The Greatest of All Time is a label that has been given to quite a few figures across multiple sports.  Is there really such a thing as a greatest of all time, or is there just a greatest of now and a greatest of then?  I offer up proof that the greatest of all time is a hard, hard title to prove and bestow upon any one person in a sport.  Is Michael Jordon the greatest basketball player of all time or is Kobe Bryant going to surpass him?  Tiger Woods or Jack Nicklaus?  Wayne Gretzky or Gordie Howe?  There is no way to tell in my opinion.  How do you decide who should be the greatest off all time?  Stats, championships, grit, determination, effect on others around them, clutch performance, equipment, rules of the times, teams or opposites to compete against?  What are the defining characteristics?  Read on!

     Stats?  Brett Favre holds a majority of passing records for quarterbacks in the NFL but that in no way makes him the greatest of all time.  Championships?  Dan Marino is one of the five best QBs ever and he never once won a Super Bowl.  Determination and grit?  Cal Ripken Jr. played 2,632 games in a row, never missing a start.  16 years without a day off and yet Ripken is far from the best baseball player ever.  Effect on teammates?  Joe Dumars made everyone around him better and he is not the greatest.  Equipment is shown false by people like Greg Norman who managed to compete against the best players with the best equipment of today, after  playing with wooden drivers and wound string balls to start.  Showing he can compete today just as well as in his prime shows there is more to it than the equipment but Norman isn't the greatest golfer of all time.  Rules of the times?  Lance Alworth was a superstar in the 1960s, amassing a huge amount of yards, touchdowns, and Pro-Bowl appearances but he is not considered the best ever over WRs like Jerry Rice even though he played in a time that the rules were not slanted to protect the wide receiver and give them the advantage.  These things go to show that there is not a G.O.A.T., but a G.O.N.A.G.O.T. (greatest of now and greatest of then, remember).  I admit G.O.N.A.A.G.O.T.  doesn't have the same flair as G.O.A.T. but it more fairly covers the players of today and yesterday.

     So let me compare and contrast a few greatest of all time candidates and see if there is one true greatest, or a few people who should share the honor equally.

 

His Airness or Kobe?

To some people comparing Bryant to Jordan is comparing apples to oranges.  To me it's like comparing apples to grapples, they both look the same inside and out, they just taste different.  I grew up watching Jordan fly around the court and making shots that seemed impossible until the ball left his fingers.  Jordan won 3 championships, decided to go play baseball and then came back and won three more.   He was and is one of the most marketable sports figures ever.  Jordan was a personality and someone everyone wanted to look up to.  Kobe now makes those shots and invents some of his own.  He has 3 championship rings of his own and is only 30, with years left to go before he retires.  Bryant may not be as marketable as Jordan but he does have multiple endorsement deals.  Kobe may not be as well admired or well loved outside of the Laker fanbase but the people who love him do it with gusto.  So does all this make Jordan the greatest basketball player of all time?  No.  It makes him the greatest basketball player of the 1990s just as Kobe Bryant will be remembered as the best player of the 2000s.  Every decade has that one player that defined the era, that everyone looked up to and wanted to be. 

Tom Brady vs Joe Montana vs Everybody Else

 

    Joe Montana is at the top of almost every greatest quarterbacks list since the mid 1980s but you have to admit he was a lucky man who had some great targets to go along with his helping of skill.  Montana won 4 Super Bowls but stat wise is light years behind Dan Marino.  John Elway and Marino both had 9 Pro Bowl appearances where Montana has 8.  So going by stats Marino is best ever, going by Super Bowl wins Montana is best ever and going by Pro Bowl appearances both Elway and Marino are tied.  Tom Brady is behind everyone in the stats department except for regular season touchdown passes.  He has won three Super Bowls which puts him ahead of Marino and Elway, but only 4 Pro Bowl visits which is behind all three.  I feel Brady is a decent quarterback and certainly one of the best of this era of football, but after the amazing season he and the Patriots has last year a large amount of people were calling for him to be labeled the best ever which is ludicrous.  One season of above average football doesn't mean you get to rocket to the top of the chart.  If Brady continues to play like he has in the past, and I mean every season not just 2007, then he will likely be remembered as the best of this era, over people such as Favre and Peyton Manning.  The only hard thing to do is pick out who would be the greatest of the last era out of Montana, Marino and Elway.  I think that Marino wins for all of his accomplishments and the fact that he had next to no offensive weapons to help him out.  Marino was amazing and if you take away the Super Bowl wins from Elway and Montana he wins hands down.  So, in conclusion Marino is the best QB of the 80s and 90s and Brady has a chance to be the best of this generation.

