Rest in Peace Roy "Doc" Halladay:

Doc:

The baseball word and the world as a whole lost another human being too early. Harry Leroy “Roy” “Doc” Halladay died this week after his plane crashed into the Gulf of Mexico by Florida. He was just 40 years old and had recently just got his pilot’s license and the plane this year. He was excited to start another chapter in his life.

The previous chapter in his life is what most will remember him for. He had a Hall of Fame caliber career as a pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays and the Philadelphia Phillies. He won 2 Cy Young awards (in both leagues only five others have done that), made 8 All Star appearances, led the league in wins 2 times and pitched a perfect game and a no-hitter in the same season. Only one other pitcher has done it in a post season, and that was Hall of Famer Don Larson. He joined six other pitchers to throw both a perfect game and a no-hitter; five of the six are in the Hall of Fame.

He only finished with 203 wins and 2117 strikeouts overall, but retired four full baseball seasons ago due to injury, which he attributed to back troubles. We all can imagine if he played until his age 40 season he might have had more wins and strikeouts, but those are always the what ifs with injuries to all athletes. If you use the JAWS system, an evaluation tool that accounts for a player’s peak seasons as well as his overall career, Halladay is ranked as baseball’s 42nd-best starting pitcher. Only nine players ahead of him are not yet in the Hall of Fame, while more than 30 pitchers below him on the list are already enshrined in Cooperstown. His postseason success and his popularity with the news media also bolster his case.

From all accounts from former teammates, local people in his community (coaching little leaguers) the media and fans alike, he was considered to be one of the best humans out there not just one of the best pitchers. While he was a member of the Blue Jays, Halladay and his wife invited children and their families from the Hospital for Sick Children into "Doc's Box" at Rogers Centre during Blue Jays games. As part of Halladay's contract with the Blue Jays, he also donated $100,000 each year to the Jays Care Foundation. Halladay was the Blue Jays' nominee numerous times for the Roberto Clemente Award for his work with underprivileged children. For the same reason, he was also the Blue Jays' nominee in 2008 for the Players Choice Awards Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award.

His father used to be a pilot so he knew all the risks and even his wife urged him not but he didn’t want to sit around and do nothing. “I find myself kind of sitting around the house thinking, ‘There’s something missing here — I should be working out, I should be running, I should be doing something,’” Halladay said. “For a second, it’s kind of a little bit of panic, and then it kind of sets in: ‘O.K., that’s right. I’m retiring now.’ It’s actually a very peaceful feeling.”

Former Yankees catcher Thurman Munson famously died from piloting his own small aircraft died in 1979, and so did Halladay’s former teammate Cory Lidle in 2006.  One of his last acts of kindness was donating a police dog which they named Doc in reference to his name given to him by then Blue Jays announcer Tom Cheek, for Wild West gunslinger Doc Holliday.

The hope is in 2019 when he is eligible the Hall of Fame writers will look at his numbers and career as a whole and put him into the Hall of Fame eventually. He will probably be known as the greatest pitcher in Toronto Blue Jays history and will deserve to have his jersey number retired. He is survived by his wife Brandy and his two sons Ryan and Braden. Our condolences go out to them. You will be missed Roy “Doc” Halladay RIP!

NBA 2017-2018 Season Preview:

Central Division: This will be the last year the Cavaliers are the kings of the East and a top team in general. PG Kyrie Irving single handily ruined the future of Cavs by demanding a trade. It’s one of the worst kept secrets in the NBA that SF Lebron James is going to leave his team for the second time when the season ends with his contract expiring.

Meaning this is the last year for him to win another championship for Cleveland and without Irving it makes the percentage even higher he will leave, leaving the Cavs without a potentially relevant future. New Cavs GM Koby Altman was put in a tough position after David Griffin resigned with Irving demanding a trade and getting it. They put a band aid on this season by getting PG IsaiahThomas, SF Jae Crowder and a first round draft pick in the trade; they also signed SG Dwayne Wade after the Bulls bought him out, and signed PG Derrick Rose. Lebron will have to carry an injured/injury prone team to make the finals this year. The team of the future-present in the Central is the Bucks because of point-forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.

