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AFC Divisional Breakdown - By Nick Signorelli

OK, we have passed the 4th of July, we are in the home stretch to the NFL training camps. We can now see the light at the end of the tunnel. Every year people complain that preseason should be shorter. I don't agree. I think it should be longer. For that matter, football should be a year around sport. I say, give the players a month off, then it is time to play. Coaches only get 2 weeks. The other two weeks they need to have the draft and negotiate ALL contracts. I don't know why they need more than that. Can you imagine, telling your boss you're only going to work 6 months a year and still get paid in full?
Anyway, this is the time of year that, since there is nothing else to write about, everyone breaks out their mystical crystal ball and tries to tell you what is going to happen this year. Just remember, 2 years ago (when we knew going into training camp that Tommy Maddox was going to be the starter) we were predicted to win the Super Bowl. We went 6-10. Last year, most writers had us finishing last, or next to, in the AFC North.

AFC North

Pittsburgh [13-3]
Baltimore [10-6]
Cincinnati [9-7]
Cleveland [3-13]

Pittsburgh Steelers - We had an amazing season last year. Was it luck? Was it a fluke? Don't think so. The fact that a rookie QB played as well as Ben Roethlisberger did, some people say that with an entire off season to prepare for him, he will come back down to Earth. I want everyone to think of this for a second. Last year, Roethlisberger did not start practicing until, what June? He has been working with his receivers all off season this year, and the playbook is going to be opened up. When it comes to the offensive line, we are going to have Kendall Simmons back, and with a TE that can actually be a target for Roethlisberger, we should be better on offense.

Defensively, we are returning every starter. Chad Scott is gone, which is good for us, bad for the New England Patriots. With Bryant McFadden stepping up, he could work his way into nickel role by mid season. The reason for the 2 losses more than last year? You all know we are going to get robbed at least once or twice.

Baltimore Ravens - With this team, 10-6 could happen as easily as 6-10. I have to give their coaching staff credit. They have good coaches. HOWEVER, their front office has taken a page out of the Washington Redskins playbook and signed everyone with a name they could. Fact is Kyle Boller is the key to making this team work. And, even though he has a little bit of speed, and a decent arm, he still has a problem hitting receivers when they are open. This guy reminds me of a slower Kordell Stewart. I wont be shocked if the Baltimore Ravens choke and end up going 7-9, or worse.

Cincinnati Bengals - Two years ago, when the Cincinnati Bengals signed Marvin Lewis (former Steelers coach) he said that the Cincinnati Bengals would need more than a year. That year they went 8-8. Everyone in Cincinnati was ecstatic. Then they said that they would do better again last year. Again 8-8. Does anyone else see a pattern here? Fact is, Cincinnati has not improved the talent of their team at all. Not their fault, no one wants to play there. They are an EXTREMELY cheap team. They want to spend no money, they wont get better.

Cleveland Browns - Mark my words, barring a trade, the Cleveland Browns will be picking in the top 5 of the draft again this year. Romeo, Romeo, where for art thou Quarterback? Interesting fact, Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl as the starting QB of the Baltimore Ravens. I could have won the Super Bowl as the starting QB of that team. If everyone remembers, the year the Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl they went 4 straight games with out scoring an offensive TD. Kellen Winslow is out AGAIN this year, Braylon Edwards is a rookie. They lost their entire defensive line, which isn't a bad thing, being they were last in the league. This team will be lucky to win 3 games. Funny thing is, Matt Leinart decided to stay at USC another year, meaning more than likely he will end up playing for the Browns next year. Great call kid. You could have been the starting QB on a bad team in California. Instead, you are going to be the starting QB of a bad team in Cleveland.

AFC South

Indianapolis [12-4]
Jacksonville [8-8]
Houston [7-9]
Tennessee [4-12]


Indianapolis Colts - Peyton Manning is the Dan Marino of the generation. By the time his career is over, they will be compared in every stat. TD passes to INT, yards, and Super Bowl rings. IF the Colts do not start building their defense, they will have the same number of rings. They have locked up all of their offensive weapons, with the exception of Edgerrin James. Their defense is weak and getting no better. In a weak division, they should be a schoo' in to win the division, but will have problems in the playoffs again. Every time they play a good team with a decent offense and a good defense, they fold. Am I the only one that has noticed that if you smack Manning early, he folds?

Jacksonville Jaguars - The Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of the NFL. Last year they took the Pittsburgh Steelers to the limit, beat the Indianapolis Colts, and lost to the Tennessee Titans. If this team could somehow learn to play their A game, they could challenge the Indianapolis Colts for the division. Using their first round pick on Matt Jones from Arkansas, they were hoping to find a diamond in the rough. If he pans out, he could be awesome. The biggest question is the health of Fred Taylor, and will they make the trade for Travis Henry. They might not want to wait too long, or Henry could be somewhere else. If they lose Taylor, and cant get Henry, they'll be lucky to win 6 games.

Houston Texans - When the Houston Texans had the expansion draft, their first pick was Tony Boselli. This shows that they knew the importance of the left side of the offensive line in keeping David Carr healthy. That hasn't worked too well to this point. Boselli never really played a game, and they never really replaced him. The trade to bring Phillip Buchanon in to be on the opposite of Daunte Robinson gives them great, young corners. Will this be a great team someday? Maybe. Is it good enough to do it this year? No.

