Final Weekend In MLB Heats Up

We are so close to the start of the playoffs in Major League Baseball. As we head into the final weekend of the baseball regular season, there are still a few things that need to be decided. We already have six of the ten playoff spots locked up, every division has already to be decided. There is still a lot riding on the action going on this weekend around the league. Both Wild Card spots in the American and National Leagues are still up for grabs, as is home field advantage in the playoffs in both leagues. There's going to be a lot going on over the final three days of the year and it should be a lot of fun to watch.

There are already six teams locked up for the post season. In the National League, the Cubs already have not only the Central locked up, but they have home field advantage all throughout the National League playoffs. Right behind them are the NL East champions the Washington Nationals, followed by the NL West Champions the Los Angeles Dodgers. Chicago gets home field against the winner of the Wild Card game, which is still up for grabs between three teams, the New York Mets, San Francisco Giants and St Louis Cardinals. If the season ends now it would be Mets and Giants at Citi Field, but thankfully for the Cardinals, the season hasn't ended yet. St Louis beat the Reds last night, to keep themselves within a game of the Giants for the final wild card spot. St Louis has three games let on the schedule, playing host to the Pirates for the final three days of the year. St Louis sends Carlos Martinez, Jamie Garcia and Adam Wainwright to the hill against the Pirates for the final three games. St Louis is 7-9 so far this year against the Pirates. Just the mere fact that the Cards are still hanging around at this point with all the injuries they've had this year is pretty impressive.

As for the team in the 2nd wild card spot, the San Francisco Giants, they have slipped this year. Going into the all star break, they had the best record in baseball. Since then, the Giants have been one of the lower teams in all of the game. They head into the final weekend playing the Los Angeles Dodgers at AT&T Park. Despite their abysmal 26-42 record since the All-Star break, the Giants are clinging to even-year life. Thankfully Madison Bumgarner gets the start in the opener of the series against the Dodgers tonight, going up against Rich Hill. Then tomorrow its Albert Suarez taking on Clayton Kershaw and finally Matt Moore battles Kenta Maeda in the final game Sunday. Los Angeles doesn't really have much to play for, as they already have the West locked up. Only thing they have to play for is trying to get home field advantage against the limping Nationals. Washington has a two game lead over the Dodgers for home field. Chances are the Giants may hang on by the skin of their teeth over the Cards.

Lets not forget about the team at the top in the wild card race, the New York Mets. They have the Phillies for three in Philadelphia this weekend. Robert Gsellmen getting the start Friday night. The formula for the Mets is simple. Win and your in (with a little help from the Pirates). Pirates beat the Cards and the Mets beat the Phillies, the Mets are locked into the playoff spot. New York is 10-6 against the Phils this season, and Philadelphia has dropped five of its last six. Plus, New York boasts a winning record (41-37) on the road, and it has Noah Syndergaard and Bartolo Colon lined up to pitch despite an injury-depleted starting rotation. If things fall right and the Mets can clinch tonight, it might not be such a bad idea, if your Terry Collins, to rest one of those two guys, just to make sure one of them is rested and ready to go to start the wild card game on Wednesday.

Over in the American League, the wild card race is a little bit deeper then what they have over in the other league. As it sits, the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays hold down the top two wild card spots. On their heels are the Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners. Baltimore has to head to the Bronx for the final three games, facing off against the New York Yankees. Thanks to the O's win over the Blue Jays, that knocked the Yankees out of the playoff picture. Baltimore hopes that could be of benifit to them, as they hope New York will relax a bit when Baltimore comes to town for the final three regular-season games. I doubt it though. The Yannkees could look at the final three games as, hey you knocked us out, let us return the favor. It could totally happen.

Toronto has to travel to Boston for the last three games, taking on the Red Sox who really don't have much left to fight for, having already locked up the division. Toronto has the best chance of the two to hold onto their spot and they will. Detroit is going to make a run at it late, based purely on the fact that they play the Atlanta Braves, one of the weaker teams in all of baseball. The reason I'm holding out Seattle is because of what they have working against them. Yes, Seattle has to play Oakland, and they are 10-5 against the A's this season. But they still have too little time and too much ground to make up to really vault over the teams ahead of them.

Throw in the fact that the Red Sox, Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers are going to be playing for home field advantage in the playoffs on the line, its going to make for one entertaining weekend of baseball to close out the regular season.

Best And Worst Of NFL Week Three

We are three weeks into the National Football League season, and already some statements are being made. Some of the rookie quarterbacks in this league right now, guys like Carson Wentz, Dak Prescott, and Trevor Simian, have been making big waves around the league and are making a lot of noise. Denver still finds a way to roll right along with that fantastic rookie under center, as the Broncos (along with New England Baltimore, Philadelphia and Minnesota) have managed to stay perfect through the first three games. Meanwhile, New Orleans, Chicago, Cleveland and Jacksonville are still searching for their first win. Oh yeah, and there are teams that are making a lot of noise around the league right now, I'm looking at you Tampa and Dallas, that are surprising a lot of people this year for being relevant in a big way so far. With that being said, here's some of the best and worst performances of week three in the NFL.

Best:
Carson Wentz, Quarterback Philadelphia Eagles
Talk about a statement game. There was already pressure on Carson Wentz, being a rookie playing in a city like Philly. All he's done is win his first three games, throw 102 total passes and has yet to throw an interception. Sunday, in the Eagles win over the Steelers, he went 23-for-31 for 301 yards and two touchdowns. Oh and yeah, he's got the Eagles off to an unbeaten start to the year. Wentz has plenty of poise in the pocket for a guy at his age. Case in point. Early in the game, Wentz escaped pressure to float a perfect pass toward Darren Sproles for a 73-yard touchdown. The play captured Wentz at his finest, showcasing his pocket presence, athleticism, vision and feathery touch. You don't really see too many guys that young pull that off. Now hopefully everybody realizes why the Eagles were so excited to want to get this kid under center from the start of the year.

Worst:
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Quarterback New York Jets
Talk about a Jekyll & Hyde performance. Last week, Fitzpatrck was the offensive player of the week for his performance against the Buffalo Bills. This week, Fitzpatrick was the total opposite. Kansas City really had his number this week, as Fitzpatrick was just awful. He's been prone to turning the ball over in the past, but not this bad. He threw six, SIX, interceptions against the Chiefs in KC on Sunday. Two of those picks got hauled in by young star Marcus Peters and one went for six points the other way by linebacker Derrick Johnson, whose return was quite remarkable. We're three games into the season and Fitzpatrick already has thrown seven picks, half of his total from all of last year. That's pretty bad. Oh and he's only thrown three TD passes so far this year. IF the Jets want to have any hope of making it towards the playoffs, he's got to play better.

Best:
Ezekiel Elliott, Running Back Dallas Cowboys
I think the Cowboys have a pretty good rookie tandom in the backfield right now. Rookie QB Dak Prescott had a good day going 19 of 24 for 248 yards and a touchdown. He's been good so far, but will have to give the job up once Tony Romo comes back. The other guy in the backfield isn't so bad. Ezekiel Elliott, who had his first 100 yard day in the league. Elliott finished with 140 yards on 30 carries, good for the 2nd most yards by a running back in the league this week (only Devonte Freedman of Atlanta had more with 152 yards against the Saints). Oh and most of those yards that Elliott picked up came after contact, which is something he was able to do quite well while playing at Ohio State.

