Congrats SHAD and UNFNOLE: Your 2009 Predictions were closest!

TEAM REC Explanation:

AFC East

New England 12-4 Some question marks on defense.

Buffalo 9-7 Underrated defense, a year more experience for Edwards and TO make this a playoff team.

NY Jets 9-7 They will rely heavily on the run game and defense. Sanchez will deveolp nicely.

Miami Dolphins 7-9 The Fins take a step back after making little improvement in the offseason. The "WildCat" will get stale.

AFC North

Pittsburgh 13-3 No surprise. Great defense, Great Run game and Improving Passing Attack.

Baltimore 11-5 Weak division and Ray Rice.

Cleveland 6-10 James Davis becomes the starter and helps the team win some games. Improvement on defense will start to show.

Cincinnati 6-10 Top 10 Offense and Bottom Ten Defense.

AFC South

Tennessee 11-5 Chris Johnson is a beast. Defense, while thin, will be solid (no big surprise)

Indianapolis Colts 10-6 Peyton is still Peyton.

Houston Texans 9-7 Wild Card? It all depends on the health of QB Matt Schaub.

Jacksonville 3-13 Del Rio’s last chance. If this team goes 3-13 there will be some major changes in Jax. Garrard will make more mistakes and MJD is going to get banged up if they work him to death.

AFC West (weakest division in the NFL)

San Diego 9-7 LT and Sproles are good. Rivers should get comfortable. Awaiting result of Merriman suspension? This could impact their season

Oakland 7-9 Run DMC and Jamarcus will make you forget about what they have looked like after failing to live up to hype. Richard Seymour is a HUGE boost on defense. Very underrated acquisition and worth the 1st round pick in 2011.

Kansas City 6-10 Cassel and Bowe will have a nice year, but LJ will not be able to carry the running game.

Denver 5-11 They still have the WR talent and had one of the best drafts in the NFL. Rookies like Moreno and Alphonso Smith (man crush) will have a very good Rookie NFL season.

NFC East

Dallas 11-5 Yes, you read that right. Dallas is a much better team that people give them credit for. Sure Romo hasn’t won a big game, but neither did Manning for many years. Things will change around for Jerry Jones and the Boys this year.

NY Giants 9-7 The NFC East has a tough schedule. I like the WR in NY along with a physical running attack. This defense will wear teams out. On paper they are the best team in this league, but they will lose some unexpected matchups.

Washington 8-8 Monopoly money may not buy a football team, but it bought a great defense. They will be a Top 3 defense IF theyre offense can allow them to catch their breath. Haynesworth was that big of an addition (no pun intended).

Philadelphia 1-15 Ok, this isn’t all that serious. I hate Filthy. However, they will not win more than 6 games. Everybodies NFC favorite this year will struggle mightly. The unfortunate loss of DC Johnson combined with a tough year for McNabb will unravel this team. Ried…FIRED. Donovan…TRADED. Westbrook…More Serious injuries. You laugh now, but let’s talk at the end of the season.

NFC North

Minnesota 10-6 Favre is a huge addition. AP is AP. This will be a GREAT defense. My pick for the NFC (even though they don’t have the best reg. season record). It’s time to break the curse Vikes.

Green Bay 9-7 The switch to the 3-4 is a concern, but this is an amazing offense. If Grant can stay healthy, the North Division title is the limit. They have the talent of defense to adjust to a 3-4 and in a run heavy division, it will benefit them.

Chicago 7-9 I dont get the hype. I love Cutler, but this is not a good Bears team.

Detroit 5-11 Week schedule will help their cause. Culpepper needs to stay healthy to keep Stafford off the field. Kevin Smith will be a 1200 yard back.

NFC South

New Orleans 10-6 Such a prolific offense. They just need a high school-worthy defense to be a great team. I think they have it.

Atlanta 10-6 Tough Schedule, but they are a confident team. Matt Ryan WAS NOT a fluke.

Carolina 8-8 Tough Schedule. Defense is a year older. No major additions. Delhomme is still slow and weak.

Tampa Bay 4-12 Niko is on drugs. Instability and DEPTH. Outside of two positions (RB and TE) I have no confidence in the depth of this franchise. You need depth in the NFL.

NFC West

Seattle 9-7 Much improved. Welcome to being the #1 WR, Housh. Hasselbeck is always underrated. Phenomenal player that never had much surrounding him. I am surprised they didn’t make more of a move for a RB in the offseason. This could be their thorn.

San Fran 8-8 Shaun Hill is better than average. Good Running Game and middle of the road defense should bring the Niners back to .500

Arizona 7-9 Good Running Game, Great Pass defense. Everything else will be average. Passing game, while they have great WR still have a very old Kurt Warner. Warner will not resemble the ghost we saw playing last year.

St. Louis Rams 2-14 Worst team in the NFL. A Joke.