Super Bowl 2013

Super Bowl:

49ers versus Broncos

This will not be a replay of the previous Super Bowl played. Denver has Manning, and defense. That's enough.

Broncos 34  49ers 14

2012 NFC Picks & Results

NFC East

1.       New York Giants                   Redskins

2.       Washington Redskins            Giants

3.       Philadelphia Eagles               Cowboys

4.       Dallas Cowboys                     Eagles

The Super Bowl champions simply reloaded and are ready to do it again. NY Giants are loaded with offense and defense and seem poised to repeat, but…RGIII might be for real. Skins looking good, can they stay with the Giants? Vick gets hurt too often, have never been convinced he’s a NFL QB. Eagles have lots of problems this season and I think this is Andy Reid’s last. Cowboys just plain stink – worst team since, well that Aikman 2-14 team. 
Turned out that RGIII was as real as I thought he might be. Cowboys were more competitive than I thought they would be but Romo still managed to find a way to lose. I didn't think the Giants would fall as far as they did - looked to me like they were just going to simply repeat. Coughlin's time is up after next season if they don't rebound I believe.

NFC North

1.       Green Bay Packers            CORRECT

2.       Chicago Bears                   Vikings

3.       Detroit Lions                     Bears

4.       Minnesota Vikings            Lions

Packers are still the class of the NFC. Rodgers & Co. will light up scoreboards again this season, but a 14-2 season is not likely. Pack wins the division going away. Bears and Lions are dead even except for defense, edge to Bears. Vikings are in rebuild-mode. Who thought that the Vikings would qualify for the playoffs? Wow, what a season AP had. Coming back from major ACL surgery to come within 9 yards of Dickerson's record is amazing. I didn't anticipate that the injuries for Packers would keep this division as close as it did, and one Packer's loss and another Viking's win changes the division. Detroit needs to continue to improve. 

NFC South

1.       New Orleans Saints                   Falcons

2.       Carolina Panthers                      Panthers

3.       Atlanta  Falcons                         Saints

4.       Tampa Bay Buccaneers             Buccaneers

I think the Saints should send a “thank you” card to Goddell – I never agree with bounties on players, but the suspensions and such have created an “us vs. the world” attitude in New Orleans, which is great for a football team. Think 1985 Chicago Bears, and many others. New Orleans still has the offense, and the new defensive scheme will fall into place quickly. Panthers are much improved and while I don’t think Cam has quite the season he did last year, he will still excel and keep them competitive. Falcons just have no real defense, and Ryan’s weapons are diminished. Bucs are reloading.
Falcons surprised me with defense - I just didn't see that coming. Their offense was impressive too, but I still don't see them making a Super Bowl run. Saints had major issues and it starts with lack of coaching - they missed Payton too much. Perhaps the distractions caused by the bounty scandal were just too much? Panthers performed about the way I expected them too - NFL defenses have a knack for adapting to new offensive schemes and Cam's production was down. I anticipate the same for Wilson (Seattle) and RGIII(Skins) next year.

NFC West

1.       San Francisco 49ers              CORRECT

2.       Seattle Seahawks                  CORRECT

3.       Arizona Cardinals                 Rams

4.       St. Louis Rams                      Cardinals

Is this the year? Do the 49ers break through? YES, I think so. Love the head coach – he knows what makes NFL players WANT to work and win, and he has the group there to get it done. Alex Smith is much improved and with that running game he has, look out. Seahawks much improved but still no contest for 49ers. Ugh on the Cardinals and Rams.  Seahawks made this a very competitive division, much better than I thought. The QB shuffle in San Francisco made things tough there - if Smith is not your guy, why start him? Cardinals and Rams, yeah ugh.

NFC Playoff Teams:

Divisional winners: Giants, Packers, Saints, 49ers, Redskins, Falcons

Wild Card: Panthers, Bears, Vikings, Seahawks

NFC Champion: San Francisco 49ers
I'm sticking with my NFC Champion pick. Defense wins championships. 

PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS

Wild card 
Seahawks@ Redskins - This will be a fun game. RG III lights it up and although Wilson tries to keep up, the Redskins have a defense. Pick: Redskins
Vikings@ Packers - Packers defense is suspect, and AP might light them up. Rodgers is capable of matching AP's performance but I wonder if the Vikings defense gets that critical stop? Pick: Vikings

Divisional
I think that Atlanta and San Francisco both win regardless. 

NFC Championship
San Francisco @ Atlanta - I believe the 49ers have the defense needed to win but Atlanta could make a run. Here again I am truly 50/50 but will take the 49ers.  

NFC Champion - 49ers 

 
 

2012 AFC Picks & Results!

So here's what I thought at the beginning of the season.....

