2015 NFL PREVIEW (NFC)

One conference down, one to go. Let's preview the NFC.

Team: Arizona Cardinals

Division: NFC West

Strengths: The Cardinals defense is still a strong unit and they have some good weapons at receiver as always.

Weaknesses: If Carson Palmer goes down or is ineffective (considering he's going into his age-36 season and coming off a torn ACL, it's highly probable he'll struggle a bit), there's no guarantee the offense won't spiral downward like it did last year. Drew Stanton is the number two, but he played terribly last season before his own season-ending injury, and the newly-acquired Matt Barkley is unproven at the NFL-level.

The Cardinals also boasted the worst running game in the NFL last season, and Chris Johnson as the guy doesn't give me a good feeling about that unit improving much. If this were five years ago, maybe. But now? Not so much.

Overall: Even with all the above-mentioned things working against this team, plus the fact that they play in a tough division with the Seahawks and pesky Rams, I still think this team can make bank. Their schedule outside of the typical NFC West matchups isn't terribly difficult, and they get some worrisome teams at home. All in all, I think the Cards have what it takes to challenge for the division title, but will definitely push for a playoff spot.

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, but only if Palmer can stay healthy and/or they get off to another hot start.

Team: Atlanta Falcons

Division: NFC South

Strengths: If there was any doubt that Matt Ryan is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, the fact that in the last two seasons he completed nearly 67 percent of his passes for 54 touchdowns and more than 9,000 yards, despite the team around him being dreadful, should dispel that argument.

Weaknesses: Both lines are pretty well terrible, with the O-line allowing 75 sacks in the last two seasons, and the D-line unable to generate any kind of pressure. The defense in general is one of the worst in the league thanks to years of bad signings and draftees. Any good players the Falcons had have been dealing with injuries, like to Roddy White and Julio Jones.

Overall: Dan Quinn has much to do to get the Falcons back to their pre-2013 form, but the team benefits from playing in the worst division in the league. If Ryan can be better protected than in years past and his receivers stay healthy, the Falcons might have just enough to make hay in the NFC South, even with a work-in-progress defense.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, they'll benefit from playing in a terrible division.

Team: Carolina Panthers

Division: NFC South

Strengths: The Panthers have one of the best defenses in the league.

Weaknesses: They lost Kelvin Benjamin for the season, a problem since he was one two consistent pass catchers the team had last season. Now the Panthers have Greg Olsen and not much else. Unless Devin Funchess can replicate Benjamin's rookie numbers, the Panthers will be tough to watch on offense (they'll probably be tough to watch regardless).

Overall: The defense may be great, but aside from Cam Newton there are too many holes on offense to make me think the Panthers will be three-time NFC South champions.

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: No, they'll probably finish a game behind the Falcons.

Team: Chicago Bears

Division: NFC North

Strengths: The Bears have a general manager who actually has experience in a front office. So that's progress. John Fox is a decent-enough coach. Vic Fangio is probably going to work wonders in rebuilding the defense into something resembling an actual defense.

Weaknesses: Kevin White, who according to reports looked really good in training camp, will miss much of the season with an injury. Bad news, particularly because the offense needs as much help as it can get after last year's anemic unit. Also the defense is still going to be horrendous, at least for another season.

Overall: The Bears, contrary to what USA Today wrote, will NOT be the worst team in the league this season. That doesn't mean they'll be anything close to good, though. They're the weakest team in the division for sure and will likely have a top-ten pick in the 2016 Draft, but they won't be the worst team. Take that for what it's worth.

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: No.

Team: Dallas Cowboys

Division: NFC East

Strengths: Tony Romo is an underrated quarterback and the offensive line is one of the league's best.

Weaknesses: The best part of last season's team, DeMarco Murray, is now playing for the Cowboys' division rival the Philadelphia Eagles. That means the other running backs still on the roster have to pick up the slack. That's unlikely to happen, so that puts more pressure on Tony Romo, whom historically performs terribly under pressure. And the defense still blows.

Overall: Even with all the weaknesses, there are still a lot of question marks for the other NFC East teams. The Cowboys, by comparison, have clear strengths. This team isn't great, but they might be good enough to win the division.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, surprisingly.

Team: Detroit Lions

Division: NFC North

Strengths: The offense is likely to one of the more potent units in the league, with Matthew Stafford at QB, Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate at WR, and promising-rookie Ameer Abdullah at RB.

Weaknesses: I don't care how hard the team spins this, but losing Ndamukong Suh in free agency is going to hurt the Lions. The defense is still talented, but Suh is an all-world defensive lineman and his presence will be missed. Also, Jim Caldwell-coached teams often fall off after the first season (see post-2009 Colts and post-Super Bowl Ravens).