He could win MVP/take his team to the Eastern conference finals-and a top five finish. If SF Kris Middelton and PF Jabari Parker are healthy, Milwaukee will be deadly plus they have reigning rookie of the year PG Malcom Brogdon. They can only get better so watch out! By default the Pistons will make the playoffs this year since the East is weaker/they have two really talented players. It’s a shame only one playoff appearance in almost 10 years for them when they have C Andre Drummond and PG Reggie Jackson (health has been an issue).

They added one of the best two-way players in the league in G Avery Bradley when Boston was trying to clear cap space (someone they will miss dearly), and still have SFs Tobias Harris and Stanley Johnson that should assure them a playoff spot. Well the rebuild is on for the next two teams in the Central. The Pacers finally said goodbye to SF Paul George this summer (traded to the Thunder) and got SG Victor Oladipo and big man Damantas Sabonis in the trade to play with the improving C MylesTurner. Those are nice building blocks to start a rebuild and still have a few veterans to make them competitive in big man Al Jefferson, SF Lance Stephenson, F Thaddeus Young and brought back PG Darren Collinson. (Look for Bulls preview later too long for this NBA Preview) 

Atlantic Division: It looked like the year for the Celtics to dethrone the Cavs from winning the East (they already had the #1 seed last year) with the moves to revamp this team. They essentially swapped out PGS Thomas for Irving and signed SF Gordon Hayward away but had to clear cap space for him, so they lost Bradley (cap space/trade, Crowder (trade), C Tyler Zeller, PF Amir Johnson, C Kelly Olynyk and F Jonas Jeberko.

The two additions make them a great team but they lost their depth along with Hayward breaking his Tibia and dislocating his ankle. They will make the playoffs in the weak East but it means Irving will have to prove he can lead a team by itself to the playoffs. His help will be C Al Hordford and all the young guns on their team in rookie SF Jasyon Tatum, SG Jaylen Brown, F Abdel Nader, PG Terry Rozier, and still have G Marcus Smart to try to be a top 5 team.  PG Kyle Lowry decided to stay in Toronto after fellow teammate SG DeMar DeRozen did the same last year.

They think they can challenge Lebron and Co. by adding CJ Miles to the mix and also retaining PF Serge Ibaka. The Raptors got swept by them in Eastern conference playoffs last year and the previous year lost in the previous round. Even with all that talent to be a top 5 seed in the weakened East they still can’t get past the hump (Lebron and crew), so they will have to wait till the King changes league before they have a chance to be in the finals. Well, it hopes to be the year for the 76ers to finally make the playoffs based on sheer talent and the state of the Eastern conference. A full season of C Joel Embiid, his “rookie year” for point-forward Ben Simmons, the second year of F Dario Saric and rookie PG Markelle Fultz have the making of a future super team if they all live up to expectations, they can be an 8^th seed. They also still have big man Jahil Okafor and forward Robert Covingtion on the roster, and they added veterans (which they didn’t have much of in previous years) in PF Amir Johnson and three point marksman SG JJ Redick. 

Any young up and coming team needs a veteran presence to guide them through the struggles of a season. Now we have gotten to the portion about both New York teams (Brooklyn Nets and Knicks). The Nets will not be the worst team because of the Bulls, Kings and Suns. With the Knicks finally trading SF Carmelo Anthony away it is now F Kristaps Porzingis’s team and his chance to shine alone and see if he can lead the team to the 8^th seed or to be pretty close to it.

He has the perfect cast around him to help him in a pass first PG in Ramon Sessions, three point shooters in $71 million man Tim Hardaway JR (who’s back in New York), Doug McDermott (who they got in the Melo trade), SG Courtney Lee, and they also traded for big man Enes Kanter (who should be starting). If C Joakim Noah is healthy he doesn’t need to be the center of the offense. He did play with a young superstar before (Derrick Rose). Brooklyn isn’t tanking, they actually have some good players on their roster minus PG Jeremy Lin who is out for the year due to knee surgery. They finally traded C Brooke Lopez but got veteran C Timofey Mozgov, and got 21 year old guard D’Angelo Russell from the Lakers (who didn’t need him with them drafting Lonzo Ball), plus having Jordan Clarkson and signing KCP),

who will now control the ball without Lin. He is still young enough to evolve into the player he was destined to be.They also got veteran forwards Allan Crabbe, Demarre Caroll, and still have Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, so they will be competitive even as a bad team.

