|
ESPN.com: ESPNMagazine | [Print without images] |
| NFC East | ||
| The Word | The Deal | |
1. Washington Redskins |
The Skins have 15 No. 1 draft picks on their roster, including four who were picked first overall: Irving Fryar, Bruce Smith, Jeff George and Dan Wilkinson. OFFENSIVE GRADE: B DEFENSIVE GRADE: B
|
Hard to root for D. Snyder's team. Harder to beat 'em. Damn TEAM GRADE: A
|
2. Dallas Cowboys |
G Larry Allen and T Erik Williams kept one Cowboy tradition alive last season: at least two offensive linemen in the Pro Bowl in each of the past eight years. OFFENSIVE GRADE: B+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: C+
|
Won't catch Skins. Will give them a playful little nudge TEAM GRADE: B-
|
3. Philadelphia Eagles |
How's this for a turnaround? The Eagles forced an NFL-best 46 turnovers in '99 after having a league-low 17 in '98. Philly had at least two takeaways in 11 games. OFFENSIVE GRADE: C+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: C
|
Beyond the "Sweet, we have the Eagles this Sunday" stage TEAM GRADE: C+
|
4. New York Giants |
Giants QBs have thrown 90 TD passes in their last 96 regular-season games (1994-99). That's 108 fewer than Brett Favre has tossed over the same period. OFFENSIVE GRADE: C+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: B-
|
Second-best team in the Meadowlands TEAM GRADE: C
|
5. Arizona Cardinals |
The Cardinals got on the scoreboard first in just 4 of 16 games last season, a big reason they were outscored 118-19 in the opening quarter. OFFENSIVE GRADE: C DEFENSIVE GRADE: C
|
New twist in Miami: No one expects Fish to do anything TEAM GRADE: C |
| NFC Central | ||
| The Word | The Deal | |
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
Since 1998 (including playoffs), the Titans are 17-2 vs. the AFC
Central, just 7-10 vs. the rest of the league. OFFENSIVE GRADE: B+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: B |
May be first team to play Super Bowl at home TEAM GRADE: A-
|
2. Minnesota Vikings |
Only QB to start all 16 games for Dennis Green was Warren Moon in '95, but that was only time Vikes have missed playoffs during Green's tenure ('92-99). OFFENSIVE GRADE: B+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: C
|
Whoa! When did the NFC Central get tough again? TEAM GRADE: B
|
3. Green Bay Packers |
The Pack was just 5-3 at Lambeau Field in '99, their most home losses since '91. OFFENSIVE GRADE: B DEFENSIVE GRADE: C
|
Did you notice holes in that D? Opposing coordinators will TEAM GRADE: C+
|
4. Detroit Lions |
Lions allowed an NFL-high 64 sacks in '99, including three or more QB muggings in 13 of their 16 contests Detroit gave up just 45 sacks in '98. OFFENSIVE GRADE: B- DEFENSIVE GRADE: B
|
They've got the talent. Of course, they've had the talent before TEAM GRADE: C+
|
5. Chicago Bears |
WR Marcus Robinson set a team record with 1,400 receiving yards in '99, marking just the ninth time in 80 NFL seasons that the Bears have had a 1,000-yard receiver. OFFENSIVE GRADE: C+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: C
|
Hey, a December that will matter for Bears fans TEAM GRADE: C
|
| NFC West | ||
| The Word | The Deal | |
1. St. Louis Rams |
Super Bowl champs went 13-3 in '99 with an NFL-best plus-284 point differential. From '90 to '98, Rams were 45-99 with an NFL-worst minus-886 point differential. OFFENSIVE GRADE: A DEFENSIVE GRADE: B
|
Skins? Bucs? Fool us once? TEAM GRADE: A
|
2. Carolina Panthers |
Pro Bowler Steve Beuerlein threw 36 touchdown passes in '99, doubling his previous career high, set with the Cardinals in '93. OFFENSIVE GRADE: B+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: C
|
Whole is better than sum of its parts - and still behind Rams TEAM GRADE: B
|
3. Atlanta Falcons |
The Falcons owned a league-worst turnover differential of minus-17 (18-35) last season, a year after their league-best plus-20 paved the way to the Super Bowl. OFFENSIVE GRADE: C DEFENSIVE GRADE: C+
|
Hope that Super Bowl didn't spoil Falcons fans TEAM GRADE: C+
|
4. New Orleans Saints |
The Saints went 2-6 in their division last season, leaving them 9-31 since '95. They were 29-19 (including playoffs) against the NFC West from '88 to '94. OFFENSIVE GRADE: C+ DEFENSIVE GRADE: C+
|
A new coach and enough new faces to double '99 win total TEAM GRADE: C
|
5. San Francisco 49ers |
Five of 49ers' 12 losses were by at least 18 points last season. The Niners lost only four games by that margin or more in their previous 280 regular-season games. OFFENSIVE GRADE: C DEFENSIVE GRADE: C-
|
The Bulls got theirs. Niners are next. Hey's when's Yanks' turn? TEAM GRADE: D
|