A Season for us to be Proud Of -- Reflecting on the 2011 San Francisco Giants Season

The San Francisco Giants season has come to an end, without a playoff appearance, and no defense of our World Series Championship.  Major League Baseball will have to crown a new champion this year.  While fans of other teams and the casual Giants fan may look at this season as a disappointment and failure, they aren't looking at the whole picture and taking all things into consideration.  Yes coming into this season there were high hopes for the Giants to make the playoffs and repeat as champions, and yes the way the season came to an end sure caused us much pain and suffering, but we must take everything into perspective.  The baseball gods weren't on our side this year. 

The Giants were peppered with injuries and an anemic offense.  But with all of the injuries and the anemic offense, the fact that the Giants were still playing meaningful baseball games till September 25th and spent 81 days in first place should be looked at as an accomplishment in itself.  And while I hate to use injuries as an excuse because they are a part of the game, the sheer amount of them and the prolonged timed missed by pivotal players surely has to be taken into consideration as the serious cause to the downfall of the Giants not making the playoffs this season.  The Giants as a team sent 20 different players to the Disable List (DL), and using the DL 25 times this season.  The two most notable injuries, the malicious hit Buster Posey sustained early in the year at the hands of Florida Marlin Scott Cousins, causing Posey to break his leg and ending his season; and a separated right shoulder by Freddy Sanchez while diving for a ground ball and ending his season, plagued the Giants offense.  Without those two players, the Giants ranked last in the National Leagues or near the button in most offensive categories.     

Everything that could have went wrong for the Giants did this season.  We all knew that injuries were going to happen, but never to the extent that it did.  The Giants had suitable backup and depth at nearly every position on the field, expect one.  The one player that they couldn’t afford to lose, catcher Buster Posey, was lost of the year.  He wasn’t just the young star prospect who won the Rookie of the Year the prior year, he was quickly becoming a team leader, taking control of a dominating starting pitching staff, quality middle relief, and a lights-out closer.  He was also the Giants best offense player, poised for a .300 batting average, 25 home runs, and 90 RBI season.  Many would say that the season was lost on the broken left ankle of Buster Posey.  But the Giants kept on fighting and believing in one another, determined to not lay down and make something of this season; and it kept them in the playoff race this long. 

There was also much disappointment in the play of the veterans who the Giants brought back from last season's team and helped lead us to the playoffs and who brought us our World Series Championship.  Aubrey Huff, who was an offense stallworth last year, was the biggest disappointment offesively this season, posting a .290 batting average, .891 OPS, 26 home runs, and 86 RBI's.  This season however, it was dismal for Huff, posting a .244 AVG, .673 OPS, 12 HR's, and 59 RBI's.  Pat Burrell spent much of the season on the DL with a broken bone in his foot, but not much was expected from him.  Cody Ross, who came on late last season and came up huge in the playoffs, winning the NCLS MVP, posted a .240 AVG, 14 homers, and 52 RBI's.  Much more was expected out of Ross. And lastly, as I don't want to call out every player, but Andres Torres also was a let down after having a career year last season.  His final tallies, .221 AVG, .312 OBP, 50 runs, and a 2-1 strikeout to walk ratio.         

For all of the negative stated above, there is a lot of positives that we can take away from this season.  We know that our starting pitching staff is rock solid, and will surely continue to get better.  We all know what we have in Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain, but Madison Bumgarner's ceiling is so high.  After starting the season 0-6, he finished the season with a 13-13 win/lose record, over 200 innings pitched, 191 K's, 3.21 ERA, and a 1.21 WHIP.  This kid is a stud and will surely be coming into Spring Training next February as the Giants #2 starter.  Staying with the starting pitching, who can help but love the story of Ryan Vogelsong.  A non-roster invitee into spring training after pitching in Japan last year, he started the season in triple-A, came up on a spot start for Barry Zito, and ended up making the All-Star team.  Best thing to ever happen to the starting pitching staff was Zito spraining his ankle.  Vogelson will definitely be back as the 4th starter in the rotation, finishing this year 13-7, 139 K's, and leading the Giants in ERA with a 2.71.  If our offense can improve next season, with the returning starting pitching staff and our lights out bullpen, there is no reason why we can't expect another playoff run next season. 

