My mind has largely been stuck in baseball mode for a long time now. The Cubs certainly pushed me in that direction with their flurry of June, July, and even August transactions. On top of that, playoff trips from the Boise Hawks, Tennessee Smokies, and particularly the Daytona Cubs has kept me focused on baseball. The Daytona starting pitching trio of Corey Black, C.J. Edwards, and Pierce Johnson has been nothing short of spectacular in the playoffs, going 15 innings, allowing 10 hits, 2 walks, and 0 runs while striking out 21 over their three starts. Needless to say, the team has a whole lot more pitching now than it did in mid-June. As if that wasn't enough, my wonderful wife and I went to Daytona to watch Corey Black's start in the club's first playoff game. At the end of the 8th inning, I got to go have a brief chat with VP of Scouting and Player Development Jason McLeod, Assistant GM Randy Bush, and GM Jed Hoyer.
Immediately before that, I had a brief conversation with an individual ambiguously affiliated with the organization named Kerry Wood. It was a dream come true. I thanked him for his career and for all of the great memories he gave me and my family. I then told him that, even though the game didn't turn out how we had hoped, being in Wrigley Field for his Game 7 dinger in 2003 was quite possibly the best moment of my life prior to the birth of my child. Kerry's response? "Mine too." He must have given out over 100 autographs during the game - I think I got the only autographs of the night from Jed, Randy, and Jason - and every time he shook the person's hand, had a brief conversation with them, and smiled. I'm sure those little interactions got old a long time ago, but he was a champ the whole night. Woody's stature in family lore just got even higher.
But football has crept its way into my brain and Penn State's performance against Syracuse last week - particularly that of true freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg and hometown kid Stephen Obeng-Agyapong - reminded me just how much I love football season. I think Nittany is going to have a strong year, going either 8-8 or 9-3. I'm just more interested in the Bears.
I have spoken to friends about the Bears season at length, generally coming to the same conclusion: this team is much tougher to peg than recent Bears teams given the amount of turnover on the offensive line, in the linebacking corps, and on the coaching staff. I think the offense will be well served with Marc Trestman's arrival and the defense will produce at a similar level with more production at linebacker and less in the secondary. Here's a very quick look at each position and the schedule, followed by league-wide picks.
Quaterback: Cutler is a QB in a contract year. He's going to be a top-10 QB this year...as long as he doesn't get hurt.
Running Back: Forte and Bush are perfect complements. It's a great position.
Interior Offensive Line: Garza should hang on, Long looks like a man-beast, and Slauson should be adequate. Depth is a concern.
Offensive Tackle: Bushrod is polarizing and Mills just needs to avoid a massive failure. Still a rather shaky position, yet much improved. Jonathan Scott's knee better get healthy quickly.
Tight End: I'm hopeful for Martellus Bennett, although I've never been a big fan of his. I think the team will use one of their top three picks on a TE in the draft.
Wide Receiver: The best position on offense, Marshall and Jeffery are tremendous. Jeffery is going to explode this year. Earl is a perfect #3; hopefully the concussions aren't a huge problem. I'd like to see Hester get on the field for 10 snaps a game in the slot, something that could happen when injuries force the coach's hand.
Defensive Tackle: Melton and Paea should be an excellent pair, but depth is bad. Less of a problem on pass rushing downs.
Defensive Ends: Peppers, Wootton, and McClellin. Hey ya.
Linebacker: Briggs is a solidifying force, Williams should be average, and hopefully Bostic pushes him to the bench quickly. James Anderson keeps a job only as long as Khaseem Greene needs to learn. Glad to see some fresh blood here.
Cornerback: Peanut is a star. Jennings had a great year last year and hopefully settles in as an above-average corner. Isaiah Frey, no pressure buddy. Kelvin Hayden will be missed in the pass-happy NFL.
Safety: The deepest position on the team: Conte, Wright, Steltz, and Walters.
Specialists: Gould is great, Podlesh doesn't ever have his punts returned, Mannelly lasts forever, and Devin needs to keep being Devin. This offense can finally take advantage of his field position gifts.
Schedule
v. CIN - W
v. MIN - W
@ PIT - L
@ DET - W
v. NO - L
v. NYG - W
@ WSH - L
BYE
@ GB - L
v. DET - W
v. BAL - W
@ STL - W
@ MIN - L
v. DAL - W
@ CLE - L
@ PHI - W
v. GB - L
OVERALL: 9-7
The season just might come down to a Week 17 home date against the Packers. If Jay really wants to earn himself $15M+ per season, beating Aaron Rodgers in a big game would certainly help.
NFL Picks
AFC WEST
Denver - 13-3. Peyton Manning doesn't lose too much and this division is poor.
Kansas City - 8-8. Andy Reid plus Alex Smith equals an average team.
San Diego - 6-10. I've never liked Phillip Rivers.
Oakland - 2-14. $50M+ in dead cap space.
AFC SOUTH
Houston - 12-4. They might go 7-1 on the road. Cakewalk schedule.
Indianapolis - 10-6. I don't like them as much as last year, but good record on tougher schedule.
Tennessee - 5-11. Not a lot to like here.
Jacksonville - 1-15. Added some nice pieces in preparation for Teddy Bridgewater or Tajh Boyd. Finally have the house in order.
AFC NORTH
Cincinnati - 11-5. Might win their last six games after tough schedule to open the year.
Baltimore - 10-6. Champs sneak back into the playoffs. Still don't love Flacco.
Cleveland - 8-8. They're getting better with lots of great pieces on defense.
Pittsburgh - 7-9. Feels weird to put them here. Tough division though.
AFC EAST
New England - 11-5. It's Tom and Bill. They'll keep winning.
Miami - 10-6. I think the Dolphins will be the rare offseason splurge success story.
Buffalo - 4-12. New coach, only rookie quarterbacks. Tough to win with that.
New York Jets - 3-13. Feels like a win too many.
NFC WEST
Seattle - 13-3. I think San Francisco is better, but the Seahawks get a championship schedule.
San Francisco - 11-5. A great team that has to fight for all 11 wins.
Arizona - 6-10. Carson will get them a few wins.
St. Louis - 4-12. Not very good.
NFC SOUTH
Atlanta - 11-5. They get one last year.
Carolina - 9-7. Cam helps them move to the next level.
New Orleans - 9-7. Tough to peg in Payton's return.
Tampa Bay - 6-10. Much better than this record.
NFC NORTH
Green Bay - 12-4. Rodgers wins.
Chicago - 9-7. The playoffs are definitely within reach. Anything from 6 to 12 wins makes sense.
Minnesota - 7-9. Last year's 7-9 team went 10-6. This year's 10-6 team goes 7-9.
Detroit - 7-9. Too many positions are still ignored.
NFC EAST
New York Giants - 10-6. They're due for an inexplicable Super Bowl run, right?
Dallas - 8-8. Ho-hum. I don't like Romo much.
Washington - 8-8. Talk about a volatile team. How's that knee, RGIII?
Philadelphia - 5-11. A bad QB running a new offense? Yikes.
PLAYOFFS
A3 CIN over A6 MIA
A4 NE over A5 BAL
N5 SF over N4 NYG
N3 ATL over N6 CHI
A4 NE over A1 DEN
A3 CIN over A2 HOU
N1 SEA over N5 SF
N2 GB over N3 ATL
A4 NE over A3 CIN
N2 GB over N1 SEA
N2 GB over A4 NE
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