Early NFL Power Rankings
- Thread starter Mojotronica
- Start date
If the Patriots can manage to stay healthy this year, especially in defense, we'll do pretty well. We've lost some pretty good guys, especially in WRs, but we definately should win the division. Will we make it to the Super Bowl? Unfortunately, I don't think so.
Mojotronica
Expect Irony.
Ginger_Ale said:
The Pats deserve credit for being a proven powerhouse in the NFL, but Miami's improving fast under Saban. If Culpepper is healthy (and from what I'm reading -- he is healing fast) he'll have plenty of guys to throw to. They are a viable contender for the AFC-East.
That said, the Pats have all the tools they need to win the Div, which is weak and still re-building. The Bills and Jets are simply not yet playoff teams.
saban has the dolphins on the upswing, but i'm not sold on them just yet. they've made serious gains, but losing both their star corners over the last few years has removed tom brady's worst fear from the division. brady usually had poor games vs. the dolphins regardless of their record because no one was open. i wouldn't bet against the patriots in the east just yet, but the stranglehold is certainly growing loose. remember that the pats have been riddled with injuries the last 3 years, they remain deep by employing quality backup players and constantly trying to upgrade on the low-end backups; so staying healthy isn't quite as big a deal to them as with some top-heavy teams.Mojotronica said:
Mojotronica
Expect Irony.
True, dat.
If I had to bet I'd choose the Pats to win the AFC-East, but I think it'll be another uncomfortably close year for NE fans. And they'll be up against some tough teams in the playoffs -- they won't march through it like they did in 2004.
If I had to bet I'd choose the Pats to win the AFC-East, but I think it'll be another uncomfortably close year for NE fans. And they'll be up against some tough teams in the playoffs -- they won't march through it like they did in 2004.
yeah, 04 was something special, especially given the "patchwork secondary".
i just glanced at the dolphins offseason acquisitions. mostly a bunch of people i haven't heard of. oddly enough, i think that may be a good thing for them. saban is quite a talent evaluator, and thinks like belichick in many ways. so saban may be upping his bottom line, like the pats often do. marquee free agent signings make a big splash, but 5 good players do more for your team than 1 great one.
i just glanced at the dolphins offseason acquisitions. mostly a bunch of people i haven't heard of. oddly enough, i think that may be a good thing for them. saban is quite a talent evaluator, and thinks like belichick in many ways. so saban may be upping his bottom line, like the pats often do. marquee free agent signings make a big splash, but 5 good players do more for your team than 1 great one.
Mojotronica said:
Definately. It was very sad to see that last year someone could've won the division with an 8-8 record.
Mojotronica
Expect Irony.
It's funny to think back on the conventional wisdom going into 2005-06:
New England had won it's third Super Bowl in four years, establishing itself as a Dynasty. 2004-05 had gone so smoothly for the team that they appeared indestructible, which of course brought out a lot of backlash from jealous fans of other teams. NE was suffering from some Defensive losses and had traded away some good players and strength at coach, but unless you were delusional you had to admit they were the favorite to win again.
Indianapolis was the likeliest contender to take the AFC title away from NE. They had been building the team for years, and with a breath-taking 49 TD passes by QB Peyton Manning in '04-'05, they definitely had the tools they needed on offense. The big question was their Defense, and maybe more importantly Peyton Manning's mental ability to beat Tom Brady.
Over in the NFC Philadelphia reined supreme, and there was little reason (other than the twin curses of Madden cover and runner-up in the Super Bowl) that they wouldn't improve. TO was a basket-case but he'd be healthy this year. They had a viable shot at a Super Bowl title. If nothing else they SHOULD continue to dominate the NFC-East, since all three rivals had performed badly the previous year.
Carolina was picked by Sports Illustrated and many in the sports intelligensia to win the Super Bowl. Only a few years from a SB game, the team had steadily improved in every category of play, but had a particularly tough Defense. Only Atlanta could spoil things for them, and Atlanta was considered vulnerable unless Michael Vick could improve his passing game.
