faba Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Brandt's 60-second previews: NFC (July 7, 2005) -- The AFC will be highly competitive again this season with 12 teams capable of making the playoffs. In the AFC West, according to my preseason rankings, all four teams have a chance to reach the postseason, but most likely only one will make it. What's sure to happen is these teams will score a lot of points. The AFC North has Pittsburgh (15-1), but Baltimore and Cincinnati helped themselves greatly in the offseason. In the AFC South, two-time defending division champion Indianapolis needs to fend off Jacksonville and Houston. In the AFC East, the Patriots will have another tough schedule and will have to contend with two very good teams -- the Jets and Bills. Last year, we told you to expect the unexpected from the AFC. Expect the same this year, and try not to be surprised at the end. The AFC won 44 of 64 interconference games against the NFC last season. I expect the AFC to win a majority again this season, but not by as big a margin. AFC East Buffalo Bills New starting quarterback J.P. Losman has a chance to be this year's Ben Roethlisberger. Losman was rated above Eli Manning going into the 2003 college season but he didn't have a good senior year at Tulane. He'll be helped by Bills quarterbacks coach Sam Wyche, who is one of best at developing young passers. Running back Willis McGahee and receivers Eric Moulds and Lee Evans are big-time offensive playmakers, but there are questions about who will play left tackle. Defensive coordinator Jerry Gray coached the league's second-ranked defense in 2004 and will be a head coach one day. Bobby April does a great job with the best special teams in the league. Miami Dolphins It's been a busy offseason in Miami. New head coach Nick Saban, who never had a losing record in 11 seasons as a college head coach, takes over with a new staff and new running back, first-round pick Ronnie Brown, who should have a solid rookie season. The Dolphins signed a group of older free agents on defense in Kevin Carter, Vonnie Holliday, Tebucky Jones and Keith Traylor, but rookie cornerback Travis Daniels, a fourth-round pick, could be a surprise and earn a starting role. July 24 could be the big day Ricky Williams returns to the team. He will miss the first four games no matter where he plays, but he will be able to work out and play in preseason games. Miami's offense ranked 29th last season and the team had a minus-17 turnover ratio. Saban can turn it around, but it will take time. New England Patriots From the lady who answers the phones to owner Bob Kraft, no one does it better than the New England Patriots. And this year, no one has a tougher schedule to start the season. In the first six weeks, they will play Oakland and San Diego at home and have road games at Carolina, Pittsburgh, Atlanta and Denver. The Patriots lost their offensive and defensive coordinators, and Jeff Davidson left to be the offensive line coach in Cleveland. There's also a good possibility Tedy Bruschi, one of the most underrated players in the league, might not play this year after suffering a mild stroke in February. Free-agent signings and the trade for cornerback Duane Starks will help, and, of course, quarterback Tom Brady is a terrific player. The question facing the Patriots is whether the first dynasty of the salary-cap era can continue. I think the answer is yes, as long as coach Bill Belichick and player personnel VP Scott Pioli remain. New York Jets The Jets came very close to playing for the AFC championship last season. Curtis Martin became the oldest player to win the rushing title at the age of 31 and he carried the team in the postseason. The Jets need quarterback Chad Pennington to stay healthy in order to take some of the load off Martin. The defense played great last year under new defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson, giving up only 261 points and 30 touchdowns while creating 28 turnovers. Second-year player Adrian Jones needs to come through at right tackle and rookie kicker Mike Nugent needs to have a good season. AFC North Baltimore Ravens If the Ravens are going to be a factor, they need to improve an offense that ranked 31st in the league last year and scored only 24 touchdowns -- 11 rushing and 13 passing. In contrast, the New England Patriots scored 44 offensive touchdowns. To help the offense, the Ravens made former Giants head coach Jim Fassel offensive coordinator, signed free-agent wide receiver Derrick Mason (96 catches and seven TDs with Tennessee last year) and drafted receiver Mark Clayton. The Ravens should have tight end Todd Heap and running back Jamal Lewis both back healthy this year, but quarterback Kyle Boller needs to keep improving. New defensive coordinator Rex Ryan will run the 46 defense for a unit that ranked sixth overall in '04. Baltimore's toughest out-of-division games (Indianapolis, Green Bay and Minnesota) will all be at home. Cincinnati Bengals Last season, the Bengals finished 8-8 for the second successive season. They should be a strong contender for a playoff spot this season. Carson Palmer, in his first year as the starting quarterback, threw 18 touchdown passes and got better as the season went on. On defense, the team improved from previous years but still needs to get better. That was the Bengals' thinking with their first two draft picks, David Pollack and Odell Thurman, who should start and help the defense this year. Cincinnati's kicking game and special teams are above average. The team will play Minnesota, Green Bay, Indianapolis and Buffalo at home. Cleveland Browns Everything is new in Cleveland except for the uniforms. The Browns have a new head coach in Romeo Crennel, new coordinators, a new general manager, a new quarterback in Trent Dilfer and a new running back with Reuben