It's a bit early, but I figure to start this now and give predictions on the divisions. I will not be predicting records, but rather listing where I think each team will finish and also who gets a wild card slot. Feel free to make your own predictions.

NFC East
1. Dallas
2. NY Giants*
3. Washington
4. Philadelphia

NFC North
1. Green Bay
2. Chicago*
3. Detroit
4. Minnesota

NFC South
1. Atlanta
2. New Orleans
3. Carolina
4. Tampa Bay

NFC West
1. San Francisco
2. Seattle
3. Arizona
4. St. Louis



AFC East
1. New England
2. Buffalo*
3. NY Jets
4. Miami

AFC North
1. Cincinnati
2. Pittsburgh*
3. Baltimore
4. Cleveland

AFC South
1. Houston
2. Tennessee
3. Jacksonville
4. Indianapolis

AFC West
1. San Diego
2. Denver
3. Oakland
4. Kansas City


* - Denotes Wild Card team

few things

i don't see Philadelphia losing the division, washington has a rookie QB in the toughest division to play, washington will sit on the bottom but they will be better than last year

i don't see cincinatti winning the AFC north this year, pittsburgh and baltimore are just better teams right now with more experienced QB, i think they make the playoffs this year, but not over those two teams

and buffalo will not surpass the jets this year, unless mark sanchez sucks major **** and tebow is forced to take over (which is not going to happen)

the nfc east is so damn inconsistent though and the redskins really did just need a qb. griffen may not be perfect at first but i wouldn't be surprised at all to see him lead his team to a winning season in his rookie year.

**** you

No but seriously, Baltimore and Pittsburgh were not that significantly better last year (and Pitt actually had a first-round exit to the Fightin' Tebows). We've improved tremendously over the course of the offseason and there should be some level of a natural progression with Dalton that could easily close the gap. Queen's talked to me a lot about how dangerous the Bengals are now and he's right: there's a lot to fear. Pittsburgh had marginal improvement over the offseason (lost a couple of key players, had a good draft) but Baltimore got worse. Ed Reed and Ray Lewis are another year older. You may not expect the fallout but I really do. Ozzie Smith is good but he's been outdone by Colbert and Brown/Blackburn/Lewis the past few years and it's going to start showing here really soon.


>implying mark sanchez doesn't suck major **** in the first place

But yeh, Buffalo might actually do it. New York is a madhouse right now and relying on Sanchez to win anything is bad. Buffalo had some improvement? I guess? I dunno, I just want New York to go back into the basement and Buffalo to be awesome.

To explain my picks:

I don't trust Andy Reid anymore, and Juan Castillo is still the defensive coordinator. Reid also now has complete control of the Eagles due to Joe Banner getting forced out. The Eagles will screw this up majorly somehow, and it won't be just Michael Vick's fault. On the Redskins, if Cam Newton was good enough to add four wins for the Panthers, Robert Griffin III is that good. As for your point that the NFC East is inconsistent Riddle, I don't think it was inconsistent. I just don't think the NFC East was very good last year. The Giants caught fire at the right time and won it all of course, but each team had major problems.

For the AFC North, Cincinnati ended up hitting on both Andy Dalton and AJ Green. And their draft class this year was fantastic. Pittsburgh's good enough to win a wild card slot, but their defense is aging. As for the Ravens, in addition to Ray Lewis and Ed Reed being older, Terrell Suggs is out for the year due to his Achilles tendon tear. That's gonna hurt the most.

And as for the Jets, bringing in Tebow has doomed them. Even if Mark Sanchez plays well, Tebowmaniacs will be screaming that Jesus Christ Quarterback should be under center, even though it's obvious Tebow can't play QB at an NFL level. The Jets have basically set up Sanchez to fail.

Plus Riddle, it's Ozzie Newsome, not Ozzie Smith. Ozzie Smith played anything but football. And for the love of God don't take people picking against the Bengals on such a personal level.

cincinnati went 0-8 against teams with a winning record

0-8, tied for the worst mark in the league (this is including the playoffs)

the ravens went 7-1 against teams with a winning record last year, including the playoffs

this is why i don't see the bengals winning the AFC north, they're too young and too inexperienced especially when compared to the steelers and ravens, i still think they're 3rd in the division, in a few years they'll move up but not next year, especially with big ben and flacco QBing those teams, dalton can be as good as them, just not now

the NFC east had a down year last year, i think they'll be better next year as a whole, but the eagles are too talented to be the worst team in that division, RGIII will have a tough time in the NFC east and all that pressure, he'll be good, but i don't see it in year one, especially with no elite receiver (moss is old and garcon might be the work of payton manning)

i think the jets will bounce back, they weren't even that bad last year, they went 8-8, especially for a team that has a history as bad as the jets do (i don't think they've ever had 3 winning seasons in a row), they'll be fine, they have the same team as last year and some added pieces, they're turning tebow into a running back (he's fattening up apparently and taking snaps at RB in some packages), they'll make the playoffs this year, count on it

