NFL Power Poll Rankings of the 32 Best NFL Teams In The Land: Week Zero, Part 3

Finally, the 10 best teams in the league are here.  If you disagree, you are wrong.  This is truth, pure and undiluted.  Trying to deny it is trying to deny matter and energy.  You shall see.

(PART I)

(PART II)

10. New York Giants

A lot of people are down on the Giants this year, with Steve Smith gone to Philly, Kevin Boss gone to Oakland, uncertainty and turnover on the offensive line for the first time in years, and with a rash of injuries hitting an a seemingly non-stop rate.  Prince Amukamara, Justin Tuck, Jonathan Goff, and Osi Umenyiora are all out for week one, but I still feel confident the Giants can get back to the playoffs.  Eli Manning has thrown for over 4000 yards in back-to-back seasons, and his ridiculous interception rate (25 total, 4.6% of his pass attempts) should come back down to around league average, and Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham will do just fine without Smith and Boss.  The offensive line is in transition, but it is still talented across the board.  Losing both Tuck and Umenyiora would be a death knell for most clubs, but the Giants have Mathias Kiwanuka and Jason Pierre-Paul in reserve, who would both start for most teams.  The secondary will yet again be a problem, but Pierre-Paul and Kiwanuka should both exert enough pressure to keep things from reaching 2010 Houston Texans-level in pass defense.  Tom Coughlin's tenure in New York has been marked by its most successful seasons occurring when the rest of the league has written them off, and I like that trend to continue this season.

NFL Power Poll Rankings of the 32 Best NFL Teams In The Land: Week Zero, part 2

And now, part two of my preseason power rankings...

(PART I)

20. Chicago Bears
The Bears offensive personnel finally fits the mold of a Mike Martz offense, but think San Francisco or Detroit Martz, not St. Louis Martz.  Tight end Greg Olsen has been jettisoned to Carolina, eliminating a talented target at a position that Martz has never seen the value in including in his game plans (for evidence of how badly Martz neglects his tight ends, look up Vernon Davis's stats during Martz's reign with the 49ers and then after Martz was let go).  The receiving corps is deep but lacks top shelf talent, while the offensive line will be porous once again, leaving Jay Cutler exposed in a system that feels no need to keep any backs around in the backfield to pick up blitzes.  Last year's 7th round pick, Marcus Webb, is the starting left tackle, which means Bears fans may be seeing Caleb Hanie featured prominently at quarterback.  Matt Forte has yet to live up to the massive promise he showed as a rookie, but, again, his offensive line isn't doing him any favors.  The defense should again be very solid, but Brian Urlacher seems due for an injury after making it through last year relatively unscathed.  Oh, and Lance Briggs wants a trade.  The Bears were out-gained in four of their wins last year, and they also were gifted that absurd opener when Calvin Johnson's game-winning touchdown was taken away due to the worst interpretation of a rule ever.  The luck runs out this year, and the Bears will find themselves in last place in their division for the first time since 2007.

NFL Power Poll Rankings of the 32 Best NFL Teams in the Land: Week Zero, part 1

The Indians are putting the final nails into their coffin versus Detroit, but I could care less, because the NFL season is upon us.  After getting a taste of football action last weekend on the collegiate gridiron, I am an open vessel eagerly awaiting Bengals at Browns to fill me with exhilaration, anxiety, and either angst or joy.  In order to prepare you (and myself) for the upcoming season, here's the first part of the first installment of my power rankings for you to consume, digest, and know in the most biblical of meanings.

NFL Picks: Week 1

 

I had planned on giving each pick a proper write-up, but unfortunately I have a killer headache (and a heavy heart following the Buckeyes heartbreaker vs. USC).  Therefore, each pick's only going to get a little blurb.  Following the picks is a tidy little summary of my divisional previews as well as my thoughts on the playoffs and award winners.  As always, the home team is in CAPS, the odds are Dan Sheridan's, and these picks are 100% accurate.

2009 AFC South Preview

No team in the AFC South should have a losing record, which is a testament to the strength of the division since it means that when they aren't beating up each other the Colts, Jaguars, Titans, and Texans are dominating their out-of-division opponents.  At least one AFC wild card berth will come from the South, just as it has 5 of the 7 seasons the division has existed.  Thanks to Peyton Manning and a relative even-ness to the other teams, I have the Colts coming out on top, but don't be surprised if any of the other three teams makes a run at the division crown, even everyone's favorite sleeper, Houston.

2009 NFC East Preview

Football's most competitive division should be more of the same in 2009.  All four teams could finish above .500, but  the Giants and Eagles have to be considered a tier above the Cowboys and Redskins, if only because Dallas and Washington are too imbalanced toward one side of the ball (for Dallas, the offense, and for Washington, the defense).  Keep an eye on a Giants fade down the stretch; if it happens, it may mean Eli Manning still hasn't figured out the wind.

2009 NFC North Preview

In a shocking bit of business that nobody would have predicted this time one year ago, the NFC North has become the soap opera division of the NFL (supplanting the NFC East). Detroit is coming off the first 0-16 season in history with a rookie starting QB and a new regime for the first time since Matt Millen was hired in 2001. Green Bay is switching to a 3-4, while Chicago is welcoming the story of the offseason, Jay Cutler. To top it all, of course, is Brett Favre starting for Minnesota, which is like Michael Jordan coming back in 1995 to play for the Knicks. Sunday, November 1 is circled on every calendar in Wisconsin, as it should be across the country. Favre vs. Lambeau and Green Bay should be EPIC.

