Useless NFL Predictions Surely Changing Mid-Season: AFC

After a one week hiatus due to school, my NFL predications continue with the AFC. As mentioned last time, it will be somewhat whacky or as I would like to call it, “ballsy”, so brace yourself for a make-your-face-red-from-frustration feeling.

AFC East:

New England Patriots: 14-2, 4-2
Key Wins: San Diego, Indianapolis, Baltimore
Key Losses: @New York/A, @Miami

Miami Dolphins: 10-6, 4-2
Key Wins: Dallas, New England, @Philadelphia
Key Losses: @New York/A, @Houston, New York/N

New York Jets: 8-8, 3-3
Key Wins: New England, Miami, Pittsburgh
Key Losses: @Buffalo, Kansas City

Buffalo Bills: 4-12, 1-5
Key Wins: @Pittsburgh, New York/A, Cincinnati
Key Losses: Denver, @Cleveland, New York/N

There’s no arguing that the New England Patriots are the best team in the league. They are loaded all over due to off-season acquisitions and should not lose too many games. Although they have a tough schedule, look for them to cruise through the season without too many problems.

Surprise, surprise… The Miami Dolphins are going to the playoffs! After a disappointing season despite a great defense (ranked fourth), the Dolphins are in for a great year. With the Ricky Williams and Nick Saban problems behind them, the team will look to take off this year. Another interesting statistic: the first full year the last two “washed up” veteran quarterbacks played on their new teams (Mark Brunell and Steve McNair), those teams went onto the playoffs; expect that to happen to Trent Green.

As far as the Jets are concerned, with a tough schedule ahead of them, I don’t like them that much this year. And with the Bills, I’m never sold on them, especially this year as they pulled a “Boston Celtics” and dumped a good portion of their team in the off-season.

AFC North:

Baltimore Ravens: 12-4, 4-2
Key Wins: Cincinnati, Indianapolis, @Seattle
Key Losses: @Cincinnati, Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh Steelers: 9-7, 4-2
Key Wins: Miami, Jacksonville, @Baltimore
Key Losses: Buffalo, San Francisco, Cleveland

Cincinnati Bengals: 8-8, 3-3
Key Wins: Baltimore, @Seattle, St. Louis
Key Losses: @Kansas City, @Buffalo, Arizona

Cleveland Browns: 3-13, 1-5
Key Wins: @Pittsburgh, @Arizona
Key Losses: @Oakland, Houston, San Francisco

The Baltimore Ravens were great last year and that was without a good running game (ranked 25th). The passing game was pretty good despite popular opinion, ranked 11th in the league. With the acquisition of Willis McGahee and the most powerful defense in the league, look for the Ravens to have an outstanding year.

Between the Steelers and the Bengals, the season is pretty much a toss up. It can go either way which will probably end up with both teams having mediocre seasons. The Steelers actually had a great second half last season winning 6 of their last 8 games. However, during this stretch, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger still didn’t play like a Super Bowl quarterback throwing 11 touchdown passes and 9 interceptions; one has to wonder whether he will return to form this season. The Bengals have one of the best offenses in the league and they will score plenty this season, but so will opposing teams. Their defense was ranked 30th in the league last season and they did little to improve it this season. I don’t think they can outscore their opponents into the playoffs.

As far as the Browns go, they’re in a rebuilding phase that will continue into upcoming seasons. They will be a threat in the future, especially with Brady Quinn as their eventual starter; they just need a few years to grab key pieces and for younger guys to mature.

AFC South:

Jacksonville Jaguars: 11-5, 4-2
Key Wins: @New Orleans, San Diego, @Indianapolis
Key Losses: Carolina, @Houston

Indianapolis Colts: 10-6, 3-3
Key Wins: New Orleans, Denver, @Jacksonville
Key Losses: @Tennessee, @Houston, New England

Houston Texans: 6-10, 3-3
Key Wins: Indianapolis, Miami, Jacksonville
Key Losses: @Atlanta, @Oakland, @Tennessee

Tennessee Titans: 4-12, 2-4
Key Wins: Indianapolis, Houston
Key Losses: @Jacksonville, @Tampa Bay, @Houston

Another surprise here as the Indianapolis Colts fall off the AFC South throne. Their Super Bowl journey wasn’t very convincing besides a great victory against New England; the last time that happened was two years ago and the Steelers went onto miss the playoffs. I’m not prepared to count the Colts out of the playoffs, but they will certainly take a step back as they lost many key pieces on defense in the off-season.

The Jacksonville Jaguars look better than ever this season propelling them to win the AFC South. With the second best defense in the league and a great young running-back in Maurice Jones-Drew, the Jaguars are a real threat this season. The weak piece: the passing (ranked 24th last season); and with Byron Leftwich gone and head coach Jack Del Rio’s full confidence in David Garrard, look for him to have a career year. Garrard’s problems in the past were throwing into double coverage’s; with experience and a great group of mature wide receivers, look for Garrard to keep this problem minimal. Also, the threat of Jones-Drew will keep safeties off of receivers and in the box.

The Houston Texans and Tennessee Titans will not have great years despite promising quarterbacks. The Titans’ defense is horrible and they have no receiving core. That coupled with Vince Young’s inevitable injury due to the Madden Jinx will have them finish last in the division. The Texans made good acquisitions in the off-season, but they neglected to solve their main problem, the offensive line and running game; and no, Ahman Green and Ron Dayne do not count as solutions.