AFC East                                                                                              

1.       New England Patriots           CORRECT

2.       Buffalo Bills                          Dolphins

3.       New York Jets                       Jets

4.       Miami Dolphins                    Bills
New England has too many offensive weapons and the defense will be improved. I like Buffalo and the way they are going about business. Possible upset in the making here if the Bills can find a way to beat the Pats. Jets and Dolphins are both done...too much "Tebow" distraction in NY, Sanchez is not committed to playing football and would rather seek female company. Dolphins are rebuilding, again.

Basically got this one right - the Patriots own this division at the moment. Changes in Buffalo and New York won't change this for 2013.

AFC North

1.       Pittsburgh Steelers       Baltimore

2.       Baltimore Ravens        Cincinnati

3.       Cincinnati Bengals      Pittsburgh

4.       Cleveland Browns       Cleveland

Defense wins this division. Period. And I like the moves the Steelers have made on defense. Offensive line could be troublesome but Ben is healthy and mobile again. Baltimore lost Suggs - that man plays his best games against the Steelers, so a huge divisional loss. But Flacco has weapons and a great running back in Rice so I do believe it will come down to who plays the best in the divisonal games. Slight edge to the Steelers there. Cincinnati is much improved and will stay close. Cleveland is rebuilding but on the right track I think. This is the toughest division in the AFC and I believe whichever team avoids the injuries wins the division. 

Probably allowed my heart to pick here more than my brains...LOL!! Steelers played terrible football down the stretch and lost some key games early to Cleveland, Tennessee and Oakland that made for a HUGE hole to dig out from. Baltimore stumbled in to the playoffs and I am not expecting much from them. Cincinnati might be the surprise team of this playoff season. 

AFC South

1.       Houston Texans            CORRECT

2.       Jacksonville Jaguars     Indianapolis

3.       Tennessee Titans           Tennessee

4.       Indianapolis Colts          Jacksonville

Texans will run away with this division. This is the year that Kubiak makes the deep playoff run. Great defense and an offense that is methodical and gets it done. Jacksonville and Tennessee both making great moves in the draft and off-season but this is the Texans year. Colts are rebuilding this year around Luck, but Luck showed in the preseason that he has the skills – is he ready for the regular season?  

 Texans really disappointed me this year, but still managed to squeak in a divisional title. Wow Colts, what else can be said? Luck was amazing and the team rallied around Pagano - don't underestimate this team. 

AFC West

1.       San Diego Chargers           Denver

2.       Denver Broncos                 San Diego

3.       Oakland Raiders                Oakland

4.       Kansas City Chiefs            Kansas City

Just too many weapons in San Diego this year. An adequate defense and a great offense means trouble for the rest of the division. Don’t rule out the “Manning” factor though. Denver has a good defense and if Manning stays healthy and produces similar to what he did in Indy, watch out. This is a division that comes down to who can run the ball well and play defense – edge to the Chargers but Denver is loaded. I picked Oakland as my surprise 3rd because even though the fired a coach that went 8-8 last year, the team returns generally intact. Carson Palmer is there for a full offseason and gets better. He has some weapons on offense and the defense retains its nastiness. Most importantly, Oakland learned what it felt like to win. Kansas City is rebuilding with yet another offensive system. Cassel will not repeat his 4,000-yard season and I’m not convinced the KC running game is up to the challenge. If they can get going, KC is a threat – but that is a big IF. No stability in this organization – it’s actually worse than Oakland now. 

One word - Manning. This wasn't even close. The other 3 west teams are simply awful, and I don't see things improving any time soon. I really did think the Chargers were set, but seems like ole Norv did his usual thing - take a decent team and make them worse. Got himself fired as a result.....

AFC Playoff Teams

Divisional winners: Pats, Steelers, Broncos, Texans (yes, I know I have Broncos second in my pick, but I sense something special in Denver….)

Not too bad here, 3 out of 4..... should have listened to that inner sense about Denver....

Wild Card: Buffalo, Baltimore, Cincinnati

One right.....

PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS

Wild card
Indy @ Balt - Colts run away with this one.....
Cinn @ Hou - Texans win a squeaker....but Cincinnati is a threat...I'm truly 50/50 on this one...if Cinn wins, they head to Denver and get smoked by Manning & company.

Divisional
Indy @ Denver - Manning versus Luck, what a great matchup! In the end, defense wins championships and Denver has the better defense.   
Hou @ NE - No contest here....NE just too tough. 

AFC Championship
NE @ Denver - Denver's defense is much improved over the one that Brady faced in week 5. This will not be a repeat of that game. Manning and his receivers are in-sync and will smoke the Patriots defense. Brady will try to keep up but in the end will fall short. 

AFC Champion: Pittsburgh Steelers  Denver Broncos

Baring anything crazy, this is Manning's next Super Bowl win. 

Not a terrible year in picking..... 

2012 NFL Predictions

First entry, which naturally should be the predictions....so here goes....

