Friday, February 01, 2008

Reviewing My Preseason Predictions

Here are my NFL preseason predictions with a look at how accurate they were:

1) Marshawn Lynch will be a top 10 fantasy running back.
He was tied for 11th in ESPN's rankings and 13th in Yahoo!'s.
2) Lee Evans will have at least one 200 yard game this season.
His best was 165.
3) The Colts will see a major dropoff this year. They might not even make the playoffs. They lost too many good defensive players.
They did have a drop off, but not in the regular season.
4) The Detroit Lions will have an exciting offense (1,000 yard RB, 1,000 yard WR & 3,000 yard QB) but they'll still suck.
I was wrong about the 1,000 yard back, and their best receiver had 943 yards, but they did suck.
5) Stephen Jackson will fall well short of 2,500 total yards and 20 TDs.
He had 1,273 total yards and 6 TDs.
6) Drew Bennett will have a better season for the Rams than Isaac Bruce.
Bruce had twice as many yards and 67% more catches.
7) Adrian Peterson will be the offensive rookie of the year.
Too obvious.
8) The Falcons will win fewer games than the Raiders.
Push
9) First and last in the NFC East will be separated by 3 games or fewer.
The Cowboys exceptional season put them 5 games ahead of the Eagles who finished last, with an 8-8 record.
10) Andre Johnson will have 1,500 yards and 10 TDs.
He had 851 and 8...in 9 games.
11) Vince Young will continue to make strides but lack of a running game will keep Tennessee to 7 to 9 wins.
I had this backward. Young regressed but the Titans won 10 games thanks to a strong running game.
12) Matt Leinart will also have an excellent statistical season (3,000 yards, 2:1 TD to INT ratio), but the Cardinals will miss the playoffs.
Leinart hardly played, but the Cardinals did miss the playoffs.
13) There is only one reason the Chargers won't win the Super Bowl, Norv Turner. But because I think they are so good and so ready after last year's disappointment, I think they will win the Super Bowl in spite of Norv.
Almost, but not quite.
14) The Bears will not make it back to the Super Bowl because I don't think Grossman will solve his turnover problems.
Another one that was too easy.
15) Tampa Bay will be much improved with Jeff Garcia who is steady and Cadillac Williams who will have a good bounceback season after his sophomore jinx.
I'm giving myself credit for this one even though it was Earnest Graham and not Cadillac who led this suprising (not to me) team.
16) Seattle will represent the NFC in the Super Bowl again. Side note: in the NFL, NBA and MLB there is a major imbalance between the two leagues/conferences to the point that at least 3 teams from one league/conference are better than any from the other side.
Wrong
17) The Patriots will play the Chargers in the playoffs again, this year it will be the AFC title game and it will be an epic matchup.
It might have fallen short of epic, but I'm taking credit for this one too.

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