Worst:
Eli Manning, Quarterback New York Giants
This week was a bad one for Quarterbacks in New York. Yes, Eli did go 25 of 38 for 350 yards and a touchdown, but this turned out to be a typical throwaway game for Eli. He threw two fourth-quarter interceptions, one of which was in the end zone on a drive that should have resulted in at least a field goal, if not seven points. In fact, that interception triggered an epic Odell Beckham Jr. sideline meltdown. Ya know the meltdown that led Odell to losing a fight with the field goal kicking net on the Giants sideline. There was more to this game then just Eli having a meltdown at the end of the game, Weston Richburg got ejected from the ball game for getting into a shoving match with Josh Norman during the late stages of the game. This happened after he got a personal foul early on, a new rule the league put into play as a way to help prevent fights in the league. Bad game all around for the Giants, made painful by Eli throwing the game to the Redskins.

Best:
Marvin Jones, Wide Receiver Detroit Lions
Detroit did come up short against Green Bay on Sunday, falling 34-27 to the Pack, but it wasn't because of lack of effort. One guy in particular had himself a day. Marvin Jones became a favorite target of Matthew Stafford on Sunday. Jones finished the day with six catches for 205 yards and a pair of scores, including a huge 73 yard pass play from Stafford early on in the ballgame. Nobody on the Packers defense was able to stop Jones on Sunday, who had himself a career day. The fifth year wide receiver, spending his first four with the Bengals in Cincinnati, now has new life in Detroit. He went over the two hundred yard mark in a game for the first time in his career. He keeps this pace up, Matthew Stafford may have found himself a solid target to work with and could possibly put him over the 1,000 yard receiving mark for the first time in his career.

Worst:
Odell Beckham Jr, Wide Receiver New York Giants
OK statistically, Beckham had himself a good day. He did have seven catches for 121 yards, but was kept out of the endzone. Josh Norman at one point carried him out of the endzone, which lead to Weston Richburg getting thrown out of the football game for his late penalty. The real reason I have to put Beckham on this list is for his antics once again on the sideline. Football is an emotional sport, there's no doubt about it. After Eli Manning threw his pick early in the fourth quarter that got Odell onto this list here. There he was, battling tears, being consoled on the sideline by his quarterback. And there he was, losing a fight to a kicking net and looking generally like Sideshow Bob stepping on rakes. He was so upset with the way the game had gone at that point, he kicked his helmet into the kicking net and having the net fall on him and hit him right in the face. That's happened way too much in his young career. Sure he's got a lot of talent and can be a great football player. He just needs to learn to control his emotions better.

Best:
Jimmy Graham, Tight End Seattle Seahawks
About time this guy, and this offense for that matter, showed up. Seattle spent a first round draft pick to get Graham from the Saints, a guy who had a lot of talent and for a long time was considered one of the top tight ends in all of football. Over the first two weeks of this season, the Seattle offense had been quite, scoring just one touchdown. But Graham helped change that on Sunday as the Seahawks beat up on the 49ers, walking away with a 37-18 victory. Graham had six catches for 100 yards and a touchdown (the only Seahawks receiver to have mour yards was Doug Baldwin who had 164 yards). Graham developing into a top target would give Russell Wilson a much-needed post–Marshawn Lynch safety valve, something Seattle has been waiting for from the tight end since they got him. Now the team just hopes that Russel Wilson's injury isn't too sever and he can play next week against the Jets.

Worst:
Blaine Gabbert, Quarterback San Francisco 49ers
I think the marriage between 49ers fans and Blaine Gabbert may be coming to an end in San Francisco. This week, in the 49ers loss to Seattle, nobody really expected Gabbert to have a fantastic week. After all, Seattle still has one of the premiere defenses in all of professional football. But this was just bad. Finishing with just 119 yards on 14-of-25 passing (4.8 yards per attempt), he failed to throw a touchdown and turned the ball over with an interception. Hemissed badly on many easy passes, and Gabbert appears to feel phantom pressure at times. He was essentially more of a deterrent to success than a guy the 49ers could count on for positive plays. Gabbert now has averaged just 177 passing yards per game while throwing three touchdowns and three interceptions. The 49ers need to seriously think about making a switch now if winning games is part of their overall plan for 2016.

Best:
Buffalo Bills
Things didn't really look good in Buffalo after the first two weeks of the season. It had been pretty bad for the Bills when they fired their offensive coordinator after week two. Well apparently, that move worked. Buffalo showed up in a big way, pulling off a 33-18 win over the Arizona Cardinals, one of the best etams in the league. Buffalo was great on both sides of the ball. New offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn had everything clicking. LeSean McCoy finished with 110 yards rushing on 17 attempts, plus his two first-half scores. Buffalo’s passing game was quiet, but quarterback Tyrod Taylor added another 76 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Buffalo’s defense also answered the call throughout the game, forcing four Carson Palmer interceptions and sacking the veteran four times. I think the Bills got the message last week, because they really came to play this week.

Worst:
Carson Palmer, Quarterback Arizona Cardinals
This is in large part to do with Palmer, who had a bad day under center. Its not all on Palmer, the offense as a whole had a bad day. Think about this for a moment. Arizona is coming off a week in which they dropped 40 points against Tampa Bay. Buffalo's defense just gave up 37 points in the loss to the Jets that same week. Looked like easy pickings right? Wrong. Palmer had an awful day, finishing up with a four-pick, two-fumble pratfall of a performance. Arizona has talent all over the place on the offensive side of the ball. Lets just hope for the Cards sake, that last year wasn't a flash in the pan, and that this was just a bad day and the Cards can bounce back next week.

Tragic Losses To Sports World

Sports can be a beautiful thing. The thrill of competition to see, on a given day, who has a better team. Athletes get paid, and in some cases paid quite well, to play a kids game. Sometimes, though we forget the fact that athletes are humans like us, just with a greater gift. The sports world loss two great humans on Sunday, in two different ways. Miami Marlins young pitching phenom Jose Fernandez died, at age 24, from a boating accident early in the day. Later on Sunday night, golf legend Arnold Palmer passed away at the age of 87.

Fernandez had his whole life ahead of him. He passed away in a boating accident just off the Florida coastline at about 3 AM Sunday, according to reports. Fernández and two other men were found dead after their boat was discovered at the entrance of Miami Harbor. According to CNN, Coast Guard personnel on patrol noticed the vessel upside down on the north end of a rocky jetty shortly after 3:15 a.m. Divers recovered two bodies under the boat, and a third victim was found on the rocks. The names of the two other victims, are being withheld until relatives are notified. Those other two men are friends of Fernandez.

There's more to him then just being a fantastic baseball player. Born in Cuba, Fernandez defected to the United States when he was a teenager. The story is truly awesome. In 2008, Fernández made his fourth attempt to flee Cuba, according to a 2013 Miami Herald story. He'd been jailed for a previous failed attempt and, this time, was attempting to reach America, via Mexico, with his mother and sister. Once on the open water, the newspaper reported, someone fell off of the boat, and Fernández, a good swimmer, asked no questions, he jumped in to save the person. It turned out to be his mother, Maritza. Talk about a scary moment. It shows the compassion the guy had, jumping in to save somebody's life, he didn't even know it was his mother who had fallen in. He cared about everybody around him, was always giving of himself off the field.

On the field, he was a different person. He had a 38-17 lifetime record, including going 16-8 this season. His career ERA 2.58 and he had 589 lifetime strikeouts. He played in two all star games and won the Rookie Of The Year in the National League in 2013. He had it all on the mound. He threw a four seamer in the high 90's, a slurve that could reach the mid 80's a changeup and a sinker that could hit about the same range. Fernandez was must watch baseball when he was on the hill, he really was a joy to watch pitch, if you were a Marlins fan or not.

