NFL Preview 2011

Everyone take a big sigh of relief.

That’s because the NFL is back and he won’t have to worry about wondering what life is like without football.

As early as mid-July, I was worried that this blog post was going to be a “Top 10 ways to survive the NFL Lockout”.

But thankfully, it is an NFL Preview blog.

Here is what I think will go down in the 2011 NFL season.

AFC EAST

1. New England

2. New York Jets

3. Miami

4. Buffalo

It didn’t take long for Jets coach Rex Ryan to make another bold guarantee after his team lost to the Steelers in last year’s AFC Championship game. About a month after the team’s loss, he came out and said “"I believe this is the year we're going to win the Super Bowl” at the Scouting Combine.

The fact is that he’s said this same statement for a couple years now, and the Jets have been not been able to make it that far. Who does this guy think he is? Hey, Rex, take a good long look in the mirror and ask yourself why your team went down 24-0 in the first half of that game against the Steelers? Maybe it was your fault for not having your team ready to play that game?

The Jets will never win a Super Bowl with Rex as their coach, and will never win one with that anemic offence. And I don’t even think they’ll be in the playoffs this year.

The Patriots do not have an anemic offence and are poised to replicate that 14-2 regular season of last year except with a better finish (lost to the Jets in the playoffs). Remember, Tom Brady was the first player to unanimously win the MVP award last year. The big question is if Chad OchoCinco and Albert Haynesworth can regain their old form as they start over in a Patriots uniform. The Patriots have a history of bringing in guys who looked like they were done, only to see them turn in superior seasons (Corey Dillon, Randy Moss). Expect OchoCinco and Haynesworth to have solid seasons. The Pats will win the AFC East.

Key game: NY Jets @ New England October 5^th- The Jets walked into Foxboro last January and shocked the 14-2 Patriots. Don’t expect Bill Belichick’s crew to repeat that same embarrassing performance.

AFC NORTH

1. Baltimore

2. Pittsburgh (Wildcard)

3. Cleveland

4. Cincinnati

The Pittsburgh Steelers are the NFL’s version of a soap opera. First, Hines Ward gets caught drinking and driving in the offseason. Not smiling so much anymore, are you Hines? Then James Harrison goes on a rant and rips everybody from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, to his own QB, Ben Roethlisberger for playing a bad Super Bowl game last year. And after Harrison ripped the commissioner of the NFL, it seems the league punished the Steelers by giving them a pretty hard start to the season (@ Baltimore, vs Seattle, @ Indianapolis, @ Houston). The Steelers could easily be 1-3 after the first quarter of the season. And you can bet there are still some issues in the Steelers room, even though they’ll say that everything is fine.

With the Steelers soap opera potentially having a crippling effect on their season, it’s time for the Baltimore Ravens to step up. We might be seeing one of the final times that this defence can be one of the most feared in the league with guys like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed getting up there in the age department. The Ravens should have beaten the Steelers in last year’s playoffs, building a 21-7 lead in the first half before letting it slip away. And as much as I don’t trust Joe Flacco in a big game, I’ll give the Ravens the division, with the Steelers snagging a wildcard berth.

Key Game: Pittsburgh @ Baltimore- September 11^th- Basically, whoever wins this game wins the division. Can you imagine losing to your division rival in the very first week of the season? How do you bounce back from something like that? Edge to the Ravens here because it’s in Baltimore.

AFC SOUTH

1. Indianapolis

2. Houston (Wildcard)

3. Tennessee

4. Jacksonville

Peyton Manning is breaking down and we can all write off the Colts, right? Not so fast. First of all, Manning said on national television that his goal is to play Week 1 of the season, meaning his neck surgery might not be as bad as we all thought. Second, when Manning plays, the Colts do well. Even last year, when Manning basically had guys off the street posing as his receivers,
the Colts won the division title. I’m not worried about the Colts like a lot of people are.

And make no mistake about it; the Houston Texans are a good football team. I have them as the other wildcard in the AFC. But I don’t know if they can overtake the Colts yet. Just getting to the playoffs would be a huge accomplishment for this team, especially considering all the hype around this team in the last few years, only to see one disappointing finish after another.

