Week 10 Update

I wrote an article in July stating my expectations for the season that would never come. I was totally wrong about the NFL season not happening. Let’s take a look at my other “expert” predictions.

Baltimore Ravens – Jimmy Smith was a good pick, and he will be a terror on the field if he can stay on the field. Can Flacco take another step forward when his QB coach has been fired? Nothing hampers growth more than hitting the reset button on the coaching system.
= Check. Flacco has struggled and is major inconsistency on an otherwise top tier team.

Buffalo Bills – They made the decision to have another losing season by keeping Ryan Fitzpatrick as their starter. Perhaps they are shooting for Andrew Luck next year.
= STRIKE ONE! I did not give Fitzpatrick the credit he deserves and totally underestimated Chan Gailey’s ability to get blood from stone in the run game. Fitzpatrick appears to be fading down the stretch, but he bring leadership to a team devoid of it for years.

Cincinnati Bengals – Palmer’s retirement is the best thing that could have possibly happened. His elbow has been shot ever since he greedily decided against IR so that he could continue to collect a fat game check. I see him going the Jake Plummer way and heading off into obscurity.
= SSSSSSTRIKE TWO!!!! The Raider’s made an amazing offer to the Bengals and no one can fault them for taking advantage of it. Palmer has been up and down so far, but his leadership skills and ability to move the chains are not in doubt. He may never again be the Palmer of old, but the Raider’s haven’t had someone of his caliber in a long time.

Cleveland Browns – They start rebuilding along the defensive line with Taylor and Sheard, and they have a real gamer in McCoy. They are taking a page out of the rival Pittsburgh Steelers book. First get the talent. Then get the system. Then you win big. Things are looking up for the Brownies.
= Check. McCoy looks overmatched in every game he has started, but this team has shown improvement across the board. Things ARE looking up.

Denver Broncos – Dropping McDaniels prematurely is the Broncos loss and the Rams gain. Fortunately, new HC John Fox will rebuild the defense and kick start the running game. Tebow is better than many think he is, and worse than others make him up to be. The teams decidedly rush heavy attack should help provide Tebow with a more downfield opportunities.
= Check. I would marry Tim Tebow. I am not even a homosexual…he is going to be that good of a QB. Weddings would be awkward, but otherwise we would be a good fit.

Houston Texans – It is amazing how much money they continue to dump into an underwhelming defense. If they actually focused on making their already talented offense better, who know how many games they win.
= Check. The Texan’s have been an offensive juggernaut this year with Foster and Tate creating an nightmare rushing tandem. If they can manage to stay healthy, they have serious playoff potential. Their defense, once again, has been the disappointment this year. Perhaps they should just sign top flight free agents every single year...

Indianapolis Colts – They have Peyton Manning. See ya in the playoffs.
= STRIKE THREEEEEEEEEE! As a friendly, reminder, I wrote this in July. I also said in following analyses that I didn’t think the Colt’s would win a single game until Manning returned. I never imagined that I could actually be right…

Jacksonville Jaguars – The sooner Gabbert gets to play the better. It’s going to be tough sledding for the young QB with Mercedes Lewis as his only legit receiving talent. Mojo is starting to break down; he has seen a lot of reps for a 26 year old.
= Bunt. Gabbert is getting his killed right now and it is not all his fault. However, MJD has continued to be top tier. He will breakdown eventually, but I underestimated his toughness considerably.

Kansas City Chiefs – With Weis gone and a Haley left to his own devices, this team is a lock to miss the playoffs. The talent is there and the system is there, but when it comes to strategy execution this team is far from a finished product. Calling Haley a “wildcard” is a modest label.
= Ahhhhhh…Check. Even before Cassel went down this team was going nowhere fast. When your best runner is Jackie Battle, you are grasping for straws.

Miami Dolphins – They passed on Heismann running back Mark Ingram for center Mike Pouncey, and passed on drafting a developmental signal caller to capitalize on another season of starting Chad Henne. They clearly have a game plan, but what it is exactly remains a mystery.
= Check. Henne has been out for a while and Matt Moore is just trying to make hay at this point. Miami should appeal more to the top draft pick than Indy, but at this point they are battling themselves themselves for Luck.

