game this past Thursday, it's today, the first Sunday of the NFL season that
feels more like opening day to me. With that in mind, here are some of my
thoughts about the upcoming season.
I think the American Football Conference (AFC) title is there for the taking
by the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts still feature a potent, balanced
offense with Peyton Manning at the controls. They've brought in players in
the off-season to bolster the running game, to go along with a steller
passing attack. On defense, they are healthy and while they are still a bit
small up front, they have enough quality players to hold down most teams.
Even with that strong offense, they aren't going to have to out score most
teams to win, although they have the weapons to do it.
Two teams that could pose a challenge to the Colts are the New York Jets and
Baltimore Ravens. The Jets surprised a lot of people last January by
getting into the playoffs on the final day of the season, then making it all
the way to the AFC Title Game before losing to the Colts. Baltimore, a team
with a reputation for strong defense, now has the weapons, particularly in
the passing game to make things interesting on offense. It used to be that
if the Ravens' defense wasn't playing wel, they had no chance to win. Well,
I think if they have too, they can put points on the board in bunches, and I
expect a few come from behind victories for them this year.
Switching to the National Football Conference (NfC) there are a lot of the
so-called experts out there saying the team I root for, the Green Bay
Packers, will make it to the Super Bowl. I love rooting for the Pack, but
I'm not so sure I would go as far as to pick them for the Super Bowl,
although I'll be happy as heck if it happens. The Dallas Cowboys are loaded
and ready to make a Super Bowl run in my opinion. They are strong on both
sides of the ball, offensively and defensively. Heck, they traded away a
quality receiver in Patrick Craton who would probably be playing in a number
2 receiver spot on most teams. Shows you the depth they have. How far
Dallas goes will I think depend a lot on how well Tony Romo performs late in
the season and in the playoffs. Historically, in his relatively short
career, he has not done wel late in the year.
There are other strong contenders in the NFC. I think New Orleans is poised
to have another good season, and in fact, I think they'll win the NFC South.
Close behind them will be the Atlanta Falcons, with their QB Matt Ryan
poised to have a breakout season. The Packers are very strong offensively
and, barring injury, they will score a lot of points. I have some questions
as I look at the Pack on defense, particularly in the secondary. However,
they will have Charles Woodson back there as a leader, and if they can
generate a strong pass rush, it will negate some of the secondary concerns.
Two other teams that I feel will be strong in the NFC are the New York
Giants and San Francisco 49ers. I can't pick the Giants to go all the way
to the Super Bowl because they are too inconsistent, especially at
quarterback. Eli Manning can look very good or vary bad. AS for San
Francisco, they will win a very weak NFC West, and don't count out a team
coached by such a strong leader as Mike Singletary.
You'll notice I haven't mentioned the Minesota Vikings, with Brett Favre at
QB . This is not because of any ill feelings I have about Favre. Minesota
to me simply has too many question marks. At 41, I see no way Favre can
have the kind of year he had last year. There are huge questions at wide
receiver for Minnesota, and that vaunted defense they have had for several
years is one year older. No one has a bigger heart or stronger will to win
than Brett Favre. However, those things will not be enough for Minnesota to
overcome their other issues. I don't think they will even make the
playoffs.
Finally, being in Chicago, I have to mention the Bears. I believe 2010 will
be the final year of the Lovie Smith experiment. Yes, the Bears are trying
out the Mike Marks offense and it will fail miserably. For one thing, they
don't have the talent to run it. For another, they are going to have enough
trouble keeping Jay Kutler healthy and upright. And thirdly, the only time
that offense was successful was when a team that plays indoors was running
it. When you hit late November and December in Chicago, you have to be able
to run the ball and that's not what this offense is predicated on. I'm
picking the Bears to go 5-11 this year, then hopefully, Bears' ownership
will back up the moving vans and clean house.
So to summarize, my Super Bowl picks are the Dallas Cowboys from the NFC,
and the Indianapolis Colts from the AFC. I'll pick Indianapolis to win in a
close game. But before that, we've got several months of NFL football to
watch. So, let's kick it off today on opening Sunday. As the song asks,
are you ready for some football? I say, yes I am!
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