The NFC’s final undefeated team will be the Eagles, Buccaneers, or 49ers — although one thing could see the ranks of unbeatens whittle away sooner than later

The Philadelphia Eagles

Why the Eagles? Well, they're the reigning champs, of course. This is all old-hat for the Birds. And don't look now, but Jalen Hurts just remembered that he's got A.J. Brown on the team in the second half against the Rams, too! In all seriousness, Philadelphia beats teams by first and foremost not beating themselves, playing methodical football for 60 minutes and by defeating you in the margins. It's the little things — like the short-yardage conversion rates. Or the ability to put two defensive tackles next to one another and block two field goals down the stretch.

Any team that wants to beat the Eagles is going to have to do so by out-performing their talent and then having their coach milk all the little margins that pop up across the course of a game, too. They'll get a good test in Week 4, because their next opponent is none other than the...

— Kyle Crabbs, A to Z Sports

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Why the Bucs? Because the Bucs are showing they can beat teams with a half-healthy roster and they are going to get healthier over the next few weeks. They've been hit hard by injuries, but Calijah Kancey's is the only one that's long term. Tristan Wirfs and Chris Godwin Jr. are expected to return by Week 5 at the latest, and Luke Goedeke should be back around Week 8 or 9.

The Bucs think Jalen McMillan can return around then, as well. Baker Mayfield is playing at a near-MVP level and the defense is one of the NFL's best through three weeks. That shouldn't change, either. The Bucs should only get better in the short-term and that's a scary thought considering how they've managed to hold it together, so far.

The best thing the Bucs have going in their bid to be the final unbeaten in the NFC? They play the Eagles at home in Week 4 and then the 49ers play in Los Angeles on Thursday night in Week 5. There could easily be one undefeated NFC team left in just 10 days.

— Evan Winter, A to Z Sports

The San Francisco 49ers

Why the 49ers? I mean why not. San Francisco has just been dealt one brutal hand after another and somehow manages to keep scratching out the wins. The latest injury to Nick Bosa is a total buzzkill though — he has a torn ACL and will miss the rest of the season. Even if they survive their Week 4 contest against Jacksonville, going to Los Angeles to play the Rams on a short week for Thursday Night Football has the makings of a potential defeat — especially with how undermanned the 49ers are with injuries.

That's the subplot that could derail things for the 49ers in their bid to keep this hot streak going. They're banged up and the schedule is unkind in Week 5.

— Kyle Crabbs, A to Z Sports

The Final Verdict

The Buccaneers play both the 49ers and the Eagles over the next three weeks. The head-to-head with Philadelphia is obvious a major game in and of itself but that's before you foil it against the current list of undefeated teams. I do, unfortunately, think that the injuries are going to add up against the 49ers and make their current standing in the conference difficult to sustain.

I believe they, at best, will reach 4-0. That means the winner of Sunday's game between the Bucs and Eagles in Tampa Bay should find themselves as the last unbeaten in the NFC. The bad news? Their AFC counterparts have much more favorable schedules to seize the claim of the NFL's final unbeaten.

window.addEventListener('message', function (event) {if (event.data.totalpoll && event.data.totalpoll.action === 'resizeHeight') {document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-391').height = event.data.totalpoll.value;}}, false);document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-391').contentWindow.postMessage({totalpoll: {action: 'requestHeight'}}, '*');