2018 NFL Predictions

The NFL is back, and the 2018 season is about to kickoff, but as usual the NFL finds itself in a bit of quagmire once again as another season approaches. This time of the year football fans are usually getting ready for the onslaught of nonstop football for the next five months. The last few years the NFL has found itself worrying about other topics outside of the games and it has caused quite a distraction for the league and its fanbase. This year, the national anthem issue is still lingering. It just won't go away. The new helmet rule will certainly cause controversy as the league tries everything it can to make the game safer. It will definitely be something to watch because you really can't take the violence out of football. Plus, a new slew of officials will be apart of this new season, and we know how frustrating the past few years have been with all these referees having different ways and interpretations of all the new rules that have been implemented. What it adds up to is a variety of topics to discuss about the NFL without actually talking about and enjoying the games. True, die-hard NFL fans just want to savor the return of the football, watch the games, play fantasy football, and indulge in some week-to-week gambling. Let's just try to emphasize the fun of what the NFL used to be about, and focus on the return of the NFL and all the ups and downs and storylines that will arise during this campaign. Without further ado, here are my 2018 NFL Predictions............

NFC

NFC East
1) Washington Redskins (10-6)
2) Philadelphia Eagles (8-8)
3) NY Giants (8-8)
4) Dallas Cowboys (8-8)
Analysis: The Redskins are the sleeper team and pull the upset and win the division. The Eagles suffer from the Carson Wentz injury and a Super Bowl hangover and miss the playoffs. The Giants are exciting and will be better this year, but fall short of the playoffs, and the Cowboys finish at 8-8.

NFC North
1) Green Bay Packers (12-4)
2) Minnesota Vikings (9-7) *Wild Card
3) Chicago Bears (8-8)
4) Detroit Lions (4-12)
Analysis: Aaron Rodgers is back and so are the Packers as winners of the NFC North. The Vikings and Kirk Cousins get a wild card berth. The Bears are improved and Lions fall apart under first year head coach, Matt Patricia.


NFC South
1) Atlanta Falcons (11-5)
2) New Orleans Saints (8-8)
3) Carolina Panthers (7-9)
4) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-12)
Analysis: The Falcons get back to the top of the division. The Saints take a step back after that epic playoff loss last year in Minnesota. The Panthers take a step back too, and the Bucs suffer through a rough season.
NFC West
1) San Francisco 49ers (10-6)
2) LA Rams (10-6)*Wild Card
3) Seattle Seahawks (8-8)
4) Arizona Cardinals (4-12)
Analysis: I'll bet on the 49ers and Rams both making the playoffs. Seattle misses out on the playoffs with all the new faces and the Cardinals suffer through a very long, losing season.

NFC Playoff Seeds and Predictions:
1) Green Bay
2) Atlanta
3) San Francisco
4) Washington
5) LA Rams
6) Minnesota

Wild Card Weekend:
6) Minnesota over 3) SF: The Vikings and Kirk Cousins go into SF and knock of the young 49ers on the road.
5) LA Rams over 4) Washington: The Rams win their first playoff game since 2004 and advance to the Divisional Round.

Divisional Round:
1) Green Bay over 6) Minnesota: Two rivals meet in Lambeau Field and Aaron Rodgers outduels Kirk Cousins to advance to their second NFC Championship Game in three years.

2) Atlanta over 5) LA Rams: The Falcons advance to the NFC Championship Game again for the second time in three years.

NFC Championship:
2) Atlanta over 1) Green Bay: The Falcons advance to their third Super Bowl by beating the Packers once again-this time in Lambeau Field.

AFC

AFC East
1) New England Patriots (11-5)
2) NY Jets (8-8)
3) Miami Dolphins (5-11)
4) Buffalo Bills (4-12)
Analysis: The Pats are still the kings of the division and will win another AFC East title. The Jets are a year away. The Dolphins and Bills are way behind and will have a long season respectively.

AFC North
1) Pittsburgh Steelers (11-5)
2) Cincinnati Bengals (9-7)*Wild Card
3) Baltimore Ravens(8-8)
4) Cleveland Browns (5-11)
Analysis: The Steelers still have a very talented team and will win the division. The Bengals are my sneaky, surprise team in the AFC, and I think they make the playoffs. The Ravens will fall short of the playoffs once again because of the lingering Joe Flacco vs. Lamar Jackson QB situation. The Browns will win five games-which might be a positive for them.

