Season in Preview

The season is nearly here! Rejoice, Rejoice! Before things get underway, I feel now is the time to breakdown the season… before it happens. This is the NFL; no one is looking for moral victories or brownie points. What matters is making the playoffs and ultimately the Super Bowl. Teams may rebuild, but without clear direction, perpetual losing seasons are inevitable (HELLO Cleveland!) That's why I'll break them down into those I see as SB Contenders, Playoff teams, Bubble teams, Dark Horses and teams that just don't have a chance..

SB contenders:

Saints: What needs to be said? Although I didn't think they were the best team last year, they came through when it counted. The opportune defense will need to continue for them to get back to the Superbowl, but they will be in the hunt.

Indy: I think the Colts avoid the SB loser curse this year. (Since 2000, only the Seahawks (2005) and last year's Patriots made it into the playoffs, both losing rd 1) Manning is too good and they win 11-12 games every year. The only thing that will derail a run at it is a Manning injury.

Vikings: With Favre back, I give them a shot. With Sidney Rice out of the lineup and only 4 WRs, they will need to find a way to make plays. If Rice doesn't return, I don't think they have a shot.

Packers: They were a different team after a 4-4 start last year. Rodgers is the real deal and the Defense seems to have adjusted to the 3-4 scheme. It hurts having Harris and Bigby on the PUP, but the "soft" part of their schedule is early, and the Offense looks like it will score enough to make up for mistakes.

Dallas: If I only watched the preseason I couldn't put them in this group. They've looked out of sync up to this point, but Romo and the offense will need to play like they did late last season to have a chance. They have a decent defense, but they won't win too many games if they don't score at least 20 ppg.

Chargers: This team has been one of the most talented over the past few years, but has always come up short. Playing in the weak AFC West will help, but someone needs to step up in V Jackson's absence to help out Rivers. If they get what everyone expects out of Ryan Matthews, that takes pressure off the passing game.

Ravens: Flacco is coming in to his own and with the addition of Boldin and Houshmanzadeh they have 3 solid WRs to throw to. Add in Ray Rice and this should be a potent offense. Not necessarily explosive, but they will control the ball and eat up the clock as they score. The defense is not what it was in the past, but they will be top 10 and good enough to make a run.

In the playoffs:

Jets: With all of the hoopla surrounding this team to start the year, let's be honest: the Jets were lucky to even make the playoffs last year. To their credit, they took advantage of the opportunity and made it to the AFC Championship. Their defense is obviously their strong point, especially with Revis back in the fold, and that will win them several games but nothing about "Sanchise" and the offense says "Superbowl" to me.

I had more teams in this group, somehow I couldn't lock anyone else into their slot confidently so…

Bubble Teams:

Niners: They are the class of the worst division in football. If any of the other 3 teams puts things together, they might not make it.

Patriots: It is Brady, Belichick and company so they will be in the mix, but I think the Jets will win the division this year so they will have to fight with the other AFC hopefuls for a Wild Card slot. The defense isn't anywhere near what it was in their heyday so it will be up to Brady, Moss and Welker to keep other teams within reach.

Cincinnati: After winning the division last year the Bengals laid an egg against the Jets in Rd one of the playoffs. It serves them right for letting the Jets in without a fight. That being said, they faded down the stretch last year, losing 3 out of 4 to end the year. If they expect to be in the running this year, they need to play better down the stretch.

Titans: After a 0-6 start, TN went 8-2 to end the season last year. If they can stay healthy they have a chance to get the WC. Week 2 against the Steelers will be a key game early.

Texans: Another team battling for the WC from the AFC South. They finished 9-7 and just out of the playoffs due to their AFC record. (They were just 1-5 within the division!) They need to be 4-2 within the division order to get in.

Falcons: Atlanta is solid on both sides of the ball and I've seen many projections putting them atop the NFC South. Possible, since no team has repeated as NFC South champs since the league went to 4 divisions per conference back in 2002. If Matt Ryan can come back after his "Sophomore Slump", the Falcons offense has plenty of weapons. The defense should be bolstered by their players returning from injury, Free agents and the draft. That will get them to above average. They benefit by hosting their toughest extra-divisional competition in BAL and GB, but I think it will be tough to win the South.

Giants: Just 2 yrs post Super Bowl, the Giants have been a team in transition. Out of the playoffs last year at 8-8, the turnover (and idiocy) at the WR position has been a problem along with inconsistency in the backfield. (The managed only 2 individual rushing performances over 100yds) The NFC is strong at the top this year, but for the last WC it drops off. That gives the Giants a chance to sneak in for the last spot.

I'd Be Surprised, but don't count them out Dark Horses:

Carolina: The Panthers finished on a high note last year, knocking off both NFC finalists while finishing on a 3 game win streak. Granted the Saints game was meaningless in Wk 17, but only because they knocked off the Vikings in Wk 15. They have a strong backfield with D Williams and J Stewart. There are issues on the D-line since Peppers moved on, but their schedule outside the division will give them a shot. Week 1 vs the Giants a must win if they want to make it.