Tennessee Titans - This is the reason you don't sacrifice your future, when building for today. Today for the Tennessee Titans was 3 years ago. Now they are paying for their sins. They have had a roster purge, and barely have enough talent to play a game. They are destined to a top 5 pick in next years draft. I personally think that Steve McNair should be traded to get what they can for him. He is getting fragile, and probably wont be around too much longer. It is time to start looking to the future and give Billy Volek a chance.

AFC East

New England [12-4]
N.Y. Jets [10-6]
Buffalo[6-10]
Miami [3-13]


New England Patriots - I don't care what anyone says, losing BOTH coordinators has to have a negative effect on this team. I mean, they are the ones that call the plays. Yes, they are good at resurrecting careers. But, Chad Scott and Chad Brown, are not an improvement from their roster. Tom Brady got his new contract, but Richard Seymour is mad and is threatening to hold out of camp. Add to that, Tedy Bruschi probably wont play, this team is not the team that won the last 2 Super Bowls. Only reason I have them winning this division is that the rest of it is so weak.

N.Y. Jets - IF Chad Pennington was healthy, I would have had them winning this division. Without him, they have no chance. It was a major benefit, to trade Santana Moss to the Washington Redskins for Laveranues Coles. To get this straight up, was their best move this year. They have a good defense, which will be better if they get Ty Law, but I think he is going to stay away from this team.

Buffalo Bills - As much as I hate to say it, this team is worse without Drew Bledsoe. JP Losman has no real experience and the rest of the team isn't that good. They have a decent defense, but Losman needs more experience. If Mike Malarkey truly new that Bledsoe would be gone, Losman should have gotten more experience last year. They will pay the price for that this year.

Miami Dolphins - They could have had ANY coach come in, this team is still at least a year or two before being decent. They have Jason Taylor at defensive end, and went and signed like 4 more. They have no QB, which makes me think this is the only team that has a shot at getting a better draft pick than the Cleveland Browns. Ricky Williams coming back is going to do nothing more than cause problems in the locker room. Good luck Nick Saban.

AFC West

Oakland [10-6]
Kansas City [9-7]
San Diego [6-10]
Denver [5-11]


Oakland Raiders - This is the team that, to me, made the most of the off season. Randy Moss is going to be a difference maker, while Lamont Jordan will finally get the chance to show if he is a true every down back. With Jerry Porter on the other side of Moss, Kerry Collins is going to have a very good year, if everyone can keep their attitudes in check. I am kind of curious to see how Charles Woodson and Randy Moss are going to get along.

Kansas City Chiefs - A close second to the Oakland Raiders in off season moves. They finally improved their defense, but did they do it soon enough that the offense will hold up? Priest Holmes is a top back, but he is 32. Dick Vermeil will be crying before the season is over.

San Diego Chargers - They are going to show everyone that last year was a fluke. Drew Breese was a one year wonder. They should have traded him when they had the chance. They are having all kinds of trouble with draft picks, as I have noted before, they really made no moves to improve the team in free agency. They are going to have a much tougher schedule this year, and that will really hurt them.

Denver Broncos - Unlike the Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns, the Denver Broncos really have no excuses for not being good this year. They went and signed the Cleveland Browns starting defensive line from last year, which was the worst in the league. Jake Plummer still has a lot to prove, and has never really proven to be worth the money he is making. Coach Mike Shannahan could be in his last year in Denver.

Quick Slants

• Lance Armstrong is leading again. If this isn't a story a movie should be made out of, there isn't one. Keep it up Lance!

• Peter Boulware is talking about having a workout, so that all interested parties in the hunt for his services, can come and watch him at once, so he only has to do one workout. If Peter Boulware is so out of shape that he can only work out once, I don't think I would want to sign him.

• I received a letter from GB, from Aurora, Co. Concerning my story about Big Bens Bike. GB, I do not now, or ever have in my life, or ever will, own a motorcycle. If either of my kids ever wanted to ride one, I would kill them myself. I think that anyone that rides one has to be insane. I do realize though, that everyone has their own choices to make in life. This is a choice that Ben Roethlisberger has to make for himself. Regardless if he were a football player, a construction worker, a teacher, a doctor. It is his, and only his choice. It is a decision that he has to make, and as long as he knows the consequences, then who are we to tell him what he should do. Does he know the damage that can be done to his body? I am quite sure he has been told. Whether any of us agree with him, that's our opinion.

• I know we probably wont hear anything about Hines Wards' contract until training camp begins, but come on, can't they give us something?

• I wonder what would happen if TO decided to play basketball, regardless of what the Philadelphia Eagles say.

• Pat Kirwan of NFL.com has an article about depth in the NFL. He says the Pittsburgh Steelers are second to the New England Patriots. I'll bet the New England Patriots also have the best cheerleaders, best locker rooms, best beer and the best lawn crew in the league. And as soon as they miss the playoffs, they will AGAIN have no fan support. Gotta love the loyalty.