AFC West:

San Diego Chargers: 12-4, 5-1
Key Wins: Chicago, Indianapolis, Baltimore
Key Losses: Detroit, Denver

Denver Broncos: 9-7, 3-3
Key Wins: Jacksonville, @Chicago, @San Diego
Key Losses: @Detroit, @Kansas City, Kansas City, Minnesota

Kansas City Chiefs: 8-8, 3-3
Key Wins: Cincinnati, Denver, @Denver
Key Losses: @Oakland, Green Bay, @Detroit

Oakland Raiders: 4-12, 1-5
Key Wins: Kansas City, Houston
Key Losses: Detroit, @Kansas City, @Green Bay

A lot of people are critical of San Diego’s new head coach, Norv Turner. If you look at his history, you really can’t complain too much. Turner has never made a team worse than they were before he got the job. In fact, with the Washington Redskins, he actually made them better for a short while. In 1993, the year before Turner arrived, the Redskins were 4-12. Three years into the job, the Redskins were 9-7; six years into the job, the Redskins were 10-6 and playoff bound. With Oakland, he again didn’t make the team any worse than they were prior to his arrival; he just failed to make them better. So what exactly makes everyone think he’s going to cause the crash of the San Diego franchise? San Diego will be fine with Turner, finishing the season as one of the strongest teams in the league.

The Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs are another Steelers/Bengals situation. Although both teams look promising with new key additions, the season could sway either way for both teams. Denver’s running game is the thing to watch this season with the acquisition of Travis Henry. It will be interesting if Denver’s running strategy will falter due to the offensive line under close watch for illegal blocking this season; something that was made the Denver running game unlike anything else in the league. The Chiefs have a great but old quarterback in Damon Huard leading the way. Larry Johnson’s productivity this year is a huge question mark for me as he had 416 rushing attempts last season. You really have to think long and hard whether he will be able to carry that load for two consecutive seasons. I’m more pessimistic about this than others.

The Oakland Raiders are another team that played terrible last year, went into the off-season looking to improve, and then failed to upgrade at their weakest area: their offensive line. Daunte Culpepper is a perfect fit in Oakland as he will tutor Oakland’s future quarterback, JaMarcus Russell. However, this won’t translate into wins for the team this season.

Stayed tuned for my playoff predictions next week. Yes, I know they will be ready after the season starts, but I already have my teams selected as far as who makes the postseason. One weekend of football doesn’t change Super Bowl predictions.

Sports Moment of the Week

Division I-AA Appalachian State upset #5 ranked Michigan on Saturday 34-32. The game came down to one last play when all Michigan had to do was kick a game-ending 37-yard field goal. Corey Lynch of App. St. blocked the field goal securing the victory.

Useless NFL Predictions Surely Changing Mid-Season: NFC

It’s that time of year; the NFL Preseason is well underway and everyone starts making their predictions about who will be this year’s champions, surprises, and disappointments. Of course, 98% of these predictions end up totally wrong and change mid-season after progress is shown and injuries take place. I’m no different; and with that point, I present my NFC predictions surely to change mid-season.

NFC East:

Dallas Cowboys: 10-6, 4-2
Key Wins: @Chicago, @Philadelphia
Key Losses: St. Louis, New England, Washington

Philadelphia Eagles: 10-6, 3-3
Key Wins: Seattle, @Dallas, @New Orleans
Key Losses: Washington, @New York/N

Washington Redskins: 8-8, 3-3
Key Wins: @Philadelphia, @Dallas, Chicago
Key Losses: @Green Bay, @Tampa Bay, Buffalo

New York Giants: 6-10, 2-4
Key Wins: Green Bay, Philadelphia
Key Losses: New York/A, San Francisco, Minnesota

The NFC East should see a significant shake up this year. There are a significant amount of roster changes that will affect how each team will play. With the Cowboys, QB Tony Romo and head coach Wade Phillips took over the team; the Eagles, RB Brian Westbrook will reshape the entire Eagles offense; the Redskins, the era of QB Jason Campbell reigns; the Giants, the absence of RB, and once team leader, Tiki Barber will change the entire atmosphere of the team.

The battle to concentrate on in this division is between the bitter rivals of Dallas and Philadelphia. Both are very strong well rounded teams that have similar schedules. Each team will take one victory from another and lose stupid games that will keep the race going until the very last week. Of course this is all assuming QB Donovan McNabb stays healthy.

I really like the Redskins’ defense despite their embarrassing 31st ranking. I think the defense will bounce back in a big way keeping the Redskins in the race for a good portion of the season. Jason Campbell will mature but play just good enough to not lose games for the team. As far as the Giants go, I think this is no doubt head coach Tom Coughlin’s last year. After a projected 4-2 start, the Giants will tire under Coughlin’s military-style practices and lose 8 of the 10 remaining games.

NFC North:

Chicago Bears: 9-7, 5-1
Key Wins: Kansas City, @Philadelphia
Key Losses: @Seattle, @Washington, @Minnesota

Minnesota Vikings: 6-10, 3-3
Key Wins: @Green Bay, @San Francisco, Chicago
Key Losses: @Detroit, Green Bay, Washington

Green Bay Packers: 6-10, 3-3
Key Wins: @Kansas City, Detroit
Key Losses: Minnesota, @Chicago

Detroit Lions: 5-11, 1-5
Key Wins: Denver, @San Diego, Kansas City
Key Losses: Chicago, Tampa Bay, @Arizona

This year the Chicago Bears should endlessly be thanking the Seattle Seahawks for breaking the trend of playoff absences following a Super Bowl loss. The Bears will win the division due to playing in the weakest division in football, however they will finish with a very mediocre record.

Despite it being the weakest division, I do like the rest of the teams as far as their futures go. I love the Vikings defense (8th ranked overall) as well as their running-back tandem of Chester Taylor and Adrian Peterson. Although I do have the Vikings losing their first 8 games to become the laughing stock of the league before QB Tarvaris Jackson becomes comfortable leading the game in his first year starting in the NFL. I think he will learn a lot about football this year and we will learn a lot about him and his future with the Vikings.

