The Packers should be potent offensively with Aaron Rodgers dishing to Jermichael Finley, Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, and Ryan Grant, and receiving improved protection. Mark Tauscher and Chad Clifton held up nicely last year but both appear to be on their last legs. If they can make it through this year and Bryan Bulaga, first-round tackle, can slide in to play guard, we could see a much improved unit. The defense should be stout with a nice front of BJ Raji, Ryan Pickett, and Cullen Jenkins holding up blockers for Clay Matthews and Nick Barnett at linebacker. Corner is a concern with aging Al Harris coming of an ACL tear and Charles Woodson not getting any younger. Nick Collins and Atari Bigby bring the pain at safety and make a lot of plays. With health and some luck this team could win the Super Bowl.
Minnesota Vikings
Brett Favre is coming back and joins a very talented offense, yet he will not be as productive after taking another year of hits, and teams watching the blueprint provided by the Saints in the NFC title game: hit Brett hard. Adrian Peterson is a super star, but this team will miss do-everything back Chester Taylor. Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin are ultra talented, both deep threats, and should continue to improve. Visanthe Shiancoe is a nice tight end. The offensive line is aging and played inconsistently down the stretch last year, a bad sign when you start a 41-year-old quarterback. The defense should be dominant again with Jared Allen and the Williams boys forming the best defensive line in football. EJ Henderson is declining and injury prone but Chad Greenway is a nice young linebacker. Antoine Winfield is on a major decline and Cedric Griffin is just so-so in coverage. Draftee Chris Cook will help this secondary somewhat but may not be ready yet. If Favre is great again this team can win the whole deal, but I say we see a slip in production.
Chicago Bears
Jay Cutler had an enormously disappointing 2009 but I think that was more of an aberration. He still will take snaps from a shaky line and does not seem to have a go-to receiver. Look for Devin Hester to go back to a more slot receiving/kick returning role. Mike Martz comes in to run the offense but is notorious for minimizing the tight end, which would be a mistake given that Greg Olsen is the Bears' most talented receiving threat. Hopefully Martz won't abandon the run either as Matt Forte and Chester Taylor create a formidable duo. Defensively, Julius Peppers can be an absolute force when motivated, and if he plays at the top of his game he can open things up for super talented but oft-injured defensive tackle Tommie Harris. Brian Urlacher returns from a wrist injury but may actually have benefited from a year away from the football grind and could come back better than ever. Lance Briggs is good but slightly overrated. The secondary is patchwork. This team has some talented players but too many holes to overcome.
Detroit Lions
The Lions finally have promise coming into a season, but don't expect a playoff run just yet. I think Matthew Stafford will eventually be a better player than Mark Sanchez; the kid has huge ability and a competitive fire. Calvin Johnson is as talented and athletic as any player in football. Although they had to trade Ernie Sims to get him, Tony Scheffler is a very nice receiving tight end and will complement emerging second year player Brandon Pettigrew. Kevin Smith is solid at running back but nothing special. Jahvid Best could be the playmaker this offense needs; he is lightning quick and can help enormously in the return game. The offensive line still needs fixing, but this young crop of playmakers could eventually form one of the best offenses in football. I love what the Lions have done defensively, save for trading Ernie Sims. Ndamukong Suh is going to be a great player, and the Lions surrounded him with veteran help up front signing Kyle Vanden Bosch and Corey Williams. This defensive line has the potential to be very good this year. The linebacking corps is suspect outside of Julian Peterson, as is the secondary. However, second year safety Louis Delmas could be a Pro Bowler this year. This is a team on the rise; with one more good draft they could be playoff bound.
Final Standings
Green Bay Packers 11-5
Minnesota Vikings 11-5
Chicago Bears 7-9
Detroit Lions 6-10
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