NFL playoff predictions

[Valuist]

OK, its early, but and injuries can change things and teams also could have form reversals. But there's been a decided move against parity the past couple years. Here's the teams I expect to be in the playoffs:

AFC West- San Diego
AFC South- Indianapolis
AFC North- Cincinnati
AFC East- New England
AFC wild cards- Denver, Jacksonville

NFC West- Seattle
NFC South- Carolina
NFC East- Philly
NFC North- Chicago
NFC wild cards- Dallas, Atlanta

AFC championship game: San Diego vs Indianapolis
NFC championship game: Chicago vs Carolina

Super Bowl: San Diego vs Chicago

Bears to beat the Chargers

[Valuist]

Actually a couple of the NFC divisional winners could be debated. Philly has looked good but Dallas was in the game the entire way, moved the ball well but shot themselves in the foot thru turnovers, sacks and penalties (somebody did NOT coach a good game). They also gave up an 87 yard pass play. Yet despite the endless array of major mistakes and big plays by Philly, Dallas was right there. Everyone in Philly was up for the "TO" game. But Dallas has issues of their own. The Giants have had a rough schedule so far, playing the Colts, Seahawks, Eagles and Redskins. Their defensive numbers are weak, but they've faced some high powered offenses. The more I think of it, the Giants are the best team in the NFC East.

The South is a crapshoot. Carolina started slow, mainly due to not having Steve Smith available. Without Smith, defenses can stack the line and not worry about a deep threat. They have a competent QB, running game and some playmakers on defense but they are no lock. Atlanta has to be considered; their defense has played great so far and even if Vick doesn't pass well, he is always a threat running. New Orleans is obviously improved; adding Bush gives them a strong 1-2 threat from the backfield and Brees is solid. Still have to rate the Panthers the edge.

[bigmack]

Super Bowl: San Diego vs Chicago
Bears to beat the Chargers
If that's the case Valu how does one deal with growing up in Chicago and having DaBears as my team forever but adopting a slice of the Chargers as I've made this home for the last 15? I think the protocol is to align with the childhood team. As well as Chicago appears to have the machine working awfully well

[rastajenk]

I think Baltimore should be in the playoff mix. Besides divisional games, they get Carolina and Atlanta (as well as Buffalo) at home, and have winnable road games at New Orleans, Tennessee and Kansas City. The win over SD could be a crucial head-to-head tiebreaker down the line.

[Valuist]

Bigmack-

I would agree. The team you grow up rooting for has to be the one to get your allegiance.

Rastajenk-

That is interesting in that they get some of the tougher teams at home. They are winnable but will be tough games. Kansas City and New Orleans can go either way. KC will get Green back soon; their D is improved and KC is always a tough place to play. New Orleans is definitely improved; some new playmakers and having 8 home games this year makes a big difference. I

But I'm still not sold on Baltimore offensively. I think Jamal Lewis is finished and McNair looks now like a game manager instead of a playmaker. The D is tremendous but they remind me of the Bears.....from LAST year.

[skate]

i'll go with the Bears or Phila.


gees, i think Phila mopped up on Dallas, sure it was close, most Nfl games look close but Phila realling killed Dallas and i think they were better than Giants also.

we'll see what happens in the NY-Phila. game next time out.barring injury, i'd have to load up on Philly.

and the Bears are not going to lose Latley

[KingChas]

After just five games into the season I feel like the only person in the world who is not ready to jump on the Bears bandwangon yet.Long season lot can happen between now and playoffs.Also the Bears have the "Mighty Joe Theisman" curse on them now.He predicted the Bears will be 19-0. :faint:

[BetHorses!]

OK, its early, but and injuries can change things and teams also could have form reversals. But there's been a decided move against parity the past couple years. Here's the teams I expect to be in the playoffs:

AFC West- San Diego DENVER
AFC South- Indianapolis
AFC North- Cincinnati
AFC East- New England
AFC wild cards- Denver, Jacksonville SAN DIEGO

NFC West- Seattle
NFC South- Carolina ATLANTA
NFC East- Philly GIANTS
NFC North- Chicago
NFC wild cards- Dallas, Atlanta CAROLINA

AFC championship game: San Diego vs Indianapolis NE VS CINCI
NFC championship game: Chicago vs Carolina CHI VS GIANTS

Super Bowl: San Diego vs Chicago CHI VS NE

Bears to beat the Chargers BEARS CHAMPS


My differences in bold. Not sold on Philly since they played a weak schedule. We do have a different final four except for da Bears

[Valuist]

BH-

In post 2 on this thread I changed my mind and said the Giants would win the East. Philly has been very exciting to watch but I doubt they can keep this up. Eventually, the league devises schemes to stop/at least slow down defenses that blitz so much.

