NFL Season Preview: The NFC
6 min read
Following on from our review of the AFC side of the new NFL season, we turn our attention to the NFC. Seattle and Green Bay look to be the best of the picks from this conference. Our NFL expert previews the new season and picks out his best bets.
East
The NFC, dare I say it, looks a little more predictable than its counterpart this year – but there are some areas of fierce competition which could throw up a few surprises. Philadelphia will hope to have Carson Wentz in fruition this term, backed up by receiver pair Smith & Jeffrey- and they’ll need all three to be on form to take the NFC East’s top spot. Giving them a helping hand are the Cowboys, whose fall from grace should begin with an offensive line showing an almost 50a looks to have strengthened all over the park in Free Agency (Including T.J Ward – surprise cut of the year so far surely?), Atlanta could start this year with the same defensive anonymity they began the last, as we suspect them to be put to the sword in week 2 by a free-flowing Green Bay. If they can find the kind of form they managed to show for the latter part of last season, they’ll compete – but it will be something of a challenge to keep pace with the Bucs, who will hope not to be unsettled by their unfortunate extra week of preseason granted by the arrival of Hurricane Irma.
The 53-man roster is set. Let's ride. #InBrotherhood pic.twitter.com/pXjOSHNjGq
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 2, 2017
Tip: I can’t help but think that Tampa Bay regular season wins Over 8.5 @ will look very generous at 3-0 after their (relatively) easy start against the Bears, Vikings and Giants.
West
This year should usher in a comfortable 4th division win out of 5 for Seattle. An ageing Cardinals offensive line will be looking for another stab at the playoffs, but I don’t think they have it in them to keep pace with Wilson and Sherman at the Hawks.
Jared Goff is still very much unproven at the head of the Rams line, but a strong start from him and Todd Gurley could make for interesting viewing with winnable matches against the Colts, Redskins and the 49ers to start their campaign. However, the frailties were all too evident in the squad last year, and not enough has been done to paper over the cracks. The 49ers won 2 games last season and, looking at their acquisitions, they don’t possess the quality to put enough points on the board to improve that by much.
Official cap space as Week 1 begins:
Top 3:
49ers: 64.2M
Browns: 61.8M
Jaguars: 35.3MBottom 3:
Dolphins: 1.8M
Rams: 738k
Chargers: 434k— Field Yates (@FieldYates) September 5, 2017
Tip: 49ers Regular Season Wins Under 4.5 @ will not last long. If they lose to the Panthers in Week 1, it will be a long way to 5 wins from there.
Superbowl Winner
A toss-up between Seattle @ and Green Bay at 10’s from the NFC for me.
My speculative 4th and long punt: Comes from our Most Receiving Touchdowns market. Terrelle Pryor, ex-college-QB-turned-WR for the Redskins is my 66/1 outsider for the crown. Having been released by the Browns after a 16 appearance season last year, Washington could be heavily reliant on his experience and versatility in the months to come.
