For the third of our eight part 2011 NFL preview, we take a look at the AFC North. The teams are listed in order of where we expect them to finish.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers: Ignore all of the things that happened this past offseason involving the players on the Steelers. They are no longer strangers to controversial downtime after the entire Roethlisberger situation last year. In fact, the Steelers almost seem to thrive on such things. Roethlisberger put up one of his better seasons last year, and with a full 16 game slate this year, should do even better. While Hines Ward is the recognized name amongst the receiving corps, he may only be their third best option. Mike Wallace is a playmaker, and Antonio Brown adds a secondary speed element to the group. Jericho Cothcery and Heath Miller are steady performers. At running back, Rashard Mendenhall showed that he was truly capable of being an every down back, and forces teams to pay attention to the running game.
On defense, there are weaknesses, particularly in the secondary. While Troy Polamalu is essentially a guided missile with hair, he needs to stay healthy for the Steelers to be what they want to be. No other safety is that instinctive when it comes to finding the ball. The corners, however, are a major weak spot of the team. However, they are often hidden due to a strong pass rush, and a great corps of linebackers led by Lawrence Timmons and James Harrison.
The formula has not changed in several decades – a tough football team with a strong defense. There is not reason why the Steelers will not be a Super Bowl contender again this year.
2. Baltimore Ravens: Joe Flacco believes that he is a top tier quarterback. If he is, then he had better prove it this season. While he did lose his favored targets in Derrick Mason and Todd Heap, the receiving corps are actually better and deeper than at any point in time during his tenure in Baltimore. Holdover Anquan Boldin is joined by the newly acquired Lee Evans and second round draft pick Torrey Smith. Evans and Smith are both speedsters, which will allow Boldin to work the middle of the field, where he is more comfortable. At running back is Ray Rice, a complete player in the backfield with his ability to run and catch the ball. Now that he has a true fullback in Vonta Leach in front of him, he could be in line for a career season. The only weakness on offense appears to be along the line, where a lot of faith is being placed on Bryant McKinnie to be able to protect Flacco’s blindside. If he falters, then it could be a long season.
The defense, long thought of as the strength of the Ravens, is actually a question mark. There are no guarantees that mainstays Ed Reed or Ray Lewis will be able to stay healthy all year. Without those two, the defense loses a great deal of it’s edge and toughness. The cornerbacks were pedestrian at best last season, forcing them to draft the talented Jimmy Smith in the first round. Smith will start, but expect growing pains. The once feared pass rush was nothing more than a shadow of itself, with the Ravens holding back on the blitz to protect the secondary. For the Ravens to truly be a contender, the defensive line and linebackers need to step up in a big way.
The Ravens might be more talented on paper than the Steelers, but they are a worse team. They will go as far as Flacco can take them.
3. Cleveland Browns: While Colt McCoy should show some improvement this season, the offense is still all about Peyton Hillis. Before running out of steam last year, Hillis was a complete beast, rushing for almost 1200 yards, catching passes, running people over, and seemingly scoring at will. While Hillis will remain the focal point of the offense, he will finally get some rest, with the return of Montario Hardesty. The passing game should be improved, as McCoy has Greg Little and Mohamed Massaquoi as potential playmakers at the receiver spot. Ben Watson showed that he could be relied upon as a receiving threat last year, and is a good outlet for McCoy.
The defense is improving, but has a lot of holes. Outside of the two young defensive tackles in Phil Taylor and Ahtyba Rubin. Otherwise, there is little depth and a whole lot of nothing going out there when the opposition has the ball. Pressure on the quarterback was non-existant, and when the Browns blitzed, the secondary was torched like a creepy old woman during the Salem Witch Trials. They are also making the transition from the 3-4 defense of the past six years to a 4-3 defense. Expect this unit to be terrible for a couple of years.
The Browns are putting pieces together and getting some solid players. Regardless, they are still a couple of years from contending.
