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NFL Week 2 NFC South: Will Someone Stand Up & Play Defense

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Although this division has won one NFL championship in the last two years, its amazing how pedestrian this division is playing defense. With Cam Newton showcasing out of this world talent, it doesn’t bode well for the Panther’s division mates. The Saints finally showed up against Chicago but ask yourself : Was it the strength of the Saints defense or a Bears offense still searching for an identity?? Division favorite Atlanta won a shootout with the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night yet gave up 30 points for the second consecutive week. They cannot keep going at that rate and expect to win the division. A trip to Tampa to reprise last year’s bloodbath against the physical Buccaneers awaits.

NFC South Team W L T  Pct PF PA Net Pts TD Home Road Div Pct Conf Pct Non-Conf Streak Last 5
New Orleans Saints 1 1 0 .500 64 55 9 7 1-0 0-1 0-0 .000 1-1 .500 0-0 1W 1-1
Atlanta Falcons 1 1 0 .500 47 61 -14 6 1-0 0-1 0-0 .000 1-1 .500 0-0 1W 1-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1 1 0 .500 44 47 -3 5 0-1 1-0 0-0 .000 1-1 .500 0-0 1W 1-1
Carolina Panthers 0 2 0 .000 44 58 -14 5 0-1 0-1 0-0 .000 0-2 .000 0-0 2L 0-2

All that withstanding, the Buccaneers could prove to be the early season favorite if they can knock off the Falcons this Sunday. Last year these two played in the most physical game of the season.  One with so much hitting that the personal foul calls caused Roddy White of the Falcons to be pulled out for awhile by his coach and saw  Tampa QB Josh Freeman get a personal foul call after an interception. Even the cheerleaders left that December game sore. Get some nachos, beer, popcorn and get ready for this one. We promise you this will be the game to watch because these two teams hate each other. Who are we leaning toward?  Check in later this week, right Falcons Jennifer?? She’s a little biased by the way.

New Orleans is still in a state of flux after giving up a plethora of yards to the Green Bay Packers in the opener along with 42 points. The “Who Dat” nation better learn how to tackle before the Panthers and Cam Newton come to town. If you can’t bring down DeAngelo Williams and Jonathaon Stewart, you’ll hate having to bring down a 250 lbs quarter back who has set the NFL on it’s collective ear. When he first threw for 422 vs Arizona, most of us scoffed “well that was the Cardinals”.  Then the Panthers threw for over 400 yards against the defending NFL champions and now you have to say “OK Cam Newton is for real”. Others would think it’s premature, we don’t. Ever since the midway point of last year’s college season,we knew he was going pro, so you know defenses were gearing themselves for him. He had some growing pains against the Packers with 3 interceptions, but face it, he bounced back and almost tied the game in losing 31-24. So here the Panthers are, a defensive football team who now wakes up after two weeks not taking care of their end of the bargain.

Ron Rivera’s defense is the reason this team is 0-2, they didn’t know what they had on offense. Now that they do, expect more solid game plans and wins to mount up. Has there been a more dangerous 0-2 team than this one?? Face it there isn’t a lot of film on Newton and they still have Williams and Stewart to help pound the rock before we get to a rejuvenated Steve Smith.  Do you realize after 2 weeks Steve Smith has 14 rec. for 334 yards and 2 touchdowns?? He’s the wrong guy to let him start “feeling it”. If you project those numbers over a full season, that would be 112 receptions and 2,672 yards and 16 TDs. This is the wrong time for the NFC South to forget how to play defense. Seriously!! After losing a close tussel to the world champions, Carolina is licking it’s chops looking at the rest of the division and the lack of defense being played. Seriously, has an 0-2 team ever been this optimistic when looking at the rest of their schedule??

NFL Week 2 NFC North: Is This The New Toughest Division In Football??

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The Vikings 7 yr / $96 million man. Think he’s not going to get the ball? Think again!!

The NFL saw some serious change swept in during it’s second week of play. For most they would think the Bears losing to the New Orleans Saints proved Chicago has a long way to go. Another loss by Minnesota is pushing us closer to the Christian Ponder era and the end of the Donovan McNabb experience. Yet upon further review, the Green Bay Packers at 2-0 are the defending NFL Champion and Aaron Rodgers is off to a torrid start. Then you have the Detroit Lions, who followed up a week one win over Tampa, with a 48-3 trouncing of Kansas City who made the playoffs last year. An eye opening experience to say the least. However when you look at the totality of this division, keep in mind the Bears throttled the Atlanta Falcons in week one and had one of it’s leaders playing with a heavy heart in Brian Urlacher in the loss to the Saints. The Vikings still possess the league’s best running back in Adrian Peterson, who’s ink just dried on a new contract worth $96 million over 7 years. He is the new millenium’s Eric Dickerson, we may not know how great he can be, but he will be getting the ball the remainder of this campaign with the passing game in an anemic state. Count on it.

