Continuing with my fan Q&A Series, today I talked with my buddy Kyle, a Rams fan from St. Louis.
*Note that these questions were answered while Steven Jackson was still holding out.
1. What kind of impact will Chris Long have on the St. Louis defense in his first year?
The Rams will be better, but one man will not make a team go from worst to first in the NFL especially a rookie.
2. Will Steven Jackson be with the team and ready to go when they open the season?
He will be on the team, there is no doubt about that. Will he be ready to go, hopefully. Physically he is in shape, is he in game shape for the number of touches the team needs him to have - don’t know. He could wear out as the season progresses.
3. On paper, the Rams potentially have a pretty strong offense, how strong will it actually be?
It could be there if they aren’t bit by the injury bug. Also they need a good year out of Marc Bulger. He has to be physically and mentally ready for a full season. The offense simply does not run as effective without him under center.
4. The St. Louis secondary looks like the weak spot of the defense and overall team, will that unit step up or will opponents expose it?
It has been exposed before and will be exposed again. I don’t see them having a good year but they may not look so bad because nobody is expecting much on the defensive side of the ball.
5. How will the Rams finish in a wide open NFC West?
Well I think it’s fairly obvious this division is the Seahawk’s to lose. They should be the favorite out of the gate and won’t look back. Arizona seems to be improving and going in the right direction. The Rams and 49ers seem to be spinning their wheels. I don’t expect a lot out of either but may give the edge to the Rams solely for the skill they have on the offensive side of the ball.
Continuing with the fan Q&A series I started, today ATCG is posting questions answered by William, the brother of one of my colleagues, Doug. They’re both New York Jets fans.
1. What does the addition of Brett Favre mean to the Jets?
Favre takes the jets from a joke of a team to a team that no one will be excited to play against including New England.
2. How much do the additions of Alan Faneca, Damien Woody, and Tony Richardson help the running game?
Faneca is as good as it gets and if Woody can stay healthy, the Jets have the possibility of going from the one of the worst offensive lines to one of the best. This should allow Jones to actually avoid being hit immediately after the hand off, allowing him to become the same guy who played in Chicago. I wouldn’t expect much from Richardson except for some leadership.
3. Are the Jets strong enough to bounce back from a down year in ‘07 and return to the playoffs?
After getting Favre, I don’t think any of the Jets will remember last year and will be a lock for the playoffs this year.
4. Can the Jets take a game from the Patriots this year?
Look for week 2 to be the game where everyone decides they have to take the Jets seriously with a big win over the Patriots.
5. Who will really establish themselves as a playmaker on the New York defense?
With Asante Samuel now in the NFC, look for Darrelle Revis to start in the pro bowl along side Champ Bailey.
As the charge to the kickoff of the 2008-2009 NFL season continues, ATCG will start a new series of posts called Fan Q&As. I’ll talk with fans of various teams around the NFL and post a Q&A on questions and issues concerning each team.
The first post will be on a popular dark horse pick to win the NFC, the Minnesota Vikings. Answering the questions is my buddy, Mark, a Vikings fan from Minneapolis.
Note – these questions were answered before QB, Tarvaris Jackson suffered his knee injury.
1. What will we see out of QB Tarvaris Jackson this year? Will he still be the starter at the end of the season?
We’ll see an improved Jackson. It’s hard not to improve on what he produced last season. With the addition of Berrian and an increased role for Sidney Rice the Vikings will have a core of WR’s that should be able to run routes and catch balls. Whether Jackson can get them the ball will be the key. I think he can. Will he still be the quarterback? If he can stay healthy I think he will be, provided he doesn’t completely implode.
2. Do the Vikings have enough talent and depth at WR to sufficiently help Jackson?
As I answered in the first question I think they’ll be good enough to prevent teams from stacking 8 in the box to stop the run. That’s all we really need (think of the Ravens way back when). They need to catch the ball and move the sticks, they don’t need to take charge of the game. They just need to give us another option to Peterson and Taylor. And unlike last season I think they can do that.
3. What kind of impact will Jared Allen have in his first season with Minnesota? Is he still considered a pass rush specialist or has he developed the run stop part of his game?
I think Allen will have a huge impact on the rest of the defense. After all, Allen led the league in sacks last year on a mediocre defensive line. Add him to Pat and Kevin Williams, that’s going to free up more space for Allen to rush the passer. Is he more of a rush stopper? We don’t know yet. Frankly he may not need to be that great at stopping running backs because everyone else on the line is already so good.
4. With what many see as a one dimensional offense, will the defense be strong enough to carry Minnesota to a divisional title and the playoffs?
