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BwareDWare94
Where were you when the world stopped turning?
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At last, game week is upon us. In an effort to up the discussion going into the regular season, I thought I'd give these threads a trial run in two divisions. I'll outline each game (based on what I know about each team) and give a prediction.
TNF: Green Bay Packers @ Seattle Seahawks
What to Expect:
The Packers travel to Seattle with an explosive offense that should give the best defense in the league all it can handle. Aaron Rodgers is still undeniably the best quarterback in the NFL, and now that he's got Eddie Lacy to take some pressure off of him, the Packers have an even scarier offensive unit. The balance Lacy provides should force the Seahawks to put more men in the box and give guys like Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb plenty of room to work. I'm also interested to see what Jarrett Boykin brings to the table, and have liked the cockiness and bring it on attitude that he's displayed in his career, thus far.
The Seahawks lay in wait like rabid Cujo, ready to attack whichever poor bastard stumbles into his yard. Their defense has some question marks with the loss of Walter Thurmond to the Giants, but with Chancellor, Thomas, and Sherman still intact, I highly doubt they need to worry much about Byron Maxwell. The Packers may be the stiffest test they'll face this season, and they're lucky to get it out of the way early when they're definitely going to be healthy. I don't expect Green Bay to walk all over Seattle's defense, or even come close to doing so, but I expect them to be efficient and force Russell Wilson to put points on the board at a faster pace than he normally has to. What remains to be seen is how good Green Bay's defense is, or how poor Seattle's passing offense is without any real firepower on the outside, unless they plan to take Percy Harvin out of the hybrid slot receiver/running threat role that he's most comfortable in. Nobody is scared of Doug Baldwin or Jermaine Kearse.
Prediction: Seahawks 30 Packers 27
What it all comes down to is who forces turnovers, and Russell Wilson doesn't play in an offense that gives him many opportunities to turn the ball over. Aaron Rodgers isn't an interception waiting to happen, obviously, but with how often he'll be slinging the ball around, there will be chances for the Seahawks to jump routes, force fumbles on strip sacks, and tip passes. I expect some plays to be made by the best defense in football, plays that shorten the field for a Seattle offense that is going to have its struggles, but still has an efficient QB capable of making the plays needed to beat any team in the NFL.
Sunday: Buffalo Bills @ Chicago Bears
What to Expect:
Chicago comes into the game with potentially the most explosive offense in the NFL. With a much improved offensive line, Jay Cutler shouldn't be forced into making bad throws and should have time to find any of the plethora of weapons at his disposal. Marshall, Jeffrey, Holmes, and Bennett are going to feast on a weak Bills defense that lost one of the best safeties in football, along with a great up and coming linebacker in Kiko Alonso. What remains to be seen for Chicago is if its defense can muster up enough toughness to slow down a potentially explosive Bills offense.
Buffalo comes to Soldier Field beat up at key positions, particularly at receiver where who knows if Sammy Watkins will play and, if he does, if he's healthy. They still have two excellent backs in CJ Spiller and the always underrated Fred Jackson. Who knows what EJ Manuel will bring to the table, but if he can't move the offense against an extremely susceptible Bears defensive unit, there will be trouble and demands for Neckbeard to make a debut long before he'd be ready. The Bills defense, which does have some nice pieces, has a chance to prove itself against the most formidable passing attack in the league (on paper, that is--let's see what happens between the lines).
Prediction: Bears 37 Bills 23
Buffalo can't play with Chicago, not with an erratic quarterback who never seemed to regain form after he played well prior to a knee injury, last year. The running game will have an opportunity to take time off the clock and shorten the game in Buffalo's favor, but the Bills just don't have the firepower necessary to compete with Cutler, his 2 great receivers, Forte, and the black unicorn. Barring an epic Jay Cutler meltdown (which would undoubtedly be entertaining), this game is all but over. Sorry, Bills fans.
Sunday: Minnesota Vikings @ St. Louis Rams
What to Expect:
The Vikings head to St. Louis with the worst starting quarterback in the league in Matt Cassel (I would trade him for Chad Henne or Brian Hoyer, in an instant), and it's only going to go downhill from there, for Cassel. The Vikings should gain control of this game early due to a fantastic running attack and St. Louis' less than scary offense, but Cassel is going to struggle in passing situations against a fierce St. Louis front 7. If you need to know what's going to happen to Matt Cassel on Sunday, please review the film of last year's Minnesota/Carolina game, film that will prove to you that, at his worst, Matt Cassel is twice as bad as Christian Ponder.
