Predicting the 2016 NFL Playoff Field

Predicting the 2016 NFL Playoff Field

Well, friends ... it's been a while since you've seen anything new on the 'ole MTSS blog, say like 18 months. We are back just like football, and it is time to get after some playoff predictions.

It’s that time of the year when all the so-called national experts and football pundits take their shot at predicting the field of NFL playoff teams for the upcoming season. It’s a pretty mixed bag, with most of the ”predictions sure to go wrong” as some have labeled it. That’s pretty much the case here, too.

So with all the know-it-alls giving it a shot here in the opening days of the pre-season, I thought I’d throw my hat into the ring. I spend a lot of brainpower thinking about it anyway, so I just as well share it  and make a jerk out of myself like everybody else.

*Division winners

~Wildcard teams

AFC North – Pittsburgh*, Cincinnati, Baltimore, Cleveland

            The Steelers finally ride their offense to the post-season despite the Bell suspension.

AFC South – Houston,* Indianapolis~, Jacksonville, Tennessee

Texans are too talented to not take advantage of a weak division; Colts rebound.

AFC East – New England*, Buffalo, NY Jets, Miami

Despite injuries and suspensions, the Pats ride to another division title.

AFC West – Kansas City*, Oakland~, Denver, San Diego

The Chiefs ACL crew returns with a vengeance; Raiders resurgence gets the playoff berth.

AFC playoff teams – Steelers, Texans, Colts, Patriots, Chiefs, Raiders

NFC North – Green Bay*, Minnesota~, Chicago, Detroit

Packers rebound from a down year to retake the division;  Vikes squeak into playoffs.

NFC South – Carolina*, New Orleans, Atlanta, Tampa Bay

The Panthers take a step back but still rule the weak NFC South easily.

NFC East – Dallas*, Washington, NY Giants, Philadelphia

A healthy Romo/Dez combo plus a dynamic rookie at RB equals big Ws in Dallas.

NFC West – Arizona*, Seattle~, San Francisco, St. Louis

Arians leads the Cards to a division title and Seattle is right there, too.

NFC playoff teams – ­Packers, Vikings, Panthers, Cowboys, Cardinals, Seahawks

 

Super Bowl prediction: Kansas City v Seattle

The Chiefs ride their ball-hawking defense and opportunistic offense into the playoffs and run the table in the AFC. Seattle plays its typical ground and pound, smashmouth style, pounding the NFC to powder. These mirror image teams face off for the Lombardi with the hardware returning to KC after a 47-year absence and giving Head Coach Andy Reid his first ring.

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Come on … give it a shot. Who do you think will be the surprise and potential flop teams this season?

Until next time, thanks for reading.

Steve

NFL Power Rankings – Week 1

The NFL season finally kicks off on Wednesday night with the Cowboys taking on the Giants in New York. And then the rest of the league follows suit on Sunday and Monday with a full slate of games. Crazed, football-starved fans have been getting by on projections and analysis and fantasy drafts, but now the real thing begins.

Here’s an update to my pre-season rankings for Week 1.

1. Green Bay – Top to bottom, still the best talent.
2. New England – Brady and Gronk will be hard to stop.
3. NY Giants – Defending champs have to be near the top.
4. Baltimore – Always play tough defense. Can Flacco and the O deliver?
5. Pittsburgh – Big Ben has Haley’s new offense and Wallace finally.
6. San Francisco – Not sure they can repeat 13-3 with Alex Smith.
7. Houston – Texans lost key pieces, but play in a weak division.
8. New Orleans – Despite everything, they’re still dangerous.
9. Detroit – Lots of firepower and off-field issues.
10.  Atlanta – Good team still trying to prove it is great.
11.  Philadelphia – Vick says dynasty. Let’s see it on the field.
12.  Chicago – Cutler. Forte. Marshall. And a good D.
13.  Dallas – Sooner or later, they have to live up to the hype … right?
14.  Kansas City – The ACL trio returns. Solid D. It’s all on Cassel.
15.  Buffalo – Great offseason, but can they compete in AFC East?
16.  Denver – Everybody love Peyton, but the team needs more tools.
17.  Cincinnati – Great young core. Insanely tough division.
18. San Diego – Promise big every year. It’s do-or-die time for the bosses.
19. Carolina – Big dreams in PantherLand after Cam’s rookie year.
20.  NY Jets – Rex’s weight loss and the team’s loss of wins will mirror.
21.  Tennessee – Steady team. Big decision on the QB.
22.  Seattle – Pete believes. No one else is sure. Pick a QB, please.
23.  Washington – RGIII has the town by the tail. But can he win?
24.  Arizona – Solid by not spectacular anywhere. Iffy at QB.
25.  Tampa Bay – Lots of moves to improve the roster. And a new coach.
26.  St. Louis – Fisher is the new sheriff in town. Sam has to rebound.
27.  Oakland – Reggie has some work to do in the post-Al era.
28.  Miami – Philbin takes over. Tannehill at QB. Long season ahead.
29.  Jacksonville – MJD finally reported. Gabbert has looked much improved.
30.  Cleveland – New owner. New QB. New RB. Big hill to climb.
31.  Indianapolis – His name is Luck, and he’ll need it this season.
32.  Minnesota – AP is still recovering. Is Ponder the guy?