We also got to take a look into the future of this Giants organization, and the future is bright.  I already mentioned Bumgarner up top, but the young position players are going to be something.  The numbers won't show it, but I really like what I saw out of Brett Pill, Brandon Crawford, and of course, Brandon Belt.  While the sample size for Brett Pill is small, in 50 AB's he managed to hit for a .300 avg, .560 SLG, and .881 OPS.  And while Belt and Crawford both batted in the low .200's, their AB's were good AB's, taking pitchers deep into counts.  Add this core with the likes of Pablo Sandoval, Nate Schierholtz, and Buster Posey; the offense whoas will be a distant memory.       

For me at least, I look at this season as one that is a free pass.  I heard somewhere, or remember hearing, a Boston Red Sox fan saying that in the season to follow after the Red Sox broke their curse and finally won their first World Series Championship in 86 years, that the team could go 0-162, and it wouldn't matter.  They were just so happy that they finally had their championship that whatever happened the following season was all for not, unless of course you repeat.  But coming back to the Giants and this season, that is the same feeling and mentality I had going into this season.  The Giants could have gone 0-162 this season, and I wouldn’t have cared.  Our streak had ended.  Our curse was broken.  Despite all the injuries, despite all the veterans’ under-performing, despite their CEO relinquishing control of the team, and despite a hot streak that is still sizzling for the Arizona Diamondbacks, the fact that the Giants were still playing meaningful games in the month of September was amazing.  I think the Giants did alright for themselves and the 2011 season is a season for us to be proud of.

Why the NBA Needs to Step In and Take Control Over College Football

I don’t mean to harp on the same topic, but this is something that I can’t pass up on. You may remember my last blog post regarding the University of Texas ruining what used to be the Big 12 Conference and that leading to the possible expansion of the Pac-12 Conference into the Pac-16 conference, essentially creating the first Super Conference in the NCAA.  Well, just as talks started to get serious with Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma St. joining the Pac-12, it was announced late Saturday that the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Syracuse will be leaving the Big East Conference and joining the ACC Conference; and that the University of Connecticut (UCONN) and University of Rutgers are also trying hard for an invite into the ACC Conference.   While on the surface this looks to be basketball driven, it’s not.   This move was purely driven for football reasoning and to join a stronger football conference.   Yes, three of the top schools in the Big East Conference, a conference that is primarily driven by college basketball, are switching conferences because of their mediocre football program.  This is just another sign that college football rules all things NCAA, and another sign on how the NBA is ruining college basketball. 

The Big East is arguably the best conference there is for college basketball.  We talk about Super Conferences needing to be created in college football, but when you think about it, college basketball and the Big East Conference were already a step ahead. The Big East Conference for college basketball consisted of 16 teams: Cincinnati, UCONN, DePaul, Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Providence, Rutgers, Seton Hall, South Florida, St. John’s, Syracuse, Villanova, and West Virginia.  Eight of these teams: Cincinnati, UCONN, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Florida, Syracuse, and West Virginia, they make up the Big East Conference for college football.  But what makes the Big East different from the rest of the major conferences is that the Big East is not equally balanced between college football and college basketball. The Big East has clearly made their name on their school's performances from college basketball, and that has translated somewhat to college football.  But when the ACC raided the Big East of their major football schools, University of Miami, Boston College, and Virginia Tech, the Big East’s strength and power as a football conference took a huge blow. They were able to survive somewhat with the resurgence of West Virginia football and the emergence of UCONN and Rutgers football, but it is still regarded as a sub-par football conference. 

So the new ACC conference is the new Super Conference for college basketball, especially if they are able to pouch UCONN away from the Big East as well.  And while they will hide behind the fact that these schools are making the switch because of academics or even basketball reasons, this is primarily football driven and done to improve the strength of the ACC as a football conference. The ACC Conference was already a stall worth in college basketball is schools like Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Maryland, Virginia Tech, Wake Forrest, and Georgia Tech.  Now when you add Syracuse, Pitt, and now maybe UCONN and Rutgers, the ACC Conference now becomes the perennial power conference in college basketball.  From those schools perspective, they get to join a conference that still is known for their basketball, but also has highly notable football schools within the division as well.   

So back to the reason why I’m writing this and my title.  The NBA really needs to be taking note at what is going on here.  You have power schools in college basketball leaving a power basketball conference because to help their mediocre football programs.  If this isn't a sign that college football drives the bus in collegiate sports and that universities care more about their football programs than basketball, then you have blinders on.  And the NBA is partially to blame for this.  The product of college basketball is weak right now and it’s attributed to the NBA not having a high enough age requirement for entrance into their league like the NFL does. The NFL’s rule of 3 years removed from high school before a player can be eligible for the NFL draft is not only to prevent dilution of the NFL product, but it is also there to sustain and build up the product of college football.  This is something that the NBA better realize very quickly, or the sport of college basketball will become obsolete.  The era of the “one and done” college basketball player is ruining the sport. 

