Every year, NRL teams enter the competition with varying levels of expectations.
Some are aiming for the premiership, some are trying to sneak back into finals footy, others are trying to stop a slide, and some just want to steer clear of the bottom after a handful of disastrous campaigns.
The 2025 campaign saw new premiers crowned, finally dethroning the Penrith Panthers, while some clubs were ahead of expectations, led by the Canterbury Bulldogs and Canberra Raiders, and others fell well short of where they should have been, led by the North Queensland Cowboys and South Sydney Rabbitohs.
With off-season moves done, Zero Tackle have unpacked the realistic expectations for every NRL team heading into 2026, picking the pass mark for each and every team.
Multiple teams share the same pass marks throughout, but that ultimately means some teams are going to be left unhappy.
Brisbane Broncos
Grand final
The Broncos were something of a surprise packet making the grand final and winning the premiership in their first season under Michael Maguire.
Even more so when you consider they really weren't in the picture mid-season.
But they did, and now enter the competition with an enormous weight of expectation hanging over their head.
With a young squad led by experienced fixtures, and plenty of players who will be better for the finals campaign, anything less than another trip to the decider is not going to be good enough.
The once impossible back-to-back isn't that either anymore. Whether that's beyond Brisbane remains to be seen, but they should be right in the mix once again, although the fitness of Adam Reynolds and form of Reece Walsh will have an enormous say over their campaign.
I think “Push for the Top Four” is ambitious for the Dolphins.
If I were one of their management or their fans, I would think that just making the top eight and playing finals would be a success, this season.