Professional sports lost another legend on Sunday, as Arnold Palmer passed away. He was the King of Golf, transforming golf into something that was cool. Palmer managed to turn the sport of Golf from something that was just done at a country club, to something that could be done and played by anybody. Palmer was fantastic on the course, as he won more than 90 golf tournaments, including the Masters four times. He also won the U.S. Open in 1960, and the British Open in 1961 and 1962. Oh yeah and he became the first golfer ever to make $1 Million.

Before the age of social media, "Arnold's Army" gave him a loyal following. Win or lose, Palmer's fans followed him around wherever he went on tour. The guy had it all, he had the look and a style that no golfer before had ever shown. You know that a guy has made it big when he has a drink named after him, a mix of lemonade and iced tea that he used to take on the golf course with him in a thermos. It became one of the hottest selling drinks in america, and it still going strong today.

Palmer had it all and did it all. He was the greatest golfer to ever step foot on a tee and he knew it. The world of sports lost a true legend on Sunday.

Can Anybody Stop Louisville?

Talk about dominance. What the Louisville Cardinals have done through the first three games this year in College Football is almost other worldly. They have made a huge statement in the Big 12 that not only is the Big 12 not a pushover, but they made a statement that neither are they. Louisville has been a major force to be reckoned with over the first three games. It really makes you wonder if there is a limit to just how good this team could potentially be this season. Don't believe me? Just take a look at the raw numbers.

In their first three games this year, Louisville has averaged 65 points a game. The Division I college football record for season scoring average is 56, set by Army in 1944. As for the modern era, meaning the last 30 years, the scoring average record is is 53.5. Houston did that in 1989. Those first three games for Louisville have been a 70-14 win over Charlotte, 62-28 win over Syracuse, and a 63-20 win over Florida State, who was the #2 team in the country going into last weekends meeting (Florida State has since fallen to #10 in the coaches poll). The Florida State score will never stop looking remarkable. Early in the fourth quarter, Louisville led 63-10 before having mercy. The 43-point margin of victory tied for the third-largest ever over a top-two team. The biggest was Army beating Notre Dame by 48 points in 1945. Florida State allowed the most points in school history and suffered its fourth most lopsided loss ever.

If you looked at what they did over the first three games, there's nothing to really tell you that they can't do it again in game number four, when they take on the Thundering Heard in Marshall. Marshall has scored, on average, 50 points a game this season and given up only 32 points a game. Lets face facts, its not going to end well for Marshall on Saturday night.  This leads one to wonder, how many schools last year scored 60 or more points in a game for four straight games last season? The answer is one........Baylor.  Baylor put together five straight 60-point games, starting with the 2nd game of last season, when they hung 66 on Lamar. They followed that with 70 (Rice), 63 (Texas Tech), 66 (Kansas) and 62 (West Virginia). Baylor slumped after that, following up the West Virginia game with a 45-27 win over Iowa State. Oregon and Memphis were the only other FBS programs to deliver three 60-point games last season (WDRB.com).

Louisville has been a scoring machine this year. They have scored 27 touchdowns in its first three games, putting the Cards on a pace to finish with 108. They can't continue that pace, clearly, but they can slow down and still do great things. The school record for touchdowns in one season is 80. Louisville has been powered by their run game so far this year. The school record for rushing yards in a 3,005, set in 2004. The Cards are on pace for a 4,000-yard rushing season. Oh and Quarterback Lamar Jackson has put an early stamp on a possible Heisman Trophy. Lamar Jackson's 10 rushing touchdowns have him on a pace for 40 rushing TDs. The single  season record for rushing TDs at Louisville is 23, which was set by Michael Bush in 2005. Oh yeah and Jackson has rushed for 464 yards in three games, which has him on track to finish with 1,856 yards. Just so you know, the Division I record for most rushing yards in a season is a quarterback is 1,881, set by Jordan Lynch of Northern Illinois in 2013. Yeah this guy is putting a stamp on his Heisman case early on this year.

You can look at all those stats, which are quite impressive, and you have to wonder, can anybody really stop the Cardinals this season? Based on the rest of the schedule, it really doesn't look like that's gonna happen. Five of Louisville's opponents over their final nine games do not rank among the top 50 teams nationally in scoring defense. Those five schools are Marshall, North Carolina State, Virginia, Boston College and Kentucky. In fact, three do not rank in the Top 90, those schools being Marshall (98th, 32.5 per game), Virginia (91st, 31.3 per game) and Kentucky (122, 43.7 per game). For the record, three future opponents, Clemson, Wake Forest and Houston, do rank in the top 15 nationally in scoring defense. So maybe there is a little bit of hope.

However you look at it, Louisville has been a dominating team this season. At this point, there's no signs that Louisville is going to be slowing down anytime soon. So to answer the question if anybody can stop Louisville, the answer right now is no.

Best And Worst NFL Week Two

There were quite a few take away's from week two of the NFL Season. Dak Prescott got his first NFL win, leading Dallas on a big drive late in their win over Washington. Meanwhile, Packers QB Aaron Rogers wasn't able to generate that in Minnesota. The Vikings beat said Packers in the first ever game played at the new stadium, US Bank Stadium. Cam Newton looked like his old self again, while Jamis Winston ran into a buzzsaw knonwn as the the Arizona Cardinals defense. Injuries seemed to creep up around the league again this week, as Brandon Marshall of the Jets and Adrian Peterson of the Vikings both hurt their knees (Marshal came back but Peterson didn't). Oh yeah and the Patriots are going to be without Jimmy Garoppolo, who got hurt late in the Patriots win over the Dolphins. All of that and more happened in the 2nd week of the season. So lets take a look at some of the best and worst from week two in the National Football League.

Best:
Stefon Diggs, Wide Receiver Minnesota Vikings
Talk about a coming out party. Diggs had himself one hell of a day, catching nine passes for 182 yards and a tocuhdown in the Vikings win over Green Bay. Minnesota's stud young receiver had a catch-and-run of 46 yards, and he completed an insane touchdown catch on a great throw from Bradford to provide the Vikings their winning points in the second half. He and Sam Bradford were in a groove together against the Packers. With the two of them seeming to be in sync in this football game, it gives the Vikings hope for the future. With Bradford now under center running the ship, and Diggs playing out of his head in this contest, it gives the Vikings hope for what could be this season.

Worst:
Seattle Seahwaks Offense
This was supposed to be a solid offensive team right? RIGHT? Well I guess that's not exactly the case early on. Seattle's offense has managed to score only one touchdown all year. ONE. That came late in the week one win over the Dolphins. But once week two rolled around, the Rams shut down the Seahawks offense, giving up only a single field goal. Mind you, this was the same Rams defense that gave up 28 points to the 49ers in the first game of the season. Russell Wilson isn't himself, that's clear. If Seattle doesn't find a way to get it together and get the offense going, they could score 120 points this year. Its a sad showing by the Seattle offense, a team that is still supposed to be a power in the NFC. The first two weeks don't exactly show it that way.

Best:
Sterling Sheppard, Wide Receiver New York Giants
One of the big question marks going into the season with the Giants was how productive can Victor Cruz be? The second question is who can be the number two receiver behind Odell Beckham Jr.? Well the second question has been answered a little quicker than the first one. Rookie wide receiver Sterling Sheppard has stepped his game up and played really well through the first two weeks of the season. Case in point, week two in the Giants win over the Saints. Sheppard had eight catches for 117 yards. Just how good was that against the Saints? He outpaced both Cruz and Beckham. That's a good day folks. I know its a little early to be bragging about this, but he might be in an early lead for offensive rookie of the year.

