Vote 4 the team u think will win NFC South in 2010 here:
by realheavyd on May 16, 2010 10:09 PM CDT
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PrintCrossing the Line: 2010 NFC South Predictions
AUTHOR: Eric Quackenbush
It’s that time. The time of year where I stake my reputation, my credibility — I love that one — gets called into question, and take heat from anyone who disagrees with me. Not that I mind, because in the end, it’s a matter of opinion. And we all know what “they” say about opinions. With about 69 days remaining until training camp, I decided to make these predictions a little earlier than last year.
Unlike last year, I’m going to look at both sides of the coin, being both conservative with teams’ outcomes and liberal — I promise that in no way is this piece political, outside of the realm of football. I don’t get into the over-analytical, dissecting, chemical tests, and whatnot that real writers and such get involved with.
Instead, I’ll be going with the logical, not-so-factual approach — still reserved — which I used last year.
Last season, the division noticed a change, which once again was a worst-to-first as it’s been in years past. In 2008/2009, the division wrapped up with the Carolina Panthers on top, the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa BayBuccaneers sandwiched in the middle, while the New Orleans Saints brought up the rear in the division.
So which team, by the past trend should have finished atop the division in 2009? The Saints, of course — if you’re a bigger believer in trends and stuff that really has no bearing on how athletes play, coaches coach, and what events transpire during the offseason, but the Saints were the clear-cut winner of the division, and went on to win their first Super Bowl in franchise history.
The Falcons finished with their first back-to-back winning seasons in franchise history, while Carolina broke the trend of a losing season after a winning one, scraping by with mediocrity at 8-8.
The Bucs simply had a rough season. I won’t open old wounds.
Once again, this year looks to be different in the NFC South. The playing field has been leveled in a sense. The Saints lost some players to free agency, thus by statistics, should take them down a peg or two in terms of being a force of reckoning. Don’t get upset Saints fans, I’m not saying New Orleans is going to stink it up this year. No team can maintain a dominant force on a yearly basis. Too much changes in the NFL landscape during the offseason.
The Atlanta Falcons didn’t do much to improve it’s defensive secondary, but it maintains a stout offense with a healthy Michael Turner returning to the field for the 2010 campaign. The “Dirty Birds” drafted probably the most exciting linebacker of the draft in Sean Weatherspoon.
I really don’t know what the Buccaneers did during the draft. Prior to the draft, they decided to let wide receiverAntonio Bryant leave, later replacing him with an unproven rookie in Illinois’ Arrelious Benn. The Bucs still have a ways to go before they become serious contenders. Perhaps not as long as some might think; barring multiple miracles, I say on the outside of two years.
Which brings me to our Carolina Panthers. There’s a lot hanging in the balance of this delicate system. Depending on whose story you believe; John Fox’s future or lack thereof, a very young team where the average age dropped from 30’s-ish to like 25, uncertainty at quarterback, multiple unknowns beyond wide receiverSteve Smith, no bonafide run-stopper at the defensive tackle position, new Sam and Will linebackers, and semi-big shoes to fill at defensive end, where once stood Julius Peppers. But given the team’s offseason free agent moves, Carolina should have one heck of a return game on special teams. Oh yeah, and that “wasteland” at the tight end position. I know Carolina doesn’t have a Jeremy Shockey or Tony Gonzalez at tight end, but that was a low-blow dealt by Yahoo’s Jason Cole.
Now to the part that gets me in trouble every year: End-of-season predictions.
I’ll go from worst-to-first. Otherwise you won’t read which team finishes last if I go in the opposite order. I know I never do.
Read the rest and cast your votes here:
http://catcrave.com/2010/05/16/crossing-the-line-2010-nfc-south-predictions/comment-page-1/
This FanPost was written by a reader and member of Canal Street Chronicles. It does not necessarily reflect the views of CSC and its staff or editors.
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Eric is a classy Blog Administrator, so be sure & leave him a friendly comment there...
