In 2006 they were the feel good story of the NFL after Hurricane Katrina. In the Monday Night Football opening game, the Saints beat the then Michael Vick Falcons and that was the start of their fairy tale season. Behind the MVP-like performance of Drew Brees, (who was let go by the San Diego Chargers for fear of his durability after a shoulder injury) the tough running of Deuce McAllister and breakout season from late round draft pick wide receiver Marques Colston, the Saints put up lots of points and their defense was nothing short of stellar. In 2007, going into the season, there were high hopes for the Saints to go far in the playoffs. Some experts picked them for the Super Bowl. I even drafted Brees as my starting quarterback on my Fantasy Football team! Needless to say, the Saints disappointed many and left a city once on the top of the hill, ready to break out their old garbage bags to put over their faces. So the question is which season was a fluke? This year we will find out!
Can Reggie Bush and the Saints recover from an upside-down '07 season and prove '06 wasn't a fluke?
Will someone please give Keyshawn Johnson Jr.(Chad Johnson) the damn ball?!?! For a few years now we have yearned to see the Bengals break away from the shadows of their horrific past in the 90s. They showed moments of brilliance in 2005 and sporadically throughout each season after, but a shaky defense and an oft-injured Carson Palmer, coupled with some apparent team chemistry problems with his receivers, have kept the Bengals from making that move from decent team to playoff team. They have become the lovable losers with those one of a kind uniforms and host of players who practice more on what they will do when they get in the end-zone instead of how to get there.
My earliest memory of the Cleveland Browns was their last game ever before being “deactivated” for three years in 1996. It wasn’t pretty, middle-aged men in dog masks and football helmets with bones through them tearing apart the benches of the stadium. They were ticked, and seemed to have remained so through 1999 when the team was reactivated and then up to 2007 when their team rose from their dismal run of 13 years without a 10+ win season. Quarterback Derek Anderson and running back Jamal Lewis lead a surprisingly good Browns offense to finish 8th in the NFL in total offense. The Cleveland Browns were quite simply the 2006 New Orleans Saints, the question is will they follow suit of the 2007 Saints or will they keep the good stuff they have rolling, keepng their loyal fans in the Dawg Pound wagging their tails. Is it a coincidence that the dog is the most loyal animal and recently a poll ranked Browns fans as the most loyal in the NFL? I think it was rigged.
My second Fantasy Football blunder of 2007 was selecting quarterback Alex Smith to backup Drew Brees, I thought I was a genius! Smith was heading into his 3rd NFL season with Jim Hostler as his new and improved offensive coordinator and an offense that was stacked with good targets and a stellar running game to open up the passing game for Smith. Fast-forward to the end of the season, 49ers fans were calling for Hostler’s head, and Smith only ended up playing in 7 games, throwing for 2 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Going into his 4th NFL season, and a proven offensive guru at the helm in Mike Matrz, the 49ers have a lot to prove. Not to mention they play in the NFC in which wins are much easier than in the AFC to come by. Smith needs to step up this year and show why he was the #1 pick back in 2005 Draft. If I were a diehard 49ers fan, I would also be sick of knowing the last decent quarterback they had was Jeff Garcia, and he talked with a lisp.
Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is one of the newest spokespersons for Vitamin Water, along with knock you down to Chinatown linebacker Brian Urlacher of the Chicago Bears and hit the baseball halfway to the moon batter David Ortiz of the Red Sox! Then again, so is country singer Carrie Underwood so not much to be gained in the toughness category there. Peterson’s Nike commercial with LT however does validate him as an up-and-coming star in the NFL. Last year, on his way to winning Offensive Rookie of the Year, Peterson set an NFL record for most rushing yards in a game, 296. Along with Peterson as a weapon on the offensive side of the ball, the Vikings defense is a collective weapon, finishing 2007 first in the NFL against the run. The Vikings started 2007 very poorly but finished strong. Can they start strong and make a push for the playoffs for the first time since 2004? Stay tuned!
3 NFL Teams Who Can’t Prove Anything in 2008
The Dolphins made the right decision to draft offensive tackle Jake Long with their first selection. The only downside to Long is that he can’t block 5 players from sacking the poor quarterback(still to be determined). It will be interesting to see how the next few years do shape out in Miami with the ‘Big Tuna’ Bill Parcells heading football operations. Maybe tuna with dolphin isn’t such a a bad thing. If their union is a success, expect PETA to get involved.
Boy, doesn't he look happy that he gets to play for the Dolphins?
The worst decision ever made down in Atlanta was making Joey “Heisman” Harrington their starting quarterback. Their has never been a more frightened pocket passer that I can think of, every time he drops back you can see his eyes screaming “GET ME THE HECK OUT OF HERE!!! WHERE’S MY RUNNING BACK TO DUMP THE BALL OFF TOO?!?!?!” Hopefully rookie QB Matt Ryan can rise to the challenge and dethrone him. Call it “The Curse of Michael Vick,” call it “The Curse of Bobby Petrino,” or call it “The Curse of the Falcons Stink,” whatever it is, the Falcons imminent future is not looking bright.
Every team the Cardinals play are what they think they are, which is better than them. (Refer to coach Dennis Green’s post-game press conference after a loss to the Chicago Bears) Cardinals have tried everything to win, they have tweaked their uniforms, they have built a new stadium, they have tried to insert old players that were once great (running back Emmitt Smith and QB Kurt Warner), and they’ve tried playing in Mexico. Simple fact of the matter, the Cardinals have proven every year that they can’t prove anything except that they aren’t good.
August 25th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
Sadly two of my favorite teams are in here. (dolphins, 49ers.) who would have thought we would see the day when they are in the bottum of the league. Oh well, at least Oakland will be there too!
On a side note, Alex Smith was benched today, they are going with a guy who has never started an NFL game in multiple seasons. There’s desperation for ya!