This has been quite a crazy NFL season. Tom Brady goes down, Romo misses time, Atlanta is good and Seattle is bad. Most sportswriters, bloggers, etc won’t review their predictions during the season but I do. Here is how I’m doing.
NFC East – Cowboys 12-4 (actual 8-4) Taking Romo’s injury into consideration I’m not too far off on this one. Eagles 11-5 (actual 6-5-1) The Eagles are a very disappointing team. Granted they have had injuries too but the play and coaching have been poor. NY Giants 9-7 (actual 11-1) I still thought this was a 9 or 10 win football team. Coughlin has been brilliant this season and Brandon Jacobs is worth his weight in gold. Redskins 7-9 (actual 7-5) Washington will end up with 8 or 9 wins. I wasn’t too far off on this one. Zorn has done a great job with this team.
NFC North – Minnesota 11-5 (actual 7-5) With the suspension of the Williams boys I am probably going to miss this one. They were on pace to win 10 games. They look to finish 8-8 in a possible 3 way tie with Chicago and Green Bay. Chicago 9-7 (actual 6-6) I am dead on with this one. They should finish with 9 wins and a division title. Green Bay 7-9 (actual 5-7) Weak back end of the schedule might propell Green Bay to 8 wins but I am pretty much on point with this one too. Detroit 5-11 (actual 0-11) I was right they would finish in last but way off on the win total. This team might end up winless. That is amazing to me.
NFC South – Saints 10-6 (actual 6-6) I was off on the win total as they should win only 8 games but I was right about why they wouldn’t win 12 or 13 games like some of my Saints friends insisted they would. New Orleans can’t run and they can’t defend. A team with a great pass offense ONLY gets you to about .500 and that’s it. Bucs 9-7 (actual 9-3) Chucky and the Tampa GM deserve high praise here. This team is a motley crew of sorts and they continue to play aggressive, smash mouth football. Was off by 2 as they should finish with 11 wins. Panthers 7-9 (actual 9-3) I missed out on a resurrgent Julius Peppers and Carolina defense. They are also running the ball well and Delhomme has been efficient. They should finish in a tie with Tampa. Alanta 5-11 (actual 8-4) I thought I went out on a limb picking them to win 5 games. Now they should win 10 and end up the last wildcard team. Ryan has been better than I thought he would and Michael Turner has been a real difference maker.
NFC West – Seahawks 12-4 (actual 2-10) Way off on this one. Seattle is totally disappointing. I missed this one badly. Hasselbeck going down didn’t help but they should have been good enough to stay afloat and stay in the race out west. At least I didn’t pick them to go to the Superbowl. Cardinals 9-7 (actual 7-5) I was dead on with this evaluation of Arizona. The only difference is they did it with the old man at QB and they will see the post-season. 49ers 6-10 (actual 4-8) I was dead on with this one. San Fran is improving as the season continues. The question is will they continue on with Mike Singeltary. Rams 4-12 (actual 2-10) Dead on again. This team is rebuilding and they will have a new head coach next year as well. It appears the Bulger era will end and they will take QB, Bradford, Harrell or Hall, in the NFL Draft.
AFC East - Patriots 13-3 (actual 7-5) Hmmmm, Tom Brady. That is about all I have to type here. Despite the awful start they should make the playoffs with 10 wins. New York Jets 10-6 (actual 8-4) I guess I can say I nailed this one. I knew Favre’s addition would make Jones better and that would make the whole offense a lot better. They will probably tie New England. I’m not sure who owns the tie breaker between them. Bills 6-10 (actual 6-6) I am not far off on this one. Without their QB they will end up with about 7 wins. Buffalo is getting better though. Hang in there Bills fans. Dolphins 4-12 (actual 7-5) I missed the boat entirely with this one but so did most other prognosticators. Ronnie Brown has been healthy and running wild. Sparano has been the perfect coach for that team and Pennington is managing the games will. The Phins could finish in a 3 way tie for the division and the match ups work in their favor as they play Buffalo, San Fran and KC. They finish up at the NY Jets.