With the Packers, I like their defense as well which seems to be improving year after year. Also, QB Aaron Rodgers has been sitting on the bench observing the game for 3 years. After Favre retires this season due to a bad year, I think Rodgers will shine. As far as the Lions are concerned, their entire offense is great with the exception of a quarterback; they have a great running-back tandem of Kevin Jones and Tatum Bell as well as an excellent receiving core. I believe they really need to consider drafting a quarterback as their final piece in order to turn their franchise around. I see Brian Brohm as their future, but who knows with Matt Millen running the show.

NFC South:

New Orleans Saints: 11-5, 5-1
Key Wins: Carolina, @Seattle, @Chicago
Key Losses: @Indianapolis, St. Louis

Carolina Panthers: 10-6, 4-2
Key Wins: @Arizona, New Orleans, @Jacksonville
Key Losses: Houston, Tampa Bay, @New Orleans

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-9, 2-4
Key Wins: St. Louis, @Carolina
Key Losses: Arizona, Atlanta

Atlanta Falcons: 5-11, 1-5
Key Wins: @Minnesota, San Francisco
Key Losses: @Tennessee, New York/N

The Saints were incredible last year. With many inexperienced players and an inexperience coach, they managed to reach the NFC Conference Championship game losing to the Chicago Bears. On the offensive side of the ball, there is no visible weakness present. On the defensive side of the ball, they’ve been great as well contrary to popular belief. They were ranked 11th in total defense and 3rd in passing defense. Their running defense needs to improve, but with off-season additions to beef up the depth of the box, they should do well too.

The thing working against the Saints is a tough schedule and the emergence of the Carolina Panthers. The Saints must face Indianapolis, Carolina, Seattle, San Francisco, Jacksonville, St. Louis, Philadelphia, and Chicago. The thing is, the Panthers have an equally tough schedule against similar opponents. With the Panthers, the season will start terrible. They will lose 4 of their first 5 games, provoking head coach Rick Fox to make the change at quarterback. David Carr will lead the team to win 8 of their last 9 games, making the playoffs.

Tampa Bay and Atlanta will not play much of a factor as both teams have question marks all over the team. Everyone knows the deal with Atlanta, but with Tampa Bay, the defense is consistently getting worse every year with no significant improvements, and the quarterback situation is up in the air. While I like Jeff Garcia in head coach Jon Gruden’s system, if mistakes are made, the trigger will be pulled to get a new guy in. This means constant pressure to perform well by Garcia. On top of all that, RB Carnell “Ford” Williams, was a disappointment last year. Whether he will bounce back is one of the many questions regarding the Buccaneers.

NFC West:

St. Louis Rams: 9-7, 3-3
Key Wins: @Dallas, @New Orleans, @San Francisco, Seattle
Key Losses: @Tampa Bay, Arizona, @Cincinnati

San Francisco 49ers: 8-8, 4-2
Key Wins: @St. Louis, @Pittsburgh, Seattle, @Seattle
Key Losses: Arizona, @Atlanta, St. Louis

Seattle Seahawks: 8-8, 2-4
Key Wins: Chicago, @Carolina
Key Losses: @San Francisco, San Francisco, Arizona, Baltimore

Arizona Cardinals: 6-10, 3-3
Key Wins: @San Francisco, @Cincinnati, @Seattle
Key Losses: @Washington, Cleveland, Atlanta

Welcome to the toughest division in the NFL. The NFC West is going to be another gigantic battle just like last season. This time, the results will come out different. I really like the Rams this year and let me begin by saying why before I say why the Seahawks won’t win. The Rams have one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Marc Bulger is a highly underrated QB that is perhaps one of the most if not THE most accurate QB in the NFL. Here are some stats: 7th in the league in QB rating, 4th in TD passes, 4th in least interceptions thrown (The three guys ahead of him didn’t play full seasons [Brunell, McNabb, & Huard]), and 3rd in passing yards. No wonder he got a huge $65 million contract. That, coupled with one of the best receiving tandems in the league as well as one of the best running-backs in the league makes this offense almost unstoppable. The reason why they don’t runaway with the division is mainly due to their 23rd ranked defense and one of the tougher schedules in the NFL playing against the Panthers, 49ers, Cowboys, Ravens, Seahawks, Saints, Bengals, and Steelers.

Now for the reasons that the Seahawks will not win the division. QB Matt Hasselbeck is one of the more overrated quarterbacks in the league. At 30 years old, he finished 2006 with a disappointing 76 QB Rating, 19th in the league. He’s now one year older, one year slower, and one year less aware of what’s going on around him. You really think he’s going to do a good job surveying the field with 4 potential WR’s to throw to? Didn’t work too well for him last year: 8th most INT’s thrown, 15, while missing 4 games. RB Shaun Alexander is also 31 this year, and is on the decline of his 2005 peak year. Because he was injured thanks to the Madden Jinx, and was out for 6 games, doesn’t make it fair to judge him on his yards and TD totals (896 yards, 7 TD’s). What is fair, is judging him on his average yards per carry, a horrific 3.6 average, 41st in the NFL, more importantly, LAST! He can’t be that bad this year, but you can count on him not being good enough to lead the team to the NFC West title. Here’s a bonus reason: 19th defensively, but more importantly 22nd in rushing yards allowed. Steven Jackson, Frank Gore, and James/Arrington tandem anyone?

As for the 49ers and the Cardinals, these are two teams that I really like this year due to great offenses. For the 49ers, Alex Smith has significantly gotten better (2005: 40.8 QB Rating, 1-11 TD-INT ratio; 2006: 74.8 QB Rating, 1-1 TD-INT ratio). Also Frank Gore is going to be huge in that division partially due to the division’s horrible rushing defense. I don’t like the move of picking up Nate Clements in the off-season. I think he’s overrated and a flashy CB that tries to grab the interception rather than knocking the ball down when the game is on the line which ultimately results in him tipping the ball into the opposing receiver’s hands (see Buffalo-Jacksonville game in 2006). With the Cardinals, I also love Matt Leinart and the best WR tandem in the league with Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald. Also, don’t sleep on RB J.J. Arrington; with Edgerrin James suffering year after year, look for Arrington to shine against the rushing defenses of the AFC West.

