Okay, I admit it, I should've done this at the end of August, like last year. But I swear, I won't let the Colts impressive debut alter my prognostications. (ed. yeah right)
So without further ado, let me boldly go where, uh, only about 10,000 other Internet talking-heads have gone before:
AFC North: Wow is this a tough division to pick. The Ravens were tough as hell last year and now they've got a good young(er) back in Willis McGahee rather than the Jamal Lewis who rapidly transformed from thundering to plodding.
1. Baltimore Ravens - the addition of McGahee does it for me. I usually would shy from picking a team to repeat with competition like Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, but a running game will give the Ravens that extra-win somewhere that puts them over the top.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers - neck-and-neck with Cincy, but I think the O might open up a bit.
3. Cincinnati Bengals - more like a 2a pick. QB Carson Palmer enters that oft cited "2nd year" back from a Torn-ACL. He alone could trash my entire prediction for this division because he is clearly the best QB in the AFC North (which is usually a pretty good barometer for who has the best team as well)
4. Cleveland Browns - over/under on the beginning of the Brady Quinn era: Week 7. Over/under on the # of wins for the Brownies: 5.
AFC East. The class of the division remains the Pats (though the sheen has come off a little in the past couple of weeks, with injuries/suspensions to Richard Seymour and Rodney Harrison and their best CB Asante Samuel just now reporting to the team (and accepting his franchise designation)
1. New England Patriots - Brady got some scary weapons now. Lots of pressure on Laurence Maroney, but he look good. If he gets injured....well that's an argument that can put on a LOT of teams. The defensive holes could hurt them early, but unless the NY Jets streak out of the gate and the Pats stumble badly, they should have more than enough to win the AFC East tiara.
2. NY Jets - the Man-genius will be the primary competition for the Belichick-led Patriots. Thomas Jones gives the Jets a great option at RB. I don't think the Patriots are used to the Jets actually having a reliable running game the past couple of years (when Curtis Martin was in his last year and then gone in '06). They'll have one this year.
3. Buffalo - the J.P. Losman-Lee Evans combo won't be enough to get this team over the top. Huge turnover on D leaves a lot of questions. No answers yet. Wouldn't completely surprise me to see the Bills do really well, also wouldn't surprise me to see them founder
4. Miami Dolphins - No O-line and stauesque QB in Trent Green. Affording your QB less protection than what some of the girls wear down on the strip spells bad news for Miami.
NFC South - Defending Champs should rule the roost (see I told you)
1. Indianapolis Colts - swear this has nothing to do with their dismantling of the Saints on opening night. They just have too much for their division rivals. Period.
2. Houston Texans - ok, I will take a wild stab and say the Texans' gamble on Matt Schaub pays off. The guy knows the system the team uses and maybe Ahman Green will be the Texans' uncaped crusader for one season. That's the hope in Houston. It won't be enough to make the playoffs, but it could be enough to make some noise that Houston doesn't totally suck.
3. Jacksonville Jaguars - maybe Garrard will be "the man" down in J-town. Maybe the Jags won't recover from the release of Byron Leftwich. I'm down on the Jags because they can't seem to stop the internal roiling that seems to sabotage their season each year. Moreover, Garrard is just the 4th best QB in the division.
4. Tennessee Titans - an odd placement, I know, considering the Titans "remember us, we're still in the NFL" run last year. But jettisoning nearly every weapon Vince Young relied on last year (with the exception of TE Ben Scaife) just doesn't seem like a formula for success in 2007. If some weapons emerge, this pick will look foolish, cause Vince Young is just electric.
AFC West - aiya, San Diego, Denver and uh...oh my the other two should be bad.
1. San Diego - Going with talent alone on this one folks. LT, Philip Rivers, Antonio Gates? An orangutan could coax a 9-10 win season of this squad. They could roll out a wax figure of coach Norv Turner and be just as effective (come to think of it...)
