 |
Football Forecast
Cigar Aficionado's gridiron guru analyzes the upcoming NFL season and predicts who will reach Super Bowl XLI
Danny Sheridan
From the Print Edition:
William Shatner, Sept/Oct 2006
(continued from page 2)
4 Oakland Raiders
Sage owner Al Davis reached back into Raiders glory to restore a franchise that has gone 13-35 the
last three years. He brought back Hall of Famer Art Shell, who coached the team for six years
(1989—94) and owns the team's third-best winning percentage behind Hall of Famer John Madden and
Tom Flores. It was an excellent move. The first thing Shell must do is restore discipline to a
team that has been sabotaged by penalties. With Kerry Collins gone, he also needs to generate a
comeback for QB Aaron Brooks, who came over from New Orleans. The Raiders have special wideouts in
Jerry Porter and Randy Moss and a workhorse RB in LaMont Jordan (1,025 yards). They also have DE
Derrick Burgess, the NFL's sack leader with 16. Shell could be the deliverer if he had a
quarterback like Kenny Stabler.
NFC EAST
1 Dallas Cowboys
This is coach Bill Parcells's fourth year in Dallas, and at age 65, one season with Terrell Owens
could make it his last. The Big Tuna is itchy and geared for a Super Bowl run with Owens and WR
Terry Glenn giving QB Drew Bledsoe two deep threats who can stretch the field. "In this offense
you're not going to catch 100 balls," was the message Parcells delivered to Owens. Bledsoe likes
the controversial receiver. "This is a guy that's going to help us right now," he exclaims. So
will FG kicker Mike Vanderjagt, but first the Cowboys must upgrade an offensive line that allowed
50 sacks and needs to produce better blocking for RB Julius Jones. With rookie Ohio State LB Bobby
Carpenter a perfect fit in Parcells' 3-4 defense, owner Jerry Jones and the Cowboys are ready for
a showdown at the OK Corral.
2 Philadelphia Eagles
The turmoil created by Terrell Owens doomed the Eagles to a 6-10 mark and last place in the East.
Like him or not, Owens's departure left a playmaking void and QB Donovan McNabb was limited most
of the season with a hernia. When the season ended, 10 of the 22 starters from Super Bowl XXXIX
were injured. McNabb threw for only 2,507 yards, mostly to TE L. J. Smith and RB Brian Westbrook,
both of whom caught 61 passes, and the Eagles scored the fewest points in the East. Yet it was the
defense, which gave up the most points in the division (388), that caused more pain than McNabb's
hernia. Coach Andy Reid is a winner with an excellent staff, and with McNabb coming back healthy
to exorcise the T. O. curse, the Eagles will claw their way back near the top perch.
3 Washington Redskins
The Redskins went on a tear in coach Joe Gibbs's second year, making the playoffs with a 10-6
record and beating Tampa Bay in the wild card game. "When I told my wife I was thinking of
coaching again, she said, 'You're going to ruin your reputation,'" confesses Gibbs. "After my
first year (6-10), I said, 'Well, we're halfway there.'" QB Mark Brunell had a comeback year with
3,050 yards, 23 TDs and only 10 INTs to rank No. 5 in the NFC and WR Santana Moss profited with 84
receptions and 1,483 yards. Adding WR Antwaan Randle El gives Brunell another target to go along
with RB Clinton Portis, who finished last year third in the NFC with 1,516 rushing yards and 11
TDs. Owner Daniel Snyder, who has the NFL's most valuable franchise, has the Redskins on the
warpath.
4 New York Giants
The maturation of QB Eli Manning is far from complete and his late-season struggles, particularly
in a playoff blowout against Carolina, are a big concern. It was bad enough that RB Tiki Barber
questioned coach Tom Coughlin's game plan. Barber had a sensational season, producing personal
highs in attempts (357), yards (1,860) and total yards from scrimmage (2,390), while losing only
one fumble. The Giants have a new look on defense with the addition of LB LaVar Arrington from
Washington, along with an overhauled secondary. "Who are teams going to block with Michael Strahan
(11.5 sacks), LaVar and myself?" asks DE Osi Umenyiora (NFC-leading 14.5 sacks). The "D" makes the
Giants dangerous.
NFC NORTH
1 Chicago Bears
The smashmouth Bears were the surprise of the North last season, finishing 11-5 to win the title
under coach Lovie Smith, who can run for Windy City mayor. Led by LB Brian Urlacher, the Bears had
the NFC's second-ranked defense and they needed to be Monsters of the Midway after losing QB Rex
Grossman for practically the entire season. QB Kyle Orton did a yeoman's job filling in and won 10
games in 15 starts. RB Thomas Jones carried the ground load (1,335 yards, 9 TDs), while Muhsin
Muhammad took care of the air travel (64 grabs, 750 yards). The truth is, the Bears need more
playmakers and I was surprised they didn't draft any, instead using their first five draft picks
on defense.
2 Minnesota Vikings
New owner Zygi Wilf didn't know what he was getting into when he purchased the Vikings. Although
they went 9-7, he fired coach Mike Tice, who rallied the team from a 2-5 start, and hired
inexperienced Brad Childress to replace him. The low point came with the infamous Viking players'
love boat cruise. The Vikes followed Tice's firing by trading QB Daunte Culpepper to Miami and
then firing GM Fran Foley after three months on the job and replacing him with Rick Spielman, who
had flopped in Miami. Minnesota is left with 38-year-old QB Brad Johnson, who went 7-2 after
Culpepper's leg injury sidelined him for the season. As it stands, the Vikings desperately need to
fix the leaks in their boat.
3 Detroit Lions
One of these years, president and CEO Matt Millen is going to get it right, but when? As with
Donald Rumsfeld, I can't understand why he hasn't been fired. Under his stewardship, the Lions
have been as shaky as the car industry in Detroit. He's had three head coaches in five years, the
latest being Rod Marinelli, yet Millen was surprisingly rewarded with a contract extension. With
QB Joey Harrington gone to Miami, Jon Kitna and Josh McCown are all that new offensive coordinator
Mike Martz has to work with. The Lions are still waiting for WR Charles Rogers to play up to his
first-round potential and help WR Roy Williams and RB Kevin Jones (664 yards). Martz has already
discovered that he doesn't have a go-to guy, simply because Millen's draft picks have been
horrible.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
RSS