With the NBA and its players currently engaging in labor talks over revenue sharing and salary cap issues, one topic that they may want to discuss in light of recent events is how the NBA can work with the NCAA to make college basketball a better product and more relevant in the collegiate sports world. If schools cared just as much about their collegiate basketball program as they did their football program, maybe we wouldn’t be having so much conference realignment. There is no reason why the top three schools (Syracuse, Pitt, and potentially UCONN); in what is arguably the best college basketball conference (Big East) in the NCAA, be switching conferences due to better quality football play. The NBA needs to step in and take control over college football.

Mr. Armchair Speaks: Left Out In the Cold with No One to Play With -- H...

Mr. Armchair Speaks: Left Out In the Cold with No One to Play With -- H...: Much is being made in the college football world about the possibility of their being the very first major “Super Conference” expansion. ...

Left Out In the Cold with No One to Play With -- How The University of Texas Ruined Midwest Football

Much is being made in the college football world about the possibility of their being the very first major “Super Conference” expansion.  Many feel that eventually, college football will be comprised of these four, 16-team Super Conferences, covering the 4 regions of the United States.  But while this evolution of college football wasn’t suppose to occur for a while, or at least in the next 5 to 7 years, the first domino may soon fall as early as next year, and it may land on the West Coast.    

With the University of Texas A&M announcing its intentions to leave the Big 12 Conference next year and join whatever conference that is willing to take them on, more schools within the conference are starting to look to other conferences as well, as they want no part of the implosion that will soon be the Big 12 conference.  With Texas A&M's impending departure, word came out this week that Oklahoma and Texas, as well as Oklahoma St. and either Missouri or Texas Tech, are looking at joining the Pac-12 conference and officially creating college football’s first Super Conference, the Pac-16.  While nothing has been finalize, much negotiating is taking place.  Currently, the Pac-12 is division by two divisions, a north and a south division, with the Washington schools (Washington and Washington St.), Oregon schools (Oregon and Oregon St.), and Cal and Stanford making up the North Division; and USC, UCLA, the Arizona schools (Arizona and Arizona St.), Utah and Colorado making up the South Division.  If 4 of the 5 schools mention above from the Big 12 conference joins the Pac-12 to create the Pac-16, they would move USC and UCLA into the North Division with the rest of the California school, Oregon schools, and Washington school to create a new West Division, and the rest of the South would then make up the new East Division.  There is one major hurdle that the Pac-12 conference will have to clear, and it is the same hurdle that the Big 12 conference got tripped up on during the race, and that hurdle is the University of Texas and the Longhorn Network. 

After the 2009 season, there were talks between the University of Texas and ESPN joining forces and creating a network specifically dedicated to the universities football team.  The mere thought of the possibility of Texas having their own network dedicated to them ruffled the feathers of some of the schools within the Big 12 conference.  Seeing the writing on the wall, the University of Nebraska and the University of Colorado promptly decided to leave the conference.   Nebraska would join the Big 10 Conference effective the 2011 season, and Colorado found a home in the Pac-10.  While Nebraska and Colorado weren’t powerhouses within the Big 12 Conference, it started a chain reaction that would spread throughout the conference.  There were talks after the 2010 season about the Pac-10 trying to recruit the Universities of Oklahoma, Texas, Oklahoma St., and Texas Tech to leave the Big 12 after the 2011 season, disbanding the Big 12 Conference altogether.  However, Texas was able to convince the Oklahoma schools and Texas Tech to not leave the conference and stay another year in the Big 12 conference.  Their motivation; their precious Longhorn Network.  You will soon see why.                     

Prior to the start of this 2011 season, The Longhorn Network launched.  The network gave Texas fans an all-access, 24 hour coverage of the football team.  The University would keep its share of the revenue generated from the network and not have to share any of it amongst the other schools within the Big 12 Conference.  This created a major stir amongst the other schools.  It was seen as a competitive advantage for Texas, as the plan was for the network to show Texas League high school football games, giving Texas a competitive recruiting advantage in the State of Texas.  This really PO’d not only the other schools in the conference, but in particular the other Universities from Texas that play in the Big 12 Conference (Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and Baylor).  Texas A&M promptly announced that it wanted nothing to do with this arrangement and would seek to join another conference (most likely the SEC) prior to the start of the 2012 season, which leads us to where we are today.   

