I made it to year 10, holy cats! It’s been a really fun ride so far and I’m still going strong!
To give an idea of where we were back then; that season the Giants beat the Patriots the 2nd time in a Super Bowl, God’s Gift to Man Cam Newton was taken #1 overall that year, Peyton Manning was still a Colt, it was Jason Garrett’s first year clapping with the Cowboys, and Tim Tebow was the next Golden Boy of the NFL! Oh how times have changed.
Let’s do a quick offseason recap, 2020 look forward, and a catchup on some great offseason memes! COVID has really messed with the normal offseason schedule. The anticipation and buildup with preseason was not there. But on the plus side, the season totally snuck up on us and it’s officially here!!!
Offseason Recap:
- Tom Brady left the Patriots and joined the Buccaneers, what?!?!
- Rob Gronkowski came out of retirement and joined the Buccaneers
- Patrick Mahomes signed the richest sports deal in history. Ironically, $503M was considered “team friendly”
- Dak Prescott has fought for 2 years to get a contract and still hasn’t received an extension
- Cam Newton was released, not signed for months, and still ended up a Patriot
- Phillip Rivers is a Colt
- The Packers drafted Rodgers’ replacement already
- The Redskins team name is finally a thing of the past
- Joe Burrow might be the best QB prospect to come out since Andrew Luck
- The Texans made one of the worst trades in NFL history regarding DeAndre Hopkins
- Mike McCarthy is the new Cowboys coach, Ron Rivera is the new Washington coach. Both had over 10 years of tenure with prior teams
- Coronavirus threatened the entire sports landscape, but without a bubble or a Preseason, the NFL seems to be weathering the storm
- WE HAVE A 7TH PLAYOFF TEAM!!!!
- Next year, we’ll have a 17th game!!!!
Predictions:
- Every 1st round QB starts a game this year. Burrow starts Week 1, Tua beats out Fitzpatrick by Week 6, Justin Herbert starts for the Chargers once playoff hopes are over (Week 12), Jordan Love gets 3 games due to a Rodgers injury.
- Kyler Murray has a Lamar Jackson type year this season. Tons of stats but not the wins to back it up
- Both Brady and Belichick have early struggles in their new systems early on. People will question the change in venue for both of them
- Cam Newton will prove he’s fully healthy
- The Bills will win the division, knocking down the Patriots run
- Trubisky makes it 4 games before being replaced by Foles for the rest of the season
- Alex Smith comes in for Haskins midway throught the season. Haskins has a meltdown
Coronavirus prediction:
I will applaud the NFL for their handling of the virus. Especially compared to the MLB, who’s leadership looks incredibly inept to handle anything coming at them. That being said, I think it takes 1 team to pull a “Miami Marlins” and ruin a week of the season. My prediction is we have at least 1 game called off or postponed, which inevitably will shift the playoffs back. So my prediction is that NFL playoffs will not start on time, but they’ll get through the season with a fairly optimistic grade.
My additional prediction is regarding the offseason. I think we’ll see an influx of early injuries due to the lack of conditioning and “game speed” activities during training camp/no preseason. Watch for a few big names with season ending injuries early. Additionally, watch the penalty numbers be abnormally high the first month as teams get used back into playing shape. Lot of situational stuff; false starts, delay of games, illegal formations, etc.
2020 Season:
- Rookie of the Year: Chase Young on Defense, Tua on Offense
- Comeback Player of the Year: Cam Newton
- Offensive MVP: Kyler Murray
- Defensive MVP: Aaron Donald
Playoff Predictions:
AFC:
1) Chiefs
2) Ravens
3) Titans
4) Bills
5) Texans
6) Patriots
7) Steelers
(Picking a 7th team is just BIZARRE!!!)
NFC:
1) Saints
2) 49ers
3) Cowboys
4) Vikings
5) Seahawks
6) Buccaneers
7) Eagles
Fringe teams: Colts, Browns, Jets in AFC. Rams, Packers in NFC
Top Picks in 2021: Jaguars, Broncos
Super Bowl
Real Choice: Ravens vs. Saints
Dark Horse: Texans vs. Cowboys
Stat of the Week:
This will be the first season since 1997 without a Manning as a starting QB
Stat of the Week #2:
Jameis Winston threw 30 INT’s last season. Tom Brady threw 30 INT’s in his last 64 games, or 4 full seasons!
Stat of the Week #3:
Tonight’s opening game will feature QB’s earning a combined $633 Million
For the Record:
- Shocked, SHOCKED that Adrian Peterson was picked up 24 hours after being cut.
- You can tell when leadership is lacking in almost anything, and the Washington Football Team is falling off the rails. They need a change in ownership
- On the same note, instead of typing out “The Washington Football Team” each time, I will refer to them as the RedTails until they get a name, in my own subtle push for that to be the pick. The leaked logos for the RedTails are really cool, would be one of the better logos in the league. Plus the story behind it is cool and honorable, and it doesn’t change the name that much, keep the color scheme, etc. Best choice out there by far (in my opinion). If it’s the Hogs or the Senators, I’ll continue to call them the RedTails moving forward, you’ve been warned!
Memes of the OffSeason:
So good to have you back, Matt! Keep up the great work. I enjoy your work. This novice keeps learning!