2008 NFL Rankings and Predictions

We are less than 24 hours away from the official start of the 2008 NFL season. Now that my three fantasy drafts are all completed (did well in every one of them FYI) I thought I would throw in my two cents on where all 32 teams are going to end up this year. I will also toss out this disclaimer about it being nearly impossible to predict NFL games, yet alone entire season records, so I won't be doing that. Rather, I will place each team where I think they will fall in their respective divisions and then saying if they will be better or worse (record wise) than in '07. And of course I will go into some detail on what the Cleveland Browns will be doing this year.

And here we go.

AFC EAST

1) New England Patriots (16-0 in 2007) - While this division will be improved, no one is close to dethroning the Pats. What hurts New England this year is that they have lost some talent (A. Samuel, D. Stallworth, and R. Colvin) and they seemed a little banged up. They will once again win this division easily thanks to an insanely easy schedule, but they won't replicate last year's success. - WORSE RECORD THAN IN 2008 THAN 2007

2) New York Jets (4-12) - This team is going to turn some heads. If they can get a semi-productive season out of Brett Favre then they will be competing for one of the two uber-competitive AFC Wild-Card spots. With Alan Faneca and Damian Woody anchoring the o-line, Favre should have time to throw and Thomas Jones should have room to run - BETTER

3) Buffalo Bills (7-9) - The Bills have some talent (Lynch and Evans) but it is marginal at best. I still have doubts about Trent Edwards ability to throw the ball which is why they get surpassed by the Jets this year. I like what they did on defense (signing big Marcus Stroud) but it is not going to be enough for Buffalo to get back into the playoffs - BETTER

4) Miami Dolphins (1-15) - Too ... many ... jokes. Miami is a train wreck, plain and simple. They will best their 2007 campaign, but not by much. Expect another top five draft pick for the 'Fins in 2009. - BETTER

AFC NORTH

1) Pittsburgh Steelers (10-6) - They passed the test last year about getting over Bill Cowher, Mike Tomlin aced that exam. This year they will have another test, which could prove to be much more difficult to overcome. Pittsburgh lost All-Pro Offensive Guard Alan Faneca to the Jets AND they play the toughest schedule in the entire league (based on last seasons' win-loss records). I will give them the division however because I don't see anyone else close on their heels yet. - WORSE

2) Cleveland Browns (10-6) - I hope I'm wrong on this prediction, I really do. However, I honestly see the Browns struggling a bit this year, for a couple of reasons. First of all, they do play a difficult schedule that includes five prime-time games, which could negatively effect this young talented team. Secondly, expectations can be a fickle beast. We've seen what they can do to the Indians, twice. Lastly, I'm not sold on Derek Anderson at all. They are called one-year wonders for a reason. Hopefully he will shut me up and put up decent numbers, but I don't see it. It's called a ceiling, and I think Anderson hit his last season, more specifically, around week nine or so. He struggled the second half of the season and was disgusting in the Pro-Bowl. My prediction is seven wins for the Browns, and again, I hope I'm wrong, but I doubt it. - WORSE

3) Baltimore Ravens (5-11) - Yes they are starting a rookie QB. Yes they lost nine of their last ten games in '07. BUT, I see better things for the Ravens in '08. They got rid of Brian Billick ... finally. They got rid of Steve McNair ... finally. Their defense is healthy, and should provide a nice crutch for Joe Flacco, the rookie QB from Delaware. Their schedule is light at the beginning, which should help matters. This is a team headed in the right direction, maybe one year away. - BETTER

4) Cincinnati Bengals (7-9) - This team is a joke. They re-signed Chris Henry? Yeah, that will help the team's image. Their star wide-out Chad Ocho-Cinco desperately wants to get out of town, and who can blame him? This team is going nowhere, and fast. How Marvin Lewis is not on the hot-seat yet is mind-blowing. I wouldn't be surprised if they were 0-7 headed into their bye week, and Head Coach Lewis out the door by Halloween. I can only hope. - WORSE

AFC SOUTH (we're going to speed this up a bit)

1) Indianapolis Colts (13-3) - The Colts now play at Lucas Oil Field, which has been dubbed 'The Luke.' For that reason alone, they will finish in first. - WORSE

2) Jacksonville Jaguars (11-5) - Everyone seems to love this Jags team and I don't get it. What did they do to get better? Isn't this the exact same team as last year? It is, which is why I don't see them getting past the Colts, and they might even miss out on a wild-card berth. - WORSE

3) Houston Texans (8-8) - My dark horse team in the AFC. If Andre Johnson can stay healthy, this team could do big things. Oh, and if Matt Schaub could throw less INT's and more TD's. That would help too. - BETTER

4) Tennessee Titans (10-6) - Hated this team for lucking into the playoffs thanks to the Colts playing Jim 'Frickin' Sorgi the last week of the season. It will come around on them this year, despite their defense. - WORSE

