It's that time of year again. The summer heat is gone. School's back in session. And Sundays are the best day of the week. That's right, the NFL is back. All I've heard leading up to last night's opening kick-off is how my Pats crumbled during their defense of the 2002 Super Bowl Championship. All right, so we didn't make the playoffs. Fine laugh it up. Have a real good time making fun of us because we lost the "best record against common opponent tie-breaker". The fact remains that we still surpassed everyone's expectations. Brady led the league in touchdowns. We had some absolute thrashings that we handed out to the Steelers, Jets, and Bills. And we won the big games when it was all on the line. Unfortunately, we didn't have the focus to win the smaller games, and it got us in the end. Hey, repeating is a hard thing to do.
But now everyone seems to think that the rest of the AFC East has caught up to us. Sure it was almost equal records across the board at the end of last season, but we tanked a good 4-6 games with unfocused, sloppy play. And we went 9-7. Now don't get me wrong. I'm not saying we would've gone 15-1, but turn around even one of those bad games and we're playoff bound. I can talk all I want about what could have been, but the fact remains that we still have to prove that we belong among the NFL elite. It's time for the Patriots to stop making excuses and start winning football games. It's time to show the Dolphins that December collapse or not, we've got their number. It's time to show the Bills that while they may have our pro-bowl quarterback and safety, they don't have our heart. And it's time to show the Jets, once and for all, who the real division champions are. Simply put - It's time for the New England Patriots to "Put up, or Shut-up."
They get their first chance Sunday in Orchard Park.
Pre-Season Predictions:
Disclaimer - Ok, I'm trying to be somewhat original here, so before you go calling me an idiot, realize that I'm trying to put together a feasible outcome without dishing out the same old stuff that everyone else is predicting. I could go straight through and pick all the favorites, but you know that won't be how it is in January. Seriously, anyone picking an Oakland/Tampa, St. Louis/New England, New York/Baltimore, or Tennessee/St. Louis Super Bowl would've been shot down in September. So bear with me here.
NFC NORTH:
1. Packers
2. Vikings
3. Bears
4. Lions
I just can't see any other team taking this weak division. Vikings might surprise me though.
NFC SOUTH:
1. Buccaneers
2. Falcons
3. Saints
4. Panthers
With Michael Vick out of the picture for several weeks, the Buccaneers look poised for a division title repeat.
NFC EAST:
1. Giants
2. Eagles
3. Redskins
4. Cowboys
I could be completely unoriginal and go with Philly, but they've got a tough schedule, and I think the Giants are going to be significantly better than last season.
NFC WEST:
1. Rams
2. Seahawks
3. 49ers
4. Cardinals
The Rams will be back, but not all the way. That'll be good enough in this weakened division.
NFC SEEDING:
1. Giants
2. Rams
3. Buccaneers
4. Packers
5. Eagles
6. Seahawks
If I'm picking the Giants to have a better record than the Eagles, chances are they'll have a better record than either of the other three division winners. The Buccs will have a tough schedule, so I'm putting the Rams ahead of them. The Packers get the fourth seed by default, although the Eagles and Seahawks will probably have better records.
AFC NORTH:
1. Steelers
2. Browns
3. Ravens
4. Bengals
I think the Browns and Ravens won't perform up to people's expectations, leaving the Steelers an easy choice for the top spot.
AFC SOUTH:
1. Titans
2. Colts
3. Jaguars
4. Texans
As long as Steve McNair is at the helm, the Titans are going to be tough to dethrone.
AFC EAST:
1. Patriots
2. Bills
3. Dolphins
4. Jets
Did I forget to mention that we were perfect in the pre-season? 4-0 Baby! The Phins will fold during their tough December schedule, paving the way for Buffalo to take second place.
AFC WEST:
1. Raiders
2. Chiefs
3. Broncos
4. Chargers
I don't get all the hype about the Chiefs being Super Bowl bound. I'm going with the Raiders. The last three spots will be tight, and assuming Plummer blows up like always, I'll give the Chiefs second.
AFC SEEDING:
1. Titans
2. Patriots
3. Raiders
4. Steelers
5. Colts
6. Bills
Four games against the Jaguars and Texans make the Titans an easy pick for first. The Pats and Raiders are both in tough divisions, but with Chad Pennington out, that give the Patriots at least one easy division game, so they get the nod for the two seed. The Steelers, like the Packers get the fourth by default. The Colts have the same division advantage as the Titans, so they're most likely playoff bound. And in a dog fight, I'm picking the Bills to edge out KC for the final spot.
NFC PLAYOFFS:
Buccs over Seahawks, Packers over Eagles
Gotta go with the defending champs over the Hawks. Give the Eagles anyone else in the first round and I'll pick them, but I'm not predicting a playoff loss at Lambeau for the second year in a row.
Giants over Packers, Rams over Buccs
Giants are and easy pick over the Pack who are lucky to have made it this far. The Rams at home on turf, should knock out the defending champions.
Giants over Rams
No turf, no win for the Rams.
AFC PLAYOFFS:
Bills over Raiders, Steelers over Colts
Age has got to catch up with Oakland sometime, and the Bills are a lot younger. Two weak teams, I'll go with the Steelers.
Titans over Bills, Patriots over Steelers
The Bills had one upset, I'm not giving them two. Patriots easily handle the Steelers at Gillette.
Patriots over Titans
The Titans, like the Sacremento Kings, Indiana Pacers, and Philadelphia Eagles to name a few, always seem to be the bridesmaid, and never the bride. That's why I'm picking Tom Brady and Co. to pull the upset and head on to the franchise's fourth Super Bowl appearance.
SUPERBOWL XXXVIII:
Giants over Patriots
With Lawyer Milloy gone, the Patriots just won't have the answer for Jeremy Shockey. The New York Giants will be the SUPER BOWL XXXVIII CHAMPIONS!
Surprised? Let's just say, I have my reasons...
