There are no guarantees in the NFL. Prime example: The AFC West.
Pegged almost universally as the best division in the NFL, the AFC West is failing to live up to the preseason hype while posting a collective 5-7 record through the season's first three weeks. By contrast, the NFC East (8-4) is off to a markedly better start.
This isn't to suggest that the NFC East is actually better than the AFC West. It's not. The sample size is small, and opponents matter. But the sluggish start by the much-hyped division is impossible to ignore. From the top down, each team has notable shortcomings.