AntonioGate & Final NFL/SB Predictions

The highly coveted Vince Lombardi Trophy, who will hoist it in Feb. 2020? Photo Credit: Sports Illustrated

South Beach, Miami... home to clear skies, bikinis, nightclubs, fantastic foods, and the 2020 Superbowl. The only thing on every football fan's mind as we sit on the eve of our first 2019 football Sunday-- what two teams will be playing there?

After AntonioGate reached a shocking conclusion, one that immediately struck like a dagger in every fan's heart West of Connecticut, the New England Patriots became the immediate favorite for yet another Super Bowl ring under the Bill Belichick/Tom Brady regime. People usually doubt the Pats chances every August and September, but this year the doubters are nowhere to be found (and for good reason). The whole AB situation has probably put a damper on the season for most. For me, a lifelong Jets fan and Patriots hater, immediate questions come to mind and I'll state them quickly and move on... "Do the Pats have no shame? Answer is yes, unequivocally, and their fans have less. They will sign any player no matter their prior conduct or personal history." "Was this the plan all along for AB? Cause enough drama in Oakland, somewhere he clearly never wanted to play, until he was finally released and then honor some shady back alley deal made between him and Belichick back when Brown wore black and yellow? No proof, but I wouldn't put it past this organization which has bent the rules many times before, or Brown." "Was any of it real? Did he freeze his feet on purpose? I feel sorry for Gruden, the patsy who stood up for him." "Is the sellout Antonio Brown now comparable to Kevin Durant and other major sports sellouts of old? I guess we'll find out." Two things are certain... the Patriots will be in the playoffs barring any catastrophic injuries (and probably in the AFC Championship at least if not the Superbowl, how exciting for us all), and everyone not on the Pats bandwagon will be rooting against them above all else.

So that's where we stand at 9 PM on September 7, 2019... but as the saying goes, nothing is certain, and that's why you play the games. I made some loose NFL gut predictions back in the Summertime over the course of my offseason grade articles, but they were always subject to change based on final roster moves and injuries. I wanted to briefly get my final picks down on record before the season began so that I can see how I did in February, and because of a busy week I had to do it after the first official game (sorry). **Honestly though, Thursday night's game didn't change my decisions at all (I picked the Packers to win the North back in June).** Anyway, I went through the schedule week by week and came up with final season records and playoff brackets but before we get there I'll quickly remind everyone of my initial thoughts this Summer: Division Winners- Patriots, Browns, Colts, Chargers, Eagles, Packers, Saints, 49ers with the Wildcards- Chiefs, Jaguars, Rams, Bears... clearly some amendments need to be made here.

The Colts, Chargers and 49ers all took stock hits in some way shape or form this preseason, and teams like the Texans, Pats, Chiefs, Cowboys, and Seahawks made positive additions. What am I talking about? Well Andrew Luck retired, Melvin Gordon might be the next Le'Veon Bell, and Jimmy Garoppolo looked worse than most people imagined returning from his ACL injury. On the opposite side of things; Zeke reached a deal, Tyreek Hill avoided suspension and gained a teammate in Shady McCoy, Seahawks D added Clowney, the Texans acquired Stills, Tunsil, and Duke Johnson but lost Miller, and we know about the Patriots already. Here were how my records turned out after all this, but before the Antonio Brown relocation:

AFC East- Patriots 12-4, Jets 10-6, Bills 9-7, Dolphins 1-15

AFC North- Browns 11-5, Ravens 8-8, Steelers 8-8, Bengals 2-14

AFC South- Jaguars 10-6, Texans 10-6 (WC), Titans 7-9, Colts 6-10

AFC West- Chiefs 11-5, Chargers 10-6 (WC), Broncos 7-9, Raiders 5-11

NFC East- Eagles 13-3, Cowboys 10-6 (WC), Giants 5-11, Redskins 3-13

NFC North- Packers 11-5, Bears 10-6 (WC), Lions 8-8, Vikings 6-10

NFC South- Saints 12-4, Panthers 10-6, Falcons 8-8, Buccaneers 5-11

NFC West- Rams 10-6, 49ers 8-8, Seahawks 7-9, Cardinals 3-13

The only corrections I'll might make following AntonioGate is Pats 14-2, Jets 9-7, Bills 8-8 (I think I had them both beating the Patriots at home originally). I would add a win to both the Chiefs and Chargers but I think I already had them each beating the Raiders twice, can't remember.

