Zoneblitz 2010 AFC East preview

by | Sep 11, 2010 | 2010 NFL Season Preview

The AFC East was dominated by the New England Patriots so long that it became almost an afterthought for awhile. But the New York Jets have become the fashionable favorite this year and the Miami Dolphins should be in the mix as well.

None of the bloggers we contacted followed up with us on this project. So I’m standing alone with my predictions for this one.

Andy Tellijohn, zoneblitz.com

New York Jets
New England Patriots
Miami Dolphins
Buffalo Bills

Entering training camp I felt confident that the Jets had made themselves the team to beat in 2010. As we head into the season I’m sticking with the pick but I feel less solid in my convictions.

I like Rex Ryan and how he’s building the team. And I love teams that run the ball and play defense. Check and check for the Jets. But I also think teams that voluntarily put themselves in the crosshairs of other teams run the risk of getting hit in the mouth. And if the team suffers a couple tough losses the bravado could turn to doubts. Let’s keep in mind that this was a 9-7 team that barely made the playoffs before making the playoff run last year. And they’re minus Thomas Jones as well. I think they win the East. But it will be a dogfight.

When I looked at New England’s roster before training camp it looked old and tired. I wasn’t putting the team out to pasture by any stretch but I did think the team looked vulnerable. Then I saw Tom Brady lead the Pats down the field at will in an early preseason game and it hit me that a team with Brady, Randy Moss and Wes Welker on offense and Bill Belichick at the helm was still going to be tough to knock off, even if they are on the downside of the Super Bowl dynasty.

Rumor has it Bill Parcells is disappointed in Chad Henne’s development. What I saw last season led me to believe that he has what it takes to be a winner in this league. And the addition of Brandon Marshall will nicely complement a solid, two-headed running game and solid defense. I think they finish third but there’s no reason this team couldn’t jump up and take the division if things broke right.

Buffalo … there are some bright spots. I think CJ Spiller is going to be good. But they’re still a distant fourth in this division.

To see Zoneblitz’ AFC North preview, click this link.
To see Zoneblitz’ AFC South preview, click this link.
To see Zoneblitz’ AFC West preview, click this link.

Zoneblitz 2010 AFC West preview

by | Sep 11, 2010 | 2010 NFL Season Preview

The AFC West is about as weak as it gets this year. There’s a good likelihood this one will be wrapped up by Thanksgiving, if not sooner. We didn’t get a lot of interest from bloggers in this division, in part, perhaps, because they may be bored with their own teams. But thanks to Nathan Mason from Kansas City for taking part anyway.

Andy Tellijohn, Zoneblitz.com

San Diego
Oakland
Kansas City
Denver

I think San Diego isn’t as good this year as they were last year. But they’re still the class of this division and it isn’t close. Ryan Mathews could be a stud in replacing L.T., but losing Vincent Jackson and Marcus McNeill for chunks of the season will hurt. But Philip Rivers will get the team to the playoffs and once there anything can happen.

The Raiders are a ways off yet. But they’ve finally had a good offseason. The big move was acquiring Jason Campbell, a competent quarterback. And we saw last season how competitive the Raiders became even after upgrading from JaMarcus “Purple Drank” Russell to the ultimate journeyman, Bruce Gradkowski. With what should be a decent running game and a stud defensive back whose name I always struggle to spell, much less say, the Raiders could become the second best team in the division.

I don’t know what to think of Kansas City or Denver. Ultimately it just feels like Kansas City has some positive mojo coming off of the emergence of Jamaal Charles and the acquisition of Thomas Jones. Denver, on the other hand, has lost Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall in successive offseasons and lost Elvis Dumervill for the season during training camp. I think that has a chance to make them one of the league’s bottom feeders this season.

For our blogger’s thoughts, click to the jump:
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Zoneblitz 2010 AFC North preview

by | Sep 10, 2010 | 2010 NFL Season Preview

We didn’t get quite the same participation from bloggers representing AFC North teams as we did teams from the AFC South. But as you read the write-ups you’ll see the two who did answer our call are just as passionate as anyone about their teams.

As with the South, I’ll start with my picks and then let the bloggers have their say.