How can we be so adamant about asking the question concerning the overall division?? Take a look at who these teams beat in the first two weeks of this new season. The Atlanta Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New Orleans Saints, Kansas City Chiefs, were all playoff teams last year and the losses by the Vikings to the Buccaneers and the Chargers, who finished last year #1 in offense and #1 in defense, all figure prominently in the 2011 NFL campaign. Then throw in the loss to New Orleans by Chicago, who are just one year removed from being NFL Champions themselves, and you have a powerful division.  At the present, this is how the landscape shapes up:

NFC NORTH W L T PCT HOME ROAD DIV CONF PF PA DIFF STRK
Detroit 2 0 0 1.000 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 75 23 +52 Won 2
Green Bay 2 0 0 1.000 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 2-0-0 72 57 +15 Won 2
Chicago 1 1 0 .500 1-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 1-1-0 43 42 +1 Lost 1
Minnesota 0 2 0 .000 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 37 48 -11 Lost 2

Start of the oncoming storm….Suh and the Detroit Lions!

So lets take a look at the timing of the Peterson signing and understand one thing, he will be getting the ball. Especially with a defensive minded coach in Leslie Frazier, who benefitted as a rested defender in his day while Walter Payton bludgeoned opposing defenses.  His aging defense needs help so they figure to be a run first team. After a dysmal 39 yards passing in week one (cut it out Freddie Mitchell..lol) from Donovan McNabb, they dropped this signing and gave Peterson the ball for the remainder of the season figuratively. Now he has to carry the ball the team on his back this season with the biggest game coming this week versus the Detroit Lions. Yes, the team that is showing a gaudy +52 point differential against their opponnets.

We tried to warn you that one of the ways a team rises from the ashes as a franchise is when they learn to win as a group. https://taylorblitztimes.wordpress.com/2011/05/19/2011-detroit-lions-preview/  This team won the last four games of last season to get a taste of winning. Much like a killer dog that’s tasted blood for the first time, it’s going to take a huge effort to keep this team from marching forward. As we spoke in our team journal to kick off this season, they need the onfield maturation of Matthew Stafford to see this team ascend to their rightful place. This year they will come real close to the NFL championship that they will be in play for soon.

Understand that in this young season, the NFC North has faced the #2, #3, and #5 offenses while the Lions and the Packers register at the #8 and #9 offensive spots respectively. This group of players are about to reshape the NFC this year and folks should be ready for this situation. The Lions season is about to shape around their matchups with the Vikings and Bears respectively in weeks 3 and 5. The world champion Packers are about to take on the Bears, Broncos, and Falcons. The next few weeks should provide how strong the Packers can defend their title. Especially with the news of FS Nick Collins’ season neck injury. As last year showed, the Packers should be bolstered by an offensive array that will cover defensive deficiencies…will it cover them for the majority of the year?? Time will tell…

Who will come out of this division??

Week 2 NFL Picks

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Welcome to the Taylor Blitz Times NFL selections for week 2. We had a catastrophic crash that took down several articles and we apologize for not getting these out sooner. Yet this is about who will win in this second week in the season. Now our picks took a catastrophic turn for the worse also and we need to get back on track. So without further adieu lets jump into the games.

Kansas City Chiefs @ Detroit Lions: We have the Lions in this one. Matthew Stafford stayed healthy and the team is brimming with confidence after they’re fifth straight regular season win. Of course that’s dating back to last season. The Chiefs are still trying to figure out what happened to them last week at home against Buffalo.

Seattle Seahawks @ Pittsburgh Steelers: The bad news, the Steelers looked old on defense and a step slow against Baltimore last week. The good news?? They get the referree who officiated the lopsided calls in Super Bowl XL against the Seattle Seahawks. The Steelers should pound out a win with Mendenhall breaking the 100 yard mark in the Steelers home opener. Steelers should win big.