Worst:
Adrian Peterson, Running Back Minnesota Vikings
It was supposed to be a great night in Minnesota. Vikings opened up a new stadium. It was Sunday Night Football, they beat the Green Bay Packers. However it came at a cost. Star Vikings running back Adrian Peterson. During the third quarter Peterson left the game with a knee injury.For a guy as good as he is, Peterson really can't afford to miss much more playing time because the window for his is closing fast. And if he misses extended time it would be a huge blow to Minnesota’s long-term outlook. A bit of a bad luck break for AP on Sunday night.

Best:
Cam Newton Quarterback Carolina Panthers
I guess what happened to Cam against Denver on opening night didn't have any carry over into week two. Sure, he got off on the wrong foot, getting picked off by Antoine Bethea on the opening drive of the game. He quickly bounced back with a phenomenal performance, throwing four touchdowns and totaling 390 yards. Newton went 24 of 40 for 353 yards 4 touchdowns 1 pick and a fumble. Greg Olsen and Kelvin Benjamin both went at least 108 yards each, so yeah its safe to say Cam had himself a day.

Worst:
Jameis Winston, Quarterback Tampa Bay Buccaneers
If you thought Winston was going to have a solid week in week two, then your going to have a bad day (thankfully I sat him in one of my fantasy leagues). Sure, there's no denying that he had a huge performance Week 1 on the road in Atlanta. To say that his week two performance against Arizona was a major letdown would be simply an accurate statement. Winston threw just one touchdown to go with four interceptions and was sacked three times in an embarrassing 40-7 loss.He went 27 of 52 for 243 yards and a touchdown, but he was picked four times and sacked three more. Yeah it wasn't a good day for Winston against the Cards.

Best:
Dak Prescott, Quarterback Dallas Cowboys
Being able to lead your team in a game winning drive late in a football game, for a win. That's what most quarterbacks dream of doing. Its an even bigger dream to do it for your first career win in the NFL. Well this was a dream come true, as it happened to Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys. Against a division rival, in Washington, which is a bit of a tough place to play, not exactly something that would be easy to do for a rookie. Down by four in the fourth quarter, he led an 11-play drive that chewed up 80 yards and almost six minutes off the clock. Making things all the sweeter for the Cowboys, former Washington running back Alfred Morris capped off the drive with the winning touchdown run. Morris and rookie Ezekiel Elliott finished with 90 yards on 26 carries. It wasn't exactly pretty, but it is his first career win and helped the Cowboys get back to 1-1 on the year.

Worst:
Hue Jackson, Head Coach Cleveland Browns
It only seems like this could happen to the Browns. Cleveland got off to a very hot start on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens, opening up a three touchdown lead against Baltimore before the end of the first quarter. One of those opening scores was Isaiah Crowell going on an 85-yard scamper for a score. Everything looked like it was going to be good for the Browns. Then it all fell apart from there on Cleveland. How could this happen? easy. Hue Jackson decides to ditch the run and try throwing the football more. Cleveland ran the ball a total of 23 times in this game. Josh McCown, how played hurt by the way, thre the ball 33 times. Sure he had two scores but he also got picked off twice. Baltimore had the ball more in the latter half of the game, winning time of possession and coming away with a 25-20 victory. Cleveland going away from the run game is what killed them against the Ravens.

Cubs First To Clinch

Not exactly the way they wanted to do it, but the end result in the Windy City has been a long time coming. After six years of missing the playoffs, Chicago ended that drought last year making the playoffs for the first time in six years. They took that wave of momentum all the way to the NLCS before getting swept by the Mets. That caused some re-tooling over the winter. Ben Zobrist and Jason Heyward were added into the lineup, one which was already loaded. The question wasn't will they, but when would they, lock up a playoff spot? Well that was answered yesterday as the Cubs have locked up a National League Central crown for the first time since back to back Central titles in 2007 & 2008.

I'm sure this wasn't exactly the way the Cubs pictured winning their first division title since 2008, but they will take it anyway they can get it. Heading into yesterday's action, the magic number in Chicago was one. All they had to do was win and the division was their's. But that didn't happen, as the Cubs fell to the Brewers 5-4. All was not lost though once that game ended against the Brewers. If the Cubs wanted to win the division, they needed a little help out west. They got it. San Francisco knocked off the Cardinals, 6-2. With the Cards loss, that puts them a full 17 games back of the Cardinals in the NL Central, all of this coming now with 16 games remaining in the season. Yes that's right, it handed the Chicago Cubs the NL Central title.

Since 2008, the Cubs last Central title, the division has gone to three different teams. St. Louis won in 2009, Cincinnati won in 2010, then Milwaukee won in 2011, followed by the Reds again in 2012, and finally the Cardinals each of the last three seasons. In fact, this year marks the third time in the modern era of the franchise that the Cubs have qualified for the postseason in back-to-back years, also doing so from 1906-1908 and 2007-2008. To make this even stranger, this is the second straight year that the Cubs have locked up a playoff spot thanks to another team losing (WGN).

Now, back to this years Cubs. This team has been playing out of their mind. Anthony Rizzo and MVP Candidate (at least in my mind) Kris Bryant have been powering this offense, both guys have over 30 homers on the year (Rizzo has 31, Bryant has 37). Addison Russell, too, has been very productive, knocking in 91 runs this season. Right now, Chicago has seven hitters that have over 100 hits this season, Bryant, Rizzo, Russell, Ben Zobrist, Dexter Fowler, Jason Heyward and Javier Baez. They've been getting clutch hitting at clutch times this year.

Then there's the pitching staff. Jake Arrieta is coming off his Cy Young Award win last year with another fine season this year. He is 17-6 on the year with a 2.91 ERA and 171 strikeouts. You think that's good, look at the guy right behind him in the rotation, Jon Lester. Lester is 17-4 with a 23.40 ERA and 179 strikeouts. Finally, there's the other 15 game winner in this starting rotation, Kyle Hendricks. Hendricks is 15-7 with a team low (at least among the starters) 2.03 ERA and 152 strikeouts. The only knock on Hendricks, if you want to call it a knock, is that he has fewer innings pitched right now then Arrieta and Lester. Lester has thrown 184 innings, Arrieta has thrown 179.1 innings. Hendricks has tossed 173 innings. Sure that's a little nit picking, but some people are even throwing his name around in conversation for the Cy Young award in the National League this year.

Still with all that being said, the Cubs have had a fantastic year and can now focus on nailing down the best record in the NL, to keep home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Cubs fans have been waiting a long time for something like this. Joe Madden looks like he has the Cubs primed and ready to end one of the longest championship droughts in all of professional sports. That's still a ways away. First step is out of the way with the Cubs winning the NL Central!

NFL Best And Worst Week One

We are off and running with the first week of the National Football League season and what an opening week it was. Eight games in the opening week of the season finished with a score under five points, including one of those games going to overtime (big comeback by Kansas City in that game against San Diego). We had a couple of offensive shootouts, a surprising rookie debut, gutsy coaching calls in Oakland, only two running backs cracked the one hundred yard mark for the day. New England didn't look like they missed Brady much with how well Jimmy Garoppolo played in the opener against the Cards. So lets get right down to it and look at some of the winners and losers from the first week of football action.