The SEC Conference has voted to extend an invitation to Texas A&M to join their conference and A&M has announced its intentions to accept.  The University of Baylor has filed a lawsuit seeking damages due to financial repercussions of A&M leaving the Big 12 conference.  If Oklahoma, Oklahoma St., Missouri, and Texas Tech follow A&M and leave the Big 12 conference, it would in essence disbanded the Big 12 Conference, leaving the smaller schools like Baylor and Iowa State without a conference to play in, and with those universities not having the same prestige as the other schools, there is no guarantee that the other BCS Conferences would extend an invitation for Baylor or Iowa St. to play with them.  Meanwhile, Texas is trying to find another school to join the Big 12 Conference to replace Texas A&M and keep the Big 12 Conference in tact, but their efforts are failing, and it looks like Texas will soon leave the Big 12 Conference as well.  But it's harder from them because no one wanted to play by their rules.  So the question is:  where does Texas go?        

Here is my take on this whole situation.  As a Pac-12 fan and season ticket holder of a University's football team (Cal) within the conference, the possible expansion to a Pac-16 excites me.  I, on occasion, will travel and attend road games and the thought of going to Norman, OK or Lubbock, Tx for a road game seems cool.  However, if I were the President of a University within the Pac-12, I would not behind over to the University of Texas and would not allow them to join my conference without dividing up the revenue generated from the Longhorn Network equally amongst the other schools in the conference.  It has been a standard, strictly enforced rule of the Pac-12 conference that revenue sharing is shared equally, and I wouldn’t bend it at all just to let Texas into the conference.  If Texas doesn’t want to join to Pac-12 under those conditions (which I believe were the real reasons why Texas worked so hard to convince the other schools not to join the then Pac-10 at the end of last season), then we don’t need them.  I would gladly take on Oklahoma, Oklahoma St. Texas Tech, and either Missouri, Texas A&M, or maybe even Baylor, rather than let Texas join the Pac-12 under their own terms.  Rumor has it that the Pac-12 won’t expand to the Pac-16 without Texas, but I seriously hope that is not the case.  I think the real get in all this is Oklahoma.  Oklahoma matches up well with the other powerhouses already in the Pac-12 and added Oklahoma St., Texas Tech, and Missouri are just added bonuses.  It's Oklahoma or bust for the Pac-16.  The conference doesn’t need Texas to expand and survive as the Pac-16.

I see Texas doing one of three things.  They will either: join the Pac-16 super conference and adhere to the revenue sharing rules, go east and join either the ACC or the Big East Conference, or stake their calm as an independent and work out a deal much like Notre Dame.  In my opinion, if they really want to be the money hungry knobs that they are, they will either become an independent like money hungry knob Notre Dame.  Texas has the following, fan base, and now network, to make it as an independent.  They can keep whatever revenue gained from the Longhorn network to themselves, and being an independent will allow them to still schedule their signature rivalry game, the Red River Rivalry between them and Oklahoma.  Or, they will join either the ACC or Big East Conference, two conferences struggling to re-stake their calms as power conferences.  The Big East and ACC are struggling to produce big time watchable football, and letting a powerhouse university like Texas into their conference would definitely bring instant  notoriety and name id; and they may actually be so desperate for it that they accept Texas into their conference and let them keep their network deal to themselves.   

No one knows what Texas will ultimately end up doing with their football program, but whatever Texas decides to do will definitely send shock waves throughout college football.  But I’ll let it be known on this forum that Texas brought all this on to themselves and the Big 12 Conference and unfortunately, the other schools within the Big 12 conference have to suffer through this ordeal.   The finger is pointed square at Texas.  They were the ones who felt that they were above the rest of the other schools within the Big 12 Conference and selfishly had to create their own network.  Normally, networks are created as a conference, much like what the Big 10 and SEC conferences did, and revenue is shared evenly amongst all players.  The Pac-12 will soon be creating their own conference network in a similar fashion.   

 It probably won’t happen because everything and everyone seems to always bow down to Texas (speaking as a bitter Cal Fan who is still reeling over Texas and Mack Brown stealing our Rose Bowl bid from us in 2005), but I really hope that Texas gets what they deserve, and that is the short end of the stick on this and gets left out in the cold with no one to play with.  This is how the University of Texas ruined Midwest football.

Mr. Armchair Speaking!!!  

