By Bob Bonett
Bye weeks suck.
All day Sunday, I had to sit by the television, watching the Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins play football.
Yuck!
No Jerricho Cotchery catching bombs from Brett Favre, no Calvin Pace taking it to his former team, and worst of all, no electrifying returns by Leon Washington.
I guess if there was a bright side to the weekend, it was seeing the only truly New York team get crushed by the Arizona Cardinals. Granted, it took Trent Edwards getting knocked out of action in the first quarter, but I would not be too worried if I’m coach Mangini after seeing how anemic the Bills’ secondary was against Kurt Warner – a guy that does not necessarily make me shiver in my booties.
A task I’ll undertake for the remainder of the year after each quarter of the season will be to break down the AFC, or as it should be known as this year, the “Almost Football Conference,” attempting to handicap the field, and give everyone an idea as to how the rest of the football season will shape up.
First, why the Almost Football Conference? Well, the three de facto favorites, the Chargers, Colts and Patriots, may not make the playoffs. I’ll go more in depth in a second, but things are pretty ugly when any television analyst feels a Kerry Collins-led team is the best in the conference.
Also, a conference of 16 teams should have at least one team that could compete in the NFC East. At this point, I’m pretty sure the weakest team in the NFC East, the Philadelphia Eagles, would run away with the AFC. No doubt about it.
(Note: The NFC East is pretty damn good. It is a shame that not all four teams can make the playoffs, because they are the four best teams in the entire league).
Anyway, enough ranting. Let’s get to the conference, with a stress on the hometown AFC East. Enjoy a good deal of prognosticating, and peep the playoff chances for each squad:
AFC East
The NFC East of, well, the AFC. Okay, it is not saying much – the AFC is weak this year. But top to bottom, the Eastern Seaboard has four teams that could, theoretically, give a run at the playoffs.
New York Jets: No, it is not homer-ism. After seeing the Bills get pummeled by the Cards, New York has emerged as the favorites in the East. The cause for concern amongst the fans and media? The big yardage numbers the Cardinals put up in the second half of Gang Green’s victory two weeks ago. Guess what, ladies and gentleman. When a team airs it out – see the Big 12 in college football – they are going to accumulate yards. It is irrelevant. The Jets defense played terrific in the first half, and played well enough in the second half to conserve a blow out. Expect the Jets to enter the game against Buffalo 5-2, and with a win, be a near-lock for the postseason.
Buffalo Bills: Oh how a week can change things. After getting out to that rip-roaring 4-0 start, a not-so-scary Arizona Cardinals team whooped Buffalo. And while losing Edwards didn’t help, the team lost because of terrible defense, not an anemic offense. Kurt Warner looked All-Pro from the coin flip to the final whistle, and the Bills defense was exposed to looking like Swiss cheese. Yes, Buffalo is still a playoff team, and will probably earn a Wild Card berth. However, they are no longer the favorites in the East.
New England Patriots: Yes, Matt Cassel and Randy Moss looked on the same page – against the San Francisco 49ers. One of the five worst teams in the entire NFL. I still don’t expect too much from the Pats. It is looking like a nine- or 10-win season at best. They’ll need to win a couple of tiebreakers to make the playoffs, and shockingly enough, it will come down to Bill Belicheat, the Chargers and the Colts for the final playoff spot in the AFC.
Miami Dolphins: Funny stories coming out of Miami. Chad Pennington heads south to get the starting job at quarterback, has completed seemingly 99 percent of his passes the past two weeks, and has brought a team that had one win last year to a 2-2 record out of the gates this year, including victories over the Patriots and Chargers. That aforementioned “funny story?” Ronnie Brown is under center about as much as Chad. Ouch. ‘Phins will come back to earth a bit, but Brown’s performance this year is MVP-like already, and Miami could press the eight-win mark.
AFC North
A division with a ton of potential that has turned into a one-horse race. The most exciting story line outside of Pittsburgh? How soon will EAS, that energy drink, have a starting quarterback (Brady Quinn) as their spokesman.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Ben Roethlisberger is a gamer. No doubt about it. Pittsburgh has emerged as the team capable of playing the best football in the AFC, and just needs to adapt a little bit more consistency. Losing their two backs will be tough to overcome, but expect an AFC North title, and a spot in the AFC Championship game.
Baltimore Ravens: Joe Flacco is giving Hofstra’s conference, the CAA, some good pub. The former FCS-level quarterback from Delaware, Flacco has the Ravens playing good football. Only problem is that most of the good football is on the defensive side of the ball, and Flacco is still three or four years away from being an impact guy behind center.
Cleveland Browns: All last year, I pitched for Derek Anderson to win MVP. However, at the same time, I said he is not the permanent solution in Cleveland. Braylon Edwards is the best receiver in the NFL – there, I said it – and until the Browns get a consistent man behind center, nobody is going to see it. Welcome back to the bottom of the barrel, Ohio.
Cincinnati Bengals: Check my records. I had Cincy going 1-15 before the year. I’m sticking to that. This team is a mess, and signing a ticking time bomb in Cedric Benson is not going to help.
AFC South
On the outside, a strong-looking group of teams. When you dissect them, though, a ton of holes in the South. Tennessee is great on defense, the Colts have a few playmakers, and the Jags are average across the board. Not exactly the overpowering division that was expected to break out prior to the year.
Tennessee Titans: Yes, the Titans are real good. Their defense is great. But sorry, football analysts, Chris Johnson is NOT the next Adrian Peterson. And a team quarterbacked by Kerry Collins, other than the 1999 Giants, is not going to the Super Bowl. A division championship in an overrated AFC South? Sure. But look forward to an exit in their first playoff game, whether it be in the opening round or coming off a bye.
Indianapolis Colts: As of now, I think the Colts take the sixth and final playoff spot in the AFC. However, Peyton Manning and company are getting older, a step slower, and got lucky that Sage Rosenfels is a high school-level quarterback.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Every year, all football pundits, and fans, jump on the Jags’ bandwagon. I don’t think this team is an 11- or 12-win team. Will they finish above-.500 on the cusp of the postseason? Yes. They are not among the elite, though.
Houston Texans: Houston, you’re going to be in for a longgggggg season.
AFC West
Al Davis is the sole reason for Oakland stinking. Herm Edwards is the reason Kansas City stinks. Shawne Merriman has caused the Chargers to fall from grace. Congratulations, Denver – a divisional crown has fallen into your lap.
Denver Broncos: The AFC West’s best team is widely regarded as overrated. I disagree. Jay cutler is a heck of a quarterback – one of the five best in the NFL – and has a pretty darn good supporting cast. In an AFC West that is in the middle of a down year, Denver should run away with the crown, and enter the playoffs with 11 or 12 victories – a number that could garner a bye.
San Diego Chargers: My AFC favorite from last year has evolved into what I feel is the most overrated team in the NFL. LaDainian Tomlinson looks older, and it certainly seems like Norv Turner might miss Michael Turner. Phillip Rivers is good, but he can’t do it alone. And oh boy, does that defense look ugly without their steroid-filled linebacker. No playoffs in ’08 for the San Diego SuperChargers.
Oakland Raiders: I feel terrible for Lane Kiffin. Davis had it out for this guy from Day One. Aside from that, the Raiders were one of my dark horses prior to the year – a team with a pretty good defense, a young quarterback that could become a stud in JaMarcus Russell, and a running back in Darren McFadden that had star written all over him. Now? Well, the defense looks okay. But Russell isn’t emerging quite yet, and it seems as though McFadden was not even the best back to come out of Arkansas. (See: Felix Jones, Dallas Cowboys.)
Kansas City Chiefs: Fire Herm. This team is bad.