Training camps are opening! Time to start talking football again. No other sport comes close!
I'll kick things off with some important news:
Kellen Winslow-TE- Buccaneers Jul. 20 - 4:02 pm et
Kellen Winslow revealed that he needed fluid drained from his testicles after catching a staph infection last season.
"My testicles were enlarged, to the point where it hurt to walk," Winslow said. The incident led to a severe falling out with the Browns, and Winslow passed the staph infection to his wife Janelle, who also needed to be hospitalized. "I had to clean it every day with a Q-Tip, for two and a half weeks," Winslow added. "It was the most painful thing I've ever been through."
Source: Akron Beacon Journal
I really had high hopes for the Eagles, I thought they made good moves and had a great draft. With the passing of JJ I am not to convinced that the D will be what it really needs to be for the Eagles to be successful.
With Favre balking the Packers are once again favored to win the NFC North. I have tickets to the Sunday night opening game against the Bears. Look for me in the stands, I'll be wearing green.
No way the packers are going to win the NFC North. This year is the year that McCarthy loses his job to the defensive coordinator they brought in. Thompson will throw anyone under the bus to protect himself. We still have huge issues with the offensive line and no consistancy with the running game. A couple of our recievers are getting long in the tooth, as well. Best case scenario is that Rogers learns how to do something other than shit the bed in the 4th Quarter and McCarthy actually unclenches his asshole long enough to make more aggressive calls with the game in the balance, in which case I can see a wildcard year.
Remember this is a team that _struggled_ to beat Detroit twice last year and now it is trying to implement an entirely new defensive scheme. We will sweep Detroit, get swept by the Bears, and split with the Vikings. Our out of division schedule is a crap shoot and we will be fortunate to go 9-7 this year. Favre drama aside, Thompson has run the team into the ground. Mike Sherman actually had a much better record as a GM than Thomson has and he got canned for his performance. I love the Pack, but until we get a GM who knows how to do something other than save cap room, draft three wide recievers, and cover his own ass, we will be stuck with mediocrity.
War is an option whose time has passed. Peace is the only option for the future. At present we occupy a treacherous no-man's-land between peace and war, a time of growing fear that our military might has expanded beyond our capacity to control it and our political differences widened beyond our ability to bridge them. . . .
Short of changing human nature, therefore, the only way to achieve a practical, livable peace in a world of competing nations is to take the profit out of war.
--RICHARD M. NIXON, "REAL PEACE" (1983)
"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, represents, in the final analysis, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children."
Man, reading last year's NFL thread is a hoot...a hoot!
Those people that thought LT would be better than AP...wrong! (and thought LT had a few more years being better than AP...lol...OK, go ahead and pick him over AP again this year...you just don't understand how hard it is for older RBs to maintain in the NFL) Some people trying to assign -100 points per fumble in a desperate attempt to get LT's numbers up to APs.
The predictions against the Cardinals during the end of the season and predicting Arizona losses every game though the playoffs is a most entertaining read!
Having seen the Cardinals lose for 20 years here, the feeling around the team is completely different after a trip to the Super Bowl. You don't see the nasty contract disputes. All rookies are signed except Beanie Wells and even that seems like it will happen quick. Contract disputes are there but very quiet. Docket, Boldin, Bertrand Berry...all reporting to camp and not bitching much.
Winnow wrote:Man, reading last year's NFL thread is a hoot...a hoot!
Those people that thought LT would be better than AP...wrong! (and thought LT had a few more years being better than AP...lol...OK, go ahead and pick him over AP again this year...you just don't understand how hard it is for older RBs to maintain in the NFL) Some people trying to assign -100 points per fumble in a desperate attempt to get LT's numbers up to APs.
The predictions against the Cardinals during the end of the season and predicting Arizona losses every game though the playoffs is a most entertaining read! The Cardinals did get some respect in that thread right before the Super Bowl. There's some good comments in that thread.
Having seen the Cardinals lose for 20 years here, the feeling around the team is completely different after a trip to the Super Bowl. You don't see the nasty contract disputes. All rookies are signed except Beanie Wells and even that seems like it will happen quick. Contract disputes are there but very quiet. Docket, Boldin, Bertrand Berry...all reporting to camp and not bitching much.