Stayed tuned next week for the more ballsy-er and controversial AFC predictions, as well as Super Bowl predictions.

Sports Moment of the Week

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Webb extended his scoreless inning streaks on Friday to 42 inning pitching without an earned run against the Atlanta Braves. Friday was also Webb's third consecutive complete game pitched.

We’re Halfway There

Since my preseason picks, I haven’t talked much about baseball besides the Yankees’ unexpected struggles. Since we’re halfway through the baseball season and there’s no way to milk another article on the NBA, I’ll analyze what’s going on with select teams and what will happen with the rest of the season, including updated award predictions and World Series predictions.

Boston Red Sox (Runs Scored: 8th, ERA: 3rd, Errors Committed: 11th)

It goes without saying that the Sox are playing extremely well. Both Kevin Youkilis (.328 BA) and Dustin Pedroia (.318 BA) have stepped up big time to be key pieces in the Red Sox’ success. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez are doing fine as well. Julio Lugo (.197 BA) has been the anchor that keeps the Sox from pulling full speed ahead but it isn’t enough to keep the team down. Pitchers Curt Schilling and Tim Wakefield have also been struggling, but their efforts have been balanced out by the great performances of Josh Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka. Schilling has been on the DL as well as future-star Jon Lester, and their return should help out a lot. What I like most about this Sox team is the fact that their bullpen has dramatically improved. Their bullpen was awful last year which is one of the main reasons they went through a second half slump last season causing them to ultimately finish 3rd in the division. This year, Hideki Okajima, Brendan Donnelly, and Javier Lopez have allowed the Sox to close out games. Jonathon Papelbon’s continued success is also a giant factor. The big question still remains, will the second half slump occur again this season? Signs of it already exist as they were swept by the Tigers right before the break. The Sox will probably cool off, but it won’t be enough for them to fall out of the division lead.

New York Yankees (Runs Scored: 3rd, ERA: 15th, Errors Committed: 7th)

Despite failing to achieve their goals in the first half of the season, the Yankees are far from finished for the simple fact that they are 3rd in the league in runs scored and 15th in the league with lowest ERA (Cleveland ranks worse). No one should ever count the Yankees out of the competition until they are deep into the second half of the season. Still, the Yanks have a lot of work ahead of them. Certain players need to play well now. Clemens is already back in the groove winning his 350th game two starts ago and going 8 innings with one earned run his next start. Andy Pettitte has had a recent history of playing much better in the second half along with Bobby Abreu. Alex Rodriguez is looking at his second MVP award with the Yankees, and Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada are playing excellent as well. Chien-Ming Wang has been excellent as well continuing his success as the ace of the Yankees pitching staff. Look for the Yanks to grab some bullpen help before the deadline which seems to be their biggest weakness.

Detroit Tigers (Runs Scored: 1st, ERA: 13th, Errors Committed: 18th)

The Tigers are in a tight race with the Indians at this point but are performing very well under the circumstances. They’ve won six of their last seven and look like the best team in baseball right now. Last year, one of the key pieces they were missing was the power hitter in the lineup. In the off-season they grabbed Gary Sheffield who seems to be performing to his expectations with 21 homeruns and 58 RBI. Although the pitching hasn’t been the best, Kenny Rogers is back and his addition should help out a lot. Their biggest weakness is their bullpen so it will be interesting to see if they wait it out and rely on their injured guys to get better or grab help before the trade deadline.

Cleveland Indians (Runs Scored: 2nd, ERA: 17th, Errors Committed: 15th)

The Indians are 1-2 in batting with the Tigers. The bad news is that the Tigers are in their division. Contrary to popular belief, there is no guarantee that the wild card team comes from the Central Division which puts pressure on the team to do well. Look for the struggling Travis Hafner to heat up in the second half as he has had a batting average of over .300 the past three seasons. C.C. Sabathia has become one of the elite pitchers in the league and Fausto Carmona has been a great young guy. After those guys, the pitching isn’t very good however. One of the bigger disappointments is Jeremy Sowers, who is going through a bad sophomore slump with an ERA of 6.92. A lot will depend on him if the Indians want to make the playoffs.

Minnesota Twins (Runs Scored: 7th, ERA: 11th, Errors Committed: 2nd)

The Twins' pitching has been mediocre but that can change. Matt Garza recently came back from the minors to pitch an excellent first game (6 IP, 0 ER). If he can keep that up, this will be a big boost to the Twins who don’t have too many reliable pitchers after Johan Santana. Boof Bonser has looked great at times this season and should do a lot better in the second half. Justin Morneau and Torii Hunter lead the offense but it won’t be enough to compete in the Central Division while they are 8 games back right now. I don’t see them catching the Tigers and Indians.

Los Angeles Angels (Runs Scored: 6th, ERA: 8th, Errors Committed: 16th)

The Angels starting pitching is pretty good. They have three solid guys in John Lackey, Kelvim Escobar, and Jered Weaver. Their bullpen is even better; one of the strongest in the league. Coupled with a powerful offense led by Vladimir Guerrero, Orlando Cabrera, Casey Kotchman, Reggie Willits, and Chone Figgins, this team is a lock for the playoffs.

Oakland A's (Runs Scored: 23rd, ERA: 2nd, Errors Committed: 12th)

With the A’s, the question since the preseason was whether anyone on the offense can step up. The pitching was not really a question and the A’s proved it by having the second lowest team ERA in the bigs. The problem is the offense is horrible and the Angels are too strong. It’s safe to say at this point, the A’s won’t be seeing any October action.