Chicago Bears @ New Orleans Saints: This is an upset alert special. Brian Urlacher will take the field with a heavy heart with the death of his mother and his teammates will rally around him. He’s the heart and soul of the Bear’s organization and his team will elevate it’s play in this one. The Saints have had an extra four days off after their high scoring week 1 affair against the Green Bay Packers and they still haven’t learned to tackle. Just as they acquiesced in a defensive slugfest to Tampa at the end of last year, they won’t have the stones to stay in this one. Da Bears in a tough game

Jacksonville Jaguars @ New York Jets: The Jets in this one. Jacksonville comes in with both Maurice Jones Drew and Greg Jones on the injured report this week, and now journeyman Luke McCown is going to throw at Cromartie and Revis?? Ball game over right there. Although they are a slow starting team, Rex Ryan and the boys can seriously add one of those championship mental blocks by taking it to a lesser team and beating them soundly. This is where the Jets need to show another level of growth. Two years ago it was winning against the good teams. Last year it was finding ways to win close games and this year it’s to dominate lessor opponents and rest your starters late in meaningless action.

Cleveland Browns @ Indianapolis Colts: In an announcement to the NFL, it will be hammered home that the Colts have completely fallen from the league’s elite. The Browns were burned on a fluke / mishap last week when they were caught in substitution when the Bengals went ahead in the game. they had led the whole way…in this one. Peyton Hillis will run at the undersized Colts defense who may be missing MLB Gary Brackett also. If the Browns can get ahead and play ball control with Hillis and keep greybeard Kerry Collins from gaining any rhythm, they should pull away. Browns get first win of the year.

Arizona Cardinals @ Washington Redskins: Rex Grossman?? Yes, Rex Grossman. Off of the NFL trash heap to make folks forget all about the Donovan McNabb fiasco and give the Shanahan regime a legitimate quarterback. Skins were spirited in their conquest of the Giants where as last week the Cardinals were busy chasing Panthers all over the field while giving up 422 yards to Cam Newton. So the question that settles this is: If Cam Newton can carve up the CB deficient Cardinals (shouldn’t have given up Rodgers-Cromartie) to the tune of an NFL record at home…what will happen on the road to a resurgent Redskin passing attack?? Redskins in this one

Green Bay Packers @ Carolina Panthers: Intriguing matchup and lets put you in the drivers seat for a second. Lets say you were the defensive co-ordinator for the defending world champions..right?? Now you get to go back to where you had been fired and you were the first coach in that team’s history. Do you think you’d be prepared for that game?? Yes that is the plight of Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers today. What better way to make the Panthers remember who they gave up than to silence the NFL’s new golden child?? Think Cam Newton will be confused?? LOL Capers is drawing up Packer blitzes as we speak. Packers roll in this one.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Minnesota Vikings: We have no idea why the Vikings are favored here aside from the fact that odds are given to make betting money even on both sides. The Bucs are more physical than the Vikings and this is where they have to build on the aforementioned late season road win in New Orleans last year. They have the physical running style in LaGarrett Blount to run at the Vikings and the defensive heft to stop Peterson. Right now Donovan McNabb is really struggling and Aquib Talib and Ronde Barber are licking their chops. For a bit of history, remember when the Bucs went to the Super Bowl in 2002, it was Barber who sealed the deal with a 95 yard interception for a TD to finish off McNabb in the NFC Championship…yes an abstract. The Bucs win this one…close game though.

Baltimore Ravens @ Tennessee Titans: Just don’t see how the Ravens could lose to a team with such little momentum, they lost to the backpedalling Jaguars in week 1. After bludgeoning the defending AFC Champion Steelers last week and coming to town with the AFC’s defensive player of the week in Terrell Suggs?? Adelphi Coliseum will be empty going into the 4th quarter. Ravens pull away in this one.

Oakland Raiders @ Buffalo Bills: Rich Stadium should be brimming with excitement not seen since the 2001 signing of Drew Bledsoe. Is Ryan Fitzpatrick the real deal? Was the blocking performance by the Bills offensive line as stout as appeared, allowing one sack and producing a 100 yard rusher?? Yet before we get ahead of ourselves Bills fans, understand that Kansas City still gained almost a whopping 6 yards a carry to the Chiefs. They controlled the running attack by scoring and taking the running game away from the Chiefs. Can they do the same to the Raiders??

Darren McFadden is showing that last year was no fluke. The Raiders ran the ball down the Broncos throats last week. After a 22 carry for 150 yard performance the Bills better not let the Raiders get a lead because it could be a long one. Yet the noise should allow the Bills to get an early lead and control the game.  The Bills should be 2-0 at the end of the day.