Southeast Division: It is still the Wizards division and they are one of three teams to be even in the conversation with Lebron and Co., but their 3^rd & 4^th best player will have to step it up if they face them in the playoffs. C Marcin Gortat will have to use his height to his advantage as most teams are going small. They retained SF Otto Porter Jr. to keep a mini big 3 together with the two all star guards in John Wall and Bradley Beal. Health will be the big factor along with Wall being a more willing passer since he has talented teammates.

The bench is still a question mark with no real big offseason moves to fix it. After missing the playoffs the Hornets hope to get back since the conference is weaker and they should be making the playoffs every year in the East (weak conference). The real reason is they have a top PG/player on their team in PG Kemba Walker. They added another veteran big man again further delaying the growth of C Cody Zeller (last year Roy Hibbert and previously Al Jefferson), this year they traded for C Dwight Howard. They already have a log jam for big men with Frank Kaminisky (not enough minutes to go around). Since they are a playoff team they will go the veterans in Howard and stretch four Marvin Williams and have the same issue at wing with G Jeremy Lamb (who didn’t get a chance in OKC and isn’t here), since they are going to play SF Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (can’t shoot/score), and SG Nicolas Batum, and they drafted a talented guard in Malik Monk in the draft.

The Heat will make the playoffs this time (after losing out on the last day to the Bulls last year) due to the weakened conference and they have a few really talented players. They have all world PG Goran Dragic and one of the five best centers in the league in Hassan Whiteside. They also retained SG Dion Waiters who had a career year last year since the team gave him a chance to play (unlike OKC and Cleveland), and brought in big man Kelly Olynyk who should fill the PF hole they’ve had since Chris Bosh had his heart problems. They also are hoping for a full healthy season from SF Justise Winslow who was the 10^th pick in the draft two years ago and who missed most of his sophomore year due to both wrist and shoulder injuries.

He can ease himself back into the lineup since he has four talented teammates surrounding him. Well, Atlanta no longer has any of the four all stars they had in one season (Al Hordford, Jeff Teague, Kyle Korver and let Paul Millsap left in free agency) they also traded Dwight Howard away. Their best player is PG Dennis Schroder who is a fine player but not the center piece of a team. Their streak of making the playoffs 10 straight times is ending this year and they will start a new one of missing them. Kent Bazemore is really talented like Schroder but again a good complimentary player which sums up the roster.  Their team is full of veterans who are good role players/backups and inexperienced players.

The Magic again will be a bottom feeder despite having top picks in many consecutive drafts (bad drafting and they fired their GM-hired Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady to the front office as special assistant, which could be the most exciting thing they do). They are full of young talent that hasn’t proven themselves as a whole in PG Elfrid Payton who is in year 2 without G Victor Olidpo, F Aaron Gordon (who is a tweener and hope to take steps every year to get better), F Mario Hezonja and C Nikola Vucevic who can be a top center in the East.

They also have good veteran pieces but that’s it on this team in G Jonathan Simmons, G Terrence Ross, G Evan Fournier, G Aaron Affalo, C Bismack Biyombo, F Mo Speights, and PG DJ Augustin who all are trade bait.  

Pacific Division: It’s repeat at winning a championship or bust for the Warriors but they will have stiff competition in the West this year as many teams improved. Golden State did re-sign PG Steph Curry and SF Kevin Durant this offseason.

They were also able to retain their core by bringing back PG Shaun Livingston, SF Andre Iguodala, C Zaza Pachuila and  C JaVale McGee. While they also added SFs Nick Young and Omri Casspi to their bench making them even deeper, allowing the rest of their core of Durant, Curry, F Draymond Green and SG Klay Thompson to remain fresh throughout the season and the playoffs. With the improved West it may be hard for the Clippers with PF Blake Griffin & C DeAndre Jordan to make the playoffs this year with four other teams vying for last two spots.