Unfortunately for the Rams, the Vikings boast a defense that should be much improved and comes into the game healthy, and with effective schematics, to boot. No longer will Leslie Frazier's soft as cotton, bend but don't break defensive tactics put Minnesota's defenders in bad positions where they have to cover for too long. Under Mike Zimmer, the Vikings will blitz, and they'll blitz from every direction imaginable. Not only that, but they'll disguise coverages effectively, for the first time in a long time. Shaun Hill is in for one rough opening week, and he'll play as bad or worse than Cassel, even though he's the better player.
Prediction: Vikings 31 Rams 17
No matter how poorly Matt Cassel plays, the Vikings defense is going to give him some short fields to work with and the combination of Adrian Peterson and Jerrick McKinnon is going to produce enough explosive plays to make up for Cassel's mistakes. Cassel will also benefit from Cordarrelle Patterson and Greg Jennings' YAC abilities, and I expect a big play from either Jarius Wright or Rodney Smith. Kyle Rudolph will catch a play action touchdown pass in Turner's offense, to boot. The Vikings will look as good as they possibly can with sub-par quarterback play.
MNF: New York Giants @ Detroit Lions
What to Expect:
Detroit fans should have given up when Jim Caldwell was hired as their head coach. I'm still baffled as to how such an underwhelming performance as Baltimore's OC ever could have had him in the head coaching candidate ranks, but here we are, approaching week 1 of the 2014 season, and he's coaching a franchise that can't get out of its own way, and its FO decisions have started to pile up. On defense, their front 7 looks nice, but questions arose as soon as Delmas was released on the back end, for some god forsaken reason, and that secondary will have its hands full in week 1. Offensively, the Lions boast a real, actual second WR for the first time in years, which means that Matt Stafford is out of excuses. If he's still recklessly inefficient, perhaps it's time to actually fix what's wrong with his game and for fans and analysts to stop blaming a lack of weapons, which was kind of hilarious in the first place.
The Giants come to town boasting a completely new rushing attack and some nice weapons on the outside in Victor Cruz and Reuben Randle. What will undoubtedly decide this game between two of the sloppiest quarterbacks in the league is turnovers, and Eli Manning is only a few smarter decisions away from getting his turnovers under control. The Giants defense looks to be much improved with some nice additions, but we'll only know for sure once we see them on the field.
Prediction: Giants 27 Lions 23
Golden Tate will make an immediate impact, but the Lions defense is going to stutter in the back end and set them back early. The Giants defense will stifle the Lions for periods in the second and third quarter, and once the Lions get back on the board in the fourth, it'll be too little, too late.
TNF: Green Bay Packers @ Seattle Seahawks
What to Expect:
The Packers travel to Seattle with an explosive offense that should give the best defense in the league all it can handle. Aaron Rodgers is still undeniably the best quarterback in the NFL, and now that he's got Eddie Lacy to take some pressure off of him, the Packers have an even scarier offensive unit. The balance Lacy provides should force the Seahawks to put more men in the box and give guys like Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb plenty of room to work. I'm also interested to see what Jarrett Boykin brings to the table, and have liked the cockiness and bring it on attitude that he's displayed in his career, thus far.
The Seahawks lay in wait like rabid Cujo, ready to attack whichever poor bastard stumbles into his yard. Their defense has some question marks with the loss of Walter Thurmond to the Giants, but with Chancellor, Thomas, and Sherman still intact, I highly doubt they need to worry much about Byron Maxwell. The Packers may be the stiffest test they'll face this season, and they're lucky to get it out of the way early when they're definitely going to be healthy. I don't expect Green Bay to walk all over Seattle's defense, or even come close to doing so, but I expect them to be efficient and force Russell Wilson to put points on the board at a faster pace than he normally has to. What remains to be seen is how good Green Bay's defense is, or how poor Seattle's passing offense is without any real firepower on the outside, unless they plan to take Percy Harvin out of the hybrid slot receiver/running threat role that he's most comfortable in. Nobody is scared of Doug Baldwin or Jermaine Kearse.
Prediction: Seahawks 30 Packers 27
What it all comes down to is who forces turnovers, and Russell Wilson doesn't play in an offense that gives him many opportunities to turn the ball over. Aaron Rodgers isn't an interception waiting to happen, obviously, but with how often he'll be slinging the ball around, there will be chances for the Seahawks to jump routes, force fumbles on strip sacks, and tip passes. I expect some plays to be made by the best defense in football, plays that shorten the field for a Seattle offense that is going to have its struggles, but still has an efficient QB capable of making the plays needed to beat any team in the NFL.