Sitting here I just figured out I could go on and on like this for every sport there is.  Tiget Woods vs Jack Nicklaus.  Ali vs Tyson in his prime.  Barry Sanders vs Emmit Smith vs Walter Payton vs Jim Brown.  Magic vs Bird.  On and on the list goes and over and over all you can definitively say is that one was the best in their time but not the best ever.  Invent a time machine that will allow us to put MJ from the early 90s vs Kobe of today and then there is a different argument but until then lets all agree to disagree and love who we feel is the G.O.A.T.  Or G.O.N.A.G.O.T. if you will.  Peace!

So here I sit watching the Lions get stomped by the Bears (Kyle Orton is my awesome QB pick of the week for fantasy by the way) and I wonder if the Lions have any hope to improve in the next few years.  The Lions play with no passion, no drive, and hardly look like they are interested in the game.  Rod Marinelli just finally benched Kitna, only to play Dan Orlovski.  Roy Williams is blaming everything but his hands for why he isn't catching the ball.  This is sad.  I say it's time to trim some fat and let the new guys play.

First things first, fire Marinelli.  The man is lost, and has no hope of fixing this team.  At halftime Rod said "We know what we need to do we just need to start doing it".  Duh.  Even assuming the Lions as a team know what to do, there is no reason to believe they can do it.  Marinelli came in to Detroit preaching fundamentals, defense, and dedication and this team has no idea about any of them.  The tackling is the worst in the league, the defense is pathetic and the only dedication I see in Detroit is William Clay Fords dedication to Rod Marinelli.  Rod Marinelli has been hindered by Matt Millen, but the choices for offensive and defensive COs came from Marinelli and are just wrong.  Son in law can't lead a pee wee football teams defense to victory and Jim Coletto just is not O-line coordinator quality. 

Does firing Marinelli make the Lions better?  No not at all.  In fact finding an interm or even new head coach at this point in the season would be very hard.  But it again pacifies the fans, and WCF needs to do as much of that as possible.  The Lions need a GM and a new head coach.  A quaterback a new offensive line, some DBs that can tackle, I mean the list goes on.  Here is my solution.

Hire Floyd Reese as GM.  This is the guy that made the Tennesee Titans the team they are today.  He can evaluate talent, he has some kind of draft crystal ball, and he is not Matt Millen.  This man is asking for the job.  He wants to come to Detroit, and I can't imagine he is just looking for Millen like job security.  Reese must see something here in Detroit that he can work with.  I say hire him, give him 3 years and see what happens.

Find Bill Cowher and pay him whatever he asks.  Marty Shottinheimer is another option.  The guy took his last team to a 14-2 record before getting fired.  Either way you are getting a quality head coach with a proven track record.  Personally I think Cowher would be a better fit here, he is a take no #### kind of guy and that is what the Lions need.  Rod Marinelli is supposed to be that guy now, but he hasn't lived up to the hype.  Cowher will come in here, clean house and smack some heads until this team listens.  I will give WCF some credit, he sticks with a head coach until they have proven they can not get the job done, unlike Al Davis.  So give Cowher the reins, 4 years, and a GM he can work with and turn him loose.