Mr. Armchair Speaks: Mr. Armchair's 2011 NFL Preview

Mr. Armchair Speaks: Mr. Armchair's 2011 NFL Preview: NFL Football Preview – At last, another NFL season is upon us!!! While some people may have questioned whether or not we would even have a ...

Mr. Armchair's 2011 NFL Preview

NFL Football Preview –

At last, another NFL season is upon us!!!  While some people may have questioned whether or not we would even have a season, there was no doubt in Mr. Armchair’s mind that we would be at this point when the dreaded lockout began.  The NFL is arguably the nation’s most popular sport, and there was no way that the commissioner, owners, or the players would let any games by missed due to their bickering over how to split a $9 billion dollar pie.  So for my peace of mind, and much to the shagrin of Ms. Loveseat, NFL Football lives, and it couldn’t come soon enough. 

I offer to you now, my NFL 2011 Preview

NFC East –

Philadelphia Eagles – 12-4

Analysis:  The Eagles’ season hinges on the health of Michael Vick and with the newly formed “Dream Team” defensive secondary (Nnamdi Asomugha, Asante Samuel, and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie), there is no reason why the Eagles can’t go far in the playoffs.  They still play in a tough NFC East Division, so I can see the Eagles splitting games with the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys, but there aren’t many games on the schedule that will pose a problem for them.  They are my early favorites to win the NFC Conference.    

Dallas Cowboys – 10-6

Analysis:  With starting QB Tony Romo back from injury and now healthy, there is no reason why their offense couldn’t be the best in the league.  They have two high-powered WRs in Miles Austin and Dez Bryant, and the always reliable Jason Witten.  Felix Jones is being handed the keys to the backfield as the starting RB, so it is now his time to shine.  If the offensive line can keep Romo upright and open running lanes for Jones, this offense could be scary.  But that is a big “IF”.      

New York Giants – 9-7

Analysis:  Eli Manning, while throwing a ton of INT’s last season, also managed to throw 31 TD’s.  With the break out year of Hakeem Nicks and with Mario Manningham finally starting at the other WR position, Eli will throw for similar TD numbers.  What will ultimately hold the Giants back from making the playoffs is their schedule.  After the month of October, the Giants have games at New England, home against Philly, at New Orleans, home against Green Bay, at Dallas, at the New York Jets, and home against Dallas to finish off the season.  It could be an ugly finish to the season for them. 

Washington Redskins – 5-11

Analysis:  Whenever you have to start Rex Grossman as your starting QB, you are by law not allowed to win no more than 5 games.  Yeah, yeah, I know Sexy Rexy lead the Chicago Bears to the Super Bowl, but like the Trent Dilfer led Baltimore Ravens team, the Chicago Bears were a defensive led team.  Their defense has some potential, but it is not good enough to flat out win games for them, which is what will need to happen for this team to win more than 5 games.  Their offensive line, along with their schedule, will keep this team in the hunt to win the "Suck for Luck" sweepstakes.   

 

NFC North –

Green Bay Packers – 12-4

Analysis:  They are returning all of the same key parts from last year’s Super Bowl team, as well as get starting TE Jermichael Finley and starting RB Ryan Grant back from injury.  And there hasn’t been a better team in the league that has drafted better in the past 5 years than the Green Bay Packers.  Last year proved that, as this team is loaded with depth behind every position, so if another key position player not named Aaron Rodgers goes down with an injury, this team will be just fine.    

Detroit Lions – 10-6

Analysis:  I never thought that I would say this, but the Detroit Lions will make the playoffs this season!  They have drafted well and put together a nice team, starting with QB Matthew Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, and WR Calvin Johnson, and then moving on to the defense with #1 beast DT Ndamukong Shu.  A lot is riding on the healthy right shoulder of QB Matthew Stafford, but if he can stay healthy, he could easily be a top 10 QB in this league.  The potential with this team can be so great and with the economic situation and despair the city of Detroit is facing, you can’t help but root for this team to win.     

Chicago Bears – 8-8

Analysis:  Listen, I know this team made the NFC Championship game last season, but there is no way they repeat that feat again this season.  They open the season at home against Atlanta, then travel to New Orleans, then home against Green Bay.  They’ll start the season 0-3 and after a win against Carolina, they have games at Detroit and Tampa Bay.  It is more than likely that the Bears are 2-5 going into the bye week.  QB Jay Culter was the most sacked QB in the NFL last season, and I hope his life insurance policy is up to date because his fate is sealed again.  Although this time, he doesn’t have super hottie Kristin Cavallari to nurse him back to health.       

