American football fans around the world are happy again now the 2016 NFL season is underway and, just like that, the first two games have flown by. There’s still a long way to go, with 14 games remaining but our predictions for the NFL season have the following five teams doing well.
Washington Redskins
Many teams were caught off guard by the Redskins, as they won the 2015 NFC East title. That may be bad news for Washington going forward as now the opposition will be extra vigilant when they come head to head. Sadly the Redskins haven’t got off to the best of starts this season after two home losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys with scores of 16-38 and 23-27 respectively. That makes the next game, away at the New York Giants, a crucial game so early in the season. However, there is still a long way to go and many experts expect the NFC East to be wide open this season. So despite two early losses, the Redskins are still in the hunt.
Dallas Cowboys
No other team in the NFL could have such a yo-yo like season ahead of them with so much depending on the fitness of their starting quarterback Tony Romo. The richest sports team in the world could have a decent season if Romo is healthy, or a dreadful one if he doesn’t. The first two games have represented that with a narrow opening day loss to the Giants, 19-20, followed by a win over the Redskins.
New England Patriots
Tom Brady, star quarterback for the Patriots, has now served two of his four game suspension and all things considered they haven’t done too badly without him. They currently stand as the top of the AFC East with a 2-0 record after beating the Arizona Cardinals by 23-21 and the Miami Dolphins by 31-24. With 15 games left to go there is still a large element of uncertainty along the way but New England will be hoping that things can get even better once Brady is available for selection again.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Also unbeaten at this early stage of the season with wins over the aforementioned Redskins and the Cincinnati Bengals at 24-16, with many considering the Steelers to have the best offense in the league, they’ll be reassured that they have done their job so far in earning the wins. However, Pittsburgh may be concerned about their defence which could see them drop potential wins if they are outscored at the back. If their defence can remain focused there’s no reason that that Steelers can’t go on a run and challenge for a potential Super Bowl place.
Seattle Seahawks
Russell Wilson, Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas, Michael Bennett, Bobby Wagner, Jimmy Graham and Kam Chancellor form a core of players that need to be at their absolute best this season if the Seahawks are to live up to high expectations this season. Early results have been mixed so far with a 12-10 win over the Dolphins followed by a 3-9 loss at the Los Angeles Rams. With a number of players in the prime of their careers they can be legitimate Super Bowl contenders if they focus.