Mid July Predictions:

Gtripp, While Betts is a downgrade from Portis, I don't consider our team sunk in the unfortunate case that Portis goes down. As far as the Gibbs handcuffing, even players have been admitting that the offense seemed to be much more conservative last year than what they've seen thus far.

I largely agree with the rest of your post, though I think I'm on record saying that Gibbs doing any "handcuffing" is 100% perception and very little reality.
I'm with Daseal on this one, it was either Gibbs or Saunders not opening up the playbook for Campbell, either way the offense was definitely hamstrung by playcalling.

I'm with Daseal on this one, it was either Gibbs or Saunders not opening up the playbook for Campbell, either way the offense was definitely hamstrung by playcalling.

and injuries, and lack of confidence (justified or not), and limited knowledge of the plays

I'm with Daseal on this one, it was either Gibbs or Saunders not opening up the playbook for Campbell, either way the offense was definitely hamstrung by playcalling.But isn't the 'opening up' of the playbook the part thats up to perception/debate?

I mean, I think for "handcuffing" to have an actual effect on the outcome of the game, the playcalling has to be so limited that the defense can correctly predict what's coming. Based on the overall offensive numbers under Campbell, this was clearly not the case.

I think that we can deduce that Todd Collins was allowed to run a greater percentage of the playbook, but from the defenses perspective, the playcalling wasn't any different. The run-pass ratio didn't change significantly with Collins in, and any increase in production can be directly attributed to Collins' level of play itself...not the playcalling.

Like Smootsmack just said, real factors such as injuries to the line and inexperience to the quarterback determined how we went about attacking the opposing defense. There was no "holding back" of Jason Campbell -- throughout the entire season, if the offense needed a big play, they would hang the request right on Campbell's arm -- this started all the way back in the Philadelphia game.

So no, Gibbs and Saunders weren't doing anything out of the ordinary last year. They simply went into the season with a plan, and tweaked it when reality happened. I would hope Jim Zorn does the same thing...but then again, I'm not really sure there's any alternative here to be fearful of. That's just the way NFL coaches do their jobs.

It KILLS me when people say things like "the Patriots have something to prove" or "the Patriots have a chip on their shoulder" or "the Patriots will be out to avenge their SB loss". The Patriots have NOTHING to prove, and I hope they (and the media/public) stop creating these imaginary rallying causes. It's BS, the only thing the Patriots proved last year that they wanted to be 19-0 more than winning another Superbowl, therefore they lost the SB. They can be a playoff team again this year because they are in a crappy division, they have the best QB in the league, and they have one of the best coaches. If they focus on the SB and not running up the score and going undefeated (playing ur starters when ur 15-0) then they can go play for the championship.

I think people are giving Tavaris Jackson too much credit, unless the predictions of Minnesota in the playoffs and the Superbowl assume that Favre is going to play for them at QB. Teams like Minny, Chicago, the Jets and maybe Tampa Bay are not going to do well with mediocre QBs. I don't think Adrian Peterson can carry that entire offense.

The whole NFC east is going to be a bit of a question mark for this season. It's easy to put the Cowpukes as the contender, but even if they do make the playoffs, they are developing a history of being one and done. Also, I wonder if the whole situation with Jason Garrett being the coach-in-waiting will affect Wade at all. Besides, T.O. is bound to blow up anytime. The Giants could appear to be contenders as well, but they could also be too overconfident after winning the SB. The Eagles don't have a true #1 WR, and I think an injury to McNabb will blow up that team (and the city of Philadelphia).

I think as everyone has said, the Redskins are a question mark, they could be a playoff team again, or they could have anywhere from an 8-8 to a losing record.

And after that rant, here are my crazy predictions:

NFC East: 1. Cowboys 2. NYG 3. Skins 4. Eagles
NFC North: 1. GB 2. Minny 3. Detroit 4. Chicago
NFC South: 1. Saints 2. Bucs 3. Carolina 4. Atlanta
NFC West: 1. Rams 2. Niners 3. Arizona 4. Seattle
WC: GB vs Skins, Rams vs. NYG
Divisional: Cowboys vs. GB, Saints vs. NYG
Conf Championship: Cowboys vs. Saints

AFC East: 1. Patriots 2. Jets 3. Bills 4. Miami
AFC North: 1. Browns 2. Steelers 3. Bengals 4. Ravens
AFC South: 1. Jags 2. Colts 3. Titans 4. Texans
AFC West: 1. Chargers 2. Denver 3. Oakland 4. Chiefs
WC: Colts vs. Patriots, Steelers vs. Browns
Divisional: Jags vs. Patriots, Chargers vs. Browns
Conference: Jags vs. Browns

SB: Jags vs. Saints

So, I just picked the schedule all the way through, and would like to revise my rankings a little bit.

#x = playoff team, where x stands for projected playoff seed

AFC East
#2 Patriots (13-3)
Jets (7-9)
Bills (5-11)
Dolphins (4-12)

No big surprises here, I'm predicting that the Bills QBs will struggle, and the Jets will find some consistency at that position.

AFC South
#3 Jaguars (11-5)
#5 Colts (10-6)
#6 Texans (10-6)
Titans (4-12)

The Titans play the role of bottom feeder as Jim Schwartz can't do it again with only Albert Haynesworth and smoke and mirrors. Vince Young takes some small steps forward, but struggles against the top class defenses in the AFC South. Peyton Manning's excellence leads the Colts back to the playoffs, but his luck evens out against the Jags, who beat him twice and take the division.