They finally have a real SF in a trade acquiring Danilo Gallinari from Denver, but they longer have PG Chris Paul and SG JJ Redick to put it all together. They traded Paul in a blockbuster trade to Houston and got back PG Patrick Beverly who is a stud defensively, bench scorer Lou Williams and a few youngsters and a pick.  Redick left as a free agent and they even traded away Jamal Crawford to clear cap space but signed Serbian PG Milos Teodosic to help out at PG. The rest of this division is all teams rebuilding and have no shot to make the playoffs. The Lakers drafted PG Lonzo Ball, signed SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, traded Russell away with Mozgov’s contract for C Brooke Lopez, and signed C Andrew Bogut to be competitive this year but to also build for the future as they drafted four players.

They want to build a team around Ball, G Jordan Clarkson, F Brandon Ingram and F Julius Randle, but not be the 76ers and have no veterans to lead which is why they got Lopez (expiring contract), Bogut, and still have F Corey Brewer and F Luol Deng. The Kings finally traded away DeMarcus Cousin this past trade deadline so this is the first full season without him, and the team is half old veterans and half young players as they drafted three players in first round (four draft picks total) with one being promising PG De'Aaron Fox.

To not rush him they signed PG George Hill to start. For now, it’s G Buddy Hield’s team till Fox and fellow rookie, SF Justin Jackson takes over. They also signed the ageless wonder Vince Carter, PF Zach Randolph, and F Bogdan Bogdanovic to mentor the rookies and other young players like C Willie Cauley-Stein. The Suns team is full of young players and three rookies and top four pick SF Josh Jackson. They have young guns SG Devin Booker, PF Marquesse Chriss, PG Tyer Ulis, and Dragen Bender.

They have potential all star PG Eric Bledsoe (who wants a trade), veteran C Tyson Chandler, C Alex Len and G Jared Dudley on the team as well. They did lose G Brandon Knight to injury in the offseason which doesn’t help their win total on a team full of kids really. Another top five pick is in their future. 

Southwest Division: The Rockets went out and got Chris Paul in a blockbuster deal but already were successful at PG with James Harden but now he will move back to SG.

They traded away 7 players losing lots of their depth. They signed F PJ Tucker and F Luc Mbah a Moute while resigning Nene. They have sharper shooters in G Eric Gordon, SF Trevor Ariza and PF Ryan Anderson, which they hope helps them complement the facilitator in Paul. The question will be how Harden and Paul work together since they both like having the ball in their hands but they sure can match the Warriors in terms of fire power. The Spurs will always be a top 5 team even if PG Tony Parker is out for a bit with an injury and Tim Duncan is retired, because of the system Greg Popovich has installed and the good complimentary role players. It is still a one man show in terms of stars with SF Kawhi Leonard (who is out for a few months with injury as well).

They resigned Pau Gasol, PG Patty Mills and G Manu Ginobili, and added SF Rudy Gay who will come in handy since Leonard is out for a bit. If you combine PF Lamarcus Aldridge with Gay and Gasol you might have a big 2 with great solid role players in Mills (who’s starting till Parker comes back) G Danny Green, SF Kyle Anderson and crew (some youngsters). This is why they are not winning a championship; they are good but not good enough. The Grizzlies have two of the best players at their positions (also underrated) in PG Mike Conley Jr and C Marc Gasol which means they have a chance for the playoffs (with four other teams for last two spots).

The question falls on the other players they have like SF Chandler Parsons (one of the highest salaries in NBA), and SG Ben McLemore (who never showed how good he could be despite all the talent in Sacramento). The hope is Parson can stay healthy and the change of scenery can do wonders, while McLemore reaches his potential, then they would be a threat. Those two things don’t seem the most likely to happen which is why they also signed G/F Tyreke Evans and PG Mario Chalmers to solidly the bench, with C Brandan Wright who they hope can stay healthy. No longer do they have Zach Randolph, Tony Allen and Vince Carter as all 3 left in the offseason.  Also fighting with them for a playoff spot are the Pelicans who have two of the best big men playing together (going against the league that has lots of stretch fours and one big man lineup). Anthony Davis and Demarcus Cousins will have a full season to work together to see if this experiment will work.

