Are You Ready for Some Football??? 2010 Edition

In case you don't know, the NFL Season kicks off tonight. It seems like there's a lot of buzz throughout this particular season, and from the looks of it (at least from my viewpoint) many people are more excited than they have been in a long time. It may have something to do from all the free agents who switched teams (ie: McNabb, T.O.), to this year's overpaid draft class (ie: Sam Bradford, Tebow, Suh, and Bryant), to all the drama that's been taking place in the offseason (Haynesworth, usual Brett Favre, etc), people are undoubtedly talking a lot about the football season. Add to that with the fact that there's a possibility that there might not be a season next year due to a need for a new collective bargaining agreement, this season may be one to remember for years to come.

I'm going to do this blog entry in a similar way that I did last year, offer a few thoughts and opinions about a few teams/storylines going into this season, then offer some general predictions, such as superbowl matchups, as well as what I generally think might happen to a few players or a few teams. I will also still not offer predictions of divisional champions, playoff berths, nor a Super Bowl Champion. So here are some predictions (minus my opinions on the Redskins)...

Thoughts...

• Most of the teams seem significantly improved, and it appears hard to separate the teams this early in the preseason. Therefore, I would say there's no team (or teams) that really separates itself from the rest of the league.
• The bay area teams will be surprising and much improved. 49ers have a solid chance of clinching the NFC West, and Jason Campbell will improve the Raiders.
• The Jets may be overrated, and I think they will fall short from the expectations they have hyped themselves up for.
• The AFC South is STACKED!

Predictions

• This will be Bret Favre's final year!
• The Bills and the Seahawks will be the worst teams in the league.
• The Steelers will fall in a big hole in the first few games and won't recover in what seems to be a 2-horse AFC North race.
• with the Rams' O-line issues Sam Bradford will be hurt before the year is over (God forbid)
• Dallas won't become the first team to host the Superbowl in their own stadium
• Early Superbowl Matchup Prediction: Ravens vs Vikings (all purple Super Bowl)

In case you're wondering the reasoning behind the Super Bowl Matchup, after some thought, even though I feel the Vikings may not be as good as they were last year and don't look as good on paper as teams like Dallas or even Green Bay, they are still solid all around in every position, and if you catch a break or two in the playoffs... you never know. As far as the Ravens, I usually pick them high every year considering I'm pretty familiar with them, but they look like a great team this year, with significant upgrades on offense, an always solid defense with unbelievable leadership, and they have some sick depth.


So those are my general thoughts/predictions of the upcoming 2010 season. You may have noticed though that I have withheld my thoughts on the Redskins. I have a whole separate blog (or few) for that in the future. I may offer a few thoughts on the team in general, and I will definitely offer a few thoughts on this initial game in Dallas. So stay tuned.


Let the gridiron theater begin. As I said last year, I love this time of the year! This season should be a lot of fun.


D4P...PD!!!
-OBE