2011 NFL Predictions: 20 Late Season Surprises Still To Come
2011 NFL Predictions are here, and they are a fun look into what the near future holds for us NFL fans. The season has already provided us with scintillating news items to marinate in. We have seen the fall of a legendary quarterback in Brett Favre.
The Dallas Cowboys failed to win many games let alone make the playoffs. And we have seen head coaches drop like flies. So it is with the remainder of 2011. A season filled with intrigue and surprises will continue to do so long into the new year.
Here is what we can expect.
20. Mike Singletary Gets Fired
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In a season filled with the dismissal of head coaches, you can count on Mike Singletary to be another. The 49ers just lost a late season game to the St. Louis Rams, a fact that holds a lot of weight with San Francisco fans.
The loss ousted the 49ers from the possibility of the postseason. The division was supposed to be an easy venture for this team to take. Instead, they choked it away. You can be sure that Singletary will be on the chopping block.
19. San Diego Will See Norv Turner on the Hot Seat
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The Chargers were supposed to win the AFC West. They had an easy division to contend with and touted the best team in all of the NFL. In fact the stats will back up the claim that despite their dismissal, the Chargers were still one of the best teams on both sides of the ball.
Their ousting from the post season comes as an illustration on how important turnovers and special teams are to the fate of an NFL club. Norv Turner had one of the best teams in the NFL and still managed to lose the very winnable AFC West. This is unacceptable.
18. Bengals Will Win Without Star Receivers
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The Bengals had hoped to make an impact in the NFL this season by having two studs at wide receiver. It seems that if they really wanted to win, they should have instead parted ways with Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco.
The Bengals won today, a feat that has not come often in 2010. They did so against a great defense from a team needing a win to stay alive. The remarkable thing is that they did so without Owens and Ochocinco. Both are suffering from injury. On a day without his star wide-outs, Carson Palmer was awesome, scoring four touchdowns in a win over the Chargers.
They play the Ravens next who already have the joy of knowing they are playoff bound.
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17. Rams Will Make the Playoffs
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The Rams are won win away from clinching a playoff spot. Yes, you are not seeing things. This is 2010, and the Rams will be going to the playoffs.
At the start of the season, pundits stated that the NFC West could be won by a very mediocre season. That is just what the Rams provided in their record. The fact that the 49ers are stuck at home is the most shocking aspect.
16. Brett Favre Will Retire, Again
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The only thing Brett Favre loves more than interceptions and Jenn Sterger is retirements. He collects them like kids collect Pokemon. That's still in right?
Favre will finish this season with a bum arm and a concussed head. Before the playoffs start, he will take to the podium, again. And he will cry, again.
15. Tim Tebow Starts Final Game
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Tim Tebow got his first win today as a starter. He got the nod at quarterback as Kyle Orton is still bothered by a rib injury. Orton could be healthy next week for their game against the Chargers, but Tebow will once again get the start.
Why wouldn't he? Eric Studesville is doing his best to keep his interim job. Why not put butts in the seats and give your team the best chance to win. That is with the running and throwing of Tim Tebow. Denver fans love that guy.
14. Jamaal Charles Will End as Rushing Leader
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As of right now, Charles is third behind Maurice Jones-Drew and Arian Foster. But those two are matching wits next week. You can bet that the Texans will try and spoil the Jaguars playoff hopes by limiting Jones-Drew.
Similarly, the Jags will need to stack the box to have a chance against the Texans. That leaves Charles with the Raiders defense and a whole mess of land in between.
13. Brett Favre Will Get Week 16 Start
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Mr. Favre loves the limelight. There are only so many more nationally televised events for him to compete in. Okay, just one to be exact.
That will be Tuesday Night in Philadelphia. The extra days of rest will afford him enough time to convince head coach, Leslie Frazier, that he can once again take to the snow.
12. The Colts Will Go Home
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Things are looking bleak for the Jaguars. That does not mean they are out of this thing. The Colts will need to lose next week, and the Jags need to win.
First, the Texans are playing horrible ball in the second half of the season. This game will pit an inspired team against one that is falling apart. Jacksonville will get their ninth win.
As for the Colts, they are still the injury-riddled team that lost three games a month ago. They then beat the Titans by only two points.
Kerry Collins will be healthier next week, and Tennessee will take the Colts to the edge. The pressure will have the lesser players fold. The Jaguars will then take the division.