Dallas Cowboys @ San Francisco 49ers: Both teams played well last week yet the 49ers blew out a substitute NFL team in the Seahawks. The Cowboys dominated the team (Jets) Taylor Blitz Times picked to win this year’s Super Bowl. Only a late game collapse with the injuries doomed the Cowboys in that Sunday night game.  A closer look at all those missing players had alot to do with who was missing on the special teams that allowed the punt to be blocked to seal their fate. This week Romo and the offense needs to keep the petal to the metal and score over 30. We think they will….Cowboys

San Diego Chargers @ New England Patriots: Here come the Jeckyll and Hyde Chargers playing up or down to their competition. Last week they played down to Leslie Frazier’s Vikings. Tom Brady nearly assaulted the NFL record  book last week coming within 40 yards of the all time record. Tedi Bruschi lit a fire under Chad Ochocinco in what we feel was a cheapshot, but it lit a fire. So in this one we’re going to take the Patriots in a win by a touchdown.

Cincinnati Bengals @ Denver Broncos: Listen, no team can ever be settled when there is a quarterback controversy. Even the 1971 Champion Dallas Cowboys were mired with a .500 record while they waffled over their quarterbacks. So why should the undermanned Broncos be any different with Kyle Orton or Tim Tebow. Coach Fox needs to put his face on the franchise and if I were he I’d ride Tim Tebow like Seattle Slew. First off, the fans want him and he’ll keep asses in seats all season. Second he allows the Bronco offense to play 11 against 11 down on the goal line and at any time they decide to exploit his 245lb body running the ball. Will he let it happen this week?? He pulls the trigger next week after another loss…..Bengals will find a way to win late

Houston Texans @ Miami Dolphins: The NFL’s best receiver is going to play back where he starred in his collegiate years with the Miami Hurricanes. He will be a tad fired up having watched his alma mater (The U) beat down nemesis Ohio St. the day before. His Texans had a seismic win last week pummeling the Indianapolis Colts. Now he gets to go against a secondary that gave up 517 yards to Tom Brady and the Patriots last week?? Yikes!! He might go for 200 himself in this one. Houston’s time to shine. It’s their year in the AFC South. Texans big.

Philadelphia Eagles @ Atlanta Falcons: Now Deion Sanders has always proclaimed the Georgia Dome to be the house that he built. Maybe, but it did house the Michael Vick Experience for many years until the dog fighting ring derailed a young promising career. How he is received will dictate how he plays and how he plays, so goes the Eagles. If they cheer their prodigal son upon his return, look for Michael Vick to have a terrific game.  He’ll want to showcase all his skills and it’s up to Andy Reid to help temper his game and keep his emotions from getting the best of him. The Falcons will be able to move the football on one of football’s worst run defenses. Its paramount that the Falcons keep #7 off the field and not abandon the running game as they did last week in Chicago. Have this suspicion that Michael Vick is going to do something special. Will it be enough for the Eagles to win in Dixie? We think so as well Eagles!!

There ya have it…week 2 is ready to kickoff…. Here are our selections, tell us yours

Super Bowl XVLI Prediction

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Vince Lombardi Trophy

Well you have heard our selections for both conference champions of the NFL. The New York Jets representing the AFC v the defending champion Green Bay Packers to represent the NFC. Each will descend on Indianapolis with a fervor. The all time winningest team in NFL history in terms of championships at 13 would be looking for their 14th.  Most Packer fans bristle when they hear about Sixburgh or Dallas and San Francisco boasting of 5 Super Bowl championships when in reality they only have a third of Green Bay’s titles. A modern dynasty would cement that notion among modern day fans, and rightfully put the Packers at the fore when championship teams are discussed.

However standing across from them at that coin toss would be a franchise that hadn’t played for it all in 42 years in the New York Jets. There in Indianapolis, the Jets want to liberate themselves from the cloud that seemed to descend upon this franchise since that famous Super Bowl III upset of the Baltimore Colts. Ironically, they would look to win their second Super Bowl in the Colt’s regular season home. Rex Ryan, Mark Sanchez and the will win the AFC’s 10th Super Bowl in 15 years.

