In depth: Kansas City Chiefs

by | Jan 31, 2012 | 2011 season, 2012 season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts

The Kansas City Chiefs won 10 games in total between 2007 and 2009 before shocking the world with a 10-win, division championship season in 2010.

The Chiefs came back to Earth in 2011, however, as injuries combined with a tougher schedule to ruin expectations, ultimately costing Todd Haley his head coaching position.

It’s an important off-season, with several important players returning from injuries (Jamaal Charles, Matt Cassel, Tony Moeaki, Eric Berry to name a few) and more up for free agency (Dwayne Bowe). Lifelong Chiefs fan Patrick Allen is the senior editor of the Arrowhead Addict blog. He gave us some thoughts on how 2011 went and what’s in store for 2012.

Zoneblitz: What went wrong in 2011 after such a positive 2010 season? (more…)

NFL Picks: Super Bowl XLVI

by | Jan 30, 2012 | 2011 season, NFL Picks, NFL Random Thoughts

Well, here it is, folks. It’s Super Bowl week. Depending on how you look at it, this week is either the ultimate finale to the football season … or the beginning of a depressing several-month stretch during which there will be no football on television (though that actually started this weekend, unless you count the glorified touch football game that is the Pro Bowl).

Before we get to our Super Bowl predictions, here’s a quick recap of our picks for the season.

I won the regular season competition with my brother, hitting a fairly solid 172-84 mark, three games ahead of Tony.

Those results have flip-flopped in the playoffs. I have been terrible, missing both Championship Weekend games and dropping to 3-7. Tony hit both of those games, moving his mark to 7-3. This has been an ugly turn of events.

And I’m not sure I have a real good read on the Super Bowl either, but we’ll give it a go anyway.

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In depth: Buffalo Bills

by | Jan 29, 2012 | 2011 season, 2012 season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts

Ryan Fitzpatrick got off to a hot start in 2011 and, in following his lead, so did the Buffalo Bills. Seven games in, the Bills sat at 5-2 and looked to be a real playoff contender. Then Fitzpatrick cooled and the team ran off seven losses in a row.

So who are the real Bills? Does Chan Gailey have this team on the right track? Or will Buffalo and the team’s fans struggle to climb from the basement of the AFC East once again in 2012? Brian Galliford, editor-in-chief of BuffaloRumblings.com, shared his thoughts with Zoneblitz.

Zoneblitz: Bills got off to a hot start and then fizzled as the season wore on, resulting in a 6-10 finish and a two game improvement from last season. Is the season a success, a failure or somewhere in between and why? (more…)

Comparing likely Hall of Famers: Brown, Carter & Reed

by | Jan 28, 2012 | Hall of Fame, NFL Random Thoughts

We’re getting close to learning who the 2012 inductees will be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame this August. Much of the discussion on one of our other Hall of Fame posts revolves around which of the three wide receiver finalists — or whether any of them — will get chosen for the honor this season.

Four-time finalist Andre Reed seems to have gained the most momentum, based on his near miss last season. Three-time finalist Cris Carter and one-time finalist Tim Brown are the other two wideouts in the mix for this year’s honor.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Website did a comparison of these three players and how they fared up against the other 21 wideouts already enshrined in Canton, Ohio. But I wanted to do some analysis of my own.

Let me start with this. All three of these guys had great careers and they definitely are strong candidates, at least in the eyes of Zoneblitz. They all would be in the top five in receiving yards, touchdowns and receptions among receivers already in the Hall. Even as we move into a heavy passing era, Reed, Carter and Brown all continue to match up strongly with the other candidates they’ll be compared with in the near future.

But as the competition gets stronger in the years ahead, as guys like Marvin Harrison, Randy Moss, Torry Holt, Terrell Owens and a host of others retire, it’s going to be more and more challenging for the current group of finalists to get in. That makes the voting over the next couple years that much more important. And frankly, after doing some analysis, I think the current wide receiver finalists might be gaining momentum in the wrong order.

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In depth: Miami Dolphins

by | Jan 27, 2012 | 2011 season, 2012 season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts

The Miami Dolphins got off to a dreadful start in 2011. Seven losses to start the campaign sparked a 6-10 season. The results cost Coach Tony Sparano his job.

But there was reason for optimism. Of the 10 losses, three were by a field goal and two were by a single point. And despite the early-season struggles, Miami had the best defense in terms of points allowed in the AFC East.

So, can the Dolphins, with a new coach and a resurgent Reggie Bush, capitalize on a strong second half in 2011 by turning it into a playoff run in 2012? Brian Miller, editor and lead writer for Phin Phanatic, shares his thoughts below:

Zoneblitz: What do you think of the Joe Philbin hire? (more…)