National Football League in London
It’s that time of the year when every jackass with a football yob makes their blind predictions for the NFL season.
Luckily, we have own blind, yob, and his name is Ryan Cull.
Ryan is an ardent Bills fan, so choosing this must be hard for him.
An all Pennsylvania game, with the Eagles topping the Steelers.
What are the odds on this?
Good question.
How was the West won?
Not very bloody easily, and this year will be no exception.
Wade McElwain and Ryan Cull are actually torn on this one, which always makes for good betting.
Let’s start with the returning Kansas City Chiefs, who were humbled in the AFC by the Patriots last season.
Is there any way to expect the same won’t happen again this year?
Doubtful.
The Chiefs are fierce, but losing Kareem Hunt and the debacle around Tyreek Hill might make this team a bit unfocused.
Ryan is confident that they will bounce back with full force, but Wade is more sceptical.
The Chiefs have a fear of being successful in the playoffs, and Wade sees that happening again this year.
Also, Patrick Mahomes threw too many no-look passes last year, so it will be hard to see how he keeps that up this year.
The Broncos are the epitome of a dysfunctional family.
Joh Elway struggles every year getting that perfect balance of offence and defence, so how will they put together a string of wins, if they can’t even figure out their QB situation?
Wade & Ryan have them around a 500 team.
Sure, they might spoil a few parties, but the real spoiler will be the stench that comes from their own inner rot.
The Raiders have had some ‘hard knocks’ as of late.
Jon Gruden is determined to make something of this team before they bounce off to Vegas, but will Antonio Brown be a distraction?
Can Derek Carr forge the focus of this team into winning, or will they be more focused on whining?
At any rate, they will be entertaining to watch…even if it’s them imploding.
And the Chargers. Are they in LA? Are they in San Diego? Do they even have any real fans?
Phillip Rivers isn’t getting any younger, and with 37 kids to feed-he is going to be determined to win something this year.
Wade thinks that they have a real chance here to finally face off against the Patriots.
Melvin Gordon is the real conundrum in the mix, and they need to get all eyes facing forward if they want to win it this year.
Can we really choose anyone else in this division other than the New England Patriots?
How did they get even stronger this year when Tom Brady is at least 109 years old!
Wade & Ryan both take a stab at how they think this division will end up, and it’s pretty predictable.
UNLESS Tom Brady is somehow mangled on the field this season, the Patriots should comfortably cruise on through unscathed to the post-season.
Wade sees the Patriots going all the way to the big game, while Ryan thinks that they will have some problems in the AFC battle in January.
Buffalo present an interesting dilemma, as they have a huge talent of running backs to choose from, as well as a plucky running QB in Josh Allen.
Will their defense be able to stifle the opposition again this year? Have they strengthened their line by shovelling snow in the offseason?
Buffalo could well be a 500 team again this year, causing problems and turmoil to all teams in this division.
The New York Jets are interesting as you have a team whose coach has essentially run rough-shot over the whole team. He is not a huge fan of Le’veon Bell, so it will be interesting to see how they respond to him.
Will their QB-Sam Darnold continue to impress with his play, or will he switch back to erratic?
There is a ton of pressure on the Jets to succeed this year, sadly it doesn’t see like Wade or Ryan think that will happen.
Lastly the lowly Dolphins of Miami, where the hurricanes seem to intensify every year.
The fact that Ryan Fitzpatrick was able to secure the starting job says a lot about how this team will progress.
Miami traditionally starts off modestly ok, then quickly turns as Florida can turn into ‘Florida Man’…
(Have you tried Googling that followed by your birthday?)
Suffice to say, this is another Patriots year.
Even without Gronk.