August 18 2012; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning (18) walks off the field following the end of the preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks at Sports Authority Field. The Seahawks defeated the Broncos 30-10. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE

Alright folks, I know this is the set of projections we’ve all waited (or tolerated the others) for. The AFC West is a very good, underrated, division, and one that at least three teams will be in competition for all the way to end. I’ve always said that this is my favorite division not just because the Chargers are in it, but because no one team is dominant now and they don’t have to be. I’ve always said, “You don’t have to be great in one area or even as a team to win this division, you just have to win.”

4. The Oakland Raiders: The Raiders are no longer the team they were last year and the firing of Hugh Jackson (no matter how much I didn’t like him) was the last straw for this team. They have some good offensive weapons such as obviously, Darren McFadden, Jacoby Ford, and Derious Heyward-Bay. If Carson Palmer can return to theCarson of old, they can win some games with the run game and defense; a combo that the Raiders have always been good with. The defense is just plain nasty both in a good and bad way. They commit tooooooooo many penalties year in and year out, this year shouldn’t be any different. However, they can definitely rush the passer and have aggressive players all over the field. The Raiders over-aggressiveness and undisciplined ways will be the downfall of this team until they realize it’s time to rebuild around the young guns they have.

3. The Denver Broncos *gasp*: Haha, the mighty Broncos, add one player and must be a super bowl contender, give me a break. Now before you jump on me I realize they add a very nice offseason and the one player they added was a hall of famer in Peyton Manning, I understand. However, the analysts believe that a 75% Peyton is better than basically the rest of the division, I don’t. I think the Chargers have simply owned Mr. Manning and should split the series with them, I think the Chiefs will be good again and split with them. Other than that, I think because the Broncos won the division last year they have to play the Texans and Patriots; two more losses and quite possibly a big hit on Manning once or twice. I don’t think the team around Peyton is good enough to carry themselves far. I think the defense was good for one reason last year, “The Tebow factor.” They knew they were going to have to keep the game within ten points and most of the time they did that. Now with, “The Peyton factor,” they may start to think they can slack a little more because Peyton will give them at least a ten point cushion. I’d like to see how this team fares in the tough, grind-it-out games. Once they win a couple of those, Peyton takes some real hits (hopefully a little bit of Super Melvin) and fully gets the offense, then I’ll call them real contenders.

2. The San Diego Chargers: We make the playoffs first and foremost (through the wildcard obviously) we don’t however win the division. I used to say that we would win it and go deep, big one deep. However, with Ryan Mathews out for however long, and Vincent Brown not being able to play until at least week 8, I think we fall to second place. The defense took its biggest steps in years this offseason; the young men and vets should work well together and lead us to one of the better defenses we’ve had in a while. On offense I think we’ll rebound and still be able to score, we always have. Also I think, “The Norv factor,” will play in; where the whole team plays inspired like they do every time Norv’s head is on the chopping block. I think if everything works in unison, we get some “lucky” breaks, the defense steps up, the backups step it up, and the whole team rallies to rebound, we good go all the way. This team has sooooooooo many “ifs” about it and those have to be answered soon in order to keep Norv and the guys around. We shall see.

1. The Kansas City Chiefs: I think many of us can agree the Chiefs right now are the most talented team in the division, all around they are young and solid. With Jamaal Charles, Eric Berry, and Tony Moeaki returning to the lineup, they have a really nice little offense. The big question is the quarterback situation and Matt Cassel has had one good year and two, not-so-good years. On defense Tamba Halli will still rush the passer well and they lost Brandon Carr (we saw how thankful we are for that last night) and replaced him with Stanford Routt. This team is good in almost every spot except maybe the trenches. The Chargers (and rest of the league for that matter) can really challenge this team if they can rush the quarterback and protect their own. This team will return to the postseason with their second division crown in three years however, if they want to go all the way, they know they’re going to have to go through us.

This will be another thrilling division to watch and keep your eyes on; all the matchups will be good.

Well that concludes my projections, no going back on them, thank you for the comments and for reading. Have a great night everybody and remember; always, always stay bolted up!!!!!!!

-RRR

March 29, 2012; Peoria, AZ, USA; San Diego Padres short stop Jason Barlett (8) hits a 2 shot run 2nd inning home run against the Chicago Cubs at the Peoria Sports Complex. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-US PRESSWIRE

For those of you that didn’t catch the game on television last night (or were at it) at one point during the first half, one of the announcers said, referring to the first team offense and Philip Rivers, “You know it’s like batting .180 in spring training, it doesn’t mean anything yet, they’ll get it worked out.” For those of you that don’t know, the starting offense has come out pretty flat through the first two games, and it’s not just our beloved quarterback. As we know Rivers has thrown three picks to only one touchdown, and the starters have scored a total of only seven points.