2. Denver Broncos - Travis Henry is next-in-line to get the Shanahan-system-can-make-a-1,000-yard-rusher out-of-anyone. Thing is, Henry is already a damn fine back. He could become a monster in Denver....yea! I got him on one of my fantasy teams
3. Oakland Raiders - from bottom of the scrapheap to what? Mild, somewhat respectability? Perhaps. I just think any team with a defense as good as the Raiders should be somewhat decent. Is McNown the answer? Dunno, I expect Culpepper and his deep-ball ability to take over at some point.
4. Kansas City Chiefs - odd place for the Chiefs, but I just don't trust this team on either side of the ball. O-line is deteriorating and even with Larry Johnson, who is arguably a top 3 back in the league, it hard to see him dominating in a 3-yards and a cloud-of-dust offense. And who is going to be throwing the ball to new WR Dwayne Bowe? K.C. may make me pay for this lack of faith, but that's how I see it right now.
Showing posts with label predictions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label predictions. Show all posts
Friday, September 07, 2007
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Misadventures with Spray Paint and What the Eagles need to do to Beat the GYNts
Ok, ok, I admit it. I am NOT very handy around the house...I can do basic things OK, and a couple of thing decent, but I usually run into trouble, like today...simple spray painting....My error is NOT an inability to point the can in the right direction, my faux pas today was in purchasing some cheapo-brand....I was at Wal-Mart (yes, I managed to escape from their event horizon of consumer evil) and I THOUGHT I was buying Rust-oleum...oopsie...I guess I better get a rebate on my Lasik cause I wound up buying something called ColorTime (I think its the generic Walmart brand)....I didn't realize it until I got home...I was like...sh*t...but I didn't want to go back...so I figured I would try it out....BAD IDEA....that crap-ass nozzle put more paint on my hands than the outdoor furniture I was trying to recoat....dammit...so here I am practically washing my hands in acetone (which isn't supposed to come into contact with your skin BTW) to get this cheap gunk off....I wised up and switched to rubber gloves afterwards....
Lesson for you all: you get what you PAY FOR....buy cheap, get cheap....
Now for the real reason I logged on today: to answer the question on every inquiring mind: who do I think this weekend. I will keep tonight's comment to two games: Philly vs NYG and Dallas vs Washington....that right folks, there are two HUGE games this weekend...My hope is that the Eagles will have a 2 game lead on two other teams in the NFC East.
1. First up, Eagles - GYNts....this is going to be a tough game for the Iggles, the GYNts put up a good game, and if not for a cheesy offensive pass interference call, NYG could be rolling into town on a huge win...Can the Eagles win this game...yes, no doubt, but they have to do a couple things: a) contain Tiki....notice I didn't say stop...the Eagles have rarely been able to STOP Tiki, but they have been able to prevent Tiki alone from beating them, and I think that is the gameplan to victory once again...Tiki gets that team rolling, and if our D can keep from letting Tiki steamroll them, we got a definite shot... b) keep up the balanced attack...ok, I can hear you now, "Thanks Captain Obvious, you just told me that the key to the Eagles winning is to run the ball and to stop the run"...yeah, that basically what I am getting at, but in the Eagles' case its a little more nuanced. The Iggles need balance....they cannot let Osi and Strahan just tee off and play "lets meet at McNabb" all afternoon...The Colts' RB Addai had a couple of decent runs last week (though they garnered a paltry 55 yards in the game, I think that's an equal reflection of Peyton's propensity to pass this year {in effect calling his own number since he makes a lot of calls at the line} without the uber-reliable Edge in the backfield. Get Westbrook out on the flanks, get the ball to Buck a few extra times and let our massive interior line blast some GYNt ass off the field a few times.... no score here, but I think the Eagles continue their rebound from 2005 and manage to close out the GYNts at home.