Everyone expected great things from Minnesota, after all they had a real rival to Peyton Manning at QB in Daunte Culpepper and tremendous talent at Receiver. Defense might be shaky but in the weak NFC-North they should have had no problem making the playoffs, and from there who knows?
Pittsburgh had exceeded everyone's expectations in '04 making it to the AFC championship game with a rookie QB Ben Roethlisberger. He was certainly due for a sophomore slump. While Cowher was acknowledged as a great coach the thinking was he did not yet have his Super Bowl team.
Baltimore's ultra-tough Defense had a lot of pundits seeing them as real Super Bowl contenders. After all, Defense wins games and the Ravens had suffered injuries that prevented them from realizing their potential in '04. (The Madden curse!) Maybe Kyle Boller and newly released Jamal Lewis would be potent enough to get Baltimore on the board and then the D could keep their opponents from scoring, and that would be enough to win the Div and make a SB run.
Seattle had it's time as sports intelligensia favorite in '04 and had dissapointed. Hasselback's embarrassing '03 playoff boast, the receiver's dropped passes, three losses to the declining St. Louis Rams -- all of it added up to a team that was not mentally capable of winning. Borderline even to make the playoffs, where they would quickly lose.
Atlanta's Michael Vick was amazing to watch and 2004-05 had been an incredible year for them, but were they a one-trick pony? How long before teams figured out how to break down their game?
The second half of Buffalo's '04-05 season was very impressive and they looked primed to make a run for the playoffs. One of the great hopes for NE Pats-haters.
Same goes for New Orleans, although to a lesser degree. They looked ready to make the playoffs.
The New York Jets were another team with good buzz. Chad Pennington's arm was finally healthy -- they had done well the previous year. Maybe this time it would work out for them.
The much-hyped Randy Moss-Kerry Collins team-up was expected to bring a lot more TD passes to Oakland. Maybe they would be competitive.
San Diego had LT, Gates and a decent QB in Drew Brees. Certainly they had a real shot at winning the AFC-West.
KC was a bit under the radar at the start of the season -- they hadn't done great in '04-05 following a pretty good season in '03-04. Some very talented players, especially on offense, but not necessarily a playoff team.
Same goes double for Denver, who was totally under the radar at the start of the season. Everyone forgot how good they were only a few years prior. Maybe it's that no one took Jake Plummer seriously as a QB, and his inconsistency was shared by their WRs and others.
Dallas, Washington and especially the New York Giants were all dismissed as weak-average teams. Re-building, not yet good enough to seriously compete with Philly.
Everyone knew that the St. Louis Rams were declining, but assumed they had some game left. Everyone kenew that Houston was going to be a punching bag. And that San Francisco was going to need years to fix it's fundamentals. And that Cleveland would too.
Arizona got some props for having put together an okay offense. Some were saying they could potentially beat out Seattle and even St. Louis to win the NFC-West.
Chicago's strong Defense was acknowledged but no one knew how unstoppable it would be. Of course offensicvely they had nothing going on, so no worries for Minnesota...
Oh except for maybe Green Bay, who were certainly going to be competitive with a strong proven offense. Brett Favre, Javon Walker, Ahman Green... GB would give Minnesota headaches and maybe win the NFC-North.
Detroit's "Joey Harrington experiment" was in full swing. Could they go all the way?
Miami could do a lot better if only Ricky Williams got back into the game. At least avoid a really abyssmal season.
Jacksonville would be good but not great, rivalling Indy but not beating it. Tennessee could be good but not great -- sort of a lesser Baltimore.
Cincinnati and Tampa Bay were TOTALLY under everyone's radar.
New England had won it's third Super Bowl in four years, establishing itself as a Dynasty. 2004-05 had gone so smoothly for the team that they appeared indestructible, which of course brought out a lot of backlash from jealous fans of other teams. NE was suffering from some Defensive losses and had traded away some good players and strength at coach, but unless you were delusional you had to admit they were the favorite to win again.
