This season was a whirlwind. In my many years of watching football I have never seen a season as unpredictable as this season. I really blew my preseason predictions, worse than I have in the past. Anyways, here is my post-season wrap up for the AFC East and AFC North. AFC South and West be done tommorow, NFC East and North Wednesday and NFC South and West on Thursday.
AFC East
My Pre-Season Predictions:
1.New York Jets(13-3)
2.Miami Dolphins(10-6)
3.New England Patriots(9-7)
4.Buffalo Bills(4-12)
Final Standings:
1.New England Patriots(14-2)
2.New York Jets(
3.Miami Dolphins(7-9)
4.Buffalo Bills(4-12)
Wrap-Ups
New England Patriots: I learned a valuable lesson, don't bet against the New England Patriots. Tom Brady is just too damn good of a player. The fact that he hasn't a pick since Week 9 is astonshing, he is an absolute freak of nature. Their defense is still weak though, but with the offensive weapons they have it doesn't matter, they will outscore you and make the best defenses look awful. If they keep it up, I can't see why they wouldn't win the Super Bowl.
New York Jets:The Jets came out early and lived up to the hype. Their defense dominated and Mark Sanchez played great for the first part of the year. Then it all came crumbling down. They played their best football at the start of the year and have cooled down substantially. The Jets did make the playoffs, but I don't see them getting far. They aren't playing at the level they are capable of, they are extremely talented, they just aren't playing at the elite level they are capable of.
Miami Dolphins:Man this a team that let me down horribly. I had big hopes for this team pre-season. I thought the addition of Brandon Marshall would make them a playoff team, it didn't. The poor quarterback play is to blame, Chad Henne and Tyler Thigpen both suck and make a ton of mistakes. Their whole offense is awful, the running game was also nonexistent, which is shocking considering they have Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. Their defense on the other hand, was excellent. It kept them competive and in games. Karlos Dansby had a great year and was a nice addition to this defense. Cameron Wake has emerged as a pass rushing force. If they can get their offense squared away, they will be a playoff team in the near future.
Buffalo Bills: The Bills are the unluckiest team in football. In only 4 of their losses this season did they get their ass kicked. They stayed in games, but in the end things didn't fall their way. Ryan Fitzpatrick proved to be a solid quarterback, he put some good numbers this year. Steve Johnson also proved to be a solid opition in the passing game. One thing that dissapointed me was their serious underuse of rookie running back C.J Spiller. Spiller has a ton of potential and barely gave him the ball this season. Buffalo is nowhere near as bad as their record indicates and I expect a turnaround in the future.
AFC North
My Pre-Season Predictions
1.Cinncinati Bengals(13-3)
2.Baltimore Ravens(12-4)
3.Pittsburgh Steelers(8-8)
4.Cleveland Browns(4-12)
Final Standings:
1.Pittsburgh Steelers(12-4)
2.Baltimore Ravens(12-4)
3.Cleveland Browns(5-11)
4.Cinncinati Bengals(4-12)
Pittsburgh Steelers: I really didn't expect Pittsburgh to so well when Ben Rothelisberger was suspended. Charlie Batch played great, which surprised me. I think I really lowballed this team in the preseason. The defense was excellent and Ben Rothelisberger was quite good when he came back. Mike Wallace has emerged as a hell of a threat as a wideout, which makes their offense even more dangerous. I think they would be Super Bowl Champs, if the Patriots didn't exist, they are a fantastic team.
Baltimore Ravens: A prediction I actually got exactly right! That being said, Baltimore is no where near as dominant as I expected. Their offense has been streaky at best. Joe Flacco is really up and down, some weeks he can shred a defense and others he throws for 100 yards and 2 INT's. Ray Rice has also been inconsistent and had a dissapointing year for the most part. What has kept them in it is their veteran defense. They are getting up their in age, but they can still beat you with their defense. When it comes to the playoffs, their experience will help, but I don't know how far they will get.
Cleveland Browns: Watching the last few Browns games it's hard to believe this team slaughtered the Patriots this season. This is a team with some potential, they just don't play as a team. Colt McCoy has proved to be a solid quarterback, I think he will continue to get better over the years. Peyton Hillis is a fucking workhorse. He just runs up the gut and dominates defenses, he is a really solid weapon for the Browns to have. What really hurts them is their lack of wideouts and a bad front 7 on defense. They have no pass rush what so ever and their secondary, which has some talent is really overwhlemed due to the lack of pass rush or run stop. They are still a work in progress that's for sure.
Cinncinati Bengals: What the fuck happened? I really had high hopes for this team, I thought they had the making of an elite team. They had a good 2009 season getting a playoff spot and the addition of Terrell Owens was a good one, it just didn't work out. Carson Palmer played like shit all year. He made idiotic choices and overthrew his targets frequently. Chad Ochocinco also played poorly, he didn't contribute to the offense at all. Owens kept the team afloat, he had a great season. The defense was injury plagued and played poorly all year. They need to regroup, make some changes in personel, do something. This team was a serious letdown this season.
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