2011 NFL Season Predictions: Division Champions and Award Winners

Here we are a fourth of the way through the NFL's regular season and just about everyone has been surprised every turn of the way.

The "Dream Team" Philadelphia Eagles have gotten of to a 1-3 start, injuries galore to star players, the undefeated Detroit Lions and much more.

It's obvious that it's just about impossible to predict how everything will end up at the end of the season, yet I'm going to try to anyway for your benefit.

Here goes nothing...

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Ryan Kerrigan

Washington Redskins linebacker Ryan Kerrigan was never really on the radar as a Rookie of the Year candidate before the season started, but he has made his presence known through the first four weeks of the season.

To date, Kerrigan has been involved in 18 tackles, 2.5 sacks, three passes defensed, one interception returned for a touchdown and two forced fumbles. Whew...if that seems like a lot, it's probably because it is.

Teammate Brian Orakpo seems to agree. In a recent interview on NFL Network he said, “I mean, the guy is not a rookie, man. The guy is playing phenomenal.

"And I hope he doesn’t watch this, because if he doesn’t win Rookie of the Year, we’re going to be very disappointed. Because the guy is playing tremendously for our defense, and he’s making some huge plays.”

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Cam Newton

Well, I guess that Warren Moon guy was right. During the offseason, Moon said on several occasions that Cam Newton would be a star and defended him publicly from perceived racial bias.

Newton started the season off with a monster game and hasn't looked back since. In four weeks, he is third in the league in total passing yards, averaging 347 yards per game.

He does need to pick up his completion percentage and he has the same amount of touchdown passes as interceptions, but having a 300-plus yards per game rookie is something to behold in today's NFL.

Newton has reinvigorated the once-seemingly declining Steve Smith and given fans of the Panthers plenty of optimism for the future. 

Head Coach of the Year: Mike Munchak

There's plenty of candidates that can make a strong case for themselves. There are five first-time head coaches this season, and the Tennessee Titans gave their new head coach the least time of any to make the team his.

Former head coach Jeff Fisher was fired on Jan. 27 and current coach Mike Munchak was hired on Feb. 7. He had no starting quarterback after the Vince Young fiasco, his star running back had and extended holdout and his up-and-coming receiver seemed to be getting arrested every other day.

Now the team has a top 10 defense after being ranked 26th the year before, they have completely changed their offensive identity behind new quarterback Matt Hasselbeck and a pass-heavy attack and they are off to a 3-1 start for the year.

Defensive Player of the Year: DeMarcus Ware

Two things that are fairly consistent facts that apply to the man chosen for this award: He plays for a top five, sometimes top 10, defense, and the team he plays for is typically playoff caliber.

Whether the Dallas Cowboys end up making it to the postseason—with their wealth of injuries and the up-and-down play of quarterback Tony Romo—is something that will be decided as the season plays out.

However, the Cowboys definitely have fielded a top five defense with linebacker DeMarcus Ware leading the way. 

So far, Ware is third in the league with five sacks to go along with 12 tackles. The only thing limiting his potential to win the award is the limited amount of tackles he has made.

Offensive Player of the Year: Wes Welker

New England Patriots receiver Wes Welker has 40 catches for 616 yards and five touchdowns this season. That puts him on the ridiculous pace to finish the season with 160 catches, 2,464 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Now, I'm not saying he will finish with those numbers, but if he even comes close to them, Welker could finish with the greatest season ever by a wide receiver. 

I haven't seen any defenses that have figured out ho to stop him yet, so my money is on Welker continue to be a statistical juggernaut.

Most Valuable Player: Aaron Rodgers

If Aaron Rodgers isn't on a hot streak right now, I'd hate to see how great he plays when he is. This season, Rodgers has completed an amazing 73.1 percent of his pass attempts for 1,325 yards passing, 12 touchdowns to two interceptions, along with 19 carries for 53 yards and two more touchdowns.

The Green Bay Packers are off to a 4-0, start and it's beginning to look like no one in the league can stop them.

With the way defenses are performing this season, it'll be close to impossible for any team to slow Rodgers down.

AFC East Division Winner: New England Patriots

The way the New England Patriots' defense is performing, it's no wonder Tom Brady is averaging nearly 400 yards passing per game this season.