• As much of a hard time I give the Miami Hurricanes, I have to say, that the one former Miami Hurricane that has stayed out of trouble is Ed Reed. And he has to be on the one team that has the most convicts in the NFL.

• Hank Stram, legendary coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, died on July 3rd. Our hearts and prayers go out to his family.

In Response To AFC Divisional Breakdown Reviews:

•To all of the New England Patriots fans that thought I was disrespecting them, I did pick you to win your division, and that wasn't even good enough for you. Do you want us to just give you the Lombardi Trophy now?

•A few points for all of the poor Cincinnati Bengal fans that thought I wasn't being fair to them. The Cincinnati Bengals were plagued by injuries all last season. OK, first off, injuries are a part of the game, teams with depth survive that. Pittsburgh lost Tommy Maddox (Starting QB at the time), Kendall Simmons, Kendrell Bell, Chad Scott, Casey Hampton, Deuce Staley, Plaxico Burress and Jay Riemersma for multiple games, but I guess they don't count.

BunzoBurns: Tony Boselli was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars. He didn't just play a couple of years, he was an all-pro. He spent part of 2 years on IR. He was then left unprotected in the expansion draft and was selected with the Houston Texans first pick.

UnifiedTheory: If you look at the Miami Dolphins depth chart on NFL.com, you will see that not only is Jason Taylor not listed as a defensive end, he is listed as the right outside linebacker. If you look at the defensive end position, there are 10. Kevin Carter, Jeff Zognia and Vonnie Holliday are 3 defensive ends that the Miami Dolphins signed this off season. I was off by 1, sorry.

Ricky Williams has submitted to the NFL substance abuse program, which means he is going to unretire at the end of the one year he must wait in order to come back without serving a one year suspension. He is 25 pounds lighter than when he was a top 5 back. There are NO power runningbacks that weigh 185.

To say that AJ Feely was bad due to the offensive coordinator is just ridiculous. No one told him to throw the ball to the opposition, NO ONE! When you have a QB that throws the ball to the opposition more than his own team, (I know, we had Kordell Stewart) the opposition can put 8 or 9 in the box and shut the running game down.

Don't tell me how great Nick Saban is yet. He has coached as many NFL games as I have, and that would be none. He has to prove himself before I compare him to Don Shula.

One last thing, It doesn't matter how close you are in games, all that matters is the final score.

Next Big Thing: We were the SECOND team to go 15-1 and not make the Super Bowl. We won 16 games including the playoffs last year. As many games as you have won in the last 2 years.

Stomp: You said, the Cincinnati Bengals will win the AFC North, at 11-5, will be the best offense in the AFC North and a defense that breaths up-and-coming.

The Cincinnati Bengals wouldn't win 11 games next year if you were counting preseason. Carson Palmer is a good QB, I will give him that, (He's better than Kyle Boller). Chad Johnson is a great WR, but you need more than that. Rudi Johnson is a good RB, but if your team really thought he was that good, why did you draft Chris Perry last year? TJ, who would be a good #3, wanted to come to Pittsburgh, but we didn't want him. Every other WR on your team is a #4 at best.

On to the defense. Marvin Lewis, who I said was a good coach, is a defensive specialist. He has less talent than he had when he was the defensive coordinator in Washington, but he couldn't bring in any free agents, because no free agents want to play in Cincinnati. Yes you had a good draft, but how many rookies come in and make that much of a difference their first year in the league. Other than Ben Roethlisberger.

It was luck? It was a fluke? If that is all the Cincinnati Bengals fans have to hold on to why the Pittsburgh Steelers are so much better, you can have it. Just remember, we beat you TWICE last year. And every time I think of when we play the Cincinnati Bengals, I remember, Troy Polamalu predicting that he was not only going to INT Palmer, he was going to return it for a TD. Then when he intercepted the ball and RAN OVER Palmer, for the TD, it was just poetic.

The Bus is Broken: To say that 2 rookies are going to make your run defense the best in the league is insane. NONE of your starting LB's would start for the Pittsburgh Steelers OR the Baltimore Ravens.

Yes, we did take a hit with the loss of Plaxico Burress, however, Antwaan Randle El and Cedrick Wilson are BOTH faster than Burress, and it isn't like Burress was that great. How much attention did Burress get in free agency?

Who will replace Chad Scott? No one could replace Scott. He could get beat better than anyone in the league. When Scott came back from injury, he didn't make it back to the starting lineup. What about Kendrell Bell? He played in I think 2 games last year.


#6: There are 16 games, not 14.

Ryno and Shawn: If your team goes 8-8 one year, and the next year, your team goes 8-8, which had the better record?

Rob: You are the owner of a NFL team. They go 15-1, and come 1 game from the Super Bowl, do you ruin the chemistry by signing a boat load of players? NO!

NOW, your team goes 8-8 one year, then 8-8 the next, do you keep the same roster, or do you try to bring in some talent to help you get a winning record? What was the last year the Cincinnati Bengals had a winning record?

Nick: To say that anyone can step into the QB position and win games makes you sound like you don't know what you're talking about. If that were true, what happened to the 5 QB's your Cincinnati Bengals drafted in the 90's?