Time to switch conferences!
Bad predictions based on conventional wisdom aren’t limited to the NFC. The AFC has it’s share of garbage fortunetelling as well. Here are a few things that you should take with a grain of salt.
1. The Jets will be better than Buffalo
I know, I know. Who cares about the soon-to-be third and fourth place teams in the AFC East? Mike Greenberg and Peter King, apparently. And the Sporting News. All three have declared that the Mark Sanchez-led Jets will finish ahead of the Bills. Apparently, the success that Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan had last year has a lot of people thinking that rookie quarterbacks can just be successful all the time now. Even though Sanchez started all of one year at USC, has untested receivers (the exception being Jericho Cotchery), and a horrendous first month of opponents (Houston, New England, Tennessee, New Orleans). 0-4 is a real possibility; now does anyone really think that the Jets will be able to climb out of that hole with a rookie QB? I sure don’t. The Bills may be a 6 to 8 win team, but the Jets looke more like 3-13 or 4-12 to me.
2. The Pats’ front office won’t miss a beat.
That’s what the Peter Kings of the world think. They’ve swallowed so much of the Bill Belichek Kool Aid that they laud every move he makes. I don’t buy it, and I think the loss of Scott Pioli in the front office is revealing some hubris on Belichek’s part. Pioli was reportedly the main guy in the front office who would argue with Belichek on personnel matters, and now he’s gone. And the arrogance is showing. He’s already dumped every veteran backup QB they had, and unless they have an ace in the hole there’s no one who can fill in if Brady goes down again. Try calling Jeff Garcia, Bill!
3. Pittsburgh can’t repeat.
Yes, they weren’t very good the year after they won it all in 2005. And yes, it’s always hard to repeat. But why on Earth are the Pats the chalk pick to win the AFC? The Steelers return 19 of 22 starters, and have at least another year or two before any real age issues hit. The Pats on the other hand, have shed numerous leaders on defense and have a quarterback coming off year long injury. And they’re the favorites. Right…….
