The NFL Regular Season Starts Tonight!

     It's almost time to watch some REAL football ladies and gentleman. Tonight, the Baltimore Ravens will be visiting the Denver Broncos in a highly anticipated re-match of last year's AFC Championship Game. Unfortunately for the Ravens, they do not get to play at home even though they are reigning Super Bowl Champions. Should it matter? Not really....As a matter of fact, I think the Ravens beat the Broncos by 4 on the road next week. Ray Lewis and Ed Reed may be gone, but Baltimore's defense is still elite as long as Terrell Suggs is on the field with Elvis Dumervil and Haloti Ngata. Peyton Manning is an MVP candidate again this year, but his defense is nowhere as good as Baltimore's. Losing Dumervil to the Ravens and not having Von Miller for 6 games should prove to be very costly. 28-24 Baltimore

Observations from the Pre-season

AFC West

Don't sleep on Eric Decker just because Wes Welker came to Denver

• As I stated in my previous article, Oakland is going to have a horrific year no matter who the starting QB is. If they win 4 games it will be nothing short of a miracle
•  It looks like the Chiefs defense will carry them again this season
• San Diego's 1st team offense doesn't look bad. Every other aspect about the Chargers looks terrible. Mostly, DEPTH
• After looking at Denver's schedule, I believe they will go 10-6. They might go 11-5 but I just don't see them beating the Patiots, Texans, Cowboys(in Dallas), Giants(in NY), Ravens, or the Chiefs(they play KC twice, obviously as a division foe). Those SHOULD be their 6 losses

AFC North

• Don't write off the Steelers until you see them play with Health Miller. Pittsburgh will be a very dangerous team this season, especially after Week 8
• The Bengals are tough as nails on defense. But on offense, they are still just "good." Will Andy Dalton step up and force his critics to shut-up?
• NFL offensive linemen are about to blast Barkevious Mingo. If he doesn't gain weight next off-season, he will be a wasted 1st round pick. You can quote me on that
• Baltimore has great coaching. I have to back off on my previous prediction of how their season would go. The Ravens should make the playoffs this year if Ray Rice, Joe Flacco and Torrey Smith stay healthy. I love how Aaron Mellette is coming on as a small school receiver drafted in the 7th round out of Elon

AFC South

Ahmad Bradshaw instantly improves the Colts rushing attack

• Andrew Luck is going to have a huge year. He should make the Pro Bowl if the Colts make it back to the post-season
• Jacksonville still remains an intriguing team. No one will know how good the Jags are as a whole until Week 5 when Justin Blackmon returns
• The Texans are a really good team but we will see just how tough they really are this year. They have a brutal non-conference schedule that includes Seattle, San Francisco, Seattle, New England, Denver, Balimore and AT Kansas City. Once you factor in that they have to play the Colts twice, you have to realize that is one heck of a schedule. I know Houston might seem a lock to go to the AFC Championship this year, but the best record they could realistically finish with is 11-5. 
• The Titans first two games are on the road in Pittsburgh and Houston. If Tennessee can escape these games with a 1-1 record I will give them the respect they deserve

AFC East

• New England will face Jeff Tuel in Week 1 and Geno Smith in Week 2. ....small giggle...BBAAAAHHHHHAAAHAHAAAHHAA. I couldn't hold it in anymore...There are some things you "think", and some things that you "know". I KNOW the Pats will go 2-0
• The Bills better hope CJ Spiller rushes for 300 yards every game until EJ Manuel gets healthy. Losing Stephon Gilmore for 6-8 weeks doesn't help, either
• NY needs to give Geno Smith a break. He is a rookie and everyone knew he wasn't in the mold of an RGIII or Andrew Luck from last year. Smith will have his ups and downs but at least give him time to develop
• The Miami Dolphins have yet to show me or the world why they should be considered a threat offensively. Hopefully some chemistry will form during the regular season without Dustin Keller

NFC West

• The Rams look to surprise everyone in the NFL by finishing 2nd in their division. With their defense and an upgraded offense, that just might happen. Look for the Rams to atleast tie for 2nd in the West
• San Francisco has more options at receiver than you think. When Mario Manningham and Crabtree come back, Kaepernick will be extremely dangerous
• Arizona is well respected by analysts across the league, but I'm not buying their win/loss record being better than 7-9. Yes, they have a ton of talent...but who cares
• The Seahawks have the best defense in the league and they showed that they have the most depth as well. On offense, defense and special teams. This might be the best team in the NFL honestly. I haven't seen anything that proves otherwise

The return of a healthy Fred Davis is key for the Redskins

NFC East

• The Dallas Cowboys have a lot to prove on defense this year. Sean Lee and DeMarcus Ware have to stay healthy in addition to the secondary needing to step up
• RGIII is finally cleared to play. Can he have an Adrian Peterson-like comeback? History doesn't say so, but I would like to see him succeed while healthy. He should post good stats against the Eagles and Packers in the first two games of the season
• Speaking of the Eagles, what should we expect from Mike Vick while he's healthy? 2 passing TD's and 1 rushing TD? I'd have to say so with Chip Kelly's up-tempo offense installed in Philly. And now that LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson are back at 100%, Philly becomes a VERY dangerous team entering the season
• New York can't afford for Andre Brown to be gone for long. I like David Wilson as a RB but he is not ready for goal line action in the NFL yet, even entering his 2nd year

NFC North

• The Minnesota Vikings still need Christian Ponder to step up and be more accurate. They won't make the playoffs this year with lackluster QB play
• Green Bay is primed for a huge season after looking at their running backs for 4 games. Aaron Rodgers is going to be the division's, and maybe the NFL's MVP once again
• Detroit's D-Line better shut down Minnesota in the first game if they want to win. The Lions got after the passer in the pre-season but need to convert that to the regular season for success
• Chicago didn't show us anything in the pre-season. They still need to keep the o-line healthy and jake cutler can't make "Jay Cutler" throws into double/triple coverage

NFC South

• Carolina will begin the season as an under-rated team even after a strong pre-season. The Panthers need to show up against the elite Seattle Seahawks for 4 quarters if they want to change that perception
• The Saints kept 5 RBs again...surprise? Hardly. Watch for Kenny Stills and Nick Toon this season as well. And although Drew Brees will be great, it still looks like the Saints have the worst defense in the league
• Atlanta can't just expect to win a division that hasn't seen the same team win two years in a row, EVER. Look for Matt Ryan to put up huge stats this year
• Tampa Bay now has a 100% healthy Darrelle Revis. I don't care what kind of injury he is coming off...he will still dominate the first game up the season against Rex Ryan's rookie led offense