Next on the agenda, clean house.  Kitna is worthless as the Lions quarterback, the guy is not the future here.  Trade him now while he still has some value to a team that has a shot.  The Patriots need a quarterback so let's make a deal.  Kitna has enough skill to lead a team like the Patriots into the playoffs, easily.  So get a 3rd round draft pick for him.  Hell float the conditional draft pick idea like Green Bay did with Favre.  Detroit gets a 3rd round, a 2nd round if the Pats make the playoffs, and a 1st round if they win the Super Bowl.  Even going 4th, 3rd, 2nd makes sense.  It is time for Drew Stanton to get his shot as the starter, so the team can see if he is the answer for the future.  I doubt it myself.  Stanton in the second round was one of the worst reaches I've seen in the draft in years, but the guy deserves a chance to prove himself.

Next up on the chopping block, Rudi Johnson.  Send him to Pittsburgh for a 4th or 5th round pick.  He isn't worth that much sitting on the Detroit sidelines so get what you can for him.  The Steelers are hurting for a decent RB and Johnson can fill in until FWP is healthy.

This one makes me happy inside.  Let's ship Roy Williams to Dallas for a 2nd round pick.  The Lions are going nowhere this year so why keep all this dead weight around?  Roy Williams doesn't want to stay here in Detroit, is gone in 3 months anyways, why not try to get something of value for him?  Jerry Jones would love to see Williams line up across from T.O.  Another good place for Williams is Cleveland.  The Browns are going to stick with Anderson because they spent so much money on him, so why not try to pry Brady Quinn off the bench and into the silver and blue?  Of course it's gonna cost Detroit more than Williams to get Quinn, but I think adding a late round pick would be worth it.

Those three players are the only ones on the Detroit roster that any other team is going to show interest in besides Ernie Sims, and to give him up would be insanity.  Sims is going to be the cornerstone of the Lions new defense, and I hope he is ready for that.  Personally I would like to see the Lions cut everyone but Sims, Kevin Smith, Stanton, Calvin Johnson, and maybe Gosder, and sign jobbers for the league minimum and play this year and the next.  Detroit is so #### up when it comes to the salary cap that they need two years of a 20 million dollar roster to make room to rebuild. 

This is my way of making the Lions better, even though it may take two to three years to pay off.  We need draft picks, and lots of them to make a difference.  Lemmie know what you think, any better ideas or trades out there?

Pretenders and Contenders.  4 weeks into the 2008 season and already, there are some trends that can be picked out.  The Rams are going to have the first overall pick in the 09 draft.  The Lions will have the second or third.  The Giants are looking like monsters, and are headed for another post-season run.  The Patriots aren't a team that works together, they are a team Tom Brady makes better.  Al Davis is senile.  Things are becoming clearer as the weeks go past, including what teams with good starts are going to keep that momentum going, and what teams are going to nosedive back into mediocrity.  I've chosen to focus on one team that is a contender and two that are pretenders.  

 

Contenders are perennial favorites to win their division and perhaps the Super Bowl.  The Colts, the Patriots, the Chargers, and the Steelers all come to mind when thinking of teams that are contenders.  Same teams year after year, some get better, some get worse and sometimes a team comes along that has the right set of people, the right chemistry and the right amount of luck to shock everyone.  The Buffalo Bills are that team this year.  Who would have imagined that a team that was under .500 for the past 5 years would bust out of the gates like they have?  

 

The Bills Quaterback      Trent Edwards has matured in his second season, posting a 65.5% pass completion rating with an average of 7.82 yards per throw.  The pass completions alone put him 5th in the NFL at this point in the year behind guys like Drew Brees and Brett Favre.  Not bad company to me.  Edwards has thrown 4 TDs and 2 INTs and has an overall QB rating of 93.5.  This kid is great.   

 

 

Offense  

 

The running game still leaves a little to be desired with Marshawn #### only averaging 3.5 yards per carry but still getting in the end zone 4 times.  Lee Evans is doing pretty well for himself with 332 total yards receiving this year and a 23.7 yards per catch average.  Josh Reed is just under 200 yards for the year with an 11.3 ypc average.   The offense needs to work a little harder, get a big lead and then burn the clock.  Of course, that is true for all teams but Buffalo has not been doing it so far.  They trailed the Raiders and needed some nice plays to get that win.  Edwards should have dominated the Rams defense and just didn't.  This offense looks like it has some amazing potential and I think that it will be realized as the season progresses.   

