River_Rat

The Fantasy Football Geek known as River Rat dodged a bullet or actually several of them today on the news of Vikings reciever Sidney Rice undergoing surgery.  Out of 17 teams drafted so far, some automated, and some live, none of my teams posessed the talented receiver.  It is my understanding that on some sites games, such as Yahoo,  Rice is in the elite class of "can not drop" player.  It could be interesting to see if that status is relaxed.  Being that at this time, he is expected to miss the first 8 games it might be iffy for those that have him on their roster if they will be allowed to drop.  Always when a player hits the IR, this is the case, but we will have to see.

Now, continuing with this thought, here are Rats Views From The Alley.

It is my understanding that Rice's injured hip was evident at the end of last season.  It is also my understanding that Sidney was encouraged to have surgery on his injured hip during the off season.  Instead, he chose to treat the injury differently.  Now here we are just a couple of short weeks from the opening of the season, and he has gone under the knife.  Be it a mis-diagnosis, or just plain scared of surgery, he has put his team in a bit of a situation.  Last season, Brett Favre and Sidney formed a bond that was evident in the locker room following the loss to the Saints in the NFC championship game with an emotional 45 second embrace between the two.  One wonders if this information was withheld from Favre during the "visits" to talk him into coming back.  If I am Brett, and my favorite target is on the shelf for at least half of the season if not more, and another favorite target was carted off the field in an ambulance from complications from migrains last week, I would be nervous, and maybe even a bit pissed off.  With an absolutley brutal schedule to start the year, (Saints, Dolphins, Jets, Cowboys, Packers, Patriots , the Lions are in there too, but this could turn into a 3-5 start) Brett's last gasp at a Super Bowl ring could be over before his offensive weapons are at full strength.

Well it just goes to show that trying to predict what is going to happen in the NFL season in early August isn't worth diddly squat.  I like so many others, have been witness to a lot of surprises both good and bad.  Lets review.

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

I'm not ready to make wholesale changes to this division at this point.  Even without Tom Brady, New England has still proved that it can win with Matt Cassel.  After all, you are just slipping in a different driver into a winning team.  They are winning, but not blowing opponents out this year.  Buffalo looks better than I thought and should stay hot on New Englands heels.  The only flop I might make would be to move Miami up to the three spot, they have a good coach in place now that isn't afraid to try different things.  The Jets with Brett are still the Jets, it really is a tossup for the 3-4 spot.

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

AFC Central
August prediction
1. Pittsburgh
2. Browns
3. Ravens
4. Bengals

The Central has a few changes I would like to make.  Pittsburgh with the leagues toughest schedule has faired quite well.  The O-line is the biggest glaring weakness.  The Ravens have surprised with a rookie QB that isn’t about to let go of the reins anytime soon.  The Ravens have also surprised that they still have a suffocating defense even with the stars getting older, they are much better on this side of the ball than last year.  Ah the Browns.  Yes I drank the Kool-Aid and thought last seasons performance was no fluke----WRONG.  I can’t figure this team out, they threw away the draft to grab players to upgrade the defense, maybe they haven’t gelled yet, or maybe that wasn’t the answer.  The Bengals, I think we all nailed that one.

New AFC Central

1. Pittsburgh
2. Ravens
3. Browns
4. Bengals

AFC South

August Prediction
1.Colts
2. Jags
3. Texans
4. Titans

The South has surprised me the most.  Where did the Titans come from?  They are a much better team with Kerry Collins leading them than Vince Young.  The defense has been superb.   The Colts have fallen from the throne, but yes I am a homer so I am predicting a rebound the last 2/3 of the season.  The Colts have yet to win in their new home so we may want to put the roof back on the old one for now.  The Jags seem to have all of the weapons to become a powerful force except depth at O-line.  Injuries have destroyed them.  And as of the writing of this I am surprised the Texans are still winless, Ike may have thrown them out of rhythm much like Katrina did to the Saints a few years ago.
New AFC South
1. Titans
2. Colts
3. Jags
4. Texans

AFC West
August Prediction
1.Chargers
2. Broncos
3. Raiders
4. Chiefs

Question, who took the Chargers away and left us with this one?  I guess having the best team on paper doesn’t make you the best team.  The O-line is a mess, only during the shootout in Denver was there much life up to this point.  And LT hampered my a toe has been almost non existent.  Denver on the other hand has been remarkable on the offensive side of the ball.  Jay Cutler is coming into his own and is playing efficiently. The melt down at Kansas City the only blemish.  The Raiders firing of Lane Kiffen IMO was a big mistake.  They may have a very rough year…..again.  KC, they are who we thought they were.

