Re:
Nothing shocks me, except how BADLY Carolina is doing. Anything that appears a LOCK isn't. Evidently Deshaun Foster, while he has the TENURE to be the main back, isn't MAIN back quality. Behind the same line in the same game, Williams did 3 times the damage. There will be a changing of the guard soon. They have too much talent there, and the stars have aligned for them THIS year to win. Not having SS worries me, b/c a team so dependent on one receiver to win is VERY one dimensional and does not portend to be a Superbowl caliber team.
Chicago looks great, and should keep it up better this year than last. The D is the same, and behind Grossman they have Griese. Grossman gives them upside, Griese gives them consistency and control. He can sling the rock, and his WR's aren't half bad...Muhammad, Berrian (3 year breakout year), and Mark Bradley. They at least have 3 competent RB's too, which is more important than 1 main starting back like an LJ, because if he goes down, so too does the run game.
SD looks good, and get Volek helps them keep progressing, though I'm sure they'd not shelve Rivers. They let Brees go. You don't sideline Rivers for 3 years, start him, then sit him, then start him. His confidence would be in the toilet. Play him and see what happens. Let him develop his confidence with receivers and understand the NFL gameplay pace.
TB IS bad. Their D, like the Pats, has been picked over. Sure, they have semblances of good D players, like Brooks and Barber, but there aren't the big name guys of yester-year like Sapps and Lynch in their prime. Not to menion, Caddy has to get his wheels back on, but the line is suffering mightily. Losing your starting guards hurts all over. If the D gets down, the Offense isn't up to speed yet to handle needing to come back.
Den will continue to BE bad, imo. There might be a cutler sighting if things get worse. The best thing the Pats do is eat mediocre QB's alive who make poor decisions, and Plummer fits that mold to a T. I think he allows at least 2 ints next sunday, or more, and a few fumbles from the pressure. They're not sure @ RB, yet, althought Tatum Bell IS putting up the stats to warrant ownership of the job. Rod Smith is too old to do it alone now, though he's good at receiving, he isn't Keyshawn-like even. And Walker, might have been a fluke a few years ago, coupled with a poor knee injury and learning a new playbook, I think people were too optimistic. TO and a few other elite guys are the only crop who can assimilate a book so fast, and despite not being perfect on routes, can still make plays happen. After that, their D wasn't good last year, it hasn't gotten better this year. I like DJ williams and Darrent Williams. Lynch is old. And the LB are serviceable, but not super starts. Champ is great, but he can't cover them all. They definately lose to teams like INDY, CIN, and maybe even the Pats.
Speaking of the Pats, they've never really been blow out teams. I'm concerned about their D to a point, but not having McGinest is OK by me. Our CB's are better this year than last, and many of the problem teams are WORSE. The Run D is great; no 100 yard games allowed. Pressure has been good, too. Not enough INT's or FF, but they'll come. Bruschi is there, and his leadership at least will anchor the D. Colvin is a beast and gets through untouched many times. The Offense will pick up, and I ask anyone to find a better group of Rb's than Maroney, Dillon, Faulk and Evans. ALL can play. ALL can produce, unlike a lot of teams. Even the dolphins, who were expected to be better don't have the kind of depth we do. At WR, we don't have a pure #1, but we never did. Branch and Givens normally were equal in stats. Having multiple receiving TE's, and now Gabriel, Jackson, Brown, Caldwell is, too, me great. It might not be SEXXy, but I'd rather a core of guys who can make plays, than only 1-2. That was the problem in Denver last year. They stopped most of the run, they stopped most of the big pass plays, but we couldn't move the ball b/c Dillon was injured AND Branch and Givens were the only guys who could receive. Outside of Brown, there wasn't anyone else. Watson was ok, but when the rush was brought, they needed him and graham to block. And to me, Branch/Givens aren't #1's, they complement a great #1, or are good AS A GROUP, but can't be a number, so don't pay number one money. I like the WR's more THIS year. My only concern will be the D, since they've losman and pennington, only mediocre qb's do quite well.
