A 27-round season means there is no official halfway point of the 2026 NRL season, but 14 rounds completed seems as good a time as any to call it officially the downhill run.
As the State of Origin period rolls on, and the ladder becomes a distorted mess (just look at the teams who are yet to have a bye), the run to the finals still has plenty of wiggle room, but some times have shone against pre-season expectations, and others have flopped.
When we checked in after seven weeks in our quarter season report, two coaches had already been sacked.
That carnage has come to an end, and with every team now having at least one win, the idea of a team going winsless is over.
Plenty has changed through the middle of the ladder over the last seven weeks, but it's still the Penrith Panthers proving they are the NRL's dominant force.
Here is every team's grade, best players and ladder predictions as we hit half of the 2026 NRL season played.
Penrith Panthers
Grade: A+
Current record: 12 wins, 1 loss, 1 bye, + 273 F/A, 26 points
Run home: Bye, Titans (a), Cowboys (a), Rabbitohs (h), Bye, Broncos (h), Eels (a), Raiders (h - Mudgee), Warriors (a), Roosters (h), Storm (a), Bulldogs (h), Tigers (h)
Maybe we shouldn't be surprised in the slightest, but the Panthers have frankly been incredible so far in 2026.
This is a club who were bottom of the table midway through 2025, turned it around to make their sixth straight preliminary final, and then haven't missed a beat over the off-season.
Few departures made it easier coming into the new campaign, but the fact they have 12 wins from 13 games in this modern, sped up rugby league, is really quite the feat.
They are averaging 33.6 points per game while only letting in less than 13.
Basically, if they stay fit, it's almost impossible to back anyone will topple them in September. That's how good they are.
Best player: Nathan Cleary
Zero Tackle MVP leader: Nathan Cleary - 1st, 146 votes
Prediction: 1st
