Predicting the 2010 NFL Season

Eagles rather than Giants.

Dolphins rather than Jets.

I think the Ravens still win the AFC North and that it’s a toss-up between the Steelers and Bengals. Every other year, the Steelers show up. It’s a confounding trend.

I like my Niners to win the division by two games, though they’ll only be 10-6. That division is the Sunbelt Conference.

It’s been a long long time since both representatives of the previous Super Bowl made it back to the playoffs the following year. That’s another confounding trend. How many of you goofs are going to check me on that?

Texans go 9-7 and miss the playoffs, though they’ll be a better team than last year.

Nice work Scip, it is about 6 hours and 45 minutes more than I care to put into studying the NFL.

The sorriness of the NFL’s five worst teams: the Rams, the Bucs, the Bills, the Browns, the Seahawks – cannot be overstated

I do think you are underestimating the overall suckiness of the NFC West — Seattle’s fans will find fool’s gold with Pete and the Seahawks this year in terms of more wins than the talent level would normally allow.

magnus -
 
The NFC East is basically, like, just a matter of opinion, dude. I chose the Cowboys and Giants because they represent the best combination of upside and experience. The Giants really were cursed last year. I actually had the Eagles winning the division the first time I ran this exercise, but then I reconsidered. The defenses win out.
 
I like the Dolphins a pick a lot, but the Jets are too fucking good. And when they get Santonio Holmes, you’ll see a late season run after a slow start. Look at the Jet infrastructure at CB and OL – no one else in the league can touch them. People are way too focused on Sanchez.
 
If anything, the Dolphins might supplant NE if the Patriot D doesn’t step up or Moss finally starts to show his age.
 
The Texans are always a better team that last year. While missing the playoffs.
 
Steve -
 
I projected the Seahawks to 5 wins. That’s 2 more than what they would have in any other division in the NFL. As I wrote in my preview, they also have a considerable home field and time zone advantage over visitors from the East and Midwest.

“I actually had the Eagles winning the division the first time I ran this exercise, but then I reconsidered. The defenses win out.”

I endorse anything that upsets Vasherized. This should do it.

Why do hate everything good and pure about America?

In all seriousness I got stuck with His Wranglerness in my fantasy football league due to internets failure at my house and it makes me want to hurt the innocent.

Minnesota -
 
His Wranglerness thrives on sticking it up people’s asses who doubt him, until some final moment of sweet vindication with a playoff choke. So his fantasy value may still be OK, even without Rice. Berrian will catch some deep balls, at least.
 
Don’t laugh at me, but Matt Stafford is available in many leagues and as a situational play, he’s going to throw up some 42-25-325-3-2 stat lines which, for fantasy purposes, are good stuff.

In all seriousness I got stuck with His Wranglerness in my fantasy football league due to internets failure at my house and it makes me want to hurt the innocent.

Oh please

Why does Minnesotahorn look so big in that picture?

Chuck Klosterman picks the Titans to win the Super Bowl!

Does anyone know who Dave Eggers likes?

Eggers like his brother Topher, Sudanese immigrants, and pirates.

 Also narcissistic ramblings in the guise of a self-deprecating-ish novel.

That amateur doesn’t even have the bedspread.

The Seahawks are going to be stunningly bad. I am not even that confident they will split with the Rams.

Things are so bad, they made six roster moves AFTER the cut down to 53. That says something, and it isn’t good.

Oh, and the offensive line coach, zone blocking guru Alex Gibbs, suddenly and unexpectedly retired last week, possibly becausethe thought of coaching a rag-tag group (and one high potential rookie) in the finer points of the outside zone all year seemed like a big waste of time, upon sober reflection.

Fortunately, this awful conference has one good thing going for it: I drafted the 49ers defense for my fantasy team. Singletary’s defense should look great, if for the simple reason that they get to play the Seahawks and Rams 25% of the time.

????

Okay, the broad outlines of the season are set.

You mean they’re gonna fly teams around the country 256 times to stage games in front of more than 30 million fans with 12 or 20 times that number watching on TV over the next four-plus months just to tweak the final outcome a tiny bit?

Make that flying 512 times.

To paraphrase Scip, the Texans are the Brazil of the NFL: They are the future of the league, and they always will be.

I’ve actually got Stafford as being a top 10 fantasy QB this year. Dude is going to blow up numbers wise (as long as one of his joints doesn’t blow up physically.)

I’ve got the under/over on games until Pete Carroll is fired in Seattle at 44 (2.5 seasons exactly). Dude is a terrible coach who was entirely dependent on recruiting superior talent. Just see what he did in New England, or for that matter how much USC underachieved given their talent level, especially after Norm Chow left.

Excellent take, though I disagree about Pitt winning the North.

Agree on TN’s volatility.

Was it Tom Jackson or really Randy Jackson who picked the Texans for the Super Bowl? Dawg.

Pitchy -
 
Who do you like in the North?
 
Ed Reed is out for 6 weeks with his hip. The Ravens will really miss Sergio Kindle.
 
The Bengals?

Bengals. But that’s more a gut suspicion that Pitt will again under perform than a belief in Palmer or Lewis (or the other Palmer, for that matter.) I think TN will grab a wildcard, with or without Haynesworth.

But yeah, I wouldn’t bet money on any of that.