11. Giants Out Packers In
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The Giants need help. After getting trounced in Green Bay, they need to beat the Redskins and hope the Packers lose to the Bears. After clinching, the Bears may take their foot off the gas to prepare for the postseason.
This comes as a shock to NFL fans that felt the Giants were a shoe in for the big dance. With Aaron Rodgers recent injuries, it is amazing the Packers were able to even stay afloat.
10. AFC Wild Cards Win Out
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I feel bad for the Chiefs and the Colts. They may win their division, but they then have to face better opponents. That is life in the NFL and their current playoff format.
Both teams would go up against either the Jets or the Ravens. Both teams are deeper and boast far superior defenses. This year will be the year of the wild card.
9. Rams Win a Playoff Game
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I will let the laughter settle down before I continue.
Better? The Rams could very well win their next game and get the Packers in the Wild Card round. If that is the case, they will get the Packers at home. The Rams offense can give anyone fits at home. Couple that with the Rams defense asserting themselves in the second half this season and you could very well have an upset of sorts.
Then again the Rams could draw the Saints. In which case this is a very, very moot point.
8. Michael Vick Wins the MVP
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Before the season started, this prediction would be followed by guffaws and laughter. Now, it seems fairly plausible. The only hiccup is Tom Brady.
But I submit to you that the Eagles quarterback has had to fight through more adversity and has made more from what he has been given than Tom Brady.
Vick has had to fight another star QB for the starting job. He then went on to make a very young offense into one of the most prolific in the NFL. He will be holding the MVP trophy in January.
7. Atlanta Clinches the NFC before Playoffs
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The Falcons will do what we have all been expecting them to do for some time, clinch the NFC. They will do so in a grudge match on Monday Night.
This will be a game that will show there is a new sheriff in town. His name is Matt Ryan, and he carries a big stick.
6. Tom Coughlin Will Coach His Last Game as a Giant
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We all have been told that Tom Coughlin is safe from the axe. That is pure posturing, especially if the Giants miss the playoffs.
It is quite clear that Coughlin has failed to rouse his guys to meet the challenges of the big game. There are three reasons he will be canned after the season.
The Eagles loss - You cannot choke that badly without repercussions.
The Packers loss - It is one thing not to wrap up a playoff berth but to not even be competitive?
Playoffs - If this team was supposed to be a shoe in a couple of weeks ago gets ousted, you can be sure there will be hell to pay.
5. The Saints Will Not Defend Their Title
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The Saints have shown flashes of the brilliance they played with last season. But their 2010 squad has been far too inconsistent to defend their title.
There will be a new team to win it all this season. The Saints will have to go through either Chicago or Atlanta to get back to the Super Bowl. The Falcons have already proved they can get the best of the Saints in New Orleans. The Saints will most likely be playing on the road.
If they face the Bears, that will have to prove they can withstand the Bears stifling defense. That is too tough of an order this go around.
4. Bears Will Represent the NFC in Super Bowl
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This season has all the makings of 2006. The Bears are a great team that is getting little to no notice. But why? They can easily beat any of the other NFC teams. You have to like their defense. And no one can get hotter than Jay Cutler.
The Bears can stunt even the most prolific of offenses. They may not look like much, but they are the real deal.
3. The Patriots Will Represent the AFC
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There is no one that can match wits with the Patriots at the moment. The Steelers, Ravens or Jets, no one has the man power or magic to go head-to-head with the Patriots.
It seems they have just figured it all out at once. Somewhere along the season, they just decided to play defense. With that last hole filled, there is nary a team in the AFC that can stop them.
2. Pats Win Super Bowl in Rout
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There you have it folks. There is no reason to even watch the rest of the season. The Patriots will once again hold dominion over the NFL.
This season is just too eerily similar to their other title runs. They are remarkably better on both sides of the ball. And they are playing football the right way. They lack any marketable player outside of Brady, yet they are just killing it. This will be one of Bill Belichick's finest coaching performances.
1. Tom Brady Wins Super Bowl MVP
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You have one of the top quarterbacks in the league going against what I am sure will be a top defense. But for the second half of this season, Brady has been on fire. He has just broken the record for consecutive atempts without an interception.
The man just does not make mistakes. This is all he will need to do in Dallas. As the Bears or whatever team tries to stop the Patriots running attack, Brady will spread the ball all over the field. This one could be over long before the fourth quarter.
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