Remember "The Wonder Years," one of the greatest television dramas in history? What a great show (that I'm still waiting for on DVD), with a great main character, Kevin Arnold, who famously championed for Winnie Cooper's affections while donning a vintage Jets jacket at the height of the Broadway Joe era. Kevin's older brother Wayne is still one of the most hated characters in TV history, one that could make you want to put your fist through some drywall.
Anywho, here's a Broadway Brett update on the same day that the NFL's season kicks off with the Giants-Redskins game tonight. (Editor's Note: I've got Clinton Portis and Chris Cooley going on both of my fantasy teams tonight)
Yesterday it was announced that Brett Favre and Alan Faneca have been voted the offensive captains of the New York Jets for the upcoming season. While I would have liked to see wide receiver Laveranues Coles or maybe tight end Chris Baker as captains, I don't disagree with Brett being one, since he is expected to be the guy who leads this team all season. Coles and Baker lost some pull though when they got into contract disputes/holdouts with management in the off season. Faneca, while also being added to the team only a few months back still has pull over Jerricho Cotchery and Leon Washington, who are still a bit young to be looked at as captain material. Thomas Jones has only been there for one (lackluster) season at running back, and still has much to prove in the fans' and team's eyes, so that's not much of a surprise.
That "C" stitched on his jersey now won't make Brett Favre any better or worse; but same goes for Tom Brady's "minor" (stress fracture) foot injury. Here's my prediction on this ongoing rivalry between the AFC East opponents who meet for the first of 2 regular season match ups next week. The Pats and Jets will split their two games this year; I think the Jets have a shot winning it in week 2 since the Pats haven't (as far as we know) been illegally videotaping Favre on the Jets, and Brady might still be rusty. He will especially have trouble when Calvin Pace tries to rip his head off along with the rest of the revamped Jets defensive unit. Tom Brady, as Walter Sobchak (played by John Goodman) in "The Big Lebowski" best put it, is "entering a world of pain," this season. (See Walter below.)
The Jets will win 10 or 11 games (12 if a couple of the close ones fall their way) and get a Wild Card playoff spot since they don't play in the NFC West where a .500 team can not only make the playoffs, but win their division. The Pats will win at least 13 or 14, but their geriatric defense, and questionable O-line is going to be winded toward the end of the season like they were in last year's Super Bowl. That is why I predict the Patriots will lose somewhere between the first round and up to or including the AFC Championship, either to the Colts (if Peyton Manning stays healthy), Jaguars (another solid D that has a great season under their belt), the Chargers (if they can stay dominant without Shawn Merriman, because he'll take a career and/or season ending injury somewhere by mid-season with the bum knee he's adamant about playing on), or shall I say the J-E-T-S Jets?A year or two ago I'd be labeled "looney tunes" for such a prediction. However, this is the first season in a long time any Jets fan can firmly say or believe that they have a legitimate shot to win any game they're in on any given Sunday. The Patriots are probably the most feared team in the NFL this season, and even they have questions coming into this year after going 0-4 without Tom and his bum foot throughout the preseason.
(Editor's Note: This is one of the best pictures of Tom Brady I have ever seen.)Granted losing the biggest game in franchise history to end their season will weigh on the Patriots and give them extra tenacity this year, but on paper and on the field they are a weaker and more vulnerable team than they were last year. This is especially evident when one thinks about how they will need to have more left in their tank at the end of the season for a lengthy playoff run. Sure, Brett Favre is going to be 39 in a month or two, but the fresh life the Jets have breathed into their offensive line, backfield, and defense are more changes than the Patriots have made. If the same team that got pounded by the Giants defense (that boasted only one Pro Bowler) in the Super Bowl shows up this season, other equal or better defenses will be knocking the hobbled quarterback down even more this season.
Interesting enough, ESPN correspondent and Boston (yuck) fan Bill Simmons, has a somewhat similar view on the Pats and Jets. While he sees the Pats being questionable, he still has them making the AFC Championship, and losing to the Jaguars who he has for his Super Bowl pick. The Jets are his annual sleeper pick, though he has them losing their first two games on their way to a surprising 11-5 season. The record prediction sounds about right, but I see them winning at least one of their first two games, if not both. The third game against the Chargers is a toss up depending on whether Merriman is on the IR list by then or how much Phillip Rivers cries like Halle Berry accepting her Academy Award during the game.
You can read all of Bill Simmons's season predictions here on ESPN's website. Although I despise Boston sports teams, I like where his head is at. But I will say I think his view on the Giants is a bit harsh and skewed to the fact that they ruined his team's shot at perfection in the Super Bowl. While I think the Giants are going to have a tougher time this year with their losses on defense (Osi's knee surgery, Strahan's retirement, Mitchell's bouncing), I think Eli Manning will have a better and more consistent regular season than he has previously. They're definitely at least a 8 or 9 win team, but I still think the New York story of the year will be the Jets This is also due to the fact that the Yankees are horrendous this season, and the Mets are likely to come up shorthanded at the end of the season or in the playoffs, the ongoing trainwreck that is the Knicks organization, and the Rangers who have lost Sean Avery, JaomirJagr, and will probably end up at about the same spot they did in last season's playoffs.
Here are Simmons's thoughts:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/080904
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