…to let him know that we know how to appreciate a classy interchange between rival teams fans, okay y’all?
Haha
Thanks for the kind words, guys.
Never any sense in getting worked up over one’s opinion — be it mine or anyone else’s. Just bring something good and worthwhile discussing to the table, and we can dissect it any which way, lol.
It was GREAT having so much feedback from members of Who Dat Nation; gotta say I’m disappointed in Panthers fans, who should have been rivaling your numbers in my comments section, but my disappointment in Panthers fans overall, is a story for another time.
I welcome all y’all to Cat Crave anytime.
I see Jason Cole
has his Quarterback rankings up for the NFL. I’m kind of surprised the Saints are at No. 1 and not the Colts or one of the more “popular” teams. I’m also not happy with the placement of the Panthers at 30, when the Eagles are at 17, Jacksonville at 19, and the Bucs at 26… All I’m asking for is to rank the Panthers somewhere in the neighborhood of Philly, since Kolb’s even less experienced as a starter than Matt Moore, and the backup QB argument is debatable, too. Vick or Clausen…One’s a rookie the other’s a situational player at best.
If it’s any consolation, I’d put the Panthers over Jax and way above the Bucs… on par with the Eagles… I could see it. Moore looked pretty darn good to me. The glaring problem I see is WR/TE, when compared to Philly…. but you do have better RB’s.
"Do not anticipate trouble or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight. " ~Benjamin Franklin
Way too early for this ...
but here’s my shot in the dark:
1. Saints 11-5
2. Falcons 9-7
3. Buccaneers 6-10
4. Panthers 6-10
"I was not on the boat in question." -Darren Sharper
You are far too generous to the bucs and maybe the panters too. Both are lost at sea without a sextant.
Got a good reason
For taking the easy way out, now
I can see either one of those teams defecating the bed. At the same time, I can see either beating the Saints, as they somehow managed to do last season. I figured six was a liberal number. As opposed to three, which remains sheer magic.
"I was not on the boat in question." -Darren Sharper
Who Pooped the Bed?
Gotta check out this episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia…
We've got 27 ways to add up to 11 (players on the field). I came up with another one last night. -- GW
by Hans Petersen on May 23, 2010 3:52 PM CDT up reply actions
Man
I need to start watching that show
Wanna say something? Sign up! It's free!
by Dave Cariello on May 26, 2010 12:13 PM CDT up reply actions
And the only reason Carolina beat the Saints last season, was because you guys sat your starting players. I would have loved to have seen both starting units play each other, but I understand and accept New Orleans’ reason for not playing their starting lineup.
Really? I would consider it more likely for Carolina to win the division than for them to come in 4th. Now granted I don’t really think either will happen, but either could. My bet though is that they come in second.
I know how people drool over Atlanta, but I don’t. Granted, I despise them. So I’m biased, sue me. But I really don’t think they will be coming in 2nd. I’m not convinced they’ll even have a winning record. Until/unless they fix that defense, that is. And Dunta Robinson was/is not the answer. He sucks. If he makes it through the season healthy it will be a minor miracle, and I’m frankly half-expecting him to make Atlanta fans start calling for the team to hire Jason David.
OK, maybe slight exaggeration on that last bit…
Robinson is light years better than Chris Houston. They went 9-7 and finished 2nd last season. Added Weatherspoon, typically competitive within the division. I don’t really see that much of a drop off. The Panthers have a running game to stay competitive and Matt Moore is more consistent than Delhomme … I just think they’re a team without much of an identity right now. That may start to change as the year goes on, as it did with Tampa Bay last season.
"I was not on the boat in question." -Darren Sharper
It’s hard to motivate a team when you’re a lame duck coach like John Fox.
Got a good reason
For taking the easy way out, now
A team without an identity...
A lame-duck head coach, who I doubt seriously will get a contract extension, regardless of the outcome of the season, and many unknown variables that look pretty good on paper, which means nothing until you can actually see what it can do in a real game.