4. Cincinnati Bengals: Talk about your train wrecks of an organization. In this past offseason, they alienated their franchise quarterback, who got tired of the losing culture fostered in Cincy. They got rid of their top receiver in Chad Ochocinco, who gladly accepted a trade to New England. This must have felt like a ten year felon getting paroled. Rookie Andy Dalton is in for a long year, since his best weapon on offense may be another rookie in A.J. Green. Expect the passing game to feature a lot of short passes, with the occasional bomb to Green. The running game is headed by the wildly inconsistent, and semi incarcerated, Cedric Benson. Behind him, there is not much.
The defense has essentially one playmaker, pass rusher Carlos Dunlap. And even he is a part time player, as he is extremely suspect against the run. Rey Maualuga is a solid linebacker, and has been joined by newcomers Manny Lawson and Thomas Howard. The corps is deeper and better, but not exactly amongst the best in the AFC. The secondary has Taylor Mays and Nate Clements, but the defense as a whole lacks overall speed. In fact, the best player on this team may be their punter, which makes sense since he will have plenty of opportunities this year.
The Bengals are an embarrassment of a franchise, and are in the midst of yet another rebuilding process. How this team has any fans left is beyond me. They may take a run at the second 0-16 season in NFL history.
Showing posts with label Baltimore Ravens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baltimore Ravens. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Thoughts From Round One
Before getting into the three best and worst moves from the draft, some observations:
-Before the Carolina Panthers pick, the section that shows the clock on the ESPN coverage said 'error'. Fitting beginning to the Cam Newton era, in my opinion.
-During the Denver Broncos pick, did Roger Goodell forget what year it was?
-Speaking of Goodell, I give him credit for acknowledging the cascade of boos he received. He still may not care about the fans, but at least he won't ignore the reception he gets.
-Julio Jones, good choice with the bowtie.
-Blaine Gabbert doesn't feel like an NFL quarterback after watching his interviews.
-I get the explanation given by Baltimore as to how they let the clock run out, but seriously, was Mike Tice running their draft? They couldn't have had someone on a piece of paper just in case?
-Is Jonathon Baldwin the final Baldwin brother?
-New England made their inevitable trade. I was starting to get worried that it wouldn't happen.
Now to the moves. Three best:
1. Cleveland trading with Atlanta: Yes, they could have used Julio Jones, but the Browns have a ton of holes. One pick was not going to cure that. Instead, they literally got an offer they couldn't refuse for that pick. Even when they traded up, they are still up three picks from that move.
2. Baltimore drafting Jimmy Smith: They very well could have gotten screwed by not turning in a name before time ran out, but Kansas City took a receiver. Smith will give them a shutdown corner, and will allow Baltimore to do the one thing that they couldn't last year - blitz. Even with the questions surrounding his off the field issues, he's going into a locker room where Ray Lewis and company will not tolerate that. Perfect fit.
3. New England trading pick 28: They had pick 33, so whatever they draft there is not going to have that big of a dropoff. With the pieces that the Patriots need (offensive line, pass rushing defense) in abundance in this year's draft, they will still get what they need. The Saints may not be as good as people think they will be next year, as they have a tough schedule. That pick they got from New Orleans could well be in the 15 to 20 range, which is better than the Patriots are expected to draft.
Now, the three worst moves of the first round:
1. Cam Newton first overall: If you are Carolina, what is the value of this pick? Newton is a developmental quarterback who needs a couple of years to learn the NFL game. Also, the Panthers now admit they wasted a second round draft choice last year when they took Jimmy Clausen. Marcell Dareus or A.J. Green would have been better fits for the Panthers. Now, this is nothing against Newton, and I would like him if he went in the second round to a team like Philadelphia, where he could learn from Mike Vick and Andy Reid. Instead, he will get pushed out onto the field too early, and go down as a bust.
2. Falcons trading five picks to the Browns to draft Julio Jones: I get the rationale here, as Jones should finally give Roddy White someone to draw defenders away. However, there are a lot of questions about Jones on the field. He tends to drop the easy passes, as it looks as though he is trying to turn everything into a large gain. Also, the Browns needed him as well. Why would Holmgren trade out of this spot, knowing that Atlanta was looking to take Jones? I think Holmgren saw something he really didn't like, and I'll trust his judgment here.
