1. NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (12-4): The Saints are going to have to work really, really hard to lose more than four games this year. Honestly, 12-4 is a conservative estimate. They’ve got a great running back tandem, the best quarterback in the conference, a hell of a good coach (no one saw that coming), and play in the worst division in football. The biggest game of the season is going to be the Week 16 tune-up against Philadelphia, the only thing keeping the Saints out of Glendale. At that point the division might be wrapped up though. It could honestly be wrapped up by their bye week. That’s week four. Yes, I’m serious.

2. CAROLINA PANTHERS (6-10): Whoa, six games behind the first place team. Welcome to the worst division on the planet. Steve Smith is great, Julius Peppers is great, and that’s pretty much it. I like John Fox, and I like Jake Delhomme, but I have a feeling David “Sack me once, shame on you, sack me 200 times, shame on me” Carr is going to be starting by the end of the season. There’s something broken on this team, making them the worst team to gamble on. They’re also playing a whole lot of teams that are far and away better than them. Bad times.

3. TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (3-13): Two words. Chris Simms. Let’s make it six. Chris Simms. Chris Simms. If he’s starting, they will lose. Jeff Garcia isn’t the answer either, ask fans in Detroit and Cleveland how he does when he doesn’t have any help. The defense is old, the offensive line is terrible, and Cadillac Williams was hit with some voodoo dart that took away his ability to play football. The only consolation is that they get to play the Falcons. Hey, speaking of which….

4. ATLANTA FALCONS (2-14): There comes a time in a season when you start thinking about the next one. That time is now. Brian Brohm is sitting there, Bobby Petrino wants to go get him. Why not just start kneeling it out now? There is only one way that the Falcons avoid getting the number one pick in the draft, and that’s if Joey Harrington plays like the #3 pick in the draft. They’re counting on Joey Harrington. To win. You see my point.

Quick sidenote: the reason the Atlanta Falcons are so far up shit creek is that they were the only team in the league run like an NBA franchise. In the NBA, you get a superstar, give him the ball, and everyone else watches. See the Cavs in the playoffs for an example. This team was designed to watch Mike Vick run around. No Mike Vick, you’ve just got a lot of people watching. Note to NFL teams, don’t build your team out of one player, especially if he’s wearing Shih-Tzu teeth as a necklace.

Tomorrow…NFC WEST and The Superbowl Pick