Any other season, they might have a shot. But the Packers are going to be a force this year. As long as Rodgers stays healthy, no one in the North can touch them.
I cant see any errors in your NFC North Predictions, though I will say the bears are due for a playoff win over the pack......at least I hope so.
the bears D looks terrible outside of the dline
Just did a quick perusing of the Jaguars schedule, where exactly do you propose they are getting their 7 wins from?
I don't see the Bears coming into Philly and beating them. They couldn't do it last year, and the Iggles are even better this year. In fact, I'd be surprised if the Bears made the playoffs since Cutler isn't a paragon of health and their D has a lot more questions than Philly will ever have. In fact, Philly's D did exceptionally well in the preseason.
As noted i don't consider game by game schedules when doing this, but the Jags are in the AFC south, a weak division...no reason to think they can't get 3-4 wins there. Also, they play the NFC east and AFC north, neither of which are very strong, and they get Miami at home, which is winnable.
Obviously a lot can go wrong, they're the Jaguars after all, but I see no reason they can't win 7 games with that schedule.
I don't see the Bears coming into Philly and beating them. They couldn't do it last year, and the Iggles are even better this year. In fact, I'd be surprised if the Bears made the playoffs since Cutler isn't a paragon of health and their D has a lot more questions than Philly will ever have. In fact, Philly's D did exceptionally well in the preseason.
So you just pulled an random number out of your head is what you're saying?
Just did a quick perusing of the Jaguars schedule, where exactly do you propose they are getting their 7 wins from?
Yeah, that's a surprisingly tough third-place schedule. If I am very optimistic, I could see them beating:
Cleveland
Titans (once)
Texans (once)
Giants
I can't see them winning 3 more games to get 7 wins, though I could see them getting 5 wins.
Yeah, this thread is a joke. I mean at least put some thought into it. Texans winning divisions with Fitzpatrick? I mean c'mon now.
What remains to be seen is, did the Eagles improve? On one hand, they're in their second year with a system and they added a couple of guys. On the other hand, Foles almost has to regress a bit, and they lost Jackson. I think losing Jackson will hurt more than people realize... Even when he wasn't catching the ball, he was demanding attention from the defense.
Long-tabbed as one of the key pieces of the post-DeSean Jackson era in Philly, Ertz has done nothing to squash the hype in camp. Veteran reporter Paul Domowitch goes as far as to mention Ertz in the same breath as Jimmy Graham, Jason Witten and Rob Gronkowski. "Ertz has that kind of ability, that kind of upside," Domowitch says.
Grade: -5.5
Snaps: 146
Analysis: Console yourself with this Eagles fans; with Trent Cole, Connor Barwin and Brandon Graham you can afford for Smith to take his time to develop. Seven tackles across three games (with two misses) and just three hurries despite rushing the passer 45 times. He’s been very quiet so far.
So who are you a fan of that you are so upset that I dared put the Jags and Texans so high? Must be Colts, can't see why else this would hurt your feelings so bad.
I already explained to you why I think the Jaguars can win seven games. They're in a crappy division and they play two other crappy divisions, so their schedule is not that hard. Do things have to fall the right way for that to happen? Yes, but that's what preseason picks are about - guessing which way the dominos will fall.
As far as the Texans go, people have surprisingly short memories. Just a year ago there were those picking them to go to the Superbowl, and this years team isn't that different, roster wise. Sure, they are weak at QB, but you know what? They've been weak at QB. Schaub was always overrated, and now their defense has a new stud ready to step in and make an impact.
Teams that make a big swing in a season usually rebound a little, and considering the same things I just said about the Jags (weak division, easy schedule), they certainly could rebound back to the top.
So settle down sport, plenty of thought went into it, if you disagree you may feel free to debate, but if you don't like the thread on premise no one is forcing you here.
Yes, the Eagles improved immensely since last year. Maclin/Matthews/Sproles more than makes up for Desean. I would actually say losing Bryce Brown will hurt more than Desean.
Ertz learning the Chip Kelly year 1 offense was huge, he will be quite the weapon this year which minimizes Desean even more.
Any other season, they might have a shot. But the Packers are going to be a force this year. As long as Rodgers stays healthy, no one in the North can touch them.
Jets fan. And i'm not gonna make any bold predictions or commentary about them except to say you really nailed the Jets prediction last year. Nailed it.