Miami: Chad Henne has been quiet but effective for the Dolphins since becoming the starter. The addition of Brandon Marshall will make him better. The 1-2 punch of Ricky and Ronnie will still be good. Their defense is average, but serviceable; they've taken a step back there but should improve as the season progresses.

Steelers: With Big Ben's suspension for 4 games, they will need to find a way to start at least 2-2, even then it might be a tough task. They face 3 other playoff contenders (IMO) without Roethlisberger in the first 4 weeks. The TN game week 2 may decide their wildcard fate.

Washington: Not a sexy pick, but as much as I hate Shanahan for Super Bowl XXXII, he finds ways to win. I'm not a huge McNabb fan, but he tends to play it safe and can be effective in the West Coast offense. If Shanahan can get the offense moving and straighten out the defense, they have an outside chance to get the last WC spot.

Arizona: If anyone from the NFC West has a chance, it is the Cardinals. Someone has to win the division and SF is no lock. Whisenhunt is a good coach and they still have talent, but the QB and O-line situation will make it difficult. The defense was only 14^th last year and has lost key players at LB and S. All these combined with a tough extra-divisional schedule don't bode well for a return to the postseason.

Let's face it; these teams have ZERO chance of getting into the playoffs, much less the Super Bowl. Not because they are all horrible but who they have to beat to get there.

Buffalo, Tampa, St. Louis, Oakland, Denver, Cleveland, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, Seattle, Jacksonville, and KC.

My Picks for 2010:

AFC

Division Winners: Ravens, Jets, Colts, Chargers

Wildcards: Texans, Patriots

Wild Card Playoffs: Jets over Texans, Chargers over Patriots

Divisional Playoffs: Chargers over Ravens, Colts over Jets

AFC Championship: Chargers over Colts

NFC

Division Winners: Packers, Cowboys, Saints, Niners

Wildcards: Vikings, Falcons

Wild Card Playoffs: Vikings over Niners, Cowboys over Falcons

Divisional Playoffs: Packers over Cowboys, Vikings over Saints

NFC Championship: Packers over Vikings

Super Bowl:

Packers over Chargers

Note: I realize this puts the Packers as the 2^nd seed, but it works out to be so much more fun!

Happy Football Season!

Vikings close to signing Houshmanzadeh?

Reports out of Fox6 Sports out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin of all places, said earlier that the Vikings had signed Houshmanzadeh. Now there are conflicting reports that say it's not accurate, at least not yet.

There is no doubt in my mind that something is going on however. With the release of Javon Walker, the Vikings only have 4 WR's on the roster. Look for them to pick up someone that was cut. By the way, what was your favorite Javon Walker moment as a member of the Minnesota Vikings?

This is all very ironic considering TJ Houshmanzadeh forever became known as "Doushmanzadeh" by some Vikings fans after he spurned them for Seattle, citing Minnesotas quarterback's. This was last year before anyone knew Favre was coming to town.

It's also hilarious for Seattle who paid the guy and arm and a leg, and will still be on the hook for his guaranteed money, his new team will pay him around the veteran minimum and the Seahawks will pay the rest of the tab, around 15 million or so. That may be one of the worst free agent signings in the history of the NFL.

He wasn't horrible last year, as he caught 70 plus balls and almost 1000 yards. But he pissed and moaned and sulked the whole time he was there. Maybe it was the rain, maybe he didn't like grunge, or maybe he couldn't stand Starbucks, but will he come crawling back to the Vikings organization with his tail between his legs?

Stay tuned.

State of the Packers

A 35-point route of the Indianapolis Colts is how the Green Bay Packers ended the all important third preseason game. Don't expect the starters to play much in the last preseason game if they play at all. I've been hearing all types of reaction to the Packers strong outing last Thursday from "wow, what a performance" to "It's only preseason don't read too much into it". The one main constant is that of the Packers that played in the game most made it through fairly healthy.

Even though no notable players were injured during the game, Al Harris and Atari Bigby are among the players that were placed of the dreaded PUP (physically unable to perform) list. That means for six weeks the Packers defense will have to do without two quality veterans. The result is a more youthful secondary that will be led by pro bowlers Charles Woodson and Nick Collins, Tramon Williams and Morgan Burnett will round out the starting secondary. Tramon hasn't proven that he can play well on a consistent basis while Burnett is just a rookie. Burnett has the task of filling in for hard-hitting Bigby, he will have to control the secondary coverages as well as help out against the run, which some wold say is too much for a rookie. Burnett's upside is that he's a ball hawk as he displayed when he picked off Peyton last week.

With high expectations the Packers will live and die with that pass defense, if it holds up the first six weeks of the season this could be "the" year for them especially with that high powered offense. If the defense doesn't hold up then we got to hope that Aaron Rodgers can go point for point with every other team they face this season, starting with week 1 vs that Eagles high octane offense.