 

Defense 

     The defense is what concerns me and looks like it might not make it through the whole season.  The D has only posted 10 sacks, 3 interceptions and 4 forced fumbles.  They need to pick up the pace and get in on the opposing quarterback more often, more hurries equals more picks.  I think the Bills have an excellent chance of making the playoffs this year and one thing makes me believe it more than any other.  Their schedule.   

 

Schedule  

 

The Bills play Arizona, Miami twice, the Browns, the Chiefs, the 49ers, the Broncos (who are going to collapse very soon), the Patriots twice, and the Jets twice.  There are 5 games there that are almost guaranteed Buffalo wins, and I think they will pull off 2-3 more than that.  That's right.  The Bills are going 12-4.  At least.  Next year we can see how well they fair against the Brady lead Patriots, and whether or not they will be contenders for years to come.  

 

Pretenders are teams that for the most part have been "rebuilding" for the past 10 years and finally have that great start to the season that makes it look as if all that pain and suffering has paid off.  The Detroit Lions were the great Pretenders of the 2007 season, starting off 6 and 2, shocking everybody in the sports world, and then went back to true form finishing off 1-7.  The Falcons had the honor in the 2006 season starting out 3-1 headed into week 5 only to finish 7-9.  This year there are several teams that can fall under the Pretenders title and sadly, the Falcons are one of them.

 

 

 The Falcons  

 

The Falcons are 2-2 going into this next week, where they will drop a game to Green Bay.  The fans of Atlanta had reason to celebrate after watching their rookie QB Matt Ryan and the newly signed Michael Turner shred the Detroit defense for nearly 500 yards.  What the poor people in the ATL forgot about that fact that it was the Lions the Falcons were playing.  Everybody looks good against the Lions.  The Rams could come to Ford field and win easily. 

 

 

Quarterback  

 

Matt Ryan has thrown for 669 yards this season with 2 INTs and 1 fumble.  Not bad stats until the individual game stats are looked at, and then a trend appears.  Ryan can’t play against a solid defense.  He beat up on the Lions and Chiefs but was held to limited yards against Tampa Bay and Carolina.  Ryan’s completion percentage is 52%, and his passer rating is 70.7.  That is not a good thing, more like a T-Jack thing. 

 

 

Offense  

 

                Michael Turner has the same trends as Matt Ryan.  220 yards and 2 touchdowns his first game as a Falcon, which made him look a stud and the Falcons looks like geniuses for signing him.  Since then he has just 200 yards in three games.  Turner can’t burn through the stronger defenses of the league like he could through the Lions.  Roddy White is having a pretty good year, especially when you consider how under used he was with Vick and Harrington but he is the only weapon Ryan really has.  Letting Alge Crumpler go was a big mistake for Atlanta because he was a proven top ten TE.  The Falcons are thin in the receiving corps and need to add some decent free agents in the next few years.  The offensive line is doing ok, only allowing Ryan to be sacked 7 times.  

 

Defense  

 

                The defense is sad with seven sacks, 3 forced fumbles, and 4 interceptions.  One player account for 6 of the 7 sacks and three of those came against the weakest offensive line in football.  This defense has nothing going for it except the fact that they have Lawyer Milloy, which is pretty much saying they have this guy who used to be great.  He is the only name on the D-side that anyone can easily recall hearing before.   

 

Schedule  

 

They face Chicago, Philly, New Orleans, Carolina, San Diego, and Tampa over the course of the rest of the season.  These teams have the power to stop the run and put pressure on Ryan.  Ryan is not experienced enough to face these teams and get past the defensive pressure.  Turner cannot run through holes when Chicago is stacking the box.  Atlanta is going to go 5-11 for the year, and that is if they can beat Oakland, Miami, and St. Louis.  Give this team time to grow and another year or two of good drafts and they will be making some serious waves, but for this year, the Falcons are Pretenders.  

 

 The 49ers  

 

Another team that leaps to mind this year when thinking of pretenders is the San Francisco 49ers.  The Niners are 2-2 headed into next week and have a slim chance of beating the Patriots.  J.T. O'Sullivan looks like a hero in the eyes of 49ers fans everywhere, stepping up and replacing Alex Smith and leading the team to 2 wins which if you listen to the fans, should be three.  Apparently, the 49ers got jobbed in the Cardinals game.   

 

Quarterback  

 

O'Sullivan has played much better than Smith could have, although I give some credit to the fact that he already knew the Martz system coming in.  O'Sullivan looked really O.K. against Detroit, and looked alright against Seattle, but other than that, he hasn't impressed.  The poor kid has thrown 3 INTs, lost one fumble and has been sacked 19(!!!) times.  This guy spends more time on his back than Jenna Jameson.  I know the sacks aren't entirely his fault, the line must take most of the blame here, but come on does O'Sullivan even try to scramble?  Maybe even just toss the ball somewhere near someone in red and gold.  The four touchdowns he has thrown for and the pretty respectable yards per attempt are far outweighed by the amount of times he has turned the ball over.  Be afraid San Francisco, O'Sullivan played behind Kitna in Detroit, and looking at his stats I think he learned a little too well from the master.   

 

Offense  

 

A shining spot on the 49ers offense is Frank Gore.  Gore has 369 yards, 3 touchdowns and a nice 4.9 yards per carry average and 154 yards receiving.  It looks as though Gore is going to fulfill the hype of last season which is phenomenal to me.  The wide receivers of the 49ers are not looking too hot this year.  Isaac Bruce leads the team with 226 yards so far, which puts him behind Chicago’s' Brandon Lloyd and Denver’s' Eddie Royal (who by the way is second on his team behind Brandon Marshall).  Arnaz Battle is close behind with 202.  For perspective, Brandon Marshall has 398 receiving yards alone, where the Niners top two WRs have 428 total.   

 

Defense  

 

The defense is doing the same thing the offense is, bringing their A game to weak teams and not stepping up when playing contenders.  The only time the defense really shut a team down was against Detroit.  Even the win against Seattle took overtime.   

 

Schedule  

 

This team faces the Eagles, Giants, Seahawks, Cowboys, Bills, Jets and Redskins which will give them 9 losses at least.  I see the Cardinals knocking them off again as well.  The 49ers will finish 6-10.  This team needs to keep working on adding quality players.  J.T. O'sullivan is not Aaron Rodgers, Isaac Bruce is nearly done, Arnaz Battle has not been anywhere near the player people thought he would be, and Willis can't do it alone.  Give the 49ers a couple more years and they may take the West.

 

 

 

Ok, I'm a die hard Lions fan who has watched them 20 years.  I've seen lows, I've seen very lows, and I've seen the 2008 season so far which is the lowest of the low.  I know pain and suffering.  I don't on the other hand start spouting off about how the Lions are back, how they are going to the Super Bowl, or other such nonsense, especially after 3 weeks of football.  I know better.  Look at last year, 6-2 to start the year!!!  Hell yes, the Lions are improved!  Wait....1-7 in the last 8 weeks?  Really?  Oh my God they are still the Lions.  I knew that Detroit had the ability to ruin a good thing, they just had to get back to the Lions football of old.  So when I see fans of teams like the Niners, Raiders, and Bucs start spewing the same old #### when their team is 2 and 1 it drives me crazy.  If I have to see one more 49ers fan post "The Gold Rush is back baby!" one more time I might hit my computer. 

