The 2024 NFL season is finally upon us. Before long, we'll be knee-deep in new storylines as the race for the next Lombardi Trophy gets underway. And most of those storylines will center on which special players are driving the playoff race. Speaking of star talent, the NFC in particular is loaded with elite playmakers.
In anticipation of their return to the field, we decided to identify the best of the conference's talent at each and every position, from quarterback to punter, assembling our very own 2024 All-NFC Team:
| Position | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
QB | Jalen Hurts | |
RB | Christian McCaffrey | |
WR | Justin Jefferson | |
WR | CeeDee Lamb | |
WR | A.J. Brown | Eagles |
TE | George Kittle | 49ers |
LT | Trent Williams | 49ers |
LG | Tyler Smith | Cowboys |
C | Frank Ragnow | |
RG | Chris Lindstrom | |
RT | Penei Sewell | Lions |
DE/OLB | Nick Bosa | 49ers |
DT | Dexter Lawrence | |
DT | Javon Hargrave | 49ers |
DE/OLB | Micah Parsons | Cowboys |
LB | Fred Warner | 49ers |
LB | Demario Davis | |
CB | Jaire Alexander | |
CB | Charvarius Ward | 49ers |
CB | Jaylon Johnson | |
S | Antoine Winfield Jr. | |
S | Jessie Bates III | Falcons |
| K | Jake Elliott | Eagles |
| P | Bryan Anger | Cowboys |
| HC | Sean McVay | Rams |
| OC | Ben Johnson | Lions |
| DC | Vic Fangio | Eagles |
The toughest call of the entire lineup might have come up top, where you could make a strong case for four different "starting" quarterbacks: Hurts, Jordan Love, Dak Prescott and Brock Purdy. The latter may be the most universally downvoted due to his all-star setup with the San Francisco 49ers, but it's hard to ask much more of Purdy from an efficiency and off-schedule playmaking standpoint. Prescott is the steadiest of the foursome, though he's lacked a defining big-game run with the Dallas Cowboys. Love has the arm talent to be a perennial MVP candidate, but he's only got essentially a half-season of elite production under his belt with the Green Bay Packers. Hurts, meanwhile, boasts the best overall package of top-tier tools and proven big-stage experience, making him an appropriate call for the All-NFC roster.
Three of the four teams considered for quarterback, it should be noted, happen to be three of the best-represented teams overall. Here are all the clubs with multiple players in the lineup:
- 49ers (7)
- Cowboys (4)
- Eagles (4)
- Lions (3)
- Falcons (2)
With seven, the 49ers literally make up 25% of our All-NFC Team going into 2024, and had Purdy been inserted at quarterback over Hurts, the percentage would've been even higher. It's a strong testament to what Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch have built in the Bay Area, and good reason to bet on another deep run by the 49ers this year. Throw in the Cowboys and the Eagles, and you're talking about literally 55% of the All-NFC assembly coming from just three teams. On-paper talent, of course, doesn't always equate to on-field results, but it's not hard to see which franchises dominate the NFC landscape at this moment.