Andy Tellijohn, Zoneblitz.com

Baltimore
Cincinnati
Pittsburgh
Cleveland

The Anquan Boldin pickup was huge and I am a huge fan of Ray Rice at running back. I think the offense now has the weapons to A) make Joe Flacco a true, top-notch quarterback in the league and B) potentially match the strong play the Ravens’ defense has displayed for years, which is good because the one thing I think could hurt the Ravens is the secondary. There are some good wideouts in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, cough, cough, who will be effective when Ben Roethlisberger returns.

I think the Bengals and the Steelers are about equal. The difference will be those first four games. If Dennis Dixon/Charlie Batch can keep the team at 2-2 or better the Steelers will push for the playoffs and maybe the division. If Roethlisberger returns to a 1-3 or 0-4 team, the Steelers will miss the playoffs. The Bengals will hang right there with the best, though I think they are just a notch short of the Ravens heading into the season.

I like some of the things Cleveland is doing right now but it’s a tough division and it’s going to take another year or two before some of those changes pay off.
Here’s what our blogger friends think will happen:
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Zoneblitz 2010 AFC South preview

by | Sep 10, 2010 | 2010 NFL Season Preview

Zoneblitz officials this year decided we wanted to put out some sort of preview issue but that we also wanted to do something different. So we contacted bloggers who cover each NFL team.

We contacted close to 70 blogs asking if they’d like to participate. We heard back from some and were turned down by a few. But we worked too hard on putting this together to not publish what we did receive, as did those who put the time into giving us responses — in fact when asked for a few sentences or a paragraph, many submitted as much as a page.

A big thank you to those who followed up and followed through. I’m very appreciative of your time.

We’ll kick off our NFL preview with a look at the AFC South, the lone division where a representative from each team in the division answered our call. And over the next couple days we’ll get the rest of the responses up as well.

Thank you again.

Andy Tellijohn, www.Zoneblitz.com

Indianapolis
Houston
Tennessee
Jacksonville

The way I see it the Colts have been the star of the division so long that I won’t believe they aren’t until I see it. Houston is up and coming but they have been for the last couple years. I need to see them do it before I’ll pick them to do so.

Houston and Tennessee will battle for second. It’ll be neck and neck and I could see this one going either way. In the end I give Houston the edge, but it’s by a coin flip.

Jacksonville has a smattering of skill topped of course by Maurice Jones Drew. I think there are too many weaknesses in too many spots for them to emerge from the cellar this season.
For the celebrity blogger perspectives, click here:

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Football season starts: Vikes v Saints, Zoneblitz v Vegas

by | Sep 9, 2010 | NFL Random Thoughts

LAS VEGAS — Zoneblitz has once again embarked on a week one trip to Las Vegas. We were here two years ago and can only hope that the tables treat us better this year than they did the last time around. So far … we’re not betting on it.

We may have been a bit distracted during our first rounds of Blackjack tonight because we were frequently sneaking glances at the television to watch the Vikings-Saints NFC Championship rematch that kicked off the season.

The game was far less important than its predecessor in January … and far less exciting. The final result, with the Saints winning again, was predictable given some of the injuries facing each side, with Brett Favre probably still knocking off some rust and with New Orleans just being a damn good team, especially in the Superdome.

But I was surprised at the score. I placed a foolish, last-minute bet on the Saints and Vikings going over the over/under, which was posted at 49 by kickoff. And when Drew Brees took the Saints down the field as though Minnesota forgot to show up on the first drive, I thought the bet was looking good.

The defenses stiffened and I was quickly out that cash. And so it goes.

We’re looking forward to some more Blackjack and to full slates of college and pro football over the next couple days. We’ll be bringing you some previews, which will feature thoughts from several bloggers who write about specific teams around the league.

And we’ll be getting back into the swing of things with more regular postings as football news hopefully swings back toward on-field activities and away from such supposedly newsworthy items as Troy Polamalu’s hair and Kendall Langford’s $50,000 earring.

Tom Boswell once wrote a book about Major League Baseball called “Why Time Begins on Opening Day.” I’ve never read it but I understand the sentiment of the title. But for me it’s most definitely the beginning of football season when everything seems right with the world.