New England Patriots – The dynasty is dead but they remain a serious opponent. Belichick’s stigma with paying rookies may end up being the franchise’s undoing over the long haul. Unless they start to add serious talent they will continue to flame out in the playoffs. Maybe they should go back to cheating.
= HA ha!...Check.

New York Jets – They missed their window to win, but remain an intriguing sleeper. Sanchez is going to have to really step it up to keep this team moving forward. This is team is getting older, more expensive, and more difficult to manage each year due to their incredibly aggressive free agency strategy.
= Check-o.

Oakland Raiders – Without a first round pick and no free agency they haven’t had the opportunity to hang themselves yet. They showed a lot of progress last year but I remain convinced that Al Davis’ insanity will continue to hamper the team’s progress.
= Check. Trading two first rounders for a 33 year old signal caller is not a strategy most would endorse. Davis’ spirit lives on in the Black and Silver.

Pittsburgh Steelers – If they didn’t trade away Holmes in a knee jerk maneuver for a 5th rounder last year they may have actually had a shot at beating Greenbay. All said, little has changed and you should expect to see them in the playoff again next year.
= Much to everyone's annoyance...Check.

San Diego Chargers – this team has a lot going on. Few things are certain other than Norv Turner will continue to mismanage the team’s immense talent.
= How much longer can it go on?...Check.

Tennessee Titans – Locker is the future starter and he increasingly becoming their only option at QB. And even if they bring Hasselbeck into the fold it’s going to be rough sledding in Nashville. It doesn’t appear as if CJ will hesitate to holdout unless he starts to get a proper paycheck.
= STRIKE FOUR! Hasselbeck has NOT been the problem this year, it has been "Run DAC(Run, Duck and Cover)." Freshly signed to a gigantic contract, his name is often mentioned in the same sentence as the words “benched, should" and "be."

Arizona Cardinals – With Kolb in the fold this team has playoff potential once again. They need to vastly improve their offensive line but they boast a complete team. With a solid mix of veteran and young talent, this will be the most interesting team to watch in the coming season.
= SSSSSSSTRIKE FIIIIIVE! I don’t have to see many games to make a ruling here. It is possible that next year Kolb will fair better, since this season he had to deal with a lockup. But it is unlikely...he's a bust.

Carolina Panthers – There are few reason to get excited about the Panther’s prospects. Unless Newton quickly becomes the second coming of Steve McNair (minus the adultery murder) this team is destined for another top ten pick.
= SWING AND A MISS...STRIKE SIX! Let’s hope he avoids the adultery murder, but I haven’t seen such an electrifying QB since Vick walked into the league. He looks like man among boys in his first season and any reservations I had about him are entirely dissolve. If only he would win a game here and there…

Chicago Bears – In retrospect, no one can blame Cutler for the playoff debacle. The Packers got hot and no one was going to beat them. They remain talented and a playoff contender. Admittedly, Cutler needs to show more poise and touch, but the talent is there. Martz just needs to connect the dots.
= Check. Culter can still wing it, just wait for the playoffs.

Dallas Cowboys – After a lost season Romo and the Cowboys will look to climb back into the spotlight this year. Their roster is teeming with talent and a healthy Cowboys team is a near lock for the playoffs. They won’t win any playoff games of course, but they’ll see the post season.
= Check. d..e..m..a..r..c..o..MURRAY!!!

Detroit Lions – Some say that the NFL is turning into a pass first league. That’s the cue for the Lions to tie up over 100m in the defensive tackle spot with back to back first round picks. Matt Stafford remains highly likely to end up on IR.
= Bunt. Just as I am getting ready to slam myself, Stafford breaks a finger and puts up an egg against the Bears. The front four are league best and have been a major contributor to the Lion’s newly top ranked secondary. However, since the entire team’s potential is tied to Stafford’s healthy; this is a wait and see.