Minnesota Vikings – 6-10

Analysis:  I don’t think they are as bad as some people would like to think, but there just isn’t a whole lot of talent on this team and nothing too exciting about them.  You know what you are getting with RB Adrian Peterson, but after that, blah!!!  This is just a boring football team, starting with QB Donovan McNabb.  If you are going to suck, might as well suck with young players so you can develop them.  The over/under on what week we will see rookie QB Christian Ponder starting for the Vikings is right now set at week 13, and I may take the under, as I am a betting man.   

NFC South –

New Orleans Saints – 12-4

Analysis:  Their schedule this year is a cake walk, as they play an easy non-division schedule.  Drew Brees seems primed to have another MVP type season.  It’s hard to bet against his will and determination.  And I really like what they did in the draft by drafting DE Cameron Jordan and RB Mark Ingram.  Everyone is looking for Ingram to have a breakout season, but don’t lose sight of Jordan.  I personally watched every game he played in college and he has great technique when dealing with both the run and the pass.  He may turn out to be the better addition of the rookies. 

Atlanta Falcons – 11-5

Analysis:  The Atlanta Falcons are all-in this year.  They mortgaged their future by off-loading basically every draft pick for the next couple of years for rookie WR Julio Jones.  While I believe that Matt Ryan is on the verge on becoming a great QB, I don’t believe the team as a whole is ready to surpass New Orleans just yet.  I don’t think their defense is quite there yet, which is where the Julio Jones trade may come back to hurt them.  One NFL expert (won’t say names, but he write for SI) picked the Falcons to play in the Super Bowl.  If they do, then he really deserves his paycheck.        

Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 9-7

Analysis:  I like the direction the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going in, and just because they will finish with a worst record than last year doesn’t necessary mean that progress wasn’t made.  They have high- quality talent both on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.  They have nice building blocks in Josh Freeman, LeGarrette Blount, Mike Williams, Kellen Winslow, Gerald McCoy, and Aqib Talib.  The struggle will be to keep this group out of trouble off the field.  When they peak, they will win a lot of games.      

Carolina Panthers – 5-11

Analysis:  The good news, they have parts to work with.  The bad news, they are starting QB Cam Newton.  Ok, that was harsh.  I don’t think Cam is necessarily the next JaMarcus Russell, but I also don’t think he will be the second coming of Steve Young.  In the preseason, Cam only managed the complete 42% of his passes.  That isn’t going to cut it as a NFL starting QB.  Luckily, the Panthers have two very capable starting RB’s in DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart that can help carry the load for Cam, and their defense has quality players on it.  They aren’t the worst team in the league if you can take that away as a positive.   

NFC West –

Arizona Cardinals – 8-8

Analysis:  Again, the winner of this division will finish with no better than a .500 record.  The Cardinals now have a decent starting QB in Kevin Kolb, but I wouldn’t automatically put them in the playoffs because of it.  He still has a sub .500 record as a starting QB and has thrown for more INT’s and TD’s.  Still, he is better than anything else the Cardinals had on their roster, which makes Larry Fitzgerald a happy franchise player.  As long as Kolb can get the ball anywhere in the vicinity of Fitzgerald, their offense will be much improved.    

St. Louis Rams – 7-9

Analysis:  This is definitely a team on the up-swing.  Sam Bradford showed signs that he will be a very good QB in this league.  The Rams have done good by assembling a solid offensive line to protect their franchise QB and open holes for work-horse RB Steven Jackson.  If they could get a solid number #1 WR in the next couple of years either via the draft or free agency, this could be a really nice team that can do some damage in the NFC.  Their defense still needs some work as well, but Chris Long is that Jared Allen type of DE who can take over and control a game.    

Seattle Seahawks – 6-10

Analysis:  I have the Seahawks winning 6 games, but that’s only because QB Tarvaris Jackson will not be the starting QB for the majority of the season.  He may start game 1, but come game 4 (for Seahawks fans sake), Charlie Whitehurst will be the starting QB, and with him, they may have a decent shot at winning some ball games.  He’ll have WR Sidney Rice and TE Zach Miller as targets to throw to, and if they can also get decent play from their o-line, they will be able to move the ball on some defenses.      