The main reason the Jets would win a Super Bowl XLVI matchup with Green Bay is the fact that they have excellent corners. Darelle Revis, Antonio Cromartie would be able to shut down either Greg Jennings or Jordy Nelson.  They have a third corner in Kyle Wilson (from Boise St) that gives them as formidable a threesome at cornerback than any team in the league. Lets face facts, the Packers are a passing team and this stellar coverage would allow Ryan to find a few ways to get to Aaron Rodgers. What was the Achille’s Heal of the Steeler defense in Super Bowl XLV, is the strength of the Jets defense in Super Bowl XVLI. Now Ryan can juggle his other eight defenders with exotic blitzes and combo coverages.

As for the ground game, each team could run the ball yet the Jets would be committed to it more. LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene would run the ball 30 times where Packers Coach Mike McCarthy has a penchant for putting it all in Rodgers hands. Mark Sanchez has grown as a quarterback yet Rex wouldn’t put too much pressure on him. They would be fairly conservative and playing keep away to keep their defense rested. One weapon that would be in the Jets favor is the moxie and motivation of Plaxico Burress, who would duplicate Ray Lewis’ situation going from incarceration to Super Bowl champ the following season. Matter of fact the last time the Packer defense saw Burress, he lit up CB Al Harris for 11 rec. 154 yards in the 2007 NFC Championship Game in Green Bay. Pretty sure he’d be okay on a neutral field. He did catch the winning touchdown in the upset of the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, so he wouldn’t shrink at the magnitude of the event. We know Al Harris is gone but Plaxico is still 6’5 to Sam Shields and Tramon Williams, who each stand 5’11. Across from this is WR Santonio Holmes, Super Bowl XLIII’s Most Valuable Player, so you can see how the Packers might have to juggle Charles Woodson, Shields, and Williams.

As quarterbacks go, Mark Sanchez doesn’t have to outplay Aaron Rodgers, he just needs to be proficient. Rely on his running game and take calculated risks when the time is right. He does have the most road playoff wins in history at 4, so he should be at home in these trappings. Rodgers is the leader of the new quartrbacks that will dominate the NFL for the next 10 years. Aaron means everything to the Packers yet their offensive line has a penchant for his getting hit and sacked. Last year in the Super Bowl they dominated the Steelers pass rush with the quick rhythm passing game that Rodgers is the best at. The Packers would counter with waggles, and half rollouts in a way to keep the Jets defense off balance and blitzing to a static passing spot on the Lucas Oil turf.

Mark Sanchez’ Joe Namath pose

To repeat as champion, Clay Matthews, BJ Raji, and Eric Walden have to collapse Sanchez’ pass pocket.  They should be able to do this to keep the game close. Green Bay can stop the run and rush the passer with the best teams in football. The Jets would try to keep them to a short field with their possessions and try to force turnovers which Aaron Rodgers doesn’t do. This would be a struggle that would come down to the wire. The Jets would play the tortoise to Green Bay’s hare and win a close tough game…24-16. At long last the New York Jets would be liberated from the ghost of Joe Namath and hoist their second Super Bowl trophy. Mark Sanchez would then get his due as a Super Bowl winning quarterback. Green Bay would have to wait until the following year to see if they can establish a dynasty.

New York Jets celebration

So there you have it…predictions for every NFL team. Their records, division placement, playoff participation, and now conference and Super Bowl champions. It’s all on record and we’ll see how right we are. See you in 6 months.

2011 Predictions Continued …and the winner of the AFC is…??

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On the heels of a great Packers win over New Orleans 42-34, we are about to talk about the other conference?? Yes we are!! We did the NFC side of the ledger already and it’s time to pack what we’ve studied and written about throughout this tense summer. Last year, our crystal ball was a bit hazy but we became undone by a couple of upsets. We had the Baltimore Ravens facing the New England Patriots last summer but they each were knocked off in the divisional round before the championship game. Alright…we have some new D Cell batteries (do they still make those?) for my crystal ball and we’re going in. Who will win the prestigious Lamar S Hunt trophy and represent the AFC in Super Bowl XVLI??

Our choices to make the AFC Championship race are as follows:

1. New York – AFC East Champs w/ homefield advantage throughout playoffs.

2. Kansas City Chiefs – AFC West Champs w/second seed in the playoffs. If the Jets stumble in the divisional round, Chiefs would host the AFC Championship Game.

3. Baltimore Ravens – AFC North Champs. Will participate in the wildcard round and can only host the AFC Championship if #3 seed and lower meet. Will host the 6th seed wildcard weekend.

4. Houston Texans – AFC South Champs. Will participate in the wildcard round and can only host the AFC Championship if # 4 seed and lower meet. Will host the 5th seed wildcard weekend.

