Harem of the Gridiron Goddess: Walker Sports' AFC South Preview

Football fiends, friend of the Gridiron Goddess Walker Sports is back to share his views on the AFC South with us.

Walker-Sports:AFC South Preview

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Welcome back everybody, Walker-Sports is back to continue our previews. Our last edition on the NFC South certainly got a solid rise out of Panther nation. Did not realize there were that many Carolina Panther fans on the net. Nonetheless, today we are back and we are talking about the AFC South. This may be the toughest division in league and it will be an entertaining one to watch.

Indianapolis Colts: I don’t care that Peyton had his knee worked on 8 weeks before the season starts. He will be back and at 100% by the time opening day comes around and that is all that really matters. The Colts had a great year last season and that was with two Pro-Bowlers going down with injuries. This year they should have everyone back and ready to play at their highest level and they will need it. Their division is stacked and it’s going to take a lot out of the Colts to win it all. However, they have everything to play for. The energy with the new stadium is good for two maybe even three wins this season. Add in the fact that this is likely head coach Tony Dungy’s last season and you can chalk that up for another two wins.

Bottom line is the Colts can win this division. The key will be avoiding the injury bug.

Jacksonville Jaguars: The Jags have been knocking at the door since about 2005 and this season they will be oh so close to breaking through. Matter of fact if the Jags can sweep Indy (and it’s very possible) I have no doubt that they will win the division and more importantly get a buy in the playoffs. David Garrard stepped up huge last season when he was awarded the starting job during training camp. He made his coming out party in the playoffs last season against the Steelers. I have no doubt he will build on that going into the 08 season. Garrard also has some amazing help in the backfield with him. Fred Taylor is coming off a Pro-Bowl season and despite his injury prone past he will have another great season. Even if he is a bit slow to it, Jacksonville is blessed to have another great back in Maurice Jones-Drew, the toughest little man in the game. Don’t believe me? Just ask Shawne Merriman what this guy can do.

Houston Texans: This is the Texans year. I know that sounds strange, but watch they will make the wild card this season. Last year they showed great improvement, and those young players are finally getting it. The key to the Texans success will depend on them getting stability at the quarterback position. Last season Matt Schaub got the start but injuries sidelined him midway. Sage Rosenfels is there as well, but I can see the Texans dealing him pretty soon especially if Schaub can just be steady. The Schaub to Johnson connection can be dangerous if developed properly. On the other side of the ball, the Texans don’t look so dumb now picking up Mario Williams with the first pick. Williams has matured into a Pro-Bowl caliber player and O-Tackles across the league will have their hands full trying to contain him.

Tennessee Titians: The Titians made it to the playoffs last season, but in 08 they will e the only team in this division to miss out on the post season. This is the make or break year for Vince Young. He showed a lot of promise his rookie season, but failed to advance on that in 07. Now it is year three and it is time to put up. Young is already responsible for Norm Chow going back to the college ranks now we get to see if he is a balla on the field or a coach killer (my guess is the later). Now granted the blame cannot be completely places on Vince, he has no one to throw the ball to. The Titian receivers are amongst the worse in the league. Not to mention the running back situation is not ideal. LenDale White is another 07 draft pick that has failed to live up to expectations (see why that Mario Williams pick was so good now?) and is in danger of eating himself out of a job. The Titians defense will keep them in plenty of games this season and they will probably have a close to .500 record but they just won’t have enough talent to get into the post season.