2) Dallas vs Washington...I think the Cowgurls have the here, simply from the fact that they're at home, and NO ONE wants to drop to 0-2 with a home loss to a division rival. Moreover, I am not sold on the Foreskins vaunted offense...they did OK against the Vikings, but really only put together one decent drive (the ones capped off by a Portis run)...when the game was on the line, the Skins came up small. I think that IF the Dallas O-line can keep Bledsoe upright, he will be able take advantage of the absence of Shawn Springs and the out-for-the-year safety, Pierson Prileau. For all his team erosion downside, MEO has a huge upside ON THE FIELD...so expect Drew to find him a few times against a depleted secondary... Dallas wins at home...(dammit)
More Eagles commentary coming soon!
Lesson for you all: you get what you PAY FOR....buy cheap, get cheap....
Now for the real reason I logged on today: to answer the question on every inquiring mind: who do I think this weekend. I will keep tonight's comment to two games: Philly vs NYG and Dallas vs Washington....that right folks, there are two HUGE games this weekend...My hope is that the Eagles will have a 2 game lead on two other teams in the NFC East.
1. First up, Eagles - GYNts....this is going to be a tough game for the Iggles, the GYNts put up a good game, and if not for a cheesy offensive pass interference call, NYG could be rolling into town on a huge win...Can the Eagles win this game...yes, no doubt, but they have to do a couple things: a) contain Tiki....notice I didn't say stop...the Eagles have rarely been able to STOP Tiki, but they have been able to prevent Tiki alone from beating them, and I think that is the gameplan to victory once again...Tiki gets that team rolling, and if our D can keep from letting Tiki steamroll them, we got a definite shot... b) keep up the balanced attack...ok, I can hear you now, "Thanks Captain Obvious, you just told me that the key to the Eagles winning is to run the ball and to stop the run"...yeah, that basically what I am getting at, but in the Eagles' case its a little more nuanced. The Iggles need balance....they cannot let Osi and Strahan just tee off and play "lets meet at McNabb" all afternoon...The Colts' RB Addai had a couple of decent runs last week (though they garnered a paltry 55 yards in the game, I think that's an equal reflection of Peyton's propensity to pass this year {in effect calling his own number since he makes a lot of calls at the line} without the uber-reliable Edge in the backfield. Get Westbrook out on the flanks, get the ball to Buck a few extra times and let our massive interior line blast some GYNt ass off the field a few times.... no score here, but I think the Eagles continue their rebound from 2005 and manage to close out the GYNts at home.
2) Dallas vs Washington...I think the Cowgurls have the here, simply from the fact that they're at home, and NO ONE wants to drop to 0-2 with a home loss to a division rival. Moreover, I am not sold on the Foreskins vaunted offense...they did OK against the Vikings, but really only put together one decent drive (the ones capped off by a Portis run)...when the game was on the line, the Skins came up small. I think that IF the Dallas O-line can keep Bledsoe upright, he will be able take advantage of the absence of Shawn Springs and the out-for-the-year safety, Pierson Prileau. For all his team erosion downside, MEO has a huge upside ON THE FIELD...so expect Drew to find him a few times against a depleted secondary... Dallas wins at home...(dammit)
More Eagles commentary coming soon!
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Going "On the Record" - Micc's AFC Prediction
Since I went out on a limb with the NFC, I figured I take a couple minutes today and address the Eagles potential opponents in Superbowl XLI...(ok that goes a little far, but if you cannot dream at this time of year, when CAN you?)
My take on the AFC
AFC East: Unlike their NFC counterpart the AFC East is a division of sharp contrasts, premier organizations and laughingstocks
1. New England Patriots - god I am sick of seeing this team at the top, but I gotta admit the Pats looked sharp in the pre-season, they seem to pull good performances out of players who were mediocre with other teams...I mean Brady torched Washington vaunted D with Bam Childress, Troy Brown, Ben Watson and Reche frickin' Caldewell....fer crying out loud...