AFC North
#4 Bengals (9-7)
Ravens (7-9)
Steelers (6-10)
Browns (5-11)

What a craptacular division. Pittsburgh really struggles midseason, dropping 4 straight games. Cleveland struggles all saeson. Baltimore's 'D' keeps them in the playoff race deep into December, though Joe Flacco will be no savior this year. The Bengals keep doing their thing on offense, while the defense takes steps against the pass, good enough for nine hard fought wins.

AFC West
#1 Chargers (14-2)
Broncos (10-6)
Raiders (5-11)
Chiefs (4-12)

Viva la Norv! Chargers return to 14-2 as Phillip Rivers returns to the pro bowl and helps post the league's number one offense. Broncos improve on Cutler's right arm, and the Raiders win 5 games for the first time since 2004.

NFC East
#2 Eagles (12-4)
#5 Giants (10-6)
Redskins (8-8)
Cowboys (8-8)

I'm really waffling atop the division, because I just don't know how good the Giants D will be this year. Two weeks ago, I had them winning the division, and today, I'm confident Philly has the edge. I do think that the Eagles and Giants are significantly deeper teams than the Redskins or the Cowboys, but any team that can stave off injuries (and the Redskins aren't off to a good start) could take the East. Since we can't predict injuries, I'll go with the teams who look better prepared to handle them on paper. Without Strahan and Shockey, the Giants are probably less suited to handle injuries than they were two weeks ago.

NFC South
#4 Panthers (10-6)
Saints (8-8)
Buccaneers (7-9)
Falcons (3-13)

I'm not real confident in this pick. If the Panthers can keep Delhomme: 1) healthy, and 2) on his feet, they should return to the top of the division. The Bucs will grab an early lead in the division, but fade late thanks to a hard schedule and age at the skill positions. Saints will struggle to run the ball and play good defense, but take even more strides in the passing game.

NFC North
#3 Bears (11-5)
#6 Packers (9-7)
Vikings (8-8)
Lions (4-12)

Admittedly, there wasn't a lot to like about Chicago's offense last year, so they did the right thing: they tore it up. They released the veterans who were hurting the team last year, but the question will be, can the youngsters like Chris Williams, Mark Bradley, Earl Bennett, Josh Beekman, Matt Forte, Greg Olsen, and Devin Hester step up and help Rex Grossman mature as a decision maker? If they can't, this projection means nothing. I think Aaron Rodgers will struggle with interceptions this year (even moreso than Grossman), but that Packers team is too good to not push for the playoffs.

NFC West
#1 Seahawks (12-4)
Cardinals (9-7)
Rams (7-9)
49ers (5-11)

If the Seahawks can keep their defense strong, they are the team to beat in the NFC. If the defense regresses to 2006 levels, this might be the prime year for the Rams or the Cards to grab the NFC West crown. The Rams offense should return to form while the Cardinals defense should be it's dominating unit.

Revised playoff picks:

AFC Championship

Chargers vs. Patriots

NFC Championship

Seahawks vs. Eagles

Super Bowl XLIII

Chargers over Eagles

AFC East
Patriots 12-4 (2)
Jets 8-8
Bills 7-9
Dolphins 3-13

AFC North
Browns 9-7 (4)
Steelers 7-9
Bengals 6-10
Ravens 4-12

AFC South
Jaguars 13-3 (1)
Colts 12-4 (5)
Texans 8-8 (6)
Titans 7-9

AFC West
Chargers 12-4 (3)
Broncos 8-8
Raiders 6-10
Chiefs 4-12

NFC East
Cowboys 10-6 (3)
Redskins 9-7 (5)
Eagles 8-8
Giants 8-8

NFC North
Packers 9-7 (4)
Vikings 8-8
Bears 5-11
Lions 4-12

NFC South
Saints 10-6 (2)
Panthers 8-8
Buccaneers 7-9
Falcons 3-13

NFC West
Seahawks 11-5 (1)
Cardinals 9-7 (6)
Rams 6-10
49ers 2-14

AFC Championship
Chargers vs Jaguars

NFC Championship
Redskins vs Seahawks (Redskins lose to Seahawks in the playoffs for the 3rd time in 4 years)

Superbowl
Jaguars over Seahawks

AFC East
Patriots 13-3 P
Bills 8-8
Jets 8-8
Dolphins 2-14

AFC North
Browns 9-7 P
Steelers 9-7 P
Ravens 8-8
Bengals 5-11


AFC South
Colts 11-5 P
Jaguars 10-6 P
Titans 8-8
Texans 6-10


AFC West
Chargers 14-2 P
Broncos 7-9 they are going to lose some close games.
Raiders 7-9
Chiefs 3-13 Bye Herman

NFC East
Cowboys 13-3 P
Eagles 9-7 P depends on how mad they make Westbrook IMO
Redskins 7-9 Secondary concerns.
Giants 7-9

NFC North
Vikings 10-6 P
Packers 9-7
Lions 8-8
Bears 1-15

NFC South
Saints 10-6 P
Panthers 9-7 P They beat Green Bay during the regular season
Buccaneers 7-9
Falcons 4-12

NFC West
Seahawks 9-7 P
Rams 8-8
Cardinals 7-9
49ers 6-10

AFC Championship
Pats vs Chargers

NFC Championship
Vikings vs Dallas

Superbowl
Cowboys over Chargers

Wow, I'm amazed how much ppl have faith in Tavaris Jackson at QB and Donovan McNabb's health.