Best:
AJ Green Wide Receiver Cincinnati Bengals
Bengals pulled out a narrow one point opening week victory over the Jets and Green was a huge reason for this. Talk about a day, Green had twelve grabs for 180 yards and a score. The catches and yards were both tops among NFL receivers in the opening week. He did this on 13 targets , Green's one dropped pass was underthrown by Andy Dalton, but he very nearly snatched it from the mouth of the turf to secure a shoestring-style catch at a critical moment in the game. His biggest catch got the Bengals their first TD of the year for the Bengals, that being the 54 yard post pattern where he beat out Darrell Revis to get to the ball and score on the TD. He was beating Revis steadly most of the day for his grabs too and on one catch made it look easy doing it. Green was having that good a day.

Worst:
Kenny Stills, Wide Receiver Miami Dolphins
Miami was in a bit of a nail bitter against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. Kenny Stills wasn't much of a factor in the game on Sunday, with just one catch for sixteen yards, but its what he didn't do that looks really bad. It doesn’t get much worse than Stills’ drop. He was all alone downfield and Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill delivered what should have been a touchdown pass. And Stills dropped it. That score would have put the game away. But Stills dropped it and with less then a minute left, the Seahawks scored to take a lead they would not relinquish. Talk about a tough break.

Best:
Carson Wentz, Quarterback Philadelphia Eagles
Talk about pressure. Second overall pick in the NFL Draft, making his first career start. There wasn't much pressure put on the kid since the 1st overall pick in the draft, Jared Geoff isn't very high on the Rams depth chart, so there was kind of less pressure on Wentz. He went out there and performed. Wentz completed nearly 60 percent of his passes and threw for 278 yards en route to a 29–10 win over the Browns. Of course, this all came against a defense that was the fourth-worst in football last year. But a win’s a win. Beautiful touchdown passes are beautiful touchdown passes, one to Zach Ertz and the other to Nelson Agholor. Wentz picked up the win something that rookie starters don't really do often in their first game, but its a win all the same.

Worst:
Terrance Williams, Wide Receiver Dallas Cowboys
Talk about a mental breakdown. Terrance had a decent day, with three catches for 34 yards. Normally a day like this wouldn't really be talked about. With just over a minute to play, Dallas moved into Giants territory, Dak Prescott hit a pass to Williams on the right sideline that should have given the ‘Boys a chance to try a long field goal to win the game. Unfortunately, Williams forgot what time it was and tried for a few extra yards, rather than getting out of bounds and stopping the clock. Dallas couldn't get to the line fast enough and simply ran out of time giving the Giants a 20-19 win. Williams makes the smart play and gets out of bounds, maybe it gives Dallas kicker Dan Bailey a shot at a 62 yard field goal. Would have been a long shot for Bailey but Williams failed to get out of bounds and the Giants got the win.

Best:
DeAngelo Williams, Running Back Pittsburgh Steelers
Talk about making a statement. Some thought that there was going to be questions was if the Steelers could hold out in the run game with bell out due to suspension. Well, for one week at least, that question was answered with a resounding yes. DeAngelo Williams went off in the Pittsburgh 38-16 win over the Redskins on Monday Night. He finished the night with 6 catches for 26 yards but the big story was he was the leading rusher in week one, finishing with 26 carries for 143 yards and a pair of scores. He was running over people and making the Washington defense look like traffic cones. He was ducking around guys, running over them. He's making a statement early on and giving the Steelers a reason to think maybe about when Bell comes back.

Worst:
Adrian Peterson, Running Back Minnesota Vikings
I know its only the first game of the season but come on. For a guy who goes by the nickname of "All Day", Adrian Peterson sure didn't look like it on Sunday against the Titans. Yes the Vikings got the win over the Titans, walking away with a 25-16 victory. Peterson wasn't really much of a factor in this game. Tennessee did a good job of shutting down AP during the day. Despite carrying the ball 19 times, Peterson could only manage 31 yards, and he didn’t catch either of the passes thrown his way. It was, quite honestly, one of the worst outings of Peterson’s career.

Best:
Jack Del Rio, Head Coach Oakland Raiders
You wanna talk about guts, look no further then Jack Del Rio and the Raiders. Oakland was in a shootout most of the day with the Saints in New Orleans. Oakland just kept chipping away and chipping away at what was a 24-10 Saints lead. Then it happened. Oakland scored at the end of the ball game. The next possession turned into a 11-play, 75-yard drive that took more than five minutes off the clock. Carr then hit Seth Roberts for a 10-yard touchdown, and it appeared the Raiders and Saints were headed to overtime, pending the extra-point conversion. ESPN said it would be smarter for the Raiders, based on percentages, to kick the extra point and head to overtime. Thankfully Jack Del Rio is the Raiders coach, and he doesn't pay attention to what ESPN said. Del Rio called for the 2-point conversion, Oakland converted and walked away with the win. It was a gutsy call but it worked. Del Rio looks like a genius.

Worst:
Injuries Striking Week One
Week one, while very exciting around the NFL, turned into an injury fest. Seattle Quarterback Russel Wilson hurt his ankle near the end of the win over Miami, and is questionable for the game Sunday against the Rams. Cam Newton of the Panthers took a beating against the Broncos, getting hit with helmet to helmet contact at least four times in the Panthers opener. It got worse for quarterbacks as the Browns Robert Griffin III hurt his throwing shoulder and looks to be out three to four weeks. That puts his future in doubt as the guy just can't stay healthy. Keenan Allen of the Chargers looks to be hurt badly and will probably miss the remaining 2016 season. It is suspected that the Chargers wideout tore his ACL in a loss to the Chiefs. Injuries suck, especially just one game in.

NFL Season Preview

Its that time of year once again. All the talk has come and gone, players have been shifted around, but we're all set and ready to go. The 2016 National Football League has arrived and everybody is ready to go. Over the next seventeen weeks, the 32 teams around the league will do battle for a shot to play at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, with the biggest prize in all of Football on the line. Since we last left you after the Super Bowl back in February, some great careers have come to an end. Charles Woodson, Marshawn Lynch, Charles Tillman, Jared Allen, Peyton Manning, Calvin Johnson, and Greg Jennings have all hung up the pads and called it a career. It will be a little strange watching football this year and knowing that these guys on the field.

And while we have seen the end of a couple of careers, we have also seen some old faces move to new places. We've seen some big names move teams. Defensive players like Josh Norman (Panthers to Redskins), Janoris Jenkins (Rams to Giants), Prince Amukamara (Giants to Jaguars), Sean Smith (Chiefs to Raiders), Casey Hayward (from Packers to Chargers), Eric Weddle (Chargers to Ravens), Rodney McLeod (Rams to Eagles), Malik Jackson (Broncos to Jaguars), Olivier Vernon (Dolphins to Giants), Damon Harrison (Jets to Giants), Demario Davis (Jets to Browns) and Bruce Irvin (from Seahawks to Raiders) have switched to new teams.

Meanwhile on offense, we've seen Mitchell Schwartz (Browns to Chiefs), Russell Okung (Seahawks to Broncos), Kelechi Osemele (Ravens to Raiders), Benjamin Watson (Saints to Ravens), Coby Fleener (Colts to Saints), Rishard Matthews (Dolphins to Titans) Travis Benjamin (Browns to Chargers), Marvin Jones (Bengals to Lions), Mohamed Sanu (Bengals to Falcons), Lamar Miller (Dolphins to Texans), Matt Forte (Bears to Jets), Alfred Morris (Redskins to Cowboys), Chris Ivory (Jets to Jaguars), Brock Osweiler (Broncos to Texans) and Robert Griffin III (Redskins to Browns) have all switched cities.

