2009 NFC Conference Futures Odds and Predictions
With the 2009 NFL regular season set to kick-off in a couple of months, it is time to analyze each team’s chances to go all the way, examine their current odds, and place your future bets.
Before we can jump to our Super Bowl picks we need to find out which team has the best chance to win their respective conference.
Today I’m going to focus on the NFC with each team’s future odds from Bodog.com to win the conference along with a preview of each division.
NFC East:
Dallas Cowboys: 6-1 New York Giants: 9-2 Philadelphia Eagles: 11-2 Washington Redskins: 12-1
The East is clearly the toughest division in the NFC as any one of these teams has the ability win it all. The Cowboys are the usual perennial favorite, but I actually see them taking a significant step backwards this season as something just isn’t right in Big D. The Redskins will be competitive but still have too many question marks on offense. This leaves the Eagles and the Giants to battle it out for first. Until New York can find a suitable replacement for Burriss, I give the slight edge in the East to Philly.
NFC South:
Atlanta Falcons: 8-1 Carolina Panthers: 15-2 New Orleans Saints: 10-1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 20-1
Much like the East, this division is also up for grabs with three teams having relatively the same odds to win. Atlanta and Matt Ryan turned some heads last season with a dramatic improvement from the year before, but they will not sneak up on anyone this year. The Panthers tied for the best record in the conference last season, but their meltdown in the playoffs raises some serious question marks for their chances in 2009. The Buccaneers are still a solid team and should remain in the mix all season long. The team I see poised to come out of the South are the Saints. They still have an exciting offense and made enough improvements this off season to put them at the head of the pack in their division.
NFC North:
Chicago Bears: 8-1 Detroit Lions: 50-1 Green Bay Packers: 8-1 Minnesota Vikings: 7-1
The North is shaping up as the battle of the QB’s. With Jake Cutler now in Chicago, Aaron Rodgers firmly in place in Green Bay, the number one pick in this year draft; Matthew Stafford ready to kick off his pro career in Detroit, and most likely Brett Farve giving it one more shot with Minnesota should make things very interesting in the North. 
That being said, this is still the black and blue division and I like Chicago’s defense to lead the way.
NFC WEST:
Arizona Cardinals: 10-1 San Francisco 49er’s: 18-1 Seattle Seahawks: 20-1 St. Louis Rams: 40-1
The current odds point to the Cardinals repeating as champions in the West, but the past history of teams that lose the Super Bowl makes me think different. They are primed to implode this season and open the door for Seattle or San Francisco to take their place. Something about Mike Singletary’s “win or go home” mentality makes me think the 49er’s prevail and win the West.
2009 NFC Conference Prediction
My prediction for this year’s NFC Champion is the Philadelphia Eagles.
They made all the right moves this off season by filling the holes through free agency, trades, and the draft on an already solid team. They have established themselves as the most complete team on both sides of the ball in the NFC.
