Written by Alexandra McClain
With the New Orleans Saints finally winning the Super Bowl last year, shouts of “Who dat?!” erupted around the nation, or at least the South. The question on everyone’s mind as the season begins is “Can the Saints repeat?” These are my predictions for each division of the NFL this season.AFC North: Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens made some key changes to their offense during the offseason, most notably in the form of Pro Bowl wide receiver Anquan Boldin. On the ground, young running back Ray Rice will keep defenses guessing whether quarterback Joe Flacco will be taking an air or ground attack to the end zone.AFC South: Indianapolis Colts. After a dismal performance in Super Bowl XLIV, Peyton Manning and company are coming into this season with another run at a ring on their minds. With the likes of Reggie Wayne and Joseph Addai on the offensive attack, expect the Colts to take the South. Again.AFC West: San Diego Chargers. An eternal fixture at the top of the division, expect The Chargers to catch some close competition from Denver, if Denver can get healthy, that is. But the Chargers will come out on top again in all likelihood.AFC East: New York Jets. After the Favre experiment, the Jets went through a major revamping to bring them to dominance, but they’re back with a vengeance and sights set on a playoff birth. With quarterback Mark Sanchez entering his sophomore season and adding Santonio Holmes and LaDainian Tomlinson, holes in the passing game will be less noticeable and this unlikely team will be even better this season.NFC North: Minnesota Vikings. This will probably be the toughest conference in the NFL this season with the Vikings, Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers battling for the top spot. I think the Vikings will come out on top, especially if this truly IS Brett Favre’s last season.NFC South: New Orleans Saints. The Saints have a major burden to bear: proving that their Super Bowl win was anything but a fluke. Even with the Vikings and Dallas Cowboys drastically improving their teams over the offseason, the Saints are still the team to beat in the NFC.NFC West: San Francisco 49ers. With Arizona losing Kurt Warner to retirement and Anaquan Boldin to a trade, they’ll be taking a backseat in the West this season, leaving the division wide open for the 49ers to take control with quarterback Alex Smith at the helm.NFC East: Dallas Cowboys. I firmly believe there is no other team in the league so thirsty for a Super Bowl title. With offensive weapons Dez Bryant, Miles Austin, Roy Williams and tight end Jason Witten, the Cowboys offense will be all but unstoppable this season.
