2014-2015 NFL Season Predictions

AFC

East

1.	New England Patriots	12-4
2.	New York Jets	8-8
3.	Miami Dolphins	8-8
4.	Buffalo Bills	4-12

Everyone knows the Pats are winning this division; it’s been near inevitable each of the last 11 seasons.. Their defense has gotten significantly better over the last couple years, despite their slowly diminishing air attack. The run game has picked up as well, which in turn has taken pressure off of Brady to carry the team. IF the Pats can stay healthy I think they can challenge the Broncos for the AFC title. However, staying healthy has been New England’s biggest concern over the past few seasons.

The rest of the division is still in a rebuilding phase, and I doubt the Jets, Dolphins, or Bills can make a run at a wild card bid.

West

1.	Denver Broncos	13-3
2.	San Diego Chargers	10-6
3.	Kansas City Chiefs	9-7
4.	Oakland Raiders	3-13

The Broncos are still the best team in the AFC, and should easily be crowned AFC West champion for the fourth consecutive season (barring any bizarre setbacks). Oakland will presumably finish last as they’ve made little to no improvements in the offseason. Although the top and bottom spots of the West are nearly set in stone, the future for San Diego and Kansas City is foggy. San Diego has the better offense but Kansas City has the better defense. Anything can happen throughout the course of the year, but I’m giving the edge to San Diego. Rivers is coming off of a strong year and his receiving core is fully healthy for the first time in a long time. The Chiefs have a lot of question marks on offense and I don’t have faith in them to put up points. But anything can happen, and both teams have a chance of ending up with a wild card spot again.

North

1.	Cincinnati Bengals	11-5
2.	Pittsburgh Steelers	7-9
3.	Baltimore Ravens	7-9
4.	Cleveland Browns	4-12

I have confidence that Andy Dalton will lead Cincy to their fourth straight playoff appearance, including their second straight division title. I’m expecting another great season from the Bengals for multiple reasons. They have a great defense, a great passing game and a potentially dangerous ground game. Gio Bernard will carry the load with Jeremy Hill as his backup. They have a chance to be a lethal 1-2 punch and I’m excited to watch them play together. For some reason there are still doubters of Andy Dalton’s ability to lead a team. He clearly has room to improve, but he has already made great strides. I have a good feeling that he’ll win double digit games again, and I’ll even go as far as to say that Cincy has a chance to challenge New England and Denver for a first round bye, although that’s unlikely.

I’m not sold on the Steelers, although some people think they can nab a wild card spot. Their defense hasn’t gotten any better, and they certainly aren’t getting younger. Their run game will basically be put on hold until Le’Veon Bell is eligible to play again, and it will be Big Ben trying to win by himself. Youth, suspensions and injuries hinder the Browns and the Ravens are entering the prime of their rebuilding years. I just don’t see anyone other then the Bengals putting up much of a fight in the North division this year.

South

1.	Indianapolis Colts	11-5
2.	Houston Texans	9-7
3.	Tennessee Titans	6-10
4.	Jacksonville Jaguars	4-12

I have to start by saying that I’m still utterly baffled by Houston’s season last year. They possessed one of the best running backs, one of the best receivers, and one of the best defensive players in the NFL (Foster, Johnson, Watt). And they went 2-14?? Plus they had Matt Schaub who was once a respected quarterback. Everything just fell apart and they all lost confidence in each other. I think they’ll put together a few pieces this year and regain a small portion of their former glory.

Even if the Texans can win some games this year, the Colts will come out on top. They’re clearly the best team in the division and Andrew Luck will only continue to get better. Don’t expect the Titans or Jaguars to come with any surprises either; the South division is Indy all the way.

NFC

East

1.	Philadelphia Eagles	10-6
2.	Dallas Cowboys	8-8
3.	New York Giants	8-8
4.	Washington Redskins	6-10

Once again, anything can happen in the NFC East… The Eagles are definitely the front-runners, but as we’ve seen in years past nothing in this division is guaranteed. The Cowboys probably won’t win the division because they’re the Cowboys and their defense is horrific, however they’ll win enough games to compete. The Redskins are unpredictable due to the fact that their success will revolve around RG3. And the Giants? Well, if the legend is true then the Giants are winning the Super Bowl since they missed the playoffs last year. But if history fails to repeat itself then the Eagles should walk away with the division title this year.

West

1.	Seattle Seahawks	14-2
2.	San Francisco 49ers	11-5
3.	Arizona Cardinals	9-7
4.	St. Louis Rams	4-12

The defending Super Bowl champs will win the West this year, especially since the 49ers are without Navarro Bowman, Aldon Smith and Ray McDonald for significant portions of the season. The defense has definitely taken a hit with the suspensions and injuries but they have enough depth to survive. The Cardinals have gotten significantly better since Carson Palmer arrived. They’ve added receiving talents, a decent run game, and of course their lethal secondary headed by Patrick Peterson. Both the Cardinals and 49ers will be pushing for a wild card spot and it will certainly be interesting to watch the head-to-head matchups unfold.

North

1.	Green Bay Packers	12-4
2.	Chicago Bears	9-7
3.	Detroit Lions	8-8
4.	Minnesota Vikings	6-10

Green Bay should easily win this division. The Bears have a poor defense, the Lions screw themselves over, and the Vikings have nothing going in the right direction except Adrian Peterson. The Bears have a shot to win double-digit games thanks to their prolific offense, but it comes down to whether or not they can get stops. Usually their defense is their downfall, but Captain Cutler is known to shatter his own dreams as well. I’d say the Lions could win 10 games but I know better than that; they’ll find a way to lose at least three close ones, resulting in them missing the playoffs. With that being said I’ll be shocked if the Packers don’t win the North.

South

1.	New Orleans Saints	12-4
2.	Carolina Panthers	10-6
3.	Atlanta Falcons	6-10
4.	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	4-12

Obviously the Saints are the best team in the South with the Panthers trailing close behind them. Carolina has the ability to give any team a run for their money, but Drew Brees proves time and time again that he runs an offense that is difficult to put down. The Saints are contenders nearly every year, and I don’t expect that to change. The one thing I’ll add is that the Falcons, like the Texans, are rather unpredictable. They recorded a worse record than anyone could have imagined last year, and there was no excuse for it. Again, like Houston, they could win as many as 10 games and as few as 2 games. I have no idea what kind of Atlanta team we’ll see this year, but they certainly won’t be able to top New Orleans.