STATE OF THE NFC NORTH MINNESOTA VIKINGSRECORD LAST SEASON: 12-4
KEY LOSSES:
CB Brian Williams (Trade)
K Jeff Wilkins
KEY GAINS:
CB Troy Vincent (Trade)
ROLB Derrick Brooks (FA)
CB Yohance Scott (Trade)
TE Kyle Brady (FA)
DE Gerrard Warren (FA)
The Vikings brought in more talent than what they lost which does not bode well for our own chances in an already crazy tough division. Troy Vincent is long in the tooth but he easily makes up for the loss of Brian Williams who he traded. I see K Jeff Wilkins was picked up in FA and now he's not on the roster anymore, K will be a priority in FA I'd say. CB Scott was acquired for a 2nd round pick, he appears to be the NCB perhaps? Derrick Brooks was the monster pickup for the Vikings, I'm going to assume he gets switched to LOLB where he can make more of an impact but I may be wrong, either way it was a great pickup.
KEY DRAFT PICKS:
TE John Kuhn
RT Rob Petitti
OC Jason Brown
DT Anthony Bryant
Another solid draft from Neal which is to be expected, I'm not sure how Kuhn will pan out at TE being only 6'0" and 60 CTH but nobody can blame him for thinking outside the box, he offers elite athleticism at the position. RT Rob Petitti looks like and most likely is the immediate starter. The Vikes found a future starter at C as early as next season in Brown who has size, STR and is very athletic for a guy his size. DT Anthony Bryant could be taking over in a few years when Robbins becomes expendable.
FINAL ASSESSMENT:
QB Daunte Culpepper finally turned the corner, he was on the verge a year ago but was still turning the ball over frequently, this year he came into his own and challenged GB for the division. Culpepper is only 28 years old so there is plenty more to come for the Culpepper/Moss era, that doesn't bode well for us. The Vikings are filling in positions of need nicely as they landed a starting TE and RT Rob Pitittie as immediate starters. The secondary looks much improved, LB is now a strength also with the addition of Brooks, QB RB and WR also look like bright spots, they will compete with GB for the division. GREEN BAY PACKERSRECORD LAST SEASON: 13-3KEY LOSSES:
SS Pat Tillman
KEY GAINS:
WR Laverneous Coles (Restructured)
LT Jeff Backus (Trade)
SS Pat Tillman would be a decent loss on most teams but it looks like GB was prepared for this and have drafted his replacement in last years draft Stuart Schweigert who is more than capable of handling the duties. Another big move for GB was restructuring WR Coles who had a pretty good season with a crazy tards per catch average of 23.15, which is insane. LT Jeff Backus comes over in a trade with us, I really didn't want to trade him to a division rival because I know he's a legit starter, he did well blocking for us with Mike Mcmahon at QB so I have no doubt he'll be able to block for the man Brett Favre unfortunately.
KEY DRAFT PICKS:
TE Heath Miller
RB Cedric Benson
CB Kelvin Hayden
I thought the Packers hit on all of their 1st 3 picks. TE Heath Miller will most likely step in immediately and I think with his size, athletic ability and hands that he'll be a nice security blanket for Favre. Another eye for the future is RB Cedric Benson who in 2 years will take over for Ahman Green, he was the top RB on my list but i didn't work him out so I have no clue if he skews up or down. CB Kelvin Hayden will most likely fill the dime CB position for a few years until his AWR gets up but looks like a solid choice.
FINAL ASSESSMENT:
This is still the Packers division until Favre retires but Gary is filling in the future pieces nicely. Favre's retirement will still be a massive loss and the dynamic of this division will change drastically when that happens, until then the NFC is the Packers to lose in my opinion. CHICAGO BEARSRECORD LAST SEASON: 12-4
KEY LOSSES:
ILB Brian Urlacher (Trade)
QB Kerry Collins (Trade)
WR David Terrell (Trade)
FS Ronnie Heard (Trade)
KEY GAINS:
ILB Rod Davis (Trade)
The biggest loss will be veteran QB Kerry Collins, he filled the spot with a rookie which almost all of us know will take some time but lucky for the Bears they have the time to develop him. ILB Brian Urlacher was also a significant loss, another rookie will be filling an elite veteran. I think Ruud will have a solid rookie season but will also have a bunch of growing pains as well. Also another rookie replaces WR David Terrell.