Green Bay Packers – Likely to repeat. They have only gotten better this offseason.
= Check.

Minnesota Vikings – Ponder was a reach at 12 overall, but a necessary pick. The rest of the team is still structured in a win now mode and the team thus far seems intent on keeping things as is. Ponder won’t get them to the playoffs despite the teams immense talent, but could McNabb?
= Bunt. This team’s talent is getting cut, hurt and old. They need to have a rebuilding season as soon as possible. I haven’t a clue what happened to McNabb.

New Orleans Saints – After an embarrassing loss to the Seahawks last year, this team should have a “revenge season – take no prisoners” attitude. Ingram will immediately become the starter and provides a 100 total yards a game presence. Currently, they are my NFC pick for the Superbowl in the coming year.
= Check. They are a top tier team. Unfortunately, they have to pass through Greenbay to make it to the big game. Ingram's time will come.

New York Giants – After an oddly underwhelming season, expect this team to get healthy and come out swinging. If they can start getting more consistency out of their players they have a great shot at a deep playoff run. Look for JPP to break out this year with a 10 sack campaign.
= Check –a-roony!

Philadelphia Eagles – Can Vick be slowed down? After last year’s dominance, it sure doesn’t look like it. Perhaps teams didn’t gameplan for him enough because they were expecting Kolb to start. They still need to find someone to play opposite of Asante Samuel.
= Strike Seven. I am way off base on this one. The Eagle’s are inexplicably bad this year. Perhaps Michael Vick just isn’t as good as advertised. Or perhaps I knee jerked like everyone else last year when he came on strong. When Ron Mexico went off to prison I said that he career was over and that he would never see another 100 million dollar contract. I was dead wrong. But perhaps my theory that a two year prison stint is a career killer may have been more on target than I thought. After getting fresh gametape on him, defense’s have limited his ability to run (which he is doing less of anyway) and are hitting him more often. A quarterback built like a cornerback just cannot take these many hits.

San Francisco 49ers – Firing Singletary was the best move possible; a maniac like that can really tank a team for the long haul. Keeping Alex Smith, in contrast, is one of the worst moves possible. I fully appreciate that Kaepernick is still a project and not ready to start, but after far too many disappointing years with Smith at the helm it’s saddening to see that its business as usual in San Fran.
= Strike Eight. I am still not sold that they will win a single playoff game. The Chiefs got hot last year on scheme and the moment that Weis left they completely fell apart. I expect the 49ers to do the same, but going from a joke to a 13 game winner is damn impressive.

Seattle Seahawks – Let’s give credit where credit is due, they beat the Saints in the playoffs. And while the team is showing progress and it has added young talent, serious questions about the coaching staff and their “strategy” remain.
= Check. This team is all over the place. One week it’s T-Jac throwing 320 yards and the next it’s Marshawn Lynch setting new career highs on the ground. They still don’t have a prayer to make the playoffs, but their record clearly shows that they are trying.

St. Louis Rams – Bradford is worth his weight in gold. Few rookie QBs have shown such poise or precision behind an unproven line. Fortunately for Bradford and the Rams, the tackle positions are shored up with young, high draft picks. With Atogwe leaving for the ‘Skins, their secondary has become a point of concern and their receiving corps may be the worst in the league.
= Check...ugh...

Tampa Bay Buccaneers – This team is getting dangerous quickly. Freeman has a major, pro bowl level breakout coming and the rest of the team is composed to primarily young talent. Perhaps not this year, or the next, but sooner than later a deep playoff run is coming.
= Check. Growing pains. Stay confident Tampa.

Washington Redskins – The moment they decided to start Grossman over McNabb they revealed a complete disconnect between the owner, the GM, and the coaches. Unless they get on the same page, and by that I mean Snyder takes a chill pill, this team is going nowhere fast.
= Check. Shanahan must have gone to a voodoo priestess and summoned the spirit of Al Davis, because he has been nuttier than squirrel turds with personnel decisions. What little talent this team has, Shanahan is doing everything he can to squander it.