The NFL is halfway through the season. The final teams are getting their bye week this weekend. I wrote an NFL preview blog and I thought it would be fun to take a look at what I had then and see where we are now. I think I did pretty well considering the NFL is the most unpredictable league. I started with the NFC West back in August so we begin there.
NFC West
1st predictions: Divisional Champ San Fran 10-6, Arizona 8-8, Seattle 6-10 and Rams 3-13
At first glance, you would think this is a fat blunder. Well it was. I never thought Bradford was changing the entire landscape of football in St. Louis. I expected a fall off in Arizona and at 3-5, I was close. I had San Fran winning the division (so did everyone else) and Mike Singletary winning Coach of the Year. My bad. They stink and aren't sniffing either. Mike might be heading for the unemployment line. I have no idea what's going to happen in the 2nd half for the West. We could witness a 7-9 divisional champion. My rookie of the year is Bradford and I'm riding him and the Rams into the playoffs.
NFC North
1st predictions: Divisional Champ Green Bay 12-4, Wildcard Vikings 11-5, Bears 7-9 and Lions 5-11
I was right on line with the Packers, Bears and Lions. Detroit with Stafford may have been better than I predicted. We won't know because Stafford keeps getting injured. The Bears continue to be a roller coaster ride each week. Minnesota is the real fraud. Favre has stunk up the field and everyone around him has disappointed. The Moss trade was humiliating. Players are coming out to the media saying they wish Childress was gone already. Be patient because at the end of the year he will be fired. I'm taking away the Wildcard from the Vikings. I had the Packers winning and I still believe that. Rodgers was my MVP. With all the injuries Green Bay has had on the offense, he deserves more love for the award.
NFC South
1st predictions: Divisional Champ Saints 12-4, Wildcard Falcons 10-6, Panthers 6-10, Bucs 4-12
Who knew Moore and Clausen were going to suck and the running game was running away? I didn't. I felt Carolina had a legit shot to compete in the NFC. Instead they may not win more than 4 games. Tampa has been a huge surprise. The Bucs have a chance with a semi-easy schedule to make it 8-8. I won't push them farther than that. Other than having the bottom two in opposite positions, I'm sticking with the Saints and Falcons in the playoffs. Atlanta is good enough to win a wildcard and the Saints will do enough to win the division.
NFC East
1st predictions: Divisional Champs Cowboys 11-5, Giants 9-7, Skins 8-8 and Eagles 8-8
My biggest mistake in the whole preview. The Cowboys have one more than the Bills. They fired Philips (2 years to late). The Redskins and Eagles are right around what I thought they would be. The Redskins have made all the news and I still think they get to 8-8. The Cowboys have no chance for anything other than a top 5 draft pick. I'm giving the wildcard I had the Vikings with and picking the Eagles. The Giants have been much better than I believed. If they keep destroying teams, the NFC might go through New York.
AFC West
1st predictions: Divisional Champs Chargers 10-6, Denver 7-9, Oakland 7-9, Kansas City 5-11
Ok, Kansas City is playing good football and I thought they would suck. They also have the easiest damn schedule in the NFL. KC has played 2 teams with a winning record so far and have 2 left on the schedule. Denver is on the path of finding a new coach again. They are terrible. San Diego seems to be charging as of late. My Raiders are surging. A 3 game winning streak and the defense is coming together. The concern with Oakland is the schedule gets much tougher. I don't think they can over come the stretch of good games to make the playoffs. This division is still the toughest to predict. KC's easy schedule gives them the edge. But I'm a stand up guy and will stick with the Chargers to win the division.
AFC North
1st predictions: Divisional Champs Ravens 13-3, Wildcard Cincy 10-6, Pitt 9-7 and Browns 4-12
It's true, I bought into the Bengals. I thought with all the added talent on offense they would hold down Pitt. I was wrong. I still love Baltimore and think they are better than the Steelers. Cleveland has snuck up on the Saints and Pats in back to back weeks. The Browns will beat out the Bengals in the North standings. I'm swiping the Wildcard tag off Cincy and giving it to Pitt. Baltimore still wins the division.
AFC South
1st predictions: Divisional Champ Colts 12-4, Wildcard Texans 10-6, Titans 5-11, Jags 3-13
In my NFL preview I asked one simple question about the Colts, "Does Peyton Manning still QB this team?" Well he does and I'm sticking with Peyton and the Colts to hold off stiff competition from the Titans and Jags to win the division. Manning has lost several pieces of his offense and keeps winning. Houston hasn't found a secondary so that Wildcard prediction is wiped away. The Titans and Jag have played better ball than I believed. The South is very competitive. Tennessee adding Moss should keep them in the Wildcard hunt. I'm not willing to give it to them though.
