The Bizniz, Volume 2, Issue 12 ARCHIVE

9/5/07 Now a look at the AFC.
**-Division Winner *-Wild Card

AFC East: Predicted Order of Finish (with record)
1.) New England (12-4)**
2.) New York J (9-7)
3.) Miami (7-9)
4.) Buffalo (6-10)
The Patriots made several major splashes in the offseason, most notably adding versatile defender Adalius Thomas from Baltimore. This was the ol' dual benefit addition: adding a quality player, and taking him away from a conference foe. The Pats also added some good wide outs like Randy Moss and Donte Stallworth. It will be fun to see what Tom Brady can do with quality WR's for once. They'll be scary-the Pats finished 11^th and 6^th in total O and D, respectively, and vastly improved in both areas. The Jets made strides in '06 under first year coach Eric Mangini, the "Manginius". Chad Pennington was healthy and had a pretty good year. Adding Thomas Jones was a fabulous move, perhaps the best of the offseason in my mind-I'm a big Jones fan. This is a talented, if under-achieving roster. Miami starts anew with coach Cam Cameron, who engineered some great offenses in San Diego. Drafting Ted Ginn at 9 was a joke, but getting John Beck in round 2 was good. The D is still good, but getting older. Mainstays like Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor know their time is now. Too bad they likely won't even sniff the playoffs in the ultra-tight AFC. Buffalo is still a mediocre football team. Is J.P. Losman the guy? I've been a big fan of his for a long time and he made strides last season (3,051, 19, 14, 85 rating.) But the Bills were still 30^th on offense....yikes. I really like Marshawn Lynch-a young Edge James.


AFC North: Predicted Order of Finish (with record)
1.) Baltimore (11-5)**
2.) Cincinnati (10-6)*
3.) Pittsburgh (8-8)
4.) Cleveland (5-11)

I was sketchy on the acquisition of Steve McNair by the Ravens last year and I must admit he really came through. The D is still solid, with Ray Lewis, Bart Scott, and Ed Reed, and co. Losing Adalius Thomas stings, though. They bring in Willis McGahee to replace Jamal Lewis. I'm a fan of both guys-it will be interesting to see if the Ravens are better with McGahee. But I said it last year, and I say it again: the Ravens are always one play away from putting Kyle Boller under center-not good. The Bengals were a big disappointment last year. The offense (8 in total O in '06) is money, with Carson Palmer, Rudi Johnson, Ocho Cinco and T.J. Houshyamomma. The defense was 30^th, however. And off the field problems still plague this team. It remains to be seen if Marvin Lewis can corral this bunch and right the ship. The Steelers are a pretty good team. Big Ben can still get it done, but he must rebound from an awful '06 (18 td's, 23 picks). I was never a Willie Parker fan (mostly when he opens his mouth), but I'm coming around to the guy. They were top 10 in both offense and defense last year. Troy Polamalu is one of my two or three favorite players-dude's nails. If Big Ben kills it, Pittsburgh could make noise. The Browns are not a good team. Lots of talent (Winslow, Edwards, etc.) but they don't get it done. Romeo Crennel is almost certainly a dead duck and the fans will likely clamor for Brady Quinn. Dead Man Walking coach and a rookie QB? Disaster in the making.


AFC South: Predicted Order of Finish (with record)
1.) Indianapolis (12-4)**
2.) Tennessee (8-8)
3.) Jacksonville (7-9)
4.) Houston (6-10)