They added PG Rajon Rondo despite having an all star PG in Jrue Holiday so they will try to play 2 PGS and two big men. At the same time rotate out a wing player all season which would be Tony Allen or Dante Cunningham to name a few. They also brought in PG Jameer Nelson and F Josh Smith for depth. It will be how well the two big men and two PG system works to see if they can make the playoffs. The Mavericks are in a rebuild mode despite the fact future Hall of Famer PF Dirk Nowitzki may still has some years left.

They also have a good amount of talented veterans on their team in SG Wesley Matthews, SF Harrison Barnes, guards JJ Barea, Devin Harris, Seth Curryand F Josh McRoberts. That’s usually a roster that is trying to make playoffs not rebuild. They do have a top 10 pick from the draft in PG Dennis Smith JR who should get the bulk of playing time at PG since they really don’t have one. Smith, Matthews, Barnes, PF Dwight Powell and C Nerlens Noel would seem like a good core to build a future on, but in the West that isn’t good enough to make the playoffs and they still will be starting/player Nowitzki a lot this year. They are a confusing team that will finish towards the bottom again. Look for them to sell pieces at the deadline.

Northwest Division: This is the best and most improved division in the whole NBA. Each team could make the playoffs and three of them made big moves to improve their team. The Thunder added SF Paul George from the Pacers for Oladipo and Sabonis. They also got another SF who will play, PF Carmelo Anthony from the Knicks for Kanter and McDermott.

The question will be how three dominant ball players learn to the share the ball. Mr. Triple-Double PG Russell Westbrook had to do it all for them last year to win games but they don’t have to worry about him sharing it with SG Andre Roberson because he can’t score (who I wouldn’t start but rather start George at SG and Melo at SF) or shoot well, and C Steven Adams is all about hustle. They also lost two good bench players in these trades and will have to rely on PG Raymond Felton and PF Patrick Patterson to lead the second unit. But don’t worry, they will finish as a top 5 seed and Westbrook hopes it convinces George to stay when he becomes a free agent. The Timberwolves were a team that everyone thought would make the playoffs last year with all the young talent.

They just got better by trading for G Jimmy Butler and signing PG Jeff Teague, G Jamal Crawford and PF Taj Gibson. You add those veterans to the young core of F Andrew Wiggins, C Karl-Anthony Towns, F Shabbaz Muhammad and C Gorgui Dieng, they can challenge for a top 5 seed. They had too many youngsters on their team and no real leadership but with Gibson and Crawford they will have that. Plus it gives some defenders for head coach Tom Thibodeau. The Trail Blazers failed to get Anthony which might be the difference in the league as teams try to make super teams as the Thunder and Rockets succeeded in doing. They still have one of the best PGs in the league in Damian Lillard and a potential all star in SG CJ McCollum.

The hope that a full season with their guards and C Jusuf Nurkic who missed significant time last year to injury is healthy so they can have an inside presence/side kick. They still have a team full of bench/role players or inexperienced players. They are playing a SF at PF since they have no PF and a team full of SFs in Evan Turner, Moe Harkless, Noah Vonleh, and the guy playing PF Al-Farouq Aminu. The Jazz did lose SF Gordon Hayward to the Celtics (but he is lost for the year) but still are one of the best defensive teams and most talented teams in the league since they have C Rudy Gobert  (who could be the best center).

They got a top defensive and elite passer in PG Ricky Rubio which will help them (since he doesn’t like shooting), as he will feed the ball to Gobert and PF Derrick Favors as much as possible or let SG Rodent Hood fill it up. They had bad luck with injuries last year so they hope they can count on PG Dante Exum and G Alec Burks who hasn’t lived up to his potential yet because of injuries. They still have G Joe Johson, Joe Ingles as part of their core and added veterans F Jonas Jerebko, G Thabo Sefolosha and C Ekpe Udoh to round out the bench of youngsters to provide some more veteran leadership. The Nuggets have a good chance to make the playoffs this year and it will be centered on that all around talent and potential they have. They added F Paul Millsap to the core of C Nikola Jokic (who came out of nowhere) guards Jamal Murray, Emmanuel Mudiay, Malik Beasley, and veterans SF Wilson Chandler, C Mason Plumlee (who can now backup), PF Trey Lyles, SF Richard Jefferson and F Arthur Darrell.

