Watched the film on the Super Bowl champions. Here's the early outlook for the 2010 Saints. Offense The two who deserve the most credit for New Orleans’s success are the two you’d expect: Sean Payton and Drew Brees. Payton utilized a greater variety of formations than any play-caller in football, and he created a lethal passing game without compromising balance (the Saints ranked 6th in the league in rush yards and 7th in rush attempts). [...] Continue reading →

After watching the film, here's the early outlook on the 2010 Carolina Panthers. Offense Carolina’s system was fresh in the 1980’s. But this day and age, a team that eschews the third and fourth receiver for the second tight end and fullback is a team that doesn’t trust its quarterback. When he wasn’t turning the ball over, Jake Delhomme often struggled making smart reads. His [...] Continue reading →

After reviewing the film and roster, here's the early outlook for the 2010 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Offense The low rankings – 30th in scoring, 28th in yards, 27th on third down, etc. – can be chalked up to instability at quarterback. Byron Leftwich is not a good fit in any offense – this one included. Josh Johnson scrambled well but displayed shoddy fundamentals in the pocket. Rookie Josh Freeman’s mental struggles prevented [...] Continue reading →

Atlanta Falcons film has been watched, the roster has been reviewed. Here's where they stand heading into 2010 spring. Offense The Falcons offense plateaud in all phases last season. Matt Ryan continued to flash superstar traits, but he also developed a tendency to rush his progressions. He’ll learn. At times, Ryan was overly dependent on new TE Tony Gonzalez. Gonzalez’s arrival solidified a predominantly two-TE system (Justin Peelle played a significant role [...] Continue reading →

Watched the film on the 2009 Vikings. Here's how they look, and here's where they need to go. Offense Brett Favre, not Adrian Peterson, was the key in 2009. Favre’s pocket brilliance covered for a line that regressed as the season wore on. LT Bryant McKinnie proved he’s as soft as he is big. The fact that he made the Pro Bowl tells you a.) Fan voters don’t know anything and b.) Jordan Gross, Jamaal Brown, Chris Samuels and Walter Jones were hurt. RG Anthony [...] Continue reading →

Watched the film and read the reports. Here's a look at the state of the Green Bay Packers. Offense Once veteran tackles Chad Clifton and Mark Tauscher got healthy, the offensive line settled down and this talented offense flourished. Before that, the Packers were at the mercy of right tackle Allen Barbre, who stopped defensive ends the way colanders water. Guards Daryn Colledge and Josh Sitton got better in the second half of the season, but both showed a [...] Continue reading →

Watched the film, read the reviews, here's the outlook for the Detroit Lions this 2010 offseason. Offense Young first-round picks at the quarterback, running back and wide receiver positions are moot if your offensive line can’t block. Detroit learned this the hard way in 2009. Their offense was doomed the instant guards Manny Ramirez and Stephen Peterman took the field. Besides having no raw power, Ramirez and Peterman – and their occasional replacements Jon [...] Continue reading →

Watched the film, read the reports. Here's the portrait of the Chicago Bears heading into 2010. Offense Jay Cutler was to blame for all except a small handful of his league-leading 26 interceptions. Cutler’s penchant for mistakes in the red zone was most alarming. But mistakes happen when you ask a cocky young gunslinger to lead a thoroughly untalented offense. Cutler played behind perhaps the worst line in football. LT Orlando Pace should not have been on an NFL roster last year, let alone in a starting lineup. [...] Continue reading →

After watching the film on the 2009 San Francisco 49ers, here's a look at the state of the team and what to expect this offseason. Offense What was supposed to be a power-run system wound up becoming a shotgun offense. Why? Quarterback Alex Smith was more comfortable in that formation, and coaches probably believed that a shotgun would ameliorate the crippling pass blocking blunders at right tackle (where Adam Snyder and Tony Pashos took turns getting destroyed). [...] Continue reading →

After studying up and reviewing the 2009 film, here's the verdict on the Seattle Seahawks. Offense It’s chic these days to say Seattle needs to part ways with Matt Hasselbeck. But that would be foolish. Hasselbeck was healthy enough to start 14 games in 2009. Yes, he had a career-high 17 interceptions, but eight of them came in two awful outings. Overall, Hasselbeck still showed accuracy, pocket poise and an innate feel for the West Coast offense. Seattle didn’t have a run game to support Hasselbeck. That was a [...] Continue reading →