Pro Football Weekly rates the AFC West:
Posted: Thu Sep 08, 2005 6:54 pm
RACK-these fucking guys have consistently broken things down correctly for each team and been nearly spot on over the years (They've called the last 3 super bowl participants correctly in preseason-although they had the eagles winning last year)
Its the reason I subscribe to them-well, that and they make ESPN look like fucking knuckleheads year in and year out.
From Pro Football Weekly:
The AFC West
We figure that Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis secretly has been coveting Randy Moss ever since Moss burst onto the NFL scene in 1998 with a chip on his shoulder the size of an elephant turd.
Moss was miffed that he'd been overlooked by a bunch of other teams on draft day, and he was out to prove the rest of the league wrong for not drafting him.
Prove it he did.
But that's been one of Randy's biggest flaws in his seven years in the NFL. Unable to find constant motivation from within to be the best he can be week-in and week-out, Moss relies too heavily on external sources to get him fired up.
In Minnesota, then, he often got complacent. In his first year with the Raiders, he'll be as motivated as he was in 1998 to prove folks wrong. The Vikings, in Randy's mind, dissed him -- and he now wants to show them that they messed up by trading him away.
It'll translate into a monster year statistically for Moss, and for quarterback Kerry Collins. And for running back LaMont Jordan, once the safeties begin pitching tents near the goal line.
The defense in Oakland is good, not great. But it doesn't have to be great. The Vikings rode a ready Randy and a mediocre defense to a 15-1 mark in 1998.
We're not suggesting that the Raiders are going to win 15 games this year, but they'll be closer to 15 victories than their five of a year ago. Much closer.
Close enough to win the division.
Nipping at the Raiders' heels will be the Denver Broncos, who have been treading water ever since John Elway rode off into the sunset with his second consecutive Lombardi seven years ago. Elway delivered for coach Mike Shanahan, in essence, a lifetime contract and license to draft and sign as many turds and underachievers as he can find.
Dale Carter? Sure. Daryl Gardener? Why not? Every freaking washed-up malcontent from the Cleveland Browns' defensive line? Sign 'em up.
The Maurice Clarett debacle, in most cities, would have been enough to get everyone connected with the situation fired. But this is Coach Teflon we're talkin' 'bout. He can do no wrong in owner Pat Bowlen's eyes, and as long as Shanny pastes together 8-to-10 wins on a consistent basis, everything will be fine.
The names and the positions are largely irrelevant to us. Shanahan, to his credit, has devised an overall system that can generate those 8-to-10 wins regarding of who's running with the ball, throwing it, catching it, and/or cut blocking for the guys who have it.
When they get to the playoffs, they'll get blown out. And then they can start all over again.
Starting over is likely something that the San Diego Chargers would like to do, as in the 2004 draft. Selecting quarterback Eli Manning and trading him to the Giants for Philip Rivers and a flock of draft picks was a great move -- with the exception of the acquisition of the quarterback whom they don't really need. After Drew Brees finally woke up and fulfilled his potential last season (thanks in large part to Rivers' lengthy delay in signing a contract), the surprise AFC West champs were left with a tough choice.
They could let Brees walk away and give the gig to Rivers, or they could restrict Brees' movement, possibly in the hopes of trading him. They chose the latter. But the problem was that, once the Chargers slapped the franchise tag on Brees, no trade offers came in. Not one. So they paid Brees a huge one-year salary and they paid River a huge signing bonus and option bonus and they enter 2005 no surer than they were a year ago as to who the quarterback of the future will be.
After studying the team's schedule in 2004 and 2005, we think the Chargers will take more than a few games on the chin this year. Not because their talent level is worse, but because they'll be playing better teams this time around.
And because they won't take anyone by surprise this year, which is an important dynamic in the new parity-driven NFL.
Dynamic is a word that no longer describes the Kansas City Chiefs. The receiving corps looks pedestrian at best. Priest Holmes is getting old. Trent Green is old. And the dude had surgery last week to repair a tear in a leg artery. For Trent, the spirit may be willing, but the flesh is coming off the bone.
On defense, the Chiefs are still, well, the Chiefs. Patrick Surtain gives them something they haven't had since . . . since . . . hell, he gives them something they've never had. But not even Surtain can cover a guy forever, and with the Chiefs' underachieving pass rush, it'll often feel like an eternity of chasing for Surtain and the rest of the secondary.
At linebacker, coach Dick Vermeil has a full-blown man-crush on rookie Derrick Johnson. We're skeptical, frankly, that the guy is as good as advertised, primarily since the same folks who have a tomahawk in their pockets for Johnson also signed brittle linebacker Kendrell Bell to a free-agent contract.
Every year, most teams think/hope/pray that they'll be good. But in every NFL season there are a few teams that stink it up. This year, we see the Chiefs getting off to an 0-4 start and never recovering.
It's not quite the way coach Vermeil wanted to exit the profession. But exit he shall when this one is said and done.