Indy is great. Everyone knows it. Manning, Harrison, Wayne, Freeney, Sanders, etc. They'll probably rattle off another 9 or 10 game winning streak, then turn catatonic a few weeks before the playoffs start. They're a great team, but they lost some crucial pieces-we'll see how they respond. Vince Young was pretty good, though to listen to most people you'd have thought he had a phenomenal, Pro Bowl caliber season. His QB rating was 66.7 and he had more interceptions than touchdowns. That said, he injected life into a moribund franchise with his electric play. With Mike Vick gone, VY is now the face of the NFL in terms of highlight reel plays (Reggie Bush might disagree...) And as good as Vince was, Tennessee was still 27^th on offense. The Titans D was even worse, in fact dead last last year. They have some off field issues to deal with as well with Moron of the Century Adam "Miss Pac Man" Jones. The Jags cut ties with Doug E. Fresh, a.k.a. Byron Leftwich. David Garrard is now the guy. I like Garrard and the Jags have some young talent on offense. But former first rounders Matt Jones and Reggie Williams really need to step up to the plate. Jacksonville is still as good on D as anyone. They could be a sleeper in the AFC if they get things clicking. The Texans are still horrible. They pass on Reggie Bush (or Vince Young if you're so inclined...I'm not as far as Houston's concerned) then cut ties with David Carr in favor of Matt Schaub. Carr was sacked 249 times in his Houston tenure and Schaub isn't exactly Vince in terms of escapability. I'm a huge Andre Johnson fan-he's one of their few bright spots. And rook Amobi Okoye has a bright future. He and Mario Williams could be a great duo. Lord knows they'll be on the field a lot.

AFC West: Predicted Order of Finish (with record)
1.) San Diego (10-6)**
2.) Denver (9-7)*
3.) Kansas City (7-9)
4.) Oakland (5-11)

The Chargers blew up their coaching staff in the offseason, losing Marty Schottenheimer, Cam Cameron, and Wade Phillips. I'm not a Norv Turner fan at all, and I'm sure many if not most Bolt fans agree with me. The guy had loads of talent in stops in Washington and Oakland and failed. He certainly seems best suited to be a coordinator. But with a developing Philip Rivers at QB, football's best player in LaDainain Tomlinson, and stars like Antonio Gates and Shawne Merriman, the Chargers will be just fine. This is a solid team on both sides of the ball. But, ugh.....Norv Turner at the helm...Denver will have Jay Cutler for a full year as the ace. He showed flashes last year and should continue to make strides. Adding Travis Henry was a great move-Shanahan has done a lot with lesser backs. They'll need to improve on middle-of-the-pack rankings on offense and defense to contend. They'll be in the mix. Kansas City was disappointing. I had them pegged a division winner last year and they flopped. Trent Green is out and Damon Huard is the guy. He played well last year and the Chiefs got Larry Johnson in. Like Denver, KC was run of the mill on both sides. Can LJ be as productive as he's been coming off a 400 carry season? I love their LB corps with Donnie Edwards, Derrick Johnson, and newcomer Napoleon Harris. Rook Dwayne Bowe is nice as well. This division will be nip and tuck all year between these three. That leaves us with, sigh, the Oakland Raiders. What can you say about a team coming off a 2 win season that can't sign a 1 overall pick? It may actually be a blessing in disguise so that JaMarcus Russell can hold a clip board and develop a la Carson Palmer. I didn't want to see him start right away anyhow. So who is the QB? Josh McCown was once the apple of Denny Green's eye in AZ, and Daunte Culpepper can be as good as anyone when he's healthy. Is he healthy? I've watched several Raiders preseason games (war NFL Network!) and I think Culpepper's won the job. LaMont Jordan and Dominic Rhodes should be a dynamite duo, that is, if Jordan doesn't suck (508 total yards in '06) and Rhodes actually can play (he's out for the first four games for performance enhancers.) Jerry Porter is really good, as is Ron Curry. Reclamation project Mike Williams tries to salvage his career. Hey, look at Charlie Garner and Jerry Rice-both made Pro Bowls after being thrown away. Rook Zach Miller gives the Raiders their best option at TE in years. The D is great-3^rd in total D, 1^st against the pass, in '06. If the offense can get rolling the Silver and Black could look to make a Saints/Jets run (basement to contention.) I'm not counting on it, but the parity of the NFL amazes every year.