NFL Preview part 3

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals
Outlook: Not many people expected the Cardinals to make it to the Super Bowl with their record against teams not in the division. Despite their loss in the game, they look to continue their momentum into the new season.

Player to Watch: Larry Fitzgerald. The man on the Madden game. Well, one of two men on the cover. So maybe he only has half of the curse on him… I bet I already know what it is too: the Cards defense.

Prediction: 10-6

San Francisco 49ers
Outlook: I’m ready to board the bandwagon at the drop of a hat. Or Mike Singletary’s pants. Whichever drops first.

Player to Watch: Frank Gore. Gore will be the focal point of the offense for the Niners, which is an inconvenient truth.

Prediction: 6-10


Seattle Seahwaks
Outlook: They had a season to forget last year, but with a healthy Matt Hasselbeck all season, the addition of T.J. Whose-your-mama (Houshmandzadeh), and a fairly easy schedule, they should rebound in ’09.

Player to Watch: Julius Jones. Jones had a disappointing season last year as a free agent from Dallas, but after being benched in the tail end of last year, he has been named the workhorse back this year by new head coach Jim Mora Jr.

Prediction: 9-7


St. Louis Rams
Outlook: 1999 = the greatest show on turf. 2009 = the greatest thing is the turf.

Player to Watch: Will Witherspoon. Well, I mean, if you have to watch the Rams anyway, I figured I’d tell you one of their underrated, very good defensive players. Of course, watching the Rams at all is not recommended if avoidable.

Prediction: 4-12


AFC West

Denver Broncos
Outlook: Raise your hand if new coach Josh McDaniels hasn’t driven you out of Denver… While McDaniels brings an extensive offensive knowledge and capability coming from under Bill Belichick, the pressure is clearly on the 33 year old head coach to maintain the offensive success of last year, and transition the defense into respectable.

Player to Watch: Eddie Royal. Highlights the select bunch of players that I am both confident in and excited to see perform in ’09. If troubled receiver Brandon Marshall does not remain with the team, expect him to see a lot of targets.

Prediction: 7-9

Bonus Predictions: Marshall stays the whole year. Kyle Orton struggles in the beginning of the year, almost gets benched, but shines in the latter half. Eddie Royal leads the league in yards per reception. The defense has games where they shine, but is still 13th or worse in the AFC.


Kansas City Chiefs
Outlook: They shelled out the bucks to land up-and-coming, but still relatively unproven QB Matt Cassell, and with new head coach Todd Haley and a young defense, it’s a hard season to predict for the Chiefs.

Player to Watch: Larry Johnson. I’ve always had tremendous respect for LJ, as well as Priest Holmes and LT as I’ve seen them run laps around the Broncos defense. However, LJ has a lot to prove this year, since he’s been worked to the max and had a down year last year. Look for him to turn a few heads in ’09.

Prediction: 6-10


Oakland Raiders
Outlook: Darren McFadden is perhaps the lone bright spot on offense (though JaMarcus Russell continues to improve) but the defense is clearly the unit that will be opposing teams will worry about most.

Player to Watch: Nnamdi Asomugha. As much as I hate the Raiders, ND is a beast and the best shutdown corner in the league, taking the title from Champ Bailey last season.

Prediction: 6-10


San Diego Chargers
Outlook: They came back after everyone left them for dead to win the division at 8-8 last year, even though expectations were set high in the offseason. This year those expectations are just as high, and this could be the year that they are finally reached.

Player to Watch: Antonio Cromartie. The young star had a down year last year, but he still has a tremendous amount of talent and can easily just as good as he was in '07, perhaps better.

Prediction: 11-5


Next up: Playoff Teams and Predictions