AFC East                                                                                              

1.       New England Patriots

2.       Buffalo Bills

3.       New York Jets

4.       Miami Dolphins

New England has too many offensive weapons and the defense will be improved. I like Buffalo and the way they are going about business. Possible upset in the maing here if the Bills can find a way to beat the Pats. Jets and Dolphins are both done...too much "Tebow" distraction in NY, Sanchez is not committed to playing football and would rather seek female company. Dolphins are rebuilding, again.

AFC North

1.       Pittsburgh Steelers

2.       Baltimore Ravens

3.       Cincinnati Bengals

4.       Cleveland Browns

Defense wins this division. Period. And I like the moves the Steelersw have made on defense. Offensive line could be troublesome but Ben is healthy and mobile again. Baltimore lost Suggs - that man plays his best games against the Steelers, so a huge divisional loss. But Flacco has weapons and a great running back in Rice so I do believe it will come down to who plays the best in the divisonal games. Slight edge to the Steelers there. Cincinnati is much improved and will stay close. Cleveland is rebuilding but on the right track I think. This is the toughest division in the AFC and I believe whichever team avoids the injuries wins the division.

AFC South

1.       Houston Texans

2.       Jacksonville Jaguars

3.       Tennessee Titans

4.       Indianapolis Colts

Texans will run away with this division. This is the year that Kubiak makes the deep playoff run. Great defense and an offense that is methodical and gets it done. Jacksonville and Tennessee both making great moves in the draft and off-season but this is the Texans year. Colts are rebuilding this year around Luck, but Luck showed in the preseason that he has the skills – is he ready for the regular season?

AFC West

1.       San Diego Chargers

2.       Denver Broncos

3.       Oakland Raiders

4.       Kansas City Chiefs

Just too many weapons in San Diego this year. An adequate defense and a great offense means trouble for the rest of the division. Don’t rule out the “Manning” factor though. Denver has a good defense and if Manning stays healthy and produces similar to what he did in Indy, watch out. This is a division that comes down to who can run the ball well and play defense – edge to the Chargers but Denver is loaded. I picked Oakland as my surprise 3rd because even though the fired a coach that went 8-8 last year, the team returns generally intact. Carson Palmer is there for a full offseason and gets better. He has some weapons on offense and the defense retains its nastiness. Most importantly, Oakland learned what it felt like to win. Kansas City is rebuilding with yet another offensive system. Cassel will not repeat his 4,000-yard season and I’m not convinced the KC running game is up to the challenge. If they can get going, KC is a threat – but that is a big IF. No stability in this organization – it’s actually worse than Oakland now.

 

NFC East

1.       New York Giants

2.       Washington Redskins

3.       Philadelphia Eagles

4.       Dallas Cowboys

The Super Bowl champions simply reloaded and are ready to do it again. NY Giants are loaded with offense and defense and seem poised to repeat, but…RGIII might be for real. Skins looking good, can they stay with the Giants? Vick gets hurt too often, have never been convinced he’s a NFL QB. Eagles have lots of problems this season and I think this is Andy Reid’s last. Cowboys just plain stink – worst team since, well that Aikman 2-14 team.

NFC North

1.       Green Bay Packers

2.       Chicago Bears

3.       Detroit Lions

4.       Minnesota Vikings

Packers are still the class of the NFC. Rodgers & Co. will light up scoreboards again this season, but a 14-2 season is not likely. Pack wins the division going away. Bears and Lions are dead even except for defense, edge to Bears. Vikings are in rebuild-mode.

NFC South

1.       New Orleans Saints

2.       Carolina Panthers

3.       Atlanta  Falcons

4.       Tampa Bay Buccaneers

I think the Saints should send a “thank you” card to Goddell – I never agree with bounties on players, but the suspensions and such have created an “us vs. the world” attitude in New Orleans, which is great for a football team. Think 1985 Chicago Bears, and many others. New Orleans still has the offense, and the new defensive scheme will fall into place quickly. Panthers are much improved and while I don’t think Cam has quite the season he did last year, he will still excel and keep them competitive. Falcons just have no real defense, and Ryan’s weapons are diminished. Bucs are reloading.

NFC West

1.       San Francisco 49ers

2.       Seattle Seahawks

3.       Arizona Cardinals

4.       St. Louis Rams

Is this the year? Do the 49ers break through? YES, I think so. Love the head coach – he knows what makes NFL players WANT to work and win, and he has the group there to get it done. Alex Smith is much improved and with that running game he has, look out. Seahawks much improved but still no contest for 49ers. Ugh on the Cardinals and Rams.

AFC Playoff Teams

Divisional winners: Pats, Steelers, Broncos, Texans (yes, I know I have Broncos second in my pick, but I sense something special in Denver….)

Wild Card: Buffalo, Baltimore

AFC Champion: Pittsburgh Steelers

 

NFC Playoff Teams:

Divisional winners: Giants, Packers, Saints, 49ers

Wild Card: Panthers, Bears

NFC Champion: San Francisco 49ers

 

Super Bowl Champion: Pittsburgh Steelers