Indisputable Visual Evidence

We are currently four weeks into this bright NFL season. That means some of the teams are 1/4 of the way through their seasons if they haven't had a bye week already (if they had, it's completely ridiculous, but that's just me). Now looks like a good time to review my preseason predictions, and find out just how much of a load of hoohah they really are. If you want to read the original articles, here they are: AFC, NFC, Postseason.

AFC East (My Predictions)

1. Miami
2. New England
3. NY Jets
4. Buffalo

AFC East (Actual)

1. New England (3-1)
2. Buffalo (2-2)
3. NY Jets (2-2)
4. Miami (1-3)

New England once again is proving detractors wrong and showing that they can win football games even without the presence of actual talent on their team. If you were wondering what that sound was, it's Bill Belichek's ego growing. So far, I'm way off on Miami, as apparently Nick Saban has been bit by the stupid bug, and decided that throwing almost 75% of the time with a shaky QB is way better than utilizing your running game, which features one of the ten best backs in the game. Buffalo and the Jets look feisty, which I correctly predicted.

AFC North (My Predictions)

1. Baltimore
2. Pittsburgh
3. Cincinnati
4. Cleveland

AFC North (Actual)

1. Baltimore (4-0)
2. Cincinnati (3-1)
3. Pittsburgh (1-2)
4. Cleveland (1-3)

I'm feeling pretty good about the Baltimore pick right now. Pittsburgh looks dead in the water, and will be if they don't get Roethlisberger on track. Cincinnati is probably better than I gave them credit for, but they looked absolutely terrible against the Pats last weekend, so they may be cracking.

AFC South (My Predictions)

1. Indianapolis
2. Jacksonville
3. Tennessee
4. Houston

AFC South (Actual)

1. Indianapolis (4-0)
2. Jacksonville (2-2)
3. Houston (1-3)
4. Tennessee (0-4)

I pretty much have this one nailed so far, although in everyone else's defense, this might be the easiest division in the league to pick. Some things I'd like to point out: I said that the Jags would have a tendency to put up too many brain farts to take the division, and that's exactly what they've done in their two losses so far, losing to the Colts and Redskins in what were very winnable games. I realize that I have Houston and Tennessee flip-flopped, but if Vince Young starts to mature, he could win some games for the Titans Michael Vick style, while the Texans really have no hope if David Carr suddenly stops doing his Jim Kelly impersonation.

AFC West (My Predictions)

1. San Diego
2. Denver
3. Kansas City
4. Oakland

AFC West (Actual)

1. Denver (2-1)
2. San Diego (2-1)
3. Kansas City (1-2)
4. Oakland (0-3)

I'm happy with the way this has gone so far, as well. Jake Plummer hasn't been as terrible as I may or may not have predicted him to be, but he hasn't been good enough to stop the Jay Cutler rumblings in Denver yet. If Marty Schottenheimer ever gives Phillip Rivers the reins in San Diego, the Bolts will be very good. Randy Moss has already quit on Art Shell.

NFC East (My Predictions)

1. NY Giants
2. Dallas
3. Washington
4. Philadelphia

NFC East (Actual)

1. Philadelphia (3-1)
2. Dallas (2-1)
3. Washington (2-2)
4. NY Giants (1-2)

So far, I was way off on the Eagles. Donovan McNabb has looked terrific. Donte Stallworth has been what the Eagles have been missing at receiver for the last few years. Brian Westbrook has been amazing when healthy. The defense has been better than advertised. I'm not trying to puff myself up, but if any two of those above statements stop working for Philly, they are done. They already showed that they can lose a winnable game with that horrific collapse in New York. I'm not ready to anoint them NFC Champs just yet.

NFC North (My Predictions)

1. Detroit
2. Minnesota
3. Chicago
4. Green Bay

NFC North (Actual)

1. Chicago (4-0)
2. Minnesota (2-2)
3. Green Bay (1-3)
4. Detroit (0-4)

Yep. 'Nuff said. Ouch. Since the Bears are the new media darlings in the NFL, that pretty much guarantees that they won't be in the Super Bowl. Here's why: Rex Grossman is bound to get hurt sooner or later. Brian Griese has no chance at playing anywhere near the level Rex has all season, and they didn't really get their running game going until week 4 against the Seahawks. This team is primed to fall apart at some point or other, and I'm going to stick to my guns with them. I freely admit that I was completely wrong about Detroit. Kitna looks like nothing more than a caretaker QB, and that defense has been awful.

NFC South (My Predictions)

1. Tampa Bay
2. Carolina
3. Atlanta
4. New Orleans

NFC South (Actual)

1. Atlanta (3-1)
2. New Orleans (3-1)
3. Carolina (2-2)
4. Tampa Bay (0-3)

So far, not so good on this one. The Falcons still might be an 8-8 team, but that doesn't look like it'll be a major problem in this division. New Orleans has come out of nowhere, and that's even without a really substantial contribution by Reggie Bush. Once he takes off, this team could be really fun to watch. I feel bad for Tampa Bay--losing a QB like Chris Simms is never easy. Not to say that Simms was a world-beater when he was in there, because they were playing poorly with him in the lineup, but he was the team leader and now they have Bruce Gradkowski starting.

NFC West (My Predictions)

1. Seattle
2. St. Louis
3. Arizona
4. San Francisco

NFC West (Actual)

1. Seattle (3-1)
2. St. Louis (3-1)
3. Arizona (1-3)
4. San Francisco (1-3)

Woo Hoo! Don't see the order changing much during the season, just the records. The Cards and Niners could be rotating all year long, as Matt Leinert deals with not having an O-Line and Frank Gore deals with not being able to hold infants because the parents are afraid he'll drop them.

Well, that's about it. I'm gonna stay the course on these picks, because unlike ESPN, I believe that there are still 13 weeks of football left, and that's plenty of time for teams to screw up a good thing and to improve upon a bad thing. Unless you're Detroit. Then you're done.