1. The Philadelphia Eagles (density's team) have once again won the offseason. Through aggressive maneuvering on draft day, signing of free agents, contract extensions, and the return of last year's dream team (who would have taken the Giants' place in the playoffs had the Giants not been so lucky), the Eggs have clearly positioned themselves to win every game and send Michael Vick and Andy Reid straight to the Hall of Fame. *Yawn* When have we ever heard that before? Only every year for the past decade. Clearly now that Douche-on Jackson is signed to a long term deal, he will be happy and give a full effort. I have never heard of a player tanking after he signs for big bucks, particularly following a few years of rather vocal discontent over his contract situation. My only hope is that Vick was right in saying that the Uggles have the potential to be a dynasty...and continue their 46 year streak of no championship.
2. The Washington Redskins have found their savior in the personage of Robert Griffin the Third (no relation to Thurston Howell the Third or Shrek the Third). While he has an impressive toolset and it would not surprise me if he does go on to have a very good, if not great, pro career, I do not see the 'Skins being quite THAT good this year. Even Cam Newton, who by most measures had the best rookie season a quarterback has ever had last year, only managed to elevate the Panthers to a 6-10 record last season, up from 2-14 the year before. I would be surprised if RGIII has a similar season, and even if he does, improving the teams winning record by 4 games would be a lot to ask. I could see him bringing them up to 8-8, but would be impressed with anything better.
3. The Dallas Cowboys have also made many moves to improve their roster. They have addressed their secondary issues through free agency and a rather costly draft day move. Tony Romo should have another prolific regular season, and this could be the year where he does come through in the clutch. Jerry Jones has cleared laid it on the line with his comments about the closing window of opportunity. IF they can manage to keep Jerruh in the front office and IF his pressuring of the team doesn't get to them and Jason Garrett, then I can see them being somewhat of a threat in the division. However, they always seem to find a way to lose out in the end (at least in the past 17 years).
4. The other strong teams in the NFC (Panthers, Lions, Bears, Falcons, Saints, Bucs, 49ers, Rams, etc) will clearly be the ones to take the wildcard spots, leaving nothing for the NFC East. Since the Giants won't win the division (see reasons 1-3 above), they are looking a January of golf.
5. No team has repeated as Super Bowl Champion since 2005. The way I see it, we are getting due for another.
By my editorializing, you can see what I think about the staying power of the above reasons. Below are the reasons I think the Giants should remain strongly in contenion:
1. Eli Manning. He has improved his numbers every year he has been in the league. I see no reason why he should not once again throw for over 3000 yards with a >60% completion percentage. And honestly, I cannot think of another quarterback I would want on my team in the 4th quarter or in the playoffs. He is far from perfect and has a ways to go before he should be considered Hall of Fame material, but he is certainly pathing in the right direction.
2. Tom Coughlin. If there is any coach in the league who will not be swayed from his course by a Super Bowl victory, it is Coughlin. He will make sure to keep the team grounded and hungry for another title.
3. Injuries. While the Giants were fortunate in getting people healthy for their run at the end of the year, it seemed like they were seriously plagued by injuries to many starters at the beginning of the year. One of the main reasons I can think of for their 9-7 regular season record is the injuries to starters and depth on the defense. There were a lot of rookies playing for them last year with a limited offseason beforehand due to the lockout. This year will hopefully see fewer people hurt. Granted, if I am wrong about this, it could be a long season.
4. Strength of schedule. The Giants have the toughest schedule this year, based on last year's regular season records of their opponents. So why have a put this as a strength? Well, the Patriots have one of the easiest schedules this year and we know what that means. Another potential rematch with:
GO GIANTS!!!!
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