NFL Preseason 2010: Top Five NFC Storylines

The National Football Conference (NFC, for brevity's sake) has been a proverbial toss-up for the past decade, as to who its champion will be. Whether you're talking Carolina's Cardiac Cats in 2003, the 2007 New York Giants (who were everybody's Cinderella) or the New Orleans Saints of last season, the conference champion is rarely a team that leads wire-to-wire to end up in the Super Bowl.

In the 2010 season, NFC teams hope to get a bit of the magic that was afloat in New Orleans's Super Dome last season so that they may end up representing the conference in the Super Bowl. However, there's still a full slate of 16 games left to play before the champion is determined, and there are even more story lines that must be revealed before the season plays out.

Here are five of those story lines.

Can Matt Ryan take the Falcons deep in the playoffs?

After a stellar rookie season in which he took a team of relative nobodies to the playoffs, Matt Ryan experienced a bit of a sophomore slump in 2009 due to injuries, though he still threw for nearly 3,000 yards and 22 touchdowns.

In 2010, after another offseason of learning offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey's offense, the Falcons are poised to challenge the Saints for supremacy in the NFC South.

The Falcons offense, assuming Ryan is able to continue progressing along the learning curve as well as he did in 2008, should be the least of their worries. In the backfield, the Falcons will have Michael Turner taking most of the carries, while back-up Jerious Norwood is a touchdown waiting to happen, and could start on a few teams around the league.

To throw to, Ryan has speed (Roddy White), hands (Michael Jenkins) and reliability (Tony Gonzalez) to help him move the ball down the field, though the team would certainly feel more comfortable with a bit more depth out wide.

The biggest question mark for Atlanta is their defense, most notably their pass defense which ranked 28th in the NFL last season. Signing Dunta Robinson as a free agent from the Texans should help shore up their secondary, though he's got to avoid injuries for the signing to be a complete success.

If Atlanta's defense is able to improve marginally, not even drastically, look for the Falcons to take advantage of a very favorable schedule and make the playoffs as a wild-card at the very least.

While Ryan has been tabbed by many as the next great signal-caller, he must improve on his 14 interceptions in 2009 if the Falcons are to make a deep run in the playoffs.

Is Brett Favre going to play?

The NFC North hangs in the balance of one man's decision: Brett Favre and his constant battle with retirement.

If Favre decides that his arm is healthy enough to go through another season, the Minnesota Vikings will undoubtedly be the favorite to win the division and could even be the number one seed in the conference when the playoffs roll around for the second consecutive year.

Vikings brass seem confident that Favre will be under center for the season opener, but at his age and with his experience, don't look for them to be pestering him for a decision so they can have him on the field for preseason games.

Favre's decision will likely come down closer to the start of the season than the rest of the NFC North would prefer, but don't think of that as an accident: Favre's element of surprise (if it even still exists) has been productive in selling tickets as well as catching defensive coordinators napping.

If Favre in fact decides to hang up his pads, finally, the Vikings confidence will be sorely diminished, as Tavaris Jackson doesn't have nearly the track record, arm or on-field presence as the mighty No. 4. This could open the door for a team like the Packers or the Bears to make a run to the play-offs.

However, the strongest team that can represent the NFC North in the playoffs this season is a Favre-led Minnesota Vikings squad.

Will the 49ers become the powerhouse our fathers are used to?

Playing in the NFC West is a very good thing for a team like the San Francisco 49ers, a team on the cusp who could take a couple wins and use them as motivation to win the division and get into the playoffs with some momentum.

The Seahawks are rebuilding from their decent teams from five years ago, the Rams are rebuilding from square-one, while the 49ers and Cardinals are believed to be the frontrunners in one of, if not the easiest division in the NFL.

Head coach Mike Singletary is a no-nonsense former linebacker who does not accept anything less than 100 percent effort. (Sorry, this author will never use the 110 percent line, because 110 percent does not exist.)

Perhaps the best thing about his coaching philosophy is the fact that he expects his offense to hit you in the mouth as hard as his defense... Which is pretty hard.

Linebacker Patrick Willis (pictured) is perhaps the most feared defender not named Ray Lewis, and he leads a 3-4 defense that was sixth against the run last season. If the secondary can patch a few holes from last season, when they were 21st in the league against the pass, the 'Niners defense could emerge as one of the best in the league.

