2010 Pre-Season Predictions

On the rise

-Jason Campbell and the Raiders
If you had told me a year ago that the Oakland Raiders could be favorites to with their division I would have laughed in your face. It's funny how quickly things can change. If any team dramatically improved in the off-season it would have to be Oakland, as they adressed nearly all of their problems. They cut the tumor that was draft-bust Jamarcus Russell from their roster, and acquired the young, talented Jason Campbell from the Redskins. That by itself would have been a significant improvement, however the rouges of the NFL didn't stop there as they did something that nobody would have guessed: They had a good draft. When the Raiders announced their first pick in the draft, everyone across the country was fully expecting yet another poor pick, one on Matt Millen level of awfulness. However, instead of another Jamarcus, the Raiders made a smart, safe choice and drafted LB Rolando McClain. The rest of their draft was on a similar tone of making smart choices, nothing mind-blowing, but players who they can help to rebuild their franchise with.



Add this improvement with an opening for a dominant force in the AFC West, and you have a golden opportunity for the Raiders to shock everyone and make the playoffs this year.

-San Francisco 49ers

Within the next 2-3 years three things will happen. First, Mike Singletary will win coach of the year, as he turned a team of lacklusters into a squad of competitors. From Vernon Davis to Michael Crabtree, he has turned former locker room cancer into team players. Who else could turn a team around while having his pants around his ankles? Nobody, but Samurai Mike.

Second, Pat Willis will be crowned as the best defensive player in the league, without question. Though he should already be concerned the best, many still consider other players to fill the rank of top player on defense (Darelle Revis, Ed Reed, Jared Allen, ect..). However, beginning this year I believe that Willis will begin to receive the recognition that he deserves, by winning defensive player of the year.

Lastly, The San Francisco 49ers will win the superbowl. When Mike Ditka took over the Chicago Bears  in 1982, he told the team that it would take him a couple of years, but eventually he would get the team ready to contend for a superbowl. Three years later, the 85' Bears were born. While the 49ers may lack some of the tools that the Bears had in their run of dominace (such as the greatest running back of all time), they still have the potential to get the job done. When this all comes to play, you can say you heard it here first folks.

The Mullet is the source of his power

-Aaron Rodgers

If you have yet to acknowledge A-Rodge as one of the elite QB's in the NFL then this upcoming season will be the one to sway your mind. With a spectacular performance last season, Rodgers was 4th in the league in passing yards and Overall QB rating by the end of the season. Unfortunately his stride was cut short by Kurt Warner in the 1st round of the playoffs, mostly due to the garbage offensive line he was forced to tolerate. However, since then the Packers have made moves to strengthen their line and grant Aaron more protection to get the job done. Not only will the Packers win the NFC North this season (it's all, but guaranteed), but many fully expect them to make a superbowl run as well. When Peyton retires, expect Rodgers to be there to pick up the reigns as the NFL's top QB.

-The Detroit Lions
First off the Lions will not win more than 7 games this year. With that in mind, Detroit will be much better than they were last year. The offseason was very good to the Lions, as they managed to nab some great players in free-agency such as veteren linebacker Kyle Vanden Bosch and had arguably the best draft in the league with pickings such as DT Ndamukong Suh, RB Jahvid Best, and CB Amari Spievey. Just today (8/18/10), the Lions aquired former 1st round pick DE Lawrence Jackson from the Seahawks. So while Detroit will not be a powerhouse this coming season, it is safe to say they are making the right moves. Oh and they still have the second best Wide Receiver in the league, Calvin "Megatron" Johnson. I fully expect the Lions to be a team to be feared within the next 2 years, remember you heard it here first.

-Miami Dolphins

Forgot all the hype surrounding the New York Jets, the real threat in the AFC East lies in Miami. With the addition of Brandon Marshall, the Phins now have an elite deep WR to help balance out their run centered offense. With QB Chad Henne under center, Miami now can truly put their Wildcat offense to the test, as opponents will have to watch out for rushes from Ronnie Brown while being wary of the possibility of a deep bomb to Marshall. If there is any surprise team to watch for in the AFC this season it's the Dolphins for sure.

-Joe Flacco
Though he had a lackluster sophmore season, Joey Flacks is back and ready to take up the mantle as the top QB in the AFC North. As shown in the pre-season games thus far, the Baltimore QB is adjusting well to having an all-star receiver this season, as Anquan Boldin joined the Raven's roster in the offseason. With Boldin and other quality receivers to pass to (Derrick Mason, Dante Stallworth), Flacco now has the talent to help him be an asset to the Raven's run game which dominated last season. Expect great things from young Joseph this season.

About the Same

What Tom thinks about when he isn't playing

-New England Patriots

If there is one constant to be found in the AFC East it is the Patriots. With no significant changes to their roster since 2007 when they acquired Randy Moss, it's safe to say that New England will not change the way that they play football in this upcoming season. Of course this works both ways, both good and bad; for one their formula bring success, as shown by their 3 superbowl wins in the past decade. However, their inability to adapt to new challengers is catching up Tom Brady and the blue crew, as their division is becoming much more difficult, as the Jets D and the Dolphins Offense are becoming feared throughout the conference. This together with a Wes Welker still recovering from a torn ACL in his left knee, and a defense without an identity, can lead to a mediocre season, such as last year.

-Peyton Manning and the Colts

What else can really be said about Peyton Manning? It's undeniable that he is the best quarterback in the past 20 years, and could even be the best to ever play the game. The 4x MVP winner (the most of all time), is coming into another season with the same weapons and gameplan that brought the Colts to the superbowl last year. Indianapolis was only one onside kick away from being world champions, and they are returning this season with the same goal in mind: winning it all.

