Five NFL Teams That Will Disappoint

Las Vegas sportsbooks released their NFL season win totals on Tuesday. These are their estimates of the number of wins that each team will win on the season, and you can bet whether you think they will win more or less than the posted total. This is the first really good chance we have each year to get a sense of what the oddsmakers think about how the season will turn out, and since oddsmakers are smarter than most of us, their opinions are very interesting and informative.

The numbers aren’t perfect, though. Sometimes they can be especially useful because they show you that your opinion of a team is very different from the general opinion out there. Here are five teams which, based on my perception and the posted totals, seem like they are going to be seen as a disappointed in the eyes of many:

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas says they are going to win 10 games. While they are certainly capable of winning that many or more, I get quite nervous when I think about this team this year.

For starters, Peyton Manning comes into the season nursing a neck injury. He’s getting older, and it could be hard to stay healthy—all quarterbacks other than him and Brett Favre get hurt at some point. If Manning goes down, then this team is cooked.

Before you can worry about that, though, Manning has to sign a contract first. He has already turned down a contract that would have made him the highest paid player in the league, so it is going to be very costly to get him signed. While I don’t doubt he will sign, I question how much of an impact it will have on the team’s ability to fill out the roster and fill some of the holes that need to be addressed.

I don’t expect a disaster for this team, but it could very easily be a step back for the team.

Cincinnati Bengals

In my eyes, there is no way that this team can possibly win eight or more games, but that’s what Vegas expects them to do, based on the posted total of 7.5. They have the worst coach in all of football, Carson Palmer would rather retire than play for them and they are going to be starting an unprepared QB as a result.

Chad Ochocinco wants out as well. This team had a toxic atmosphere surrounding them last year, and it’s hard to believe that it will be any better this year. I couldn’t be more pessimistic about this squad.

Chicago Bears

Vegas set their number at 9.5 wins. I’m nervous about that.

It all boils down to Jay Cutler. He was a disaster in the playoffs, and he spent his summer playing runaway groom with a reality TV star. Neither thing shows that he has even an ounce of maturity, and I don’t think Chicago fans are going to tolerate his act much longer.

The team has a real chance to self destruct this year, and that means that 10 wins could be an impossible goal.

San Francisco 49ers

I like a lot about this team, and I would be really tempted to be optimistic about them. There are some real issues, though, and I unfortunately am not convinced that they can meet or exceed the Vegas expectation of eight wins.

Alex Smith is facing yet another new offensive coordinator, and he has struggled every time he has faced a change. Coach Jim Harbaugh will be looking to make a lot of changes on both sides of the ball, and he needs to instill a whole new culture in this underachieving organization.

While I think he can do that eventually, I just don’t think he’ll have enough time to get it done this year given the ridiculously short time frame. Perhaps next year is when we should be optimistic about this squad—once Harbaugh has had some time and Smith has enjoyed some stability.

Baltimore Ravens

Las Vegas has this team pegged to win 11 games. While I like a lot about this team, it’s hard to be that optimistic about them.

They have a defense that, while brilliant, is certainly not getting any younger. That age is going to catch up to them sooner or later, and it could easily be this year.

On offense, they have made some bold moves, getting rid of McGahee, Heap, Mason and Gregg. Though none of those guys are young, they have been big contributors on and off the field, and their departure will shake up this team.

I get nervous when any team makes big changes to a roster, and that’s especially true this year when the time frame is so short. As much as I like the Ravens, I think that there is a fairly good chance that they will be a disappointment.