Curious if Fitzgerald can break the Madden Curse.
Here's a quote from the 2008 thread:
Jice Virago wrote:
6) Cards are done- They got a long way on emotion, but the Cards folded in the end (sorry bad joke). Problem with a team living on emotion is that a major crushing loss like this one pretty much pops the bubble, especially if the vet QB who was sustaining that emotional high isn't around anymore (see Greenbay this year vs last), which it is rumored that Warner is going to retire or be traded. They had a good run, but it is over now and no one will overlook them.
The Cards didnt fold in the end. Francisco, a player no longer with the team, game up the final TD. Even so, with the horrific 98 yard Defensive TD at the end of the first half by Harrison, the Cardinals cambe back and led up until the Final TD with 35 seconds.
If you watch the final play of the game, Warners arm/pass is blocked...if only he had gotten that last bomb off...with Fitgerald sitting there inthe End Zone....it would have made for an eve more exciting finish to that game that it already was.
I stand behind my prediction for the Cardinals. They are getting to keep Warner and their division is still a shithouse that makes the NFC North look good, in comparison. But they got through the playoffs on emotional charge and teams looking past them. No one looks past a Superbowl team and the way the Steelers won is going to take a heavy toll on them. Again, look at the 07 Packers vs last years results. I do think they will win their division with 9 or 10 wins, but that is as far as they will go. Mind you, I would have liked to see them win over the Steekers (I believe I said so at the time) because the thing I love most about Pro Football is the parity that exists, so Cinderella teams are good for the game.
War is an option whose time has passed. Peace is the only option for the future. At present we occupy a treacherous no-man's-land between peace and war, a time of growing fear that our military might has expanded beyond our capacity to control it and our political differences widened beyond our ability to bridge them. . . .
Short of changing human nature, therefore, the only way to achieve a practical, livable peace in a world of competing nations is to take the profit out of war.
--RICHARD M. NIXON, "REAL PEACE" (1983)
"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, represents, in the final analysis, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children."
I ran into LT at a golf course in San Diego this week, seemed like a nice guy and everyone at the course said he was really nice. I was surprised how short he was though.
When I was younger, I used to think that the world was doing it to me and that the world owes me some thing…When you're a teeny bopper, that's what you think. I'm 40 now, I don't think that anymore, because I found out it doesn't f--king work. One has to go through that. For the people who even bother to go through that, most assholes just accept what it is anyway and get on with it." - John Lennon
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -The Arizona Cardinals have agreed to terms on a five-year contract with first-round draft pick Beanie Wells, and the former Ohio State running back was expected to arrive at training camp in time for Saturday afternoon's practice.
Sweet. The Cardinals rookies are all signed in time for a full camp, veterans all there, no major losses in the off season. Things looking good for Arizona barring injury.
Winnow wrote:Sweet. The Cardinals rookies are all signed in time for a full camp, veterans all there, no major losses in the off season. Things looking good for Arizona barring injury.
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -- Running back Beanie Wells didn't quite make it through his first practice with the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday.
He rolled his left leg in a collision with Jason Banks late in the workout and was taken off on a cart. He was smiling as he left and the team said they were looking at his left ankle. It wasn't known how serious the injury was.
Some (a lot) pictures from first day from Cardinals training camp:
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -- Running back Beanie Wells didn't quite make it through his first practice with the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday.
He rolled his left leg in a collision with Jason Banks late in the workout and was taken off on a cart. He was smiling as he left and the team said they were looking at his left ankle. It wasn't known how serious the injury was.
Some (a lot) pictures from first day from Cardinals training camp:
If the 2009 Cards are the ones that played in the 2008 regular season, they have no shot. Let's face it, if they were in any division other than their own and maybe the afc west....they had no shot at making the playoffs, they were 9-7 in that joke of a division. If they can keep the momentum they had in the playoffs, it could be an interesting season for them. The defense looked like a completely different team and that super bowl loss was a lot closer than some people may remember it.
I actually like the Cardinals, a lot. If I had to pick any team other than the Redskins to win the NFC (what I want, not what I think will happen) it would be the Cardinals.
