An Uncle Rico Production
FOOTBALL IS BACK, BABY!
Thursday marked the first double-header of the NFL season (albeit, preseason). For those of us drowning in the waters of the “Summer Sports Season,” lulled into fighting for air, it was a needed shock to our system to help bring us back to the surface.
What did you miss?
Well, you missed an unimpressive (and predictable) performance from the #2 overall pick of the Houston Texans QB C.J. Stroud (OSU) You missed questions surrounding the starting QB position for the New England Patriots. You missed the new fast toys of the Seattle Seahawks & the Minnesota Vikings in WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba (OSU) & WR Jordan Addison (USC), respectively.
And you missed me reliving Draft Night 2023 when the Arizona Cardinals decided to pass on homerun edge-rusher OLB/EDGE Will Anderson (ALA) for future draft capital (when looking back on, I can’t really blame the new HC & GM of the Cards for doing this).
It’s certainly one sure way to ensure you can fill the roster with “your guys.”
Last week, I also released part one of “Rico’s Power Rankings: AFC” where I selected my Top 5 & Division Champs. Today, we closer examine the NFC.
#1: Philadelphia Eagles
The returning NFC champions look as if they won’t miss a beat. Their only change will be at the running back position. But will the former Detroit Lions standout DeAndre Swift & the walking injury bug from the Seattle Seahawks Rashaad Penny be able to have an immediate impact & replace a career year’s worth of production from Miles Sanders (who “Fly, Eagles, Bye”d to the Carolina Panthers)?
Other than that, their core is intact on both sides of the ball, they boast an asphalt chewer & a border wall on their O-line in Jason Kelce & Lane Johnson (figure out who is who), and the guy they’re protecting looks more comfortable with each passing year. They should return to the NFC title game at a minimum.
#2 San Francisco 49ers
When talking about the best defenses in the NFL, the 49ers are the first team to be off everyone’s lips. They are an absolute blueprint of what an NFL defense should look like. They have stars across the board & they play with a motor that seemingly never runs out of gas (I said “seemingly”). Factor in the mid-season acquisition of Christian McCaffery as their bellcow, and you have the perfect compliment to a run-heavy, time-of-possession offense who relies on their defense to win games.
Yes, they have plenty of questions at the quarterback position; mainly who will be their starter by Week 18: #3 overall pick in 2021 Trey Lance, late round (7th) breakout star Brock Purdy, or will it be another injury riddled season at that position, making way for the likes of 1st round bust Sam Darnold?
All things considered, they should also make it to the NFC title, for a rematch with the Eagles. They’ve played in three of the last four; it’s practically a habit for “The Shanahans.”
#3 Minnesota Vikings
Kirk Cousin finally became a 13-win quarterback in the regular season. Unfortunately for him & fans of the “Purple People Eaters,” that’s where it ended. But even after no postseason wins last season & a disappointing loss to the visiting NY Giants on their home turf, the Vikings should have plenty to be optimistic about. HC Kevin O’Connell seems to be the right hire to help the team excel. Whether or not he can tear the hands from the proverbial necks of the historical choke artists has yet to be seen.
One of the biggest question marks going into the season will be can the highly-touted, highly productive understudy of ex-Viking RB Dalvin Cook be able to fill the shoes? Alexander Mattison has quietly waited his turn, and his legacy is now in his own hands. Can he be a piece of the puzzle (which was once fit by Cook) that helps the Vikings get over their postseason hump, or will he be more like that puzzle piece that gets lost on the floor, leading to a frustratingly incomplete landscape portrait?
Justin Jefferson might have something to say about that.
#4 Dallas Cowboys
The “Zeke Elliot Era” has finally ended in Dallas.
Enter: Tony Pollard.
If it wasn’t already QB Dak Prescott’s team (with a few holdovers who are still living in 2018), then it is now. The Cowboys have a similar question mark to the Vikings: Can Tony Pollard replace the great Ezekial Elliot?
Short answer: Absolutely
Zeke hasn’t been Zeke for awhile now. He’s had diminishing returns since the turn of this decade & looks to be on the Back 9 of his career (remember, RBs have a much shorter shelf life than the average NFL player). Maybe it was ego, maybe it was having to live in a post-COVID-19 world, maybe it was just time. Either way, Tony Pollard is a video game in human form. He has a nose for the end zone & has all the tools to be a top tier RB in the league.
Dallas also has some serious studs on both sides of the ball. CeeDee Lamb finally took that next step that is demanded of the “88s of Dallas” & LB/EDGE Micah Parsons looks like he’ll be joining OG Zack Martin in the HOF. They have fallen short of their goals since HC Mike McCarthy came in two years ago, and we all know Jerry World has a short fuse with diminishing returns at the head coaching position.
So what is more likely:
Dallas wins the NFC East
Or
McCarthy is fired at the end of the season?
Personally, I would’ve canned him last season and replaced him with defensive coordinator Dan Quinn. But that’s a story for another time…
#5 Washington Redskins
I know what you’re thinking, and no, I haven’t been drinking. This 5 Spot was the toughest to fill (mainly because of the weakness of the NFC). I get that the safe pick would’ve been the NY Giants. They’re a playoff winner from a year ago & I REALLY like what HC Brian Dabol brings to that organization. And I understand how insane this must look to some, but hear me out. And I can sum it up in two words:
Eric Bieniemy.
The ex-offensive coordinator for Patrick Mahomes has been on every head coaching “watchlist” for like three seasons now, and each time he was overlooked. I pushed heavy for Bieniemy to be the Cards new head coach, but we decided to go with Rich Gannon’s long lost son, Jonathan Gannon (I’m still in denial that they’re not related). But alas, we’re the Cardinals, and that ultimately would’ve made too much sense; been too good for our franchise. So, like we do, we passed.
To my surprise (and many others), Bieniemy left the cushy confines of “success” for the murky, unchartered waters in Landover, MD (they don’t call DC “The Swamp” for nothing). The thing that was most surprising was he didn’t accept a head coaching position, but merely an incentive laden contract with NO PROMOTION. Somehow, Ron Rivera managed to keep his job as the admiral of the USS Commanders. But anyone with half a brain could read the tea leaves, and those tea leaves read, “You will be our next head coach after next season.” Yes, it is similar to the promise that the KC Chiefs & Andy Reid made to him, but, for whatever reason, he believed them. And he looks to be their future.
Let’s not forget how competitive the Redskins……sorry……Commanders (how dare I call them the name that their real fans still do) have been without a legit quarterback. I’m a huge Taylor Heinicke fan, but the dude ain’t the long-term answer.
My boy Sam Howell, on the other hand, is.
When Sam Howell fell to the Redskins, I said to myself, “watch out for the Redskins in 5 years.” I’m still on track with that revelation. Anybody who saw him play at North Carolina knows what a game-changer he was. Not only that, he’d been doing it at a high level since he was a freshman.
And the most important factor of my belief in his success with the Redskins, he sat last year. The best quarterbacks all sit their first year: Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes……the list goes on. I believe in this method so much, I will write an article on this very topic and welcome challengers to refute my point.
With the return of a fully healthy Chase Young, the Redskins will have the best D-line in football next year. Write that down. Factor in a new OC who helped piece together one of the greatest overall talents the NFL has ever seen in Patrick Mahomes, and you have a collision course with success. The NFC East will have three playoff teams next season. And the Washington Commanders will be one of them.
Division Titles:
NFC North: Minnesota Vikings
NFC East: Dallas Cowboys
NFC South: New Orleans Saints
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
#1: Philadelphia Eagles