Well, the defensive line is the best in the league, our linebackers are pretty good. Speedy and athletic, but not super strong. I think the fortunes of the Vikings defense will rest with our secondary. For as long as I can remember they’ve been our achilles’ heel… that and not sacking the quarterback. With teams hesitant to run against our line it’s going to be really important for the secondary to clamp down. Will they do it? A lot is going to depend on how strong Allen is at putting pressure on the QB.
5. As a trendy dark horse Super Bowl pick, are there any concerns over the high expectations many have set for the Vikings?
I think it’s a little premature to be picking the Vikings to win the Super Bowl, or even get there. They are greatly improved from last season and the NFC North is weaker, but there are still a lot of questions that need to be answered before anyone starts throwing up big expectations. Basically the concerns are the questions that were asked here. Will Tarvaris be ready? Will we have people who can catch the ball. Will the offense throw the ball down the field? Will the defense hold up? A lot of things to wonder about.
Now with that said, I think they’ll be a playoff team, and maybe they’ll even win a game, but compared to the Cowboys, or to a lesser extent the Giants, I think the Vikings still play third, or even fourth in the NFC. Guessing there’ll be a surprise team that pops up.
It was announced today that the Cleveland Indians traded pitched Paul Byrd to the Boston Red Sox. Cleveland will either receive a player at a later date or cash in return for Byrd.
This trade seems like a good thing for both clubs. The Red Sox needed to add some pitching depth with some of the injuries they’ve suffered and inconsistent play of Clay Buchholz. Byrd’s been solid lately – the guy hasn’t lost since the All Star break. He’s not flashy or overpowering, but he gets the job done. He should give Boston some quality starts to finish the season and in the playoffs.
Cleveland GM Mark Shapiro stated, “This trade is more about clearing room to give some of our other players an opportunity, giving Paul a chance with a contender and providing us some payroll relief.” That’s exactly right, no ulterior motives with this trade. All the Indians’ trades this season have followed the strategy of either clearing payroll or getting something in return for a guy they know they can’t resign. First they traded Sabathia, then Casey Blake, and now Paul Byrd. Byrd doesn’t fit in their long term pitching plans anyway. They have Carmona and Lee as their studs, they’re counting on Jeremy Sowers in the future and are betting prospect Adam Miller will be a good one sooner rather than later. The older Byrd wasn’t a long term piece of the puzzle.
I’m sure many people have probably already seen this commercial, but I’m posting it anyway. It’s a great commercial. Really puts me in an Olympic state of mind. The ironic thing is Nike isn’t even one of the USA Basketball Olympic sponsor.
I think the NBA could learn a few things from Nike about advertising. Seeing this commercial just makes you want to watch team USA play. The NBA keeps suffering from decreasing attention. I’m not saying advertising is the cure all (it’s certainly not), but I think ads like this could help people get excited to watch games. Or maybe it’s just me. I know I want to see more ads like this.
With all the hoopla of the first weekend of the Beijing Olympics, many people forgot that the PGA Championship was also held this weekend at Oakland Hills in Michigan. Those that did forget missed a great tournament and a great finish with many golfers needing to play 36 holes on Sunday to make up for weather delays that wreaked havoc on Saturday. As early leaders J.B. Holmes and Henrik Stenson fell apart in the final round, Padraig Harrington, Sergion Garcia, and Ben Curtis all made charges. In the end, 2-time defending British Open Champion, Harrington, held off Garcia and Curtis to win the PGA.
Many people wondered if golf would suffer with Tiger Woods not playing any tournaments, notably the remaining two majors, the remainder of the year due to injury. I actually think we’ve seen some great golf with him out. The British Open, and now the PGA Championship, both had close, compelling finishes. The golf has been great. True golf fans have enjoyed it. Viewership has probably been down, but that isn’t due to the golf being bad.
Golf fans can be divided into two categories – true golf fans and Tiger fans. True golf fans watch regardless of if Tiger is playing. Tiger fans, obviously, only watch if Tiger is playing. True golf fans appreciate the game, they get into it, they know the players. Tiger fans don’t really know the ‘other’ players with the exception of Phil, Vijay, Sergio, and maybe Ernie. The point I’m getting at is that there are so many people that watch golf these days just because of Tiger, that numbers do seem down when he’s not around. The fact of the matter is the competition has been just as good in his absence. More of these Tiger fans should’ve tuned in to the last two majors of the year. They would’ve enjoyed the golf that was played.
Padraig Harrington is the face of golf right now. In the last two years he’s won 3 major championships. He’s become the guy to beat. I’m anxious to see if Harrington will be that guy to consistently challenge Tiger once Woods returns. I think Harrington has it in him.
I finished up my NFL divisional predictions for the 2008 season last night. I know at the beginning I said I wasn’t going to make playoff or Super Bowl predictions, but I changed my mind and decided I will pick the Wild Cards teams in each conference.