San Francisco 49ers – 6-10

Analysis:  As a 49ers fan, I’m prepared to take this season and have it be a wash for new Head Coach Jim Harbaugh.  With the lockout and shorten offseason, he hasn’t had the opportunity to thoroughly evaluate the players on the roster that he had to work with.  And while I think their defense is the best in the division and very good overall when compared to others in the NFL, I just have no faith in Alex Smith to get the ball in the 49ers' playmakers.  The bad thing is, they won’t suck enough to win the “Suck for Luck” sweepstakes.    

AFC East –

New England – 12-4

Analysis:  I'm convinced Bill Belichick could take a UFL team and coach them up to be 8-8 in the NFL.  Give him a team with as much talent as the Patriots have, 12-4 will be a breeze.  Overall, they may be the most complete team in the NFL, with so much depth and talent at every position.  The one position that gives me pause is their defensive secondary, but CB Devin McCourty is quickly becoming a shut-down corner and with the talent they added on the d-line, opposing QBs won’t have much time to pick the secondary a part.   

New York Jets – 11-5

Analysis:  Two things:  first, this team will feel the effects of not winning the Nnamdi Asomugha sweepstakes, as Antonio Cromartie is not the same caliber CB as Nnamdi is.  Second, this is going to be Mark Sanchez’s 3^rd year as the starting QB and he has to step up and start living up to the hype.  So far, he has been a serviceable QB at best for the Jets, and they still managed to come within a game of making the Super Bowl last year.  For the Jets to finally take that next step, they will need Sanchez to start playing like a franchise QB.  Otherwise, it’s going to be another let-down season for the Jets.   

Miami Dolphins – 6-10

Analysis:  When your fans are booing the starting QB during training camp workouts, you know you are destined for failure.  This is a make or break season for Head Coach Tony Sparano and unfortunately, I see him being the first head coach fired mid-season in the NFL.  His defense can stop teams and they have playmakers, but with Chad Henne as your starting QB, you just aren’t going to win too many games.  Not pulling the trigger on a trade that would have brought them Denver’s starting QB Kyle Orton or not addressing that need in the draft will be his undoing. 

Buffalo Bills – 4-12

Analysis:  There really isn’t a whole lot to say about the Buffalo Bills other than, they are the Buffalo Bills.  This may be the worst team in the NFL.  When looking at their roster, there is not a whole lot to get excited about.  And apparently, the Bills must have a thing for QB’s who attend private, highly prestigest, education based colleges because the QB they have starting for them this season is a Harvard grad, and the QB that will be starting for them next season is currently attending and playing his football at Stanford University. 

AFC North –

Baltimore Ravens – 12-4

Analysis:  Ray Lewis called his shot by saying that if the Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl this year, he will retire.  For selfish reason, I hope that is not the case, but when looking that this roster and team, it’s hard to pick against them.  Again, like the New York Jets and Detroit Lions, the Ravens season all hinges on the arm of starting QB Joe Flacco.  If he can produce the type of numbers that he is capable of and that people seem to want to think he can produce, then we may be seeing the last of Ray Lewis, and that sucks. 

Pittsburgh Steelers – 12-4

Analysis:  This division will come down to the Steelers and the Ravens and the winner will be a matter of who gets the better of one another.  The only reason why I have the Steelers losing 4 games is because they always seem to have at least 1-2 let down games.  And while their defense is as good as any in the league, the one thing that is holding the Steelers back is their offensive line.  I see this as being their weak link and while they are explosive WRs, Big Ben won’t be able to get them the ball if he is running for his life. 

Cleveland Browns – 7-9

Analysis:  This team showed signs of life toward the end of the season and there is no reason why they can’t carry that over into this season.  Peyton Hillis burst onto the scene last season so defenses will be stacking the box in an effort to stop him, but Colt McCoy proves that he can complete a pass, and if he can build off last season, he could have a sneaky good year stat wise.  I’m not sure where the pass rush will come from defense, but a 7-9 or 8-8 record is not out of the question for the Browns. 

Cincinnati Bengals – 4-12

Analysis:  The only competition the Bengals will have an opportunity of winning is the “Suck for Luck” sweepstakes against the Buffalo Bills.  And I should take this time to apologize to the Buffalo Bills because after analyzing this roster, this is the worst team in the NFL.  Even if they had QB Carson Palmer starting for them, I couldn’t realistically say that this team would win more than 4 games.  And I am talking about the Carson Palmer of 6 years ago, pre knee surgery.  Even that Carson Palmer couldn’t will this team to more than 4 wins.   