I’ll stick with Carolina finishing third in the division. No point in setting myself up for disappointment, lol.
I just did my rankings last night. Had the Saints 8th. I’ll post them tonight, if I think of it.
"I was not on the boat in question." -Darren Sharper
Predictions
SAINTS: 11-5
PANTHERS: 10-6
FALCONS: 7-9
BUCS: 4-12
no offense intended, but you have got to be crappin' me, all you Panter rankers
You DO know it’s 2010, right? Falcons are even better this year. Panters are worse. You think Steve Smith is motivated? And who is their other WR? Go ahead, I’ll give you a minute……. Oh, their strength is their running game? Again, you know this is 2010, right? This is a team in steep decline.
Got a good reason
For taking the easy way out, now
Preface: I’m not predicting 10 wins for them, but I am curious…
Besides the upgrade at QB* , where’s the “steep decline” come from?
- Moore will have a better year next year than Delhomme had last year.
"Do not anticipate trouble or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight. " ~Benjamin Franklin
And that other WR...
Brandon LaFell…
LSU! LSU! LSU!
(I’m just doing that cause it’s you Stu… I don’t know anything about him, other than he’s from LSU.)
"Do not anticipate trouble or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight. " ~Benjamin Franklin
No offense taken
Its just a prediction. Somebody in the NFC South (besides the Saints) is going to have a winning record and otherwise be a mild "surprise." Its happend every year. For my $$$ its the Panthers. IMO, Atlanta is a .500 team and the little "surprise" playoff run a few seasons back was a fluke. Ryan aint Joe Montana, TG is too old, Turner is overrated. Defense is mediocre. I hate that little red-faced, pouty lipped, p***k head coach. The list goes on and on.
Smith aint motivated!??! So, he’s still the best receiver in the division (if not the league) and we still don’t have anyone that can cover him. Fox maybe have "lame duck" status, but he’s the second best coach in the division (behind SP) and that’s gonna count for something. Most importantly with the exception of the raiders, no team in the league suffered through poorer QB play than the panthers. So that new guy can only be an improvement. lastly they still have two good RB’s.
I can name 2 in the division better than him
Colston and Roddy White. Then theres reggie wayne, randy moss, calvin johnson, andre johnson, larry fitzgerald, anquan boldin, brandon marshall, santonio holmes…shall i keep going?
"Hey, the offensive linemen are the biggest guys on the field, they're bigger than everybody else, and that's what makes them the biggest guys on the field."-John Madden
Well, I think it's clear you don't understand our team's personnel.
When has Steve Smith ever not been motivated? He’s one of the most fiery players in the league. They have plenty of options to choose from at wide receiver. They drafted 3 for goodness sakes, two in the 3rd round. Brandon LaFell is the favorite at the moment to start. He’s a big body with good speed who was arguably the best blocking receiver in the draft. Edwards is a converted QB from college with great athleticism. You may think he’s not ready, but word from the minicamp was he didn’t drop one pass. Once his route running is down, they have a guy who can do all sorts of things from receiver to wildcat. They drafted David Gettis later on who is a big body guy with track speed. They also have several undrafted free agents who look interesting.
Steep decline? No. Improved? Yes.
stuff 'bout stuff.
by silver82blade on Jun 6, 2010 3:31 PM CDT up reply actions
Watch out for Tampa
Worst to First is going for them. Nobody is giving them any love and they did beat us last year. I doubt it, but the whole worst to first thing has been a common theme in the NFC South.
Peyton, I can eat Oreos faster than you!!!!
AHHH-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
(deep breath)
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!
(I think I got the point across… ;-) )
Who Dat? TWO DAT! Do dat AGAIN!!!
by GSO Saints Fan on May 20, 2010 4:25 PM CDT up reply actions 4 recs
boom rec'd it
The entire franchise is lame duck.
Arrive without travelling,
See all without looking,
Do all without doing.
Thankee...
