A Viral Graphic Proposing NFL Divisions Realignment Shows How Illogical The NFL’s Divisions Currently Are

NFL divisions are no stranger to realigning, doing so as recently as 2002 in part to accommodate the Houston Texans expansion franchise. There’s a graphic making the rounds on social media. It makes the NFL divisions more logical by region and boasts cooler names than the compass-style namesakes we have now.

The proposal also could give birth to new rivalries, and potentially shake up the balance of power between the AFC and NFC. It’d actually create a conference realignment, which seems to be suiting the college game just fine. Why not do it in the pros?

Check it out. To me, it’s a beautiful work of art.

Retired four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Chris Harris Jr. retweeted an aggregator account to endorse the idea.

Beyond making far more geographical/practical sense, there literally isn’t a single one of these divisions that isn’t better than what we have right now. I’m going to just power rank them real quick and give a brief blurb on why they rock. We’re obviously skewing the analysis toward what the NFL looks like in 2024 and the near future. Not so much worried about the far-reaching implications.

1. Pacific — Not much has changed here. This is the NFC West, except Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers join the fold. If new Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald is indeed the defensive version of Sean McVay, the coaching matchups would be unbelievable. Harbaugh. MacDonald. McVay. And Kyle Shanahan. All three Cali teams under one umbrella. Harbaugh getting to face off against the 49ers twice a year. HYPE.

2. Great Lakes East — The AFC East is a perpetual snoozefest. Josh Allen and the Bills own it. Tom Brady and the Patriots did for two straight decades prior. Aaron Rodgers will soon be retired, sending the Jets spiraling toward a sharp decline. Miami has no geographical business being in the AFC East. imagine the Great Lakes divisional clashes between the Lions and Bills alone. Never mind how good the Browns and Steelers could be if they get the quarterback right.

3. Mid-Atlantic — Since it’s so damn ugly in the AFC North, I’d love to see that quartet split up. You’d get a little more weather variety by getting Carolina into the mix. Plus, now that the Commanders have purged themselves of Dan Snyder and drafted QB Jayden Daniels No. 2 overall, they’re bound to see a big improvement. Dual-threat playmakers like Daniels and Lamar Jackson in the same division? With Joe Burrow, too? Directly into my veins, please.

4. Great Lakes West — Ejecting the Lions from the NFC North in favor of the Colts would mean every single team in the Great Lakes West would have a young franchise QB of the future. JJ McCarthy for Minnesota. Jordan Love for Green Bay. Anthony Richardson for Indy. Caleb Freaking Williams in Chicago. None of the defenses are terrific, at least on paper. If Williams lives up to the hype, can you imagine him going toe-to-toe with AR, Love, and JJ with Shane Steichen, Matt LaFleur, and Kevin O’Connell dialing up the plays on the other side? Holy fireworks, Batman.

5. Atlantic — Yeah, get all the Florida teams together! Or does that make too much sense? It’d be such a neat case study, too, to have three warm-weather teams and the Falcons (home is a dome) duking it out for the division every year down the stretch in less inclement weather while most everyone else freezes their faces off. Seeing a higher quality of football not so determined by the elements would be refreshing to a degree. It’s such an odd hodgepodge of teams, too. I feel like the Dolphins would beat up on the Bucs, Jags, and Falcons for years to come, but maybe that’s the pro-Mike McDaniel/Tua bias in me.

6. South — The principle of breaking up the AFC South is so appealing. That clusterf**k of four needs a shot in the arm, and by that, I mean they all need to be scattered about. Thanks to CJ Stroud’s tremendous rookie season, the Texans’ arrow is pointing way up. They could be the best team in Texas over the Cowboys before long. I’d love a division rivalry between them. New Orleans’ refusal to acknowledge the salary cap makes them interesting every year, and the new-look Titans would benefit immensely in national relevance from two tilts with America’s Team.

7. Northeast — Highest potential for comedy. I actually feel bad ranking it so low. For the near future, it’d be the best, because it’d strengthen the chances that Rodgers’ Jets earn a playoff berth. The Patriots and Giants are expected to be bad for at least another year or two, but their shared Super Bowl history and mutual employment of Bill Belichick could provide quite the spark. Then you have the Eagles. It’s just better for football when obnoxious Philly fans are in the mix. Plus, they have a great team at the minute.

8. Big Sky — It’d be a nice parallel between Andy Reid and Bill Belichick for Big Red to have a cakewalk division schedule as he chases Bill for GOAT coach honors. However, Arizona is on the come up, and they’re sneaky-exciting. The Cardinals would have a hell of a lot better odds to beat the Raiders and Broncos regularly as opposed to the Rams, 49ers, and Seahawks. This keeps the Kansas City dynasty narrative alive and well. Bad for non-Chiefs fans. Good for NFL business. Haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate…