2011 NFL Preview - NFC Outlook

Here's my outlook on how things will shake out in the NFC:

NFC EAST

1. Philadelphia Eagles

Eagles definitely won the trade and free agent “off-season” in the NFL.  Now they have to win games on the field during the “real” season.  The Eagles were a talented team before their new acquisitions;  with the addition of their newbies, they should repeat as NFC East champs. But chemistry can be a funny thing……

2. Dallas Cowboys

Dallas was not as bad as their 6 – 10 record last season (hush Bill Parcells). After getting off to a bad start, the season snowballed into disaster territory low-lighted by a season ending injury to Tony Romo. The current Cowboy team seems to play better when expectations are not high which bodes well for them this season. Combining all of that with a “weaker” schedule and the Jason Garrett led Cowboys could make a lot of noise this season.

3. New York Giants
The G-Men have been devastated by injuries in the preseason. They also lost two of Eli Manning’s favorite targets (Steve Smith, Kevin Boss) to free agency. The Giants never seem to be on the radar for post season predictions but they have a knack for making themselves relevant.  This season I think that mountain may be too high to climb for them. Expect a bit more of a slip for New York.

4. Washington Redskins

Although Washington had a decent preseason, I don’t see them winning a lot in the regular season. The Redskins believe that they can win with John Beck or Rex Grossman at QB; almost everyone outside of their camp doesn’t share their enthusiasm. Mike Shanahan’s club should be competitive against their divisional foes but I don’t expect them to compete for the division title.

NFC NORTH

1. Green Bay Packers

The Super Bowl defending champions are a very tough team to beat. They will win a bunch of games this year and will compete again in the playoffs. But the Pack are beatable; I already heard someone try to compare them to the Patriots of 2007, thinking they may run the table in the regular season. That’s not going to happen; they’ll even have a tough time winning the division.

2. Chicago Bears

Chicago won the NFC North last year and will be in the thick of it to repeat. The Bears have a championship caliber squad. They have a tough as nails defense; if they ever get that running game back in shape again and if Jay Cutler can live up to his potential – look out! The Bears could have a special season.

3. Detroit Lions

I agree with pretty much everything I’ve heard about the Lions this season: this will be an exciting team to watch, they will make more strides forward this year and they’ll probably fall just short of the postseason.  Hopefully Matthew Stafford will have a healthy 2011 season.

4. Minnesota Vikings
The fact that I’m picking the Vikings to finish last convinces me that the NFC North is probably the best division in the NFL. I think the Vikings have a good team. They debatably have the best running back in football (Adrian Peterson) and have added veteran QB Donovan McNabb. But the defense has lost some of its strut over the last couple of seasons and McNabb finds himself in another situation without a elite receiver. Vikings will win some but not enough to make the playoffs.

NFC SOUTH

1. New Orleans Saints

You figure the Saints have to be hungry this year after their untimely exit in the playoffs last season. New Orleans is still one of the most explosive teams in the NFL. Drew Brees is still a top flight QB and he still has a good amount of weapons. Expect to see the Saints battle to get the Lombardi trophy back.

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Just like the Lions, The Bucs are a young exciting team on the rise.  Coming off a season in which they won 10 games but still missed the playoffs, I expect the young Bucs to come close to their unexpected success.  Josh Freeman, Legarrette Blount and Mike Williams could be the new “triplets”.

3. Atlanta Falcons

I know a lot folks may think I’m crazy, but I think the Falcons will take a step back this season. I don’t see them pulling out the close victories they did last year.  I like their new weapon on offense Julio Jones who they drafted in the first round this year.  He should help to open up the offense some this year but I don’t think it’ll be enough.

4. Carolina Panthers

The Panthers are coming off of a bad season. They have a brand new coaching staff. They have a brand new rookie starting QB (#1 overall draft pick Cam Newton). Their defense still has some good players and they still have a decent running attack but I think this will be a transition year for Carolina.

NFC WEST

1. St. Louis Rams
See Lions. See Bucs. The Rams are similar to those two in being a young up and coming team. But unlike those two, St. Louis will win their division. Sam Bradford is one of the best young QB’s in the game and we should see him make more progress this year. Rams also may have the league’s most unsung defense. The Rams finished under .500 and missed the playoffs by one game last year. This season they make the playoffs and will be over .500.

2   Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals should improve from their disappointing 2010 season. They are counting on newly acquired Kevin Kolb to turn into the QB the Eagles thought he would be last year. Can Beanie Wells carry the load at RB? How will the defense fair after swapping in rookie Patrick Peterson and swapping out Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie? Larry Fitzgerald will help to make them competitive but I don’t expect to see them reach the postseason.

3. Seattle Seahawks

Defending NFC West champion Seahawks drew the ire of many after winning the division last year with a losing record and “earning” a home playoff game. They quickly hushed up their critics by defeating the defending Super Bowl champion Saints in the first round of the playoffs. I don’t expect the Seahawks to turn that magic this season.  It could be another losing season for the Seahawks but they won’t make the playoffs this time.

4. San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers have a new head coach (Jim Harbaugh) but will still start their old QB (Alex Smith). Many feel the source of the 49ers problems starts with Smith. Can Harbaugh pull out the talent in Smith? The 49ers still boast some nice pieces on offense (Frank Gore, Vernon Davis) and may have one of the league’s best defenders (Patrick Willis) but I don’t expect to see Joe Montana or Jerry Rice to walk through locker room door for them this season.

Unruly and Violent Fans at a Stadium Near You?

Nowadays, it is tough to be a true fan in sports. It's harder the stay in love with our favorite teams since they seem to have more turnover on their rosters than McDonald's has with its entry level employees. Ticket prices to games have ballooned to absurd levels; compound that with astronomical concession stand and parking prices and it makes it very difficult for folks to make it to a game as much as they would like. On top of it all we currently have two leagues, the NFL and the NBA, that are in labor disputes which could possibly cost fans the opportunity to see games (NFL dispute is ending soon - hopefully). It is all enough to drive us a little batty. But one thing that really puts a damper on the true fan experience is actually caused by fans themselves. Unruly, violent and out of control fans at sporting venues are a bit out of hand. This subject is not discussed nearly enough and I hope that something is finally done about it - soon.

Some fans are really taking the fun out of going to ballparks, stadiums and arenas. Over the years I have witnessed countless verbal abuse, heated arguments and physical fights at sporting events. A couple of years ago I was at a New York Mets home game against the Florida Marlins. A young female arrived late and sat a few rows ahead of me donning a Boston Red Sox cap. A fool in front of her noticed her and just started berating her with uncalled for, nasty language because of her cap. Now mind you, this was a Mets fan not a Yankees fan (not that it would have made it alright if it was a Yankees fan and he clearly had forgotten that Bill Buckner had made it cool for Red Sox fans to visit Flushing). She could not have been anymore than 16 or 17 years old and this "jerk" decides to unload on her as if she had just killed his family. Thankfully, another male fan in her row got him to hush up. If only he would have just kept his focus on the game in front of him, he would not of had to see the Red Sox hat that drew his ire. Instead he disturbs the whole section, which had a decent amount of kids in it and possibly turned off a young lady from coming to the park ever again. All because he had no self control and no respect for others in this public space. Another verbal abuse incident that I witnessed was a bit in reverse, at an NFL game in Philadelphia. As the Philadelphia Eagles were crushing the Dallas Cowboys on the field, I was walking towards a concourse area and heard a loud voice just scolding a Cowboys fan; all kinds of curse words just flying all over the place. I wasn't really too surprised being it was in Philadelphia but as I approached the piercing voice and the Cowboys fan I was shocked to see the orator of these "fine" words was a kid! This girl had to be about 12 years old! And there was what looked to be her parents, right next to her, grinning with pride. I wonder where she learned that behavior??? Now it may be debatable whether this Cowboys fan should have been dressed in Cowboys gear from head to toe in Philadelphia. But what is not debatable is a grown man being subjected to such language from a kid while her parents condone the action. There is nothing wrong with some friendly, consensual verbal jabbing at a game; that actually makes it a little more fun. But if a fan is not a willing participant in your jousting, leave him/her alone.

What's more fun than witnessing someone getting verbally abused? Well of course, it is two or more people screaming obscenities at each other! Yay! I'm sure you've seen and heard these conflicts before. You know, the ones where folks are standing up shouting at each other to the left and behind you; then you just can't help but look to see what's going on even though the game is to your right and in front of you. You have to watch because hey, who knows what's coming next? Maybe a fight? Seriously, I can truly do without this nonsense as well. And 99.9% of the time its over something really, really stupid. And usually these shouting matches are in an earshot of children. But who cares? I'm going to get my point across anyway right? "Your team sucks $^&**@". "Well you can suck *&*$#" "F*** you A##$4$$" - and a lot of times, a fight follows that exchange. Punches thrown, bodies slammed over rows of seats....yea exactly what I had in mind when I came to see this baseball game. Heck, a fight even broke out in the stands at a tennis match in the US Open last year (and I thought tennis spectators were suppose to be sophisticated and civilized - LOL). Major League Baseball's opening day at Dodgers Stadium this year may have showcased one of the worst fan altercations ever. After the game between the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, Giants fan Bryan Stow was beaten into a coma in the stadium's parking lot. Stow, was allegedly beaten by some Dodgers fans because he was wearing Giants gear. Nearly four months later, Stow is still hospitalized and suffering from a brain injury. All because of what???  Though not as serious, I certainly have seen my share of physical altercations at sporting events. I even was a victim of a beer shower (more like a nice sprinkle) from a hurled cup that was intended for a guy a couple of rows ahead of me. Silly me; I was actually watching the game and suddenly felt a little wet. Thanks guy - I appreciated the free brew - not! And now, with technology being what is today, a lot of these incidents are being taped and posted online. If you went to YouTube right now and searched "fans fight" and plug your favorite team next to it, I'm pretty sure you will find at least one (if not more) fight that was recorded and posted that involved fans of your favorite team. I don't know about you but I'm not looking for an undercard for the game I actually paid to see. The professionals on the field will do just fine thank you.

And speaking of the professionals on the field, my fellow fans, can we "bring it down a thousand" with them too? As paying fans you have every right to boo and jeer players, and if your smart, you'll strategically help your team gain that all important home field advantage. What you don't have the right to do is be overly abusive with the language, throw stuff at players (and onto the field) and run on the field of play. It is unbelievable how many cowards live out among us. They yell and throw stuff at players behind the shield of anonymity in the crowd and also "the shield" that players will not want to get in trouble for retaliating if they can spot them out. Just because we pay for tickets, it does not give us the right to cross the line; it only gives us the right to be entertained. If you feel like you're not being entertained, boo or after awhile don't spend your hard earned money anymore at the games. The infamous NBA fight that broke out at the Palace at Auburn Hills back in 2004 was a benchmark "event" initiated by fans. While visiting Indiana Pacers' player Ron Artest and some of his teammates had absolutely no right and no business fighting up in the stands with Detroit Pistons fans, the whole melee never would have happened if Artest didn't have a drink thrown on him (from a fan). And for those fans that love running out onto the field, you do it at your own risk. Fifteen minutes of "stupidity" is not worth being tased or tackled and arrested. But I guess the highlights of it broadcasted around the world (and it going viral) is worth it, in your mind.

Last season, the NFL acknowledged that more fans were enjoying the "home" experience of watching games. The general feeling was that more people own large, HD flat screen televisions and with the success of the NFL's own programming (such as NFL Red Zone and NFL Sunday TIcket) fans now have a competing option to attending games in person. Though there is some truth to this, I think a growing number of fans are actually just more comfortable watching the game at home. While the out of pocket expense aspect of attending a game in person in a tough economy may actually be the leading reason for more fans staying home, dealing with crowds and unruly behavior I believe has to be a factor in that decision as well. If you have vile acts occurring at stadiums, like the fan last year at a Philadelphia Phillies game who purposely vomitted on an 11 year old girl and her father, why would you want to come out and "enjoy" a contest? No doubt alcohol plays a part in some of this disruptive behavior but some of it is just straight selfish attitude. The feeling that some fans get is that the "world" revolves around them regardless of the fact that there are 55,000 other fans at the game as well. It is a mere reflection of our society, a lack of comprehension that we should share space and respect others in public venues. I often hear fans criticize athletes for being selfish and arrogant; it's time for some them to look in the mirror. Come out to the games and have a good time; stop spoiling it for others with your selfish, arrogant and immature attitudes. Nowhere on the back of a game ticket does it say other fans should be subjected to it.