2008 NFL Season
Scenic Roi Namur is far removed from the NFL season. Life there is peaceful and quiet for the most part. The closest NFL game was the Pro Bowl in Hawaii. We were limited in which games we could watch by the AFN. For some reason they did not choose to broadcast all the Browns games but would pick a couple of games every week. The strangest thing was that they delayed the Monday Night games until 10:30 at night. Since I had to be at work by 6 to calibrate the radar I usually would tape the games and watch them the next day. So life could be difficult for a rabid Browns fan. But this year I am in Tucson and here is my prediction on how the season will go.
It is the eve of the 2008 NFL season (not counting Thursday night’s Redskins/Giants game) and it is time for me to make this year’s predictions. Starting in the NFC East look for the Cowboys to repeat as division champion and maybe win a playoff game this year. The Giants looked good in their opener but that was against the Redskins. I’m expecting the Eagles to make some noise this year but what I’ve seen of the Redskins and their coaching look for them to draft number one overall in April.
I don’t see any strong teams in the NFC North now that Brett Favre has moved on. I’ll predict that the Vikings will win the division. Their main weakness is their QB and maybe more glairing is their pass defense but I thinl it will improve this year.
Once again in the weak west I expect ethe Seahawks to repeat. The sexy pick are the NFL’s version of a gypsy team, the currently Arizona Cardinals, but I expect the 49ers to finish second and give the Seahawks a run for their money. The Rams might draft number 1 over all in April especially if the Redskins can live up to their talent level and learn to manage the clock some.
In the NFC South I’m going to pick the NO Saints to win the division. I could be wrong and we could see the Panthers win it instead. I expect the Falcons to be not quite as bad as last year but not very good yet. The Buccaneers should finish in the middle somewhere.
Now for the AFC. The Super Bowl Bound Cleveland Browns have the toughest schedule in the league. They play against the NFC east, the AFC south, both of whom had 3 playoff teams last year. To make matters worse, they have quite a few odd day games, Monday night, Thursday night, and Sunday night. Their one redemption is that the other AFC North teams have almost as difficult of a schedule minus the odd nights. Look for the Browns to split with the Squeelers, and to sweep the other 2 teams in their division and that will be the secret to their success. But while conventional wisdom would say their tough schedule will do them in I think it could actually help them. They’ll learn to deal with adversary and be very tough once they make the playoffs and be the most playoff ready team in the league.
In the east the Patriots should have a cake walk to win their division but given the North and South’s tough schedule we could see another playoff team from the East. To be honest, I haven’t made up my mind if it will be the Jets or the Bills. The Dolphins still have a lot of rebuilding to do.
In the South, it is hard to bet against the Colts but just to make things interesting I will pick the Jaguars to win the division and the Colts as the wild card team. The Titans and Texans will both be tough again.
In the West, you have to go with the very talented Chargers. Most pundits are picking the Broncos for second but I have a gut feeling that the Raiders are going to be quite improved this year and finish second. If there is a worse team in the league than the Rams it is probably the Chiefs. So I think the Redskins, Chiefs, and Rams will all be picking in the top 3 come next April.
My prediction of the Super Bowl, the Cleveland Browns will defeat the Dallas Cowboys next February in the Super Bowl.
Let the games begin.