They have even more young talent outside of the three main guards and Jokic, in guards Gary Harris and Will Barton, but we are also forgetting about the manimal Kenneth Faried who may not even play since they got Lyles and Plumlee. They have the talent to compete, the question is can coach Mike Malone figure out a way to manage all this talent and minutes for the many talented guards they have?

2017-2018 NFL PREVIEW

NFC NORTH: It is the Packers division until Aaron Rodgers retires. He has a talented trio of receivers in Jordy Nelson, Randal Cobb and Devante Adams.

They also have Super Bowl Champion and former Bear in TE Martellus Bennett, along with hybrid player Ty Montgomery at RB, who is also a receiver. That alone is the best group of weapons in this division with the best QB makes them a surefire for a bye week for the playoffs. The Vikings on the other hand probably has one of the most talented rosters as a whole.

Mike Zimmer is always known for having a good defense and this team is no exception with the likes of CB Xavier Rhodes, LB Anthony Barr and NT Linval Joseph, to name a few. They added a starting RB in Latavius Murphy, which should improve the run game and take pressure of QB Sam Bradford, who will be in year two with his receiver duo of Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs. They will be a wild card team contender. The Lions  will not be in last place as the Bears are in total rebuild mode.  Detroit has one of the most talented offenses behind QB Matthew Stafford with multi talented RBS in Theo Riddick and Ameer Abdullah, which will be their strength. Golden Tate and Marvin Jones are more like #2 receivers; which are where Riddick and Eric Ebron come in to give Stafford more passing options.

The defense hasn’t been the same since Suh and Fairly left them, but it’s good enough to keep them in games. Chicago  has started the rebuild with drafting a QB with the 2^nd pick. This season will be all about if Mitchell Trubisky plays or not since they paid Mike Glennon money to start. He only has one full season under his belt so they should give him the chance. They need to wait till their defensive and offensive lines get better before they throw the rookie out there, and get him more weapons.

RB Jordan Howard is the best player on offense on the team, but with no WR options the defenses are going to load the box to try to stop him. While Leonard Floyd will turn heads if he stays healthy, being a top 10 sacks leader. Prepare for another top 5 worst record year for them. 

NFC SOUTH:  This division could be won by any of the three teams not named the Saints. The Falcons may prove history right about teams that lose the Super Bowl that wind up not making the playoffs or having a losing record. The Panthers after losing the Super Bowl two years ago didn’t make the playoffs last year and finished last. The Falcons may have one of the best offenses led by QB Matt Ryan with a dual running threat of Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman and WR stud Julio Jones, but they also lost their offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan who is now the head coach in San Francisco.

So history and losing OC might prevent them from winning the division this year. That might leave the door open to Carolina to rebound from last year with their top tier QB in Cam Newton, and their veteran defense lead by LB Luke Kuechly. They also improved their offense through the draft with RB Christian McCaffrey and WR Curtis Samuel, to pair with RB Jonathan Stewart and WR Kelvin Benjamin.

But wait the young impressive defense and improving offense of the Buccaneers could surprise everyone and win the division or at least be in the wild card hunt. This will be Jameis Winston’s third year so he will keep improving from year to year especially since he has veteran WR in DeSean Jackson to help take the load off Mike Evans.

Their defense has some of the top players at their positions as with Gerald McCoy and Brent Grimes leading the defense. New Orleans will continue to be a last place team till they fix their defense. QB Drew Brees keeps them in games since he is a future Hall of Famer and top 5 QB in the league. Their running game could be intriguing with future hall of famer Adrian Peterson splitting carries with Mark Ingram. 

NFC West: The Seahawks are going to run away with this division and compete with the Packers for the top seed. They are Super Bowl contenders and one of the best two way teams in the league with one of the top QBS in Russell Wilson, who should have a more consistent running game this year unlike last year when all 3 staring RBS got hurt. This will take pressure off of Wilson.

They added Eddie Lacy to pair with Thomas Rawls which will make the passing game better for Doug Baldwin. The defense is still elite with Earl Thomas, Michael Bennett, Richard Sherman, and Kam Chancellor. The Cardinals will be the default 2^nd place team since they have one of the most talented and intriguing rosters but not good enough for even a wild card this year. Their QB and top WR are on the downside of their careers and their star defensive players like Tyrann Mathieu can’t stay healthy.  The best player is stud RB David Johnson who can be a passing and return threat.  