Indianapolis was the likeliest contender to take the AFC title away from NE. They had been building the team for years, and with a breath-taking 49 TD passes by QB Peyton Manning in '04-'05, they definitely had the tools they needed on offense. The big question was their Defense, and maybe more importantly Peyton Manning's mental ability to beat Tom Brady.
Over in the NFC Philadelphia reined supreme, and there was little reason (other than the twin curses of Madden cover and runner-up in the Super Bowl) that they wouldn't improve. TO was a basket-case but he'd be healthy this year. They had a viable shot at a Super Bowl title. If nothing else they SHOULD continue to dominate the NFC-East, since all three rivals had performed badly the previous year.
Carolina was picked by Sports Illustrated and many in the sports intelligensia to win the Super Bowl. Only a few years from a SB game, the team had steadily improved in every category of play, but had a particularly tough Defense. Only Atlanta could spoil things for them, and Atlanta was considered vulnerable unless Michael Vick could improve his passing game.
Everyone expected great things from Minnesota, after all they had a real rival to Peyton Manning at QB in Daunte Culpepper and tremendous talent at Receiver. Defense might be shaky but in the weak NFC-North they should have had no problem making the playoffs, and from there who knows?
Pittsburgh had exceeded everyone's expectations in '04 making it to the AFC championship game with a rookie QB Ben Roethlisberger. He was certainly due for a sophomore slump. While Cowher was acknowledged as a great coach the thinking was he did not yet have his Super Bowl team.
Baltimore's ultra-tough Defense had a lot of pundits seeing them as real Super Bowl contenders. After all, Defense wins games and the Ravens had suffered injuries that prevented them from realizing their potential in '04. (The Madden curse!) Maybe Kyle Boller and newly released Jamal Lewis would be potent enough to get Baltimore on the board and then the D could keep their opponents from scoring, and that would be enough to win the Div and make a SB run.
Seattle had it's time as sports intelligensia favorite in '04 and had dissapointed. Hasselback's embarrassing '03 playoff boast, the receiver's dropped passes, three losses to the declining St. Louis Rams -- all of it added up to a team that was not mentally capable of winning. Borderline even to make the playoffs, where they would quickly lose.
Atlanta's Michael Vick was amazing to watch and 2004-05 had been an incredible year for them, but were they a one-trick pony? How long before teams figured out how to break down their game?
The second half of Buffalo's '04-05 season was very impressive and they looked primed to make a run for the playoffs. One of the great hopes for NE Pats-haters.
Same goes for New Orleans, although to a lesser degree. They looked ready to make the playoffs.
The New York Jets were another team with good buzz. Chad Pennington's arm was finally healthy -- they had done well the previous year. Maybe this time it would work out for them.
The much-hyped Randy Moss-Kerry Collins team-up was expected to bring a lot more TD passes to Oakland. Maybe they would be competitive.
San Diego had LT, Gates and a decent QB in Drew Brees. Certainly they had a real shot at winning the AFC-West.
KC was a bit under the radar at the start of the season -- they hadn't done great in '04-05 following a pretty good season in '03-04. Some very talented players, especially on offense, but not necessarily a playoff team.
Same goes double for Denver, who was totally under the radar at the start of the season. Everyone forgot how good they were only a few years prior. Maybe it's that no one took Jake Plummer seriously as a QB, and his inconsistency was shared by their WRs and others.
Dallas, Washington and especially the New York Giants were all dismissed as weak-average teams. Re-building, not yet good enough to seriously compete with Philly.
Everyone knew that the St. Louis Rams were declining, but assumed they had some game left. Everyone kenew that Houston was going to be a punching bag. And that San Francisco was going to need years to fix it's fundamentals. And that Cleveland would too.
Arizona got some props for having put together an okay offense. Some were saying they could potentially beat out Seattle and even St. Louis to win the NFC-West.
Chicago's strong Defense was acknowledged but no one knew how unstoppable it would be. Of course offensicvely they had nothing going on, so no worries for Minnesota...
