Earlier this week ESPN’s gridiron geek John Clayton released his predictions on AFC wins for each team.  Now his NFC totals have been released and a few surprises lie in his numbers.
NFC East
Clayton’s NFC East numbers didn’t stray too far from bookmaker lines with the maximum differential being just a half-of-a-win:
| NFC East | Clayton Wins | Total Wins Line | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 9 | 8.5 | +.5 |
| New York Giants | 9 | 9.5 | -.5 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| Washington Redskins | 6 | 6.5 | -.5 |
NFC West
To nobody’s surprise, Clayton had the 49ers to win the West again.  However, bookmakers have the Rams and the Seahawks  winning 6 and 7 games respectively but Clayton strongly disagrees.  Clayton has the ‘Hawks winning 5 games more than the Rams in 2012-13:
| NFC West | Clayton Wins | Total Wins Line | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona Cardinals | 7 | 7 | 0 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| St. Louis Rams | 4 | 6 | -2 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 9 | 7 | +2 |
NFC North
Clearly the Packers are the strongest team in the division heading into the year — and Clayton agrees. Â But Clayton disagrees with who will finish in 2nd place as he has the Bears winning 10 games. Â Also, Clayton is very down on the Vikings, pegging them with just 3 wins for the season – yikes, that’s even worse than the Browns:
| NFC North | Clayton Wins | Total Wins Line | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bears | 10 | 8.5 | +1.5 |
| Detroit Lions | 9 | 9.5 | -.5 |
| Green Bay Packers | 12 | 12 | 0 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 3 | 6 | -3 |
NFC South
While bookmakers have the Saints atop the division, Clayton has the Falcons finally surpassing them with 11 wins (a +2 win differential).
| NFC South | Clayton Wins | Total Wins Line | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Falcons | 11 | 9 | +2 |
| Carolina Panthers | 8 | 7.5 | +.5 |
| New Orleans Saints | 9 | 10 | -1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 6 | 6 | 0 |
Odds courtesy of 5Dimes.
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