;-)
Look folks, all this garbage about “this never happens” or “this always happens” is just that GARBAGE.
No one that lost to Tampa Bay ever won a Super Bowl. Until the Saints did it.
No one that lost their last three regular season games ever won a Super Bowl. Until the Saints did it.
Now someone actually wants to bring up the “fact” that in it’s entire existence (all 7 seasons! Wow!!!) No NFC South team has repeated as Division Champs.
Guess what, we’re going to use the same reply as before: Until the Saints did it (in 2010).
The ONLY potential threat in the NFC South is Atlanta. Tampa is just awful and will remain so. Carolina is in complete disarray, having divested themselves of their best talent (Peppers) and most experienced QB (Delhomme), and still saddled with a cheapskate owner, an ineffective GM, and a stuck-in-reverse coach.
I’m not dismissing them, on any given Sunday any of the three teams COULD win a game against any other team in the NFL. However, over the course of a season, neither Tampa or Carolina will be consistent enough to post a winning record in the coming season. Atlanta will probably break .500, but not by a large margin, because Matty Ice ain’t “all that”, and their running game will continue to backpedal.
The only team that has actually managed to really IMPROVE, frighteningly for everyone else in the NFC South, is our Saints. On offense we get J. Brown back, we get Heath Evans back, we added a quality OT in the draft, and the rest of the SB Champ offense is back, and either healthy or on the road to being 100%. On defense, we lost ONE player that was on the field for the SB, Fujita. We added a real solid draft and some potential FA talent, plus there are two guys from last year’s draft we haven’t seen yet due to injuries that based on what I saw of them in college will absolutely contribute – the Saints D will be BETTER this season, the offense will be at least as good if not better.
Anyone that discounts this team’s ability to repeat as the NFC South champs is delusional, and if you discount their potential to repeat as SB champs, you’re a fool.
Who Dat? TWO DAT! Do dat AGAIN!!!
by GSO Saints Fan on May 21, 2010 7:45 AM CDT up reply actions
“The ONLY potential threat in the NFC South is Atlanta.”
As long as the status quo remains intact. If both Drew Brees and Matt Ryan go down with season ending injuries in Week 1, I think it’s quite possible that either Carolina or Tampa Bay could wind up winning the division with 6 or 7 wins.
"I was not on the boat in question." -Darren Sharper
interesting
I wonder what Mickey’s disaster recovery plan looks like. Play the kid QB’s until he can acquire a journeyman veteran via trade or free agency (Culpepper, Saul Rosenfuls, Kurt Warner {heard he got no broadcasting offers so he’d like to play again although he’s under Arizona contract for 2010, so…}, Matt Leinart/Derek Anderson,… oh no, wait: JEFF GARCIA!! Probably.) That’s still a competitive team with either Carolina or Dumpa Bay. Falcons would do the same if Chris Redman wasn’t cutting it but the Saints would get first pick. Not so far fetched.
Arrive without travelling,
See all without looking,
Do all without doing.
"As long as the status quo remains intact."
I was taking that as a “given”, but you are correct in bringing up the potential of a disaster for either or both New Orleans or Atlanta.
Brees stays healthy, no one will challenge the Saints, IMO.
Who Dat? TWO DAT! Do dat AGAIN!!!
by GSO Saints Fan on May 21, 2010 10:43 AM CDT up reply actions
Sad how everyone
discounts Carolina around here. They replaced captain turnover with….who cares they’ll have less turnovers at QB. And they still have the best RB duo in our division. As usual we’ll lose at least one game to them as they always play us hard and we will as usual probably not stop the run that well.
Less turnovers, but probably less passing TDs, as well. It’s the Boxing Helena effect. Sherilyn Fenn with no arms and legs is probably both better and worse than any girlfriend I’ll ever have. Just in different ways.
"I was not on the boat in question." -Darren Sharper
That's incredibly disturbing.
also have to disagree. Delhomme threw 8 TDs in 11 games last year….Moore 8 TDs in 5. Doesn’t matter who they start…they should be able to muster more than Delhomme’s output.
