NFL Preseason Thread

[Richard Tanner]

The NFL Offseason Thread went well, so here's hoping this one works out well. Something that might prove useful to the casual observers out there, if you'd be so kind, is to do a sort of report card for your team(s) last year. Similar to the below:

Indianapolis

Last Season- A+
*LDO

The Draft-B
*Anthony G. was a solid first rounder at WR but that wasn't really a pressing need for the Colts. The gem for the Colts was the Tony Ugoh move at pick 44. Paying a first round talent (in the Colts estemation) 2nd round money is a pretty solid investment, made smarter by the retirement of starting LT Tarik Glenn. Late in the draft they got some value with CB pick Daymeion Hughes.

Offseason-D+
*With the departure of both starting CBs (marginal talent but still starters) the already thin Colts D looked to get even thinner. The departure of starting OLBs Cato June and Gilbert Gardner will likely not play as big a role as the Colts and Dungy have proven that they can let big LB talent go and play through, and Gardner had actually been benched in the middle of last season for underperforming. The biggest hit to the Colts from the offseason will likely be the retirement of LT Tarik Glenn, as the Colts have no ready made replacement for him and he was the anchor of the Colts line that allowed the fewest sacks in the NFL several times.
Because of their lack of cap room, the Colts made very few signings in the offseason, except for locking up DE Dwight Freeney to a 6yr/72mil contract with 30mil in signing money.


That's my attempt at it, hopefully some others can add. Also this would be the place to talk about any NFL issues leading up to camp. Hopefully we can keep the goings-on contained in one thread instead of several.

Cody

[PokerFink]

Hey Cody,

What do you think Ugoh's transition to the NFL will be like? My thinking is that on one hand, Manning's ability to read coverages/blitzes and assign protection will help, but at the same time the Colts run such a complicated offense that I can see Ugoh really struggling. What is the track record (if any) for rookie O-Lineman in the Manning offense? Are they going to start him at LT?

Ok here's my shot at the offseason thing:

Philadelphia

Last Season: A-

On one hand, the season was extremely frustrating. McNabb went down, again, and the latest injury could really hurt his future. What started out as a promising season quickly fell apart due to the injury, some bad play and terrible luck.

But the revilval under Jeff Garcia was an immensely enjoyable ride. The season seemed dead after the Colts game, and suddenly the team sprung back to life. For the past several years, I have expected the Eagles to win, every week. Blowouts were fun, close wins were not good enough and losses were disasterous. But this past year, each win became an unexpected thing to savor. It was fun.

Long-term, Andrews has emerged as perhaps the NFL's best guard and the offense re-discovered the running game. With a healthy McNabb and a healthy Westbrook running behind an awesome O-Line, the offense should be fantastic this year.

The Draft: B

Personally I think Kolb will be a good NFL quarterback and like the pick a lot more than most people. I joke with my friends that when Kolb leads us to back to back Superbowls in 2012 and 2013 I'm going to tell them all "told you so." But this is a team that can win the Superbowl now, so why think about 2012? And we could have gotten Kolb later in the draft, so in that sense it was bad value.

Other than that, I think they drafted fine. I've heard good things about Abiamiri.

The Offseason: A

The loss of Stallworth was offset by the signing of Kevin Curtis. We got Takeo Spikes. Added depth on the D-Line with Reagor and Ian Scott. Freak is healthy.

But by far the most important thing this offseason is McNabb's health, and he is ahead of schedule. That alone makes it an A.

Season Outlook

If McNabb is 100% by week 3 or so and stays healthy, they should win the division fairly easily. I see the Eagles as roughly equal to the Saints and Bears, as they were last year, and those three should be there in the end in the NFC.

If McNabb goes down or isn't the same the Eagles are a wildcard team, maybe.

[Richard Tanner]

[ QUOTE ]
Hey Cody,

What do you think Ugoh's transition to the NFL will be like? My thinking is that on one hand, Manning's ability to read coverages/blitzes and assign protection will help, but at the same time the Colts run such a complicated offense that I can see Ugoh really struggling. What is the track record (if any) for rookie O-Lineman in the Manning offense? Are they going to start him at LT?

Ok here's my shot at the offseason thing:

[/ QUOTE ]

Oh thank god you're here Fink, I thought all the NFL fans left. And nice work on the PHI card, shows what I know for forgeting the projection for the Colts.