Skeptical Seahawks logo is skeptical

-Seattle Seahawks
Despite bringing in a new head coach, and making some improvements in the receiving core by drafting Golden Tate, the Seahawks will almost certainly have another lackluster season ahead of them. Don't expect Pete Caroll to have the same effect that Rex Ryan had on the Jets last year, as New York always had the talent on defense to fulfill Ryan's strategies, while Seattle lacks a clear direction on either side of the ball and is still plagued by injuries, though not to the extent of last season. Though it is doubtful that Carroll will be able to turn Seattle into a contender during his time as coach, it most certainly won't be this season.

-Chris Johnson
No better, and no worse. This is how you can expect Johnson to perform this upcoming season, as he will have yet another steller season as the league's best running back. Though he will most likely not break the single season rushing record held by Eric Dickerson for 2,105 yards; it's a safe bet that CJ will have another 2,000 yard season, and will be a surefire candidate for MVP.

Falling Down

-The New York Jets

Despite a ton of moves in the offseason, the Jets have done nothing, but weaken themselves since last season. Instead of picking up a new contract for Thomas Jones, New York chose to bring in an aged LT, who cannot provide nearly the same workload that TJ brought to the table for the Jets for 3 seasons. While Greene is a worthy replacement for Jones as the #1 back, the Jets will now lack the 1-2 punch that they had last season in their running game. Of course, Rex Ryan and company will still rely on their running game, as this season will reveal Mark Sanchez as the bust that he is. His lackluster performance last season will be revealed to be more than just rookie blues, as he will be more of a liability to the Jets than an asset.

What would really be the final nail in the Jet's coffin though would be a holdout throughout the season by Darrelle Revis. Without their superstar cornerback the Jets defense would take 2 steps backwards, as they would lose the ability to shutdown Star receivers, a vital asset when you play Randy Moss and Brandon Marshall twice a year.

-The Arizona Cardinals
If any team has suffered severe losses in the off-season it has to be the Cardinals, as two of their key offensive players have left their ranks. Kurt Warner decided to retire after being injured in the playoffs against the Saints, and Anquian Boldin saw the sinking ship that Arizona was becoming and decided to jump off while he could, landing in Baltimore. With their quarterback and star wideout gone, the Cardinals must now rely on draft bust Matt Leinart, which means they will be putting much more focus on their running game this season. Pair this with the rising 49ers and you have yourself a recipe for a lackluster season.

-The Minnesota Vikings

Before you get your purple panties in a bunch Vikings fans, i'm not going to tell you that your team is going to go 0-16 without Favre. What I am going to tell you though is that Minnesota's performance this year will not be parallel to last year's. The biggest reason of course is the rising competition in the NFC North. For the past 3 years of their division dominance, the vikings played a lions team which went 0-16, a young green bay team in the middle of a QB transition, and a Chicago team who's QB was either a drunk hobo or a diabetic interception machine. Combine these 6 free games a season with the drafting of one of the league's best running-backs and you had a recipe for success. However, now the rest of the NFC North is beginning to catch up with the purple people eaters; Arron Rodgers and the Packers are ready to dominate with the #1 rush defense in the league and an offense which puts fear into their opponents, the Lions are quickly rebuilding to become a possible threat, and the Bears made moves in free-agency to patch up their holes.


This newfound competition is only half of the Viking's problems though, as the rest of their issues come from within their own ranks. Regardless of whether Favre returns or not, Minnesota still has one of the worst coaches in the league and a star running back who's fumble problems are beginning to overshadow his other abilities. Childress faced issues of leadership last year, as he lost control of his team to Brett Favre; the old gunslinger took over the offense and formed it to his style of deep bombs instead of the rushing attack the team had depended on for the past couple of years. This of course lead to AP getting less time with the ball, which showed significantly in his stats (1,760 yards in 2008; 1,383 yards in 2009). However, this didn't prevent him from fumbling the ball more often; last season AP fumbled 6 times (the most fumbles by any RB in the league), and then fumbled twice in the NFC Championship game. This problem has gotten worse over his career, and will most likely persist in the upcoming season.


With all these factors combined, there is a good chance that the Vikings will not win more than 9 games this season, and will not make it far in the playoffs (if they make it at all).


NOTE: Favre is returning for the 2010 season, however this doesn't change my opinion on the Vikings

This was the best photo I could find to represent the Bills

-The Buffalo Bills

Out of all the teams in the NFL, the Bills easily had the worst off-season. They replaced their former lackluster coach with a new lackluster coach, and made no significant changes to enhance their offense other than drafting RB C.J. Spiller in the 1st round of the draft. They still do not have an answer to their quarterback needs (Drafting Levi Brown from Troy in the 7th round isn't solving the problem), and their 30th ranked rush defense has only been slightly modified with the drafting of Torell Troup in the 2nd round. Buffalo also made no significant moves in the free-agent market, which was their only hope for a decent season. When you play in the same division as the Jets, Patriots and Dolphins, you have to make moves to stay above water, but due to their ignorance the Bills are going to drown.

Do not let Josh McDaniels near your children. He'll trade them to the Bears.

-The Denver Broncos

Rewind the clock by 2 years. The Broncos were entering the 2008 NFL season with a high-profile QB, one of the best receivers in the league, a superbowl winning head coach and a defense which wasn't afraid to give out punishment. Now return to modern day, Denver's QB situation can be likened to the 3 stooges: an drunk hobo QB who can deliver wins, a young draft bust acquired for 2 shoestrings and a coupon to red lobster, and the young gun who doesn't know how to stay in the pocket (you can't make this stuff up). Combine this with the loss of their two best players over the last 2 seasons, and a defense that spends more time in the medical bay than the football field and you have a recipe for disaster.