There are a few notable rule changes that are being put into effect for this season. Allowing the offensive and defensive play callers on the coaching staffs to use the coach-to-player communication system regardless of whether they are on the field or in the coaches' booth. Permanently adopting the extra-point rules enacted in the 2015 NFL season. Extra point kicks will be from the 15 yard line, and defenses can return blocked PAT's, fumbles or interceptions on two-point tries for a two-point defensive conversion. The league will now outlaw all chop blocks anywhere on the field. Previously, the chop block was legal when an offensive lineman chops a defensive player "while the defensive player is physically engaged above the waist by the blocking attempt of another offensive teammate". Expand the definition of a "horse-collar tackle" to include tackles where a player is grabbed by the jersey at or above the name plate and dragged to the ground. Teams making the act of calling time-out when not permitted to do so subject to a delay-of-game penalty (5 yards). Thanks to Odell Beckham Jr and Josh Norman from last year, Players committing two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in the same game will be automatically ejected from the game.

So now that we got that out of the way, lets get down to the meat and potato's for this discussion. With all the new faces in new places, it will make for some very entertaining football this year. That being said, here's how I see the 2016 NFL season going down!

NFC East
1. New York Giants (9-7)*
Its been a while for the New York Giants tasting playoff football. They haven't seen the post season since their Super Bowl win in 2011. They haven't had a winning season since 2012, going 6-10 each of the last two seasons. This year may be a little bit different. The team did spend a lot of money to retool one of their biggest weak spots, that being the defense. Olivier Vernon, Janoris Jenkins and Damon Harrison all were brought on board to improve this football team, which the defense will do (on paper anyway). Hopefully that improved defense can change the fortunes for the Giants, who lost five games last year in the final minutes by blowing leads. New York still has a high powered offense that can hang tough. New head coach Ben McAdoo has some big shoes to fill in New York, but shouldn't have a tough time adjusting to the new role. The talent is there for Big Blue to make the playoffs for the first time in five years.

2. Dallas Cowboys (8-8)
When training camp opened, I had the Cowboys placed higher on this list then they are right now. A healthy Tony Romo, with that offensive line and that running game, Dallas should have been a lock to win this division. But now the Boys will be without him the for 6-10 weeks with a broken bone in his back. So that means that Dak Prescott now will have to carry the bulk of the load. Don't get me wrong, there still a chance for Dallas, because Romo won't be missing the entire season. Still who knows how big a hole the Boys will be in, as far as the division goes, by the time Romo does come back. Hey Dak could be playing so well that Romo may not even get his starting job back. One thing that bothers me with this Cowboys team is that the defense has its own problems that its dealing with. Defense in Big D is mediocre at best right now. Dallas has the offense, but without Romo and a suspect defense, it makes it a long shot for them.

3. Washington Redskins (8-8)
Last years division winners are going to take a bit of a step backwards this season. On defense, Washington is still a work in progress. Sure they added Josh Norman, who happens to be one of the top corners in all of football, but they don't strike fear into the heart of other teams with that defense. Sure DeAngelo Hall and Will Crumpton can be impact players, it won't be enough. Kirk Cousins still has offensive weapons to work with, just like he did last year. But again that defense in Washington has me worried and I just don't feel like they'er going to be able to get back to the same level they did last season.

4. Philadelphia Eagles (4-12)
If your an Eagles fan, this could be a rough, growing pains kind of year. Things didn't go well in Philly under Chip Kelly, so enter new head coach Doug Pederson, who will help right the ship. Last year they had the same record, but that was considered a disapointment. This year, it might just be expected. Sure Bradford is still there and has Jordan Matthews to throw to, and Zach Ertz as well, but Ryan Matthews has to have a big comeback year if the Eagles even want to stand a chance. The defense has some holes in it, which may make things tough for Philly to stay competative in this division.

NFC North
1. Green Bay Packers (12-4)*
Green Bay just fell short against the Cards, and look for that to be a possible NFC Championship game this year. The Pack is ready to rock and roll this year. Aaron Rogers will have full weapons back at his disposal this year. James Starks is going to get work, but I feel Eddy Lacy will get back to his full complement of carries again this season. Oh and before I forget, there is a talented receiving core that the Packers have given Rogers to work with again this season. He's got Jared Cook the tight end to throw to. As for receivers, Devante Adams and Randel Cobb will get work. Oh yeah and Jordy Nelson is back in the mix and healthy. Combine that with the fact that the Packers have one of the easiest schedules in the league, and I'd say it puts them right back at the top of the North this year.

2. Minnesota Vikings (9-7)*
I had the Vikings fighting it out with Green Bay originally. That was until last week when Teddy Bridgwater blew out his knee and is lost for the season, leaving Shaun Hill as the starter under center this year. Not quite the way the Vikings envisioned breaking in U.S. Bank Stadium. They face a tough test dealing with the Packers in week two and the Panthers in week three. So its not that easy a start. Minnesota still has Adrian Peterson in the backfield, so he's going to be counted on a little bit more now that Bridgewater is out of the mix and Kyle Rudolph is going to get targeted a bit more. Minnesota does have a solid defense which will help keep the Vikings in a lot of games this year. If not for the Bridgewater injury, the Vikings would be an even greater threat to the Packers this year.

3. Chicago Bears (9-7)
This is going to be a nice turn around season for the Bears. If his past track record has proven anything, John Fox has shown that he knows how to help turn a team around. On defense, Chicago has the talent and skill to be able to be really scary, with the likes of Tracy Porter, Willie Young, Akiem Hicks, and Lamar Houston among others, the Bears have a defense that could be one of the best in the game. The offense has me a little worried. Jay Cutler isn't the same as he once was. The offensive line is solid but outside of Alshon Jeffery and maybe Zach Miller, I'm not sure about the weapons the Bears have.

4. Detroit Lions (7-9)
This is going to be a different look to the Lions this year, they will have to get adjusted to life without Calvin Johnson. Don't get me wrong Detroit can still have a potent offense. Matthew Stafford has no problem throwing the ball. He still has solid targets to work with in Golden Tate, Anquin Bouldin and Eric Ebron to throw to so Detroit can have a solid offense. Only thing is there's a lot of questions to answer to on both the offensive and defensive lines, and playing three of their first four games on the road, it makes for a rough go of things in Detroit this season.

NFC South
1. Carolina Panthers (12-4)*
I don't think the Panthers are going to have as fantastic a year as they did last year. They are the defending NFC Champions for a reason and are still considered a major threat in the NFC for a reason. Carolina's offense will still be as high powered as ever. Not only has the lineup from last year returned in tact, but you can add in threat Kelvin Benjamin back into the lineup, who missed all of last year with a serious knee injury. The secondary seems to have taken a step back with the loss of Josh Norman, and they're playing rematches against last years playoff opponents of Arizona, Seattle and Denver. They're also going to be on prime time football a lot, playing five of such games this year. But because the rest of the division is still in rebuild mode, this should be an easy division win for the Panthers. Carolina is just too good a team.

2. Atlanta Falcons (7-9)
Last year Atlanta got off to a great start going 6-1, but they faltered down the stretch going 2-7 to close out the year. Head coach Dan Quinn has the offense that can hang in this division. Matt Ryan has plenty of help with Mohamed Sanu and Julio Jones to throw to and Devanta Freedman running the ball. Again much like the teams ahead of them in the division, Atlanta's defense leaves something to be desired. One of the biggest knocks against the Falcons this year is how tough a schedule they have this season. Right in the middle of the schedule, they play Carolina, Denver and Seattle. The only team who has a tougher schedule then the Falcons is the 49ers. Couldn't think of a better way to say goodbye to the Georgia Dome then by playing the Saints the final game of the year.