Predicted finish:
1. Raiders (13-3 and a Super Bowl appearance);
2. Broncos (9-7 and a wild-card playoff loss);
3. Chargers (7-9);
4. Chiefs (4-12)
Its the reason I subscribe to them-well, that and they make ESPN look like fucking knuckleheads year in and year out.
From Pro Football Weekly:
The AFC West
We figure that Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis secretly has been coveting Randy Moss ever since Moss burst onto the NFL scene in 1998 with a chip on his shoulder the size of an elephant turd.
Moss was miffed that he'd been overlooked by a bunch of other teams on draft day, and he was out to prove the rest of the league wrong for not drafting him.
Prove it he did.
But that's been one of Randy's biggest flaws in his seven years in the NFL. Unable to find constant motivation from within to be the best he can be week-in and week-out, Moss relies too heavily on external sources to get him fired up.
In Minnesota, then, he often got complacent. In his first year with the Raiders, he'll be as motivated as he was in 1998 to prove folks wrong. The Vikings, in Randy's mind, dissed him -- and he now wants to show them that they messed up by trading him away.
It'll translate into a monster year statistically for Moss, and for quarterback Kerry Collins. And for running back LaMont Jordan, once the safeties begin pitching tents near the goal line.
The defense in Oakland is good, not great. But it doesn't have to be great. The Vikings rode a ready Randy and a mediocre defense to a 15-1 mark in 1998.
We're not suggesting that the Raiders are going to win 15 games this year, but they'll be closer to 15 victories than their five of a year ago. Much closer.
Close enough to win the division.
Nipping at the Raiders' heels will be the Denver Broncos, who have been treading water ever since John Elway rode off into the sunset with his second consecutive Lombardi seven years ago. Elway delivered for coach Mike Shanahan, in essence, a lifetime contract and license to draft and sign as many turds and underachievers as he can find.
Dale Carter? Sure. Daryl Gardener? Why not? Every freaking washed-up malcontent from the Cleveland Browns' defensive line? Sign 'em up.
The Maurice Clarett debacle, in most cities, would have been enough to get everyone connected with the situation fired. But this is Coach Teflon we're talkin' 'bout. He can do no wrong in owner Pat Bowlen's eyes, and as long as Shanny pastes together 8-to-10 wins on a consistent basis, everything will be fine.
The names and the positions are largely irrelevant to us. Shanahan, to his credit, has devised an overall system that can generate those 8-to-10 wins regarding of who's running with the ball, throwing it, catching it, and/or cut blocking for the guys who have it.
When they get to the playoffs, they'll get blown out. And then they can start all over again.
Starting over is likely something that the San Diego Chargers would like to do, as in the 2004 draft. Selecting quarterback Eli Manning and trading him to the Giants for Philip Rivers and a flock of draft picks was a great move -- with the exception of the acquisition of the quarterback whom they don't really need. After Drew Brees finally woke up and fulfilled his potential last season (thanks in large part to Rivers' lengthy delay in signing a contract), the surprise AFC West champs were left with a tough choice.
They could let Brees walk away and give the gig to Rivers, or they could restrict Brees' movement, possibly in the hopes of trading him. They chose the latter. But the problem was that, once the Chargers slapped the franchise tag on Brees, no trade offers came in. Not one. So they paid Brees a huge one-year salary and they paid River a huge signing bonus and option bonus and they enter 2005 no surer than they were a year ago as to who the quarterback of the future will be.
After studying the team's schedule in 2004 and 2005, we think the Chargers will take more than a few games on the chin this year. Not because their talent level is worse, but because they'll be playing better teams this time around.
And because they won't take anyone by surprise this year, which is an important dynamic in the new parity-driven NFL.
Dynamic is a word that no longer describes the Kansas City Chiefs. The receiving corps looks pedestrian at best. Priest Holmes is getting old. Trent Green is old. And the dude had surgery last week to repair a tear in a leg artery. For Trent, the spirit may be willing, but the flesh is coming off the bone.
On defense, the Chiefs are still, well, the Chiefs. Patrick Surtain gives them something they haven't had since . . . since . . . hell, he gives them something they've never had. But not even Surtain can cover a guy forever, and with the Chiefs' underachieving pass rush, it'll often feel like an eternity of chasing for Surtain and the rest of the secondary.
At linebacker, coach Dick Vermeil has a full-blown man-crush on rookie Derrick Johnson. We're skeptical, frankly, that the guy is as good as advertised, primarily since the same folks who have a tomahawk in their pockets for Johnson also signed brittle linebacker Kendrell Bell to a free-agent contract.
Every year, most teams think/hope/pray that they'll be good. But in every NFL season there are a few teams that stink it up. This year, we see the Chiefs getting off to an 0-4 start and never recovering.
It's not quite the way coach Vermeil wanted to exit the profession. But exit he shall when this one is said and done.
Predicted finish:
1. Raiders (13-3 and a Super Bowl appearance);
2. Broncos (9-7 and a wild-card playoff loss);
3. Chargers (7-9);
4. Chiefs (4-12)
