It's hard to believe it was four weeks ago that the NFL 2002 Preview was written. So much has happened since then that an update is definitely needed. So with all the hype from the preseason a distant memory, how do each teams chances look? There's a lot of opinions out there and a ton of bandwagons being jumped on. So DeROK will lay it down and try to separate all the fact from fiction.
Before we start - I want to take a minute to set the record straight on a few things...
Here are some of the Illusions being spread around the League:
1. The Patriots will fold if you just run the ball against them.
- Ricky Williams will be eaten alive Sunday
2. The Saints are the team to beat in the NFC South
- Sorry, but Gruden's boys are still going to take the division
3. The Steelers aren't that good
- Nope, they just ditched Kordell at QB. Always a good idea, you could have yours truly at backup and benching Kordell would still be a good idea. Never fails.
4. The AFC West is the best division
- Nope. Still AFC East. Sure the Jets are bottom feeders, but the Pats and Phins are the real deal. Buffalo will make a run for it too. See how it looks in December - Denver has no heart, look at the Baltimore game. Oakland will collapse at the end, San Diego beat one good team cause they were hyped up beyond belief and caught a few breaks. Chiefs are great offensively, but can't pull their weight on the other end. Is the AFC West a great division, yes. But the East is where the Super Bowl Contenders are at.
5. And just to tick you off....The Eagles are the team to beat in the NFC
- I'm staying pat with the Pack. The Eagles haven't played a good team yet.
Now onto my updated predictions....
NFC East
1. Eagles - I still think they're #2
2. Redskins - Spurrier Offense - not so good
3. Cowboys - Have their moments
4. Giants - They've looked terrible the past two weeks
NFC North
1. Packers - He's good in the cold - will Brett Farve be able to handle San Diego sun in 16 weeks?
2. Bears - Knew that moving 100 miles wouldn't be a good idea
3. Lions - They're only this high, because the team below is so low
4. Vikings - Randy Moss is cancer
NFC South
1. Buccaneers - They'll pull it out in the end
2. Saints - Known to fade fast after quick starts
3. Falcons - Almost there, give them two years and they'll be real good
4. Panthers - They haven't beaten a team with a win yet
* Turns out this won't be the worst division in the league after all Saints, Falcs, and Panters are all nice surprises.
NFC West
1. 49ers - No competition
2. Rams - Haha! I was spared from losing my preseason prediction of them going to the Bowl with my injury clause. True, they probably weren't going anyway, but Kurt Warner's pinky fracture, officially allows me to insert the Packers into the #1 slot.
3. Cardinals - At least they're not as bad as the (see below)
4. Seahawks - Mike Holmgren has his bags packed already
NFC Playoff Picture
1. Green Bay
2. Philadelphia
3. San Francisco
4. Tampa Bay
Wild Card: Saints
Wild Card: Bears
AFC East
1. Patriots - Go ahead an knock 'em. Yeah they lost one. ONE. Exactly. We didn't play great. We didn't have the #1 receiver in the NFL. They played spectacularly. They had some really lucky plays. We couldn't get a play overruled in our favor to save our lives. It happens. We're still the best team in the league, hands down. I love how everyone has hopped off the bandwagon. Maybe they can hitch a ride with the ambulance carrying Ricky Williams Sunday and try to catch up with it.
2. Dolphins - This will be a game Sunday - isn't that what we thought the last time these teams played for the #1 spot in the AFC?
3. Bills - Never count Drew out. It's like he's awoken from the coma he slipped into in 1999. Why did we trade him within the division? I know this will come back to haunt me some day.
4. J-E-T-S! JETS! JETS! JETS! - The Jets are like the Yankees' little brother. I love watching them lose.
AFC North
1. Steelers - Amazing move, demoting Kordell. Watch the Rams and Steelers now. Guarantee business will pick up without having QB's who have been demoralized by Belichick
2. Browns - Almost ready to make the leap
3. Ravens - I can't remember the last time I rooted for this team, but they made the one support count against the Broncos. Don't know why, but I picked them to win...just had a feeling.
4. Bengals - I'm always glad the Bengals are around. It makes the first seven years of the Timberwolves' history not look so awful.
AFC South - Now this is the worst division in football. The NFL made a key mistake by creating divisions based on the Southeast United States. Without fail, teams from this area generally stink. There are the occasional really good ones, but the rest are always awful. Creating divisions mostly made of Southeastern teams is setting yourself up for bad teams making playoffs. Case in point when the Chargers fail to make the playoffs and this division's winner is in.
1. Colts - Ok, they're actually from North/Central U.S., but that's why they're leading the division!
2. Jaguars - Coming out of nowhere - But keeping my theory intact. If you force all the teams from this area to play one another, a few will have to rise.
3. Titans - Um, yeah...so Eddie George was never really healthy was he. Thanks for messing up fantasy teams across the nation with your lies.
4. Texans - You really can't root against them can you? You want them to have it so badly, don't you. But they just don't.
AFC West
1. Raiders - The old boys can play, but how long will they last?
2. Broncos - The Tim Kautzmann of the NFL. So much potential, but they just don't have it where it counts.
3. Chargers - Beat one good team. The Indiana Hoosiers of the NFL. Too bad the Maryland Terrapins of the NFL will come along to break them.
4. Chiefs - Where's the efence? There's just no D in K.C.
AFC Playoff Picture
1. New England
2. Raiders
3. Steelers
4. Colts
5. Dolphins
6. Broncos
- Outside Looking in - San Diego - it's highway robbery, ain't it? The Colts will be snowed in come December.. You're in Southern California. Shouldn't that be grounds for realligning the realligned divisions?
NFC Playoffs:
WILD CARD: Buccs over Saints, Niners bearly over Chicago. (I couldn't resist.)
DIVISIONAL: Green over Tampa Bay, Philly over San Fran
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP: Green Bay over Philadelphia - You just can NOT win a playoff game at Lambeau. You just can't. Play it at the Vet, and I'll pick Philly.
AFC Playoffs:
WILD CARD: Denver over Pittsburgh, Miami over Indianapolis
DIVISIONAL: New England over Denver, this is so tough - choker vs. choker....Miami over Oakland
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP: I didn't want a rematch unless it was snowing, which isn't likely so I'm picking New England over Miami
SUPER BOWL XXXVII:
Patriots defeat the Packers to claim their second consecutive title. When's the DVD going to be relased?