Key Game: Houston @ Indianapolis December 22nd- The Texans have never beaten the Colts in Indianapolis. This game might be for the division title, and for the Texans to prove they are for real they have to win at Lucas Oil Stadium.

AFC WEST

1. San Diego

2. Kansas City

3. Oakland

4. Denver

The San Diego Chargers will not get off to another horrific start this year. It’s been the same old story the last few years as the Bolts start 1-3, or 2-4, or in last year’s case 2-5, before they battle back and have an outstanding second half of the season and win the division. Last year, even though they fought back and finished with a 9-7 record, it wasn’t enough to catch Kansas City. I would not be shocked if this team comes out and just destroys the opposition in their first 5 games, (vs. Minnesota, @ New England, vs. Kansas City, vs. Miami, @ Denver). It’s a really easy schedule, minus the visit to Foxboro. And a really dangerous offence, led by a leading candidate for MVP this year, Philip Rivers.

Key game- Kansas City @ San Diego- September 25^th – The Chiefs went into San Diego last year and lost 31-0. The Chargers will hammer the Chiefs yet again and prove they are the class of the division.

NFC EAST

1. Philadelphia

2. Dallas (Wildcard)

3. NY Giants

4. Washington

The common opinion among many was after the Eagles spending spree in the offseason, that they’re the odds-on Super Bowl favourite. I wouldn’t go that far, but they are clearly the team to beat in the NFC East. There are going to be some hard-fought games in this division, and I think the Cowboys, with new defensive co-ordinator Rob Ryan, are a team who will have a monster bounce-back year and snap up a wildcard berth. And by the way, Giants QB Eli Manning has to stop throwing 20 picks a year if he wants to be considered an elite NFL quarterback. That will be tough against the Eagles and Cowboys secondary.

Key game- Philadelphia @ NY Giants November 20^th- The scene of last year’s epic Eagles comeback (trailed 31-10 with 8 minutes left and won 38-31 in regulation) capped off by a last-play DeSean Jackson punt return TD. The Giants will be ready for this one.

NFC NORTH

1. Green Bay

2. Detroit

3. Minnesota

4. Chicago

The defending Super Bowl champions won last year with a whole bunch of guys on IR. This year, they’ve got everyone back healthy. Look out. Aaron Rodgers has to be the pre-season favourite for the MVP. The surprise team might be the Detroit Lions who will be above .500 if they can keep everyone healthy, including the NFL’s equivalent of Buck Pierce, Lions QB Matthew Stafford. I think the Lions will just fall short of the playoffs, but 6 teams make it in the NFC, and I think the Lions will be a very close 7^th. (P.S. I didn’t mention the Bears because I think Jay Cutler bombs hard this year)

Key Game: Green Bay @ Detroit- November 24^th- When’s the last time a Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit actually meant something to the home town team? It just might this year, with the Lions expected to be a good team and the defending champs coming to town.

NFC SOUTH

1. New Orleans

2. Atlanta (Wildcard)

3. Carolina

4. Tampa Bay

The Falcons showed us who they really were last year when the Packers went into Atlanta and destroyed them in the playoffs, 48-21. I’m not saying Atlanta is a bad team, but I don’t think they are a Super Bowl contender just yet. They’ll snap up a wildcard berth. The New Orleans Saints are looking to bounce back after a comical loss to the Seattle Seahawks in last year’s playoffs. The Saints were still 11-5 last year and should have that many wins, if not more, this year.

Key game- Atlanta @ New Orleans- December 26^th- This Boxing Day battle will be anything but a defensive slugfest. Still, it might determine the winner of the division.

NFC WEST

1. Arizona

2. San Francisco

3. St. Louis

4. Seattle

One thing I know for sure about this horrid division, the winner will not be under .500 like last year’s division champion 7-9 Seattle Seahawks. The Cardinals have a decent QB again in Kevin Kolb, and it should be the determining factor in winning this division over three other mediocre teams.

Key game- Arizona @ San Francisco- November 20^th- Whatever….

AFC Championship: San Diego over New England

NFC Championship: Green Bay over Philadelphia

Super Bowl XLVI- Green Bay over San Diego