NFL Analyst Believes Tampa Bay Might Have a Challenger in the NFC

The Washington Football Team has a shot to make the Super Bowl next season. If you think you read that wrong, think again. NFL's Sam Acho believes WFT's got some serious skin in the game for 2021-2022.

Discussing potential NFC East teams that could dethrone Dallas' winning odds for the division title — join FanDuel to bet big on Big D — the retired linebacker said he believes that Washington's performance against the Super Bowl-winning Bucs in the 2020 Wild Card round foretold a bigger season to come:

"Think about what happened last year during the playoffs. Round one, the Washington Football Team played your Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I was watching that game, I had a vested interest in that game because I had been released from the Bucs, so I kind of wanted the Bucs to lose. I was on the edge of my seat because they almost did it. It was a one-score game.

“Yes, I think the Cowboys have a great chance, but the Washington Football Team has a great coach, a great culture. It’s not about talent. It’s about culture; it’s about team; it’s about competition. That’s what you’re going to see in Washington.”

Washington Football Team's bum rap in the NFC East took a different turn last season when the 7-9 squad usurped the division title from the Giants and Cowboys. WFT's season ended with a 31-23 playoff loss to the Bucs.

Acho believes that, with a well-rounded energy led by superstar edge rusher Chase Young and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick in the locker room, the Washington Football Team could find a path to the championship game in SoFi Stadium. A descending Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints teams and a sputtering Seattle Seahawks mean that the NFC playoff picture may have a different lineup of teams next year.

A strong factor working in WFT's favor is that head coach Ron Rivera stands head and shoulders above the rest of the coaching staffs in the NFC East. While Mike McCarthy's play calling may bear fruit by 2022, the Cowboys had a rollercoaster year in 2020, often because of his decisions-making. Giants head coach Joe Judge may win over fans by using a sergeant major's attitude in the locker room, but the 6-10 record to end the season — with the league's worst offense — proved they still need QB Daniel Jones to get the job done. Philadelphia's Nick Sirianni has yet to redeem himself after his infamous media introduction.

Not to mention that WFT wide receiver Terry McLaurin is a MONSTER.