Packers: Despite Aaron Rodgers being back and the signing of Jimmy Graham , there seems to be a lack of excitement surrounding the Packers. But for me, they are one of the leading contenders in a loaded NFC. Aaron Rodgers leads the way. His resume speaks for itself. Anyone who has seen him play and has a brain knows how amazing he is. The running backs are going to be more of a committee which is fine because both Jamaal Williams and Aaron Jones flashed last year. The wide receiving core lacks depth, but people are expecting a huge year from Devante Adams. Tight end Jimmy Graham is going to be seeing a ton of Red Zone targets. The o-line is pretty solid, which is usually the case in Green Bay. The defense looks a lot better as well. Mike Daniels continues to be a stud, and the secondary looks to be immensely improved by drafting Jaire Alexander and Josh Jackson. Haha Clinton-Dix roams around in the backend of the defense. I expect big things this year in a turn around year for the packers.

11-5

Vikings: The vikings are coming off an unbelievable year where they were one game away from the super bowl. They kept the core intact, and upgraded at the QB position by throwing a ton of money at Kirk Cousins. They also get running back Dalvin Cook back from injury. Cousins has plenty of weapons to work with as well. Stud receivers Adam Theilen and Stefan Diggs are both special players on the outside, and TE Kyle Rudolph is very reliable over the middle. The O-line is eh. Vikings lost offensive coordinator Pat Shurmer, and I am fascinated how this will impact them in terms of scheme. The defense is absurd. Stacked up front with studs like Everson Griffen and Danielle Hunter, they bring pressure from the Edge and from the interior. The linebackers are all fast and have great instincts. The secondary is incredible, led by stars Harrison Smith and Xavier Rhodes. Expect another big year for the Vikings.

11-5

Lions: Every year I look at the Lions roster and find myself underwhelmed. And every year they are better then I expected them to be. A large part of it is due to Matthew Stafford. A QB that is consistently underrated, he is always the reason the Lions are in the game every time they put the pads on. The running back situation should be greatly improved if they don’t be dumb and let Kerryon Johnson be THE guy. The wide receivers don’t jump off the page, but Marvin Jones and Golden tate get the job done. The Offensive Line is also very good. The defense is inconsistent, but has a couple very good players. Darius Slay remains one of the more underrated players in the NFL. I don’t love the Lions, but I bet they are in the playoff hunt come the end of the year.

8-8

Bears: A lot of people have huge expectations for the bears this year, and while I see the potential, I have my questions. A lot of this is riding on a big jump from Mitch Trubisky, but I am in a more “wait and see” kind of mentality. He has some weapons around him that I think he can utilize very well. Jordan Howard is a safe, reliable guy to turn around and hand to 25 times a game. Newly brought in targets Allen robinson and Trey Burton should help, and rookie Anthony Miller is going to be an absolute stud. The o-line is very good, especially the interior. The defense has studs all over, led by Leonard Floyd, Akeem Hicks, and Kyle Fuller. Lots of potential all over this team. They just need to put it together.

7-9

Cowboys: The cowboys are going to look very different next year. For the casual fan who hasn’t been paying much attention this offseason, the cowboys lost a lot of their identity. They cut pro bowl receiver Dez Bryant and star TE jason witten retired. About every player from the previous Romo era is gone. This is completely Dak’s team now. At running back, they have one of the best in Ezekiel Elliott. It looks like he is going to have to carry the offense because the receiving core is a variation of unknowns and disappointments. The o-line is going to be very good. Three pro bowlers and Tackle Connor Williams from Texas was selected in the 2nd round to fill the other guard position. The defense looks to be improved. The edge rushers look good led by Damarcus Lawrence, but the interior D-line leaves a lot to be desired. The linebacking core looks great as long as they all stay healthy. Sean Lee is great, Leighton Vander Esch was my draft crush, and Jaylon Smith has all the talent in the world as long as he stays healthy. The secondary is shaky with a lot of unproven guys outside of Byron Jones. Overall, I think the Cowboys take a step back due to just not a great roster.

