(Photo: Tammy Anthony Baker)
By Kyle Showalter
Against all odds, the 2020 NFL season is finally here.
I don’t know if I’ve ever looked forward to a football season the way I’m looking forward to this one. Seriously. With everything going on in the world today, from the virus that shut down the world to protests that have started countless conversations, football seems so small. In the grand scheme of things, it probably is.
But why does it feel so significant?
Like many of you, I look to football as a reprieve. Every Sunday I make my way to the couch, turn on Sunday Ticket, and proceed to not move until the final whistle of the last game is blown. The problems in my life aren’t quite as nagging during this time. It sounds crazy, but football is the ultimate escape for me. Maybe for you it’s painting. Maybe it’s walking your dog. Whatever it is, that feeling it gives you is what I will have when I fire up my television on Sunday.
Cheers to that.
Who will win the NFC West? -Uzair S.
I’m probably going to get killed here, but I don’t think it’s San Fransisco. Yes they have the best offensive coach in football in Kyle Shanahan, and yes they have a defense that was the best in the league last year. But I think there are two real reasons to press pause on this team. The first is with the defense. I’m not suggesting that this group is going to regress to being a bad defense by any means, but it is incredibly hard to replicate defensive production on a year-to-year basis. For reference, the 2018 Bears were a historically great defense and while they were good in 2019, they weren’t close to repeating their 2018 season. Add in the fact that Niners traded away DeForest Buckner and I think there’s cause to anticipate some regression from the unit. The second reason is the quarterback. I’m just not a big believer in Jimmy Garoppolo. I am, however, a big believer in another quarterback in the NFC West that plays a little further north. Adding Jamal Adams to the secondary was a huge boost to a defense that lost Jadeveon Clowney to free agency. The Seahawks are going to control the clock, play good defense, and hopefully #LetRussCook. They’re my pick for the NFC West this season.
Who’s going to win Offensive ROY? -Kristen R.
This award is usually much more friendly to non-quarterbacks than the MVP award is. Since 2015, we have seen three running backs win the award. I have a strong feeling that this year will see that trend continue. The Kansas City Chiefs took Clyde Edwards-Helaire with the 32nd pick in the 2020 NFL Draft in a move that I’m sure garnered a collective groan from the other 31 GM’s around the league. CEH is a perfect fit for what KC wants out of a running back, and it’s going to propel him to the Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Which is a perfect segue to…
In 1983, Eric Dickerson set the rookie rushing record with 1808 yards (113 yards per game). Does the massive pass threat in Kansas City promote or hinder CEH’s chances of putting his stamp on that record? -KC P.
The passing game in Kansas City makes CEH’s chances of breaking Dickerson’s rushing record nearly zero. If CEH were to average 5 YPC, he would need 361 carries to reach Dickerson’s record. That means asking Patrick Mahomes, second of his name, breaker of defenses and father of touchdowns to turn around and hand the ball off 23 times per game. That just isn’t going to happen. I know he had 25 carries last night against the Texans, but I don’t anticipate that being the norm. Having said that, I think that CEH does have a shot at breaking the rookie yards from scrimmage record set by Dickerson, which stands at 2212. Andy Reid excels at getting the ball to his play makers in space, and the Chiefs didn’t spend a first round pick on CEH to not use him in a big way. I think it’s a reasonable expectation for CEH to see 18-20 touches per game, with at least 5 of those coming through the air. He excelled in the passing game at LSU, catching 55 passes and totaling 453 yards through the air. Pair that with his elusiveness in the open field and we could be talking about Andy Reid’s new favorite tool. This is the skill set that would excite me most as a KC fan.
What team has the best chance to go from worst to first in their division? Christian H.
I think there’s only one team that has any chance: the Arizona Cardinals. Think about the other choices: the Dolphins are still a long way from the end of their rebuild, the Chargers share a division with the Chiefs, the Bengals share a division with two potential Super Bowl teams and a third possible playoff team, the Lions cut Snacks Harrison and traded Darius Slay in the off season, Washington can’t even name themselves properly, and the Jaguars are doing their best imitation of “The Process” era 76ers. The Cardinals are entering the second season of the Kliff Kingsbury era, and more importantly are expecting the same second-year leap from Kyler Murray that we’ve seen recently from quarterbacks like Carson Wentz, Patrick Mahomes, and Lamar Jackson. It’s a long shot given the division they’re in, but MVP-level production from Kyler Murray could vault this team into serious contention.
What team is most impacted by players opting out of the season? -Curtis S.
I think it has to be the Patriots. Their list of opt outs include RB Brandon Bolden, OT Marcus Cannon, S Patrick Chung, LB Dont’a Hightower, WR Marqise Lee, G Najee Toran, FB Danny Vitale, and TE Matt LaCosse. That’s two players that are vital to the success of this Patriots defense, a starting offensive lineman, and a newly signed WR meant to bolster a unit that is very thin. The Patriots now have to rely on a litany of unproven players in the first year of the post-Brady era. A fully intact Patriots team that adds Cam Newton would have been a serious threat to go deep into the NFL playoffs. This group does not have that feel.