Droughns. With Lee Suggs, William Green and Droughns as the options in the backfield, the Browns should be able to run better than in 2004, when they scored only six rushing touchdowns, tied for the fewest in the league. Wide receiver Braylon Edwards, a first-round pick, should be a future star. Crennel will have a hand in improving a rushing defense that ranked last in the league in '04 and gave up 22 touchdowns, the most in the NFL. Randy Lerner is an outstanding owner who will do everything possible to bring the franchise back to its glory days. Pittsburgh Steelers What do you do for an encore for a team that went 15-1 with a rookie quarterback? (The 1998 Minnesota Vikings were the last team to win 15 games; they went 10-6 the next season.) The Steelers were ranked No. 1 on defense last year and they return all 11 starters, plus they get Pro Bowl defensive tackle Casey Hampton back after he missed the final 10 games in 2004. Kendall Simmons, a starter on the offensive line in 2003, also returns after missing the entire 2004 season. The Steelers did lose wide receiver Plaxico Burress, who gained 19.9 yards per catch last season, but rookie tight end Heath Miller should be a future NFL star. Pittsburgh plays New England, Jacksonville and Green Bay, plus three tough Monday Night Football games. The Steelers are an outstanding organization from top to bottom. AFC South Houston Texans Entering their fourth year as an expansion team in a tough division, the Texans have some very good young players in place with quarterback David Carr, receiver Andre Johnson, cornerback Dunta Robinson and linebacker Jason Babin. The trade for cornerback Phillip Buchanon should help a pass defense that gave up 32 touchdown passes in 2004 -- only Green Bay (33) allowed more. The Texans are one of the best-run organizations in the NFL, but they face challenges playing in a tough conference. Peyton Manning is the MVP, but Fred Taylor might hold the key to who wins the AFC South. Indianapolis Colts The Colts led the league in 2004 with 522 points, including 66 total touchdowns. Quarterback Peyton Manning did everything in an MVP season that saw him set an NFL single-season record for touchdown passes (49). The Colts had three 1,000-yard receivers last year; also look for tight end Dallas Clark to have a big season in 2005. The offensive line gave up only 14 sacks; the league average was 37. Indy won 12 regular-season games and lost to New England in the playoffs, but to get to the Super Bowl, the Colts need to improve a defense that ranked 29th overall, the worst finish in coach Tony Dungy's career. Their first three draft picks this year were used on defensive players. The defense did help the Colts lead the NFL with a plus-19 turnover margin. Jacksonville Jaguars An up-and-coming team, the Jaguars beat Green Bay and Indianapolis last year but lost twice to Houston, which kept them out of the playoffs. They have a good defensive line that got better with the signing of free-agent defensive end Reggie Hayward, who had 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomShane Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 That Gil, he's so "with it." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bitonti Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 grandpa Gil still thinks the forward pass is illegal and helemts don't have facemasks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomShane Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Leading passer: Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Leading rusher: LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Receptions leader: Randy Moss, Oakland Gil really goes out on a ledge, doesn't he? whew! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatsFanTX Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 The Jets need quarterback Chad Pennington to stay healthy. Can anybody ever write something about the Jets without referring to the China Doll's health? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomShane Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Can anybody ever write something about the Jets without referring to the China Doll's health? No. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatsFanTX Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 AFC MVP: Tom Brady, New England Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomShane Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Relax. According to Gil Brady will have to just beat out JP Losman for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sperm Edwards Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 [Curtis Martin] carried the team in the postseason. What games was he watching? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackout Posted July 8, 2005 Share Posted July 8, 2005 What games was he watching? well, maybe he meant to say 'carried the team TO the post season' which would still be incorrect, since Curtis wasn't on the defense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sperm Edwards Posted July 8, 2005 Share Posted July 8, 2005 well, maybe he meant to say 'carried the team TO the post season' which would still be incorrect, since Curtis wasn't on the defense Most accurate would've been "Curtis Martin rode the defense to the post season" since keeping the opp's score down was the only thing that allowed him to get all those carries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsfan80 Posted July 8, 2005 Share Posted July 8, 2005 Most accurate would've been "Curtis Martin rode the defense to the post season" since keeping the opp's score down was the only thing that allowed him to get all those carries. Yes, that and the fact that Curtis called the shots, not Herm, regarding his own workload. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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