2. Miami Dolphins - I thought long and hard about shaking up the East and putting Miami first, and I think if Culpepper is fully recovered the team could squeeze another season out of long-in-the-tooth defense and very easily challenge the Patriots for the division. Part of me actually hopes this will happen, if only to balance out the karma, I just wouldn't bet the farm on it
4. Buffalo Bills and NY Jets - Hey what happened to #3, lets face it, this division has a huge gap in it and neither the Jets and Bills deserve being rated a #3: both have underachieved for years. Can either team challenge for the division, hell no...Can Marv Levy restore the Bills to glory? Doubtful...Can Belichick protege Mangini turn around the Jets? Maybe, not this year, but the Jets should be pointed in the right direction this year
AFC North: Unlike the NFC, the North division in the AFC is a powerhouse!
1. Cincinnati Bengals - wow, going against the World Champs??!! Am I nuts, no...I just watched Carson Palmer appear in mid-season form a couple of days ago, and the historically tepid Bengals looked superb...But consider last year, The Bengals took the division from the Steelers, it had been Pittsburgh's for years, and Cincy snatched it. What they couldn't do, as a young team was overcome the loss of Palmer in the playoffs. Cautionary note: the felony/misdemeanor count against this team is the highest I've seen in a long time...get that crap under control Marvin or else distractions may subtract from what should be very good season for lower Ohio.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers - I haven't seen much from Big Ben this preseason...he looks OK after his June asphalt face-plant, but the I dunno, something about the team is a little off. The D will be solid as ever, so the let-Ben-manage-the-game, keep-it-close-with-D strategy should see the Steelers in the hunt come late-December
3. Baltimore Ravens - Ravens fans owe Tennessee a big one...Baltimore got a proven leader and winning QB, Steve McNair, who fell right their lap after the Titans decided that after years of taking one for the team (yearly renegotiations of McNair's contract to make up for poor cap management in other areas of the team) made him deserving of a claymore-sized knife between the shoulder blades...Reunited with Derrick Mason, the Ravens are going to be a threat this year...after years of QB incompetence (Boller, Banks, etc, etc) the Ravens finally have a field general as tough as they come, that should scare the rest of the AFC North
4. Cleveland Browns - Romeo Crennel does have the Browns pointed in the right direction...but the Browns don't have it...Charlie Frye, Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow are a great young nucleus, but they are at least a season away from serious competition
AFC South - Kinda similar to the AFC East, 1 contender, 1 good team, two pretenders
1. Indianapolis Colts - The only question for me - how does the "O" do without its Edge? They look decent so far, and the Colts don't have much competition in this divison because I think the Jaguars may have actually taken a step back this year
2. Jacksonville Jaguars - ok so Byron Leftwich is more experienced but what receivers does he have beyond Matt Jones? Jimmy Smith screwed the team by retiring AFTER the draft (a draft during which the Jags did not select a WR, hmmm, might they have drafted one had they known Jimmy wasn't going to be around...) The Jags D should be pretty stiff, but unless Coach Del Rio lights a fire under this team they don't have enough to overtake the Colts...
3. Tennessee Titans - Looks like they are starting to emerge from salary-cap hell, but jettisoning McNair the way they did was totally classless, no wonder Tennessee remains Vols-country...I also think the owner royally screwed up by forcing the team to draft Vince Young...I mean you have an instant starter sitting there on the board in Matt Leinart, who ran to perfection the same exact Offense the Titans run (they hired USC's Norm Chow the year before fer crying' out loud!)...and they go with the "athletic" option...I think the owner, being a Houston-homer, wanted to rub it in his former town's collective face by selecting their golden-boy Vince...So why did the Titans just sign Kerry Collins? What the hell can he teach Vince Young? How to stand still?
4. Houston Texans - A laughingstock since entering the league, the Tex-assns are going to be kicking themselves for years for passing up on Reggie Bush...its going to be a classic blunder...DE are necessary to win, but unless he is Reggie White reincarnated, #1 overall Mario Williams is almost destined to be overshadowed by a game-breaker like Bush....DE don't handle the "rock" and the comparisons are inevitable...Why didn't they take Bush, because they "had" a franchise back..Dominack Davis....what's he done this preseason....nothing but sit out injured....another faux pas from Houston...oh yeah...how bought fixing the Offensive Line!
