ARE YOU READY FOR SOME

FOOTBALL? We are!  

THE SUICIDE POOL, YEAR II:

Remember the excitement of last year's suicide pool, won by your humble blogger Rumpole? We defeated CK deep into the season and we look forward to a rematch. Just shoot us an email and you are in. The rules are you need to pick one team, no point spread, to win each week, and once you use that team you cannot use it any longer for the rest of the year. So choose wisely and join in.  It's free, and unless you're anonymous like us, if you win  you get bragging rights, a Starbucks Card, and some sort of trophy suitable for display. 

OUR PREDICATIONS: 

Longtime and careful readers will remember we had another fantastic season last year, going something like 197-10 in our picks. Real careful readers will remember we were on fire for the first month. Our philosophy was and is to identify a trend against popular opinion and then bet the heck out of it. Last year it was that San Diego was way over rated and it paid off big time in the first 6 weeks or so. 

This year? We're working on a few theories, running complicated computer simulations and while we're not ready to release any information, lets just say we have a suspicion that the happiest moments of the upcoming season for Cowboys QB Tony Romo will be at home with Jessica Simpson and not on the football field. We think the Cowpokes may be headed for a big let down. Conversely we still like the Pack and (as much as it pains us to say it) the J..E...T...S  to rebound and have a good season. 

Can anyone tell us why the 18-0 New England Cheaters have one of the easiest schedules in the NFL this year? 

Some more quick thoughts- The Cleveland Browns are overrated until they show us otherwise. Avoid putting any rent money on the Brownies.  The Chargers who came on strong late in the season will win the AFC West by default. Every other team in the NFL's weakest division will probably have a losing record, and the Broncos may well implode into a Dolphins like season of misery and woe.  The NFC West is another disaster of a division and if Cardinal QB Matt Leinart can stay out of hot tubs with ASU  Co-eds long enough to practice, this may be the year the Cards break through and end Seattle's long dominance of the division.  

The division to watch is the NFC East, where at least on paper the Cowpokes and the Gints are legitimate SB contenders. The Redskins and the Eagles, while not legitimate contenders have the ability to force season splits in their series with the boyz from NY and Dallas. Every game in this division this year will be a good one. 

And finally our lovable losers, the Miami Dolphins. While we don't expect a winning season, 8-8 is not out of the realm of possibility. They won't make the playoffs, but Parcells has turned this team around. He builds from the bottom up,  spending high draft choices on men in the trenches. The O Line and D Line are solid, and if Ricky can "Run Ricky Run" this year, then the Fins will keep it close. Watch the under on these games, as a good D and a conservative offense will keep the Fins in close, low scoring games. 

Enjoy the weekend.