It's only training camp but it's hard not to say the smart money would be on the Patriots at this point. Yeah I know, going out on a limb with that one...
"The secret of being boring is to say everything."
I'm going to the Packer Family Fun Night this upcoming Saturday. It is basically a scrimmage for the people to watch. Amazingly enough, 65,000 people will turn up for this scrimmage. It is just like a game day event. The team comes out and runs about 40 plays or so, then they give away jerseys from the players by calling out seat numbers, and then fireworks at the end. All in all a great time for the family for about $10 a ticket.
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -- Running back Beanie Wells didn't quite make it through his first practice with the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday.
He rolled his left leg in a collision with Jason Banks late in the workout and was taken off on a cart. He was smiling as he left and the team said they were looking at his left ankle. It wasn't known how serious the injury was.
Some (a lot) pictures from first day from Cardinals training camp:
Zamtuk wrote:roofles all those years of beanie jokes out of you are coming back. enjoy soft ankles and feet with your bruiser, i know OSU fans did!
Sucks to see it continue, because I liked Beanie. He just can't stay out of the training room for some reason.
He did get rolled up on this time so it wasn't his fault, but still. That was like 2 hours into his very first practice. At least he's utilizing that awesome education he received at OhioSU to study the playbook while he gimps around. If he can at least pass block he can help the team. Sure would be nice to have an actual threat out of the backfield though to keep the defense honest. AZ didn't have any semblance of a running game and walked over defenses last year. It would be nice to see how it would go with that piece added.
I was in Columbus this weekend. Wearing some Texas garb to the local bar, I drew a few comments. One guy in particular was like "blah blah we'll beat you this year (very drunk)". So, I'm like yeah sure, talking shit back but saying hey beat Michigan I don't give a fuck, so he doesn't get pissy. Then we start talking NFL football, and I ask him what he thinks about Beanie Wells, his chances at Arizona. After stammering a bit, he admitted he had nfc who that was. I think his ignorance rolled Beanie's ankle. What an idiot! Obviously I know he's not the rule for OSU fans, I know several. But someone needed to reign in his drunk ass.
The Cardinals just concluded a night practice at Lumberjack Stadium, and rookie running back Beanie Wells "twisted" his sore ankle a bit on a running play.
Wells was stopped in the backfield by defensive tackle Darnell Dockett and aggravated his sprained ankle when he tried to make a move to get away. On the next play, Wells tried to run a pass route into the flat but stopped after only a couple of steps. I didn't see him take another snap.
After practice, Wells said he was "fine" and that he just twisted the ankle on the run play.
Coach Ken Whisenhunt wasn't available to media after practice. It's time to wonder, however, just how much Wells might play Saturday against the Chargers. He has practiced on a very limited basis this week, and appears to be favoring the ankle he sprained on Aug. 1.
wtf?? How did this guy ever play a game at OhioSU? Jesus, this guy is more fragile than an eggshell.
To hell with the Arizona Almosts!!! Lets talk about interesting/funny shit!
Who laughed about Vick signing in Philly? The McNabb-Vick potential tandem has some interesting possibilities given their skill sets but does anyone wonder how long before McNabb's mom complains about him in the press, especially if he has any degree of success? I think Vick should be thanking his lucky stars that Tony Dungy came in on his side: I don't know if very many other people could have got him reinstated and signed as quickly as he has been, considering the backlash against his crimes. I'm not saying Vick's change of heart isn't genuine but he was a PR nightmare that the NFL could have wrote off very easily, if it wasn't for someone with the credibility of Dungy intervening.
And Plaxico. Does anyone feel sorry for this idiot? Shoots himself in the leg and ends up going to jail for 2 years. Memo to Moron: you can afford a bodyguard if you think you need "personal security", instead of playing Russian Roulette with your professional football career.
I know we talked a lot about the NFC north in the Favre thread but what does everyone think the over-under on Lions losses is this year? Can they go 0 for the season again?
The Saints seem to be really quiet (from where I am anyway). Can a team that some thought was a rising power find their way back to winning or did Jeremy Shockey poison another locker room? I love his play on the field but the boy needs to learn to STFU...
