2009 NFL Football Predictions

With football coming on quickly, this is good time to predict what could happen this year on the football field. Future numbers are out for almost every team. A year ago I focused on the Pittsburgh Steelers, who were predicted to have 9 victories, and wrote: Pittsburgh had 10 wins in 2007 with the best defense. The offense was already effective (17th overall, 3rd in rushing), with strong balance, and they add Illinois RB Rashard Mendenhall and Texas WR Limas Sweed. Mendenhall was a steal and gives them a brute force back to compliment fast RB Willie Parker.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have a fantastic QB in Ben Roethlisberger, plus wide receivers Hines Ward and former Buckeye speedster Santonio Holmes. They were dominant at home winning seven of nine, giving up just 13.8 ppg and again look like the team to beat in their division. Over 9 wins. What happened: This team went 12-4 on the way to winning their second Super Bowl in four years.

For 2009 the Patriots are seeing their over/under set at 12 victories, while the Giants and San Diego Chargers are at ten . Diverse components come into play when evaluating futures, plus there are offseason changes. Keeping that in mind, let s take a look at changes that took place with certain teams and how that might influence their position for the current futures odds.

Panthers (8.5): Everyone recalls the horrible playoff loss, when Jake Delhomme threw 5 picks in a 33-13 home loss to the Arizona Cardinals. What people forget is that Carolina was a dominant team, 12-4 during the year, gaining the second highest seed for the playoffs. The Panthers have balance on the offensive side of the ball, with a solid offensive line and a power running back duo of DeAngelo Williams and Jon Stewart.

Plus, the Panthers gave Jake Delhomme a five year contract worth more than $30 million to take his mind off any contract negotiations. When Delhomme is required to throw more than 30 passes, the team gone just 7-22, so Jon Fox knows the ground game is important. The defense is in great shape after re-signing Julius Peppers. The team also re-signed cornerback Chris Gamble and offensive tackle Jordan Gross to multimillion-dollar offers before they would have become big-money free agents. Resignings are often overlooked when evaluating a team s offseason activity. The Panthers look very good once more; take Over 8.5 wins.

Bears (over/under 8 victories): All the buzz has been on new quarterback Jay Cutler, a big name who is just what the Bears sought after. While QB is the most important position, he can t do it all by himself. And I see problems all over the field for the Bears (including with their coaching staff).

Chicago was near the bottom in running the ball last year, with no rushing attack and a faint offensive line. And who will Cutler have to pass to? Chicago is banking on sizeable output from several unproven guys at wide receiver in 2009. Earl Bennett is on the first team with 0 NFL catches, rookies Juaquin Iglesias and Johnny Knox are being relied upon, leaving starter Devin Hester and veteran slot receiver Rashied Davis as the only certain wide outs. And Brandon Rideau could project in the mix, but he has nearly no NFL experience.

On defense, the Bears ranked 21st overall and 30th against the pass in 2008, giving up a whopping 241 yards passing per game. Tackle Tommie Harris left knee makes you wonder what the Bears were thinking when they signed him to an extension last summer. Lovie Smith and the general manager have done a terrible job on roster decisions, the Bears didn t have a draft pick until the third round and don t have a first-round pick in the 2010 draft. The Cutler histeria could fade fast after a few early losses. Under 8 wins.

Patriots (over/under 12 wins): So which Patriots team is going to show up? The unstoppable team of 2007, or the injury-plagued group of 2008? Even without Tom Brady, they won 11 games a year ago, meaning they have averaged 13.5 wins the last two years in the regular season. The offense is loaded and all indications are that Brady is healthy.

The defense has terrific depth in the secondary, using three second and third round draft choices, including second rounders safety Patrick Chung (Oregon) and CB Darius Butler (UConn). They were the 2nd highest scoring offense in the AFC in 2008, even minus the 2007 NFL MVP and his record 50 touchdowns. Have to think the division isn’t going to be as good, as Miami won t sneak up on anyone and have every bounce go their way, plus the Jets have a new coach and a rookie quarterback. The schedule isn t that bad, with the only tough away games at Indianapolis and New Orleans in November. Over 12 wins is more likely.

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in:

• 2009 Pittsburgh Football Predictions
• 2010 Carolina Panthers Predictions
• 2010 NFL Predictions: Carolina Panthers
• 2007 NFL Predictions
• 2010 NFL Predictions: Chicago Bears

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