The analysis of the NFL is truly astounding. Before the season has even started countless comments are made in terms of who will win MVP (Most Valuable Player), who will get to the Super Bowl, etc. This is part of and parcel of American sport, so I do not really have a problem with speculation before the season starts. But the same thing happens after every single game week, and at the beginning of the season it is just too early to make significant claims for the whole season. I remember after the Kansas City Chiefs vs New England Patriots game, people were saying Tom Brady is starting to show his age and wont be effective anymore. IT WAS ONE GAME. Just look at him a few weeks ago, three touchdown passes and 25 of 34 passes completed. The first few weeks it is too soon to make speculative comments whereas now there have been fifteen weeks of NFL action so I think there are things we know about where the season is going. So this is what this blog will be about, the NFL season so far.

Protests Still Prevalent  

Obviously the ‘take a knee’ protests have had a huge influence over the season this year, much like it had last year. It seems that a lot of the time people are just looking to see who will be protesting instead of enjoying the NFL games, and the furore over the supposed disrespect to the flag and military was unbelievable. These misconceptions around the protests were very frustrating indeed, because Donald Trump made the protests about something they weren’t. They are about racial inequality and brutality, they are not disrespecting the military or the flag. I will not dwell on this any longer as I have written a blog about this previously.

Related: Taking A Knee is About Racial Inequality, Not the Military

Injuries Play a Huge Part

2017 is no different from any other season in one annoying and frustrating way, injuries. They ruin everything, they curtail good seasons, demolish promising ones, and take away some of the finest players of the game. Aaron Rodgers broke his right clavicle during a Week Six loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The Packers are nothing without Rodgers and they stand no chance without him. The New York Giants season has been totally destroyed by the injuries to their star receivers, Odell Beckham Junior, and Brandon Marshall. Both suffered significant ankle injuries which will keep them both out of the game for a long time. The Indianapolis Colts, lost Andrew Luck after surgically repairing his throwing shoulder and he was one of the only QB’s in the league who could keep that team afloat. Star running back David Johnson of the Arizona Cardinals suffered a wrist injury in the first game of the season and is expected to come back in the new year. He bore the offensive load last season and is of paramount importance for the Cardinals success. Carson Wentz was truly heart-breaking as well, as he suffered a torn ACL knee injury which has side-lined him the rest of the season. This is terrible because Philadelphia and Wentz were playing brilliantly and were one of the favourites to win it all. They will still make the playoffs but have lost their star Quarterback. Star wide receiver Antonio Brown is also out for the rest of the regular season because of a calf injury. Brown, was having an MVP calibre, along with Wentz, so to have him cut down when playing so well is crushing. I hope he is back for the playoffs though.

Some other star players with longstanding injuries include Julian Edelman (torn ACL), Don’t’a Hightower (torn pectoral), Eric Berry (ruptured Achilles), and Luke Kuechly (Numerous concussion issues). But the team with the worst luck has to be the Houston Texans. Their star defensive juggernaut, JJ Watt is out for six to nine months to repair a tibial fracture in his left leg. Whitley Mercilus also tore his pectoral muscle against the Chiefs so their defence is missing two key cogs. Finally, they have now lost star rookie Quarterback DeShaun Watson. This injury made the whole football world grimace as he tore his ACL in training, not a game. He had been playing out of his mind too, over six games he had passed for 1,699 yards and tied the league with 19 touchdowns. You simply have to feel sorry for the Texans here.

But this is the nature of this incredibly violent game, injuries will inevitably happen, sometimes to the very best in the league. I am sure there are some I have missed but will not dwell on injuries any longer. There is nothing we can do about it, so I am going to move on and talk about some teams.

Team Analysis

Terrible, terrible teams

As I said above, there have been fifteen weeks of action so there are some judgements and comments I can make on how the season is going. Let’s get the bad out of the way nice and early. Some teams are just horrifically bad – the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears, San Francisco 49ers, and the New York Giants. (Who would have thought an Eli Manning led team could be so bad? Well me because he is ridiculously overrated and the luckiest Super Bowl winner in history, but I promise I am not bitter about that……) All these teams don’t have a good enough Quarterback which begs the question, why have none of them signed Colin Kaepernick yet? Well saying that we know why no one has signed him, they are worried about the fan and political backlash which could hit their team. But I am just saying, he is more talented than all those QB’s playing every week for those NFL franchises, so he should be given a shot. Two more teams who should just shut down their seasons are the Indianapolis Colts, who need Andrew Luck back as soon as possible, and the Cincinnati Bengals, who have a stud in A.J. Green but can’t get him the ball enough.

Now lets look at some possible contenders for the Super Bowl victory.