As for Ugoh, he shouldn't start. From what I've seen and read he's not ready yet, and that was, as I understand it, the plan: play him at L/R Gaurd and get him used to the snapcount. Next year, Glenn retires and he steps in, I honestly feel that had that have happend, given the Colts staff, the transition would've been damn near seemless.

Now that that is no longer an option, it looks like any one of Diem (starting RT), C. Johnson (backup R/L T) or Ugoh could start/share minutes.

Ugoh himself is going to do fine. By all accounts he's a decently smart kid, and Peyton loves to talk to each player and get them in sync.

Lastly, the Colts will probably be fine on O. The most important factor is that Peyton is a football demi-god. That's about as far as it goes. The staff will find someone that works at tackle and I'd be shocked to see more then 20-25 sacks, Peytons reads/release are just that quick.


Colts Season Outlook-B+
*We aren't going to see repeat champs, but another epic AFC title game with NE isn't out of the question. The O is strong enough to carry the team through most meetings AFC or NFC.
That said, the team is just to thin on D to really hold up. Of course, they still have Bob Sanders and his bowel-loosening hits and Dwight Freeney drawing double and triple teams, so who knows

Record: 11-5, 3 seed AFC, Division loss to SD/AFC champ loss to NE.

[ QUOTE ]
Added depth on the D-Line with Reagor

[/ QUOTE ]

Fink, you guys got a steal here. Reagor was a real cap-casualty. He's not an All-Pro but I'm sure the Colts would've loved to keep him if at all possible.

Cody

[Sluss]

[ QUOTE ]
We got Takeo Spikes. Added depth on the D-Line with Reagor and Ian Scott. Freak is healthy.


[/ QUOTE ] The D-line rotation is going to be key for the Eagles. Outside of Trent Cole their pass rush was non existent last year even when Kearse was healthy. I was not a big fan of the Spikes signing (I think he is slipping), but he should be an upgrade over Jones. I like Gaither, I hope he can take that next step.

As for my take on the Bears:

Last season: A

Trip to the Superbowl has to be a great season. Dominated the entire NFC, not that it was that hard, and held their own against most AFC teams. And had a chance to win the Superbowl with the best defensive tackle in football standing on the sidelines. I have accepted the Super Bowl as Peyton Manning just not making a mistake. I wish upon wish that he did, but he just stayed smart the whole game. Nothing you can do about that.

Draft: B

Olsen should be an upgrade offensively. His blocking still leaves alot to be desired and will be nowhere as good as Des Clark's. Okwo looks like he could step into Brigg's shoes next year. Besides that some good speacial teams players a spot where the Bears have really been loaded the last few years.

Offseason: B

The loss of Thomas Jones hurts, but it's the price you have to pay with drafting Cedric Benson. The contract hangs over the Bears and there is no way you can justify both running backs making #1 back money. Jones got what he was promised a trade to a team where he can be a #1.

I'm still not pleased with the departing of Ron Rivera. The players insit Babich thinks exactly the same, but I liked the hybrid of Lovie's defense and a more aggressive Rivera scheme. Hopefully, it stays that way and doesn't become more "Tampa Two"ish.

The Archelta signing is probably better for the Bears than it would have been for most teams. He's not a big cap hit this year and he has excelled in this system before. We'll see if the bad back has ended his career.

Season Outlook:

The defense returns everbody, but Tank Johnson and a healthy Harris and Mike Brown puts them back into the domination they had at the begining of last year.

Hestor getting snaps on offense should be fun. Wade Wilson is gone. Hopefully the QB coach can keep Grossman as the guy who dominated a majority of games last year. Instead of the bad Rex everbody seems to think he is.

Still the best team in the NFC. Still with a pretty easy divison.

[Triumph36]

Short take on the Giants.

Last Season: B-

All things considered, it wasn't that bad - the Giants were within a few bounces of winning a playoff game. Still, that was built on Tiki Barber, who somehow managed to find work as a broadcaster this offseason. The Giants then made the mistake of keeping Tom Coughlin on even though his firing this year is inevitable.

Offseason: D

Tiki Barber retires, almost every Giants star snipes at one another through the media, the Giants acquire Reuben Droughns even though he is the same sort of back as Brandon Jacobs - and they acquire Anthony Wright to be a backup QB and Kavika Mitchell to play linebacker. David Diehl is our left tackle. Yippee.

