Rob0729

Yeah, I know it is early, but with training camp two days away and all the pubs already making preseason predictions and a slow day at work, I thought I would throw mine out there. These are all subject to change.

AFC seeding:
1.) Patriots
2.) Texans
3.) San Diego
4.) Steelers
5.) Broncos
6.) Bills

Wild Card Round
Bills over Chargers
Steelers over Broncos

Division Round
Pats over Bills
Texans over Steelers

AFC Championships
Pats over Texans

NFC Seedings
1.) Packers
2.) Eagles
3.) Falcons
4.) 49ers
5.) Giants
6.) Lions

Wild Card Round
49ers over Giants
Lions over Falcons

Division Round
Packers over Lionss
Eagles over 49ers

NFC Championships
Packers over Eagles

Super Bowl
Pats over Packers

AFC East:

Pats -13-3
Bills - 10-6
Jets - 7-9
Miami 5-11

MVP - Brady
OPOY - Rodgers
DPOY - Ware
DROY - Morris Clairborne
OROY - Trent Richardson
Comeback player - Peyton Manning (I don't think he will be nearly as good as some expect, but he just needs to be an average QB to lock in this award because of the media love)

Some predictions (Patriots):

- The Pats defense will be in the top half of the league in yards and top 10 in points allowed.
- McCourty bounces back, but not to where he was as a rookie.
- The Pats will have three receivers north of a 1,000 yards (Lloyd, Welker, and Gronk)
- Chandler Jones gets 8 sacks
- With the improvement of the defense, Mayo is set loose a bit and becomes a playmaker.
- Dowling leads the team in INTs (5)
- Shane Vereen becomes the lead back and gets north of 900 yards. Still RBC approach though.
- Surprise cut: Branch (I know Brady loves him, but Gaffney and Lloyd knock him down the pecking order and Stallworth proves some worth on special teams)
- Hightower is a a ROY finalist
- Carter's and Anderson's sacks will be replaced and the Pats will have the same or more sacks this year than last. The thing is that the Pats will get a lot of these sacks from other positions like LB and interior linemen.



Predictions (The rest of the league):

- The entire AFC North takes a step back. The Ravens take the biggest fall, but both the Steelers and Bengals take a step back too.
- The Colts finish in last place again mirroring Peyton's first year (well the Colts were tied for last place Peyton's rookie year). They gotta hope they can turn it into a player like they did with Marshall Faulk.
- Sanchez is benched in December
- Best free agent pick up: Cortland Finnegan
- Worst free agent pick up: Vincent Jackson
- The Saints will not win 8 games this year.

patsinthesnow

So the Pats will be in the top half of yardage and top 10 points allowed in defense, they will have 3 1,000 yard WRs, Brady will be MVP, and yet they go 13-3 with the easiest schedule in the league? Everyone's afraid to predict the truth.

Ice_Ice_Brady

Manning will win MVP with 8 wins and a passer rating of 80.5.

Rob0729

I don't know if you are serious or not, but here is my response:
- The Pats were 14th in points allowed last year. Becoming in the top ten is not much of a leap
- The Pats were close to having three 1,000 yard receivers last year. Hernandez had 910 yards in 14 games played last year. I expect both Welker's and Gronk's yardage totals to go down to make up for Lloyd's yardage difference
- I doubt the Pats will have the easiest schedule in the league by the end of last year. SOS is useless right now because teams change a lot from year to year.
- Brady will get the MVP because the MVP is part popularity contest and who is trending at the end of the year many times. I think Brees will take a step back a bit with Payton gone for the year. I think it will be a two person race between Brady and Rodgers and Brady will just get the edge.

Patriot 37

Pats win 14
Chiefs win west
Steelers don't make playoffs

patsinthesnow

No Rob I agree with your predictions, my point was to the 13-3. The Pats went 13-3 last year Ocho/Haynesworth completely failing, the defense being a sieve all season, Mccourty having the absolute worst season he could have, along with no deep WR threat.

So, based on your prediction of 3 1,000 yard WRs and Brady being MVP, you're saying the pats will be the top offense. If the Pats are the #1 offense in the league, along with having a top 10 in points allowed defense, they aren't going 13-3, they are going 15-1 or 16-0.

Deus Irae

Patriots #1 in points scored
Patriots #6 in points scored against

Gronk has fewer catches
Welker has fewer catches

Carter returns
Mayo has more sacks

Hightower is a week one starter, or at least a major contributor (high snap count)
Dennard makes the team as CB4

__________________
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane."
- Marcus Aurelius

patsfaninpittsburgh

Lloyd becomes target #1

The "hurry up" becomes an even bigger component of the offense. Patriots are #1 in points and 32rd TOP.

The defense gives up some useless yards up 4 TD's in several games.

The useless yards and TOP once again become a source of hysteria for mediots and various marginal types at patsfans.com.

patsfaninpittsburgh

The "Welker isn't signed" crew from patsfans.com goes even more hysterical and starts to perform weird protest rituals at home games.

Rob0729

I will never predict 15-1 or 16-0. I still think the Pats could go 13-3. Even in 2003, the Pats lost to a bad Dolphins team. Expecting three losses is not that unrealistic even with what I say about how the Pats will do as a team.