The Pats lost in exhibition play last night: will the Evil Empire of the NFL be back or will it be up to someone else to challenge the Steelers for AFC supremacy, and if so, who will it be?
Wulfran Moondancer
Stupid Sidekick of the Lambent Dorf
Petitioner to Club Bok Bok
Founding Member of the Barbarian Nation Movement
Well, since no one else has the balls (or idiocy) to do it this early, here is my preliminary prediction for the playoffs:
AFC-
North- Pittsburg, obviously. They have had the least change from last year and are the defending champions. I do not think they will make the superbowl, as the modern era Steelers do not seem to string back to back runs together, but they will likely make it to the AFC championship game.
South- Tenesse. This is also my pick to win the AFC this season. They had a bit of emotional falloff last year and got caught flatfooted in the playoffs, but they are looking as solid as last year and had minimal roster shakeups this offseason.
East- Miami Dolphins. This one is hard and could as easily go to the Pats, but I think the constant bad rap Bellicheat has been calling down on the team, combined with their seeming appearence of invincibility being shattered last year, are going to make things difficult to prove. On the Dolpins end, Parcels teams always make a run in their second year and they have one of the most balanced teams in the entire AFC. Whichever team wins the division will not go far against the physical teams that are taking over the AFC, though.
West- Chargers. The turd that floats will reach the top of the shit bucket. I think the Chargers are about done, but have one more run in them. It will end in the wild card round.
Wild Cards- Ravens and Patriots, no discussion needed.
NFC-
North- Vikings. Without Favre, they were a shoe in and he could throw three picks a game in this division and still they would win it. Whether he settles in or not will determine how deep they go in the playoffs. Outside the NFC West, this is the worst division in football and the team with the best running game and defense will win it, which is the Vikings right now.
South- Saints will win it and go down in round one of the playoffs. They have the offense to get in, but not the Defense to go the distance.
East- Hard call, but I have to go with the Giants here. I expect both the Eagles and Cowboys to implode. The Vick factor will sink the Eagles, who already have huge focus problems. The Cowboys will crumble thanks to a continuance of the ongoing circus that is Wade and Romo trying to not get fired. The Giants may be mediocre, but they have been pretty adamant about getting rid of anything disruptive to their team, which is probably enough to win that division.
West- Cardinals. A .500 team could win this division and the Cards are that team. They won't suprise anyone in the playoffs this time around, though, but the NFC is such a crapshoot that anything is possible.
Wild Cards- Bears and Cowboys
Supberbowl predicion:
Titans defeat the Vikings
War is an option whose time has passed. Peace is the only option for the future. At present we occupy a treacherous no-man's-land between peace and war, a time of growing fear that our military might has expanded beyond our capacity to control it and our political differences widened beyond our ability to bridge them. . . .
Short of changing human nature, therefore, the only way to achieve a practical, livable peace in a world of competing nations is to take the profit out of war.
--RICHARD M. NIXON, "REAL PEACE" (1983)
"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, represents, in the final analysis, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children."
AFC North - Steelers. A complete team in all aspects. I think their weakness is the ability to protect Roethlisburger and they still do it well enough to win consistently, even against super-power defenses.
AFC South - I'll agree with Jice again with Tennessee but I don't think they'll go far. Losing Haynesworth is a huge loss on the D-Line thats not easily replaced.
AFC East - The Patriots. I think the Evil Empire of the NFL will be back and as bad as ever. Moss is still hungry and they have talent and depth throughout the line up. The only thing that will stop a Steeler-Patriot AFC championship game is another injury to Brady.
AFC West - Again I'll agree with Jice on the Chargers. The best of the weakest division in the AFC.
Wild cards - Miami will have the "easiest" time getting in and Indianapolis will edge in over the geriatric Ravens
NFC North - I'll say the Vikings, but it will have more to do with Adrian Petersen than Brett Favre. I'm not sold on him being a big upgrade on Tarvaris Jackson but he's not a downgrade. Weak division though with the only possibility of a contender being if Jay Cutler can mature and actually play and lead the Bears.