3. New Orleans Saints (7-9)
When you have Drew Brees on your team, even at his age, you still got a solid chance to win a game every week. Plus when you have a solid running back in Mark Ingram, plus when you have Brandon Cooks and Willie Snead catching passes along with Colby Fleener, the Saints should be on solid footing. On defense, they may have a problem. They could be good but that's if they're playing at there best, but that isn't always the case. Still think there might be too many holes on defense to be able to cover up for their problems. New Orleans hasn't been the force they once were, going 7-9 in each of the last two seasons. With the defense the way it is in New Orleans, its really hard to imagine them any better then a .500 ball club

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-10)
Looks like a rough go of it for Tampa Bay at the start of the season. At Atlanta, at Arizona, host the Rams, host the Broncos and at Carolina to star the year. Looks like a rough go at the start of the season for the Bucs. Head coach Dirk Kotter has a lot of weapons to work with this year on offense. Jameis Winston is back for another year and has targets in Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson to work with, plus a solid back in Doug Martin. The big question is how well can Jameis play in his 2nd year in the league? Is he going to live up to the hype?

NFC West
1. Arizona Cardinals (13-3)*
This may be the one team in the entire NFC, maybe even all of football, who doesn't have any weaknesses. The Cards are once again loaded. This was a high powered offense from last year, with Carson Palmer throwing to the likes of Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd with David Johnson still running the ball, this offense might be able to put up about 25 or so points a week. Sure its a tough task to finish the year with five of the final seven games of the year on the road, but by then I think the Cards may be already set on being a playoff team. With that high powered offense, the defense in Arizona has some big standards to live up to. James Bettcher has a solid defense to work with, now you throw Chandler Jones into the mix and Arizona has something brewing. Don't be surprised if the Cardinals get over the hump this year in the NFC, they are going to be that good and then some.

2. Seattle Seahawks (11-5)*
When you have the Legion of Boom, you'll be good to go. That Seattle defense has led the league in fewest points allowed each of the last four years and they should be able to do it again this year. With Bennett, Rubin Reed and Avril up front, Seattle has plenty of talent to keep up the pressure on the opposing offense. Seattle has a few questions on the offensive line, but the rest of that unit is stacked. Russel Wilson played out of his mind in the 2nd half of last season. They may have to adjust to life without Marshawn Lynch in the backfield, so Wilson will be counted on to throw the ball a little more. When you have Jimmy Graham at tight end, Doug Baldwin Jermaine Kearse and Tyler Lockett at wide out, they have enough firepower to work with. Seattle also has a bit of a favorable first half of the schedule facing one playoff team from last year in the first nine weeks of the year. Seattle will be just fine this season.

3. Los Angeles Rams (8-8)
Big year of change for the Rams organization, moving from St Louis to Los Angeles. New quarterbacks under center in Los Angeles, still with Tavon Austin to throw to at wide receiver. Oh and they do have one of the best young running backs in football in Todd Gurley out of the backfield. Los Angeles has a decent defense to work with as well but they lost some key parts from that defense St Louis has a favorable schedule which makes it totally possible to be a .500 football team. But the problem with the Rams is they don't have the weapons or full blown firepower to make it as a real playoff threat.

4. San Francisco 49ers (4-12)
This is going to be a long year in San Francisco. New head coach Chip Kelly doesn't have much to work with Colin Kaepernick lost out on his starting job to Blaine Gabbert. Some people in San Fran think that this rebuilt team has more depth then last year, but that will be put to the test this year as they have the hardest schedule in the league. This defense is good, or at least has the talent to be very good, but the offense has some holes in it and its not looking good for the 49ers this year.

NFC Championship Game: Cardinals def Packers!

AFC East
1. New England Patriots (11-5)*
New era at the start of the year, with Brady out the first four games. Enter Jimmy Garoppolo, who has to play the Cardinals, Dolphins, Texans and Bills. Brady will be back on October 9th when the Patriots face the Cleveland Browns. With that being said, here's how good the Patriots have been. Over the last 15 years they've failed to make the playoffs just once, that being in 2008. As a matter of fact, since the turn of the century, 2002 and 2008 have been the only two years that the Patriots have failed to make the playoffs. Hell they've won the division every year but those two seasons, which shows how consistent the Patriots are. Amendola, Edleman and Gronkowski are going to be utalized fully again this year, it doesn't matter whether its Garoppolo or Brady throwing to them, they will still be impactful. LeGarrette Blunt is going to have to play big to be able to carry the rush load the this year and prove to me that the Patriots can have a successful running game. The Pats still have a defense that can be tough to beat, so look for New England to roll again to another division title/

2.  New York Jets (9-7)
As much as I have to say this I thing the Jets have another winning season and it won't be enough again to make the playoffs. The Jets have a six week stretch that's going to be really tough, having to play the Cheifs, Seahawks, Steelers, Cardinals and Ravens, all early on in the season. The offense was able to mostly stay in tact. Carrying four quarterbacks is a bit questionable, but who knows whats running through the mind of head coach Todd Bowles. Chris Ivory isn't in the backfield, but Matt Forte is, which adds a different dynamic to the Jets offense this year. New York's offensive line leaves something to be desired, which makes me wonder just how great this Jets team is going to be. That front line on defense, Williams, McLendon, and Wilkerson is going to be brutal to play against this year for the opposition. New York has had a top five defense the last few seasons and they will be once again this year. But it might not be enough to get into the playoffs, just because of how tough the schedule is this year.

3. Buffalo Bills (8-8)
They get luck, the first meeting that Buffalo has with the Patriots this year is the end of the four game suspension for Brady. They have something to work with on offense. Sammy Watkins and Chalres Clay are solid pass catchers, Watkins more so then Clay. LeSean McCoy is still a good running back. The offensive line is pretty decent. Only question mark I have for the Bills is Tyrod Taylor. Can he fully develop into a solid star QB in this league? Time will tell, but if he's showing improvement, then Buffalo has a scary offense. It's their defense that's a weak spot. They have too many holes and are a weak spot.

4. Miami Dolphins (7-9)
This is a Dolphins team that really isn't much better then the team that won six games a season ago. Rookie coach Adam Gase is going to have his hands full in Miami this year. He has to try and turn around an underachieving franchise, no easy task but he's got to start somewhere. Kenny Stills and Jordan Cameron are good pass catchers, they have a run game to work with in Arian Foster. How well can the offensive line hold up? What about the defense? They have a good defensive line but everybody on that line has played well below their paycheck the last few years. Sorry Dolphins fans but its another year of missed playoffs.

AFC North
1. Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4)*
You can argue this all you want, but the Steelers are still the best team in this division. Despite the fact that Le'Von Bell is out the first three games because of a suspension, Pittsburgh still a very dangerous offensive team. You have the best receiver in the game in Antonio Brown. Marcus Wheaton and Darrius Hayward-Bay can also catch the ball as well. Once Bell comes back, the Steelers offense is going to be tough to stop.  The defense can generate turnovers that's for sure. If they can get a little better defending the pass then Pittsburgh is going to live up to being a major threat to win the Super Bowl. I mean, think about it. Pittsburgh won 10 games against one of the league's toughest schedules, doing all of this while dealing with injuries to several key starters. This years opponents combine for a .473 winning percentage in 2015. The toughest non-divisional opponents, New England and Kansas City, come to Pittsburgh this year. There's little reason to think the Steelers can't be one game better than they were a year ago.