AFC WEST

1) San Diego Chargers (11-5) - This team wins games in spite of their Head Coach Norv Turner. They will do the same thing this year, although winning the division won't be nearly as easy in '08 as it was in '07. - WORSE

2) Denver Broncos (7-9) - I love Jay Cutler for some unknown reason. I drafted him in my first fantasy draft and had a huge smile on my face after the pick. I think he could post some huge numbers. Chewy assures me that their defense has improved, which was their downfall last year (26th against the run). This could be a playoff team this year. - BETTER

3) Kansas City Chiefs (4-12) - They get third place here because at least it seems they have a plan in place, which is something the 4th place team really can't say - BETTER

4) Oakland Raiders (4-12) - Rookie RB Darren McFadden will be good, but not Adrian Peterson (MIN) good. They have the worst defense in the entire league, and I'm not sold on JaMarcus Russell at all. - WORSE

NFC EAST

1) Dallas Cowboys (13-3) - If Adam "Pac-Man" Jones pans out, then he will be the Cowboys equivalent of what Randy Moss was for the Patriots last year. This is the team to beat in the NFC right now. - WORSE

2) Philadelphia Eagles (8-8) - Tough luck team from last year, as they lost four games by three points or less. Getting Asante Samuel will help tremendously on defense, and I expect big things from the Eagles in general. Look for Donovan McNabb to bounce back nicely, if he can stay healthy that is. - BETTER

3) New York Giants (10-6) - Congrats on winning it all last year. Too bad they won't make the playoffs this year. Too many injuries + a team not motivated to improve = WORSE

4) Washington Redskins (9-7) - I probably know the least about Washington than ANY other team in the NFL. Apparently Jim Zorn is their head coach? This division is too tough for the 'Skins this year with Jason Campbell calling the shots at QB. - WORSE

NFC NORTH

1) Minnesota Vikings (8-8) - This was my toughest choice, but I am banking on defense controlling this division. And if that is the case, then it doesn't matter who is throwing the ball for the Purple People-Eaters, because they have the best D in the league. Oh, and they have that running back too. - BETTER

2) Green Bay Packers (13-3) - The team that doesn't win this division is going to grab a wild-card spot. Aaron Rodgers can't even mess that up. - WORSE

3) Detroit Lions (7-9) - Calvin Johnson is going to be amazing. Kevin Smith is going to be solid. The Lions defense is going to give up a lot of points however. - WORSE

4) Chicago Bears (7-9) - Kyle Orton is the starting quarterback. I repeat, Kyle Orton ... is the starting quarterback. There are solid high-school teams who wouldn't start Kyle Orton. - WORSE

NFC SOUTH

1) New Orleans Saints (7-9) - A team absolutely loaded on offense. They added TE Jeremy Shockey, which will be enough for them to win the division crown this year. Possible MVP for Drew Brees perhaps? - BETTER

2) Carolina Panthers (7-9) - They have a healthy Jake Delhomme, but will miss their starting WR Steve Smith for the first two games of the regular season. The Panthers have a strong running game (Williams and Stewart) to coincide with a solid receiving core as well. Watch out for the wild-card. - BETTER

3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7) - Sorry D-Frank, but last season was a fluke. This team, and their fans, could be in for a long season. Their division got better, while they stood relatively still. - WORSE

4) Atlanta Falcons (4-12) - "And with the first pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, the Atlanta Falcons select ..." - WORSE

NFC WEST

1) Seattle Seahawks (10-6) - Hey, somebody has got to win this sorry joke of a division. So, I will just go with the team that did it last year. Got any better ideas? - BETTER

2) Arizona Cardinals (8-8) - How bad is Matt Leinart? The guy can't win the starting job no matter how badly their Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt wanted to give it to him. And you know what? I'm loving every minute of it. - WORSE

3) St. Louis Rams (3-13) - If everyone stays healthy, they could make a run at the division. Problem is, they won't. - BETTER

4) San Francisco 49ers (5-11) - See the Chicago Bears and replace "Kyle Orton" with "J.T. O'Sullivan." - WORSE

Okay, so there you have it. My semi-predictions on the 2008 season. And, just so I can see how I end up, here is how I see the playoffs going down.

AFC WILD-CARDS - New York Jets and Denver Broncos
NFC WILD-CARDS - Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - New England Patriots over Indianapolis Colts
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Dallas Cowboys over New Orleans Saints

SUPER BOWL - New England Patriots over Dallas Cowboys.

It was the match-up everyone thought it was going to be last year, but no one is predicting this year. Hey, it's pretty much just a guess. Who knows?

Well, the NFL season gets started tomorrow night at 7:00 PM EST with the defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants hosting their division rival Washington Redskins. Depending on my Internet situation tomorrow night, I will post every one's picks for that game. If not, then I will be back on Saturday night with the Week One picks.

Until next time, "read it, roll it, hole it."