AFC

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers are the one team that most of the league do not want to play in the playoffs, especially if you’re in the AFC. You can say what you want about Antonio Brown, and Martavis Bryant when it comes to their characters, but you cannot deny that they can really play. And if Big Ben Roethlisberger is on his game then their offence is truly scary. AND, you can also add LeVeon Bell, one of the finest running backs in the game, to the mix as well. It all comes down to Big Ben, and how effective Pittsburgh can be on the defensive end, which will decide how far the Steelers go. (And provided they can actually complete some catches, nice work if you know what I am referring to here!) Even with Antonio Brown out for a while now, he will be back for the playoffs so Bryant, Bell, Juju Smith-Schuster and Brown himself will be hard to stop come playoff time. Let’s hope his calf muscle is 100 percent healed by then.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Have been the target of countless jokes in recent years about how bad the team is, but they are playing some really good football at last. Finally, after a decade they are back in the post-season after clinching a spot after a win against the Houston Texans on Sunday. Their success can be attributed to people like Executive Vice-President Tom Coughlin, along with old school coach Doug Marrone, who have finally got a talented roster playing. They lead the league in rushing attempts and yards behind Leonard Fournette who is a superstar in the making. But more significantly, the Florida based defence is more impressive. In 2017, out of the entire NFL, Jacksonville forces the most turnovers, gets the most sacks of the opposing quarterback, and allows the fewest points. Defence wins championships so having a good one is an advantage, but their offense, behind Blake Bortles, needs to be more consistent, especially when they face tougher opponents.

New England Patriots

I will end looking at the AFC with possibly the most hated team in the NFL, my Patriots. At the beginning of the season there were a lot of people who gave the Pats a nod for easily waltzing back into the Super Bowl. I was sceptical then and I am sceptical now. Julian Edelman, Tom Brady’s favourite target, is out for the year as is Hightower. But up to this point Brady and coach Bill Belichick have found ways around their absence and I think with these two, the Pats will always be tough to beat. Rob Gronkowski on his day is totally un-guardable, Dion Lewis and James White are strong running backs, and Amendola, Cooks, Hogan and Allen make up a good receiving core. The only question mark is the defence. They aren’t miles ahead of the rest of the league, as shown by the recent game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, (and before you say anything, yes it was an incomplete pass), but the Pats are probably still favourites to get to another Super Bowl.

NFC

Minnesota Vikings

The main aspect of the Vikings is their defence which ranks 2nd in the NFL for the least amount of points allowed. However, their offence is more concerning, especially their Quarterbacks. They have Case Keenum, Sam Bradford, and Teddy Bridgewater on the roster and I cannot see a world where they win a Super Bowl with one of these QB’s. If I am being honest I also think their good record is flattering the team, because they have had a favourable schedule in which they have played several weak teams. They have played the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals and a Green Packers team without Aaron Rodgers. Having said that, you still have to go and win the games, so I should give Minnesota credit, but in games against quality opponents, they tend to lose as they have done to Pittsburgh, and Carolina this year.

New Orleans Saints

New Orleans is the complete opposite of the Vikings. Their offence is their main weapon behind the legendary arm of Drew Brees. The Saints rank third in the NFL in points per game, scoring 28.6 every time. They are also top 5 in passing and rushing yards per game. However, they are in a tough conference and are being pushed heavily by the….

Carolina Panthers

In my opinion, Carolina, led by Cam Newton, is the team no one wants to play in the NFC in the playoffs. Their offensive and defensive numbers are solid, but if Cam gets hot then we have all seen what he can do, especially in his MVP season a couple of years ago. This team also have playoff experience with the majority having played in the Super Bowl loss to the Denver Broncos in 2016, and this will help them understand what needs to be done to win during the playoffs. Count them out at your peril.

LA Rams

The Rams are one of the few teams in the NFL who concede less than 20 points a game and this is massively important during the playoffs. Being able to stop the opposing team dead in its tracks cannot be overstated in its importance. Their offence, heavily reliant on running back Todd Gurley II, can clearly click too as they lead the league in most points scored per game with 31.3. The Rams recent demolition of Seattle 42-7 shows they are more than capable on the offensive end. However, QB Jared Goff has been inconsistent, and they have conceded a lot of points to other good teams. They conceded 24 in Minnesota, 30 to the Cowboys, and 43 against Philadelphia. Which leads me nicely onto the Eagles actually….

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles were playing well with Carson Wentz having an MVP type year, but his injury has halted the juggernaut big time. His injury, along with their back-up being Nick Foles, has significantly dented their Super Bowl chances, in fact now I don’t think they will get there. As I said above, I hate injuries and I hate the ACL ligament in the knee because the recovery time is too slow. (But this type of injury does put into perspective the longevity of Tom Brady). Anyway, back to Philly, their defence is still solid, and lets hope Foles can raise his game enough that the Eagles have a longer post-season than I think they will.

Finally, I also wouldn’t sleep on the Dallas Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons, Kansas City Chiefs, or Seattle Seahawks, as all could possibly make some noise coming to the end of the regular season. If I am a Super Bowl contender, one thing is for certain, I wouldn’t want to play any of them.

So, this has been my summation of the NFL season so far and if I had to take a very early punt on who will make it to the Super Bowl it’d be the Patriots against the Panthers. I may be totally wrong, but speculating things like this in sport is fun anyway!

I must say thank you to Chris Pearce Photography for the 1st and 3rd image in this weeks blog!

Thanks for reading.