|
Okay, I’m late on this one.
I know no one will probably end up reading this, but I had to go on
record for the 2015 season. You can
find season previews and predictions strewn accrossed the internet, but if
you want to know what's really going to happen, keep reading.
|
|
Cincinnati 11-5
Is this the year?? Maybe. I feel good about it. I think the offense might be a
juggernaut. Some see it coming, but no
one has the guts to believe in Dalton enough to predict it. I just hope we see a significant chunk of
the season with Marvin Jones, A.J. Green, and Tyler Eifert (long live the
Queen!) on the field at the same time.
If the key players on both sides of the ball stay healthy, I think it
will be an entertaining run. In the
end they come up just short in the AFC title game (skip to the bottom if you
want to know the details).
Baltimore 9-7
Baltimore's front 7 on D is enough to propel them into the
playoffs. If they can avoid CB
injuries for once, they might have a top 5 unit. The offense has too many question marks at
receiver for this team to be great, but Mark Trestman should be able to squeeze
out enough production for them to limp to a wild card berth.
|
|
Cleveland 8-8
The surprise of the division.
Cleveland crawls out of the cellar behind their hulking offensive line
and a solid defense.
Pittsburgh 8-8
|
|
Ok, the real surprise of the division. The defense has a chance to be bottom 10 in
the league. In fairness, the offense
could be good enough to get them to 10 wins on their own, but that's if everything
goes reasonably well. I'm obviously
predicting they will have more than one bump in the road here, but I can't
exactly say why.
|
Indianapolis 13-3
They were the early chic pick to win the AFC in many circles.
Cooler heads are starting to prevail. The defense and the O-line are bad they
say. I think the offense will be potent,
if not historic, and the defense won’t be as bad as most think. They’ll set some records, but they’ll have to
wait until next season to taste the Super Bowl.
Houston 9-7
It’s hard to get past the QB situation looking at this
team. Hoyer should be good enough to
edge them to a winning record behind a nasty defense.
Jacksonville 6-10
Bortles makes some strides, but they only see a slight nudge
in the right direction in wins.
Hopefully it’s enough to keep the Gus Bradley regime going.
Tennessee 6-10
If nothing else, the government must now give up the
Tennessee franchise as their go-to stash location for the witness protection
program. All eyes are now on lord
Marcus. The future is bright, but 2016
is just the dawn.
Miami 11-5
The predictions have almost been too sweet on Miami for me
to make this call. All of the pieces
aren’t in place, but they have enough. The
defense should be stout and the offense should emerge.
Buffalo 8-8
An already high-end defense gets the Rex Ryan bump. Tyrod Taylor might not be super terrible.
New England 8-8
This team has been almost unanimously lauded in the AFC top
3. There are too many moving parts for
me. They have a lot riding on an
injury-prone tight end. The secondary is
in flux. The O-line is in flux. Brady’s
mind is who knows where. They do this
over and over and they always seem to find a way. I don’t see it this year. Aging
quarterbacks can win titles, but you have to give them more help as they age,
not less. 2014 was Brady’s Elway moment. Revis was his Terrell Davis. Revis is gone.
New Yok Jets 3-13
Poor Jets fans. There
was cause for optimism in the spring, but they are already busting at the
seams. When your quarterback gets punched in the face by a teammate in the
preseason, it’s just going to be one of those years.
Denver 13-3
I’ve come full circle on this one. The defense should be good, maybe great.
Manning has a little left in the tank. The WR/RB talent is there. The one question: Can they cobble together an
O-line? I’ll give Kubiak the benefit of the doubt.
San Diego 10-6
No one seems to be hot on San Diego this year, but I like
their chances. They were poised to make
some noise last year, but they seemed to lose an O-lineman every week and the
whole thing just fell apart. With a
re-tooled line, they have to have better luck this year right?
Oakland 8-8
Hold the phone everyone, we might have to upgrade Oakland to
“frisky” status. They now have a star on
each side of the ball to build around. The
key?: Can Derek Carr be competent?
Competent? Yes. Great? Probably not.
Kansas City 4-12
Andy Reid doesn’t lay too many stinkers, but it just doesn’t
feel like everything is clicking into place for the 2015 season. They already have key players ailing. I don’t like it.
Green Bay 9-7
Perhaps the single digit win total is a surprise, but they
still do enough to win the division. They
are who we thought they were. Rodgers
misses a few games and they only get to 9 wins.
Detroit 9-7
Solid enough on both sides of the ball to earn a wild
card. I don’t see enough fire power for
a serious playoff run.
Minnesota 9-7
The unanimous sleeper pick this year. Year two of Bridgewater will be a little
rockier than people anticipate and they just barely miss the playoffs. The O-line injuries have already started.
Chicago 3-13
The offense could be volatile in a good way and in a bad
way. The defense doesn’t have enough
talent.
Atlanta 10-6
10-6: Not a bad year for a first year head coach. The rest of the division just seems too
unstable.
Carolina 8-8
When losing a streaky second-year receiver more or less
blows up your season, how good could you possibly be?
New Orleans 5 – 11
It’s hard to imagine this defense being any good. The
offense seems to hinge too much on Brandin Cooks and C.J. Spiller.
Tampa Bay 3-13
But it will be a positive 3-13 right? They have a plan. This year they work out the kinks.
Philadelphia 13-3
Chip Kelly has taken a lot of flak for his personnel
aggressiveness, but I think it is working.
Relying on Sam Bradford’s knees is a gamble, but for 2015 it is going to
pay off.
Washington 9-7
This is my “Dallas is going to stink, oh no wait they almost
won the NFC” pick. Okay, I don’t think
Washington has to worry about going to the Super Bowl, but they’re going to hit
their stride mid-season and surprise people on offense and defense.
Dallas 8-8
Everything went right for them last year. I don’t expect the
same in 2015. They are a little too
cocky after one successful season.
New York Giants 4-12
Those people in the witness protection program that are
getting transferred out of Tennessee? They
will be playing on New York’s defense this year. Odell Beckham Jr. will be great, but this
will be a long season for him. Too much
pressure.
Arizona 10-6
Again, I tend to expect the opposite of what happened the
year before. The Cardinals had no luck
at QB last year. This year, Palmer stays
healthy and leads them to a division title.
Seattle 10-6
The Super Bowl loser jinx knocks them down a notch, but they
still make the playoffs.
St. Louis 8-8
The defense is scary, but Nick Foles is not the answer.
San Francisco 3-13
With the first pick in the 2016 draft, the 49ers select…
Okay, this is the better candidate for the Dallas is supposed to be sucky but
they’re really good thing that I talked about with Washing ton, but I don’t
have the guts to predict it. I think
they’re rebuilding.
Super Bowl Pick:
In the NFC, Chip Kelly pulls off some magic and beats
Arizona to go to the Super Bowl.
In the AFC, our Bengals break their playoff drought. They even manage to thwart Andrew Luck in round
2, but Peyton Manning doesn’t have a playoff meltdown for once and the Broncos
claim the AFC.
Denver marches into the Super Bowl and takes down Chip Kelly’s
three-ringed circus. Peyton Manning has a key scramble in the second half where
he rolls out right and dives for a first down, helicoptering in the air as he
bounces off a defender. The T.V. cameras
show John Elway 17,000 times in the press box between the time of the play and
the end of the game. I can’t make this
stuff up, so I guess it means it’s going to happen. Happy beginning-of-the-season everyone. Enjoy.