Welcome back, football. We’ve missed you terribly.

As always, thanks for reading.

Steve

Previewing the Chiefs’ and Rams’ seasons

A few days ago in this space, I shared predictions for the winners in each division across the NFL. So you know generally what I think the Chiefs and Rams are going to do this season. But since many of you (as well as me) are big fans of one or both teams, I decided to dedicate an additional blog this week to break down some details for each team’s season.

 

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

Finished 7-9 last season, last in AFC West

Key Additions: NT Dontari Poe (R), RB Peyton Hillis, RT Eric Winston, TE Kevin Boss, CB Stanford Routt, QB Brady Quinn, OC Brian Daboll

Recipe for Success: The Chiefs finished last in the AFC West last season with a record of 7-9, just one win away from repeating as division champions despite losing three key players – RB Jamaal Charles, S Eric Berry and TE Tony Moeaki – to season-ending knee injuries. All three members of the ACL Crew are back and with other key additions at positions of need, there are many calling for Kansas City to win the much-improved but still mediocre division. The running game should be solid with Charles and Hillis, and the defense is expected to be in the upper half of the league; the key to the Chiefs return to the playoffs will be the play of QB Matt Cassel in a make-or-break season for him.

Schedule Breakdown: In addition home-and-home series within the AFC West, the division plays the NFC South and the AFC North as part of the normal NFL schedule rotation. The Chiefs host the Falcons, Ravens, Bengals, Panthers and Colts, and have to travel to Buffalo, New Orleans, Tampa Bay, Pittsburgh and Cleveland for road games.

Prediction: I have been saying for weeks now that I’m trying my best to temper my optimism for the upcoming season. Key additions at several spots have solidified the roster. Based on the schedule and the fact that the Chiefs have one of the deepest and youngest rosters in the league, I’m predicting a record of 10-6 and an AFC West crown.

 

ST. LOUIS RAMS

Finished 2-14 last season, last in NFC West

Key Additions: DT Michael Brockers (R), CB Janoris Jenkins (R), CB Courtland Finnegan, RB Isaiah Pead, WR Brian Quick (R), WR Steve Smith, LB Jo-Lonn Dunbar, Head Coach Jeff Fisher

 Recipe for Success: The Rams will be more competitive in 2012 for one simple reason … Jeff Fisher. He is one of only a handful of NFL head coaches that have proven over time that he can take a less than stellar lineup and get it to perform its abilities. Plus Fisher and new General Manager Les Snead turned the No. 2 pick in this year’s draft into a number of building blocks the team needed to lay a foundation for the future. Steven Jackson will have a big year, and Sam Bradford will bounce back. Also look for LB James Laurinaitis, DE Chris Long and S Quintin Mikell to excel on defense.

Schedule Breakdown: In addition home-and-home series within the NFC West, the division plays the NFC North and the AFC East as part of the normal NFL schedule rotation. The Rams host the Redskins, Packers, Patriots (London), Jets and Vikings at the Ed (Jones Dome); and have to travel to Detroit, Chicago, Miami, Buffalo and Tampa Bay.

Prediction: The Rams showed signs of life in the pre-season, but then again, the team went undefeated in the pre-season last year. Fisher’s expertise and presence will equal at least two wins. The NFC West is improving but is still weak, and the Rams will take a step forward. I’m calling for a 6-10 season.

As always, I’d love to hear from you. How do you think our Missouri teams will do? Am I being to realistic, too pessimistic? Come on, sound off.

Until next time, thanks for reading.