Yeah, the Bengals didn't beat a team with a winning record last year...........but that's last year. And while they were certainly too inexperienced last year, this year Andy Dalton and AJ Green have a year's experience. Combine that with their great defense being better this year, and the Bengals are poised to surprise people. The Steelers will be close, but the defense is older and more banged up, though now Roethlisberger has a good offensive line. As for the Ravens, Ray Lewis is old (the Ravens played better WITHOUT him than with him last year), Ed Reed's getting there, and no Terrell Suggs is gonna hurt them a lot.

Well, if the usual gang of idiots still being in charge of the Eagles won't convince you that they'll be in the cellar, the fact that Jeff Lurie is getting divorced has sealed it. Yeah, the Eagles claim that it won't affect them and that it's an amicable divorce...........but Jeff Lurie is also a massive liar. This will be the NFL's version of the McCourt divorce, and it'll affect the Eagles greatly.

As for them being "talented", let's look at their talent.

Michael Vick - Turnover waiting to happen
DeSean Jackson - He's been figured out
Nnamdi Asomugha - He's too one dimensional. No wonder Oakland wasn't trying to keep him.
DeMeco Ryans - He's coming off a torn Achilles, and when he came back last year, he was clearly washed up.
Jason Babin - All he can do is rush the QB. Can't do anything else.
Dominique Rogers-Cromartie - His rookie season was his best. He's been declining ever since.

Combined with the God-awful "Wide Nine", the Eagles will be scored on frequently, give up huge yards rushing, and will blow leads.

The Eagles will be no better than 5-11, and it wouldn't shock me if they finish 3-13 or 2-14.

Shows I've been paying far too much attention to baseball recently. :r

They made the playoffs last year. How much more experience do they even need?

And yeh, last year, cool. That ain't this year.

ridiculously easy schedule did help them with making the playoffs

i'm not saying they will be bad, they're just not the steelers and ravens

here's my prediction:

Week 1- @ Baltimore: Loss
Week 2- vs. Cleveland: Win
Week 3- @ Washington: Win
Week 4- @ Jacksonville: Win
Week 5- vs. Miami: Win
Week 6- @ Cleveland: Win
Week 7- vs. Pittsburgh: Loss
Week 8- Bye
Week 9- vs. Denver: Loss
Week 10- vs. Giants: Loss
Week 11- @ Kansas City: Loss
Week 12- vs. Oakland: Win
Week 13- @ San Diego: Loss
Week 14- vs. Dallas: Loss
Week 15- @ Philidelphia: Loss
Week 16- @ Pittsburgh: Loss
Week 17- vs. Baltimore: Win

Record: 7-9, and it's not too far-fetched

Wow Mood, you're giving the AFC West WAY more credit than it deserves. It's as weak as the NFC West, if not weaker. And even if the Broncos have Peyton Manning, they've still got a lot of holes to fill.

The way I see it, the Bengals will beat Pittsburgh once, also defeat both Kansas City and Denver, and also beat Philadelphia and Dallas, which would put their record at 12-4.

it may seem like that but here's how i see it

KC has a bounce back year this year with a new coach and a new defense, remember, the Cheifs lost their star RB, their starting QB, their starting TE all early in the season and still had a 7-9 record, let alone, Arrowhead stadium is the loudest stadium in the league, I think the bengals lose in a close one

I don't see Andy Dalton beating Peyton Manning, the broncos defense was real solid in their last 8 games, which is why tebow won, If tebow can win 8 games for the broncos, Peyton (with almost the same exact personnel) can definitely win 2 more games

And then there are the Chargers, who at this point look like they win games or lose the games themselves, and when the Chargers are one of the best home teams in the league, i don't see the bengals beating them at Qualcomm.

