2009 AFC Predictions.

The 2009 NFL season is set to begin Thursday night, when the defending Super Bowl-Champion Pittsburgh Steelers host the AFC South-Champion Tennessee Titans.

With the top two seeds from the 2008 AFC Playoffs set to start the regular season, it is time for our preview of how the 2009 season will unfold. I am going to do a weekly preview of the upcoming week, winners and losers, every Friday.

But, this is my opinion of what every team's record is going to be at the conclusion of the season, and who is going to make the playoffs once the regular season is over.

Pittsburgh Steelers, 13-3, No. 1 seed.

Pittsburgh is set to defend their Super Bowl Championship with basically the same team that won it last year. The preseason showed that the Steelers have a strong first unit and capable back ups.

With the return of Daniel Sepulveda and the addition of Stefan Logan, the weakest part of the Steelers, special teams, has received an infusion of talent.

With a weaker schedule than 2008, the Steelers will be the top seed in the AFC this year.

New England Patriots, 12-4, No. 2 seed.

With Tom Brady returning from season-ending knee surgery, the New England Patriots are favored to return to the top of the AFC East, stealing the crown from the Miami Dolphins.

With all the weapons the Patriots have on offense, they will be able to win shootouts with just about any team in football.

The only concern is the knee of Tom Brady. Matt Cassel is gone, and the only other Quarterback on the Patriots' roster is undrafted free-agent Bryan Hoyer out of Michigan State.

No matter how good Randy Moss, Wes Welker and company may be, with an undrafted rookie under center, the Patriots will finish the season closer to 4-12, than 12-4.

Tennessee Titans, 10-6, No. 3 seed.

After a dominant season last year, the Titans suffered the loss of Albert Haynesworth to the Washington Redskins moments after the free-agent period began (can anyone say tampering?).

Making no big splash in free agency, the Titans are set to begin the season as they ended last season, (regular season). Run the ball, control the clock, and win the games playing smart.

Provided the defense can continue to stop teams from putting 20+ points on the board, the Titans are going to be a team to be reckoned with.

San Diego Chargers, 9-7, No. 4 seed.

With the return of Shawne Merriman, the Chargers defense will be stronger than they were last year. Philip Rivers will again lead the charge with a strong running game with LaDainian Tomlinson and Darren Sproles.

With Jay Cutler no longer in Denver, there is really no one to challenge the Bolts in the AFC West.

Baltimore Ravens, 11-5, No. 5 seed.

With a strong running game and a smash mouth defensive unit, the Ravens are going to win with clock management and by pounding the football.

Joe Flacco is going to have more of an opportunity to put the ball in the air, but with very limited options as receiving threats, no one can expect him to put up Pro-Bowl numbers.

Miami Dolphins, 10-6, No. 6 seed.

The only change to the Dolphins from last year is a tougher schedule.

Chad Pennington is one of the most accurate quarterbacks in the history of the NFL. As long as he can stay healthy, the 'Fins will be able to keep pace with the Patriots for most of the season.

With Bill Parcells running the show in Miami, the Dolphins organization feels they are stepping in the right direction.

Indianapolis Colts, 9-7.

Peyton Manning's streak of 10+ victories per year will come to an end this season. The offensive line is not what it used to be, and the defense is still not that good.

With the AFC South getting stronger and the changes to the coaching staff, the Colts are going to take a step back this year.

Houston Texans, 9-7.

The Texans will post their first season with a winning record, but still come short of the playoffs.

With Mario Williams finally getting some defensive help and an offense that features Andre Johnson, the Texans are improving, but are still a year away from the playoffs.

Cincinnati Bengals, 8-8.

With a healthy Carson Palmer and an improving defense, the Bengals will be competing for a playoff spot until late in the season.

Though they are almost there, there are still too many questions concerning the offensive line and running game for me to think they will be any better than 8-8.

New York Jets, 8-8.

Rex Ryan is going to be a great coach, but the Jets, starting a rookie at quarterback, are not going to push the Dolphins or Patriots just yet.

If they trade for Brandon Marshall and Marshall can behave himself, the Jets could push the Dolphins, but that is probably not going to happen.

Kansas City Chiefs, 6-10.

In his first year in charge, Scott Pioli has made some good long-term moves for the Chiefs, but they still have a way to go before they are competing for the playoffs.

Jacksonville Jaguars, 6-10.

It was only two years ago that Jacksonville was in the playoffs, but the gamble that Jack Del Rio took letting Byron Leftwich go and keeping David Gerrard now seems to be a mistake that could eventually cost him his job.

Oakland Raiders, 5-11.

The dysfunction in Oakland is not going to end until Al Davis decides to put someone in charge that can run the team the way it is supposed to be run.

Tom Cable is not Bill Belichick, but thinks he is. There are a lot of weapons in Oakland, there just has to be someone that can put the pieces together and have them work as a team.

Buffalo Bills, 5-11.

The Terrell Owens experiment is going to blow up in the face of Dick Juron. For Owens to have been successful, he needed to go to a strong team, with good team leaders, a strong ownership, and a stable fan base.

He got none of those in Buffalo, and by the time the whether turns cold, so will his relationship with the team.

Poor Trent Edwards.

Cleveland Browns, 4-12.

Those that thought the Browns would turn things around under Eric Mangini are going to have to wait for that to happen.

After playing neither Brady Quinn or Derek Anderson in the Browns preseason finale, he still has not named his starting quarterback for the week-one game.

If Mangini or Browns fans believe that he is the next Belichick, they are going to be in for some serious heartache.

Denver Broncos, 2-14.

The only reason that the Broncos finished 8-8 and one game out of the playoffs in 2008 was because they could score points at will.

With Jay Cutler now in Chicago and Brandon Marshall suspended and possibly going to be traded, there is no offensive fire power in Denver.

Lucky for the Broncos they get to play the Chiefs and Raiders twice each, which should account for their two wins.