This year's surprise teams

[msgkings322]

I probably should have posed this question before the games started but I'm curious for the SportsHoopla posters' opinions.

Every year in the NFL some bad teams from the previous year do much better than expected, and usually at least 1 makes the playoffs. And of course some good teams do far worse. It's mainly due to the parity in the NFL (scheduling, drafting, etc), few regular season games, and of course injuries. And all sports have this to some degree but IMO it's most pronounced in football.

So my question is, which teams this year will end the year doing unexpectedly much better, as in making the playoffs or coming close, and which will fall far short? Obviously we now have 3 games to give us an idea, but some teams that look bad or good now may finish the year doing the opposite. Here are my picks:

Overachievers: Chiefs, Titans, Saints
Disappointments: Redskins, 49ers, Steelers (they were only 8-8 last year but man they look like a 4 win team)

 

[TDs3nOut]

I probably should have posed this question before the games started but I'm curious for the SportsHoopla posters' opinions.

Every year in the NFL some bad teams from the previous year do much better than expected, and usually at least 1 makes the playoffs. And of course some good teams do far worse. It's mainly due to the parity in the NFL (scheduling, drafting, etc), few regular season games, and of course injuries. And all sports have this to some degree but IMO it's most pronounced in football.

So my question is, which teams this year will end the year doing unexpectedly much better, as in making the playoffs or coming close, and which will fall far short? Obviously we now have 3 games to give us an idea, but some teams that look bad or good now may finish the year doing the opposite. Here are my picks:

Overachievers: Chiefs, Titans, Saints
Disappointments: Redskins, 49ers, Steelers (they were only 8-8 last year but man they look like a 4 win team)

So hard to say this early in the season, but I think that your lists of overachievers and disappointments so far look pretty good. I would add Miami to the first list. I also think that NO has the best chance to still be on that list by the end of the season, but, again, it's hard to say.

Hard to imagine that the 49ers will stay on the second list. I think the most surprising thing I've seen so far this season is how well Indy ran the ball on them Sunday. I did not expect that at all.

 

[Nasty_Magician]

Please don't crucify me Redskins fans but it's not all that shocking. They were a mediocre team last year that snuck into the playoffs because their division was terrible. They rode the superman like performance of RG3, now he's not 100% and all of a sudden they look bad again. Combine that with the fact they have the cap penalty and couldn't really sign anybody and they didn't have a first round pick to add an impact player and they're doing pretty much exactly what they're supposed to be doing.

 

[briz almighty]

the New York Yets. im surprised they managed to win two games.

 

[TDs3nOut]

the New York Yets. im surprised they managed to win two games.

On a related note, Dice K actually pitched really well for them today.

 

[HizzleRocker]

Surprise Teams: Chiefs (playoff bound, imo) ; Dolphins (3-0 with Indy and Atlanta wins).
Dissapointeds: Giants (2 time winning champs = awful) ; 49ers (D giving up 30pts/game???).

 

[David_son]

Before the season I was going to say the Bucs...... but since you ask this question now I can change my answer to the Chiefs.

 

[Nyfan1980]

the New York Yets. im surprised they managed to win two games.

I'm not

 

[bksballer89]

Nothing surprising about the Saints if you know football.

3-0 was expected. We own the Falcons and TB/AZ were 2 teams we should beat

 

[Gooch1034]

I think the Chiefs are the biggest surprise so far. Still cant fathom that their defense is actually good. J Charles better stay healthy.

 

[bksballer89]

I think the Dolphins are the biggest positive surprise only because they played and beat better teams. I would have had them losing both games to the Colts and Falcons

 

[briz almighty]

I'm not

2-14 sounds about right.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I agree with an earlier post...too early to say with only 3 games played.

But I am a little surprised at PIT being 0-3, I expected a slow start on OFC, but 42 pts? And yes, they do look like a 4 win team right now. but I think they will get to 9 before it's all said and done. Another is NYG...with that front 4, I didn't expect they would have given up more points than any other team by a good margin...they could turn it around also.

One the other end...KC, a lot of talent, but no TE, not a huge fan of Alex Smith, and MIA...I'm thinking both of these teams end up around 10-6.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I think the Chiefs are the biggest surprise so far. Still cant fathom that their defense is actually good. J Charles better stay healthy.

Hali, Huston, Berry are @ the top of their position. Poe IS a surprise...the surprise for KC to me is going into PHI and pretty much handling them...not all of those turnovers were self inflicted.

 

[Nyfan1980]

I'm really not surprised by the Chiefs. They had talent, just a terrible HC. Andy Reid is a very good coach.

 

[Money]

I absolutely love the Chiefs' team. Berry is my favorite defensive player to watch. Alex Smith gets no respect (much like Flacco), but just seems to win football games (much like Flacco).

I actually have to go with the Jets as my biggest surprise (and Geno Smith as my biggest surprise player). It's still early in the season of course, but they have had a nice start.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I'm really not surprised by the Chiefs. They had talent, just a terrible HC. Andy Reid is a very good coach.

And a terrible QB.

 

[msgkings322]

Thanks for the replies..

A lot of you are kind of missing the point of my question, it's not who's a surprise over the first 3 games (that's easy to see), it's which of the 32 teams will END the year as a surprise, either positive or negative.

And saying 'it's too early to tell', well yeah, this is just messing around with guesses and opinions. If you wait until week 10 what's the fun in that?

The poster above who said the Chiefs will end at 10-6, that's a big jump from 2-14 last year and would be a surprise to most. If the Steelers let's say end up 8-8 again then that's not a surprise. If the Jets end at 6-10 then their start this year won't have meant much.

So I was just wondering which bad team from 2012 do y'all think will make the playoffs, because one or more always does, and which good team from 2012 will suck all year, or be way worse than expected.

Hence my picks.

 

[msgkings322]

I agree with an earlier post...too early to say with only 3 games played.

But I am a little surprised at PIT being 0-3, I expected a slow start on OFC, but 42 pts? And yes, they do look like a 4 win team right now. but I think they will get to 9 before it's all said and done. Another is NYG...with that front 4, I didn't expect they would have given up more points than any other team by a good margin...they could turn it around also.

One the other end...KC, a lot of talent, but no TE, not a huge fan of Alex Smith, and MIA...I'm thinking both of these teams end up around 10-6.

Even if you're not a fan of Alex Smith, he's a huge upgrade over what they had and it shows. I agree with the poster who said he's kind of Flacco-ish that way.

As far as the Steelers going 9-4 the rest of the way? Hey, you're a solid fan but that's probably not the way to bet...

 

[cdumler7]

I would say of the teams that have been a surprise so far the 3 that I see having staying power would be the Chiefs, Saints, and Miami. I honestly think all 3 make the playoffs with Miami and the Chiefs being Wild Cards for the AFC and the Saints winning the NFC South. Now from those teams I think the Saints are the only real threat for being a Superbowl contender. The defense has played out of their minds so far and I trust that Brees and that offense will get things going soon enough. They are one of only a handful of teams at least at this moment that I think could give the Seahawks some major trouble come playoff time. They have enough offensive weapons to make it hard to cover them all, a good HC, a great quarterback, and an opportunistic defense.