AFC East
1st predictions: Divisional Champ Pats 11-5, Jets 9-7, Miami 8-8 and Bills 2-14
We end with my best predictions. I was spot on with Buffalo and Miami. Buffalo plays hard but can't get over the hump. Miami is 4-4 and switching quarterbacks. I don't fully comprehend that decision. New England dumped Moss for Branch and it worked. They are still winning the East. The Jets are now getting my other wildcard spot that went to Houston. Their defense is great and the Jets offense will survive.
I'm giving myself a chance for redemption. I hope I can do a little better the second time. I finished my first prediction with the Super Bowl pick of Baltimore and Green Bay. I'm not backing away from that. Baltimore and Green Bay both have great shots to make it. As good a shot as anyone in the wild NFL.
J Call.
Showing posts with label Minnesota Vikings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Minnesota Vikings. Show all posts
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
The Defining Moment
The NFL season is coming to the halfway point. Some teams are a sinking ship and others are playoff bound. This season has been crazy wacky and any other word you can find for absolute nuts. The season for teams comes right down to a single moment. It's a defining moment. Your team will make or break the year on this moment. We have seen many of these moments so far this year. The biggest thing is if your team's moment is an injury that's not the kind of season you want. If it's a pick 6 for a win, your season might take off like a rocket. We start in the desert.
Arizona Cardinals- They are a mess. They are still contending in the NFC West. They are only one game back of the Seahawks. I don't know if that shows competitiveness in the West or describes the pathetic West. Their moment was Kurt Warner deciding to put on his dance shoes instead of football cleats. The Cardinals would have had one more year of domination in the NFC West with Warner. Derek Anderson and Max Hall aren't cutting it. They needed the Hall of Famer.
Minnesota Vikings- Their moment was when Brad Childress decided to send the house after Favre. Favre returned and looks an old man because he is an old man. The media still loves him and continues to praise his toughness. We should substitute the word toughness for pride. You can praise his pride. He has the heart but he doesn't have the tools. Also, Jared Allen should have never cut his mullet. Allen was a sack machine last year. He cut it and now the defensive line puts pressure on no one. Bring it back Allen.
New Orleans Saints- Last night. That was the Saints moment. Beating Pittsburgh at home on a Sunday night game. They needed that win. The offense hasn't looked the same, the running game struggles and lack of turnovers by the defense has put everyone talking "hangover." Well beating a Steeler team that was the best team in the NFL was a season changer. They got the turnovers. They got the big plays from Brees. They may have saved their season in one night.
Dallas Cowboys- The team a lot of "experts" picked to win the Super Bowl might be lucky to win 3 games. The moment Jones decided to keep Wade comes to mind. Wade is receiving most of the blame and rightfully deserves it. I say Romo's injury though. They weren't good while he was playing but any hope for a turnaround was flushed when Romo broke his collarbone. Why the hell are they waiting on surgery? The Cowboys should pack it in and get ready for some house cleaning. A top left tackle should be on Jones mind right now not salvaging the season. That's history.
Saint Louis Rams- Are they the biggest surprise of the year? Yes in my opinion. You can look at any one's first preview and not find the Rams near .500 at the end of the season or even predict them to have 4 wins all year. Their moment was drafting Bradford. He's the real star out of the draft. The injuries were the focal point. I say were because we can't talk about them anymore. Bradford has proved his worth. The Rams have a fighting chance in a horrible division and a weak schedule.
Houston Texans- I can't predict games very well but the Monday night game tonight is the Texans moment. If they sweep the Colts with a convincing win, they will launch themselves to the playoffs. If their defense can't stop Peyton with half his targets out, the Texans will sit at home again. This is the game to define Kubiak's tenure. The term must win gets thrown out to often. I say it fits this scenario.
Cincinnati Bengals- I text the only person I know who is a Bengal fan for their moment: "When Palmer missed a wide open ochocince in the end zone at the end of the game against Cleveland and they lost. Or when he threw 2 ints against t.b (Tampa Bay) when they were ahead with 2 minutes left and should have just ran and punted and won the game." Hard to argue any of that. Palmer has been the defining picture for Cincy. Where did the franchise QB that was drafted out of USC?
Oakland Raiders- I had to finish with the team I love. Da Raiders moment was a few weeks ago against the Chargers. (I talked about it in the Streak Ends blog). The play with Huff diving for Rivers arm, getting the ball fumbled and Branch takes it to the house changed the complexion of Raider football. I realize since then they lost to San Francisco and beat up on two bad opponents. The fact they blew out 2 teams is proof enough they are well on their way. My only lame excuse for the Niner loss was McFadden was out with an injury. They are .500 at mid-season for the first time in years. I was begging for an 8-8 season. The Rivers reverse tuck rule play turned the whole season around. I still have my guard up, you would to if all you've gone through the heartache and despair like I have for a decade. Still, this is the first time in years I've been this pumped up to see a Chiefs Raider game.