I think the sarcasm was missed
However, if Tampa Bay were to actually win the division this year, I’m bringing this post back up. haha
Peyton, I can eat Oreos faster than you!!!!
Here's my unbiased opinion
SAINTS: 12-4
FALCONS: 9-7
PANTHERS: 8-8
BUCS: 4-12
I only see the Saints going to the play offs out of this bunch.
It's a lot easier to love the Vikings when they win...
Actially
Whine-kings would be more fitting of Minny
by THECatCrave on May 20, 2010 10:44 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions
Clever obviously you write your own material.
Thank you for your contribution to the topic.
It's a lot easier to love the Vikings when they win...
Ok boys and girls
Lets all try to play nice. What is that quote “insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result”. Time to throw out that olive branch (or is my Canadian Politeness showing).
Nice sig by the way Grimey.
Football is easy if you're crazy as hell
Do the olives on the branch have pimentos?
Because i do like me some pimentos…
It's a lot easier to love the Vikings when they win...
One of the guys I work with...
…actually used to eat at the Soup Nazi’s kitchen.
Said it wasn’t a joke, that was a genuine place, and the guy was just like that. Oh, and the soup was AMAZING.
Who Dat? TWO DAT! Do dat AGAIN!!!
by GSO Saints Fan on May 21, 2010 7:48 AM CDT up reply actions
These are the exact records from last year
Except NO has one less win.
Do or do not. There is no try.
Didn`t Smith have a big injury last year?
Broke his leg, or was that the Giants Smith? I should probably pay more attention
but news is a little patchy over here and I struggle to keep up with Saints news most
of the time.
Where next?
THE Steve Smith
Suffered a broken forearm at the Ginas, and caught a TD pass anyway
by THECatCrave on May 20, 2010 12:11 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
POLL CLOSING
Just wanted to let y’all know, the poll will be closing in 40 minutes; 12 p.m. eastern time. Just want to give everyone a fair chance at voting, as the Panthers are currently leading the division poll 116 – 87 votes over the Saints! I’d rather it be a close loss for the Saints than a homerism blowout. Unless of course you guys get enough votes in to take the division lead.
GET YOUR VOTES IN!!!
This is evidence
(insert sarcasm) of why Steve Smith should have 17 receivers ranked higher than him…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-UNUebdzo0&NR=1
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bq0hv1LNwfM&playnext_from=TL&videos=OdDDtOPEj98
So keep hatin’ the little guy. If it was up to me, I wouldn’t trade him for anyone.
A Panthers fan wrote this?
What does he mean we’ll have a new Will linebacker? Thomas Davis is our Will backer and he’s one of the best in the league. He was headed for a Pro Bowl season last year before he got injured. He’s already back running a 4.47 40-time though and ready to roll next year.
Multiple unknowns beyond Steve Smith at receiver? Since when has that ever stopped us before? They drafted 3, two in the third round. Though unproven, I think we have the best receiving group since Ricky Proehl was on the team. We haven’t had 3 legitimate wide receiving targets since then, and I think we have it now.
I don’t even know what’s going on with the tight end bashing. Jeff King is a great tight end. He’s a big solid blocker who also has great hands. If the ball comes his way, it will be caught. For someone his size, he looks goofy diving to make catches, but he does it and does it well. They just hardly ever throw the ball to tight ends ‘cause the Panthers run a vertical passing game to compliment their run first philosophy. Plus, Delhomme liked to lock in on Steve Smith and Muhsin Muhammad. He wasn’t the greatest at surveying the whole field. Dante Rosario and Gary Barnidge are both great receiving tight ends though. Barnidge can fly down the field as well as Jeremy Shockey. He made a great long catch and run in either the Vikings or Giants game last year when Moore was the QB. That’s just totally wrong saying our tight ends are bad. We have a more talented group than most teams.
stuff 'bout stuff.
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