The Rams will not stink on offense this year which will help take some pressure of their good defense. 

They hired an offensive coordinator to be the head coach and traded for WR Sammy Watkins, who when healthy is a #1 WR. That should prevent teams from focusing all of their attention on RB Todd Gurley who as a chance to show off his talents.  QB Jared Goff in his second year will be better off with Sean Mcvay and having Watkins and rookie WR Cooper Kupp. The 49ers will be one of the bottom feeders of the league. They still don’t have a viable QB option, sorry Brian Hoyer, even if having a real WR in Pierre Garcon, he is a #2 not a #1. Teams will focus all of their attention on RB Carlos Hyde not helping the team since they will be down in most games, so they will be forced to pass. 

Their defense isn’t what it used to be as this will be a rebuilding/getting a gauge on how to be a head coach for Kyle Shanahan known for offense but doesn’t have a good offense either. First year GM Jon Lynch has a lot of work to do and getting a top 5 pick will help them maybe get the QB for Shanahan, so a trial and error season and last place for awhile.

NFC EAST:  The Giants are going to win the division this year with the Ezekiel Elliot suspension and the tougher schedule for the Cowboys this year. The Giants have Odell Beckham JR who now has a former #1 receiver to be his tag partner in Brandon Marshall and Sterling Sheppard as the #3.

They can’t run for anything but they should have many leads with a good defense even if Jason Pierre Paul is missing some fingers. They spent so much money on defense last year for players like DE Oliver Vernon, CB Janoris Jenkins, to go with players they have drafted in SS Landon Collins and CB Eli Apple. Dallas needs to worry about the up and coming Eagles with 2^nd year QB Carson Wentz.

He has weapons on offense to help him in WRS Alshon Jeffery, Torrey Smith, and Nelson Agholor who is now the #3 receiver, and TE’s Zach Ertz and Brent Celek, with RB’s Darren Sproles and LeGarrette  Blount. Philly has an improving defense of DT Fletcher Cox and FS Malcolm Jenkins causing havoc. Dallas might finish third if Elliot’s time missed hurts them with the tough schedule, and if QB Dak Prescott struggles without an elite RB even with the best offensive line in the league.

Washington will be in last place for a very long time no matter if they sign QB Kirk Cousins to a long term deal.

That will be the theme of the season, will he stay or will they keep franchise tagging him? They lost their top receivers in DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon, but they did negate one of the losses with Terrelle Pryor, but that will not be enough in this loaded division on offensive talent even if TE Jordan Reed stays healthy. 

AFC NORTH:  The Steelers will win the division this year and compete with the Raiders for the 2nd best record in the AFC.  They probably have the best trio on offense in QB Ben Roethlisberger, RB Le’Veon Bell and WR Antonio Brown. 

They also have back, one of the best young receivers in the game who has missed time due to marijuana suspension with one being for a full year. He is out to prove he is still the same he was a few years back. The Bengals like always will be a playoff contender and win a lot of games in the regular season, with their talented roster from top to bottom on both sides of the ball. If TE Tyler Eifert is healthy to pair with stud WR AJ Green along with rookie Joe Mixon, this offense can be lethal.

But due to the teams in the West and South it will prevent them from making a deep run in the AFC. The Ravens still have a good team just not a great team despite having a good QB in Joe Flacco, They also added Danny Woodhead at RB to fix the hole they had last year, and WR Jeremy Maclin who now has a QB who throws deep balls to use his talents.

  But again the AFC is too deep and they are behind two teams in their division. The Browns will not be the worst team in the league but still are going to be bad despite having a talented trio of RBS in Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson JR. They hope they finally have their QB in Deshone Kizer. They hope! 

AFC WEST: The Raiders will win the division but it will be tough since the Chiefs are one of the best teams in the league with a strong defense. Oakland has one of the best set of WRS in the league in Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree to help support an up and coming QB in Derek Carr, whose season was cut short to injuries.