AFC South
1) Houston Texans (9-7)
2) Jacksonville Jaguars (8-8)
3) Indianapolis Colts (7-9)
4) Tennessee Titans (6-10)
Analysis: Houston wins the division with Deshaun Watson and JJ Watt returning from injuries. The Jags take a step back. The Colts improve with the return of Andrew Luck, and the Titans have a tough year under new head coach, Mike Vrabel.

AFC West
1) LA Chargers (10-6)
2) Kansas City Chiefs (10-6)*Wild Card
3) Denver Broncos (8-8)
4) Oakland Raiders (7-9)
Analysis: The Chargers win the division as Philip Rivers has one more run in him. Andy Reid gets Pat Mahomes to play well enough to get the Chiefs back into the playoffs. Denver is better than last year, but not good enough to make the playoffs in a tough division. I'm not sold on Jon Gruden returning to Oakland, and I think the Raiders are all sizzle and no steak.

AFC Playoff Seeds and Predictions
1) New England
2) Pittsburgh
3) LA Chargers
4) Houston
5) Kansas City
6) Cincinnati

Wild Card Weekend:
3) LA Chargers over 6) Cincy: The Chargers best the Bengals, who still can't win a playoff game under Marvin Lewis, and win their first playoff game since 2013.

4) Houston over 5) Kansas City: The Texans beat the Chiefs and advance to the Divisional Round for the second time in three seasons.

Divisional Round:
4) Houston over 1) New England: Houston goes into Foxboro and stuns the Patriots as NE fails to make the AFC Championship for the first time in eight years.

2) Pittsburgh over 3) LA Chargers: The Steelers survive the Chargers and head to their second AFC Championship in three years.

AFC Championship:
2) Pittsburgh over 4) Houston: The Steelers advance to their ninth Super Bowl as they outlast the Texans.

Super Bowl LIII
Atlanta over Pittsburgh: The Falcons become the first team to play in their home stadium in Super Bowl history, and they breakthrough and defeat the Steelers to win their first Super Bowl title in franchise history.

Broncos Summer Mailbag

As OTAs and minicamp winds down, the Broncos head into the summer with a positive outlook at rebounding off a horrific 2017 season and getting back into playoff contention in 2018. As I always do around this time, I like to do a summer mailbag as we head into the summer break before the Broncos return for training camp in late July. Here we go.....

How does the selection of Bradley Chubb look at this point heading into the summer?
You have to be excited as a Broncos fan at the potential of Bradley Chubb combining with Von Miller. Chubb looks impressive so far in offseason work, and he immediately is becoming a fan favorite. Of course, Chubb will have a learning curve going into his first year in the NFL, but the excitement level for him and Von is off the charts.

What other rookies are you getting excited about after OTAs?
A lot of people are talking about Royce Freeman eventually being the starter at RB for the beginning of the season, but I'm really excited to see our two new receivers, Courtland Sutton and Desean Hamilton, get acclimated to this offense. I think both can play a big role for us this year, and I think they have looked really impressive early on.

How long has it taken you to buy into the Case Keenum era in Denver?
I thought it would be a tough sell and it would take until September for me to buy into the Case Keenum era in Denver, but it took me only until June to get excited and go all in on Keenum. Is he better than Kirk Cousins? At this point in his career, he is not. Could we have made a mistake by not taking one of the four big QBs to come out in the draft? Yes, it could be a mistake in the long run, but for 2018 and the short-term future, the Keenum move could be a very positive and successful one. He is cheaper than Cousins, so the value aspect helps that and it also helps us build a more well-rounded team around him. We also don't have to go through the rookie QB pains that other teams have to deal with when you turn your team over to a young QB. For this year and for this team, you can make the case that Keenum can be very successful with this group. Maybe Keenum is just hitting his stride. He can certainly do the job if our defense plays well, our running game works, and he just manages the game and mistakes. He could definitely take this team back to the playoffs. Plus, you have to like all the talk around him from minicamp and OTAs. The fact that leaders and veterans on the team are happy to have an established QB is a good sign. Also, you are constantly hearing about how much of a leader he is, and that is something the Broncos have lacked since Peyton Manning retired. I think Keenum can have the same kind of impact that Jake Plummer had when he signed with Denver in 2003. I'm going all in on Keenum this year, and I think he could work out in the end.

