NFL Picks

I can’t believe it’s time to do my annual NFL football picks. It seems to have snuck up on me this year, and I feel like I haven’t done the same diligent research I usually do, but I think I’m ready.

Unlike baseball, I don’t base my predictions on team payrolls. By the way, my baseball picks which are based completely on how much teams spend are looking really good. Baseball is so easy to pick. I don’t even know why they bother playing the regular season sometimes.

Football on the other hand is a crap shoot. Take the NFC South for example. I think the team that has finished in last place has come back to win the division five or six times in the past seven years. Or look what the injury to Tom Brady did to the Patriots a year ago. They went from 16-0 to out of the playoffs (although they were 11-5). Even payrolls, injuries and the short season create high excitement no matter what team you cheer for (again, unlike baseball).

So I’ve learned that when you make predictions, you have to go out on a limb sometimes and make a couple outrageous picks. Here we go:

AFC East:
Patriots-A healthy Tom Brady will lead this team to another double-digit win season.
Dolphins-They won’t win 11 games again. In fact they might struggle to go .500.
Jets-Sanchez is going to struggle.
Bills-Never good to fire your offensive coordinator a week before the season starts.

AFC North:
Steelers-Great defense will be enough to help this team win another division crown.
Ravens-Good enough to finish over .500 again but will be in a fight for final playoff spot.
Bengals-Will be better than a year ago and will challenge for a playoff spot.
Browns-Back in rebuilding mode but have a weak schedule and could surprise some teams.

AFC South:
Titans-I wanted to pick Jaguars as a surprise first place team here but Titans are too consistent.
Colts-Manning won’t let this team drop off far but I have a hard time picking them for Super Bowl.
Jaguars-Great running game. Will that be enough to get this team into the playoffs?
Texans-Lack the defense to be a factor.

AFC West:
Chargers-The most obvious pick to win a division. This team is really good and the rest stink.
Raiders-This tells you how bad the division is when the most dysfunctional team in NFL is second.
Broncos-Defense will be better. How can it be worse? Offense is worse though.
Chiefs-Could be the worst team in the NFL. Watch out Lions.

NFC East:
Eagles-Too much fire power to not win this division. Too well-coached also.
Giants-Defense might lead this team to a division championship. Will be a good race with Eagles.
Redskins-Will be in the running for a wildcard.
Cowboys-Maybe this is wishful thinking but I think this team really struggles this year.

NFC North:
Vikings-Great defense and an offense that all of the sudden has weapons other than AP.
Packers-Aaron Rodgers could be NFL MVP and will take this team to the playoffs.
Bears-Good team that will fall victim to being in a tough division. Cutler is overrated.
Lions-Will be better than last year :) Might win 3 or 4.

NFC South:
Saints-The defense is not good but this offense is too good to miss the playoffs again.
Falcons-Wanted to pick them first but they have a history of not having two straight good years.
Panthers-Like the Bears they will fall victim to being in a tough division.
Buccaneers-It’s going to be a very long year for this young team.

NFC West:
Seahawks-This team is going to rebound and win 8 or 9 games which will be enough in division.
Rams-If defense holds up, this team could easily win division.
Cardinals-They have the Super Bowl loser hex on them and they looked horrible this preseason.
49ers-This team just can’t make that next step.

AFC Wildcard Round:
Steelers over Jaguars
Titans over Colts

NFC Wildcard Round:
Giants over Saints
Packers over Seahawks

AFC Divisional Round:
Chargers over Steelers
Patriots over Titans

NFC Divisional Round:
Vikings over Giants
Eagles over Packers

AFC Championship:
Patriots over Chargers

NFC Championship:
Eagles over Vikings

Super Bowl:
Patriots over Eagles

Being so near and dear to the NFC North, I really want to see a Packers-Vikings NFC Championship game. But given our division’s past, I have a hard time seeing it. The darn NFC East always seems to prevail.

For more Songer Sports and more visit www.songerstudio.com