New AFC West
1. Broncos
2. Chargers
3. Raiders
4. Chiefs

  AFC Playoff Seeding from August
1. New England 14-2
2. San Diego 13-3
3. Indianapolis 13-3
4. Pittsburgh 11-5
5. Jacksonville 12-4
6. Cleveland 11-5

New AFC Playoff Seeding
1. Tennessee 13-3
2. New England 12-4
3. Denver 11-5
4. Pittsburgh 9-7
5. Buffalo 9-7
6. Indianapolis 9-7

NFC East
August Prediction
1.Giants
2.Cowboys
3.Redskins
4.Eagles

I really don’t think there are any changes to make here.  They are all just MUCH closer than I originally thought.  Washington after the terrible week 1 showing has been playing dominate ball.  They currently lead the Cowboys and have a fairly easy middle of the schedule plus have played all of their road division games.  Actually I may have just talked myself into swapping them.  This is a tough division to pick.  Dallas looks very on and off, Romo looks human at times.  Dallas may be a good weak side receiver away from greatness again.  The Giants look good, Eli has matured into a leader instead of the aw shucks kid from next door.

New NFC East
1. Giants
2. Redskins
3. Cowboys
4. Eagles

NFC Central
August Prediction
1.Vikings
2. Packers
3. Lions
4. Bears

OK show of hands, who picked the Bears to be the monsters of the midway again?  Kyle Orton is looking pretty good this year.  The Bears still need to draft a young QB to be ready fro the future though.  Kyle could be this years Derek Anderson, just not with the stats, just in bringing his team back from despair.  The Packers aren’t the same without #4, but Aaron Rogers is playing well.  Minnesota for all of the attention we were to give to their Defense this year has not panned out.  Adrian Peterson is about the only bright spot here.  And the Lions…..um…..well……..well they did fire Millen

New NFC Central
1. Bears
2. Packers
3. Vikings
4. Lions

NFC South
August Prediction
1.Saints
2. Panthers
3. Buccaneers
4. Falcons
 
Tough division to figure out here.  I said back in August the Panthers rely on Jake D. , and he has proven that he is the glue with this team.  They are playing very well on both sides of the ball.  Tampa has not had the letdown I thought they would, but would the real starting QB please show up for them.  The Falcons are not the doormat that I thought they would be either, I don’t see them winning the division but they are doing well with Matt Ryan at the helm.  The Saints have the best QB in the division.  Drew Brees puts up gaudy stats each week even with his best WR and TE out.  Too bad he can’t play defense too.

New NFC South
1. Panthers
2. Bucs
3. Saints
4. Falcons

NFC West
August Prediction
1.Seahawks
2. Rams
3. Cardinals
4. 49ers

Arizona is playing very well, they may have finally fixed the defense, each year I am tempted to say this is their year, and each year they screw it up.  But………Maybe, if they can keep Warners jersey clean then yes, Matt L won’t get it done.  The Niners with Mike Martz have the offense ticking.  Ok who even heard of TJ before this year?  As well Frank Gore has been a beast.  Poor Mike Holmgren, not the way he wanted to go out, maybe they can rebound.  But its not easy to run an offense with 5th and 6th string receivers after the injuries hit them.  Rams, well if you can’t say anything nice…..so moving on.

New AFC West
1. Cardinals
2. Seahawks
3. 49ers
4. Rams

NFC Playoff Seeding from August
1. Vikings 13-3
2. Saints 12-4
3. Giants 11-5
4. Seahawks 11-5
5. Cowboys 11-5
6. Packers 10-6

New NFC playoff seeding.
1. Giants 13-3
2. Panthers 10-6
3. Bears 10-6
4. Cardinals 9-7
5. Redskins 11-5
6. Cowboys 10-6

They you have it my friends.  Thanks for reading and I welcome your comments.
River Rat

Well here we are on the verge of another NFL season, and I can't wait.  I thought it would be fun to make our predictions for this years division titles.  I would like to see everyones predictions as well.  We can't be worse than Prisco can we?  Ok lets go.

AFC East
I don't think there is any question here who will win.  Buffalo is making great strides, but I don't think they can unseat the Patriots yet.  The other two teams have their issues as well.  One is trying to find its identy under center and the other is in full rebuild mode.
1. New England
2. Buffalo
3. Jets
4. Miami

AFC Central
This, along with the South could be the toughest division in the AFC.  Pittsburgh is the incumbant and looks to be very good again.  The one question mark I see is the O-line.  The Browns surprised us all last year with their explosivness on the Offense, they threw the draft away to try to get better on the defensive side, but will it be enough.  If Baltimore can find some offense and the Bengals find a way to stop some teams this could very well be a 4 horse race.
1. Pittsburgh
2. Browns
3. Ravens
4. Bengals