Seriously.  The Niners have won 2 games so far.  Whoop de freakin do.  Lets see here.  You beat the Seahawks, who have guys who weren't drafted for pee-wee football for WRs, and the Lions, who can't tackle my grandma even if you took away her walker.  Real impressive.  So after beating the Rams am I going to have to listen to how awesome San Fransico is and how they are destined for the Super Bowl?  The 49ers have started out 2-1 after three weeks twice in the past 5 seasons and still managed to pull off an underwhelming 0-5 winning season record.  Look at last season.  After pulling off a 2-1 record after three weeks they managed to put together an amazing 8 losses in a row.  Even the Lions didn't manage to lose 8 weeks IN A ROW.  In the past five seasons the 49ers are an amazing 25-55.  Which is one less win the than Lions in that same time frame.  Kinda funny when you think about it, since everyone on earth labels Detroit the worst football team in the league.  Now I am in no way saying the Lions are better than the 49ers, because let's face it, they aren't.  I'm just saying that blind faith in a team is kind of stupid, and to cover every blog posted with "Gold Rush" comments isn't really needed.  I kinda figured out you were a fan by the name Niners4ever.  So please let it go.  Come tell me I'm wrong when they are still over .500 at the end of the year.

The Raiders.  Oh the Raiders and their fans.  Oh my god.  Seriously I get it.  You're a huge fan, the Raiders are your life.  Super.  Please stop telling everyone on earth.  The Raiders are 19-61 in the past five years.  I know there is history here, and that the Raiders were one of the Best teams ever, but please.  Let it go.  They now dwell in the same realm as the Lions, 49ers, Texans, Cardinals, and Chiefs.  Bottom dwellers.  Scum of the NFL.  I feel your pain.  You have a nutcase for an owner, we have a nutcase for an owner.  The Raiders suck, the Lions suck.  On the plus side, you don't have Matt Millen. 

Finally, Bucs fans.  SHUT UP ALREADY.  I cannot stand when Bucs fans run around here telling everyone that they are the team to beat, that the NFC South is all wrapped up, that there is no way they aren't making the playoffs.  You beat Atlanta and Chicago.  Oh and lost to the Saints.  That's talent.  Over the past 5 years the Bucs are 36-44.  That is not exactly an amazing feat when one considers the fact that they won the Super Bowl in 02.  The next 5 weeks are going to be rough with the Bucs going 1-4.  And that's if they beat Seattle.  So please Bucs fans, stop the flag waving.  We get it.

Please don't take offence to this if you are someone who has a screen name based on one of these teams.  My own name is in reference to the Lions.  I am all for showing support for your team and by God if you are a NinersFan4Life, that is fantastic.  But there is a difference to supporting your team and posting repeated comments about how super, awesome, great, Godlike, whatever your team is.  If they are that great post a blog about it, scream it off the rooftops, but don't go into a blog about two different teams, or another totally unrelated subject just to comment about your personal favorite. 

I would like to point out that there are plenty of fans out there for the Chiefs, the Dolphins, the Rams, and other such horrible teams, but they don't go around pounding the we used to be great drum like the fans I listed here.  Now please go ahead Niners fans, Bucs fans, and Raiders fans tell me how stupid I am, and how my opinion is the worst one ever put down in words.  Although if you do, you missed the point of this blog.  Sorry.

This is the NFC West and how I think it is going to play out.  For the record I do take into account strength of schedule, offensive stats, defensive stats, and the like.  I have to say as I do these previews I'm dying for football to start.  I'm willing to watch little league football at this point.  I would watch a game between the Bears and the Falcons like it was the Super Bowl.  Anyways, here it is.

Arizona Cardinals 8-8

I'd like to see Arizona go with Kurt Warner as the starter, but I'm pretty sure they are going to give Leinart yet another chance.  I won't go so far as to call Leinart a bust but he sure has not lived up to the expectations everyone had when he was drafted.  Warner gives the team the best shot of the playoffs but I don't see it happening either way.  The offense is pretty decent, the WR are great and Edge is still trucking even after I would have thought he would have gone the Shaun Alexander route.  The guy is still playing strong after so many years in the league with 1200+ yards last year.  The defense is solid, and added a few good rookies this offseason and I think they will do a pretty good job.  The problem is the schedule, which isn't easy.  I see quite a few games that look difficult as can be.  I just hope they beat NE.