AFC West: Three challengers and the Raiders
1. Kansas City Chiefs - I have my doubts about Herm Edwards, but I am tired of selecting the Broncos and KC is close, very close to Denver...what I like...LJ, Gonzo, Trent Green...what I don't like: loss of Roaf and Richardson raises questions about whether LJ will run rampant over the NFL again...if Ty Law, Derrick Johnson and Tamba Hali can kick the D up a notch the Chiefs should be able to supplant Denver
1a. Denver Broncos - Mike Shanahan is prepping his pixie dust to create his next unknown-to-thousand-yard-rusher...Mike Bell....whodat? Exactly...of course, having a dirty, cheatin' O-Line helps, but the Broncos have gotten away with it for years, so why stop now? The key for Denver, can they get another season from their Cleveland re-treads on the D-line, and will Javon Walker be the stud he was in Green Bay, if so, Denver should be right there with the Chiefs in Dec
2. San Diego Chargers - Sure they got LT and Gates, but who is playing WR and they are going to depend on unproven QB Philip Rivers to carry them to the promised land? Brees' injury gave the GM the green-light to dump him, but Brees was the Chargers real hope to lead them to Miami in Feb. With Rivers...they have no shot
4. Oakland Raiders - Art Shell comes back after 12 years and the Raiders shackle him with Aaron Brooks - a career loser with the Saints...HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...going to be another long year for football in the Bay Area. Now they sign Jeff George? 'nuff said...
So who are my playoffs teams: Indy, Pats and Cincy return....KC, Miami are new entries, and the Steelers just edge the Ravens for another
My take on the AFC
AFC East: Unlike their NFC counterpart the AFC East is a division of sharp contrasts, premier organizations and laughingstocks
1. New England Patriots - god I am sick of seeing this team at the top, but I gotta admit the Pats looked sharp in the pre-season, they seem to pull good performances out of players who were mediocre with other teams...I mean Brady torched Washington vaunted D with Bam Childress, Troy Brown, Ben Watson and Reche frickin' Caldewell....fer crying out loud...
2. Miami Dolphins - I thought long and hard about shaking up the East and putting Miami first, and I think if Culpepper is fully recovered the team could squeeze another season out of long-in-the-tooth defense and very easily challenge the Patriots for the division. Part of me actually hopes this will happen, if only to balance out the karma, I just wouldn't bet the farm on it
4. Buffalo Bills and NY Jets - Hey what happened to #3, lets face it, this division has a huge gap in it and neither the Jets and Bills deserve being rated a #3: both have underachieved for years. Can either team challenge for the division, hell no...Can Marv Levy restore the Bills to glory? Doubtful...Can Belichick protege Mangini turn around the Jets? Maybe, not this year, but the Jets should be pointed in the right direction this year
AFC North: Unlike the NFC, the North division in the AFC is a powerhouse!