AFC South
Another very tough division with 4 talented teams.  The Colts look to have on paper the most talented team they have ever had in Indy.  If the injury bug doesn't bite them, then look out.  Jacksonville has been working for years thru the draft and free agency to stop the Colts reign at the top.  Every year they get closer, could this be the year?  We'll see but it will produce 2 not-to-be-forgotten gamesbetween them and the Colts.  The Titans and Texans both will be good.  The Titans strength is on the running game, and I really didn't pay attention if they upgraded their recieving corps.  The Texans were hurt by injuries last year on the offensive side and really took their steam away.  I guess that pick of Mario Williams doesn't look so bad now does it.
1. Colts
2. Jags
3. Texans
4. Titans

AFC West
This division may be almost as lopsided as the east.  There isn't any team that will seriously challenge the Chargers.  The Broncos are second best but there looks to be a big gap between them.  The Raiders are improving and will continue to pound the ball on the ground.  It will be an interesting year to see if the QB in a linemans body will earn his paycheck.  The Chiefs I can't figure out.  They may be this years version of the Dolphins or they may surprise us like the Browns did.  Until they get a stable QB and line established it could be the former.
1. Chargers
2. Broncos
3. Raiders
4. Chiefs

AFC Playoff Seeding
1. New England 14-2
2. San Diego 13-3
3. Indianapolis 13-3
4. Pittsburgh 11-5
5. Jacksonville 12-4
6. Cleveland 11-5

NFC East
Here is the NFC's toughest division.  The Cowboys have a well rounded team, but did they get a reciever to play opposite Owens? The defense should be tough again.  The Giants as defending SB champions can't be counted out.  Will they get off to their traditional slow start, then pick up steam as the year goes on.  I'm sure their fans will want a few more home wins out of them.  Which Eagles team will show up this year.  The one capable of 10+ wins, or the one that was there last year?  And finally Washington, who made a good upgrade to their D-line with the addition of Taylor.  Jason Campbell could thrive by having Zorn as coach.
1.Giants
2.Cowboys
3.Redskins
4.Eagles

NFC Central
The old Black and Blue division looks to make some changes at the top.  This could be the Vikings year to reclaim the top spot.  They have arguably the best RB in the league, and by the end of the year the Defense could be ranked #1.  The Packers may not win the division this year, but it won't be because of Rogers under center.  I think the Pack will be fine, it will just look different without the gunslinger under center.  Rogers played very well, if not better than #4 last year at Dallas.  The Lions will have a new look on offense without run and bomb Martz calling the shots.  But are they able to transform to a ground attack with only 1 offseason?  The Bears........Why can't they just draft a QB?  Their defense will be good, but the offense, who knows.
1. Vikings
2. Packers
3. Lions
4. Bears

NFC South
When was there a repeat winner in this division?  How many times has a team gone from worst to first?  Well that won't happen this year.  Atlanta is still trying to pick up the pieces from the Vick disaster and is still rebuilding.  We know Matt Ryan will get the rookie starts.  But will he become a Dan Marino/Peyton Manning or will he get blasted and become another David Carr/Joey Harrington?  The Saints IMO are the team to look for in this division.  Last year losing several close games early and digging that hole spelled their demise.  They have a dangeous offense look for them to use it early.  Tampa will be alright this year, they looked bad late in the year but already had the division locked up and coasted.  They got out of rhythm and made an early exit from the playoffs.  The Panthers as we saw last year hinge on Jake Delhomme.  If Jake is hot, so are they.  Thru the first few weeks of last year, he was one of the top rated QB's before his injury. 
1. Saints
2. Panthers
3. Buccaneers
4. Falcons

NFC West
At first I thought this would be a pretty boring division to keep track of.  But with Holmgren a lame duck coach (not that he will go easy on his team) and remembering all of the key injuries the Rams had last year, it could get interesting.  Seattle will still have a very potent team and the division is theirs to lose.  They picked up some RB's that should bring an instant upgrade to their running attack. (like that was tough to make better) The defense will be as solid as ever.  The Rams were hit hard with injuries last year.  The season could hinge on the O-line, they need to show improvement to keep Bulger upright and open holes for Jackson.  If this happens, Seattle could be in a fight.  The D-line sould be able to pressure opposing QB's.  The Cardinals, what can I say, the last three years I thought they would be better but it hasen't happened.  Until they show it on the field during the season I'm not falling into that trap again.  The 49ers are playing for their coaches life.  Once again with the hiring of new coordinators (Martz's air show lands here) and a talented RB in Gore.  Well maybe they can show improvement.  This is a tough divison to call.
1. Seahawks
2. Rams
3. Cardinals
4. 49ers

NFC Playoff Seeding
1. Vikings 13-3
2. Saints 12-4
3. Giants 11-5
4. Seahawks 11-5
5. Cowboys 11-5
6. Packers 10-6

Well there you go, there is my guess and I do mean guess.  Injuries are always a factor in a season.  One of these teams could put several players on the IR in week 1 and blow all of this out of the water.

So my challenge to you, give us your predictions, no need to go into detail if you don't want to.  Let us know.  Thanks for reading.

The Rat