NFC South - Atlanta. The Falcons might not win their game on Wild card weekend but the improvements will continue. Sorry Saints fans, but Shockey was not the answer you were looking for last year and it won't get any better.
NFC East - The Giants will win one of the toughest all round divisions in football but it won't be easy. I'm not sure about the Eagles o-line although the possibility of Vick and McNabb both being on the field gives them some possibilites. I don't know what is wrong in Dallas but with all that talent it just isn't clicking.
NFC West - they should make this one another wild card slot but I think the Cards will win the weakest division in the NFL.
Wild cards - Eagles and Saints
Superbowl - Steelers repeat over the Giants
Wulfran Moondancer
Stupid Sidekick of the Lambent Dorf
Petitioner to Club Bok Bok
Founding Member of the Barbarian Nation Movement
Wulfran wrote:
NFC West - they should make this one another wild card slot but I think the Cards will win the weakest division in the NFL.
Ignorance. The Cardinals bitchslapped all of those non NFC West teams on their way to becoming defending national Superbowl Champion runner ups. The Division as a whole is weak. The Cardinals aren't weak.
Wulfran wrote:
NFC West - they should make this one another wild card slot but I think the Cards will win the weakest division in the NFL.
Ignorance. The Cardinals bitchslapped all of those non NFC West teams on their way to becoming defending national Superbowl Champion runner ups. The Division as a whole is weak. The Cardinals aren't weak.
The Cards were a 9-7 team from the weakest division in the NFL, with 6 of those wins coming from their weak division-mates. They won some lopsided games but they also got their asses handed to them a lot too. Their pts for/pts against had a differential of 1 (427-426). The only team in the post season you could say they really beat up on was Carolina. And in the end, they aren't drastically improved over that 9-7 club.
Now man up and show us your picks or STFU!
Wulfran Moondancer
Stupid Sidekick of the Lambent Dorf
Petitioner to Club Bok Bok
Founding Member of the Barbarian Nation Movement
I don't get the Seahawk love in the West. If anyone, the 49'ers have a better shot than the Seahawls to unseat the Cardinals. The Seahwks have a horrendous O-Line made even worse this year with the off season knee surgery to Walter Jones. he's been useless in the pre season.
You people picking the Seahawks are living in the past and not doing your research. The Cardinals should cruise through this division but if there is a challenge, it's not coming from the Seahawks.
Injury issues on Seahawks' offensive line tough to block out
By Danny O'Neil
Times NFL reporter
The Seahawks ended last season with all five members of their starting offensive line injured.
They're not going to begin this season all that much healthier.
Three-fifths of last year's starting offensive line is currently out, and the holes in Seattle's running game have been bigger than the holes the linemen have opened for Seattle's running game.
The Seahawks are limping sufficiently that they reportedly will add Edgerrin James, a running back who's only 31 years old but coming off the least productive of his 10 NFL seasons. Throw in a Saturday exhibition game most notable for quarterback Matt Hasselbeck absorbing three sacks without spontaneously combusting and it doesn't take a magnifying glass to see the Seahawks have an issue up front.
Big issues, actually. The offensive line that once was this team's identity has become an anatomy lesson on the many different ways football players get hurt.
Center Chris Spencer won't be ready for the start of the regular season because of a slightly torn quadriceps, the Seahawks are more than a week away from knowing even a timeline for Walter Jones' return from knee surgery, and guard Mike Wahle didn't even make it to the season after he failed to recover from shoulder surgery.
Is this August apocalypse just a continuation of the bad juju from last season's injury-riddled season?
"I just refuse to think in those terms," coach Jim Mora said. "I don't think it does any of us any good — and when I say us, I mean coaches and players. I don't want an atmosphere where we're worried about who's not playing."
Coaches don't win games by cursing fate or coming up snake-bitten. They win by placing a fire poker of motivation onto the hindquarters of the players expected to step into the vacancies. One man's absence is another man's opportunity.
"I'm not really trying to fool anybody," Mora said. "I'm just trying to convince people — especially the people that play for us — that, 'Hey man, buckle up, let's go.'
"We can't cancel the season. We can't postpone the game. It is what it is, let's go. Let's roll."