Seattle Seahawks 11-5

Seattle of course is defending division champ, and is going to repeat this season.  They added 1 solid runner in Jones and 1 journeyman who can get the job done in Duckett.  They have a good receiving corp and alot of options to throw to.  Engram is getting up there but even he falls off this year they have other to take up the slack.  Love the defense, gonna pressure the QB all the time, force bad throws and make the INT.  They are also playing for the coach who is on his way out and they want to win it for him before he goes.  Seattle wins the West easily and makes at least the championship game.

St. Loius Rams 9-7

I don't see good things for the Rams this year, even if everyone comes out healthy and stays that way.  The first 8 weeks I see 1 for sure win with a second that is a maybe.  The running game is going to do well if Jackson stays well, but the recievers aren't the best.  They have two backs that can catch and a pretty good tight end but that doesn't make up for a lack of depth at WR.  The defense should prove pretty good, and the addition of Chris Long adds one more DE that can scare QBs.  The second half of the schedule looks pretty easy with games against Atlanta, Chicago, the Jets and Miami and then a few more divisional games they might take, but the first half of the year is scary with NE, Philly, Dallas, and Washington.  9-7 is as good as it gets, and to me that is being generous by a game.

San Fransisco 49ers 5-11

The 49ers have the same team as last year!  With a master offensive mind now running the show!!!!....who couldn't do anything in Detroit in 2 years with 4 good receivers and a half way decent QB.  The Niners are looking at a long season trying to run Martz's complicated schemes with wideouts that aren't that great.  Bruce is getting old, the only good thing is he already knows the way Martz runs things.  Lelie has never produced, and never will, Battle can't carry a team on his own, and Johnson isn't a great producer either.  Vernon Davis has never produced the way he can, although he might break it out this year.  The backs are going to sit alot since this team is going to be playing from behind quite often.  Alex Smith is a bust and O' Sullivan has no hope of saving this team.  The defense is not great, and hardly even good.  They can hardly take the ball away, can't score to save a life, and aren't sacking the QB enough.  This team is gonna be in trouble, and with Seattle and St. Loius both playing well they are going to be scraping bottom barrell all season long.

Ah yes a slightly (haha) better conference than the NFC North.  This is a harder group to predict I think.  Well except for the last place team but still. 

New Orleans Saints 11-5

The Saints have enough offensive weapons to win the division easily.  Drew Brees is a great QB and he has several targets to throw to now.  Colston is awesome, though he does tend to have serious ups and downs week to week.  The RB situation is odd, every fan in football is waiting for Reggie Bush to mature into an every down back, but between him and McAllister and whoever else is around they should do well.  The defense is ok, and I expect some good things from them.  If Smith can sack the QB the way he is getting overpaid to do then it will be all good.  Also the D needs to force more turnovers, and use them to score more often.  NO takes the division.

Carolina Panthers 10-6

Carolina is going to go into week 17 looking to knock off the Saints to win the division but NO is going to take it.  Now that Jake Delhomme is back the Panthers should have  a much better time then last year.  Even if he isn't 100% he will still be better than the crew that was tossing the ball last year.  On that note, Steve Smith should be huge this year.  Look at what he did last year with the quarterbacks he had.  Add in Williams and Stewart with a fairly decent rushing attack and they are going to score often.  The defense is going to have a field day with some of the teams they are going to play.  Detroit, the Raiders, Atlanta, and the Bears are going to hand over the ball easily so I expect a good amouth of turnovers from this defense.  10-6 should nab the Panthers a wild card spot.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 8-8

Tampa has a medium tough schedule, with weeks 4 through 8 looking ugly.  This team just doesn't look great this year.  They will get some easy wins playing ATL, Detroit, and Chicago, and I'm sure they will tough out some wins during the season but a .500 season is all they can hope for.  The fact that they have no idea who is going to start QB this year is an issue, they don't have a real deep recieving group, and the running backs are injury prone.  Dunn might be looking to make a statement this year, but he won't do too much.  The defense is the high point of this team and should continue to take the ball away, but without some solid offense it won't matter.  The defense also needs to put more pressure on the QB, 33 sacks for the whole team last year isn't super.

Atlanta Falcons 3-13

I hate to say it Falcons fans but they are headed down the Miami trail.  I think 3 wins is generous.  They have a rookie at QB who has yet to play a down and is going to be expected to carry the team.  Joe Horn and Roddy White are the 2 best receivers on the team, and they wouldn't start on most other teams in the league.  They let Alge Crumpler walk away and didn't exactly fill the opening with a superstar.  Michael Turner is going to starting for a whole season, and who knows how he will pull it off without LT to soften up the defense.  Norwood has played backup his whole career and with the loss of Dunn thought he was going to get a chance to start, so Turner is going to crush that dream.  Together I see them running as many yards as LT alone.  The defense is full of holes and has no one on it that stands out.  They aren't great pass rushers, nor do they stuff the run.  The only half good thing about the defense is playing in Oakland now. 

So there is the NFC South, tough on the teams but accurate I think.

 

Ok, so I'm new here and I'm gonna jump in head first and start out with predictions for the league.  I'm going to start with the NFC North, firstly because thats where my Lions play, and secondly because it is the easiest to predict since I'm almost positive there are going to be at least three losing records.  The NFC  North is like the NL West, not really relevant but teams gotta play somewhere.

Detroit Lions 6-10

This one hurts.  I'd love to say the Lions are going to win 10 and make the playoffs for the first time in 4 billion years but it just will not happen.  8 of their games are against play off teams or should have been play off teams from last season.  The Lions haven't done enough this off season to make a huge difference.  Kitna is not the QB needed, and honestly Stanton isn't the QB Millen was dreaming of when he reached for him two years ago.  I love the WRs for Detroit and the running game should be at least used this year if not improved.  The defense isn't the best but if they play anything like they did the first half of last year they can make a difference.  Lions out in 6.  Again.

Chicago Bears 5-11

Chicago only has one weapon anymore and unfortunatly for them Devin Hester can't score EVERY time he touches the ball.  The defense is not nearly as prolific as it was 2 years ago, and the offense is laughable.  It is hard to say Detroit is better off on offense than anyone, but you have to admit Chicago is sad.  The QB conundrum is a joke, it is a little like choosing between having your teeth pulled without being numbed and having your foot removed awake.  Who wants either?  They let the only two people capable of catching the ball leave, and brought in people who wouldn't start on other teams.  I just don't see it this year Bears fans.  So sorry.

Green Bay Packers 8-8

The Pack is good.  Last year was amazing, and kudos to Brett for making such an amazing run.  But that was last year.  This year they are going to have to follow a man that they have seen ride pine for the past few years.  Nothing against Rodgers but he is as yet unproven.  I'm sure the Packers can pull off 8 wins pretty easily and I wouldn't be shocked to see them win more, but I just can't give them more looking at their schedule.  They are lucky in the fact that their last four games are against, for the most part, losing teams.  The Jags in week 15 are the only hitch in the end of the season road.  Grant should have a great season as Rodgers works out the kinks and the defense is solid. 

Minnesota Vikings 9-7

I'm giving the Vikes a 9-7 mostly for the fact that they play Chicago twice and that is a for sure two wins.  The run defense is going to shut down Forte and that will make the Bears fall back on Gross/Orton.  The Vikings have a huge question mark at QB that will put alot of pressure on AP, which is going to lead to an injury.  The man is bound to get hurt with the cutting and jumping he does.  The defense is going to hurt sometimes, but the D line can only do so much and I'm not enamored with the secondary on this team.  Anytime a team that can pass well plays Minnesota they might have a more difficult time than before but I don't see them shutting down QBs like Manning (either of them) or Brees.  It just won't happen. 

 

So there you go.  NFC North is done, with more to follow.  Feel free to bash me, praise me, or just say hi.