10 bold predictions.....

[24champ]

not sure if this has been posted but.....its mixed.


Take the 2004 NFL season for example.

When I was asked if the San Diego Chargers could win eight games, I smugly replied that there was a better chance of Jessica Simpson leaving Nick Lachey for me.

The Chargers won a division title.

I'm still waiting for Jessica's call.

It's the NFL circa 2005. Almost anything can happen.

Except San Francisco making the playoffs.

Think about last year's shockers:


Reuben Droughns rushes for more than 1,000 yards last year?
Big Ben leads the Steelers to a 15-1 mark?
The Cowboys take a step back in 2004?
Never saw it coming.

Oh, but that buzz word that they hate at the NFL office (shhhhh, "parity") won't stop me from dusting off the crystal ball, and making a few concrete declarations for a year that should be more wild and wonderful than any we've seen in the NFL.


10 bold predictions for 2005

1. The Broncos will finish in the cellar in the AFC West
So let me get this straight: The Browns give up chunks of yards on the ground in 2004 and the Broncos go out and get their defensive line for this season. Unreal.

I don't trust Denver quarterback Jake Plummer. Never have. Never will. I'm still having visions of that left-handed throw dancing in my head. Sure he can make the impossible possible, but what concerns me is the interception he throws in the second quarter that gives the opposition an easy seven points.

Or as TV analyst and former 49ers great Randy Cross says, "Plummer is the Billy Graham of the NFL. He can make 70,000 people say 'Jesus' in unison."

Ron Dayne has also run the ball well in August before, only to disappear from September to December.

Champ Bailey has a bad hamstring. That makes me very concerned when I look at the rest of the Broncos' cover corners.

And you can make the case Denver plays in the best division in the NFL this year.

The Chiefs beefed up their defense significantly with Derrick Johnson, Pat Surtain, Sammy Knight, Kendrell Bell, and the underrated Carlos Hall.

San Diego might just be the most balanced team in the AFC.

Oakland's offense will challenge the Colts for being the greatest in the NFL. Kerry Collins is going to succeed in Norv Turner's high-powered attack. Randy Moss will have a fantastic season. Jerry Porter is a perfect No. 2 wideout. And Lamont Jordan is the perfect Turner-style back, and his ability to control the game will aid the Raiders defense. Expect Jordan to have a Pro Bowl-caliber season.

7-9 can easily be last place in the division. That's what I see for the Broncos.


2. The Redskins will be a last-place team
Say it isn't so Joe. The NFC East clearly belongs to the Philadelphia Eagles. The next two slots will go to the Cowboys and Giants, both coming off of very good off-seasons, leaving Joe Gibbs' boys in the basement.

There's no way you can tell me the 'Skins have better talent now than one year ago. Right after Gibbs called linebacker Antonio Pierce and cornerback Fred Smoot "Core Redskins," owner Dan Snyder forgot where his checkbook was and let them walk to the Giants and Vikings respectively.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/4824606?GT1=6902

[Kaylore]

Old news is good news.

[wabbit]

Yeah, once again...somebody is seeing something I can't seem to get a handle on.

This is a very good team.

I mean, anything can happen...losing several key starters to injury can drop you out of contention like a stone through a canyon

Mark Schlereth came around. John Clayton came around. Chris Motensen came around.

Ah, yes, they actually SAW the team so many others are willing to dismiss.

Well, barring a monumental upset, the bandwagon sets off only half-loaded this weekend.

[Bob's your Information Minister]

John Clayton predicted the Chiefs would win the division, you know?

[wabbit]

No, I didn't.

I do know he has said that the Broncos are going to surprise people with how good they are because I heard him say it.

These guys absolutely HATE making predictions because the NFL team accession/decline is so unpredictable in this free agent era.

Whether or not he picked KC to win the division is insignificant, because that wasn't my assertion. My assertion was that John Claton "came around".

He did

[Clockwork Orange]

John Clayton predicted the Chiefs would win the division, you know?

And last year Sean Salisbury and Ron Jaworski were proclaiming the Chefs would easily run away with the AFC West. So what?

[Ratboy]

Clayton told me Broncos would go 10-6 and yet another playoff loss.

[Bob's your Information Minister]

And last year Sean Salisbury and Ron Jaworski were proclaiming the Chefs would easily run away with the AFC West. So what?

I was just pointing it out to Wabbit. If John Clayton picked KC to win the West, he can't be THAT high on Denver.

[Kaylore]

Clayton told me he's a magical fairy that will make all our wishes come true.

[Clockwork Orange]

I was just pointing it out to Wabbit. If John Clayton picked KC to win the West, he can't be THAT high on Denver.