[cj]

I think it will be tough to keep Baltimore out of the playoffs. I am from there, but I'm not really a fan. Losing to Denver on the road in a close game is not a disgrace by any means.

They will beat Cincinnati once, Pittsburgh once, Carolina, Tennessee, Atlanta, Kansas City, Cleveland, and Buffalo. If you assume they lose to Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and New Orleans on the road, that makes them 12-4. They could still lose one, and probably two. of the others I list as wins, and get in.

[Valuist]

I think it will be tough to keep Baltimore out of the playoffs. I am from there, but I'm not really a fan. Losing to Denver on the road in a close game is not a disgrace by any means.

They will beat Cincinnati once, Pittsburgh once, Carolina, Tennessee, Atlanta, Kansas City, Cleveland, and Buffalo. If you assume they lose to Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and New Orleans on the road, that makes them 12-4. They could still lose one, and probably two. of the others I list as wins, and get in.

I'm not sure they will beat Cincinnati once. The Bengals, IMO, are hands down the better team. And between Carolina, Atlanta and Kansas City, I think its highly unlikely they will all 3 games. Their D is very good but old. I think it will wear down because their offense won't keep them off the field. McNair is now a game manager, not a playmaker. And Jamal Lewis is finished.

[cj]

After seeing the Bengals get absolutely stomped at home against New England, I don't think they are hands down better than anyone.

That said, I'm sure Bilick will do his best to blow it. He is horrible in my opinion. The guy that won the Super Bowl will be on the opposite sideline in those matchups.

[Valuist]

Kinda funny how Billick got this reputation as being an offensive genius when the Vikings set the record for points scored in 1998 and although he's won a Super Bowl with Baltimore, they've never had great offensive teams.

[skate]

and since it is very early, it is tough to judge, who has the tough schedule


it is often a bounce here and a bounce there that determines the whole... along with a little momentum and injury free to a degree.

any team or any player is more than capable to go from worst to best and vis versa, in short time.

[cj]

Kinda funny how Billick got this reputation as being an offensive genius when the Vikings set the record for points scored in 1998 and although he's won a Super Bowl with Baltimore, they've never had great offensive teams.

Great? They've never even had mediocre offenses until this year.

[Valuist]

I thought the Super Bowl year was at least average. The passing game wasn't much, but Jamal Lewis AND Priest Holmes in the backfield. This was before Lewis blew out his knee and pre-prison. That had to be one of the better backfields in history.

As for this year, I'm still not sold.

[cj]

I was only giving them mediocre for this year. :)

[BetHorses!]

Too bad Balt is not in the NFC, cause right now the only team better is da Bears and maybe Giants

[rastajenk]

Kinda funny how Billick got this reputation as being an offensive genius when the Vikings set the record for points scored in 1998 and although he's won a Super Bowl with Baltimore, they've never had great offensive teams.

Likewise, Coach Lewis is supposedly the defensive genius behind the Ravens' Super Bowl, but his Bengal defenses have surely been slow to come together. The turnovers and overall upgrade of talent have been nice, but it'd be a lot more satisfying if they could ever stop a good run game.

[Valuist]

Likewise, Coach Lewis is supposedly the defensive genius behind the Ravens' Super Bowl, but his Bengal defenses have surely been slow to come together. The turnovers and overall upgrade of talent have been nice, but it'd be a lot more satisfying if they could ever stop a good run game.

You're right. They are a gambling defense all about forcing turnovers but susceptible to the run. The Colts D has been like that in recent years. I also think the Bengals miss Odell Thurman, who was a force last year at LB.

[Valuist]

Too bad Balt is not in the NFC, cause right now the only team better is da Bears and maybe Giants

I think I'd take Carolina and possibly Atlanta over Baltimore. And once Shaun Alexander is back, I'd take Seattle over Baltimore as well. Those are all better balanced teams than the Ravens. Philly and Dallas would also be close. Philly should be unbeaten although I think they've played a bit over their heads so far. Last year the AFC was far superior. This year they are better but the margin has narrowed considerably, IMO.

[headhawg]

I will admit that I am biased toward the Bears, but I am also a realist. November will be the big test for them to see how good they are. They destroyed Seattle and made a mockery of a Buffalo defense that had played pretty well up to last week. So right now there is absolutely no team better than them in the NFC, and maybe the NFL.

