NFL Predictions Continued

Five divisions down, and three to go...

NFC North
The Vikings won this division in somewhat of a surprise last season, but they followed that up with an improbable loss on a missed field goal to Seattle in the playoffs. The Packers were eliminated in overtime by Arizona in the Divisional round of the playoffs, and I do think it is reasonable to expect that two teams come out of this division to make the playoffs again in 2016.

Green Bay Packers
Green Bay lost Jordy Nelson in the preseason last year, and that was a huge blow before the regular season even began. Aaron Rodgers had a down year (by his extremely lofty standards), and the defense actually was better than the offense in many facets of the game in 2015. Despite having arguably the best quarterback in the NFL, the Packers ranked 23rd in the league in total offense and 25th in passing. However, they still did go 10-6 and win a playoff game. With Nelson back, the offense should certainly improve in 2016.

Everyone loves to bang on Eddie Lacy for being overweight last year, but supposedly he is in better shape heading into this season, so with him and James Starks, as well as a pretty formidable offensive line, the running game could improve as well. Also, Aaron Rodgers is one of the top QB's in the game and he alone could win more than a few games for Green Bay.

The defense did lose a few pieces, but outside of Seattle, the Packers might have the best tandem of safeties in the NFL, and they took a defensive tackle in the first round of the draft. Mason Crosby is one of the best kickers in the league.

Rodgers and Nelson alone means this offense will be very good, and I surely expect Green Bay to be back in the playoffs this season.

Ceiling: I'm not sure that this is a Super Bowl caliber team, but they definitely are near the top of the NFC. Green Bay should certainly be playing into January, and it would not surprise me to see them playing in the NFC Championship game.

Floor: Nelson's injury crippled this team before the 2015 season even started, but he is ready to go for 2016. If Minnesota continues to improve and somehow the Bears win 9 or 10 games, maybe Green Bay misses the playoffs, but I find it hard to believe that they will be 9-7 at the worst.

Reality: Green Bay should be thinking Super Bowl. I don't think they will get there, but if they get a few breaks and stay healthy, I think they have a chance. They played into the second round of the playoffs last year, and with Rodgers getting his favorite target back, they should do that again in 2016. I think it is reasonable to expect to see the Packers in the NFC Championship game.

Minnesota Vikings
Coming off a surprising division title, hopes are high in Minnesota. Teddy Bridgewater is developing into a pretty good quarterback, and Adrian Peterson just keeps on going despite his age and a recent knee injury. You can see how much the offense depended on Peterson by looking at the numbers from 2015. Minnesota had the fourth best running game in the NFL, but their passing attack ranked 31st. They tried to address that by taking a wide receiver with their first draft pick. Kyle Rudolph is also a nice security blanket at tight end. The defense has above average players at all three levels, and getting cornerback Mackensie Alexander in the second round could end up being a steal. Despite his unbelievable missed field goal that ended Minnesota's season, he is still a very good kicker.

Ceiling: Minnesota should have been playing in the Divisional round last season, but Walsh's improbable miss ended their season in hugely disappointing fashion. I think it is reasonable to think that this team wins one playoff game this season, but anything past that would surprise me.

Floor: Age has to catch up to Peterson at some point, but he has continued to defy the hands of time to this point. If he loses a step, it might put too much pressure on the shoulders of Teddy Bridgewater, who still has a mediocre group of receivers to throw to. I don't think that Minnesota could be worse than the Lions, but if they have a down year, I think this might be a 6-10 team.

Reality: Minnesota was probably the biggest surprise in terms of playoff teams last season. They proved that they were good enough to win the division, and they should have beaten Seattle. They went 11-5 last year, but I find it hard to believe they will be able to match that in 2016. I think this should be a team that goes 9-7 or at best, 10-6.

Chicago Bears
The Bears are tough to figure out. They added a few nice pieces via free agency, and while they did lose some key cogs from last year, guys like Matt Forte and Martellus Bennett are getting up there in age. Alshon Jeffery has begun to establish himself as a top flight wideout, and Kevin White is healthy after missing all of his rookie season because of injury. If he is able to become what many thought he could coming out of college, Chicago could have a nice group of wide receivers. There are some question marks on defense, but adding Danny Trevathan and Jerrell Freeman and drafting Leonard Floyd should really strengthen their linebacking corps.
The main concern here, as has always been the case, is Jay Cutler. The story about his arm strength and potential is one that has seemingly closed years ago, and he has proven that he is not much more than a slightly above average quarterback. Could that change? Maybe. Do I expect it to? No.

Ceiling: If the skill players on the offensive side of the ball put it all together and a defense that is full of new but unfamiliar faces is able to gel, maybe this team has a shot at a playoff berth. With Jay Cutler at the helm though, I just find it hard to believe they will be playing into January.

Floor: Chicago should be at least better than Detroit, but they have a lot of new faces on both side of the ball, and that might be a problem if the new guys can't put it together at once. Chicago went 5-11 in 2014 and 6-10 in 2015. If each and every piece does not fall into place with them, and they do not get help by Green Bay and Minnesota not meeting expectations, Chicago should be a team that equals one of those records.

Reality: Adding Floyd, Trevathan, Freeman, and a healthy White are all significant upgrades. However, like I said before, this team is still led by Jay Cutler, and his time is just about up as far as any sort of playoff aspirations. I think Chicago should be looking at 6-10 this season.

Detroit Lions
When the man who was, in my opinion, the second best player in the history of this franchise decided to unexpectedly retire (Calvin Johnson), things immediately looked bleak in Detroit. With him and Matthew Stafford, the team was always known as good at least on the offensive side of the ball. The problem is, the offense was not exactly stellar on that side of the ball in 2015, and it doesn't seem like they will get any better in 2016. Detroit was dead last in the entire NFL in rushing last season, and they go into this year with the same group of backs. Losing Johnson will obviously hurt the passing game.
The defense was mediocre at best last season, and it does not seem like it will be much better this year. In a division with Aaron Rodgers and Adrian Peterson, I think teams will be looking forward to playing the Lions in 2016.

Ceiling: The best this team can do is stay out of the basement of the NFC North. The running game has nowhere to go but up, but the passing attack was crippled by Johnson's retirement. The front seven on defense is not bad, but the secondary is below average, at best. Aside from facing Aaron Rodgers twice, Minnesota will also have to face Drew Brees, Eli Manning, Tony Romo, and Andrew Luck. Detroit was 7-9 last season. If they somehow reach that mark again in 2016, Lions fans should be extremely happy.

Floor: With a questionable secondary, a bad running game, and an receiving corps that is far from intimidating, the Lions could certainly be looking at something like 5-11 or 4-12.

Reality: It is going to be tough for this team to stay out of last place in the NFC North. They will most likely be closer to 4-12 than 7-9, and I would not be surprised at all to see Detroit drafting in the top ten in April of 2017.

Daily Diamondbacks Update: After a sweep of the defending National League champion New York Mets, Arizona followed that up with a terrible series in Boston that included a 16-2 thrashing that saw Zack Greinke unable to make it out of the second inning. Greinke has not lived up to expectations and Shelby Miller has been playing in the minor leagues for about a month now. The offseason moves are not exactly working out so far, and Arizona remains in last place in the division.

Daily Giants Update: News out of camp is that Victor Cruz will miss a few days because of an injury. I gave up on Cruz ever playing a regular season game again for the team, and this is just another example of why I did that. I did see some nice things in the first preseason game last week from guys like Olivier Vernon, Sterling Shepard, and Eli Apple though, so that is a good sign. There is still just under a month until the regular season begins though, and a lot can change from now and September 11th.