Oh except for maybe Green Bay, who were certainly going to be competitive with a strong proven offense. Brett Favre, Javon Walker, Ahman Green... GB would give Minnesota headaches and maybe win the NFC-North.
Detroit's "Joey Harrington experiment" was in full swing. Could they go all the way?
Miami could do a lot better if only Ricky Williams got back into the game. At least avoid a really abyssmal season.
Jacksonville would be good but not great, rivalling Indy but not beating it. Tennessee could be good but not great -- sort of a lesser Baltimore.
Cincinnati and Tampa Bay were TOTALLY under everyone's radar.
I'll analyze every team.
AFC-
Baltimore- With the Lewis's back (Jamal and Raymond) and Steve McNair they're looking pretty good. They'll make the playoffs.
Buffalo- A fine team, and way underrated. They almost made the playoffs two years ago with Drew Bledsoe at QB, and other than that position, they haven't gotten much worse. Their real problem is QB, JP Losman is not very good. Eric Moulds and Lee Evans are too good of a receiving tandem for a QB to perform poorly. Getting a vet QB in free agency like Kerry Collins would have been smart.
Cincinnati- Under the assumption that Carson Palmer will be back, they're looking to be about the same team as last year.
Cleveland- Won't make the playoffs, but will compete for the wild card. Getting Kamerion Wimbley, a DE then playing him at OLB is a very smart move, you can never have too many LB's in a 3-4. Also, signing Joe Jurevicious, Willie McGnest, and others, they've got a good team.
That's all for now
.
AFC-
Baltimore- With the Lewis's back (Jamal and Raymond) and Steve McNair they're looking pretty good. They'll make the playoffs.
Buffalo- A fine team, and way underrated. They almost made the playoffs two years ago with Drew Bledsoe at QB, and other than that position, they haven't gotten much worse. Their real problem is QB, JP Losman is not very good. Eric Moulds and Lee Evans are too good of a receiving tandem for a QB to perform poorly. Getting a vet QB in free agency like Kerry Collins would have been smart.
Cincinnati- Under the assumption that Carson Palmer will be back, they're looking to be about the same team as last year.
Cleveland- Won't make the playoffs, but will compete for the wild card. Getting Kamerion Wimbley, a DE then playing him at OLB is a very smart move, you can never have too many LB's in a 3-4. Also, signing Joe Jurevicious, Willie McGnest, and others, they've got a good team.
That's all for now
.Own said:
Eric Moulds is in Houston now. JP Losman is still the starter and Craig Nall is the backup plan...
Thier defense was horrible against the run last year if I remember right, and most of it is old. Nate Clements & Takeo Spikes are the only real standouts. Spikes is over 30 and coming off an injury...
Willis McGahee is thier best player but had a dissapointing season last year so it remains to be seen if he can really carry the whole offense. If he can, they have a shot to be 9-7 at best. If he can't, this team has a GREAT shot at the number 1 pick. I really really dislike the moves this team has made.
What moves you say? Well, hiring 80+ year old Marv Levy to assist 80+ year old Donahue, signing Craig Nall as thier savior, not signing anyone of note to backup McGahee, letting Moulds go with...Josh Reed? as the replacement, taking Donte Whitner with the 8th pick...etc.
Mojotronica
Expect Irony.
Losman may eventually develop into a decent QB. He has potential -- he's just young and inexperienced right now. Otherwise, yeah, the Bills are screwed and are the current "team that might get moved to LA" du jour.
Mojotronica
Expect Irony.
Yep. I bet Buffalo would fight to keep it.
For awhile I had a conspiracy theory going that the Jaguars were named Jaguars because it's a pretty good fit for an LA latino-cultural team.
For awhile I had a conspiracy theory going that the Jaguars were named Jaguars because it's a pretty good fit for an LA latino-cultural team.
Mojotronica
Expect Irony.
Now I think that the NFL just uses the threat of re-location to get what it wants out of the franchises. The THREAT of re-location to LA is more valuable than the potential revenue generated there.
for the Panther's name too...... although PanthersSimilar threads