I have pittsburgh winning the division, and i think they will sweep the bengals (big ben i think has only lost once to a cincinnati team

dallas is a toss up, it'll be close, i still think Dallas wins

and queen, you're seriously way too hard on the eagles, they still went 8-8 last year, i have them winning the NFC East (since there have been no repeat winners since 2005)

look, the bengals had a real special season last year, but a lot of it was due in part of having a really friggen easy schedule, i hope they prove me wrong and actually end up winning the division, i just don't see it yet, they will win in the next few years, i just don't see it as soon as next season

Here's why I picked the Bengals to win those additional games:

-Kansas City's offense is okay, but their defense is very shaky.
-Denver's got holes on defense and the weapons Peyton has are nowhere near the caliber of what he had in Indianapolis.
-San Diego is still coached by Norv Turner, and they're so damn inconsistent that teams such as the Bengals give them a challenge.
-Dallas has holes in their defense, even with Morris Claiborne. And other than Tony Romo, their offense is either absolutely on fire or frigid cold.
-Philadelphia will turn the ball over frequently against the Bengals, and AJ Green will destroy the Eagle secondary.

Cincinnati is a well-rounded team with talent on both sides of the ball. Yes, their schedule was easy last year, but with a year's experience and a full training came, they're gonna surprise a lot of people this year.

On the Eagles, yeah, they finished 8-8, but they were 4-8 at one point, and only finished 8-8 because they faced a sputtering Jets team, a Cowboys team that didn't care to try and win, and two garbage teams in Miami and Washington. Simply put, I don't trust Andy Reid, I don't trust Juan Castillo, and I don't trust Jeff Lurie. I'll believe this team can win the division when it happens. Until then, I am keeping them as bottom-feeders in the NFC East, because the other teams have CLEARLY surpassed them in talent.

eagles have talent pouring out their ears, the lack of an offseason with all of those additions and coaching changes really killed them

KC has a good defense, it's their offense that is shaky, without Jamal Charles, that offense is pretty easy to defend

Denver's offense is just as good as what peyton had in Indianapolis, maybe minus a receiver, but Peyton was the offense in Indianapolis, you saw what happened last year, without him it sucks, he made no name receivers act like stars, it's his first year in a new system, the broncos will probably win 10 games

San Diego is still pretty good at home and this game is late in the year, Norv's team (for some unknown reason) gets off slow and does work at the end of the season, i think Philip Rivers has only lost 3 times EVER in December, i don't see anyone beating San Diego in December

Dallas has Brandon Carr and Morris Clairborne as their corners, that's a massive upgrade over last year, and the offense was never really cold last year, it was either their defense couldn't stop a paper weight from falling or tony romo lost all of his IQ and turned the ball over 948325932048 times and i don't see the Bengals having enough explosive power to make a comeback (in 2 seasons, Dalton will be the upper half of QBs but not this soon)

Yes Cincinnati is well rounded but in this league, but unless Andy Dalton plays like a top caliber QB (i mean at least Flacco status), we won't know until after this season and a lot of players have that vaunted sophomore slump, What dalton did last year was real special (taking a team that was supposed to be **** and brought them to the playoffs while being a rookie QB) but having a pretty good defense helps that, he didn't screw up last year and that's all he needed, I want him to prove me wrong, that he's a high caliber QB and not someone whose a slight upgrade over a game manager (like he was last year), meaning he was asked not to screw up and he did win a game or two

i think he'll be better next year but not enough to win more games, especially with a slightly tougher schedule, maybe having an offseason will improve him greatly, i don't know but they need to prove me wrong before i'm fully convinced

Alright, it's clear we won't see eye-to-eye on this, and arguing further will get us nowhere. Let's agree to disagree and wait for the season to see how this works out.

Changing topics, at times I wish Paul Tagliabue and Gene Upshaw were still around, because those two were able to see the bigger picture and also get along. The animosity and venom between Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith (over the Saints bounty scandal and other things) has brought bad blood between the NFL and NFLPA to a level not seen since Pete Rozelle was the commissioner. I've never seen a situation where a new CBA led to MORE distrust.

your NFC East is terrible. you think them Skins are going to outplace the Eagles? never going to happen. They are going to win it.

he was just as good as unibro last year, if not better for certain stretches of the season

not recently. the only one with a notable slump was bradford and he was injured at least half of last year. ryan, unibro, freeman, stafford, hell, even sanchez had a better sophomore campaign than a rookie one.