The season is 50% over and some teams haven't had their moment. I'm sure I missed some but I only had so much time to write. The truth is your team's has 16 games to make their mark. You always know how the season will go in a matter of a few breaks. The pigskin needs to bounce your way. I can't wait to see how the rest of the year plays out. We are in for a treat and I thought Halloween was over.
J Call
Arizona Cardinals- They are a mess. They are still contending in the NFC West. They are only one game back of the Seahawks. I don't know if that shows competitiveness in the West or describes the pathetic West. Their moment was Kurt Warner deciding to put on his dance shoes instead of football cleats. The Cardinals would have had one more year of domination in the NFC West with Warner. Derek Anderson and Max Hall aren't cutting it. They needed the Hall of Famer.
Minnesota Vikings- Their moment was when Brad Childress decided to send the house after Favre. Favre returned and looks an old man because he is an old man. The media still loves him and continues to praise his toughness. We should substitute the word toughness for pride. You can praise his pride. He has the heart but he doesn't have the tools. Also, Jared Allen should have never cut his mullet. Allen was a sack machine last year. He cut it and now the defensive line puts pressure on no one. Bring it back Allen.
New Orleans Saints- Last night. That was the Saints moment. Beating Pittsburgh at home on a Sunday night game. They needed that win. The offense hasn't looked the same, the running game struggles and lack of turnovers by the defense has put everyone talking "hangover." Well beating a Steeler team that was the best team in the NFL was a season changer. They got the turnovers. They got the big plays from Brees. They may have saved their season in one night.
Dallas Cowboys- The team a lot of "experts" picked to win the Super Bowl might be lucky to win 3 games. The moment Jones decided to keep Wade comes to mind. Wade is receiving most of the blame and rightfully deserves it. I say Romo's injury though. They weren't good while he was playing but any hope for a turnaround was flushed when Romo broke his collarbone. Why the hell are they waiting on surgery? The Cowboys should pack it in and get ready for some house cleaning. A top left tackle should be on Jones mind right now not salvaging the season. That's history.
Saint Louis Rams- Are they the biggest surprise of the year? Yes in my opinion. You can look at any one's first preview and not find the Rams near .500 at the end of the season or even predict them to have 4 wins all year. Their moment was drafting Bradford. He's the real star out of the draft. The injuries were the focal point. I say were because we can't talk about them anymore. Bradford has proved his worth. The Rams have a fighting chance in a horrible division and a weak schedule.
Houston Texans- I can't predict games very well but the Monday night game tonight is the Texans moment. If they sweep the Colts with a convincing win, they will launch themselves to the playoffs. If their defense can't stop Peyton with half his targets out, the Texans will sit at home again. This is the game to define Kubiak's tenure. The term must win gets thrown out to often. I say it fits this scenario.
Cincinnati Bengals- I text the only person I know who is a Bengal fan for their moment: "When Palmer missed a wide open ochocince in the end zone at the end of the game against Cleveland and they lost. Or when he threw 2 ints against t.b (Tampa Bay) when they were ahead with 2 minutes left and should have just ran and punted and won the game." Hard to argue any of that. Palmer has been the defining picture for Cincy. Where did the franchise QB that was drafted out of USC?
Oakland Raiders- I had to finish with the team I love. Da Raiders moment was a few weeks ago against the Chargers. (I talked about it in the Streak Ends blog). The play with Huff diving for Rivers arm, getting the ball fumbled and Branch takes it to the house changed the complexion of Raider football. I realize since then they lost to San Francisco and beat up on two bad opponents. The fact they blew out 2 teams is proof enough they are well on their way. My only lame excuse for the Niner loss was McFadden was out with an injury. They are .500 at mid-season for the first time in years. I was begging for an 8-8 season. The Rivers reverse tuck rule play turned the whole season around. I still have my guard up, you would to if all you've gone through the heartache and despair like I have for a decade. Still, this is the first time in years I've been this pumped up to see a Chiefs Raider game.
The season is 50% over and some teams haven't had their moment. I'm sure I missed some but I only had so much time to write. The truth is your team's has 16 games to make their mark. You always know how the season will go in a matter of a few breaks. The pigskin needs to bounce your way. I can't wait to see how the rest of the year plays out. We are in for a treat and I thought Halloween was over.
J Call
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