Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
Getty Images
|
Buffalo Bills
1. Dick Jauron will be the AFC Coach of the Year.
2. Believe it: the Bills are a playoff team.
3. And their defense will lead them.
Miami Dolphins
1. By the end of the season, Chad Pennington will have the Dolphins playing more competently than the Jets will be playing with that guy that replaced him.
2. Ted Ginn Jr.? Still not going to work out as a receiver.
3. Ricky Williams will among in the Comeback Player of the Year conversation along with Pennington.
New England Patriots
1. They’ll really, really, really miss departed corner Asante Samuel and receiver Donte Stallworth.
2. The Patriots won’t be setting any offensive records this year. They begin the season with a sketchy offensive line, no Stallworth, and – for a spell – no Wes Welker.
3. They’ll start 4-0, extending their regular-season winning streak to 21 games, before falling to the Chargers in San Diego. That will be a preview of the AFC Championship game.
New York Jets
1. Brett Favre will make the Pro Bowl thanks to a flashy start to the season.
2. Favre will backslide radically in the second half of the season once teams adjust to what the Jets have him doing.
3. Free agent acquisition Kris Jenkins will be a sizable disappointment in the middle of their defensive line.
AFC NORTH
Baltimore Ravens
1. Ray Rice rushes for more yards than Willis McGahee.
2. Signs of significant slippage appear all over the Ravens once-proud defense.
3. They'll finish 5-11 and miss the playoffs again.
Cincinnati Bengals
1. A chaotic offseason leads to a chaotic regular season.
2. The Bengals begin the season 1-8. An ailing Chad Johnson doesn't help the cause.
3. Marvin Lewis coaches his last season in Cincy.
Cleveland Browns
1. Between adding Donte Stallworth on offense and Shaun Rogers to the defense, Phil Savage gets support for Executive of the Year.
|
3. Despite winning the division, the Browns find themselves with a full-fledged QB controversy as Quinn’s performances make him a reasonable option.
Pittsburgh Steelers
1. If it weren’t for the pitiful Ravens and Bengals, the Steelers would've made an even louder thud in the AFC North.
2. Ben Roethlisberger has a Pro Bowl season and puts up gaudy numbers but the sudden ineptitude of the Pittsburgh defense makes that a necessity.
3. It becomes clear that Willie Parker’s 75-yard touchdown run in Super Bowl XL was the height of his career, not a sign of things to come.
AFC SOUTH
Houston Texans
1. Despite all their young defensive weapons, the singular talents of Mario Williams, Amobi Okoye and DeMeco Ryans aren’t enough to offset their average players elsewhere.
2. A very bleak start to the season awaits the Texans. At Pittsburgh, Tennessee and Jacksonville in three of the first four weeks. What are they, the homecoming opponent?
3. Another division in another year, maybe the Texans could get eight to 10 wins. Not in the AFC South. 7-9.
Indianapolis Colts
1. On December 1, the Colts won’t be in first in the South — not after playing at Tennessee, Pittsburgh, San Diego and Cleveland while hosting the Patriots between October 27 and November 30.
2. Peyton Manning will be just fine. Marvin Harrison? If there were no Anthony Gonzalez and Reggie Wayne around, it’d be time to sweat.
3. For the first time in a long time, the Colts finish the season looking up at a first place team. But they'll still make the playoffs.
Jacksonville Jaguars
1. This is the season the Colts lose their grip on the top of the AFC South. And the Jags break it.
2. With most of their toughest non-divisional games at home (Steelers, Browns, Bills, Vikings), the Jags catch a significant break that propels them to 12-4.
|
Tennessee Titans
1. They still won’t be much fun for anybody to play — but the lack of offensive weaponry on the perimeter and a spry young tight end to throw to makes another “eh” year for Vince Young.
2. Rookie running back Chris Johnson becomes a new sensation, and provides the Titans with a nice 1-2 punch along with LenDale White.
3. Albert Haynesworth makes another strong case for NFL Defensive Player of the Year. And wins it this time.
AFC WEST
Denver Broncos
1. A very bleak offensive year awaits. They just haven’t done enough to improve offensively. Keary Colbert and Brandon Marshall at wideout. A rookie, Ryan Clady, at left tackle? The still-raw Selvin Young at running back. All those 1,000 yard rushers in the past came because of the downfield threats posed by guys like Rod Smith or Shannon Sharpe. Those days are gone.
2. Adding Dewayne Robertson at tackle and Niko Koutouvides at middle linebacker isn’t enough to make the defense appreciably better against the run, either. And that’s a problem for a team that was 30th in the league in stopping opposing rushing attacks last year.
3. By the end of the season, Mike Shanahan is hearing the calls for a new regime change.
Kansas City Chiefs
1. With the sand running out of Larry Johnson’s hourglass, he’s running behind an offensive line ill-equipped to make him anything like the back he used to be.
2. Herman Edwards is eyeing a rebuilding in Kansas City. He won ’t be around past this season to see it through.
|
Oakland Raiders
1. JaMarcus Russell has a tough row to hoe in his first full NFL season, especially with two of the Raiders' first three games on the road. The other two are at home with the Broncos and Chargers, but Russell will blossom in the second half of the season.
2. Tight end Zach Miller is the next big thing, developing a dangerous chemistry with Russell.
3. The Raiders might not make the playoffs. But they won’t be last in the West, either.
San Diego Chargers
1. Another AFC West title for the Chargers. And they are the lone playoff rep from the West.
2. Having shown the football-watching nation his mettle during last year’s playoffs, Phillip Rivers continues to climb toward the league’s quarterbacking elite.
3. Shawne Merriman’s knee — against the odds — makes it through the season and into the Super Bowl.
Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
Rotoworld: Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill among the 10 players who will slip down draft boards, but probably shouldn't.
 | Slideshow |
 | Super Bowl XLVI shots See the best moments before, during and after the Giants' win over the Patriots more photos |
Latest from ProFootballTalk |
 | Video: Football from NBC Sports |
 Getty Images |
| Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
The Red Wings have finally started to embrace a record they've been chasing.