This is Steve Vallos' opportunity to prove he's a starting center in the league. Max Unger will get a chance to get on the field as a guard sooner rather than later if he beats out Mansfield Wrotto. An injury turned out to be the opportunity for Sean Locklear to prove himself as a starter. He became Seattle's right tackle after Floyd Womack suffered an injury to his triceps in August 2005, or was it Womack's toe? Or his knee? No, it was definitely his triceps. It was always so tough to tell with Pork Chop, a one-man index of all sorts of maladies.
That Womack was Seattle's most durable lineman last season says all you need to know about the health of everyone else, and 2009 hasn't begun much better.
Of the five players who will start on the offensive line Saturday, only one has started more than 20 NFL games: Locklear. He has 53 starts; left guard Rob Sims is next with 20. The remaining three starters won't have more than 20 NFL starts combined.
The Seahawks' line is going to be green, and not that nuclear-cabbage green that's part of the team's color scheme. This green will be inexperience. Seattle will begin the season without its Pro Bowl cornerstone in Jones and without the center that was showing signs he might live up to the faith Seattle showed, choosing him in the first round of the 2005 draft.
Spencer is very athletic for a center, his mobility a trait that would be accentuated in the Seahawks' zone-blocking scheme. And this year, he was finally healthy. He underwent shoulder surgery after the 2006 season and recovery from that procedure lingered into training camp. Last year, a disk injury that first flared up in training camp and later worsened, knocking him out of the final five games.
This year, Spencer was finally healthy, "was" being the operative word.
Now that he's out, it's up to the depth of Seattle's young linemen to keep injuries to players like Spencer and Jones from becoming a curse.
Don't forget they have a QB who has a terrible back. A QB with a bad back, that the coach of the team "isn't sure will make it the entire season." Hasselbeck is great fantasy pick.
The question is if Hasselbeck can stay healthy. If he does they have a very good chance to win that joke of a division. The Seahawks have the best defense (injuries killed them last year) in the division. The receiving core is improved over last year (yes I know, the Cards receivers are obviously better).
I didn't pick the Seahawks because I think they're a great team...I picked them because that division is terrible but someone has to win it. Sure, the Cardinals by some fluke stumbled into the Super Bowl last year (c'mon, they were 3-7 in games outside the NFC West in the regular season) but it's not like the Seahawks are in a division with the Steelers or Patriots or something. You guys give way too much credit to the Cardinals. If the Seahawks and the 49ers each beat them once this year, I don't see the Cardinals making the playoffs.
"The secret of being boring is to say everything."
Less than a minute away from a Superbowl Championship and it's a fluke? How many fluke games do they have to have to get to the Super Bowl? Panthers, Eagles, both with good defenses and the Steelers with the best defense and they won by a fluke themselves (99 yard turnover run for TD) It was the Steelers that got lucky, not the Cardinals.
The Cardinal defense, while giving up a lot of points, also gets a lot of turnovers. They will destroy Hasslebeck behind that poor O-Line. No way Seattle scores enough to keep up with the Cardinals. The BEST defenses in the league can't stop the Cardinals. You've got to score over 30 to beat Arizona (Pittsburgh scored 27 including fluke 99 yard defensive TD to win the Super Bowl) and Seattle isn't going to do it. I'm not too scared of Julius Jones and ancient Cardinals outcast Edge running behind that horrific O-Line either.
Seattle will finish with one of the worst records in the NFL this year.
Here in Austin TX that sounded like music to my ears. I root for all Big 12 teams, with this SEC/Big 12 question over conference dominance. But really, fuck OU. And fuck that mouth breather Sam Bradford.
It was a fluke because if they were in a real division they wouldn't have even made the playoffs. If you get six free wins and can only win 3 out of 10 other games, then you're not a great team. They had a great playoff run and their defense really stepped it up and looked like a different team, but that was last year and for a shot period of time. I'm expecting the defense of the 2008 regular season to show up this year, not the playoff defense.