In the AFC, the division winners I projected are the Patriots, Steelers, Colts, and Chargers. The teams I see contending for the 2 wild card spots in the playoffs are the Jets, Browns, Ravens, Jaguars, and Texans. The Ravens will be the first to fall out of the race. They play in one of the toughest divisions and don’t have an offense. The next team out will be the Texans. While they’ll improve a lot this year, they play in the South, a division just as tough as the North. Tough division should equal less wins than teams that play in easier divisions. I see them as this year’s Browns – narrowly missing out. That leaves 3 teams competing for 2 spots – NYJ, Cleveland, and Jacksonville. The Jets should have an improved team this year and they play in a bad division, they should go at least 3-1 against Buffalo and Miami. Cleveland has great offense, but the defense needs some improvement. And they play in a tough division, they could possibly split with each team in it. Jacksonville, in contrast to Cleveland, has a very good defense, but the offense needs to become more stable. They also play in a division where they could split with each opponent. All things considered I think the two spots go to the Jets and Jaguars. The deciding factor is that the Browns play the tough NFC East this year, while the Jets play the NFC West and the Jags play the NFC North. Each should at the least split the four games, the Browns will struggle to even win two games.
So the AFC playoffs will include the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts, San Diego Chargers, New York Jets, and Jacksonville Jaguars, with the Pats and Chargers receiving byes.
In the NFC, the division winners, as I projected them, will be the New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Seattle Seahawks. That leaves the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, Minnesota Vikings, Carolina Panthers, and New Orleans Saints all in the running for the wild cards. The NFC East will beat each other up and that division plays the AFC North this year, so Washington won’t generate a wild card. The Saints don’t have a strong enough defense so they’re out. That leaves Dallas, Minnesota and Carolina. Dallas is in much the same situation as Washington – tough division playing an equally tough AFC division; the Cowboys are a stronger team than the Skins though. Minnesota plays in an easier division than Carolina. Minnesota plays the tough AFC South, Carolina plays the AFC East. My wild card picks are the Cowboys and Panthers. Minnesota needs too much to go their way to have a great season – no injuries (especially at RB….), Jackson needs to play well (or give way to Booty….), secondary needs to perform better. Seems like less up in the air with Carolina and Dallas. That, and the Vikings could pontentially lose 3 of 4 to the tough AFC South.
NFC playoff teams will be the New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Seattle Seahawks, Dallas Cowboys, and Carolina Panthers, with Green Bay and Tampa receiving the byes.
Seattle – Seattle has been the cream of the crop in this division for quite some time. I think this will be the last year they hold onto that distinction. They’re getting older and they don’t have as many weapons on offense as they have in the past. Their defense is strong enough to help them win the division this year though, although the division will be very competitive. QB Matt Hasselbeck will again lead the Seahawk offense with his primary targets being Bobby Engram and Nate Burleson. Beyond those two receivers, there’s a large dropoff in talent for Seattle. They’re looking for a third receiver to step up. Maurice Morris and Julius Jones will lead Seattle’s running attack, with T.J. Duckett also getting some carries. I don’t expect huge things from the Seattle offense, but they shouldn’t hurt the team cause. The defense will be lead up front by Patrick Kerney, Lofa Tatupu, and Marcus Trufant. Seattle’s defense should carry the team to a division crown yet again.
St. Louis – The Rams ‘07 season didn’t go as they anticipated. Injuries plagued them and in addition to that, they just played bad and underperformed. They’re looking to bounce back this season. The offense should be solid as long as Steven Jackson reports to camp soon. His backup, Antonio Pittman, has the stuff to be an NFL RB, so he should provide St. Louis with some nice carries as well. The Rams hope they can work out Jackson’s contract situtation so they have the services of both soon. In the passing game, QB Marc Bulger will be throwing the ball to Torry Holt, Drew Bennett, Dante Hall, and Dane Looker. Overall the Rams should have a nice balance to their offensive approach. On the defensive side of the ball, the Rams should be improved over last year. The team’s starting front four should play particularly well – Leonard Little, La’Roi Glover, Adam Carriker, and Chris Long. Beyond the defensive line, St. Louis will need some other defenders to establish themselves as playmakers.
Arizona – The Cardinals have a lot of talent on offense, unfortunately that talent has never been fully tapped into. Will this be the year the offense establishes itself as one of the premier units in the league? I think the answer to that question lies on the shoulder of QB Matt Leinart. If he can live us to his potential, they have a chance. But first, Leinart needs to secure his job. He can’t play at a level lower than that of Kurt Warner. With receivers like Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, Steve Breaston, and Early Doucet, Leinart has plenty of options to throw to. Another question is will Edgerrin James ever be a top tier RB again? He has yet to meet exceptions since joining Arizona and since the Cardinals don’t have much depth behind him, the strength of the running game falls on his shoulders. As a whole, the Arizona defense doesn’t appear to be very strong, but they have some individuals that could have nice seasons including Karlos Dansby and Antrel Rolle.