5. New England Patriots – The top record of  non divisional winners and will face the 4th seeded team on the road during Wildcard weekend. Could only host the AFC Championship if #5 and #6 teams were to meet. (Has never happened)

6. San Diego Chargers – The second best record of non divisional winners and will face the #3 seeded team on the road during Wildcard weekend. Cannot host playoff game no matter what.

The regular season is over and the vanquished turn their attention toward the draft and other improvement methods, the big boys of the conference decide it’s championship. Wildcard weekend would have the brakes halt the Charger season in Baltimore. The Ravens battle hardened group would stifle Phillip Rivers and Ryan Matthews in the cold of the Northeast. This would bring about the end of the Chargers season and quite possible the tenure of San Diego coach Norv Turner. The Patriots would be down in Houston to take on the upstart Texans.  Tom Brady would be too much for the young Texans and would win a shootout. It would be the second time Brady had it out in that stadium having won Super Bowl XXXVIII over Carolina there.

Having gone the wildcard route two times before, they proved themselves formidable by making the AFC Championship twice. For the first time ever the Jets would be enjoying home field advantage. With two weeks off before the divisional tilt, the team would finally come into the playoffs healthy. A raucous Meadowlands crowd and a fierce defense greet Tom Brady and the Patriots offense and dominate from the start. In a game that would mimic their 2010 playoff outing, stellar play by the Jets corners on the slow Patriot receivers. That crowd and that defense at home would be enough to slow Brady down, however Mark Sanchez would have his best playoff  game to date and the Jets pull away in a strong win 30-17.  Plaxico Burress would be the receiver the Patriots would have a hard time stopping.

In the other divisional round the Chiefs would host the Baltimore Ravens for the second straight year. With four former head coaches amongst their staff, Kansas City would be well schooled with what to do.   This time the Chiefs come into the game with Jonathon Baldwin and Steve Breaston to go with Dewayne Bowe to give KC three big receivers. This game would be hard hitting like the 2010 playoff game but the Chiefs were taught by these same Ravens, the difference between regular season and playoff intensity. So they would pay them back in kind, hit for hit. The running attack of Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones would be solid enough. The Ravens secondary would not holdup as Matt Cassel would pass the Chiefs to a solid win 31-14 win. The underrated Chiefs defense would get to Joe Flacco with Tamba Hali and pass rush specialist Allen Bailey, the physical specimen drafted out of Miami.

The race for the Lamar S Hunt trophy, emblematic of achievment in the American Football Conference, would come down to these two old AFL antagonists.  The New York Jets would represent the AFC in Super Bowl XVLI after a 24-14 win in the chilly confines of the Meadowlands which would send them off in a ticker tape style similar to when the Giants beat the Redskins in 1986. Rex Ryan and Mark Sanchez come through.

 

 

 

 

 

2011 Regular Season Picks: Week 1

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Here we are folks, the gunlap to Super Bowl XLVI. It all starts with week one and we’re going to get into it right now. Winners in bold

Saints @ Packers: Packers should win this one relatively easy. 31-16

Steelers @ Ravens: We have the Ravens in a tight game 20-17

Falcons @ Bears: Falcons Have to think the Bears will slow down the Falcon offense. Yet will outscore the Bears in this one 24-16

Bengals @ Browns: Browns will win first game for new coach Pat Schurmur. Can’t think of a score

Colts @ Texans: The long reign of the Colts is over with the upstart Texans beating an undermanned Colt team. Texans 30-10

Titans @ Jacksonville: Titans Two rebuilding teams yet the Jaguars aren’t over the release of David Garrard.

Bills @ Chiefs: Too many playmakers for the Kansas City team to lose.  Chiefs 24-13

Eagles @ Rams: Eagles have been rusty but should squeak out a win in first week. Can’t think of score

Lions @ Buccaneers: These are two up and coming teams…have to take the Bucs at home.

Panthers @ Cardinals: Panthers should run the ball successful enough.

Vikings @ Chargers: The Chargers win this one.

Seahawks @ 49ers: Seattle wins this one. More stable at quarterback and defense

Giants @ Redskins: Giants ground game and defensive pass rush will dominate this one.

Cowboys @ Jets: Jets get off on a winning track to get themselves headed for first Super Bowl since Namath.

Patriots @ Dolphins: The Patriots normally win this early season trip and will this time also. Patriots

Raiders @ Broncos:  The Raider ground game wins this one for the silver and black

TOTAL RECORD= 0-0 We’re undefeated baby!!

See you next week, folks.