No one gives a flabby rats ass what any of these "experts" think unless they're propping up or putting down someone's favorite team. Then they're either referenced as an "expert" or written off as a fool with a bias. Everyone fanbase does it without exception. Personally, I don't pay any attention to that crap which is why you'll never see me posting an article just to point out that someone slighted the Broncos. Who really gives a rip?

Thank goodness the actual games kick off soon, all these predictions and projections threads passed tiresome about a month ago.

[watermock]

The stone cold fact is that there is a deafening silence from the drama queens at this point, waiting to jump back on the Broncos if they struggle against a very hard early schedule.

They are all totally quiet. A few are coming out of their mouseholes to peep a bit to get the easy cheese, but will go back in their hole is addressed.

The mantra: When will Shanahan win a playoff game without Elway" is getting kinda tiring.

[Tombstone RJ]

On the upside of this idiot's 10 predictions, I like the fact that Washington is gonna suck...

[Hogan11]

I trust the channelings of Criswell from beyond the grave more than I do these "experts".....they have to print something I suppose and in that respect, it's always easiest to go with the current accepted notion than to actually come out and see what's happening. This guy is still on the Browncos thing with the Plummer knock thrown in for good measure and , as if that wasn't bad enough, cites a quote from known Broncos despiser Randy Cross on the team...which always was, and remains, cause for instant dismissal.

NEXT!

[NFLBRONCO]

The biggest thing to me is how often we come to play if we do that we will be fine if not well welcome to past 2 yrs.

[PatsWin2002]

Mark Schlereth came around. John Clayton came around. Chris Motensen came around.

Mark Schlereth was the radio guest this morning on Boston sports radio. Since he wasn't part of the ESPN expert picks on the net, they asked him who his SB pick is.

He picked Baltimore because they proved once that they can win it all with great defense and a serviceable QB.

FYI, he's picking against NE repeating because of the statistics against doing so.

[bloodsunday]

He picked Baltimore because they proved once that they can win it all with great defense and a serviceable QB.
Has Boller even attained the servicable tag yet? That's more of a leap than saying Denver will have a top 5 pass rushing unit.

[-Slap-]

Or as TV analyst and former 49ers great Randy Cross says, "Plummer is the Billy Graham of the NFL. He can make 70,000 people say 'Jesus' in unison."
Kind of funny that Randy Cross keeps getting credit for that quote. It was old before Cross even started his playing career.

[orange 4 life]

i dont know about the other nine, but that sure is ONE dumb prediction.

as for the quote about plummer, its typical but ridiculous.
yes, the man threw 20 int's last year.
yes, we've been through this a million times.
we threw the ball ALOT more than normal, our FULLBACK ended up at tailback, and ELEVEN of the int's were tipped balls.
people can blame plummer for the rest of eternity, but that wont change those facts.
in addition, this A.D.D. society conveniently forgets anything that happened more than 5 minutes ago.
plummer showed us all that he can play relatively mistake free football in '03, and he'll show us again in '05.

[orange 4 life]

the more crap like this i read the more it makes me miss a guy like jim murray.

todays sports writers and "experts" are pathetic compared to the guys of old.

R.I.P. jim. you were the best.

[sirhcyennek81]

All you can say with these predictions is "ok". we will see who does what.

[Crushaholic]

Mark Schlereth came around. John Clayton came around. Chris Motensen came around.

Ah, yes, they actually SAW the team so many others are willing to dismiss.

Well, barring a monumental upset, the bandwagon sets off only half-loaded this weekend.

Actually, I really don't CARE whether these talking heads like us or not. I'd be content with riding the "no respect" tag all the way to the Super Bowl. Very few people gave us a chance against the Packers. Screw them... :moon:

[broncos love]

I love when analysts say that denver is gone to struggle and then when we start out 5-1 , like last year salisbury is kissing shannhan and the broncs ass. I absoultly hate bandwagon fans, espically when the broncos won their super bowls and as soon as they had a bad year their the first to dog them out.:devil:

[Rock Chalk]

The stone cold fact is that there is a deafening silence from the drama queens at this point, waiting to jump back on the Broncos if they struggle against a very hard early schedule.

They are all totally quiet. A few are coming out of their mouseholes to peep a bit to get the easy cheese, but will go back in their hole is addressed.

The mantra: When will Shanahan win a playoff game without Elway" is getting kinda tiring.
Well, win one this year and it will shut their ****ing asses up. At least about that. Coach Teflon is probably gonna stick though.

[Denver Crush]

These are all of the same analysts that said the Pack was going to crush us in the Bowl. Our O-line was too small, and our D was suspect. What was that outcome again?

[errand]

What I find funny is that every year these "experts' always get it wrong.....and yet next year the same media clowns are trotting them out asking them their opinions, despite them being wrong all the time.