2011 NFL Preview: AFC

I know that the season is underway, but who the hell cares? They are just predictions. They don’t mean much to all four of you regular readers that have probably heard my picks before reading this anyways.

Here is my preview for the American Football Conference.

AFC East

1. New England Patriots (13-3)

2. New York Jets (11-5)

3. Buffalo Bills (6-10)

4. Miami Dolphins (5-11)

Why They’ll Win: The Patriots are still the class of this division, much to the dismay of Rex Ryan and the New York Jets. The series between the Jets and Patriots will be a good one as always, but the Patriots will be able to split with New York, which will be enough to keep them ahead. The Buffalo Bills are a team to pay attention to, though. If there is a team that could surprise everyone and have a great year, it is Buffalo.

AFC North

1. Pittsburgh Steelers (13-3)

2. Baltimore Ravens (12-4)

3. Cleveland Browns (5-11)

4. Cincinnati Bengals (3-13)

Why They’ll Win: The Ravens’ offense is getting much better, as Pittsburgh found out this afternoon. However, the Steelers have the uncanny ability to bounce back and learn from their mistakes under head coach Mike Tomlin, who does not tolerate sloppiness. A team with as good a defense and as disciplined an offense as Pittsburgh is hard to pick against. The AFC North will most likely be a battle between Pittsburgh and Baltimore, and I think the Steelers will get the best of the Ravens yet again.

AFC South

1. Houston Texans (11-5)

2. Indianapolis Colts (7-9)

3. Tennessee Titans (7-9)

4. Jacksonville Jaguars (5-11)

Why They’ll Win: Without Peyton Manning leading Indianapolis for at least a couple of months, the AFC South may rival the AFC West as the weakest division in the league. However, the final result was bound to happen eventually. Houston has been on their way up, while Indianapolis may have been at their peak a few years ago. Assuming that Houston can put together better defensive efforts, they have the offense to beat anyone on their schedule. I think they will be able to do that, and a playoff berth is awaiting them if they do.

AFC West

1. San Diego Chargers (10-6)

2. Kansas City Chiefs (5-11)

3. Oakland Raiders (5-11)

4. Denver Broncos (3-13)

Why They’ll Win: If the Chargers can avoid starting slow as they have in the past, they should be able to run away with this division. Every year it seems like San Diego is one of the more talented teams in the league, but they don’t seem to be able to produce. Unless Kansas City proves that last season was not a fluke or Oakland can weather the loss of Nnamdi Asomugha better than expected, the Chargers won’t have a lot of competition. I don’t see either of those things happening, but I do think that an MVP caliber season is very possible from Philip Rivers.

Playoffs

Wild Card

New York (Wild Card) vs. Houston

Winner: Houston

Baltimore (Wild Card) vs. San Diego

Winner: Baltimore

Divisional

Houston vs. Pittsburgh

Winner: Pittsburgh

Baltimore vs. New England

Winner: Baltimore

Conference Championship

Baltimore vs. Pittsburgh

Winner: Baltimore

Okay, now that you’ve seen my predictions, you know that my conference champions are the Atlanta Falcons and the Baltimore Ravens. I’m sure that you all have differing opinions, so I’d like to hear them. Before you sound off in the comments section or on the Around The Corn Sports Blog Facebook fan page, here is my prediction for Super Bowl XLVI.

Super Bowl XLVI

Atlanta Falcons (NFC Champions) vs. Baltimore Ravens (AFC Champions)

Winner: Baltimore Ravens

– K. Becks