Depends what you mean by "NPCS".
I read it as "commoners, everday folks, mooks and normals," to which I would respond "Any RPG about heroic characters should definately have the PC's outstrip the normals."
Of course, that depends on a lot. If the RPG isn't about heroic characters, but about normal people in extraordinary circumstances, than the PC's shouldn't be better than the mooks. Worse, in some areas.
If "NPC's" indicates the entire range of possible non-player creatures, events, and characters, I'd say of course no, because that category will include the villains, monsters, challenges, and allies for those characters, though that whole category may be far above the "norms" of the world.
So it's a bit too vague for me to answer definately. In the most literal sense, I suppose not, but taking text at face value on the internet is hardly ever a good idea.
