The Contenders
1. New York Giants- The road to Tampa goes through New York, well New Jersey. (2)
2. Carolina Panthers- They may be the only team in the NFC who can beat the Giants at home. (3)
3. Tennessee Titans- I’m not a believer, but I’ve been wrong about them all year long. (1)
4. Pittsburgh Steelers- Will Ben be okay? If not they are still in good shape. (4)
5. Baltimore Ravens- Their offense is peaking right now. (5)
6. Indianapolis Colts- The Colts have played their worst ball in January. Will that continue? (6)
7. San Diego Chargers- Peaking at the right time. (11)
Good, But Not a Real Contender
8. Philadelphia Eagles- The NFC team nobody wants to play. (12)
9. Atlanta Falcons- Great story, but I don’t think they make it out of the first round. (7)
10. Miami Dolphins- America’s team will have a short playoff run. (9)
11. New England Patriots- 11 wins and no playoffs. Almost “Karmatic.” (8)
12. Minnesota Vikings- At least they get a home playoff game. (13)
13. Arizona Cardinals- At least they get a home playoff game. (14)
Pretenders
14. Houston Texans- Strong finish to the season. (17)
Chokers
15. Dallas Cowboys- Most talented team to miss the playoffs. (10)
16. Denver Broncos- No defense whatsoever. (15)
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- No leadership. (16)
18. New York Jets- Pennington>Favre. (18)
19. New Orleans Saints- Fun team to watch, but that’s about it. (19)
The Underachievers
20. Green Bay Packers- At least they didn’t lose to Detroit. Wait, nobody did. (21)
21. Oakland Raiders- Really nice finish. (28)
22. San Francisco 49ers- Signs of life at the end of the year. (26)
23. Washington Redskins- Lots of questions to answer. (20)
24. Chicago Bears- What do you do when your strength is a weakness? (22)
Does it Really Matter?
25. Buffalo Bills- A terrible finish after a great start. (23)
26. Cincinnati Bengals- Another really nice finish. (27)
27. Jacksonville Jaguars- Terrible coaching job. (24)
28. Seattle Seahawks- Not enough talent. (25)
29. Kansas City Chiefs- Really bad team with a motivational coach. (29)
30. Cleveland Browns- Let the housecleaning begin. (30)
31. St. Louis Rams- Will Haslett be the coach next year? (31)
32. Detroit Lions- Eventually they will win again, but not for another nine months at least. (32)