2007-08 NFL Quarter Season Report: My Surprise Season Starts

Looking at the NFL so far as ¼ of the season has progressed, there have been teams that have come along and surprised everyone including myself. When I made my predictions over who would win what division, I have seen a few teams that I expected to do good get off to a terrible start. Likewise, the same goes for teams expected to be bad that so far is doing rather well. There are going to be 4 separate powers based on the 32 teams dividing up into 8 per section. It will show who really has surprised people for the good and the bad and the area teams are expected to be whether it's good or bad. To start things off, it will be good teams that have so far gotten off to terrible starts.

Teams Expected to do Good but Have Started Off Bad

Chicago Bears-How to go from going to the Super Bowl to now just doing horrible is unbelievable. Maybe it does matter who really is the QB for the team as the defense hasn't been up to par and hasn't gotten the job done plain and simple. Grossman lost his job to Griese and it hasn't produced a win yet, then again he just started in Week 4 so only time will tell if he will bring the team up. Unless they have a turnaround, the city of Chicago will be very disappointed in this team and probably will want to call for the coach's firing right or wrong.

New York Jets-While I had predicted them to finish 2^nd place in the division and be more competitive, this team sure doesn't look like it at all. They are currently off to a bad start. The only thing keeping them from dead is Miami, which will be brought up later on.

Baltimore Ravens-Expected to win the division, but so far they are not off to the best of starts and just this past week, they got embarrassed by a Cleveland Browns that they usually beat. While not very far away from the division by any means, it is somewhat surprising they haven't exactly done slightly better than what they've done. Now they compete with Cleveland for 2^nd place in the AFC North, which is going to be very competitive.

San Diego Chargers-A potential challenger for the AFC Crown, the Chargers have done rather miserable. It is a shock that this team fell from 1^st to worst. Who knows what happened and they went 14-2 last season and they've lost 1 more than last year all ready. Was last a season a fluke? It makes you wonder but so far it is still surprising nevertheless. If San Diego doesn't get their act together and start playing like a team that wants to win, they're going to finish really horrific.

Cincinnati Bengals-This one is a surprise to say the least considering the fact they got embarrassed by Cleveland and haven't recovered. The offense hasn't been that bad as far as passing but bottom-line, they're just not winning games. The defense has just been almost virtually nonexistent and there's no excuse. Yes, the division is going to be tough to win but it still doesn't excuse how poor they've been playing. Maybe those players getting arrested have caused a distraction for the team.

New Orleans Saints-This was an embarrassing to pick to go to the Super Bowl this season. So far they haven't even won a game and that's pretty bad. The question is what exactly happened and why do they suck right now? Looks like a lack of chemistry and maybe they got too cocky as a team. Maybe they lost that feel good moment for the city of New Orleans or something. If New Orleans doesn't get on the ball soon, they will finish dead last, quite a contrast from what I picked.

Philadelphia Eagles-Between McNabb blowing up and the team not playing well, it is just embarrassing for them to be in last place. Remember when they went to the Super Bowl? It sure seems like yesterday with them but just distractions are just hurting this team and of course McNabb not being healthy won't help the team at all. What needs to be done is a direction.

St. Louis Rams-Not even winning one game and that is pretty pathetic. The only other team that is really surprising and had some expectations but it's like they can't even get a victory no matter what. This team has really fallen under hard times and hasn't been the same since their Super Bowl victory over the Titans back 7 years ago. Now they can't win a game, this team better start playing soon and by soon that means right away if expected to do anything.

Teams expected to do Bad but have Started Off Well

Detroit Lions-The joke of the league and had many jokes written on how they couldn't find the goal line. I must admit I may have underestimated this team since they are doing really well. They are 3-1 and challenging for the NFC North, quite a contrast from last season. At this rate, they're going to go to the post-season but it is still too early to say but they deserve praise for doing well though. The team finally decided to get themselves moving.

Tampa Bay Bucs-Didn't expect them to really do anything but so far the team is off to a good start. I never noticed until now but they were worst and now 1^st. It seems to happen with the NFC South for some reason. The worst team in that division does better and possibly takes the division. It may be too early to say they got it but perhaps if some consistency, Tampa Bay can become a major threat for not just one year but also multiple years. It is difficult in the NFL but it can be done.

Washington Redskins-Usually finishing last has been a trend but maybe this is going to be different. They did have a bye week but the biggest key will be the series with the Dallas Cowboys. That could however determine if they stand a chance at the division crown and not only that but potentially the Wild Card. They may have potential but it doesn't guarantee a thing. As long as there's team chemistry, they will go far.

Green Bay Packers-4-0 and leading the division is very impressive. While they were expected to be semi-decent, this type of start is impressive to say the least. Favre is having a good year and now owns the Touchdown Pass Record surpassing Dan Marino. He is going to be in the Hall of Fame someday and is the resident NFL Iron Man not missing many starts and has been blessed to play even in tough times. If this team plays this good going half way, they might potentially be a threat to the NFC and could go to the Super Bowl for the 3^rd time under Brett Favre.

Cleveland Browns-Had they not lost in a cheap fashion, they would be 3-1 and actually tied for 1^st place in the division. Since getting rid of Frye as the QB, they've been 2-1 and it has worked so far. For some reason, maybe Frye was just the weak link and was really holding the team back no matter how much they tried to get behind him, it didn't happen. With Quinn one more step away from starting and Anderson and the Browns stepping up to the plate, they may have a chance to be decent this year.

Arizona Cardinals-A slight surprise but not a huge one. The only thing keeping them from being last has to do with the Poor play of the Rams. It's no secret Arizona is not known in football that way with winning. They've never been to the Super Bowl in their history. The only thing that will get them out of the rut and really be a surprise team is to keep winning and have team chemistry.