Now, I’m not one to freak and pull the plug so-to-speak at small things that can be fixed however, after last year this is beginning to worry me. On the other hand though, it was the second preseason game, against a talented defense, and the team hasn’t seen “real-game action” in a little over six months. Those can sound like excuses to me however; they would explain the offenses struggles. Another reason could be because of the injuries and the additions, maybe the players just aren’t clicking well yet. Again it is only the third week of the preseason and the starters have only played a few quarters so far. I just hope that we can get it all settled for Friday which should be a tell-tale game, the starters will play at least two quarters on both sides and we need to score.

I do believe we will be able to score some good points on a consistent basis this year, and I do believe Rivers will bounce back however; I just can’t help but get a little nervous. Again only time will tell, but what do you all think, is it really like “batting .180 in spring training?” How worried are you or should we be?

-RRR

Aug 11, 2012; Charlotte, NC, USA Carolina Panthers quarterback Derek Anderson (3) tries to escape pressure by Houston Texans tight end James Casey (86) during the first quarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-US PRESSWIRE

The AFC South hasn’t really been a competitive division the past few years however, that all begins to change this year. Now I’m not remotely suggesting every team will have a chance, I really see this being a two team race. I’m more saying that it has a lot of potential to, in a few years, be at least a three team competition.

4. The Jacksonville Jaguars: Without a doubt this team is the worst in the South, maybe the worst in the league. With MJD’s contract problems, he won’t report to camp and will hold out of the regular season. In my opinion the front office is just being stubborn. This guy is the team’s only weapon, defenses know they only have to stop him, and still can’t do it. With no Jones-Drew, the rest of the offense will completely fall apart and they’re already hanging in by a thread. Other than the offense the defense is quietly very good. They have a nice little pass rush and a secondary that, while not great, can work together with the front end to hold offenses down. They need to settle the differences with “Pocket Hercules,” get Justin Blackmon under control, and keep Blaine Gabbert in check before they can do anything. The defense steals a few for them but they have no chance at competing.

3. The Indianapolis Colts: The Colts were just horrible last season, quite frankly they sucked. Drafting Andrew Luck will not “save” this team as fans hope, but he will lead this team back to playing good football soon. I’m not so high on him because he had one good preseason game against the Rams however, I will say he looked solid. He looked like a veteran at points reading defenses and performed well, even against the starters. The wide outs he has around him are not the best overall, Reggie Wayne was a very good guy to get back, he will teach Luck how to be a pro and a few drafts will improve his pieces. The defense also has to improve but, I did like the re-signing of Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, they are still good players. In a few good off-seasons and a good development year of Andre Luck, this team could be back to relevance by at least 2014.

2. The Houston Texans: I’ll start with this;Houston makes the playoffs yet again, and it’s not so much that they’re not good enough to win the division again, but rather that the Titans are too good. The Texans went to the postseason for the first time in their history last year and the defense lead them even through the regular season with Matt Schaub down. The defense will dominate again this season even without Mario Williams (who they missed in the last 11 games of the year not to mention the playoffs) and again be in the top 10 statistically. Other than the “D” the offense will also be good. Arian Foster has been my favorite running back for the past couple years, his versatility literally amazes me. A foster block well, runs strong, hard, and fast, and catches the ball in the slot and out of the backfield. Matt Schaub will help the team in the air even if Andre Johnson can’t stay healthy again. This team is young, hungry, and dominant. They will contest hard for the top spot but, will fall just short getting the wild card.

1. The Tennessee Titans: The Titans have been one of my favorite teams (outside ofSan Diego) for a while now; I really think they have a recipe for winning. The quarterback situation gets me feeling really good; if Jake Locker isn’t ready to start they can definitely count on Matt Hasselbeck until he is. CJ2K should come back strong and return to his old self in 2012. He will help this team win a good amount of games. Last year they went 9-7 and he had a very small impact. With Chris Johnson coming back full force the offense will be solid, Kenny Britt (say what you will about his off-the-field problems) can stretch the field and help the rest of the passing game. The defense was strong last year and can play complimentary to the offense. This team will play hard, give a 110%, and fight for a division crown.

Well that’s what I have everyone I hope you have your own feelings, let me know. Let’s have a really great game tonight and beat up some “Boys.” Enjoy the game and your days.

-RRR