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NFL Season Predictions Contributed by Alex_Striker on Monday, September 08 @ 11:41:05 EDT
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 Frontline Formation's Senior Football Analyst, Alex Striker, lays out the upcoming NFL season and his predictions of things to come (written pre-Tom Brady injury).
The NFL kicks off today! And with every new
season come bold claims of a Super Bowl title, but as 31 teams find out
each year there can only be one left standing in the end.
NFC
NFC East
1- Dallas Cowboys
2- New York Giants
3- Philadelphia Eagles
4- Washington Redskins
This will be arguably the one of two best divisions in football, and
one of the closest division races. The Cowboys have a ton of talent on
the offensive side of the football, and a good enough defense that they
should easily be one of the top NFC contenders for the right to go to
the Super Bowl. The Giants seem to be ready to pick up right where they
left off last year, with a strong defense and power running game,
though the loss of Osi Umenyiora will hurt. The Eagles will push the
Cowboys and Giants this season if everyone can stay healthy. The
Redskins, even though they have their usual loaded roster, just don't
seem ready to contend with the other three NFC East teams yet.
NFC North
1- Green Bay Packers
2- Minnesota Vikings
3- Detroit Lions
4- Chicago Bears
If you didn't hear, Brett Favre left Green bay this summer. This
has been enough to convince nearly every sports network (including the
folks over at the East Coast Sports Network...err, sorry, ESPN) that
the Packers will immediately slide past the Vikings to second place in
the division. However, the Packers return almost every starter from
last year, and despite being banged up in training camp on the O-line
and defensive side of the ball, seem ready for another title push. Of
course, it all depends on one man, Aaron Rodgers, and how he handles
the immense amount of pressure on him. Unlike many fans of the Green
Bay Favres...err...Packers, I feel that Aaron will be ready to go this
season, though he will have a few not so great games as he adjusts to
being the full time starter. The Pack won't replicate 13-3, but I can't
see them worse then 10-6 this season.
As for the rest of the division (hey, it's my team, I can write as long
I want about them), the Vikings are once again being anointed potential
Super Bowl champions as seems to be the standard the past couple of
seasons. They did add Jared Allen, and made some big signings in the
offseason. However, their pass rush was already pretty strong last
year, but they didn't really improve their secondary, which was was
torn apart for the most part last year. On offense, they have Adrian
Peterson and Chester Taylor, however, their passing attack needs to
show something, otherwise opposing D's will be stacking 8 in the box
and daring Jackson to throw on them. I see them going maybe 9-7 or so,
but I can't see them topping the Pack this year. The Lions remain the
Lions, good offense, horrible, horrible defense. The Bears are a real
mess, as they continue to try to plug in Kyle Orton and/or Rex Grossman
and hope that one of them will click. Luckily they have Hester.
NFC South
1- New Orleans Saints
2- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
3- Carolina Panthers
4- Atlanta Falcons
While New Orleans defense remains shaky, their offense appears to
be ready to become the juggernaut that it was during the 2006 season.
They'll make a case for NFC representative in the Super Bowl,
especially if their defense can be solid. The Buccaneers aren't getting
younger in general, but will probably use their usual solid defense and
low-mistake offense to find a Wild Card spot. The Panthers will miss
Steve Smith while he serves his suspension as their offense will be
missing its key playmaker. The Falcons are a mess. They could easily
take the #1 draft pick again this year. Michael Turner will help as
will Matt Ryan, but their defense is just, well, bad.
NFC West
1- Seattle Seahawks
2- Arizona Cardinals
3- St. Louis Rams
4- San Francisco 49ers
The Seahawks will be playing inspired football this season as they
try to deliver a final Super Bowl title to Mike Holmgren before he
retires at the end of the season. Mike Wahle should help their
offensive line a lot, and their offense should continue to be efficient
with Hasslebeck leading the way. Arizona will be fun to watch,
especially if Kurt Warner can continue to play at even a remotely high
level as he throws to probably the best 1-2 receiver tandem in the
league. The Rams will probably be average. Their defense seems ready
for another season of mediocrity/okay play, and their offense will try
to find its rhythm that it completely lost for a beat last season. The
49ers are probably as big of a mess as the Falcons. Mike Martz's
offense will be interesting to watch at least.
AFC
AFC East
1- New England Patriots
2- New York Jets
3- Buffalo Bills
4- Miami Dolphins
The Patriots, barring an injury to Tom Brady, remain one of the
teams to beat in the AFC. They possess one of the best offenses in the
NFL, and a good defense. They did fade down the stretch a bit
defensively as the season wore on, and teams will try to throw on them
more as their secondary is a bit suspect. They have the advantage of
playing in a relatively weak division, and having (I believe) the
easiest schedule in the league this year. The Jets picked up this guy
named Brett Favre this offseason, and he improves their offense a ton.
Their defense showed some good signs of improvement this offseason too,
though I don't think they can catch the Patriots, unless something
happens to Brady. The Bills should be about average again this year,
with a good defense and an average-ish offense. The Dolphins picked up
Pennington, which should help, but really didn't do anything that will
improve them to a contending team this season.
AFC North
1- Pittsburgh Steelers
2- Cleveland Browns
3- Cincinnati Bengals
4- Baltimore Ravens
The Steelers should bounce back after last season's disappointing
end versus the Jaguars last season. Their solid defense and strong
offense will propel them to another division title. The continued
emergence of Santonio Holmes on offense should help keep Pittsburgh
contending for a Super Bowl title. The Cleveland Browns offense could
help push them to a playoff berth this season, but their shaky defense
could keep them from going too deep in the playoffs. The Bengals are a
mess, especially on defense, but Palmer and the offense should keep
them in games at least. Though the continued distractions they keep
having to face, no thanks in part to Chad Ocho-Cinco, will make a
playoff berth unlikely this year. The Ravens will try to lean on their
defense again as they try to mold their offense into something
relevant, led by Willis McGahee and rookie QB Joe Flacco. But not this
season.
AFC South
1- Indianapolis Colts
2- Jacksonville Jaguars
3- Houston Texans
4- Tennessee Titans
This is another tough division, probably on par with the NFC East
in terms of strength. The Colts should remain the class of their
division, and one of the best teams in the league. Their powerhouse
offense and strong defense, coupled with the veteran leadership of
Manning will make them a Super Bowl contender to the final whistle. The
Jaguars will keep up their consistent play on both sides of the ball,
with a very strong running game, efficient passing offense, and solid
defense. As long as Garrard keeps his mistakes minimal as he did last
season, the Jaguars will press the Colts for the title. The Texans seem
to be a quickly ascending, relatively young team. If they can stay
healthy, they may be able to push for a wild card spot. The Titans have
a strong defense and running game again, but they have a very, VERY
unremarkable passing offense.
AFC West
1- San Diego Chargers
2- Denver Broncos
3- Oakland Raiders
4- Kansas City Chiefs
The Chargers are a Super Bowl favorite, as they possess a powerhouse
offense, led by the seeming unstoppable LT, and a strong playmaking
defense. Phillip Rivers needs to play solidly this season to match some
of the ego he's been showing, and with the wide array of targets at his
disposal there is no excuse for failure on his part. The Broncos will
make a solid push for a Wild Card spot, as they possess a good offense,
led by the ascending Jay Cutler, and a good defensive unit. It's a
toss-up for who finishes last in this division, but I think the Raiders
have enough on both offense and defense to not totally
suck this season. The Chiefs, on the other hand, are still rebuilding,
and need probably one more good offseason to do anything.
I'll make postseason predictions at the halfway point of the season (end of week eight).
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