New York Mets (Runs Scored: 21st, ERA: 5th, Errors Committed: 5th)

Moving onto the National League, the Mets pitching has surprised everyone ranking fifth in the league. One has to question how good this really is however. Oliver Perez has a surprising 3.14 ERA when in the last three season he’s posted an ERA over six. Whether he will continue his success in the second half of the season is very questionable. Another question is the eventual return of Pedro Martinez; will he be back in time to help the Mets out and if he is, will he be effective enough? Another surprising stat about the Mets is that they are 21st in the league in runs scored. You have to believe that that will get a lot better in the second half of the season when last season with pretty much the same offense, the team was ranked seventh. The Mets will win the NL East.

Atlanta Braves (Runs Scored: 15th, ERA: 12th, Errors Committed: 23rd)

The Braves look like a promising team. While the defense needs work, the pitching and the offense are pretty good; the bullpen is even better. If the defense steps up, look for the Braves to grab the wild card.

Philadelphia Phillies (Runs Scored: 4th, ERA: 28th, Errors Committed: 13th)

With the Phillies, it’s very simple, the pitching is terrible. Besides Cole Hamels, the Phillies have noone, both as a starter or reliever. Of course it doesn’t help that a number of relievers are injured but even with their return, the pitching staff doesn’t look that much better. What has kept them at .500 is that their offense is really good. Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, and Aaron Rowand have been nothing less than great. If the Phillies want to contend, they need to invest in pitching before the break or grab some help from the minors.

Milwaukee Brewers (Runs Scored: 9th, ERA: 10th, Errors Committed: 22nd)

The Brewers are a great team when it comes to pitching and offense. They have a lot of great young guys who are performing up to their expectations. The problem is the team is too young which means they are very capable of collapsing in the second half of the season due to the pressure and lack of experience on how to deal with it. The disadvantage of their age is already showing with their defense which is not so great. While they will dominate the NL for years to come, I don’t see them closing out the deal this year.

Chicago Cubs (Runs Scored: 20th, ERA: 7th, Errors Committed: 9th)

Look for the Cubs to have a huge second half and take the lead in the Central Division. They have solid pitching with Carlos Zambrano looking great once again and Ted Lilly proving he was a good investment after all. The bullpen is pretty decent as well. What the Cubs need to do is to get the bats going, and look for it to happen. Alfonso Soriano is on pace to hit 66 RBI when in the past five seasons, he’s hit over 90. Derrek Lee should also catch fire as he is on pace to hit 84 RBI when the season prior to his injury, he hit 107 RBI.

Houston Astros (Runs Scored: 18th, ERA: 23rd, Errors Committed: 14th)

The Astros have been one of the bigger disappointments. Their batting has been pretty solid for the most part with the emergence of Hunter Pence and the continued success of Carlos Lee and Mark Loretta. Lance Berkman, batting .263 when he was supposed to be in the race for MVP, has been one of the big factors for the team underachieving. But the biggest problem is that a team once known for its pitching has taken a step in the opposite direction. Woody Williams, who had an ERA of 3.65 last year, is pitching 5.34 this season and Chris Sampson has not been helping either with his first year as a full time starter. To make it even worse, the bullpen for the Astros has been awful, one of the worst in the majors. Even though I had this team representing the NL in the World Series in the beginning of the year, I can safely say, this team has little chance of competing in the second half.

San Diego Padres (Runs Scored: 24th, ERA: 1st, Errors Committed: 8th)

The Padres have the best pitching in the league with Jake Peavy and Chris Young leading their starters. Their bullpen is also the best in the league which helps out other starters who might struggle early on. Why are they not running away with the best record in the league? Their offensive is terrible. How terrible? No starter from the beginning of the season has a batting average over .300. Adrian Gonzalez will heat up in the second half but he will need help. I don’t think Milton Bradley’s addition is the solution to this problem; it helps, but it’s not enough. They have to grab someone else before the deadline to help them out on offense if they want to seriously contend for the championship because they won’t get to smell it with the lineup they have right now.

Los Angeles Dodgers (Runs Scored: 19th, ERA: 4th, Errors Committed: 28th)

The Dodgers have the worst defense out of all of the contenders with 68 errors committed. That’s the bad news. The good news is that the starting pitching is very good and their bullpen is even better; one of the best in the majors along with the Angels. Their offense is pretty decent, at least better than the Padres’ which should work to their advantage in the two-team battle for the NL West. It should be fun watching these two teams duking it out for the division title.

My updated predictions with the season half over are as follows:

World Series: Detroit Tigers over Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-2

AL MVP: Alex Rodriguez
AL Cy Young: Johan Santana
AL ROY: Daisuke Matsuzaka

NL MVP: Derrek Lee
NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy
NL ROY: Hunter Pence

References: Baseball-Reference.com

Sports Moment of the Week

Roger Federer got his revenage against Rafael Nadal on the grass winning his fifth straight Wimbledon title last week. Last month, Nadal defeated Federer on the clay at the French Open.

2007 NBA Playoffs Preview

With the exciting conclusion to the NBA season where five of the playoff spots were determined on the last day, it brings in a more exciting NBA playoff season. This year’s playoff match-ups were the hardest I’ve ever had to pick. There are so many good match-ups and very good teams that it took a lot of thought just to get out of the first round. So without further interruption lets move on to the predictions.


First Round

Detroit Pistons vs. Orlando Magic
One of the easier match-ups to predict, the Detroit Pistons are again the #1 seed in the East. I love this Magic team, but the problem is that they are too young and inexperienced. This will be a great learning experience for Dwight Howard though who I believe will finish his NBA career with at least two rings. The Grant Hill/Darko Milicic return to Detroit will grab headlines for the series as well.

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Washington Wizards
Perhaps the easiest match-up to predict simply because the Washington Wizards don’t even belong in the playoffs; the Cavaliers should easily sweep a team without their two top players (Arenas & Butler).