AFC North – Browns 11-5 (actual 4-8) They had better fire Romeo after this debacle. How does Anderson regress this badly? How does the defense regress this badly? It is a poorly coached team! Steelers 11-5 (actual 9-3) I am dead on with this one. They are about an 11 win team. Health has been a concern for this team but RB Moore has been a savior. There is enough talent on this team to win the division and play in the AFC Championship Game.
Bengals 8-8 (actual 1-11) I can say for certain the Marv Lewis, Chad Johnson and Carson Palmer era in Cincy are over. This team is just brutal. The GM dropped the ball for not securing a better runner and overall depth as this team has been racked with injuries. Ravens 7-9 (actual 8-4) They are a little bit ahead of the curve. I thought new coach and QB mean sub .500, even with the good defense. However the offense has been just good enough. Flacco won’t be a Top 5 kind of QB but he resembles a Kyle Orton type who will manage a game and get the job done. Wildcard is likely for this team. Harbaugh should get coach of the year in the AFC.
AFC South – Jaguars 12-4 (actual 4-8) Del Rio is probably spared the axe and given one more season. They should have contended for the division title but Garrard isn’t as good as we thought and Matt Jones is his only target. The defense is also sluggish and full of holes. The GM could take the rap for this debacle. Colts 11-5 (actual 8-4) I am not a fan but after a bad start, largely due to Manning and RB injuries this team is back on track. 10 or 11 wins is what they should finish with. They could be this seasons 2007 NY Giants. Texans 9-7 (actual 5-7) These guys should be a bit better than 5 wins. Kubiak gets one more season to get this right. Schaub can’t stay healthy and they still don’t have a front line runner. The defense is better but inconsistent. Titans 8-8 (actual 11-1) I could not have missed any bigger than this one. They looked to be a .500 team when I evaluated them but the defense turned into one of the best in the AFC. Kerry Collins of all QBs is an efficient leader on offense. Not too mention the killer RB combo of Chris Johnson and LenDale White. They will win 13 or 14 games but I still think Indy or New England trips them up in the end.
AFC West – Chargers 12-4 (actual 4-8) Bye, Bye Norv Turner. San Diego looked like a stacked Super Bowl contender at Week 1. However the injury of Merriman would change the entire dynamic of the team. I also think LT missing his reliable back up in M.Turner was a factor too. Rivers hasn’t been bad but he hasn’t had much to work with. They have also lost a few close games that they probably should have one. That we blame on poor coaching. Goodbye Norv, Hello Ron Rivera? Broncos 9-7 (actual 7-5) Dead on with this one. They are going to win the division, that’s a given. Beyond that I just don’t know. Cutler has been good and seems to be getting better. The new RB Hillis is getting the job done. Denver will ultimately go as far as the defense takes them which is probably a home playoff win in the Wildcard round and getting slaughtered on the road in Round 2. Chiefs 8-8 (actual 2-10) I was quoted as saying, “it could be a break through year for KC.” I was way off on this one. KC is in the middle of a big rebuild and they lost their starting and back up QBs to injury. The upside is they may have found a future QB in Thigpen. KC would be wise to target a stud offensive player in the NFL Draft. Raiders 5-11 (actual 3-9) I was pretty much right on here. However, with the Kiffen meltdown and the fact Russell will never be a quality QB in the NFL, this team will rebuild all over again. Maybe Detroit would take Russell for multiple picks. There is always hope Raider fans.
Overall I did OK. I was way off on a few but I got about half of them right on. My Superbowl pick with New England v. Dallas with New England winning. It could still happen but it will be a long shot. Judging by the current state in the NFL I would say Dallas has a great shot to beat NY in the NFC title game and Indy/NY Jets will upset Tennessee in the AFC Game.
Enjoy the rest of the season BPD readers.
