TMS NFL Predictions and Picks 2007

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It's that time of year again. As the NFL season nears, we here at TMS bring you our official picks and predictions for 2007. In a Saloon first, I actually drew the participation of all the active bartenders. Now that I've seen everyone's picks, I probably could've just asked like, two of them to contribute since our picks are all about the same.

SEASON STANDINGS, STAFF PICKS (* denotes playoff contenders)

AFC EAST

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	NE*	NE*	NE*	NE*	NYJ*	NE*	NE*
2.	BUF*	BUF*	MIA	BUF	NE*	NYJ*	BUF
3.	NYJ	NYJ	NYJ	NYJ	BUF	BUF	NYJ
4.	MIA	MIA	BUF	MIA	MIA	MIA	MIA

We all pretty much agree that New England will dominate again.

AFC NORTH

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	PIT*	CIN*	CIN*	CIN*	PIT*	CIN*	BAL*
2.	BAL*	BAL*	PIT*	PIT*	CIN*	PIT	CIN*
3.	CIN	PIT	BAL	BAL	BAL	BAL	PIT
4.	CLE	CLE	CLE	CLE	CLE	CLE	CLE

Cincinnati seems to be the favorite here, but there are some dissenting opinions. I'm the only asshole to not have the Bengals make the playoffs.

AFC SOUTH

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	IND*	IND*	IND*	IND*	IND*	IND*	IND*
2.	TEN	TEN	JAC	JAC	JAC	TEN	JAC
3.	JAC	JAC	HOU	TEN	TEN	JAC	HOU
4.	HOU	HOU	TEN	HOU	HOU	HOU	TEN

Even for as much hatred some of us have for Peyton Manning, we still can't deny Indy's place at the top of the division.

AFC WEST

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	DEN*	SD*	SD*	SD*	SD*	SD*	SD*
2.	SD	DEN	DEN*	DEN*	DEN	DEN*	DEN*
3.	KC	KC	OAK	KC	KC	KC	KC
4.	OAK	OAK	KC	OAK	OAK	OAK	OAK

Apparently I hate the Bengals AND the Chargers.

NFC EAST

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	PHI*	DAL*	PHI*	PHI*	DAL*	PHI*	PHI*
2.	WAS*	PHI*	DAL*	WAS*	PHI	DAL*	DAL
3.	DAL	WAS	NYG	DAL	WAS	WAS	NYG
4.	NYG	NYG	WAS	NYG	NYG	NYG	WAS

I was glad to see I wasn't the only one to put the 'Skins in the playoffs. Pretty much everyone agrees that the Giants will suck.

NFC NORTH

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	CHI*	CHI*	CHI*	CHI*	CHI*	CHI*	CHI*
2.	GB	GB	DET	DET	DET	MIN	MIN
3.	DET	MIN	GB	GB	GB	DET	DET
4.	MIN	DET	MIN	MIN	MIN	GB	GB

Not only do we all have Chicago on top, none of us have faith that any of the other teams are even playoff-worthy.

NFC SOUTH

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	NO*	NO*	NO*	NO*	NO*	NO*	NO*
2.	ATL*	CAR*	ATL	ATL	CAR	CAR	CAR*
3.	CAR	TB	CAR	CAR	ATL	ATL	ATL
4.	TB	ATL	TB	TB	TB	TB	TB

Another straight sweep at the top here as we all like the Saints. I put Atlanta in because I like the Ewing Theory potential of them losing Vick.

NFC WEST

	Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
1.	STL*	ARI*	SEA*	SEA*	SF*	SEA*	ARI*
2.	SEA	SEA	SF*	SF*	SEA*	STL*	SF*
3.	SF	STL	ARI	ARI	STL*	SF	SEA
4.	ARI	SF	STL	STL	ARI	ARI	STL

This was probably the most volatile division for picks. All four teams were picked to finish first by at least one of us. Although Chaim's pick is more related to his well-publicized mancrush on Kurt Warner.

SUPER BOWL XLII

Chip	Chaim	Brant	The Gov	Rich	Dave	The Hund
DEN over NO	SD over NO	IND over NO	SD over SEA	NE over NO	CHI over NE	SD over CAR

I thought it was funny that 4 out of 7 picked the Saints to make it to the Super Bowl but none had them winning. Let's move on to some more predictions.

BIGGEST SURPRISE

Chaim: Arizona Cardinals. They've been a trendy pick for a couple years running. This year they finally turn the corner.

Brant: Detroit

The Gov: Baltimore will surprise people by being horrendous. The offense is an over the hill joke. There is no way they can keep up with Pittsburgh and Cincinnati.

Rich: Vernon Davis. This guy will easily be a top 5 TE. He'll be what Kellen Winslow would have been if he hadn't ended up such a headcase.

Dave: Despite the years of criticism and overall lack of supporting talent around him, I'd like to see Harrington do well in the wake of the Vick incident.

The Hundley: Since Matt Leinart is dreamy and a god, the Arizona offense will explode and Edge will bounce back. Also, Cedric Benson sucks and Adrian Peterson (Chi) becomes a poor man's Brian Westbrook.

