NFL Futures – 2014 NFC Preview: Seahawks and Niners Continue a Heated Rivalry
By Charles Jay
The Seattle Seahawks (+340 to win the NFC) may be the defending Super Bowl champions, and indeed are the favorites in the NFL futures odds to return to the Big Game as the NFC representatives, but the perception one can get from looking at the numbers at VietBet is that they should face more competition than the favorites in the AFC.
One thing that Seattle has on its side is a shutdown defense, with perhaps the best secondary in the NFL. But it doesn’t end there. The crowd at CenturyLink Field is also ready, willing and able to make opposing offenses uncomfortable, and that makes them a real “12th man.” The Seahawks know that Russell Wilson has passed every test, and they also understand that they can pound the ball behind one of the league’s best offensive lines, especially as they were able to bring the tempestuous Marshawn Lynch back into the fold. It should be no mystery as to why VietBet has them priced at +340 to win the NFC.
It is expected that the San Francisco 49ers (+425) will wage war with the Seahawks in the NFC West. This is another team that will pound the ball, although Colin Kaepernick is going to be more dangerous as he matures. The Niners arguably have the best set of linebackers in the league, and that will fill out once NaVorro Bowman returns form his knee injury. If there is any weakness, the secondary may have lost a little too much for the Niners to get over the hump. At any rate, with the personality conflict between Jim Harbaugh and Pete Caroll, the Seattle-San Francisco rivalry is likely to be the NFL’s most intriguing in 2014.
The Green Bay Packers, who are +625 to win the NFC at VietBet, won the NFC North at 8-7-1 but should be better if they have Aaron Rodgers for the full season. They now have the running game they have been looking for, with the emergence of Eddie Lacy, and the Mike McCarthy-Dom Capers combo is planning changes to the defensive scheme. We’ll find out a lot as they play Seattle in the season opener.
The New Orleans Saints (+750) are always going to be a contender as long as they have Drew Brees at the controls, because he makes everybody look better. If Mark Ingram can give them something, that would be a bonus. The defense had only nineteen takeaways, but ranked fourth in yardage allowed. And they add future Hall of Famer Champ Bailey and Pro Bowler Jarius Byrd to the secondary.
The Chicago Bears, who are +1200 at VietBet for the NFC title, hope that Jay Cutler can stay healthy for the entire season, because they are more vulnerable in terms of depth at the position. They did not get the job done when they had to last year, as the NFC North title was theirs for the taking. The Philadelphia Eagles, who are also +1200, had to be considered an unqualified success in Chip Kelly’s first season, but in his hurry-up attack, can Kelly really expect a reasonable facsimile of Nick Foles’ 27-TD, two-interception effort from 2013?
The Arizona Cardinals (+1800) made strides in Bruce Arians’ first season as head coach, and their defense is going to keep them in games. But there are more than a few NFL futures bettors who think the quarterback situation with Carson Palmer is a little shaky. The Atlanta Falcons (+1800) had a wretched season in 2013, and they still have to demonstrate that they can run the football, as well as stop the run, if they expect to advance.
The Carolina Panthers had one of the better defenses in the league (allowing just 15.1 ppg), and Cam Newton made some major progress toward becoming a leader, as they won the NFC South last season. Yet they don’t seem to get a lot of respect, as they are +2200 to win the conference according to VietBet. they’ll rely on defense again, as Newton still doesn’t have a dynamic receiving corps to work with.
The Dallas Cowboys (+2300) have Tony Romo back, but their defense was the league’s worst last season, and they lost plenty of personnel from that stop unit. The Detroit Lions (+2500) will have an explosive offense, and some upside on “D,’ but many football bettors have their doubts about the new coaching hire (Jim Caldwell). The New York Giants (+2500 in the NFL odds) are going to the West Coast offense, and that could constitute a major period of adjustment for Eli Manning.
Is Sam Bradford really the answer at quarterback for the St. Louis Rams (+2500)? We will find out, but his comeback from last year’s injury may hold the key to whether Jeff Fisher hangs around or not. They were able to run a little with Zac Stacy in 2013, but somehow the pieces just don’t come together here. The Washington Redskins (+2500 at VietBet) turned to another “scheme” guy (Jay Gruden) after firing Mike Shanahan, and no one is sure how that will work out for Robert Griffin III, who helped get Shanahan axed.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+3000 in the NFL futures) went from one extreme to the other, personality-wise, as they jettisoned Greg Schiano and hired Lovie Smith as head coach. Smith has already established veteran Josh McCown as his quarterback. McCown is a journeyman; can he really repeat his 2013 effort (13 TD’s, one INT)? Finally, the Minnesota Vikings are the longshot in the NFC, at +6000, which means that the oddsmakers at VietBet don’t have much faith in the quarterback situation, because we know how much ability Adrian Peterson has to carry this team on his shoulders.
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