A dozen NFL picks

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I’m not very good at making predictions.


In my MLB predictions column, I said the San Francisco Giants would go to the World Series this year and the Washington Nationals would disappoint.

Flash forward to the present and the Nationals are one of the favorites to win the World Series and the Giants are buried in the mud of mediocrity. Heck, forget that. They’re not even mediocre. They’re worse than that.

Despite my losing record with making picks, I’m a glutton for punishment, so I am going to make a few bold picks for the NFL season.


Sure, I’m cheating. I’ve already seen everyone play twice.

But heck, after my baseball fiasco, I needed to give myself a little bit of a head start. I need all of the help I can get.

12 NFL PREDICTIONS

1. I’m taking the field  

The Patriots will not win the Super Bowl. It’s nothing against them. I think they have a playoff caliber team. But in any bet where I get 31 options, including eight or nine that are pretty good and the casino gets just one, I’m taking the field. I think the Steelers, Chiefs, Raiders, Cowboys, Packers, Seahawks, Falcons are all solid. I think others like the Panthers, Eagles, Vikings, Lions, Ravens, Broncos, Dolphins and a few others are very good, as well. Give me the field.


2. Giants take the plunge  

The Giants are done. Eli Manning is at a point in his career where he needs an awful lot of help to be great and the Giants’ roster isn’t set up to give him what he needs. They don’t run the football well. Their offensive line is a mess and they have limited weaponry outside of Odell Beckham. I’m not sold.

3. Historically bad teams roam  

There are a few teams out there that have been tanking since preseason. The Jets (sorry Elijah), Colts, Bills, 49ers, Browns and others have absolutely no hope at being competitive. There are three top quarterbacks that several teams are already eyeballing. It will be an all-out race of futility to see who gets the top picks.

4. Jared Goff is no joke  

Goff was a flake in his rookie season, but he was a breakout performer in the preseason and the opening game of the regular season. He will stay competent. His coaching staff is putting him in positions to succeed – something Jeff Fisher and the staff last year never did.


5. The Colts pull the plug

The Colts are not built to win – even if Andrew Luck plays. They’d be wise to “redshirt him” this year and save his body for when the roster is a little more equipped to win games. That guys gets mutilated when he takes the field. He won’t last the length of his contract if they don’t take steps to better protect him in the future.

6. Falcons still soar in the NFC South

Look, I’m going to get flack for this from the Saints mafia around town, but I think the Falcons are still really, really good. And I think they’re still easily the best team in the NFC South – even as the Panthers and Buccaneers got better in the offseason. Atlanta just has so many weapons. It’s literally impossible for defenses to take away everything they have to offer. Add that to a defense which is getting better and better and you have a team that’s poised to chase Super Bowls for the next several years – even if they are prone to blowing big leads in them.

7. Dak is better than people think he is

I am a Cowboys fan, so I may be a little bit biased in saying what I am about to say. But I am appalled at the lack of respect Dak Prescott gets from football fans and analysts around the NFL. In his first 17 regular season games, Prescott completed 67.3 percent of his passes with 24 touchdowns and just four interceptions with a 103.8 quarterback rating – all while going 14-3 in those games. But yet analysts around the NFL continually rank flavor of the week guys like Carson Wentz and others above him on quarterback lists. I hear it all the time: “Dak Prescott succeeds because of his offensive line and running game.” If it’s so easy, then why did the Cowboys go 4-12 the year before Prescott was drafted? The same offensive line was there at that time.


8. Minnesota can play

The Saints shouldn’t feel any shame in losing to the Vikings in Week 1. Those guys can play. Minnesota is going to be one of the top teams in the NFC if Sam Bradford can stay healthy. They don’t have Adrian Peterson anymore, but that’s a blessing. He demands the ball more than he deserves to get it anymore at this stage of his career.

9. The playoff teams

Give me the Patriots, Steelers, Chiefs and Titans as the division winners in the AFC with the Raiders and Ravens as the wild cards. I will take the Raiders to push through the playoffs without a bye week to make it all the way to the Super Bowl. In the NFL, I like the Cowboys, Packers, Falcons and Seahawks to win each division with the Vikings and Panthers as the two wildcard teams. Give me Green Bay to make it to the Super Bowl – beating the Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game.

10. The Champs

I like the Raiders to win the Super Bowl. They score a 31-24 victory over Green Bay in the big game. With the score tied at 24 late in the game, the Raiders convert 2nd and goal at the 3-yard-line on a touchdown run from halfback Marshawn Lynch. Green Bay has about a minute to try and get the tie, but Aaron Rodgers runs out of time.


11. What about the Saints?

The Saints play inconsistent football throughout the season – their calling card for the past several seasons. Their defense gets better, but much to the chagrin of fans, it’s the team’s offense that struggles in several losses – mostly because of inconsistent play from a battered offensive line. New Orleans is 6-6 after 12 games, but they limp to the finish line with a 1-3 record, losing twice to the Falcons (Week 14 and Week 16) and once to the Buccaneers. The only late-season win is a home date with the Jets.

12. The end of an era 

After the season, the Saints negotiate with Drew Brees before contract talks break off because the Saints don’t want to commit to a multi-year deal. Because New Orleans can’t franchise their quarterback (because of a clause in his contract), the quarterback flirts with other teams before signing a two-year, $52-million deal with the Houston Texans.

Drew BreesJOSE DELGADO | THE TIMES


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