KEY DRAFT PICKS:
QB Alex Smith
WR Vincent Jackson
CB Corey Webster
LB Barrett Ruud
RT Calvin Armstrong
This was one heck of a draft for the Bears, a starting QB, WR, CB, ILB and RT, it doesn't get much better than that.QB Alex Smith is the most important of the group, he has a talented group to throw to in Bates, Washington, Jackson and Mili plus 2nd year RB Cedric Cobbs who had a monster season. Ruud will most likely be a tackling machine and CB Webster will start in some capacity most likely NCB.
FINAL ASSESSMENT:
I want to say the Bears are in a good situation, I think they have a solid future but they were competing for the division with Kerry Collins at the helm now they are fighting with us for the basement in my opinion until these young players mature. The rest of the team surrounding Smith might be enough to overcome the loss of Collins but we shall see soon enough. DETROIT LIONSKEY LOSSES:
QB Byron Leftwich (Trade)
LT Jeff Backus (Trade)
KEY GAINS:
QB Mike Vick (Trade)
RB Duce Staley (Trade)
WR Derrick Mason (ERFA)
RT Todd Wade (Trade)
LG Jamie Nails (Trade)
SS Mike Minter (FA)
FS Tebucky Jones (Trade)
FS Sam Shade (Trade PLA)
P Dave Zastudil (FA)
I definitely gained more than I lost this season but we'll find out if the guys I picked up make the difference and can get me to 6 or more wins this season. Obviously QB Mike Vick was the biggest acquisition for us but we lost the talented Byron Lewtwich to do so, in the end I'm hoping it works out for both me and Riley. RB Duce Staley will compete with the rookie and share the load in the backfield. Derrick mason was resigned to be our #1 WR. Both Jamie Nails and Todd Wade will provide veteran stability along the OL. The S position was completely rebuilt mostly veterans, Tubucky Jones and newly acquired PLA FS Sam Shade will compete for the FS position, Mike Minter is entrenched as the starter for us and is an upgrade from last season. P Dave Zastudil will be our P for at least 4 seasons.
KEY DRAFT PICKS:
WR Braylon Edwards
RB Marion Barber
CB Karl Paymah
QB Jason Campbell
We really liked our draft, I think we hit on some positions of definite need and got lucky on some of the skews. WR Braylon is entrenched as our WR 2, we will be adding at least +1 to SPD. RB Marion Barber will be sharing a 50/50 role in the backfield with Duce Staley. CB Karl Paymah was a pleasant surprise and will be our starting NCB right out of the gate. Jason Campbell has the the size, arm strength, AWR and accuracy to be the immediate backup to Vick in case something terrible happens (crossing fingers nothing does).
FINAL ASSESSMENT:
I think we've done enough for at least 6 wins, if Vick stays healthy I think he has enough targets to cause some damage to opposing defenses. Staley and Barber should be enough combined to keep the passing game honest. The secondary is full of veterans at the S position teamed with youngsters Sheppard and Paymah at CB, I'm hoping the blend of the 2 will mean we're tougher there. The OL has improved each season, we had a rough go after Leftwich went down and Tuisossopo came in as a scrambling QB made the OL look worse than what it actually is. Our DL and LB minus ROLB is pretty stable, ILB Chris Claibourne has lead the league in tackles the past 3 seasons, DT Marcus Stroud is a stud in the middle, DT Jonathan Sullivan is getting better. Both DE's Calvin Pace and James Hall both had solid seasons for us and LOLB Teddy lehman is a year wiser, faster, more agile, more aware and a better tackler, watch out for him!
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