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Posted 09/04/2008 at 06:49 PM
Another pro football season is finally here with the opening kickoff between Washington and New York quickly approaching. The Giants will have a hard time defending their championship, especially playing in the brutal NFC East. However, I think this division will produce the NFC representative in the Super Bowl with Dallas finally getting over the playoff hump and making Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa Bay.
New York got hot at just the right time last season, but some recent developments from its defensive line along with the added pressure of trying to repeat will leave the G-Men around 9-7 and out of the postseason.
New England just missed a perfect season last year after being upset by the Giants, and the Patriots should win the AFC East once again but only with an 11-5 record. New England's defense is getting older by the minute, especially the linebackers, but there should still be enough in the tank to hold off the hard-charging Buffalo Bills.
Brett Favre's streak of consecutive starts will be broken this year midway through the season, and the Jets will be a disappointing 6-10. Favre will then sign a one-day contract with Green Bay and retire for good.
The AFC representative in the Super Bowl will be the Jacksonville Jaguars, who will have a somewhat homefield advantage in the Super Bowl. I always compare Jacksonville to a better version of Pittsburgh, a blue-collar team that can run the ball down your thoat while playing hard-hitting defense. Head coach Jack Del Rio gets a Gatorade bath as the Jaguars topple Dallas, 30-24.
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