Toronto Raptors vs. New Jersey Nets
Getting into the harder match-ups of the tournament, the Raptors are my favorite team in the tournament. This is the true definition of a team that plays together. Every player fits perfectly together coached by the potential coach of the year in Sam Mitchell. The Nets are a very dangerous team right now winning 8 of their last 10 games. The Jason Kidd-Vince Carter 1-2 punch reminds me most of the Denver Nuggets. Vince Carter’s return to Toronto should make some news. I have the Raptors in six because of their ability to play as a team.

Miami Heat vs. Chicago Bulls
With a rematch of the first round last year the Chicago Bulls look for revenge, this time with Ben Wallace at center. The favorite pick would be to go with Chicago since they brought the Heat to game six last year without Wallace, and also because of the fact that Dwayne Wade has both a bum shoulder and knee. I do believe that this series will go to seven games but in that situation you can’t go against Wade if he’s on the court. Wade will light up Chicago in the seventh game with 42 points. Look for Chicago to setup pick-and-roll plays on Wade to wear out his shoulder in desperate situations.

Dallas Mavericks vs. Golden State Warriors
The biggest story here is that Golden State won all 3 games they faced against Dallas this season. The second biggest story is that the mentor, Warriors head coach Don Nelson, will face against his pupil, Mavericks head coach Avery Johnson. I don’t think either story will have any impact on the series as Dallas handles Golden State in five games.

Phoenix Suns vs. Los Angeles Lakers
Another rematch of last years first round, except now Phoenix is an elite team and well, you can’t really consider Kobe an elite team. I don’t expect the Suns to demolish the Lakers because of the Kobe show we will all witness this year. Don’t look for him to hand over the game to his teammates; he learned his lesson last year, which caused them to lose three straight games costing them the series. Even though the Lakers are on a bad slump losing 6 out of their last 9 games, Phil Jackson will have them ready to give Phoenix a decent shot. The Raja Bell-Kobe match-up will be interesting to watch as last year it ended up with both a physical and verbal brawl. I have the Suns in six games.

San Antonio Spurs vs. Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets are very impressive right now and the Carmelo-Iverson tandem seems to be working. The Nuggets have won 10 of their last 11 games with wins over the Mavericks, Spurs, Jazz, and twice Lakers. However, on the other side of the floor, the Spurs have been in this situation last year with the Kings and it worked out for them pretty good. Add the fire of Tim Duncan because of the whole Joey Crawford situation, and you have yourself a scary team. The Spur’s outstanding defensive display will take care of the Nuggets in five games.

Utah Jazz vs. Houston Rockets
The most exciting match-up of the first round can go either way. Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady are way too strong right now to discount them from the competition. However, the Jazz seem to have not one weak position in their starting five lineup. With Andrei Kirilenko back as small forward, the Jazz have Deron Willams (one of the top 5 PG’s in the game) as point guard, Derek Fisher (plenty of playoff experience and rings) as shooting guard, Carlos Boozer (all-star) as power forward, and Mehmet Okur (can shoot from anywhere on the court) as center. In seven games, I have the Jazz defeating the Rockets.

Conference Semi-Finals

Detroit Pistons vs. Miami Heat
This is my only upset by seed of the tournament this year (I’m not very proud of this, but I can’t seem to change any of my picks no matter how much I try). The Detroit Pistons look very impressive especially with Chris Webber looking good again. Chauncey Billups is also playing for a contract and their defense is almost as good as what it has been for the last three years. However, the only weak link is their coach, Flip Saunders who is the Marty Schottenheimer of the NBA; great regular season, terrible postseason. I see this going to a game seven which seems like Dwayne Wade’s specialty; Heat move on.

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Toronto Raptors
Another exciting and unpredictable match-up that had me puzzled. That is until I noticed the fact that point guard Larry Hughes was injured last season and was not able to take part when the Cavaliers were up 3-2 against the Eastern-best Pistons. With Larry Hughes back to compliment Lebron I can’t see them being stopped. As much as I love the Raptors this season, Cavaliers in six.

Dallas Mavericks vs. Utah Jazz
The Jazz look impressive, but not impressive enough to compete with the defense of the Mavericks. Neither Boozer nor Okur can defend Nowitzki which will cause the series to end in five games.

Phoenix Suns vs. San Antonio Spurs
The second best match-up of the entire tournament will take place between these two teams. Now normally, I would have the Suns running over the aging Spurs team, but Duncan’s fire will continue into the second round. The stat to look at is the fact that the Suns have the highest points per game in the entire league at 110.2, while the Spurs have a league best, 90.1 allowed points per game. Having said that, I don’t think the leagues best defense could stop the Suns who made it to the conference finals last year without Amare Stoudemire and Kurt Thomas. Now that these two players are in the mix, I think the offense of the Suns is too powerful to be stopped four times by the Spurs; I have the Suns in seven.

Conference Finals

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Miami Heat
Lebron vs. Wade; this is no doubt the biggest story here. Except it’s not really fair because the crippled Wade has had to go through the Bulls and the Pistons by now, which will surely wear him down. The injuries of James Posey, Udonis Haslem, and Gary Payton have the Heat running at far less than 100%. The Heat’s hope to repeat will diminish as Lebron reaches the NBA Finals for the first time in his career; the Cavaliers defeat the Heat in six games.

Dallas Mavericks vs. Phoenix Suns
The match-up everyone has been waiting for is here; the true championship game takes place in the Western conference finals as the two top team’s battle it out which will no doubt end in a seven game historical event. Last year the Mavericks took the series 4-2, but that was without the help of Stoudemire. With the season series tied up 2-2, the Suns and Mavericks are similar in more ways than one. They both have very good point guards (Nash and Terry) who can take shots and dish the ball; dominant big men (Stoudemire and Nowitzki) who can take over the game and rebound the ball; and very good forwards (Marion and Howard) who can drive the ball the play defense. The difference between these two teams is that the Mavericks can play defense all around which will be the ultimate deciding factor in the series. Not only will Nowitzki defeat Nash in the MVP race, but he will also defeat him on the court in seven games.