Overall: The Lions have talent, but I'm not the biggest fan of Jim Caldwell as a coach. While the NFC North isn't as ball-bustingly loaded as the NFC West, I still think it's going to be a pretty tough division. The Lions definitely aren't as good as the Packers, and as for the Vikings, well, see below.

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: No, they'll just get edged out.

Team: Green Bay Packers

Division: NFC North

Strengths: They have Aaron Rodgers under center. I could just stop there, but they also have Eddie Lacy in the backfield. That one-two punch will make the Packers perhaps the most formidable offense in the league.

Weaknesses: The defense is still is a cause for concern, but not as much as in years past. The loss of Jordy Nelson for the year might hurt them in some games.

Overall: The Packers are honest-to-God Super Bowl contenders. They'll be competing with the Seahawks once again for the top seed in the playoffs. No matter what happens, the Packers are in position to go deep in the playoffs for the second-straight year.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, easily.

Team: Minnesota Vikings

Division: NFC North

Strengths: Teddy Bridgewater is coming off a decent rookie season and has looked good in the preseason. The Vikings get Adrian Peterson back. The defense looks to be one of the strongest up-and-coming units in the NFL.

Weaknesses: The team is still green and I don't know how well the receiving corps is going to do. There's clear talent with Mike Wallace and Cordarrelle Patterson, but Wallace hasn't shown much of anything since leaving the Steelers and Patterson still has ball-control issues. The offensive line is a bit worrisome as well.

Overall: I really like where the Vikings are headed. This is a team on the rise and I think they'll be a playoff contender sooner rather than later. Soon meaning this year.

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, in a surprise jump from the last couple years.

Team: New Orleans Saints

Division: NFC South

Strengths: Drew Brees. End of discussion.

Weaknesses: Holy God is that defense bad. The Saints will likely hemorrhage points once again this season. And I'm not sure who Drew Brees is going to be throwing to.

Overall: Brees is still one of the best quarterbacks in the league, but man does this team have holes. The Saints will likely be competitive thanks to Brees, but with a terrible defense and a remade offense, they're not going to sniff the playoffs.

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: No, another terrible defense will sink them.

Team: New York Giants

Division: NFC East

Strengths: Tom Coughlin's a really, really good coach. But that's not really a strength anymore.

Weaknesses: For the audience, keeping them awake. God this team is so damn boring.

Overall: This team is the definition of mediocre. They have some good players, but aren't anything special as a whole. They'll win some games, lose far more, and not make the playoffs or come close.

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: No. Just stop.

Team: Philadelphia Eagles

Division: NFC East

Strengths: DeMarco Murray is an excellent running back whom gives the Eagles the one-two punch of a consistent running game and taking a consistent running game away from the Cowboys.

Weaknesses: These aren't weaknesses per se, but differences from last season. And there are A LOT of differences. Nate Allen, James Casey, Trent Cole, Bradley Fletcher, Nick Foles, Todd Herremans, Jeremy Maclin, Evan Mathis, Casey Mathews, LeSean McCoy and Carey Williams are all gone. That's three-fourths of their starting secondary, two starting linebackers, the starting running back, a starting receiver, both staring guards, and the starting quarterback.

Foles' replacement is former first-overall-pick Sam Bradford, who when he's played has been pretty good. Unfortunately, Bradford hasn't played in the regular season since October 2013 due to tearing his ACL in back-to-back seasons. There's no telling what he's going to look like, good or bad.

Overall: There are too many unknowns for this team for me to make a definitive statement on them. On paper, they are the most talented team in the division and one of the better teams in the league. In execution, who knows? I wouldn't be surprised if they won the NFC East, but because of the aforementioned questions I'll play it safe.

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: No, but just barely.

Team: San Francisco 49ers

Division: NFC West

Strengths: Their offense might still be decent. And NaVarro Bowman is awesome. Um... that's it.

Weaknesses: Here's a list of names the 49ers lost this offseason, in alphabetical order: Chris Borland, Michael Crabtree, Perrish Cox, Chris Culliver, Anthony Davis, Vic Fangio, Jim Harbaugh, Mike Iupati, Frank Gore, Stevie Johnson, Andy Lee, Jonathan Martin, Greg Roman, Aldon Smith, Justin Smith and Patrick Willis.

That's 14 Pro Bowlers, 7 1st Team All-Pro selections, a Coach of the Year winner, and two great coordinators since 2011. To say that the remaining pieces are unproven or shaky is a gross understatement.