If you've noticed a lot of offensive players, Kurt Warner in particular, they give Todd Haley a lot of credit for that offense rolling the way it did. He's gone this year and a few people have pointed that out as a possible reason why the offense has looked a bit off in the preseason. It's the preseason and doesn't really count but that still doesn't mean they don't try. They may end up clicking and having similar offensive numbers again this year but no one is going to be surprised if they fall off a bit. It's very very unlikely they improve any on offense.
I'm not saying the Seahawks are going to be some juggernaut this year and really do something. I'm just saying they'll be noticeably better than last year (8-9 wins this year, really that's all you need to win that division) and that the Cardinals are probably going to be a game or two worse than last year. If the Cardinals have the same sort of out of division record this year and drop 1-2 divisional games they're back to a 7-8 win team. The Seahawks lost their starting QB last year, along with almost all their entire offensive line at some points and most of the receiving core....of course they were terrible last year. Assuming they don't have the same kind of catastrophic injuries this year, I can't see how you expect them to be the same team as last year.
"The secret of being boring is to say everything."
Many writers are predicting 4-12 for Denver this season.
Oh ffs, give them 6 wins! *sigh*
At least it will be fun to see Knowshon Moreno develop (barring injury). Man, what a bitch of a schedule they have! Also, I think the defense will be MUCH better than what these guys are saying. Damn shame Orton is not a good QB. I am beginning to hope that that Brandstater kid from Fresno State eventually gets the nod. He looked pretty fucking good in the last two preseason games.
It also looks like they are working on a deal with Brandon Marshall. Kid is dumb as a sack of hair, but pretty much all wideouts are these days.
Canelek smiles as the Broncos beat the Bangals
Winnow cries as the Cards lose at home to one of their weak division mates in the 49ers
Tennessee looks tougher than I expected against the Steelers
and the injuries have started too.
How long will McNabb, Polamalu and Urlacher all be out? The Bears are kinda used to doing without Urlacher but all three of these guys are stars that are integral to their team identities.
Wulfran Moondancer
Stupid Sidekick of the Lambent Dorf
Petitioner to Club Bok Bok
Founding Member of the Barbarian Nation Movement
Canelek smiles as the Broncos beat the Bangals
Winnow cries as the Cards lose at home to one of their weak division mates in the 49ers
Tennessee looks tougher than I expected against the Steelers
and the injuries have started too.
How long will McNabb, Polamalu and Urlacher all be out? The Bears are kinda used to doing without Urlacher but all three of these guys are stars that are integral to their team identities.
Urlacher sent out a text message stating he is done for the season. He is going to have to surgery on a severely dislocated wrist.
Urlacher is out for the season. That, in combination with Boy Wonder Jay Cutler playing like total shit, makes this a bad first week for the Bears. I'm happy about that. I'm fine with the Bears, but Boy Wonder Jay Cutler can go fuck himself.
Polamalu is out for 3-6 weeks, apparently. The Steelers will be fine, but that sucks, because he's fun to watch.
McNabb breaking a rib is definitely not great, but I'm not hugely concerned, either. That's the kind of thing you can recover from, and Jeff Garcia is already back as insurance. I don't think Michael Vick is even remotely a threat to cause a real QB controversy. Have you seen him play this preseason? He's not REMOTELY close to being a starting-caliber QB at this point. He himself has said he's at 70%. Any calls for Vick as a starter will be sidelined pretty quick if people actually get the chance to see him play in a starting role. He's there to add a wrinkle to the offense, not to compete with McNabb for the starting slot.
Uh-oh! Eagles signed Jeff Garcia today after McNabb's injury.
Cardinals looked about like I expected them them to look, a bit worse than 2008 regular season. They lost their OC and that hurt them for sure and they're playing in an improved division. Seattle looked decent beating up on the poor Rams, if they can play like that against a team that isn't terrible I think my division title prediction is a lock.
The Packers/Bears game last night was more of a defensive struggled than I expected (and hoped, had a lot of FF points riding on that one being a high scoring game).
I think the result of the Eagles/Panthers game was more a result of the Panthers just being that bad than the Eagles being that good. I wouldn't expect that kind of game often.
Oh yeah...it's 1 1/2 quarters in to the Buffalo @ NE game and the Patriots aren't looking like an unbeatable juggernaut so far.
"The secret of being boring is to say everything."