Finals

Dallas Mavericks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
In an anti-climatic finish to the most exciting playoff season I’ve ever seen, the Finals will be short and not very exciting the watch. Don’t count on the Mavericks to fall apart like they did last year after being up 2-0 against the Heat to ultimately lose in six games. I have the Mavericks defeating the Cavaliers in five games.

Sources: Basketball-Reference.com, NBA.com

Sports Moment of the Week

Jackie Robinson Day where it seemed as if everyone who honored Jackie Robinson by wearing #42 had a great day.

2007 MLB Preview

Let’s skip the introduction and jump right in here. I’m only going to concentrate on who I believe can potential contend this year. And this year it seems as if the entire league can contend which should make for an exciting and unpredictable season.

Starting with the American League and the New York Yankees which I have the most knowledge of being a fan and all; the Yankees suffered last season due to starting pitching and timely hitting. In the off-season they fixed one of these problems by signing Andy Pettitte and Kei Igawa. They also decided not to trade Carl Pavano giving them a little more depth. If starting pitching struggles in the first half of the season look for the Yankees to make a blockbuster trade by July which can include the likes of Dontrelle Willis. Top pitching prospects Philip Hughes, Humberto Sanchez, and Jeff Karstens can also step in if injuries occur. The bullpen can use improvement but closer Mariano Rivera is always reliable. With arguably the best lineup in all of baseball, the Yankees look like a lock to win their division. The problem is not the regular season but rather the playoffs. Players must come up with hits and move runners around the bases. If they can continue their regular season performance in the postseason, they will be very hard to stop.

The Boston Red Sox seem like the only other team that can contend with the Yankees in the AL East. Their rotation has dramatically improved since last year. The signing of Daisuke Matsuzaka was huge and look for Jon Lester to have an incredible season after undergoing chemotherapy last season, kind of looks like a potential Lance Armstrong story. The lineup, which was not necessarily a problem last season, is slightly better with the signings of Julio Lugo and J.D. Drew. I see Josh Beckett and Coco Crisp having great comeback seasons. The biggest problem I have with the Red Sox is their bullpen, which is exactly why they finished third place last season. The Red Sox improved their bullpen this season by signing… NO ONE… With the current bullpen they have I don’t see them in the postseason this year.

The AL Central is the most unpredictable division seeing how they have four potential contenders. The Detroit Tigers look the strongest not only because they haven’t gotten rid of anyone but they added the key element that they were missing, a power hitter in Gary Sheffield. This team will be very dangerous this season due to the good hitters in Sheffield, Carlos Guillen, Magglio Ordonez, and Ivan Rodriguez. Their lineup seems a little older which doesn’t necessarily mean anything this year but it can mean a sharp decline in incoming years if players are not replaced. The Tigers also have a great rotation with Justin Verlander, Jeremy Bonderman, and Nate Robertson. The bullpen is also very good but there can be issues in closing games out with closer Todd Jones. This team also plays great defense which can kill any lineup along with their pitching.

The Cleveland Indians look like a great comeback team this season. They have great batters in Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner, and Victor Martinez and great starters in C.C. Sabathia and Jeremy Sowers. The rest of the starting rotation looks okay along with their bullpen. They do have some insurance in starting pitching prospect Adam Miller who can help out midseason if other guys struggle.

The Minnesota Twins are another team with a great batting lineup. The problem is their only proven starting pitcher is Johan Santana which will cause them to lose a lot of games. They do have great relievers and a great closer in Joe Nathan which may help the less than mediocre rotation. I just don’t think it’s the Twins year this season but I do think they will the one of the strongest teams next year with the return of starting pitcher Francisco Liriano and the development of Matt Garza.

The Chicago White Sox have fallen off hard after their 2005 championship. They still maintain a great lineup of batters but their starting pitching is awful. Their best pitcher is Jose Contreras and he fell off harder after the all star break last season than the team as a whole did the past year. Some buzz has been going on about the White Sox and I honestly don’t see why.

The AL West seems the easiest to predict with the Los Angeles Angels. They have two great batters in Gary Matthews Jr. and Vladimir Guerrero. The rest of the lineup is decent at best however, which can cause them to put out small numbers. They do have a great pitching staff all around with starting pitchers John Lackey, Evrin Santana, and Jeff Weaver; a great bullpen with Kelvim Escobar, Scot Shields, and Justin Speier; and perhaps one of the best closers this season in Francisco Rodriguez. Look for the Angels to runaway with the AL West title.

The Oakland A’s, last years AL West champions, have fallen off harder than the White Sox. They have absolutely no great batter and no proven starting pitcher. Rich Harden and Dan Haren could come out and perform very well but they are questions, just like the rest of the team.

Before I begin to discuss the National League, let me warn you that I don’t have nearly as much knowledge on this league as I do on the American League. I’m not the best person to listen to when it comes to predicting this league but I did my best researching which is why I still feel confident with my picks.

In the National League East, the New York Mets’ lineup looks excellent. Besides the Yankees, the Mets could have the best lineup in all of baseball. Their starting pitching is the giant question mark. The pitchers are very old, I mean Roger Clemens old, and since there’s only one Roger Clemens, I don’t see them taking over the “ace” role in the rotation. They do have John Maine who can help the rotation a lot. Also, they have good pitching prospects in Phillip Humber and Mike Pelfrey can help out with pitching struggles early on. The 2007 Mets remind me most of the 2006 Yankees; a great season and a disappointing early exit in the playoffs.