He has something to prove to take his team far in the playoff this year. They also added veterans in RB Marshawn Lynch and TE Jared Cook to make this offense even better. They also have one of the best defensive players in DE Khalil Mack leading their defense. The Chiefs lost their starting RB Spencer Ware so they will have to rely on rookie Kareem Hunt and lead WR Jeremy Maclin in the offseason. They have TE Travis Kelce and a WR name Tyreek Hill who can get passing, running and return TDS.

Plus, they have one of the best defenses in football with SS Eric Berry, OLB Justin Houston, and OLB Tamba Hali. Both of them will make the playoffs this year. The LA Chargers will be one of those average teams with talent but with better teams in front of them. They still have QB Phillip Rivers, TEs Antonio Gates and Hunter Henry with Melvin Gordon at RB, with WR Keenan Allen back from injury. 

They also have two studs on defense in OLBS Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram. The Broncos have fallen from two Super Bowl appearances and one win to being a last place team. They have 3 QBS which means they don’t have any QB. Paxton Lynch looks like he’s a bust while Trevor Siemian is a good backup and they brought back Brock Osweiler. This means they will basically waste the talents of Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders. But they still have a stout defense with the likes of OLB Von Miller, CBS Chris Harris, and Aqib Talib. 

AFC EAST: The Patriots will certainly be back in the Super Bowl; run away with the division and the whole conference, the question is will they go undefeated in the regular season? They did lose WR Julian Edelman for the season, but were without Gronk for most of the year and still won it all. But they added WR Brandin Cooks and RBS Mike Gillislee, and Rex Burkhead to their already talented group of RBS James White and Dion Lewis to support QB Tom Brady. 

Plus, their defense is still tops in the league. The Dolphins are going to be competitive but not make the playoffs in the deep AFC.  They have a talented amount of skill players in WRS Jarvis Landry and DeVante Parker, with RB Jay Ajayi to make it easier for QB Jay Cutler, who’s filling in for injured Ryan Tannehill.  Along with a talented defense lead by DT Ndamukong Suh and DE Cameron Wake to name some.

The Jets and Bills are fighting for last place/a top 5 pick in the next draft with the moves they made to basically tank their seasons.  The Jets have no real threat on offense after losing WR Quincy Enuwa for the season with an injury, while the Bills traded their WR Sammy Watkins.

They both have quality RBS in Bilal Powell and LeSean McCoy but with no passing game it will mean the defense will focus in on that. 

AFC SOUTH: This division will be a 3 horse race for 1st place if QB Andrew Luck returns from injury to his old form. The certainty is that the Titans are the young team on the rise with the ascension of Marcus Mariota to a top fleer QB since he already has a top RB in DeMarco Murray and TE in Delanie Walker.

They also have good stable of WRS in Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker and rookie Corey Davis.  They a deep defense led by OLB Brian Orakpo and CB Logan Ryan. Their biggest threat is the Texans with their deep defense led by DES JJ Watt and Jadevon Clowney. They also have a stud WR in DeAndre Hopkins and a dependable RB in Lamar Miller. The biggest question mark is QB since the incumbent Tom Savage hasn’t thrown a TD in his professional career, and the other is a rookie named Deshaun Watson who won a college championship and was the runner up for the Heisman Trophy.

It’s a question of when not if Watson starts this year and for their sakes they should start him as soon as possible if they want to be a playoff team in a deep AFC.  The Colts are one of those teams where the QB masks the weaknesses of a team, and if you take that QB out the team is last place team.

They are lucky they have the Jaguars beneath them to prevent that.  They have a talented WR in TY Hilton and TE in Jack Doyle, they would be wasting it if Scott Tolzien is out there for more than a few games. Outside of CB Vontae Davis the defense is one of the worst defenses and has been for awhile. Yes, they have future Hall of Famer Frank Gore their best RB since Joseph Addai, but it’s not enough to make up for the loss at QB. The defense will key in on their running game since the passing game isn’t a threat. The Jaguars don’t know who their QB is since Blake Bortles hasn’t been good and the other option is Chad Henne which is worse.

New head coach Doug Marrone and Tom Coughlin have a lot of work to do fix the offense no matter if they stick with Bortles or draft a new one next year. Rookie RB Leonard Fournette is the leader to win rookie of the year; but if the QB can’t get the ball to talented WRS Allen Robinson and Hurns,  Fournette will have a hard time making an impact if they stack the box.