San Francisco – The 49ers added Mike Martz to its staff as offensive coordinator in the offseason as they try to upgrade the offense. Martz has a track record of improving teams, but do the Niners have the pieces in place to realistically improve much. QB Alex Smith needs to play much better this year. Some fans have already given up on him and would like to see Shaun Hill given the chance to start the season taking snaps. Smith will have 3 steady receivers to throw the ball to in Bryant Johnson, Arnaz Battle, and new Niner Isaac Bruce. San Francisco also added Deshaun Foster in the offseason to provide backup support to Frank Gore. Defensively, Manny Lawson’s return to the lineup this year should help the team make some improvement, while Patrick Willis is expected to have another good season.
Tampa Bay – Although the Bucs didn’t win the Brett Favre bidding war, they still have a solid offensive team. Their offense is much better than people realize. Jeff Garcia was a Pro Bowl QB last year and while his receivers aren’t flashy, they’re efficient and get the job done - Joey Galloway, Ike Hilliard, Michael Clayton. This team won’t pass all over people, but they’ll throw the ball enough to keep the defense honest and prevent teams from stacking the box. The running game will be the strength of Tampa’s offense lead by Earnest Graham, Warrick Dunn, and Michael Bennett. Now those names may not jump off the screen at you. None of them will play in the Pro Bowl this year, but together they make a solid unit. The strength of the entire Tampa Bay team will again be its defense. The front seven includes guys that fit Monte Kiffin’s system very well, guys like Derrick Brooks, Barrett Ruud, Gaines Adams, Cato June, and Chris Hovan, while the Buc’s two corners Phillip Buchanon and Ronde Barber are two of the best in the NFC.
Carolina – The big question for Carolina is will Jake Delhomme return to his pre-2007 form? I think he will. I think he’ll bounce back from his injury and have a solid season. Steve Smith, Dwayne Jarrett, and Muhsin Muhammad give him some nice targets to throw to. Jonathan Stewart will now be the Panther’s starting RB while DeAngelo Williams will become more of the change of pace back. Carolina has a better and deeper receiving unit than the Saints and I think Stewart and Williams are a better running punch than what the Saints have. Defensively the Panthers will be improved over last year. I’m not sure they’re better than Tampa yet, but they’re building up. Their linebacking unit looks pretty good – rookie Dan Connor will make an immediate impact alongside Jon Beason and Na’il Diggs. I think Julius Peppers’ return to Carolina will rejuvenate his career. He had his best years as a member of the Panthers and he’ll improve this year. Chris Gamble and Ken Lucas are solid CBs and Richard Marshall has also shown some promise at that position. I think Carolina could be a dangerous team this year that many opponents overlook. They could challenge for a wild card spot.
New Orleans – Many think the Saints are the team to beat in the South and the addition of Jeremy Shockey seemed to amplify that thought. However, I think the Saints’ are an overrated team; their offense is also overrated. The season the Saints put together two years ago I think may have been a fluke more than anything else. First year coach, new QB, Katrina bounceback – it all rejuvenated the team, they overperformed and exceeded expectations. Drew Brees is a solid QB, but I don’t think the people he’s throwing to are near the same caliber. Marques Colston is good, but beyond him the Saints’ other receivers have yet to prove anything. Devery Henderson, Robert Meachem, Terrance Copper – all need to firmly establish themselves and at least one needs a breakout season. The Saints hope Deuce McAllister will return from injury and be able to carry much of the load at RB. Reggie Bush can’t be a feature back, he’s more of a gimmick back. Bush isn’t built to run down the middle, he’ll run outside, he’ll catch passes. The Saints offense really needs McAllister this year. Defensively, the Saints are not strong. They’ll struggle to stop any teams that have a solid offense. New Orleans needs more upgrades on both offense and defense before they’re back in the playoffs.
Atlanta – The Falcons are bad. They’re just a bad team. They could finish with the worst record in the league. We don’t know who the QB will be. Matt Ryan is the QB of the future, but is he the QB of this year? For his sake I hope not. They don’t have enough weapons around him so he can be successful. They have decent WRs, but nothing spectacular. Michael Turner will be their starting RB, but in my opinion he doesn’t have starting back talent. Defensively the Falcons aren’t much better. Atlanta’s fans are in for a long year.
Now that the Brett Favre/Packers situation is resolved I’ll get back to blogging about other things now, including finishing up my NFL division predictions. Later today I’ll post my thoughts on the NFC South.