1. Cincinnati Bengals - wow, going against the World Champs??!! Am I nuts, no...I just watched Carson Palmer appear in mid-season form a couple of days ago, and the historically tepid Bengals looked superb...But consider last year, The Bengals took the division from the Steelers, it had been Pittsburgh's for years, and Cincy snatched it. What they couldn't do, as a young team was overcome the loss of Palmer in the playoffs. Cautionary note: the felony/misdemeanor count against this team is the highest I've seen in a long time...get that crap under control Marvin or else distractions may subtract from what should be very good season for lower Ohio.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers - I haven't seen much from Big Ben this preseason...he looks OK after his June asphalt face-plant, but the I dunno, something about the team is a little off. The D will be solid as ever, so the let-Ben-manage-the-game, keep-it-close-with-D strategy should see the Steelers in the hunt come late-December
3. Baltimore Ravens - Ravens fans owe Tennessee a big one...Baltimore got a proven leader and winning QB, Steve McNair, who fell right their lap after the Titans decided that after years of taking one for the team (yearly renegotiations of McNair's contract to make up for poor cap management in other areas of the team) made him deserving of a claymore-sized knife between the shoulder blades...Reunited with Derrick Mason, the Ravens are going to be a threat this year...after years of QB incompetence (Boller, Banks, etc, etc) the Ravens finally have a field general as tough as they come, that should scare the rest of the AFC North
4. Cleveland Browns - Romeo Crennel does have the Browns pointed in the right direction...but the Browns don't have it...Charlie Frye, Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow are a great young nucleus, but they are at least a season away from serious competition
AFC South - Kinda similar to the AFC East, 1 contender, 1 good team, two pretenders
1. Indianapolis Colts - The only question for me - how does the "O" do without its Edge? They look decent so far, and the Colts don't have much competition in this divison because I think the Jaguars may have actually taken a step back this year
2. Jacksonville Jaguars - ok so Byron Leftwich is more experienced but what receivers does he have beyond Matt Jones? Jimmy Smith screwed the team by retiring AFTER the draft (a draft during which the Jags did not select a WR, hmmm, might they have drafted one had they known Jimmy wasn't going to be around...) The Jags D should be pretty stiff, but unless Coach Del Rio lights a fire under this team they don't have enough to overtake the Colts...
3. Tennessee Titans - Looks like they are starting to emerge from salary-cap hell, but jettisoning McNair the way they did was totally classless, no wonder Tennessee remains Vols-country...I also think the owner royally screwed up by forcing the team to draft Vince Young...I mean you have an instant starter sitting there on the board in Matt Leinart, who ran to perfection the same exact Offense the Titans run (they hired USC's Norm Chow the year before fer crying' out loud!)...and they go with the "athletic" option...I think the owner, being a Houston-homer, wanted to rub it in his former town's collective face by selecting their golden-boy Vince...So why did the Titans just sign Kerry Collins? What the hell can he teach Vince Young? How to stand still?
4. Houston Texans - A laughingstock since entering the league, the Tex-assns are going to be kicking themselves for years for passing up on Reggie Bush...its going to be a classic blunder...DE are necessary to win, but unless he is Reggie White reincarnated, #1 overall Mario Williams is almost destined to be overshadowed by a game-breaker like Bush....DE don't handle the "rock" and the comparisons are inevitable...Why didn't they take Bush, because they "had" a franchise back..Dominack Davis....what's he done this preseason....nothing but sit out injured....another faux pas from Houston...oh yeah...how bought fixing the Offensive Line!
AFC West: Three challengers and the Raiders
1. Kansas City Chiefs - I have my doubts about Herm Edwards, but I am tired of selecting the Broncos and KC is close, very close to Denver...what I like...LJ, Gonzo, Trent Green...what I don't like: loss of Roaf and Richardson raises questions about whether LJ will run rampant over the NFL again...if Ty Law, Derrick Johnson and Tamba Hali can kick the D up a notch the Chiefs should be able to supplant Denver
1a. Denver Broncos - Mike Shanahan is prepping his pixie dust to create his next unknown-to-thousand-yard-rusher...Mike Bell....whodat? Exactly...of course, having a dirty, cheatin' O-Line helps, but the Broncos have gotten away with it for years, so why stop now? The key for Denver, can they get another season from their Cleveland re-treads on the D-line, and will Javon Walker be the stud he was in Green Bay, if so, Denver should be right there with the Chiefs in Dec
2. San Diego Chargers - Sure they got LT and Gates, but who is playing WR and they are going to depend on unproven QB Philip Rivers to carry them to the promised land? Brees' injury gave the GM the green-light to dump him, but Brees was the Chargers real hope to lead them to Miami in Feb. With Rivers...they have no shot
4. Oakland Raiders - Art Shell comes back after 12 years and the Raiders shackle him with Aaron Brooks - a career loser with the Saints...HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...going to be another long year for football in the Bay Area. Now they sign Jeff George? 'nuff said...
So who are my playoffs teams: Indy, Pats and Cincy return....KC, Miami are new entries, and the Steelers just edge the Ravens for another
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