Fearless Prognostications for 2010 – The AFC South

Earlier this week, Tom Brady signed a contract that likely made him the richest man in NFL history. Expect the Colts to up the ante in the very near future. Not that Peyton is greedy and demands to be the highest paid player in the game. It is just in the interest of Indianapolis to keep the greatest regular season quarterback of all time happy. For as long as Peyton is QB of the Colts, they will be favorites to win the AFC South, and amongst the small group of teams considered to be of Super Bowl caliber.

AFC South

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

TENNESSEE TITANS

HOUSTON TEXANS

JACSONVILLE JAGUARS

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

Peyton Manning’s trophy shelf is getting a bit crowded – he now has four MVP Awards, with no signs of slowing down. Yet there is the disturbing elephant in the room. Manning’s post-season play remains, for the most part, hum-drum. His Super Bowl MVP was tainted – the running back tandem, led by Joseph Addai, played a more important role in the victory then Manning’s passing. In truth, Peyton but managed the game. His stats for the four game run to glory that year: 97 of 153 (63.4%) for 1,034 yards, 6.8 YPA, 3 TD, 7 INT, 70.5 passer rating. Although no one claims that his younger brother Eli is a superior quarterback, Eli’s performance in the Giants Super Bowl run in 2008 was far superior in every respect. Outside of that, Peyton is superb in every respect. You can pencil in the Colts for 12 + wins every year without hesitation. Pre Bowl WR Reggie Wayne, Pro Bowl TE Dallas Clark, RB Joe Addai, 2nd year back Donald Green, backup wide-outs Garcon, Collie, and Gonzalez-Manning has more weapons then perhaps ever before .Dwight Freeney remains one of the best past rushers in the game, Dan Muir is solid at tackle, and Bob Sanders is a veteran presence in the secondary. Despite what the Jets may say, the road to Dallas goes through Indy.

TENNESSEE TITANS

The Titans can certainly empathize with the teams in Baseball’s American League East, who have to go head-to-head with the New York Yankee’s every year. Coach Jeff Fisher has assembled a solid squad, yet have been unable to overcome their peerless rival since their near Super Bowl victory a decade ago. Coach Jeff Fisher, who presently has the longest continuous reign as Head Coach in all the land, undoubtedly puts himself to sleep each night picturing the late Steve McNair reaching, reaching desperately for the end-zone in the last frantic seconds against the Rams.

The Titans have a terrific Offensive line, anchored by twin OT’s Michael Roos mauler David Stewart. They, along with Guard Jake Scott, allow Chris Johnson to chew up vast chunks of real estate with abandon, as well as protect QB Vince Young. Young appears to have fully recovered from his emotional issues the previous season, which were career threatening. The team showed marked improvement when he took over the reigns last year, and there were certainly a number of playoff teams who were relieved that they did not have to scuffle with the Titans, who could not recover from the morass of a 0-6 start. Vince has a nice group of developing young receivers to throw to, and his scrambling ability is always an added threat. If ferocious DE Kyle Vanden Bosch is able to return from a season-ending injury, the pass rush will be bolstered, adding to an already solid defensive unit.

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HOUSTON TEXANS

For several years, the Texans have seemed on the verge of a break-out year, but have consistently underperformed and fallen short of expectations. This year, Head Coach Gary Kubiak’s job will be on the line; one more disappointing season and he will be passing around his resume in search of a Coordinator’s job.

When you discuss the Texan’s, you start off with the passing game. Matt Schaub is the least recognized elite passer in the NFL. Schaub passing to Andre Johnson could well be the premier QB/WR combo in the NFL. The problem is that the Texan’s running game ranked 30 th in the league last season. Steve Slaton, who had a terrific rookie season, inexplicably fell victim to the sophomore slump. Arian Foster replaced Slaton as the go-to back, and had a productive season. But the main issue is the Offensive Line – especially the Guard tandem, which has 15 games total NFL experience. On Defense, Mario Williams has proven that, despite the heckling, the Texans were correct in passing over Reggie Bush as the 1st pick in the draft. The key issue is that Houston has a record of 1-15 against the Colts in the last 8 seasons. This obviously must change if they are to be taken seriously as a contender in the division.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

Several years ago, Head Coach Jack Del Rio had the squad chopping wood as a motivating tool. Having won but a total of 12 games in the last two seasons, and staring up at three superior divisional opponents, it would seem that it is Del Rio’s head that is now on the block.

The strength of the Jags is their running game, with a big, strong, offensive line, and an outstanding RB in Maurice Drew-Jones. The Jags are still hoping that David Gerrard returns to his 2007 form; the chances of that occurring are slim at best. Although T.E Mercedes Lewis could be a future star, the wide-outs are average. The Defensive Line is porous. Ditto to the pair of safeties.

By Paul J. Nebenfuhr
Pro Football Fans Staff Writer