Draft: ?

I don't know enough about college football to grade the Giants draft - I like them selecting a CB, even though they did that 2 years ago. I like them picking a WR even though they did that last year. The Giants have actually been halfway decent at drafting - it's just that their biggest pick has been a disappointment.

Season outlook: Who knows?

I've got no idea what to expect. Personally, I'm expecting them to win games in triumphant fashion, as well as having horrific, inexplicable losses - just like last year. Their comeback against the Eagles in Week 2 was nothing short of amazing. Their meltdown against the Titans was some form of NFL karma. So - I can't wait to see how they'll lose games, it's going to be exciting. They should be 7-9 or 8-8.

[Tyler Durden]

[ QUOTE ]
If McNabb is 100% by week 3 or so and stays healthy, they should win the division fairly easily.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is homerism at its finest. I doubt any team wins that division "fairly easily."

[Triumph36]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
If McNabb is 100% by week 3 or so and stays healthy, they should win the division fairly easily.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is homerism at its finest. I doubt any team wins that division "fairly easily."

[/ QUOTE ]

What year are you in where the NFC East is not weak? The Giants and Redskins have no chance, and the Cowboys, while good, are clearly behind the Eagles. Thus, PokerFink.

[chaseUdown]

[ QUOTE ]
That said, the team is just to thin on D to really hold up. Of course, they still have Bob Sanders and his bowel-loosening hits and Dwight Freeney drawing double and triple teams, so who knows

[/ QUOTE ]

How could they be worse than last year during the season though?

[SL__72]

Vikings:

Last season: C+

Their decision to go with Brad Johnson as the starting QB was a bad one. Sticking with him as long as they did was worse. The passing game was atrocious and the running game was average at best. Still, somehow Tomlin, running a variant of the cover-2, put together one of the best run defenses in league has ever seen. There has been a lot of talk in the off season about how horrible their pass defense was, but in reality, it was pretty average. It was only "ranked" so low because teams passed on them constantly because they couldn't run.

Offseason(free agency): C

Biggest need by far: QB, not addressed at all. F
2nd biggest need: WR, signed Bobby Wade, Cortez Hankton, track star and basketball player Todd Lowber. C-
3rd biggest need: TE, signed Visanthe Shiancoe. ?C+?
4th biggest need: RG/RT, not addressed at all. F

Draft: A-
1st: Adrian Peterson. RB wasn't a big need, but offensive playmaker was. Seems like a pretty good choice.

2nd: Sidney Rice. A lot of people were surprised they didn't go with Dwayne Jarrett here, but I really like this pick. They addressed a need and might have picked up a 1st round talent here.

3rd: Marcus McCauley. This pick is a bit of a gamble as McCauley didn't look particularly impressive last year. His size and tackling ability should make him a good fit for the cover 2 system and really fills out the roster at this position. If he can get back to playing the way he did 2 years ago, this is a def. steal.

4th: Brian Robison, another very good pick. Fills another defensive need, pass rusher, and is an absolute animal. I think he was a little overlooked because he played opposite Tim Crowder.

Rest: Picked up two more WRs, a QB and a LB who should be a special teams contributer right away.

Season Outlook: The Vikings are a tough team to make predictions about because they unexperienced at the offensive "skill" positions but talented everywhere else. Having to play the NFC east isn't good, but the AFC west isn't the toughest division in football, even though it has two very good teams.

Even in the weak NFC North, I don't see this team having much of a legitimate shot at the playoffs. If Tarvaris Jackson can show some development and the defense can perform as well, or better then last year, this season will have been a success.

Week 1, W > ATL
Week 2, W > DET
Week 3, W > KC
Week 4, W > GB
Week 6, L < CHI
Week 7, L < DAL
Week 8, L < PHI
Week 9, L < SD
Week 10, W > GB
Week 11, W > OAK
Week 12, L < NYG
Week 13, W > DET
Week 14, L < SF
Week 15, L < CHI
Week 16, W > WAS
Week 17, L < DEN

[Tyler Durden]

[ QUOTE ]
The Giants and Redskins have no chance

[/ QUOTE ]

Strange, that's what many people said about the Eagles heading into 2006...