The other big changes? Well I balked on my bold 49ers pick once I saw Jimmy G play... frankly he looks terrified in the pocket, and it may take a few weeks or longer for the starting QB to get past that. I still think the Rams will be worse in 2019, around 10-6 or 9-7, but that might be enough to take the division. The rest of the NFC didn't change much from my gut reaction, but the Cowboys and Panthers benefited from the Niners regression as well, especially the Boys who eeked out a playoff spot. There was much more chaos in the AFC... the Raiders dropped for obvious reasons, the Chiefs pushed back into the lead in the West with their offensive unit growing while the Chargers unit shrank, the Colts and Texans flip-flopped as one lost their quarterback and the other made necessary moves to protect their's from injury, and the Jags moved up the ladder following a comfortable preseason and the loss of a contender. I won't get too far into the initial reasoning for team's lower records like the Vikings or Falcons, because you can find them in my previous articles linked above. This write up is about the alterations.

PLAYOFFS:

(AFC)

#1 New England Patriots- BYE

#2 Kansas City Chiefs (by tiebreak over Browns)- BYE

#6 Los Angeles Chargers (lost tiebreak to Texans) @ #3 Cleveland Browns... Browns Advance because of their ferocious defense in Cleveland, not Baker's O.

#5 Houston Texans (won tiebreak over Chargers, lost tiebreak to Jags) @ #4 Jacksonville Jaguars... Jags Advance as Sacksonville dominates a weak Texans O-Line at home.

#4 Jacksonville Jaguars @ #1 New England Patriots (originally I had the Jags upsetting the Pats here, as I feel they're the team most suited to do it with their makeup of blitz-and-run football, but now I would be foolish to pick against NE)... Patriots Advance in a closer game than people think, but New England depth overpowers Jacksonville/Foles in the end.

#3 Cleveland Browns @ #2 Kansas City Chiefs... Chiefs Advance as Mahomes outplays Baker and Chiefs weapons are able to allude Browns sturdy D.

#2 Kansas City Chiefs @ #1 New England Patriots (I know a rematch of last year's AFC Championship isn't a groundbreaking prediction but it seems inevitable as things currently stand)... Patriots Advance in Foxborough as Chiefs/Reid's playoff curse continues, nothing new here.

(NFC)

#1 Philadelphia Eagles- BYE

#2 New Orleans Saints- BYE

#6 Chicago Bears (won tiebreak over Panthers, lost tiebreak to Cowboys) @ #3 Green Bay Packers... Packers Advance behind veteran presence of Aaron Rodgers in Lambeau.

#5 Dallas Cowboys (won tiebreak over Bears) @ #4 Los Angeles Rams... Cowboys Advance as a DeMarcus Lawrence led defense flusters Goff and Dak/Zeke combo does enough to win.

#5 Dallas Cowboys @ #1 Philadelphia Eagles... Cowboys Advance in an old-fashioned dogfight between bitter rivals, both offenses can move the ball well enough but Dallas holds the head to head edge with their deep young defense.

#3 Green Bay Packers @ #2 New Orleans Saints... Saints Advance in a legendary battle between two hall-of-fame QB's and two consistent offenses, and Payton out-coaches LaFleur.

#5 Dallas Cowboys @ #2 New Orleans Saints... Saints Advance to Superbowl as Brees outclasses Prescott in a low-scoring game, feeling some validation and redemption after their pass interference snub left them at the doorstep in 2018-19.

SUPERBOWL LIV

This is the matchup everyone wanted last year; Brees vs. Brady, Payton vs. Belichick, two dynastic football cultures over the last 25 years flooding Miami for a warmer Winter, and po'boys & gumbo vs. grinders & chowdah. The NFL would love this matchup, how could they not? It's iconic, it's must-watch TV, and quite frankly, it's history in the making...

NFC #2 New Orleans Saints vs. AFC #1 New England Patriots

I'm rolling with the Saints in 2019-20 (I had them beating the Chiefs from the start so I'll stick with them even if the Pats look ominous as ever), and also predicting a Drew Brees swansong as he lifts the Lombardi Trophy for the second time a la Peyton Manning in 2016 (if only Brady would follow their lead). A fairy tale ending like a Super Bowl win retirement for a sports legend couldn't happen twice in four years, could it? Lightning never strikes twice like that, does it?... well I'll look for any excuse to pick against the Patriots right now because lightning has already struck six times for them.

Don't try and reach me tomorrow, I'll be busy... LET'S GO JETS!