Thursday, September 04, 2014

2014 NFL Preview & Thursday Football Pick

The Seahawks open up the defense of their Super Bowl title tonight (see more below) and just like that the NFL is back in our lives.  Here we go with the annual shot in the dark of predicting the unpredictable.

Five Big Predictions

1. Dennis Allen of the Raiders will be the first coach fired after his team starts 0-4.  Doug Marrone of the Bills will join him on the unemployment line after they start 2-8.  Tom Coughlin of the Giants will announce his retirement, effective at the end of the season, when the Giants start 2-6.  A fourth straight first round playoff loss will cost Marvin Lewis his job.  Mike Tomlin of the Steelers, Rex Ryan of the Jets, and Ron Rivera of the Panthers will all be out of work come January as well.

2. The Broncos will get off to a slow start, which will start the rumors about John Fox' job security, but they'll ride Peyton Manning and their explosive offense to a strong finish.

3. The Jaguars will start 0-5 but the switch to rookie Blake Bortles at quarterback will give the team reason for optimism heading into 2015.  The Browns will have a similar experience with Johnny Manziel.

4. The Patriots, Seahawks, Bears, and Saints will all flirt with an unbeaten record but only one of them will play in the Super Bowl.

5. Dallas finally ends their seemingly endless run of 8-8 seasons but a 9-7 record still has them on the outside looking in come playoff time.  That will cost Jason Garrett his job and Jerry Jones will lure Stanford's David Shaw to the professional ranks as his replacement.

AFC Predictions

East

1. Patriots (14-2)
2. Dolphins (9-7)
3. Jets (7-9)
4. Bills (3-13)

North

1. Bengals (11-5)
2. Ravens (8-8)
3. Steelers (8-8)
4. Browns (4-12)

South

1. Colts (11-5)
2. Texans (8-8)
3. Titans (5-11)
4. Jaguars (4-12)

West

1. Broncos (11-5)
2. Chiefs (7-9)
3. Chargers (5-11)
4. Raiders (3-13)

NFC Predictions

East

1. Eagles (10-6)
2. Cowboys (9-7)
3. Giants (8-8)
4. Redskins (5-11)

North

1. Bears (11-5)
2. Packers (10-6)
3. Lions (9-7)
4. Vikings (6-10)

South

1. Saints (13-3)
2. Falcons (11-5)
3. Panthers (4-12)
4. Buccaneers (4-12)

West

1. Seahawks (14-2)
2. 49ers (10-6)
3. Rams (6-10)
4. Cardinals (6-10)

Wild Card Playoffs

(Note - I'm not sure on how the tiebreakers will factor into playoff seeding at this time)

AFC

(3) Colts defeat (6) Texans
(5) Dolphins defeat (4) Bengals

NFC

(6) Packers defeat (3) Bears
(4) Eagles defeat (5) 49ers

Divisional Playoffs

AFC

(1) Patriots defeat (5) Dolphins
(3) Colts defeat (2) Broncos

NFC

(6) Packers defeat (1) Seahawks
(2) Saints defeat (4) Eagles

Conference Championship Games

AFC

(1) Patriots defeat (3) Colts

NFC

(6) Packers defeat (2) Saints

Super Bowl XLIX

New England Patriots defeat Green Bay Packers
MVP - Tom Brady

Awards

Most Valuable Player - Tom Brady, Patriots

Offensive Player of the Year - LeSean McCoy, Eagles

Defensive Player of the Year - Chandler Jones, Patriots

Offensive Rookie of the Year - Brandin Cooks, Saints

Defensive Rookie of the Year - Ryan Shazier, Steelers

Coach of the Year - Pete Carroll, Seahawks

Bonus - Thursday Football Pick

The picks are back!

After going 119-138-7 in NFL picks and 33-39-3 in NCAA picks during the 2013 season, things have to get better.  Right?

As always, home team in CAPS and all picks against the spread.

SEAHAWKS (-6) over Packers

The defending champs will have a rocking home field and will blow out the Packers but, as you read above, Green Bay will eventually have the last laugh over the Seahawks this season.

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