Steve

The NFL's Top 10 QBs for 2012

MTSS is continuing with the latest installment in a series of “Top 10” blogs, today highlighting the best quarterbacks for the upcoming season. As a reminder, these players are being ranked based on what each one is expected to contribute this season versus what they have done in the past. Here goes.

1. Aaron Rodgers – Mobile. Accurate. Steady. The coolest since Montana.
2. Drew Brees – Continues to prove the doubters wrong. Single-season passing king.
3. Tom Brady – Proving to be the best draft pick in Patriots history.
4. Eli Manning – He may not look the part, but he just wins when it counts.
5. Ben Roethlisberger – Expect Big Ben’s production to increase with Haley’s pass-happy offense.
6. Matthew Stafford – Finally played a full season and lived up to expectations. More to come.
7. Tony Romo – The most over-analyzed player in the league. He’s solid. Must prove he’s clutch.
8. Philip Rivers – A down year in 2011, but expect him to bounce back with new weapons in tow.
9. Michael Vick – If the dude could only stay healthy … sick numbers when he’s on the field.
10. Peyton Manning – Hall of Fame worthy, but can he stay healthy? Hold your breath, Bronco fans.

Best of the Rest – (listed alphabetically) Jay Cutler, Joe Flacco, Cam Newton, Matt Ryan, Matt Schaub. These five quarterbacks are ascending in the QB ranks, but just haven’t done it well enough or long enough to crack the top tier.

So who am I missing? Where do I have the order all messed up? Sound off; give me your list.

Thanks for reading.

Steve

Ending the Drought … with NFL Power Rankings

It’s been a very long, extremely dry summer for lots of folks all across the Midwest and much of the United States. And much like that moisture drought, it’s been a long time since this blog has seen any kind of significant activity. That’s my fault. We’re here to fix that.

I’m cranking it back up starting today as the NFL season is close enough that us diehard fans can begin to taste it. All team training camps are in full swing, and the annual Hall of Fame game in Canton takes place this Sunday. That’s right football junkies … the best time of the year is almost here.

With that, I thought I’d kick it all off with a pre-season ranking of all 32 NFL teams. Some of this is based on other experts so-called opinion, some research and some gut. Let me know where you think I’ve got it right but especially where you think I really dropped the ball (pun intended).

1. Green Bay – Top to bottom, still the best talent.
2. New England – Brady and Gronk hard to stop.
3. NY Giants – Defending champs have to be near the top.
4. Baltimore – Always play tough defense. Can Flacco and the O deliver?
5. Pittsburgh – Big Ben is hurt. Wallace holding out. Haley’s a wild card.
6. San Francisco – Not sure they can repeat 13-3 with Alex Smith.
7. Houston – Texans lost key pieces, but play in a weak division.
8. New Orleans – Despite everything, they’re still dangerous.
9. Detroit – Lots of firepower and off-field issues.
10.  Atlanta – Good team still trying to prove it is great.
11.  Philadelphia – Vick says dynasty. Let’s see it on the field.
12.  Chicago – Cutler. Forte. Marshall. And a good D.
13.  Dallas – Sooner or later, they have to live up to the hype … right?
14.  Kansas City – The ACL trio returns. Solid D. It’s all on Cassel.
15.  Buffalo – Great offseason, but can they compete in AFC East.
16.  Denver – Everybody love Peyton, but he needs more tools.
17.  Cincinnati – Great young core. Insanely tough division.
18. San Diego – Promise big every year. It’s do-or-get-fired time.
19. Carolina – Big dreams in PantherLand after Cam’s rookie year.
20.  NY Jets – Their mouths outpace their talent this year.
21.  Tennessee – Steady team. Big decision on the QB.
22.  Seattle – Pete believes. No one else is sure. Pick a QB, please.
23.  Washington – RGIII has the town by the tail. But can he win?
24.  Arizona – Solid by not spectacular anywhere.
25.  Tampa Bay – Lots of moves to improve the roster. And a new coach.
26.  St. Louis – Fisher is the new sheriff in town. Sam has to rebound.
27.  Oakland – Reggie has some work to do in the post-Al era.
28.  Miami – Philbin takes over. Still need a QB.
29.  Jacksonville – MJD and Blackmon holding out. Khan can’t like that.
30.  Cleveland – New owner. New QB. New RB. Big hill to climb.
31.  Indianapolis – His name is Luck, and he’ll need it this season.
32.  Minnesota – AP is still recovering. Is Ponder the guy?

With the NFL, that’s the end of the dry spell. Poet and didn’t know it. Let me know what you think.

Thanks for reading.

Steve