Sunday: Buffalo Bills @ Chicago Bears
What to Expect:
Chicago comes into the game with potentially the most explosive offense in the NFL. With a much improved offensive line, Jay Cutler shouldn't be forced into making bad throws and should have time to find any of the plethora of weapons at his disposal. Marshall, Jeffrey, Holmes, and Bennett are going to feast on a weak Bills defense that lost one of the best safeties in football, along with a great up and coming linebacker in Kiko Alonso. What remains to be seen for Chicago is if its defense can muster up enough toughness to slow down a potentially explosive Bills offense.
Buffalo comes to Soldier Field beat up at key positions, particularly at receiver where who knows if Sammy Watkins will play and, if he does, if he's healthy. They still have two excellent backs in CJ Spiller and the always underrated Fred Jackson. Who knows what EJ Manuel will bring to the table, but if he can't move the offense against an extremely susceptible Bears defensive unit, there will be trouble and demands for Neckbeard to make a debut long before he'd be ready. The Bills defense, which does have some nice pieces, has a chance to prove itself against the most formidable passing attack in the league (on paper, that is--let's see what happens between the lines).
Prediction: Bears 37 Bills 23
Buffalo can't play with Chicago, not with an erratic quarterback who never seemed to regain form after he played well prior to a knee injury, last year. The running game will have an opportunity to take time off the clock and shorten the game in Buffalo's favor, but the Bills just don't have the firepower necessary to compete with Cutler, his 2 great receivers, Forte, and the black unicorn. Barring an epic Jay Cutler meltdown (which would undoubtedly be entertaining), this game is all but over. Sorry, Bills fans.
Sunday: Minnesota Vikings @ St. Louis Rams
What to Expect:
The Vikings head to St. Louis with the worst starting quarterback in the league in Matt Cassel (I would trade him for Chad Henne or Brian Hoyer, in an instant), and it's only going to go downhill from there, for Cassel. The Vikings should gain control of this game early due to a fantastic running attack and St. Louis' less than scary offense, but Cassel is going to struggle in passing situations against a fierce St. Louis front 7. If you need to know what's going to happen to Matt Cassel on Sunday, please review the film of last year's Minnesota/Carolina game, film that will prove to you that, at his worst, Matt Cassel is twice as bad as Christian Ponder.
Unfortunately for the Rams, the Vikings boast a defense that should be much improved and comes into the game healthy, and with effective schematics, to boot. No longer will Leslie Frazier's soft as cotton, bend but don't break defensive tactics put Minnesota's defenders in bad positions where they have to cover for too long. Under Mike Zimmer, the Vikings will blitz, and they'll blitz from every direction imaginable. Not only that, but they'll disguise coverages effectively, for the first time in a long time. Shaun Hill is in for one rough opening week, and he'll play as bad or worse than Cassel, even though he's the better player.
Prediction: Vikings 31 Rams 17
No matter how poorly Matt Cassel plays, the Vikings defense is going to give him some short fields to work with and the combination of Adrian Peterson and Jerrick McKinnon is going to produce enough explosive plays to make up for Cassel's mistakes. Cassel will also benefit from Cordarrelle Patterson and Greg Jennings' YAC abilities, and I expect a big play from either Jarius Wright or Rodney Smith. Kyle Rudolph will catch a play action touchdown pass in Turner's offense, to boot. The Vikings will look as good as they possibly can with sub-par quarterback play.
MNF: New York Giants @ Detroit Lions
What to Expect:
Detroit fans should have given up when Jim Caldwell was hired as their head coach. I'm still baffled as to how such an underwhelming performance as Baltimore's OC ever could have had him in the head coaching candidate ranks, but here we are, approaching week 1 of the 2014 season, and he's coaching a franchise that can't get out of its own way, and its FO decisions have started to pile up. On defense, their front 7 looks nice, but questions arose as soon as Delmas was released on the back end, for some god forsaken reason, and that secondary will have its hands full in week 1. Offensively, the Lions boast a real, actual second WR for the first time in years, which means that Matt Stafford is out of excuses. If he's still recklessly inefficient, perhaps it's time to actually fix what's wrong with his game and for fans and analysts to stop blaming a lack of weapons, which was kind of hilarious in the first place.
The Giants come to town boasting a completely new rushing attack and some nice weapons on the outside in Victor Cruz and Reuben Randle. What will undoubtedly decide this game between two of the sloppiest quarterbacks in the league is turnovers, and Eli Manning is only a few smarter decisions away from getting his turnovers under control. The Giants defense looks to be much improved with some nice additions, but we'll only know for sure once we see them on the field.
Prediction: Giants 27 Lions 23
Golden Tate will make an immediate impact, but the Lions defense is going to stutter in the back end and set them back early. The Giants defense will stifle the Lions for periods in the second and third quarter, and once the Lions get back on the board in the fourth, it'll be too little, too late.