On offense, the 49ers addressed their biggest need in the draft by shoring up their O-Line by taking tackle Anthony Davis and guard Mike Lupati in the first round. Though these big uglies are green-thumbs in the league, they are expected to be an upgrade from last season and should give all-everything running back Frank Gore more room to run behind.

Meanwhile, quarterback Alex Smith has a relatively easy job that he just can't seem to handle quite yet. With explosive receivers out wide and Vernon Davis, an absolute freak, at tight end, Smith merely needs to be a game manager for the 49ers to have success. Whether or not he can remain comfortable in the most important parts of the game (and season) will determine how far the 'Niners will go this year.

With the Cardinals going through a change a quarterback, the 49ers should be able to win the division and go into the playoffs where Willis and V. Davis will be enough to keep the opposition restless on the eve of a big-time match-up.

Whether or not Smith can manage this team into the playoffs has yet to be seen, but will be intriguing to watch this fall.

Can the Saints repeat as NFC Champions?

While conventional wisdom, and recent history, tells us that the Saints will not repeat as NFC Champions, they still have the quarterback, the coach, and the heart to do it all again.

After having a defense as strong as the captain of your high school's Quiz Bowl team for several years, the Saints "D" improved dramatically enough last season to tame Peyton Manning and win the Super Bowl. Their defense loses no key players, but continues to be thin on household names, which is just the way they like it.

Linebacker Jonathan Vilma was selected to the Pro Bowl last year and should continue to serve as the beacon of stability for a defense that is starting to grow long in the tooth. Cornerback Tracy Porter made a couple plays in the playoffs that changed their respective games on a dime, so look for him to be avoided by all means.

On offense, the Saints have the reigning MVP at quarterback in Drew Brees and a very, very deep corps of receivers for him to throw to.

Receiver Devery Henderson should be running nothing but go routes, as his speed is still one of the Saints' best weapons, while tight end Jeremy Shockey brings experience with both his blocking and his catching ability.

Running back Reggie Bush (pictured) has yet to live up to the hype he entered the league with, though it would be hard for anyone to live up to such hype. Though he may not be the next Walter Payton, as several analysts were predicting, Bush has proved himself a capable running back who can shed a tackle and turn a broken play into a touchdown.

Though they will have a target on their backs all season long, the Saints should enter the season as the favorites to win both their division and perhaps the conference. With the Falcons nipping at their heels in the NFC South, however, the Saints can ill-afford to take any games off if they hope to return to Disney World next February.

Who will rise to the top of the NFC East?

The NFC East, traditionally one of the toughest division to win (for players) and predict (for writers) will be just as enigmatic heading into this season.

The Eagles have offensive firepower in the form of LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson, though Philly fans will have to wait and see just how reliable Kevin Kolb (pictured) can be in his first season of the Post-Donovan-McNabb-Era.

McNabb, meanwhile, ventured south down I-95 to the Washington Redskins, where new head coach Mike Shanahan has a team with low expectations, and therefore a high probability to surprise their divisional foes. Their offense should be efficient and productive under Shanahan while the whole team is need of a infusion of younger players as eight of their expected starters have been in the league for at least a decade. Linebacker Brian Orakpo: Big fan, right here.

The New York Giants enter the season after blowing a chance at the playoffs late last season. The sour taste in their mouth should serve as motivation for Eli Manning and his deep stable of receivers, and head coach Tom Coughlin will not let them make the same mistakes down the stretch as they did last season. Shameless UNC plug: Look for Hakeem Nicks to blow-up outwide... He showed several flashes of being a go-to receiver last year, if he'll only improve his hands just a tad bit.

The Dallas Cowboys, for what its worth, may be the favorite heading into the season, though their offensive line took a hit with the loss of Flozell Adams. If the rest of the team can match the intensity of the Cowboys' linebacking corps, led by DeMarcus Ware, they could find themselves as champions of more than just the division.

Each intra-division game should be a battle going into the final quarter, and don't be surprised to see a few overtimes as well as some good ol' fashioned pushin' and shovin' after the whistle. This conference will be one to watch, as always.