Pitt is worse. I'm happy for Roeth getting better, but their OFFENSE doesn't feel the same. It's not like they can turn and rely on someone DIFFERENT to make a play. Losing Randle El hurt them more than it benefited WAS getting him. And Bettis, well that goes without saying. When Parker couldn't get tough yards, Bettis always could. Nobody could tackle him. And that is true now. I say Haynes miss easy passes, and he's not Bettis. Miller is good, and as always so is Ward. Wilson is coming into his own, and so will Washington, but as a group, the D is good, but the offense isn't there right now. They've been set back this year.
Indy is a sham. I like how they're so fluid on Offense, and having Addai and Rhodes is great, but it's the same story every year. They can't do it. What makes it different this year? They lost Edge, gained Addai. He MIGHT work out, but to win the Superbowl they need BOTH. Peyton will be good for awhile, but I still think they'll have it tough against the better teams and better D's.
Atlanta could hit the superbowl. They did so much to upgrade the D. Vick is better, and even if he doesn't fit the mold of an NFL QB, they are not formatting the offense to HIM. Dunn and Norwood are just sick. They'll have 300 yards per game rushing no problem. When you have 3 guys who run 4.4's, the D is in trouble. His stable of WR only have to catch the ball when it's thrown, that's it, and they're all decent, although no true number ones. White, Jenkins, Crumpler, and Lelie, can catch 40 each and make vick a hero.
Seattle still puzzles me. It seems they want THIS year to be the year, but its disheatening to see an ELITE back like Alexander faulter and miss his guard so much. If he's to be the rushing champ, he can't fail against mediocre teams. That is what was great about Priest, he never faultered and was devastating in passing situations and running situations. He amazed me more than LJ, because you KNEW he'd always score and multiple times. It's even more ridiculous they couldn't make the SB with him. Sea's d is good. And should be good. The addition of Peterson helps Tatupu and they have some great pressure. It's a toss up as to which direction they go in.
The Giants are good, but Eli still has some growing pains. He can be ruffled a bit, and he's more of a playmaker than his brother, who's more of the typical offensive coordinator type. Peyton controls the offense, and Eli appears to BE a QB, though Peyton is better. Peyton's weapons have ALWAYS been great. Eli's are good, with Tiki and Burress and Shockey, when he isn't injured, penalized, or talking trash. The Giant D is good, but Philly had them wound up, which demonstrates their weaknesses, too. They might go far, but Eli is a year or 2 away from a SB run. Hopefully Tiki can hang in there or Jacobs will step up when the time comes.
Philly is good, very good. D took a hit with Kearse going down, but they're still solid. RB depth is great, and Westbrook MAKES plays like Donovan. They may not truly grind out the runs, but they certainly can score points and perhaps stay ahead of their D. I can't believe they lost to the Giants. Donovan is lucky, b/c he doesn't really have many WR's. Stallworth was HUGE. They wouldn't be 1-1 if not for that trade. BRown couldn't carry this team, and LJ and BW have had big enough games, and STILL lost 1 of them. In both games, Stallworth proved his worth AND STILL they didn't win. I can't imagine where they'd be. And it's not a case of TO, but it is that Brown (the rookie) isn't ready to make all the plays and catches he has to, otherwise he would. He's caught 3 passes in 2 games, and 2 td's. Wonderful, but not enough for them to consistently move the chains AND get down field. They'll do well for awhile, but I don't think we see them in the SB.
WAS is going NOWHERE. Even with Portis they'll be sad. In FF, they had Cooley going too high, and you could tell with ALL the wr's there it was a mess, moreover, Brunelle tailed off last year, and that's continued to NOW. They can't get ANY running going b/c they want Brunelle to beat them. In Football, you can't BUY a team.
DAL. They'll do OK, but the TO thing is stupid, and having Bledsoe can't ever be good. They SHOULD have a great offense, but I haven't seen it b/c Bledsoe doesn't make great decisions OR throws. Glenn, TO, Witten, Jones, Barber, and Fasano, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? They should be LIGHTING Up the score boards. That offense on PAPER is akin to Indy's, maybe BETTER. To is as good as Marvin Harrison, and Wayne and Glenn are much the same. Dallas has better TE's in Witten and Fasano, AND experienced RB's. The deficiency is with the LINE and the QB's.
I do think we could have a CHI vs NE superbowl. If their offense even gets 21 pts a game, 2 passing td's, 1 rushing td, or a few Fg's, nobody can top their Defense.
A-Unit