Week 1: @Panthers: L

Week 2: vs Giants: W

Week 3: @Seattle: L

Week 4: vs Lions: W

Week 5: @ Texans: L

Week 6: vs Jaguars: L

Week 7: @Redskins: L

Week 8: BYE

Week 9: vs Titans: W

Week 10: @Eagles: L

Week 11: @Falcons: L

Week 12: vs Redskins: W

Week 13: vs Saints: W

Week 14: vs Eagles: W

Week 15: @Colts: L

Week 16: vs Bucs: W

Week 17: @Giants: L

7-9

Redskins: Another NFC East team that shook up their roster in a major way. They let veteran QB Kirk Cousins go and replaced him with a different vet in Alex Smith. Kind of an even trade. The running back position again looks like a mess. Chris Thompson won’t fully be back until early november, and their second round pick Derrius Guice, from LSU, tore his ACL in the preseason. They signed Adrian Peterson but he is pretty washed. The wide receivers are pretty average. Crowder is descent but has his limits, Josh Doctson still hasn’t sniffed his potential, and they threw money at Paul Richardson…for some reason. Tight end would be a strength if Jordan Reed could ever stay healthy. Same goes for the O-line, as they have a lot of really good players led by Trent Williams, all of whom struggle with staying on the field. The defense looks okay. Kerrigan consistently wrecks havoc on offenses. With Jonathan Allen back, and the drafting of Da’ron Payne, hopefully they can finally stop the run. The linebackers are descent led by Zach Brown but lack depth. The secondary is weak. They traded Kendall fuller, then tried to replace him with Orlando Scanderick who they ended up cutting. Overall, this roster lacks in many key areas, and I foresee an up and down season for Washington.

Week 1: @Cardinals: W

Week 2: vs Colts: W

Week 3: vs Packers: L

Week 4: BYE

Week 5: @Saints: L

Week 6: vs Panthers: L

Week 7: vs Cowboys: W

Week 8: @Giants: L

Week 9: vs Falcons: L

Week 10: @Bucs: W

Week 11: vs Texans: W

Week 12:@Cowboys: L

Week 13: @Eagles: L

Week 14: vs Giants: W

Week 15: @Jaguars: L

Week 16: @Titans:L

Week 17: vs Eagles: L

6-10

Eagles: Coming off their first super bowl win ever, a lot of hype will surround them going into the new season and for good reason. They are coming off a super bowl win and they are getting their star QB back and even added some pieces to their defense. So what makes this team so special? Well, they have one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL in Carson Wentz, a plethora of running backs that can take the pressure off wentz and let him fully recover, multiple reliable receivers who can exploit defenses at all three levels, one of the best young tight ends in the NFL and a great o-line.  Their defense is nothing to shrug at either, as they have fluttered with stars. They even added Michael Bennett to an already absurd front four featuring Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham for fun. Overall, this team is loaded once again and the only thing standing in their way next year is themselves.

Week 1: vs Falcons: W

Week 2: @ Bucs: W

Week 3: vs Colts: W

Week 4: @ Titans: W

Week 5: vs Vikings: L

Week 6: @ Giants: L

Week 7: vs Panthers: W

Week 8: @ Jaguars: L

Week 9: BYE

Week 10: vs Cowboys: W

Week 11: @ Saints: L

Week 12: vs Giants: W

Week 13: vs Redskins: W

Week 14: @ Cowboys: L

Week 15: @Rams: L

Week 16: vs Texans: W

Week 17: @ Redskins: W

 

Record: 10-6

 

Giants:  Yes, last year was a disaster. Everyone knows it. All the expectation in the world and it ended up being a disaster. But its a new season. New GM, New coach, new mindset. I really believe they will bounce back this year. In the NFL, a roster is just a list of names, but it takes a good coach to get the best out of that talent. McAdoo was a disaster last year, but the hope is that new coach Pat Shurmur will come over and change the culture. But he can’t do it without QB Eli Manning. They have a ton of good players, but if Eli sucks again, this team isn’t doing anything. New running back Saquon Barkley looks like the real deal. He will take pressure off of Eli as the Giants haven’t had a running game since Tiki Barber. The receiving core looks great up top with Odell and Shepard, but lack depth. Evan Engram is a stud a tight end. The o-line is a huge question mark as always. They overpaid for Nate Solder and drafted Will Hernandez, but the right side of the line is a big question mark. The defense has promise. The d-line should be good. Apparently Olivier Vernon looks great. Alec Ogletree is not great, so the linebacking core looks weak. The secondary has questions after Janoris Jenkins and Landon Collins. The potential is there, they just need to put it together.

Week 1: vs Jaguars: L

Week 2: @Cowboys: L

Week 3: @ Texans: L

Week 4: vs Saints: W

Week 5: @ Panthers: W

Week 6: vs Eagles: W

Week 7: @Falcons: L

Week 8: vs Redskins: W

Week 9: BYE

Week 10: @49ers: L

Week 11: vs Bucs: W

Week 12: @Eagles: L

Week 13: vs Bears: W

Week 14: @Redskins: L

Week 15: vs Titans: W

Week 16: @Colts: W

Week 17: vs Cowboys: W

 

Record: 9-7