Tomlin can hold his team together throughout the rest of the season.

On the other hand, teams that were projected to regress or perform at a very average level this year have taken strides and shown promise not many people foresaw. Specifically the Rams, Bills, Saints, and Vikings. All of which only have 2 losses on the season.

So my question is this. Is the NFL better when there are dominant teams performing elite football against one another? Or is it better when there is more open competition for new teams to get their shot at winning a championship?