2. Cincinnati Bengals (11-5)*
Marvin Lewis is ready to lead a hungry bunch to the playoffs for the sixth year in a row. Who says that it can't happen for the Bengals this year? They managed to hit double digits in wins last year against one of the hardest schedules in all of football. Now this season, they have the fourth easiest schedule in the NFL. Plenty of talent to go around on this team. Andy Dalton's health can be a bit of a concern, but once's he's ready and on his game, watch out. The Bengals are going to be a tough team to beat. AJ Green, Brandon LaFell and Tyler Eifert are going to have good years again catching passes from Dalton, while Hill and Bernard can take the pressure off the pass with a solid running game.

3. Baltimore Ravens (9-7)
Baltimore has been a good team in recent years, a decent model of consistency. They've only missed the playoffs twice in eight years under John Harbaugh. With that being said, it stands to reason they'll be back in the hunt this year. Look at the way last year went down. They lost 20 players to injured reserve, which really hurt their chances at getting into the post season. This year, December will be pivotal with the Ravens facing the Patriots, Steelers and Bengals on the road to end the season. Baltimore does catch a bit of a break this year. Last year they played two of the toughest division in the league, the NFC and AFC West. This year, they have to do battle with the NFC and AFC East. Joe Flacco should be able to stay healthy, and can make Mike Wallace a top target, plus keep the rest of the receiving core around Wallace in good shape. The defense is good but the two teams ahead of them are just a little bit better this year.

4. Cleveland Browns (1-15)
Head coach Hue Jackson is going to be in for a long year this year in Cleveland. They have Robert Griffin III at starting quarterback for this season, looking to rebuild his career. Terrelle Pryor is his only receiving weapon and the team will be giving Malcolm Johnson the ball at running back. Cleveland has a weak defense to go along with a weak offense. I mean it is possible for the Browns to get one win this season right. Right?

AFC South
1. Houston Texans (9-7)*
Head coach Bill O'Brien has something brewing down in Houston this season. Last year, Houston took advantage of the fact that Andrew Luck wasn't playing much, using that to stop the Colts two year run atop of the division. Now Brock Oswiler will be the one under center in Houston, and he has the weapons to make that offense go. DeAndre Hopkins will once again be the go to target in Houston, while Lamar Miller will be a solid asset out of the backfield. Houston still has the best defensive player in the game in JJ Watt. Houston is going to have a fantastic pass rush this season. Houston will end up with the exact same record this year that they did last year, even with a better overall football team. Why? Because of tough nonconference road games at Denver, New England, Green Bay, Oakland and Minnesota. This will make things a tad rough on Houston, but they will be able to get them over the hump and into the playoffs again.

2. Jacksonville Jaguars (9-7)
Houston will have the better conference record, which is why they will edge out the Jags for the division. Watch out for Jacksonville this year, they will be a good football team and are right on the cusp of becoming a playoff team. Gus Bradley is going to keep his job and stick with this rebuild. One of the big bright spots for the Jags this year is going to be Blake Bortles, who will be really coming on as a threat. The two Allen's, Hurns and Robinson, are going to be his top targets again this season, to go along with Julus Thomas at tight end and new running back Chris Ivory. Jacksonville has a potentially lethal offense. On Defense, Jacksonville has a solid squad but just not enough to quite get over the hump as a playoff team.

3. Indianapolis Colts (8-8)
Last year was a big disappointment for the Colts, who had won the division the two years prior to that. One of the biggest problems in Indy last year was the offensive line. Sad to say it for Colts fans but that offensive line didn't get any better this year. Yes, Andrew Luck is healthy, but he will have to try and adapt to the new style of offense that Rob Chudzinski is going to look to run this season. He's got the targets in T.Y. Hilton, Donte Moncrief and Dwayne Allen, so they can possibly generate something. The question mark here is the defense. Indy's best pass rusher is Robert Mathus and he's not getting any younger (he is 35 years old). Indy has too many weaknesses on defense for the Colts offense to surpass it. Plus the two teams ahead of them have gotten better and will be making it further then the Colts can.

4. Tennessee Titans (3-13)
They haven't had a winning season since going 9-7 in 2009 and they haven't sniffed the playoffs since winning the division in 2008. Its going to be another long season for the Titans. Marcus Mariota has something to go off of with DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry behind him in the backfield, and he's got Rishard Matthews and Delanie Walker to throw to. As improved as they appear on paper, they probably haven't made as many strides as the competition elsewhere in the AFC South. The Vikings, Raiders, Packers and Broncos are part of a daunting lineup of Nashville visitors this season.

AFC West
1. Kansas City Chiefs (10-6)*
Another year, another trip to the playoffs for Kansas City. KC won eleven straight games last year (ten in the regular season and their win over Houston in the playoffs) and they did it without Jamal Charles. Now they have him back to a loaded offense. Chris Conley, Jeremy Maclin and Travis Kelce will once again be the favorite targets of Alex Smith. On defense, Justin Houston is coming off knee surgery and leaves one to wonder how effective he's going to be on that side of the ball. But Kansas City does have a schedule this year that doesn't contain many minefields. The Chiefs will play just five games against 2015 playoff teams. Their record against those opponents last season: 4-1. The Chiefs also have a more balanced schedule rather than one stacked with road games early. But road games in Carolina, Houston and Pittsburgh are going to be interesting as the year moves along. Still I think the Chiefs have enough talent on this team to be able to take this division.

2. Oakland Raiders (9-7)*
Here's the surprise of the division, the Oakland Raiders will make the playoffs this year. They have a good team in the works in Oakland. Derek Carr is developing into one of the top young quarterbacks in all of football. Latavius Murray might come into his own in the backfield, so he's somebody to keep an eye on. Then you have the guys catching passes from Carr. Michael Crabtree still wants to prove he's a great receiver in this league, and Amari Cooper is one of the best receivers in the game today that's flying under the radar. After this year, Cooper won't be an under the radar guy anymore. Oaklands defense, lead by Khalil Mack and Malcolm Smith are going to be good. They aren't the best defense in the league but they're good enough to help the offense get into the playoffs. Its been a long time coming for Oakland, who hasn't made the playoffs, or even had a winning season for that matter, since they won the West and went all the way to the Super Bowl in 2002.

3. Denver Broncos (9-7)
The defending Super Bowl Champions are going to take a step back this season. Sure, there's no denying that they have the best defense in all of football. What has me worried in Denver is the quarterback situation. No Manning and no Oswiler in Denver. Peyton retired and Brock is in Houston. So now Trevor Siemian is the one under center. Yes he does have weapons to work with in the form of C.J. Anderson, Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas. On paper, that something to work with. Same thing with the defense, which oh yeah was the best in all of football a season ago. That's on paper though, what happens on the field could be different. I'm not sold on Siemian at quarterback yet, and I know the defense is good but you do need a capable quarterback to be able to carry the team to go along with that defense. Denver doesn't have it right now.

4. San Diego Chargers (6-10)
San Diego will be improved, but are at least a year away in terms of talent on the roster in order to realistically compete for a playoff spot in an AFC West Division dominated by talented defenses. San Diego has the best quarterback in the division in Philip Rivers. Catching passes are gonna be Keenan Allen, Travis Benjamin and the ageless wonder Antonio Gates. San Diego has an improving young defense. But, they will still struggle to score points with an offensive line that should once again have trouble staying healthy in 2016.

AFC Championship Game: Steelers def Patriots!

SUPER BOWL LI: Cardinals Def Steeelers 30-27!