Tennessee Titans-It looks like Pacman Jones hasn't affected this team at all and now they're doing decent at this moment in time. The team has a Quarterback that isn't doing too bad and they're winning games. As long as that happens and the defense does its part and keeps the other team from scoring more than them, they can do some damage.

Oakland Raiders-While they should be 2-2, they should have won the Denver game and lost the Cleveland but winning and losing under a cheap dirty tactic. Not too bad considering they're not last, which is a shock. The chemistry is too early to tell if it's really there or not.

Teams with Expectations to do Bad

Atlanta Falcons-Whether its due to the Michael Vick or not, they haven't played too good and won games. Harrington has had a couple decent games but has not proven to be a great Quarterback. Until he wins the games, it's not going to matter how impressive his numbers were if the defense can't stop the other team from scoring a lot of runs.

Minnesota Vikings-No chemistry on this team and so far the lack of effort put into building up a good group. The direction is not really that well known but they could be better than what they are. As far as the draft goes, it will only matter based upon how well players perform and it never matters whether they are a top pick or a bottom pick. If Minnesota decides to start playing soon, they could move up to the good radar.

New York Giants-They're not up to competing in the division just yet and that's a shame. It could have been a matchup with Dallas but so far it's not looking like it. Eli has got some work to do and if he can be like his brother and play good and help get the team motivated to play, they can be a playoff team for a while. The defense has to prevent the other teams from scoring. It may not matter all the way about giving up yards but all that matters is the end result and getting the W. When the Giants play other power teams like so far the Cowboys and Packers, it will really be interesting to see where they rank.

Buffalo Bills-It's a tough division and so far it's been fortunate they've not been in last place. They've got one victory and that's not a lot. They won last week but just barley doing so. They got the Cowboys in Week 5, which is expected to be a loss for them. While they were not expected to do much, they could do somewhat better and there is no chemistry at all based upon the evidence of the Bills performance throughout ¼ of the season? Could it change? Perhaps it could and perhaps not, only time will tell. They made it to 4 consecutive Super Bowls and couldn't get the job done then. Are they going to get better? For Bills fans, they should hope so.

Miami Dolphins-Miami just hasn't gotten it done period. They are just plain horrible no matter what. Bottom line is that they're not winning games and it doesn't matter how good you may play but if you lose, then that's it. That team has little to no direction it seems and doesn't have chemistry. Miami was good but until they get on the ball and prove people wrong, they will still continue to play bad and could make history by being the 1^st team to have not only an undefeated winning season including a Super Bowl but also the 1^st team to lose all 16 games in NFL history.

Denver Broncos-They're in a 3 way tie for 1^st but they're off to an ok start. They're not doing bad but they're not doing good. Denver used to be good but now its like they just don't have it together as a unit.

Houston Texans-Though I picked 3^rd, they have not been expected to do much and that's it. It's just so far a team with a lack of chemistry that could be competitive in years to come. Who knows what this team is thinking at this time. It's going to take management to put effort into getting the people in charge and signing the right players to get the job done.

San Francisco 49ers-There's not much to say right now about them. They're doing ok but real bad. I really don't know what else to say considering now the team is trying to rebuild again. If they can do that, they'll win.

Teams with Expectations to do well

Dallas Cowboys-Though Romo had a bad game in the playoffs, he still came back and shook it off and is taking them off to a good start. They are undefeated and on top of the NFC East. When predicted, they were expected to be good and so far they are meeting expectations. With T.O. behaving himself and not being a bother, they could put their attention on winning and it's true they don't have Terry Glenn to help due to injury at this moment but they are proving they can still win. With them facing the Bills, they should be ok on that.

New England Patriots-A favorite that could go all the way and quite possibly win it all, the New England Patriots are saying its not over yet as far as them on losing their winning ways. This team would be considered the team of the 2000s since they've been the most consistent, and have won 3 Super Bowls this decade.

Indianapolis Colts-A 2^nd favorite team that could possibly go all the way and maybe win it. They've gotten off to a very good start and have had good teams but until last year was regarded as a team that could never win the big one. They finally did it last season and could prove to say they can do it again. With a start like theirs, it's hard to argue that they can go on a melt down. Teams that get off to 4-0 starts generally speaking tend to stay in playoff contention the whole season. It'll be no surprise if they win the division and are ready for another round in the AFC Championship against New England.

Seattle Seahawks-So far the city of Seattle is happy with the Seahawks since they're doing well. This should come as no surprise as they've done well the last few seasons and even got to make a Super Bowl appearance. Will they go back? It's possible but they are also among teams in the NFC that could make it.

Pittsburgh Steelers-A 3-1 team is good for them. It is going to be a tough division but so far they're meeting it. The QB is healthy and is actually doing good despite the loss to Arizona.

Jacksonville Jaguars-They were expected to be 2^nd and so far they are just that. They're doing well and have a winning record. They don't have Leftwich, whom has had injury issues but it hasn't stopped them yet and it's not getting to them. If they continue to play this strong, they'll be fine.

Carolina Panthers-Not a whole lot to say about the Panthers but they're not doing that bad. There's always room for improvement. If they win more games, they'll be a contender for the NFC South, which could become a competitive division with no clear-cut winner to the end.

Kansas City Chiefs-3-way for 1^st is interesting even though they are just 2-2. The Chiefs have to prove they can separate from the pack and move along. There's potential with this team but the only way it can be discovered on what they can do is continue to grow as a franchise.

That is ¼ of the season with my own personal surprise teams and analysis. If all goes well, there could be the mid-season report in a few weeks once Week 8 has been completed. A lot can happen between now and then.