2009 AFC North Preview

Pittsburgh should have an easier time of things this year, as I expect a second year regression from Joe Flacco and another year of being the Browns and Bengals for Cleveland and Cincinnati. And although I don't have them in the playoffs, Browns fans can rejoice in knowing that I fully expect them to finally knock of the Steelers this year (probability demands they win at least one, right?).

2009 AFC East Preview

My NFL Preview continues today with a look at the AFC East, a division that was a lot of fun last year while Tom Brady was out with injury. With Brady returning and the schedules getting tougher, though, the days of Patriot supremacy over everyone else's mediocrity have returned.

2009 NFC South Preview

Since its inception in 2002, every member of the NFC South has won the division title at least once (with Tampa Bay winning it twice). No team has ever repeated as champion (although Tampa Bay probably should have last season if Monte Kiffin hadn't left and the defense then didn't implode), and 4 of the 7 champions finished the previous season in last place (while two others finished 3rd the year before). In fact, only twice has a team finished a season in the same place as it did the season before (the 2003 and 2004 Saints finished second, and the 2005 and 2006 Falcons finished third). What does all of this mean for the 2009 season? Well, you can count Carolina out as division champs, and you should probably put your money on the Saints.

2009 AFC West Preview

The AFC West is comparable to college football's Big Ten or Major League Baseball's AL West (until this season): a collection of middling teams dominated by a flawed championship contender. The Big Ten has Ohio State, the AL West has the Anaheim Angels (or whatever city they claim they're from now), and the AFC West has the San Diego Chargers, a team with probably the most across-the-board talent in the league that is held back by an over-matched head coach. The division race should be over by Halloween; the more intriguing race may be for the number one pick between all of the teams not from San Diego.

2009 NFC West Preview

For the third straight season, the NFC West is the Sun Belt Conference of the NFL. Despite Arizona's miraculous Super Bowl run last year, there are no championship contenders. There are barely any division champion contenders, as you could argue against any team winning the division just as easily as you could argue for any team winning it. Regardless of who wins, they will most likely be in for an early playoff exit (like Arizona last year).

2009 NFL Preview Schedule

Here's the schedule for my NFL Preview. I'm going to go division-by-division, from weakest to best. And I promise, I'll try to do a better job of keeping up with it than the last time I tried something like this.

9/2 NFC West

9/3 AFC West

9/4 NFC South

9/8 AFC East

9/9 AFC North

9/10 NFC North

9/11 NFC East

9/12 AFC South

9/13 Week One Picks

Lazy NFL Preview

AFC

East
y-New England 12-4
Buffalo 8-8
NY Jets 6-10
Miami 6-10

North
y-Cincinnati 10-6
x-Baltimore 9-7
Cleveland 9-7 (That's right. I believe the hype.)
Pittsburgh 7-9

South
y-Indianapolis 11-5
Jacksonville 9-7
Houston 6-10
Tennessee 6-10

West
z-San Diego 13-3
x-Denver 10-6
Kansas City 6-10
Oakland 5-11

Playoffs
Wild Card
Denver over Cincinnati
Indianapolis over Baltimore
Division
San Diego over Indianapolis
New England over Denver
Conference Championship
New England over San Diego

NFC

East
z-Philadelphia 11-5
x-Dallas 10-6
NY Giants 6-10
Washington 4-12

North
y-Chicago 9-7
Green Bay 8-8
Minnesota 7-9
Detroit 6-10

South
y-New Orleans 10-6
x-Carolina 9-7
Atlanta 7-9
Tampa Bay 5-11

West
y-Seattle 9-7
St. Louis 8-8
San Francisco 7-9
Arizona 7-9

Playoffs
Wild Card
Chicago over Dallas
Carolina over Seattle
Division
Philadelphia over Carolina
Dallas over New Orleans
Conference Championship
Dallas over Philadelphia

SUPER BOWL
New England over Dallas

MISCELLANEOUS
MVP: Drew Brees (New Orleans)
Offensive Player of the Year: Stephen Jackson (St. Louis)
Defensive Player of the Year: Champ Bailey (Denver)
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Adrian Peterson (Minnesota)
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Eric Wright (Cleveland)
Coach of the Year: Bobby Petrino (Atlanta)
Not As Bad As You Think (Team): Cleveland Browns (Honestly, there is too much talent on this team for them to go 4-12 or 3-13 as most in the national media predict. This is the best I've felt about a Browns team since they came back in 1999, and that includes the year they made the playoffs.)
Not As Good As You Think (Team): San Francisco 49ers. (If you combined the 49ers with the Cardinals, then you may be onto something. As it stands, both teams are still a year away.)
Not As Bad As You Think (Player): J. P. Losman (Buffalo)
Not As Good As You Think (Player): Ronnie Brown (Miami)
Best Division: AFC North
Worst Division: NFC West (not a single Super Bowl contender)
Best Offense: New Orleans
Best Defense: Oakland
Worst Offense: Kansas City
Worst Defense: Detroit

WEEK ONE PICKS

(Home Team In CAPS)

New Orleans (+6) over INDIANAPOLIS
MINNESOTA (-3) over Atlanta
ST. LOUIS (-1) over Carolina
Denver (-3) over BUFFALO
HOUSTON (-3) over Kansas City
WASHINGTON (-3) over Miami
New England (+6.5) over NY JETS
GREEN BAY (+3) over Philadelphia
CLEVELAND (+4.5) over Pittsburgh
Tennessee (+6.5) over JACKSONVILLE
Chicago (+6) over SAN DIEGO
Detroit (+2) over OAKLAND
SEATTLE (-6) over Tampa Bay
NY Giants (+6) over DALLAS
CINCINNATI (-2.5) over Baltimore
Arizona (+3) over SAN FRANCISCO