Although the Buffalo Bills have already beaten the Pats once this season and with the rival New York Jets lingering in their inconsistency, New England looks like a team that has to shoot themselves in the foot to lose a game.

Opposing defenses haven't figured out how to stop Wes Welker from chewing up yardage on a weekly basis. And when tight ends Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski are healthy, they allow Brady to stretch the field for some big plays. 

Don't expect another four-interception game from Brady. The Patriots will cruise to yet another division title.

NFC East Division Winner: Dallas Cowboys

Even with the tumultuous season that the Cowboys have had so far, they are still 2-2. Their bye week comes at the perfect time for injuries to every single offensive skill position player to heal.

With Miles Austin and Dez Bryant both on the field, Tony Romo can put up huge numbers against any defense. Having Felix Jones minus the bum shoulder won't hurt, either.

When the Cowboys' offense if up and running, there's no one that can stop them. They have an elite offense and a top five defense. Week 6 marks the true beginning of Dallas' season.

AFC North Division Winner: Baltimore Ravens

The Pittsburgh Steelers look just as confusingly bad as their fellow Pennsylvania "Dream Team." Baltimore has managed to get off to a 3-1 start despite their struggles with passing the ball.

The Ravens' defense is third in total defense and a very close second in points allowed per game. That should be just enough to hold off any resurgence the Steelers might have later in the year.

NFC North Division Winner: Green Bay Packers

The Detroit Lions may give the Packers a run for their money, but the Lions have shown some vulnerability in falling behind by 20-plus points in back-to-back weeks.

Aaron Rodgers is passing with amazing accuracy to perhaps the most elite group of receivers in the league. The reigning Super Bowl champions will definitely be making a return to postseason play in 2012.

AFC South Division Winner: Tennessee Titans

The Titans may have just witnessed the reemergence of Chris Johnson last week, while the Houston Texans saw one of their stars fall.

Just as Arian Foster returned, Andre Johnson went down and will be out for two to three weeks. Houston doesn't have much, if anything, at receiver behind Johnson, so it will be interesting to see what happens.

Both the Titans and Texans are 3-1 right now, but the injury to Johnson could prove very costly for the Texans.

In the next three weeks, Houston is facing three teams in Oakland, Baltimore and Tennessee that would be very difficult to beat, even with Andre in the lineup. 

Not much really separates these two teams, but this injury situation ends up being the deciding factor for me.

NFC South Division Winner: New Orleans Saints

I'm not sure what's wrong with the Atlanta Falcons, or the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for that matter, but they are not the same team as last season. 

Tampa Bay may be 3-1, but they have been winning ugly. The Saints have the better defense and the No. 2-ranked offense in the league. 

One of these weeks, the Bucs' poor showings will cost them a victory and the Saints will separate themselves for good.

AFC West Division Winner: Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders' only crime this season is losing to a surprisingly good Buffalo Bills squad at the last second and then getting outclassed by the New England Patriots' suddenly balanced offense.

The San Diego Chargers also lost to the Patriots, but they almost dropped one to the lowly Kansas City Chiefs.

A foot injury to Antonio Gates will limit a passing attack that only seems to feature Vincent Jackson and either one of their running backs.

Darren McFadden is having an amazing season, both on the ground and the air, and is the key cog of the team's No. 7-ranked scoring offense.

NFC West Division Winner: San Francisco 49ers

So they were a year late. Last season, the 49ers were everyone's pick to win this division, but none of the teams seemed to want that privilege, leading to the Seattle Seahawks making the playoffs with a 7-9 record.

New coach Jim Harbaugh has the 49ers fully buying into his system, and they are off to a surprising 3-1 start with a rejuvenated Alex Smith at quarterback.

The St. Louis Rams seem to suffer an injury every week, the Cardinals have an absolutely atrocious defense and Seattle is just in a state of transition.

If San Francisco manages to screw this up, something catastrophic will have had to happen.

Wild Card Picks

Here's my quick picks on what other two teams will make the playoffs in each conference.

AFC: New York Jets and Houston Texans

NFC: Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Either way, drop me a comment.