Chip: Every year there are those teams that are receiving preseason buzz as the "dark horse" or the "sleeper". This year I've heard rumblings about the Bills and the 49ers, and of course the Cardinals are the perennial sleeper. Too bad they keep hitting the snooze button each season. But for all the preseason talk and hype there always seems to be a team that comes out of nowhere (How many people were high on the Saints last preseason?). So my pick is the Rams. They've got a veteran QB in Marc Bulger. They have one of the most prolific backs in Steven Jackson, and they still have a good receiving core with Holt, Bruce and now Drew Bennett. The defense is a little suspect but so what? So was Indy's last year. Mark it dude, Rams win the West.


BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT

Chaim: New York Giants and Eli Manning. Tom Coughlin implodes halfway through the season and Eli Manning tries throwing left handed just to shake things up. He fails.

Brant: Kansas City

The Gov: Indianapolis will disappointment me in as much as they will continue to win. It's always disappointing when Indianapolis wins. The defense got weaker, but the inbred hick will keep them scoring points.

Rich: Houston Texans. You are expecting them to be bad. They'll be worse. Looking at the schedule I wouldn't pick them confidently over any one team. Who's their QB? Who's their RB? Their #1 WR? Exactly.

Dave: It's going to be a toss up between Baltimore and Jacksonville for the best Enron impersonation.

The Hundley: Brett Favre. It was a great ride, and he's the most exciting QB I've ever seen. But Father Time is an asshole, and Green Bay has no talent. He'll go down swinging to be sure, but go down nontheless.

Chip: The Chargers. I don't care who they have on their team, there is no way they'll be better than last year with Norv Turner at the helm. I give it a month before we start seeing the "What's Wrong With San Diego" articles.


ROOKIE TO WATCH

Chaim: Adrian Peterson will turn some heads and have the starting job before midseason.

Brant: Eli Manning?

The Gov: JaMarcus Russell. His absence from the Raiders will stand out most as the team flounders towards yet another 2-3 win season.

Rich: Calvin Johnson. The running game in Detroit is terrible, and Jon Kitna is coming off a 4,000 yard campaign. I expect him to be even better this year, just because he has no other choice but to throw the ball.

Dave: Calvin Johnson is going to be a monster.

The Hundley: Calvin Johnson. WR's seem to be better and faster in the NFL. I also like him being in a system that involves the mad genius that is Mike Martz. I'm also saying Chad Greenway because he never played last year.

Chip: Patrick Willis. The ILB from Ole Miss will be the Niners starting middle linebacker. Expect him to wreak havoc and become a focal point on their defense.


HOMER AWARD - No matter how lame it may be, which player do you shamelessly root for?

Chaim: Kurt Warner. For the first time, I am happy with the man who supplanted him. Knowing that Kurt has come to terms with it and is good friends with Leinart has helped me come to terms as well.

Brant: Korey Stringer?

The Gov: In spite of the fact he's retired, I will continue to shamelessly root for Jake the Snake.

Rich: Tom Brady. I don't even like the Patriots, but it's fun to see just how many rings this guy can win.

Dave: It's always fun to see a team kick to Devin Hester. Anything can happen.

The Hundley: Cardinals and Vikings. I say Arizona because I've been to only two games in my life, both in Arizona. I'm not a huge NFL fan, but the best season I can recall was the year Minnesota went 15-1 and just scored a ton of points. Defensive football sucks. Denny Green went to Iowa.

Chip: The Redskins. As a kid I loved them back when they had Art Monk, Gary Clark, Ricky Sanders, Darrell Green, Charles Mann, Mark Rypien, and such. My interest has waned during the Daniel Snyder Era but when Joe Gibbs returned I couldn't help but pull for them again. Plus they have Ladell Betts now. I cheer for all the Hawkeyes in the pros. Betts, Bob Sanders, Dallas Clark, Aaron Kampman. I really hope Chad Greenway has a good year. Not against the Bears though.


HOLLANDSWORTH AWARD - Which player or team do you absolutely hate, even if it may defy all logic and reason?

Chaim: I hate the Patriots because of two things. The fact that they beat my Warner-led Rams in the '02 Super Bowl and also because of Bill Belichick's sweatshirt.

Brant: Dallas

The Gov: I linked Peyton Manning to Al Qaeda last season. Need I go on? For the record, I also have a pathological hatred for Tony Homo and Sebastian Janikowski.

Rich: Barry Bonds

Dave: And that's the news. Go fuck yourself Green Bay.

The Hundley: I guess I shouldn't say this on a "Chicago" blog such as this, but I hate how the Bears think, operate, and draft, most notably the "Grossman Affair". Odd how he's my fantasy QB.

Chip: If The Gov can still root for Jake Plummer, I'm allowed to still passionately hate Jeff George right? I firmly believe Texas Stadium is a massive portal to hell. Also I hate all WR's that have later stepped into the announcers/analysts chair, who are not named Collinsworth.