Are you still getting over the Broncos not selecting a QB in the first round this past April in the draft?
It took awhile, and I think I will always be stung by the Broncos not selecting or trading up for a QB in the first round, but I understand why and how it played out. The Broncos were only sold on Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield. If those two guys didn't fall in their lap, then they weren't going to take another QB. Those two guys were gone in the top three, and they didn't want to trade assets to go get them. They weren't sold on Josh Allen and Josh Rosen, and only time will tell if they made that mistake. We won't know for years. I really wanted Mayfield and I thought for a long time that he would be there at #5, but as Mayfield's stock rose, it looked like he wasn't going to be there, and I started resigning myself to the fact that the Broncos were going to go with Keenum. I'm kind of over it, but it will be a little scar on me for some time.

What did you think about the Broncos NOT picking up Shane Ray's 5th year option?
It wasn't surprising considering the injury situation with Ray, and the fact that the Broncos have a lot of depth at that spot. Injuries have hampered two out of the three years that Ray has been in the league. His best year was 2016 when he was healthy all year long. Just this month, Ray found out he needs another procedure on the wrist he injured last season. Given all that into account, it is understandable that Ray's 5th year option wasn't picked up. Hopefully, Ray plays well this year and the Broncos can come to terms with him on a long term deal going forward.

What is your feeling about Vance Joseph as we head into his second year as head coach?

It certainly looked like VJ was going to be gone after last season, but he is back for year two. Hopefully, he learned from his mistakes and hopefully he can do a better job in his second year. There is a lot of pressure on him going into year two. If he gets off to a bad start, then he will probably lose his job, but I would expect some type of improvement from him this year and hopefully he is getting his message across this past spring.

What is your thoughts about the looming backup QB battle between Chad Kelly and Paxton Lynch?
I think Lynch got a bit of a vote of confidence when the Broncos didn't select a QB at all in the draft this past April. It will be interesting because Chad Kelly has come back in shape and healthy from last year, and he has made some really nice strides this offseason. I still think Lynch wins the backup job, but it will definitely be a battle to watch come training camp.

What is the deal with the brewing ownership battle amongst the Bowlen children?
A few weeks ago, one of Pat Bowlen's daughters, Beth Bowlen came out and said that she has the desire to become the Broncos majority owner once her father passes the torch. The Broncos trust, led by Joe Ellis, fired back that Beth is not qualified at this time. There were other articles printed, Mike Klis amongst them, that portrayed one of Bowlen's other daughters, Brittany Bowlen, would be the best and most obvious choice. All of this turmoil is not a surprise to Broncos fans because we have seen this on the horizon. Once Pat Bowlen gave up daily control of the team due to his battle with Alzheimer's disease, this ownership situation with the Broncos has become an issue. Bowlen wants to transfer the team to one of his children and keep it in the family. It seems that the favorable choice is Brittany Bowlen, and the other children are not the ones that fit the bill, including Beth. All this adds up to a messy situation, but for the short-term it won't have a big effect on the Broncos. Joe Ellis is the owner in standing for Bowlen and makes all the key decisions and business moves, while John Elway handles the football operations. Once Bowlen passes away, the trust will then have to make their decision. For now, it shouldn't affect the Broncos, but down the road it will become a very interesting and sticky situation.

How do you feel about the Broncos using three games for alternate uniforms next year?

The Broncos will wear their orange Color Rush uniforms for one game next year. For the first time, they will wear them at home. They will wear them for their 4:25 pm EST Week 12 game against the Steelers. They will also wear their blue jerseys for home games against the Chiefs in Week 4 for Monday Night Football and in Week 15 for their Saturday game against the Browns. I like the fact that the Broncos will get to wear the orange Color Rush uniforms at home for the first time, and I'm sure the crowd and stadium will be all orange for that game against the Steelers. I always like when they wear the blue, so I'm happy to see those two times next year.

Where does this team rank right now in the AFC West going into the summer?
Coming off a 5-11 season, a lot of people have the Broncos behind the other three teams in the AFC West heading into the summer. I think that this division is very winnable next year. I think the Chargers probably have the most talent of anyone in the division, so I would say they are the favorites. The Chiefs have moved on from Alex Smith and are going with Pat Mahomes at QB next year, so you are not sure what you are going to get with him and that team going into next year. Jon Gruden has come back to coach the Raiders, but did the Raiders make any moves to really improve their team? I think the Broncos can certainly challenge for the division and win it at 10-6 if Case Keenum can play like he did last year in Minnesota, and if our defense can be as good as advertised. If those things happen, then Denver can contend in the West.