We are a little over a week removed from the Seattle Seahawks defeating the New England Patriots to win Super Bowl LX, and people have already begun to move on to the next big thing in sports, whether it’s the Olympics, the NBA, college basketball, or something else. But here at LiveScore, the National Football League has no off-season, so we have identified six early favorites to win Super Bowl LXI on February 14th, 2027 at SoFi Stadium.

1. Seattle Seahawks

When you take into consideration how young this team is, the contract situations for key players, and the salary cap availability they have to work with this off-season, the Seahawks are poised to repeat as Super Bowl Champions. They're going to have to dedicate a lot of money to re-signing impending free agents like Kenneth Walker III, Rashid Shaeed, Coby Bryant, Josh Jobe, Josh Jones, and Riq Woolen. The good news is, Seattle has $63.4 million to play around with this off-season, which is the sixth-most available cap space in the NFL. Even if they don't re-sign all of those guys, they can still find their replacements in free agency and the draft. Five of their six Pro Bowlers from last season are under contract next year. On top of that, Sam Darnold might be even better during the 2026-27 campaign since he is now a Super Bowl Champion and can play more freely without a monkey on his back. With contract decisions coming up for Darnold and Jaxon Smith-Njigba during the 2027 off-season, Seattle can go all-in next year and likely make another Super Bowl run.

2. Denver Broncos

As I said in my way-too-early power rankings for the 2026-27 season, the Broncos would've represented the AFC in the Super Bowl if quarterback Bo Nix didn't suffer an unexpected ankle injury. After all, they were only four points away from beating the New England Patriots, even though they were starting a backup quarterback in a blizzard. They’re not expected to lose any important players in free agency besides starting defensive end John Franklin-Meyers and starting inside linebacker Alex Singleton. In a draft that is stacked with defensive end and linebacker talent, the Broncos can afford to lose one of those two guys. Meanwhile, Bo Nix is expected to take another step forward in his progression, which will make Denver an even more formidable opponent in what could be a down year for the AFC, considering Patrick Mahomes’ availabilty for the season is in question, the Patriots will probably regress while facing a tougher schedule, and the Bills could take a step back after making a head coaching change. The Broncos' consistency from last season to next year with their head coach, quarterback, and starting defense makes them a serious threat to win the Super Bowl. They'll also have an easier path to the Super Bowl than most NFC teams since that conference is stacked with a ton of playoff contenders. If they follow the same path they took this year, they only need to win three games to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy.

3. Baltimore Ravens

This was, understandably, a down year for the Ravens. Quarterback Lamar Jackson only played in 13 games, and when he was on the field, he was hobbled by injuries. It also didn't help that the relationship between Jackson and former head coach John Harbaugh had soured during the regular season. On top of all of that, the defense took a step back, going from 21.2 points per game allowed during the 2024-25 campaign to 23.4 ppg last year. Despite all of these issues, this team was a missed field goal away from making the playoffs. By parting ways with John Harbaugh and hiring former Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, the defense will return to its former glory. That unit probably won't allow the fewest points per game as it did in 2023, but they will certainly allow fewer than 21 points per game. At the same time, Lamar Jackson is still one of the five best quarterbacks in the NFL and a perennial MVP candidate when healthy. After a full off-season of rest, he will play at the level we have come to expect from him. Lastly, the competition in the AFC North is not as good as it has been recently. The Cincinnati Bengals are still a defensive disaster, the Pittsburgh Steelers named Mike McCarthy as their head coach in a lateral move that doesn't feel like a home-run hire, and the Cleveland Browns are still the Cleveland Browns. This is once again the Ravens' division to win, which is the first step on the road to a Super Bowl. If they can play the way they did two years ago, then Baltimore will only need to win three games to be crowned Super Bowl LXI Champions.

4. Los Angeles Rams

In a season where the Seattle Seahawks were clearly the best team in the NFL, the Rams were the only franchise to even threaten the Seahawks' dominance. Of the 338 points that Seattle allowed over the entirety of the 2025-26 season, Los Angeles was responsible for 83 of them. That means the Rams accounted for 24.5% of all the points that the Seahawks gave up this season! We also can't forget how closely LA played Seattle. Games between the Seahawks and Rams were decided by 2.3 points on average. All other games that Seattle played were decided by an average of 15 points. LA was the only team equipped to play the Seahawks closely this season, and they almost made it to the Super Bowl because of the way they’re built, but fell short in a road NFC Championship game. Had they earned the number-one seed in the NFC, things might have been different, but there is always next year. Matthew Stafford is coming back, so they are set at the quarterback spot with the reigning MVP. They're not expected to lose many contributors in free agency and have $40.9 in available cap space to beef up the roster. Oh, and we forgot to mention that they have two first-round draft picks. As long as they can find a proper replacement for the now-retired Rob Havenstein, they'll be one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl.

5. Philadelphia Eagles

We all know that the 2025-26 campaign was a disappointing one for this franchise, but I think we all forgot that this team looked like it was going to repeat as champs before the season started. After all, I had Philly making it back to the Super Bowl in my season preview. They're not really going to lose any starters on the offensive side of the ball. They can afford to re-sign tight end Dallas Goedert to a team-friendly deal. Plus, the addition of Sean Mannion as the team's new offensive coordinator should light a fire under a unit that clearly underperformed under former OC Kevin Patullo, who coached like he was scared to lose his job. The defense will need to be re-tooled. Bringing back mid-season acquisition Jaelen Phillips will be an important move. Otherwise, they'll have to add some more pass rushers through free agency and the draft. If they move on from A.J. Brown and renegotiate Lane Johnson's contract, they could save tens of millions of dollars in cap space, which could be all this team needs to add some firepower on both sides of the ball. More importantly, they’re going to be the favorites to win the NFC East. As we previously mentioned, winning your division will always give you a leg up in the hunt for the Vince Lombardi Trophy. The Eagles will look more like their 2024 selves and not the group we saw last season.

6. New England Patriots

I am a huge believer in the fact that a fair amount of the 2025-26 Patriots' success came from the all-time easy schedule that they played. But I am not so obtuse that I can't admit they’re a good team and have all the things necessary to win a Super Bowl. First, you need a good head coach, which the Patriots have in Mike Vrabel. Next, you need a good quarterback, which Drake Maye proved to be during the 2025-26 regular-season. Granted, we all expected more from him in the playoffs, but he faced some exceptional defenses back-to-back-to-back-to-back. Lastly, you need a strong defense, which the Pats clearly have after allowing the fourth-fewest points per game last season. The foundation is there for New England to return to the Big Game and maybe even hoist the Lombardi Trophy. There is some work to do, though. They need to beef up their offensive line and add one or two more offensive playmakers. Thankfully for New Englanders, the Patriots have $35.2 million to play around with in the off-season. That can be used to bring in another marquee wide receiver like Tyreek Hill or A.J. Brown. Adding a guy like that will have the Pats right back in the mix for a Super Bowl.