3. Seattle drafting James Carpenter: Yes, the Seahawks need offensive line help. Yes, Carpenter will be an immediate starter at guard for them. However, there were better players available on the offensive line. Gabe Carimi, who went 29th, would have given the Seahawks a pair of bookends for their line. Better guards would actually be available in round two, and if they liked Carpenter that much, he probably would have been available as well. This pick was an absolute reach.
Thoughts from Day 2 will be up tomorrow morning.
-Before the Carolina Panthers pick, the section that shows the clock on the ESPN coverage said 'error'. Fitting beginning to the Cam Newton era, in my opinion.
-During the Denver Broncos pick, did Roger Goodell forget what year it was?
-Speaking of Goodell, I give him credit for acknowledging the cascade of boos he received. He still may not care about the fans, but at least he won't ignore the reception he gets.
-Julio Jones, good choice with the bowtie.
-Blaine Gabbert doesn't feel like an NFL quarterback after watching his interviews.
-I get the explanation given by Baltimore as to how they let the clock run out, but seriously, was Mike Tice running their draft? They couldn't have had someone on a piece of paper just in case?
-Is Jonathon Baldwin the final Baldwin brother?
-New England made their inevitable trade. I was starting to get worried that it wouldn't happen.
Now to the moves. Three best:
1. Cleveland trading with Atlanta: Yes, they could have used Julio Jones, but the Browns have a ton of holes. One pick was not going to cure that. Instead, they literally got an offer they couldn't refuse for that pick. Even when they traded up, they are still up three picks from that move.
2. Baltimore drafting Jimmy Smith: They very well could have gotten screwed by not turning in a name before time ran out, but Kansas City took a receiver. Smith will give them a shutdown corner, and will allow Baltimore to do the one thing that they couldn't last year - blitz. Even with the questions surrounding his off the field issues, he's going into a locker room where Ray Lewis and company will not tolerate that. Perfect fit.
3. New England trading pick 28: They had pick 33, so whatever they draft there is not going to have that big of a dropoff. With the pieces that the Patriots need (offensive line, pass rushing defense) in abundance in this year's draft, they will still get what they need. The Saints may not be as good as people think they will be next year, as they have a tough schedule. That pick they got from New Orleans could well be in the 15 to 20 range, which is better than the Patriots are expected to draft.
Now, the three worst moves of the first round:
1. Cam Newton first overall: If you are Carolina, what is the value of this pick? Newton is a developmental quarterback who needs a couple of years to learn the NFL game. Also, the Panthers now admit they wasted a second round draft choice last year when they took Jimmy Clausen. Marcell Dareus or A.J. Green would have been better fits for the Panthers. Now, this is nothing against Newton, and I would like him if he went in the second round to a team like Philadelphia, where he could learn from Mike Vick and Andy Reid. Instead, he will get pushed out onto the field too early, and go down as a bust.
2. Falcons trading five picks to the Browns to draft Julio Jones: I get the rationale here, as Jones should finally give Roddy White someone to draw defenders away. However, there are a lot of questions about Jones on the field. He tends to drop the easy passes, as it looks as though he is trying to turn everything into a large gain. Also, the Browns needed him as well. Why would Holmgren trade out of this spot, knowing that Atlanta was looking to take Jones? I think Holmgren saw something he really didn't like, and I'll trust his judgment here.
3. Seattle drafting James Carpenter: Yes, the Seahawks need offensive line help. Yes, Carpenter will be an immediate starter at guard for them. However, there were better players available on the offensive line. Gabe Carimi, who went 29th, would have given the Seahawks a pair of bookends for their line. Better guards would actually be available in round two, and if they liked Carpenter that much, he probably would have been available as well. This pick was an absolute reach.
Thoughts from Day 2 will be up tomorrow morning.
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