Do they even need a secondary with Jared Allen at defensive end? Plus Tavaris Jackson looked really good during the preseason. If he plays even mediocrely the Vikings have a very good shot at the superbowl IMO.
I would be surprised if the Packers finish with a better record than the Jets. I think the Vikings, Eagles, and Titans might all be better than the Jets.
The Packers I would say have a tougher schedule. Jets might have the toughest games (Patsies, Bolts), but Packers have more of them. So records straight up will be kinda apples-to-oranges.
The Titans are such a strange team. Anyone can beat them because they really aren't that good offensively, but they have a decent running game, especially with Johnson, and a good defense. Young is a fairly good quarterback. I do think the Jets are better though. The Titans are going to probably start Justin McCareins. Come on.
Favre>> Edwards. Our run D< Their Run D Jason Peters hold out>> Baker Hold out and return Its the Bills...
Could someone explain to me other then being 7-9 and sweeping the 1-15 Dolphins and 4-12 Jets in 07, what the Bills have to even conisder them a contender in the AFC East??
Some perspective. In 2006 we were ranked 31st by ESPN going into the season. In 2007 we were ranked 14th by ESPN going into the season. What I get out of that is that ESPN analysts have no freakin' clue. Next.
That game where they almost beat Dallas. I also think Trent Edwards sucks. I actually like Losman better, especially for Evans' and Lynch's sake.
I don't have a problem with the Jets at number 16 to start. They still need to prove themselves with the addition of great players this offseason. I'm pretty confident they'll end up higher than 16 by mid season, maybe top 10.
I have spent a lot of time hating the Vikes and the Bears and the reality is the Vikings are a 52 man powerhouse without a QB. So sad. Jets at 16, thats fair until the team takes the field and certainly a big improvement over 07' and I would rather be rated #8 or better in December than worry about what the writers think before anyone has kicked off.
No shit. Jackson's never done anything to warrant that kind of optimism. And even if he does turn out to be a relatively decent NFL quarterback (which would be nothing short of amazing if it ever happens), they've still got that moron Childress as a head coach. I've been living in the Twin Cities for the better part of 30 years now, and without a doubt one of the most entertaining things about it - year in and year out - is that no matter how good the Vikings may look on paper at the start of the season, without exception they find some way to completely fuck things up. Some years, it's hard to figure out how they manage to pull that off, but with T Jack at quarterback and Chilly Willy standing glassy-eyed on the sidelines, it's not difficult to imagine at all.
More importantly, Green Bay's quarterback is totally unproven. Rodgers has a lot of potential and a very bright future, but there's no conceivable way anyone can credibly predict how well the Packers are going to do this year before he even starts his first regular season game. My personal feeling is he's going to have a good year, but there's no way I'd go so far as to predict that, and even if he does, it'll probably be pretty rocky from time to time. If I had to bet, I'd say the Jets are more likely to have a better W-L record this season.
Jackson can throw the deep ball. The problem was that last year he did not get help from his receivers, namely Troy Williamson and Robert Ferguson. Those two fellows have mastered the fine art of the dropped pass. The Vikings starting WRs this year are 2nd-year man Sidney Rice and free agent acquisition Bernard Berrian. Drops should not be a big issue again. Jackson is very good with medium throws, those of the 10-20 yard variety. These are the most difficult passes to make in the National Football League. He exhibited fine ability to throw the ball into tight spaces. This is why I like him. Jackson made his share of boneheaded plays last year. Much of that was due to him being in his 2nd season and first as a regular starter. Not many quarterbacks hit the ground running. Mistakes were to be expected. He was miserable in the Chicago and Washington games in December, but the Vikings did win one of those games. The point being Jackson will not have to play like Dan Marino for the Vikings to succeed. It is possible Jackson could flop and be benched by Halloween. More likely, he will lead the Vikings to the postseason. It is possible I am the only Tarvaris Jackson fan on this message board.
He looked solid at Cal-Berkeley. I thought he'd be a decent NFL starting QB. In the bits and pieces we've seen from him in the NFL, nothing has changed my mind. He's looks like a solid starter, maybe at a Brad Johnson or Jim Harbaugh or Dave Krieg level. I doubt Rodgers is going to a top tier QB.
Well, I like to spread myself out. No, seriously, there are a lot of Packer fans in the Cities. I only live 15 miles from the Wisconsin border, so it's not like we're on opposite coasts or anything like that. For anyone growing up in the western or northern halves of Wisconsin, this is the closest large city, and it's a hell of a lot nicer in every respect than Milwaukee, so when a lot of kids who grew up in rural Wisconsin moved out and started looking for a city to start our careers in, we gravitated here. Minnesota's a huge market for Packer fans. The fact that Minnesota sucks out loud every year also makes Green Bay a pretty popular team here; even a fair number of Minnesota natives root for the Packers just because they get sick of backing those drunken losers and want to cheer for a winner.
