Last year, I kicked off the NFL season in the infancy of Sports Opinionated with a 4 part preview that outlined my thoughts on predictions for the upcoming season.
If you want to look back at some of my insane thoughts, here are Part I, Part II, Part III and Part IV.
In the true spirit of S-O, I’ve decided to take an analytical, critical and incredibly sarcastic look at my predictions from last year.
Rather than look at every single prediction, let’s just break them down into a few categories.
The Albert Haynesworth “Conditioning Test” Prediction
Much like Big Al avoiding anything but the buffet line in the offseason, there were a few points I made that in retrospect reeked of “lack of research”.
I pinned a lot on the move of Jay Cutler from the Denver Broncos to the Chicago Bears. The loss of Cutler by the Broncos eventually resulted in their late-season collapse but they did pretty well without him early on.
The Bears, however, didn’t get better with Cutler. They finished the season with the 28th ranked offense in the league by DVOA. In this case, there were two incredibly important factors that were left out. The Mike Shanahan factor and the Lovie Smith factor. Both of these coaches have very different impacts on quarterbacks. While Shanahan has a history of making very efficient passers out of natural gunslingers (ex. Elway, Plummer, Cutler), Lovie’s offenses tend to expose his QB’s weaknesses. Just look at the INTs thrown by Rex Grossman and Cutler or the lack of creativity to use Kyle Orton’s short throw accuracy.
The Ben Roethlisberger “Lost Touch with Reality” Prediction
Much like Big Ben’s dirtbag haircut and questionable offseason conduct, I made one prediction last year that I should be extremely ashamed of. I picked the Seattle Seahawks as a team that could improve dramatically with a reduction in injuries. I even picked them to win the division.
I have no defense for this pick. The Seahawks lacked talent, their defense took a step back and the offense looked devoid of any threat outside of Justin Forsett, who the coaching staff wouldn’t play enough. I have no defense, just take it easy on me.
The Darrelle Revis “You Owe Me Money” Predictions
I was fantasy gold last year. It doesn’t happen very often, so just let me gloat.
Yes, I recommended Matt Forte and LT, and I will force myself to watch the Rams play two or three games this year as punishment.
That said, I steered the readers clear of Michael Turner and Brian Westbrook. But most importantly, in the sleeper section, I recommended LeSean McCoy, Miles Austin, Cedric Benson, and Shonn Greene.
Predictions coming
With only 1 more week until the NFL starts, look out for a few preseason predictions from me. Hopefully I’m not quite as delirious as last year.
No related posts.
I’m banking on the fact that your delirious state will continue for the rest of the year! I must say I do give you “props” for reviewing your predictions from last year and pointing out where you failed misserably. Looking forward to 2010/11 predictions and what your thoughts are on Ryan Mathews and CJ Spiller.