AFC South –

Houston Texans – 11-5

Analysis:  This has to be the year that the Houston Texans finally make the playoffs.  The Texans have been the darlings for teams not living up to expectations.  But this year, in a down division and possibly a Peyton Manning-less Colts, the Texans should have no problem winning this division outright.  Everyone will look to the offense as being the strength of this team, but look out for this defense, which features a very good linebacking with Mario Edwards, Connor Barwin, Brian Cushing, and DeMeco Ryan.  Last year, their pass defense was the worst in the league and with the addition of CB Jonathan Joseph, that aspect of their defense should be much improved. 

Indianapolis Colts – 9-7 or 2-14

Analysis:  Is there a more important player in the NFL than Peyton Manning?  I had to give the Colts two records.  One record with a healthy Peyton, and one record without a healthy Peyton.  Even with Peyton Manning, I can’t see this team winning more than 9 games.  Peyton is good and all, but he can’t make up for their defense.  Their defense just won’t be able to stop anyone as their secondary is awful.  And if the Colts do end up going the entire season without Peyton, well then, we may have a new front-runner in the “Suck for Luck” sweepstakes.     

Tennessee Titans – 6-10

Analysis:  The Tennessee Titans are the same exact team as the Minnesota Vikings.  Both teams have washed up veteran QB’s and young rookies behind them that will take their starting jobs sooner rather than later, both teams feature high caliber RB’s, both teams have average defenses, and both teams will finish 6-10.  And like I said about the Minnesota Vikings, if you are going to suck with a washed up veteran QB, you might as well suck with an inexperience rookie QB so that at least he can learn the system and get some seasoning. 

Jacksonville Jaguars – 5-11

Analysis:  Again, see my analysis regarding the Minnesota Vikings and Tennessee Titans.  The only difference between those two teams and the Jaguars is that they are actually taking my advice.  They cut starting QB David Garrard yesterday and while they said Luke McCown will be the opening day starter, prized rookie Blaine Gabbert will soon take over those reigns.  And I’m talking very soon, like midway through the 2^nd quarter of the opening game.  Have you seen Luke McCown play QB?

AFC West –

San Diego Chargers – 11-5

Analysis:  The Chargers have been the darlings of the AFC West and there is no reason they can’t repeat as division champs.  They play a tough schedule that features games against New England, New York Jets, Green Bay, Baltimore, and Detroit.  They are getting stud WR Vincent Jackson back for an entire season, so Phil Rivers will have a reliable target to throw to this season.  With a healthy Ryan Matthews and Antonio Gates back, the Chargers offense will be sure to score some points.    

Kansas City Chiefs – 8-8

Analysis:  I look at the Chiefs, and I see a team that has the talent to win 10-11 games.  However, the Chief are going to win 8 games, and it’s going to be a tough 8 games, as they have non-conference games against Detroit, New England, Pittsburgh, Chicago, New York Jets, and Green Bay.  The Chief do have a star RB in the making in Jamaal Charles and a QB that led them to the playoffs last year in Matt Cassel, but their tough schedule and an improving division will keep the Chiefs from making the playoffs this season.     

Oakland Raiders – 7-9

Analysis:  Their defense took a major hit when they lost Nnamdi Asomugha, but the defensive line is solid and Roland McClain is turning out to be a stub linebacker.  They still have major question marks on however and if Jason Campbell fails to get the ball to any receiver willing to catch it, it's going to be a long season for Darren McFadden because defensive will stack the box against him.  It's going to be especially hard because the Raiders lost Campbells's favorite target, TE Zach Miller to free agency.  If DHB ever wanted to live up his hype, the time is now.

Denver Broncos – 6-10

Analysis:  If Kyle Orton remains the starting QB for the entire season, this team may actually be competitive and win some ball games.  He and Brandon Lloyd teams up to be one of the better QB to WR combos in the league.  However, I just don't see that happening, as they have invested too much in Tim Tebow, and eventually, he will need to see the playing field.  I like what they are doing on defense, as rookie OLB Von Miller is proving his worth as the #2 pick in last year's draft.  He was fielding all over the field in preseason and with Elvis Dumervil coming back from injury, the Broncos should be able to generate a decent pass rush.

Playoff Teams

NFC - Eagles, Packers, Lions, Saints, Falcons, Arizona  

AFC - Patriots, Jets, Steelers, Ravens, Texans, Chargers

Championship Games

NFC - Saints over Eagles

AFC - Patriots over Ravens

Super Bowl

Patriots over Saints

Mr. Armchair Speaking!!