bbgun
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Mark Maske (yes):
We've become accustomed in recent years to seeing most, if not all, of the league's best teams in the AFC.
Not this season.
At least not so far.
Just look at what happened over the weekend to the would-be AFC heavyweights. The Colts lost at home to an NFC team, the Bears. The Chargers lost at home to an NFC team, the Panthers, and linebacker Shawne Merriman today abandoned his attempt to play this season with two torn knee ligaments. The Patriots suffered an even bigger loss, with Tom Brady suffering a season-ending knee injury Sunday. The Jaguars are 0-1 and have big problems on their offensive line.
The leaves the Steelers, at least for now, looking like the best team in the AFC. The Jets, with Brett Favre, or Bills could overtake the Brady-less Patriots in the AFC East.
But it's an NFC team, the Cowboys, that is almost unquestionably the league's best right now. The Giants, Eagles and Saints probably are among the NFL's top half-dozen clubs as well a week into the season. The Packers looked good on Monday night with Aaron Rodgers taking over for Favre, and even the quarterback-challenged Bears sent a message with their win in Indianapolis that they could be a force.
It's always risky to draw too many conclusions based on one weekend of games. There's a long, long way to go and the Colts, Chargers and Jaguars probably will get well. The Patriots' season probably won't unravel completely even without Brady in the lineup. But the notion that the AFC is the far better conference, top-heavy with most of the league's best teams, suddenly appears outdated.
Cindy Boren (no):
This is one of those questions best left answered by time. But you want answers now and, last I checked, time didn't have a little photo with a blank space for comments in The League, so I'll give it a go.
The answer to the question is no. One word, two letters. N.O.
Certainly, the season is still in diapers and the injuries to Tom Brady and Shawne Merriman are huge. Their teams may not recover. But a couple of AFC teams that won Super Bowls in the just last three years are still around and sporting a pulse, thank you very much. You may remember them. Their quarterbacks, Peyton Manning and Ben Roethlisberger, might be a little worse for wear, but the Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers cannot be written off -- particularly if Manning quickly shakes off the rust from his knee surgery and Roethlisberger stays off motorcycles. As long as that Favre guy doesn't get the itch to retire, the New York Jets are going to be must-see TV. And how can you discount the Patriots with Randy Moss still running pass patterns? If a quarterback can get him the ball, good stuff could still happen to New England. (San Diego I'll write off, but only because I saw the look on Norv Turner's face as Carolina marched down the field to win Sunday. Vintage Norv.)
If Carolina hadn't dazzled with the Delhomme-ian comeback and if the Dallas Cowboys weren't oiled and flexing in the spotlight, would we even be having this conversation? Eli Manning and the New York Giants appear to be the same team they were a year ago: capable of catching fire and repeating as Super Bowl champs -- or of finishing 8-8 and making your hair hurt. New Orleans, Philly and Green Bay looked good, but we don't know if that's sustainable,
It isn't time yet -- let's make like grown-ups and wait until after Week 2, shall we? -- to strip the AFC of its title as the sexy conference.
We've become accustomed in recent years to seeing most, if not all, of the league's best teams in the AFC.
Not this season.
At least not so far.
Just look at what happened over the weekend to the would-be AFC heavyweights. The Colts lost at home to an NFC team, the Bears. The Chargers lost at home to an NFC team, the Panthers, and linebacker Shawne Merriman today abandoned his attempt to play this season with two torn knee ligaments. The Patriots suffered an even bigger loss, with Tom Brady suffering a season-ending knee injury Sunday. The Jaguars are 0-1 and have big problems on their offensive line.
The leaves the Steelers, at least for now, looking like the best team in the AFC. The Jets, with Brett Favre, or Bills could overtake the Brady-less Patriots in the AFC East.
But it's an NFC team, the Cowboys, that is almost unquestionably the league's best right now. The Giants, Eagles and Saints probably are among the NFL's top half-dozen clubs as well a week into the season. The Packers looked good on Monday night with Aaron Rodgers taking over for Favre, and even the quarterback-challenged Bears sent a message with their win in Indianapolis that they could be a force.
It's always risky to draw too many conclusions based on one weekend of games. There's a long, long way to go and the Colts, Chargers and Jaguars probably will get well. The Patriots' season probably won't unravel completely even without Brady in the lineup. But the notion that the AFC is the far better conference, top-heavy with most of the league's best teams, suddenly appears outdated.
Cindy Boren (no):
This is one of those questions best left answered by time. But you want answers now and, last I checked, time didn't have a little photo with a blank space for comments in The League, so I'll give it a go.
The answer to the question is no. One word, two letters. N.O.
Certainly, the season is still in diapers and the injuries to Tom Brady and Shawne Merriman are huge. Their teams may not recover. But a couple of AFC teams that won Super Bowls in the just last three years are still around and sporting a pulse, thank you very much. You may remember them. Their quarterbacks, Peyton Manning and Ben Roethlisberger, might be a little worse for wear, but the Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers cannot be written off -- particularly if Manning quickly shakes off the rust from his knee surgery and Roethlisberger stays off motorcycles. As long as that Favre guy doesn't get the itch to retire, the New York Jets are going to be must-see TV. And how can you discount the Patriots with Randy Moss still running pass patterns? If a quarterback can get him the ball, good stuff could still happen to New England. (San Diego I'll write off, but only because I saw the look on Norv Turner's face as Carolina marched down the field to win Sunday. Vintage Norv.)
If Carolina hadn't dazzled with the Delhomme-ian comeback and if the Dallas Cowboys weren't oiled and flexing in the spotlight, would we even be having this conversation? Eli Manning and the New York Giants appear to be the same team they were a year ago: capable of catching fire and repeating as Super Bowl champs -- or of finishing 8-8 and making your hair hurt. New Orleans, Philly and Green Bay looked good, but we don't know if that's sustainable,
It isn't time yet -- let's make like grown-ups and wait until after Week 2, shall we? -- to strip the AFC of its title as the sexy conference.