The Atlanta Braves look to come back to glory after losing the NL East title last season for the first time in 11 seasons. They can do it with a good lineup including Andruw Jones, Chipper Jones, Brian McCann, and Jeff Francoeur. Starting pitchers John Smoltz and Chuck James can help out a lot as well. Their bullpen and closer will not disappoint either.

The Philadelphia Phillies have gotten better over the past year. Chase Utley and Ryan Howard are both potential MVP candidates and their starting pitching has improved with Brett Myers maturing and the signing of Freddy Garcia. Wes Helms is a player to watch as he hit a quiet .329 last season. I like this team but I don’t see them contending with the Mets. Ryan Howard’s slumping spring training this year is also something to pay attention to. Yes, I know its just spring training and its not a big deal, except Howard is making it a big deal with can hurt his mental state at the plate.

The Florida Marlins had an excellent second half of the season last season. Their horrendous first half prevented them from reaching the postseason however. Their lineup and rotation is good and the only thing that’s preventing them from becoming a lock is their horrible bullpen. This can be fixed however if pitcher Matt Lindstrom turns out to perform well (he has never played in the big leagues before). Also pitcher Josh Johnson can help out a great deal when he comes back from his injury in June. The Marlins are my surprise special with a potential to finish as high as second in the East.

The Washington Nationals are also a team to be discussed. Not because of their ability to contend with their division but because of their ability to contend with history. That’s right, place your bets now; How many games will the Nationals lose this year? The single season record was set by the 1899 Cleveland Spiders who finished their season 20-134. I don’t believe the Nationals can lose more games with their team batting average at .265 and their team earned runs average at 6.24 but I have my money at 121 losses this season.

In the NL Central, the defending World Series champions St. Louis Cardinals, maintain their core batting lineup. It’s their rotation which bothers me. They lost Jared Weaver and Jeff Suppan in the off-season and replaced them with former bullpen pitchers Adam Wainwright and Braden Looper. This creates a huge question mark along with closer Jason Isringhausen coming off an injury.

The Houston Astros added the big bat of Carlos Lee which will greatly improve their lineup along with Lance Berkman. I actually have Berkman as my MVP runner-up. Having said that, they don’t seem to have enough hitters but that didn’t stop them in 2005, why should it stop them this season? Plus they have a potential big bat in Luke Scott and prospect Hunter Pence is a future all star. Their starting pitching is great with Roy Oswalt, Jason Jennings, and Woody Williams. I see this team contending early on which will convince Roger Clemens to stay an Astro this season.

The Chicago Cubs were the busiest team this off-season. They have beefed up their lineup tremendously and their rotation is pretty good too. I see Ted Lilly helping out a lot even though his ERA last season was over four. I’ll tell you why, he pitched in the AL East last season; plus everyone knows that pitching in the NL is a lot easier than in the AL. Starting pitcher Rich Hill is a question mark but he does look promising. Mark Prior could help out as well if he can stay healthy for once in his life. They will have to spend a few more dollars picking up a closer before the deadline because closer Ryan Dempster is not going to cut it.

The Milwaukee Brewers is a team I have been mulling over a lot. They are a young team with great potential batters. They also have Ben Sheets, Jeff Suppan, and Chris Capuano in their rotation. The fact that the bullpen is mediocre and their batters are young made me decide not to have them moving onto the postseason this year but I do look forward to watching them 2008.

In the west, the Los Angeles Dodgers look to be favorites. Their lineup is good along with their rotation which now includes Jason Schmidt. Their bullpen and closer is phenomenal which can bail out starting pitchers that will struggle.

The San Diego Padres have a great rotation. Jake Peavy, Chris Young, Greg Maddux, and Clay Hensley will provide much needed help due to the fact that they don’t have a lot of great batters besides Adrian Gonzalez and Josh Bard. Their bullpen and closer are great too.

The Arizona Diamondbacks have a good lineup along with 2006 Cy Young winner Brandon Webb. The problem is they ONLY have Webb. This spells trouble for their rotation and their closer is awful as well.

To round out the year, I have the New York Yankees defeating the Houston Astros, 4-1, in the World Series including a game where long-time friends, Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens square off against each other.

As for individual awards, the AL MVP will go to Derek Jeter for two simple reasons. One, he was robbed last season for the award which I think he’s secretly pissed off about and two, it will be manager Joe Torre’s last season with the Yankees and I know that Jeter has a lot of love for Torre causing him to perform greater than he has ever before. In the NL, I was originally leaning toward Albert Pujols, but the award must go to a playoff contender and I don’t see the Cardinals in the postseason so I’m giving it to Derrek Lee who almost won the award two seasons ago. Last season, injuries kept him out but I see a huge comeback on the horizon. Johan Santana will runaway with the AL Cy Young and in the NL, I see Roy Oswalt taking the Cy Young due to his increasing performance every season. The AL Rookie of the Year will be Tampa Bay Devil Ray outfielder Delmon Young and in the NL, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Homer Bailey, perhaps the best pitching prospect besides Philip Hughes, will grab the award.

Recap:

AL East: New York Yankees
AL Central: Detroit Tigers
AL West: Los Angeles Angels
AL Wild Card: Cleveland Indians

NL East: New York Mets
NL Central: Houston Astros
NL West: Los Angeles Dodgers
NL Wild Card: Chicago Cubs

World Series: New York Yankees over Houston Astros, 4-1

AL MVP: Derek Jeter
AL Cy Young: Johan Santana
AL ROY: Delmon Young

NL MVP: Derrek Lee
NL Cy Young: Roy Oswalt
NL ROY: Homer Bailey

Source: Baseball-Reference.com
Photos: MLB.com

Sports Moment of the Week

Michael Phelps, an American swimmer, had perhaps the greatest week ever for an athlete as he finished an eight-day event winning a record seven gold medals and breaking five world records.