But what about the other NFC teams? Philly is one dimensional esp without Westbrook, but McNabb looks pretty darn good at QB. And I like their defense and their coordinator. I think that they are a definite contender. The Panthers are good too esp if Smith gets healthy. If he's out they are very beatable. Atlanta seems to be a pretender -- I think that their D is overrated, and I'm not a fan of Mora. He can definitely lose games with bad coaching decisions. The Rams? Puhleeze. Biggest 4-1 joke there is. Seattle will still be good, and better when they get Alexander back, but their O-line is not nearly as good without Hutchinson. Dallas? Not with a QB who can't move and is prone to turning the ball over. The defense is not good enough to make up for that.

Now the Giants. What do you make of them? Well, a gifted but error-prone QB, and a strong running game. But which defensive team is going to show up? The one that gives up 42 (and it could have been 60) to Seattle, or 3 to Washington? Pretenders, I say.

My early pick in the AFC was Denver so I'll stick with them although it's iffy with Plummer being the QB of old -- not like he played last year. I think that Seattle and the Bears will duke it out for the NFC. The Bears should win, but I'm not convinced that Lovie knows how to make adjustments. Remember the two completely different results for the Panther games last year. I just think that they will be able to overcome coaching mistakes with the talent they have.

[Valuist]

I will admit that I am biased toward the Bears, but I am also a realist. November will be the big test for them to see how good they are. They destroyed Seattle and made a mockery of a Buffalo defense that had played pretty well up to last week. So right now there is absolutely no team better than them in the NFC, and maybe the NFL.

But what about the other NFC teams? Philly is one dimensional esp without Westbrook, but McNabb looks pretty darn good at QB. And I like their defense and their coordinator. I think that they are a definite contender. The Panthers are good too esp if Smith gets healthy. If he's out they are very beatable. Atlanta seems to be a pretender -- I think that their D is overrated, and I'm not a fan of Mora. He can definitely lose games with bad coaching decisions. The Rams? Puhleeze. Biggest 4-1 joke there is. Seattle will still be good, and better when they get Alexander back, but their O-line is not nearly as good without Hutchinson. Dallas? Not with a QB who can't move and is prone to turning the ball over. The defense is not good enough to make up for that.

Now the Giants. What do you make of them? Well, a gifted but error-prone QB, and a strong running game. But which defensive team is going to show up? The one that gives up 42 (and it could have been 60) to Seattle, or 3 to Washington? Pretenders, I say.

My early pick in the AFC was Denver so I'll stick with them although it's iffy with Plummer being the QB of old -- not like he played last year. I think that Seattle and the Bears will duke it out for the NFC. The Bears should win, but I'm not convinced that Lovie knows how to make adjustments. Remember the two completely different results for the Panther games last year. I just think that they will be able to overcome coaching mistakes with the talent they have.

What's Lovie Smith done wrong? They were decimated by injuries in year 1, make the playoffs w/Orton starting most of the games in year 2, and are arguably the best team in the NFL, at least right now. I think adjustments are up to Turner and Rivera, the two coordinators.

[headhawg]

What's Lovie Smith done wrong? They were decimated by injuries in year 1, make the playoffs w/Orton starting most of the games in year 2, and are arguably the best team in the NFL, at least right now. I think adjustments are up to Turner and Rivera, the two coordinators.Well certainly he's doing something right to get them to play as well as they are, and last year was somewhat of a miracle with Orton at QB. But Steve Smith had, what, nearly 200 yards in the first game they played last year even though the Bears won. And he was killing them in the first half of the playoff game. Did they make any adjustments at halftime? Even if it's Rivera's call, shouldn't Lovie (a defensive-oriented guy) have said "Hey Smith is killing us. Let's change our strategy"? And what about his replay challenges. Has he been right yet? You just can't lose timeouts in an important game.

To me, he came off as a little smug last year becasuse of the way the defense was playing, and I think that hurt the Bears in the playoff game. I don't see that same face this year so maybe he learned a little from last year.

Still, I don't want him to have to make any big decision in a game like a crucial clock management choice, a fourth and one, field goal or punt, well...you get the idea.

[skate]

well, the eagles might not (and they might) go all the way, but , no way the giants will cover the Eagles, not gonna happen.

and that goes into my book
skate

[NoDayJob]

And the winner of the SuperBowl is the Joakland Faders... :lol: