Intro and NFC Predictions

Welcome readers. If you are an avid observer of the sports world, you may have noticed a disturbing trend in sports media today. As in, it is incredibly shitty nowadays. On ESPN, Bill Simmons had to create his own website so that you could actually read about sports, so I hope to breathe some life and information back into the world of football coverage. You can hold me to this, Tim Tebow will never be mentioned more than 7 times in any given blog, and I feel like that is damn refreshing (not to toot my own horn too hard.) Since this is my first blog post and I'm dying from exhaustion, there won't be any links supporting my facts or fancy pictures or goofy memes, but bear with me, as I get better at this whole blogging thing, so will my presentation. So with no further delay, let's take a look at my conference: the NFC.

(Note: The way it will work is I will go division by division placing teams in order of predicted finish with predicted record. I have not gone through the schedule so these are approximations, do not come at me with your records are impossible...bc no one likes those kinds of people.)

NFC East

1. Philadelphia Eagles- Vince Young, the man who brought the football Gods black cloud to the city of brotherly love is gone, so that alone leads me to believe this vaults the Eagles to the top of the pack. This all hinges on the health of one Mike Vick. If Kevlar can keep number 7 on the field, the Eagles have an dynamic offense rivaling the Saints, Packers, and Patriots. A hungry defensive line that should continue to improve on run defense under Jim Washburn and a secondary that should not be as bad as it was last year make this team much more complete. Note to DC Juan Castillo, just put Nnamdi Asomugha across from your opponents best receiver and leave it at that. Being cute and trying to use him as a Charles Woodson hybrid DB clearly failed last year. A team that tradtionally learns from its mistakes under Andy Reid is poised to be at the head of the pack in this division. Record: 10-6

2. New York Giants- This is not a knock against the Giants whatsoever. In their 2 championship seasons under Tom Coughlin, they have proven that domination in the regular season is not their MO. Anyone recall in 2008 when they went 12-4 and flopped in the first round. Sure the season feel apart when Plaxico shot himself, but the record still supports my argument. I expect Eli to have one gaffe filled game and Tom Coughlin to make a late game error that throws the season in doubt, but this team is clearly good enough to grab one of the two wild card spots. Record: 9-7

3. Dallas Cowboys- Short and simple, the Cowboys will never be good so long as Jerry Jones occupies the GM office. The man with arguably one of the more talented rosters in the league refuses to hire a coach that will take them to the next level, simply because Jerry Jones has an ego the size of the 600 lb woman. Therefore they will be good enough to win games, but not good enough to win the tough, gritty games. Record: 8-8

4. Washington Redskins- Facts: Robert Griffin III will excite the league week in, week out. The running game, which has been the bread and butter of Mike Shanahan's resume, will sputter at times. The defense will continue to play at a tenacious level. Saddest fact: The team simply lacksenough play makers to be any better than mediocre. Best Fact (at least for Shanahan): We will see year 4 of the Shanahan regime. Record: 7-9

NFC North

1. Green Bay Packers- Many talking heads are predicting a falling off for the Packers. No shit, they went 15-1 last year. But ludicriously, many predict the Bears to overtake them. I just can't see it. They have a top 2 QB in a QB league, enough play makers in the passing game to continue to mask a suspect running game. They also possess strong leadership on defense that should keep that unit producing at an acceptable level. I am going to go ahead and put the early bird crown on the Packers. Record: 12-4

2. Chicago Bears- The biggest reason I am so high on the Bears is what they have done to their offense. They won't play a conservative offense per se, but it will certainly be one that no longer places Jay Cutler's life in jeopardy. Matt Forte and Michael Bush should be one of the leagues top running batteries, and Chicago's defense is always strong under Lovie Smith. I am sensing a wild card spot for these Bears. Record: 10-6

3. Detroit Lions- Another short and simple one. The Lions simply lack maturity. I don't even feel I need to get into the X's and O's of it, its just a team thats still growing up. I see them playing like they have already arrived, and that will most likely leads to some "stunners" for this team. It won't be a steep regression, but a regression nonetheless. Record: 7-9

4. Minnesota Vikings- I like Christian Ponder. I think Adrian Peterson will bounce back. I think this roster is swiss chesse. Record: 4-12

NFC South

1. New Orleans Saints- This is objective Ricky speaking here. This reeks of the "Eff You" Patriots season of 2007, just hopefully with a different ending. Pete Carmichael proved he can do Sean Payton's job of calling plays, but you will see a slight slip in the offense without Payton's flair coming through in late game situations. At the end of the day, Drew Brees is still the sheriff and will keep that offense purring. I'm also bank that Steve Spagnoulo can work his magic on what has been a historically bad defense. Gregg Williams masked so many of the team's weaknesses. We had first rounders at all of the D-line positions and got 33 sacks out of that. This is where the Spags magic really needs to come into play, seeing as how our championship hopes rely on it. Record: 11-5

2. Atlanta Falcons- Mike Smith probably ends this season with his seat a bit hot, which is unfair seeing as how he has made a joke of a franchise into at least a yearly playoff contender, but the fact of the matter is the defense is a bit spotty, and Matt Ryan is like a small toy, a choking hazard. That offense has scary potential though and could make my prediction look like a Matt Ryan playoff performance.  Record: 8-8

3. Carolina Panthers- I wish this team was over in the AFC so I could be more excited about this team. Cam Newton will not have a sophomore slump, with a 3 man backfield that will be sure to take loads of pressure off of him. Jon beason's health can make or break how Ron Rivera's defense plays. This team will ruin playoff hopefuls late this season, and I will be excited to see them against any team except the Saints. Record: 8-8

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- I like Josh Freeman. I like Greg Schiano. However, he doesn't have a very complete roster to work with. An incredible free agency will keep this team from being dreadfully bad, but a suspect defense and Schiano transitioning into the pro game will mean some growing pains for this Buc team. Record: 5-11

NFC West

1. San Francisco 49ers- This team could have gone 16-0 with Peyton Manning. I mean they went 13-3 with Alex Smith. While I don't think you'll see drastic improvement from Smith, adding Randy Moss and Mario Manningham will lead to more than 17 TDs for Smith, and that defense will continue to be incredible scary. Also, not having very stiff competition for 6 games within the division will lead to another first round bye for this 49ers team. Record: 12-4

2. Seattle Seahawks- Russell Wilson won't be great, but he should be serviceable this year as a rookie. I'm sure Matt Flynn loves having the money in his pocket, but I'm not sure this is what he thought was in store for him this season. I'm sure Arizona in their two games this year would be pining to have his skills put to use for their team. I love the way Pete Carroll has this team playing defense, but i think their best shot to have a winning season would have beein in Matt Flynn's hands. It will be Lucky 777 for the first three years of the Pete Carroll era, which leads me to suspect thats why he went with Wilson. Had Matt Flynn gone 7-9, Carroll is likely out. With a rookie QB, 7-9 is a step in the right direction. Savvy man, that Pete Carroll. Record: 7-9

3. St. Louis Rams- This is a growing team that will actually be a lot better than their record. I think Sam Bradford has star potential if he stays healthy, and the dearth of young talents under the leadership of Jeff Fisher will have hiccups this season, but are on the right track to developing a strong team in a weak division. Record: 5-11

4. Arizona Cardinals- This has disaster written all over it. Ken Whisenhunt is a great coach, but has failed to get a QB to play in his timing-based offense. Kevin Kolb seems to be stuck in the fetal position, and while Skelton can be a QB in this league, he just seems to innaccurate for the offense Whisenhunt runs. Note to Arizona's GM, just go ahead and trade Larry Fitzgerald and scoop up some O-linemen and draft choices, it's just simply the best thing for both parties. Record: 4-12

AFC coming at you tomorrow, thanks for reading, and continue to read. It's only getting better.