The Retort

2010 NFL Preview and Recap of 2009

September 24th, 2010 by Cory Lovec Of The Retort Staff

It’s been a long offseason--too long to be exact. But, everyone exhale, the NFL regular season is back. Let’s recap last season.

Brett Favre retired!

Brett Favre came out of retirement!

The Colts went 14-0 before deciding to sit Peyton Manning the last two games (which they lost). Manning won the MVP Award last year, becoming the only player to win four MVP awards (Brett Favre had the most at three).

Joshua Cribbs of the Cleveland Browns became the all-time record holder for kick return touchdowns with eight, three of which he added in 2009.

The Titans started 0-6 but then won eight of their final 10 games, primarily by using the legs of second-year running back Chris Johnson, who was just the sixth running back ever to rush for over 2,000 yards (O.J. Simpson, Eric Dickerson, Barry Sanders, Jamal Lewis, Chris Johnson). Also, Vince Young, who just a year earlier was having major on- and off-the-field problems, started those last 10 games; he looked like the Vince Young from Texas.

The Denver Broncos started 6-0, but then failed to make the playoffs. Denver is the only team ever to start 6-0 and then miss the playoffs (they lost eight of their final 10 games).

The San Diego Chargers once again won the AFC West but failed in the playoffs.

The Cincinnati Bengals wowed the NFL by going 6-0 in the extremely tough AFC North; they won the division, but lost to the Jets in the Playoffs.

A record 10 different quarterbacks threw for 4,000 yards (the previous high was 7).

The New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl for the first time in their 43 year history. Drew Brees was the MVP of the Super Bowl, and set the regular season record for highest completion percentage.

With all that happened last year, who knows what will happen this year! The stage is set; the pre-season is done and the NFL is ready for football season to start.

Two main things occur at this point of the NFL season: One, Fantasy Football begins and, two, everyone picks who they think will make the playoffs (specifically the Super Bowl). It seems as though every sports network has their own panel of “experts” who know who is going to go to and win the Super Bowl each year.

Some of these “experts” include those at NFL Network. Seven members of NFL Network Staff recently picked who they think would make the playoffs and Super Bowl. Of course, there were the mainstay teams like Indianapolis, San Diego Chargers, New England, Pittsburg, Dallas, etc. However, this year the experts picked some teams that will surprise you.

Most surprising was the fact that all seven of the experts predicted that the Green Bay Packers would win the NFC Championship, and thus make the Super Bowl, even though not all of them predicted that the Pack would even win the NFC North (four of the staff picked Green Bay to win the Super Bowl). Of course, a main reason for Green Bay’s success would be the play of quarterback Aaron Rodgers. He was picked by four members of the staff to win the MVP and the Offensive Player of the Year.

The hype for Rodgers is not without merit; he is the first quarterback ever to pass for 4,000 yards in a season in his first two seasons as a starter. Also, he has the highest career passer rating of any current NFL quarterback (97.2). Couple that with his ability to run (516 yards, 5.4 average, five touchdowns, and Green Bay’s second leading rusher), and it is easy to see why he is one of the top picks in most NFL drafts (his average draft position is currently 6.2). Rodgers said of NFL Network’s Rich Eisen picking him 6th overall in his fantasy draft, “Much appreciated. I won’t let you down.”

Green Bay also boasts what is possibly the best and deepest receiving corps in all of football. This unit is led by 1,000-yard receivers Donald Driver and Greg Jennings, with third-stringer James Jones and fourth-stringer Jordy Nelson, who Rodgers said “could easily start on a lot of other teams.” They have a tight end who is nearly impossible to guard, because he is too big and strong for corners to cover and too fast for linebackers to cover. All in all, Green Bay’s offense seems unstoppable, and their defense is going into only their second season in the 3-4; they were pretty good last year, leading the league in interceptions and having Defensive Player of the Year Charles Woodson.