National Football Conference Championship Title Chase – The Pretenders

It seems that every year there are a few teams that jump out of the starting blocks fast but fade quickly. How about the Broncos 6-0 start last season? Last year at this time we said that the Broncos were pretenders and they finished 8-8 and missed the playoffs.

We have talked about the big guns and their NFC Championship chances so here is a look at how the rest of the NFC shakes out after two weeks of the 2010 NFL season. Hint: It’s NOT pretty and there is a sinking feeling in 2-0 Tampa.

Buccaneers Open NFL 2010 With Back To Back Wins! They Better Savour The Feeling!!

The most surprising team in the NFC (the entire NFL for that matter) has been the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Their 2-0 start to the season is the most improbable start of any team in the league. We always like to give credit where credit is due but this a smoke and mirrors start by the Bucs and it’s about to come to an abrupt end. The Pittsburgh Steelers roll into Raymond James Stadium this weekend and the party will be all but over in South Florida.

Tampa beat the Browns and the Panthers to get to 2-0 but they have managed just 37 points in their two wins. They also and rank 15th or worse in the top four statistical categories on offense. Their defense has been solid but the Browns rank 24th in scoring and the Panthers are worse at 28th.

They get another offensively challenged opponent in the Steelers during Week Three but they haven’t seen a defense like this one yet and the Bucs stop here. Once they fall to 2-1 the house of cards will crumble.

NFC Title Prediction: Chances are the same as a snowballs chance on a beach in sunny south Florida.

Teams With a 1-1 Record After Week Two – Contenders or Pretenders?

Washington Redskins: Another smoke and mirrors team. Their Week One win over Dallas was more about the poor coaching staff in Dallas and the Cowboys terrible play than the Redskin playing well. Washington’s total collapse in Week Two to the Texans will be tough to bounce back from.

NFC Title Prediction: Chances are about the same as finding an honest DC politician.

New York Giants: The G-Men played a good second half in Week One against the pitiful Panthers and then got crushed by the Colts in Week Two. This teams coaching staff is one of the most vanilla in the league and they lack the imagination that it would take to get the Giants to the Championship.

NFC Title Prediction: G-Men will be lucky to reach 8-8 during the 2010 NFL season.

Someone Will Win the NFC West Division – Will Anyone Care?

The San Francisco 49ers were at the top of the list as the primary contender to win the very weak NFC West. Then the got pounded 31-6 in Week One by the low flying Seahawks and all bets were off. Then they battled the Champion Saints to a heartbreaking 25-22 loss on Monday Night Football and the bets are on again.

If they hadn’t been such “generous” hosts on MNF (four turnovers) they would be in the group of teams sitting at 1-1. Instead they sit at 0-2 and are headed to the always tough Arrowhead Stadium to face the 2-0 (no, that is not a typo) Kansas City Chiefs.

We still feel the 49ers are the “class” of the NFC West but that’s kind of like say getting hit by a pickup truck is better than being hit by a bus. Neither is a good situation but we feel and8-8 record should “earn” San Francisco the right to get pounded on during Wild Card Weekend in January.

As for the Seattle Seahawks, the St. Louis Rams and the Arizona Cardinals: Forget about ’em!

You can also put a fork in the Detroit Lions as well as the Carolina Panthers in the NFC. With their raw new talent the Lions are fun to watch but losing QB Matthew Stafford and their heartbreaking Week One game were both tough blows to take. The Lions roar in 2011!

Finally, the Panthers are a mess on both sides of the ball and very well could “battle” for the first pick in the 2011 NFL Draft with the Cleveland Browns and the Buffalo Bills.