NFL teams that fancy themselves as contenders in what for 14 weeks looked like a wide-open Super Bowl race are like Transylvanian villagers today, seeing a light on again in Dracula’s castle after New England’s staggering 42-14 smackdown of the Houston Texans on Monday night.
From the moment that someone (Vince Young uggh!) declared the Philadelphia Eagles the “Dream Team” seemingly everything went downhill last season.
The expectations are always sky high in Big D and you can bet that owner Jerry Jones is still smarting from how the New York Giants worked their way into the playoffs and then captured another Super Bowl (stings).
Washington is going to be in a tough spot heading into the 2012 NFL season. With the arrival of quarterback Robert Griffin optimism is higher than it has been in a while but this is still a last place team in the tough NFC East, and probably by a wide margin when you look at the competition.
For a team that has won a couple of recent Super Bowls nobody gives the New York Giants much respect. I don’t know if it s because their coach isn’t that likable, their QB isn’t as good as his older brother, or what, but it seems like the world is convinced that the Giants are going to drop to third fiddle in their division watching Philadelphia and Dallas overtake them.
The Miami Dolphins might have been the biggest losers in the Peyton Manning sweepstakes this offseason. Last year they were an undermanned squad on offense that wouldn’t quit on D.
The New England Patriots have probably been the quietest team in their division this offseason…but that doesn’t mean they are not still the favourites to win the AFC East.
There is lots of excitement in Buffalo heading into this season. They scooped up some serious defensive talent through free agency and are looking to make the AFC East a three team race (or at the very least finish a season).
You gotta give the New York Jets one thing…they are never boring. The jury is out on whether this team is better or worse heading into 2012, but with the addition of Tim Tebow, now the most famous backup quarterback in league history, the Jets certainly grabbed some headlines away from their stadiummates the Giants.
The start of another NFL season is right around the corner as all 32 teams head into their preseason games with aspirations of making it all the way to Super Bowl XLVII. The following is a look at each team in the NFC’s current odds as provided by Bovada to win this season’s conference championship.
The Saints have Drew Brees back in the fold after signing him to a massive contract in the off-season, but can they get over the Bountygate scandal? Head coach Sean Payton is suspended for the season, as is one of the leaders on defense in Jonathan Vilma.
The Bucs were a mess last season and one of the main reasons they were 4-12 is that production of QB Josh Freeman. After the 2010 season he established himself as a future star with 25 TD and only 6 INT, but last season he only had 16 TD and a whopping 22 INT.
The Panthers landed the QB they have been looking for in Cam Newton, who had a great rookie season passing for over 4,000 yards. DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart are a great RB duo and Newton is already a star, but can the Panthers’ defense, which ranked 24th against the pass and 25th against the run, improve?
Once again the Falcons made the playoffs last season, but flamed out in the playoffs. Matt Ryan leads a great pass offense and the rushing offense is solid, but the defense may be an issue again this season in Atlanta.
2012 Atlanta Falcons Team Preview /Predictions
2011 Record: 10-6
ATS Record: 7-8-1
2012 Falcons Futures
Super Bowl Odds: 25-1
Conference Odds: 12-1
NFC South Odds: +140
2012-2013 NFL Regular Season Wins: 9.5 wins
Ryan had a great campaign last season throwing for a career high in yards and he has one of the most explosive WR’s in the game in Julio Jones and Roddy White, who has 215 catches in the last 2 seasons. Jones had some injuries last season and with White no spring chicken Jones has to step up this season. On top of that White led all WR’s last season in drops (15).
Ryan still has the ageless Tony Gonzalez at TE and the Falcons’ pass offense may be on of the best in the league this upcoming season.
Michael Turner had 1,340 rushing yards last season, but struggled down the stretch with only 1 game in his last 7 averaging more than 3.6 yards per carry. Jacquizz Rodgers has to help him out and these guys are the only legit rushers for the Falcons. The offensive line is a good one and they drafted OT Peter Konz in the 2nd round and he was a projected first round pick.
The Falcons’ defense got a big shot in the off-season when Atlanta landed free agent Asante Samuel and he will be counted on to anchor a pass defense that only ranked 20th in the league last season. William Moore is a solid SS, but he has missed 18 games in his 3 years in the league.
While Samuel was a big free name addition this season last season’s addition in Ray Edwards was a bust. He only had 3.5 sacks last season and he has to put more pressure on the QB this season, especially if the secondary struggles again. John Abraham had 9.5 sacks last season, but he is 34 and can he repeat that performance?
Overall, the Falcons’ run defense was pretty solid last season ranking 8th in the league. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
The one big loss for Atlanta was Curtis Lofton, who led the team in tackles last season and he left in free agency. He will be missed and to throw salt in the wound he signed with NFC South rival New Orleans.
As a Falcons’ starter Matt Ryan is 26-5 in the Georgia Dome, but he needs to get it done in the playoffs, which he has not been able to do.
Besides the Saints and the Giants the Falcons do not have a tough home schedule, but they have a tough away schedule, obviously, facing the Saints in the Big Easy as well as the Chiefs, Chargers, Redskins, Eagles, and Lions.
Since the Falcons gave up so much a little over a year ago to get Jones they did not have a first round pick and they used their 2nd and 3rd round picks to upgrade their offensive line.
Atlanta has the pass offense and Turner is a solid back, but there are still questions for the Falcons. Can Samuel and Edwards play up to potential and help the defense? Can the Falcons’ pass defense keep legit opposing legit QB’s from shredding them? And the big question is can Ryan finally lead the Falcons to any post-season success?
Place they’ll finish in NFC South 2nd
Place they’ll finish in NFC Conference: 6th
Over/Under Wins Prediction: Over
The start of another NFL season is right around the corner as all 32 teams head into training camp with aspirations of making it all the way to Super Bowl XLVII. The following is a look at each team’s current odds to make it to the title game by winning the AFC Championship as provided by Bovada.
The Kansas City Chiefs were the only team in the AFC West last year that failed to finish 8-8, due in large part to several key injuries that saw them slide all the way from playoff contenders to basement dwellers.