Unibro and the Rapist were both asked as much, if not less, in their rookie seasons and both went to the playoffs. No one, not a single person, gave them **** and many hyped them the next season. Dalton outdid both of their rookie campaigns outside of the playoffs and yet everyone seems to think he's going to do worse for this arbitrary reason or that arbitrary reason. He had less help and less time to prepare for either season and he outdid both. Before you point out that Dalton was horrible in the playoffs and Ben and Unibro both won their rookie playoff games, the Ratbirds won in spite of Unibro that entire time.

I understand your reservations about my team, but please, keep some objectivity. It really grinds my gears to see the "well, you're the Bengals, they're the Ravens and Steelers" excuses all the ****ing time when there's really no reason to support them any longer. It's our time now.

if buffalo goes to the playoffs i will officially be a bills fan

it's called sustained success

the ravens and steelers have been good for a few years now, the bengals have had only 2 winning seasons since 05, just don't trust them yet

I like Dalton. I think he's a good quarterback. Unless he ends up being the next Brady, he'll never be a top quarterback. He doesn't have the arm power to make the throws that the elite quarterbacks make. With that said, I think their offensive coordinator does a great job making him look as good as he possibly can.

If the Bengals were just about any other team in the league, I'd say they were on their way to another trip to the playoffs. But they're the Bengals. They're consistently inconsistent, and that says a lot about the players in the locker room. With that said, I actually like the Bengals roster on paper. I think they have the talent to fight in the division, and make a playoff push.

Hell, I think they have a better team than the Ravens who are the real aging team in the division. Seriously, saying the Steelers defense is aging every year is getting a little old. Especially when they place in the top five every season. The only real question for the Steelers ironically enough, is their cornerbacks inexperience at the nfl level.

I like how the Browns are always just written off, and given fourth place in the division though. If that offense is even mediocre, they'll be a competitive team in the division. No one ever seems to notice how they're always one of the best defensive teams every year. I still see them placing fourth because I don't see anything special in Weeden or their wide receivers, but they could just as easily place second or third. First will continue to be a tossup between Pittsburgh and Baltimore until Cleveland and Cincinnati become consistent teams on offense.

Also, voting Cincinnati Bengals for worst organization in sports for making fans pay to attend a pep rally for a 9-7 season. Stay classy, Cincinnati.

Edit for prediction list:

NFC East 
1. Philadelphia
2. Dallas 
3. NY Giants 
4. Washington

NFC North 
1. Green Bay 
2. Chicago* 
3. Detroit 
4. Minnesota 

NFC South 
1. Atlanta 
2. Tampa Bay* 
3. Carolina
4. New Orleans

NFC West 
1. San Francisco 
2. Arizona
3. Seattle
4. St. Louis 



AFC East 
1. New England 
2. Buffalo 
3. NY Jets 
4. Miami 

AFC North 
1. Pittsburgh 
2. Cincinnati* 
3. Baltimore 
4. Cleveland 

AFC South 
1. Tennessee 
2. Houston*
3. Indianapolis 
4. Jacksonville

AFC West 
1. Denver
2. Oakland 
3. Kansas City
4. San Diego


* - Denotes Wild Card team

I haven't looked at schedules much at all. I know the Giants schedule is brutal, and that's the only reason they're that far down. The rest of it is just off of what I know about the teams more than it is who they're playing. Would possibly flip a few around after checking out their schedules. NFC South, NFC East, AFC South, and AFC West are all divisions I think are tossups depending on strength of schedule.

Also just for additional fun,

Biggest surprise team: Tampa Bay

Most disappointing team: San Diego

The way you're talking makes it sound like Andy Dalton is about as good as Rex Grossman. Dalton's good and has the potential to get better. Does he have the best arm strength? No. But not every QB needs to have a cannon for an arm or be Peyton Manning to win a Super Bowl. Dalton's gonna only get better, trust me. 

Yeah, the Bengals are inconsistent. But again, this is an example of taking statistics as the end-all, be-all. Just because the Bengals have been inconsistent for so long does not mean they will always be inconsistent. The fact that Katie Blackburn is now in charge of the day-to-day operations and letting Marvin Lewis make the football decisions is bringing stability to the Bengals, and they'll soon be a consistently good team. 

Yeah, the Steeler defense has been great. But it IS getting old. And they're not gonna always be the world-beating defense they are. I think they'll still be good this year, but they'll take a couple steps back. Something that the Steelers should be worried about is Troy Polamalu's health. If he's hurt, the defense struggles. 

And so what if the Bengals charged for a pep rally celebration? They made the playoffs. The Eagles charge for their organized playoff pep rally celebrations. I'm certain other teams do.