Overall: The 49ers lost 13 players which were key contributors last season. Plus their head coach whom got them to the NFC Championship three years in a row and the Super Bowl once. Plus the two coordinators they've had for the last four years. And they still play in a tough division. If the 49ers go 8-8 for a second year in a row, they should be over the moon. As it is, they probably won't go 8-8. Not even close.

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: No, they lost half their team.

Team: Seattle Seahawks

Division: NFC West

Strengths: Are you kidding? The defense; it's still one of the most fearsome units in the NFL with perhaps the best secondary in the league. Plus the offense will likely still be good enough to give other teams fits.

Weaknesses: The Seahawks have played 56 games in the last three years, the most in the league over that span. Fatigue might be a real issue for this team.

Factor in the fact that both Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman are coming off offseason surgeries and that Kam Chancellor and the Seahawks are still (as of this writing) at an impasse financially, and there might be some trouble in the best section of the defense.

This isn't so much a weakness as a difference, but with Dan Quinn as the head man in Atlanta, the Seahawks lost their Super Bowl-winning-and-contending defensive coordinator. His replacement is Kris Richard, who's been the DB coach the last few years. The defensive backs are sure to like him and play hard for him, but he's still unproven as a coordinator.

Overall: The Seahawks are still one of the most top-heavy teams in the NFC, if not the entire NFL. They are also far and away the least flawed team in the division with the fewest question marks. Whatever issues there might be, they won't be felt in the regular season.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, they still rule the West.

Team: St. Louis Rams

Division: NFC West

Strengths: The Rams have a defense which could potentially wreak havoc. Their front seven in particular could be awe-inspiring, featuring Michael Brockers, Aaron Donald, James Laurinaitis, Chris Long, Alec Ogletree and Robert Quinn, plus offseason acquisitions Akeem Ayers and Nick Fairly. I mean, that's a ton of talent right there.

Weaknesses: As mentioned in the Eagles section, the Rams swapped Sam Bradford for Nick Foles. Foles has one spectacular season and one rather-lame season under his belt as a starter, so there's no telling how he'll play. The offense in general has question marks all over either because of injury history or shaky play (or both).

Overall: This might be the year the Rams shake off the mediocrity, with the 49ers reeling. But are they better than the Seahawks or Cardinals? Probably not. As a result, even if they show marked improvement, they still probably won't make the playoffs due to how tough the division is.

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: No, they still play in the NFC West.

Team: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Division: NFC South

Strengths: They have a shiny, new quarterback in Jameis Winston, and all that comes with him. Whenever a rookie quarterback is described as a strength, you know things aren't going to end well. But the Bucs do have good receivers in Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans, so there's that. Gerald McCoy is the best player on a terrible defense.

Weaknesses: Just about everything not mentioned above is a weakness. The defense other than McCoy and the offense other than Doug Martin and the starting receivers. That accounts for 18 weak spots between offense and defense. Plus, Winston isn't guaranteed any kind of success, so he's a question mark as well.

Overall: The Bucs will be bad and only slightly better than last year's sorry team. Don't expect them to be a quick turnaround.

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: No, they aren't going to make the playoffs after being so bad last year.

Team: Washington Redskins

Division: NFC East

Strengths: Alfred Morris is pretty good. Yup.

Weaknesses: Jesus, this team is a mess. Here are the most recent stories on the team from Deadspin. That's assuming something ridiculous doesn't happen involving this team in the next couple days. I don't care who the players are or how good they may or may not be. No one can succeed in this environment. No one.

Overall: Beyond the fact that this team is talent deficient and would struggle to win even with sane ownership, they're such a freaking disaster that they'll be lucky if they can equal their win total from last year (which was only four games, by the way). They'll be like a car crash in a nitroglycerin plant all season.

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: No, this team is a tire fire.

***

Most of the roster transaction stuff was obtained through various SB Nation articles.
Most of the player data was obtained through pro-football-reference.com.

2015 NFL PREVIEW (AFC)

Football is upon us once again, so how about I make predictions that will probably be invalidated by October? Let's start with the AFC.

Team: Baltimore Ravens

Division: AFC North

Strengths: Joe Flacco is coming off a really good season and the defense will be formidable as always.

Weaknesses: Marc Tressman is the new offensive coordinator and he's coming off a less-than-stellar (to put it mildly) run as head coach of the Bears. The offense in Chicago didn't exactly wow (and Tressman seemed to be actively plotting against it at times, or that's how it seemed anyway), and there's no telling that the same won't happen in Baltimore. Also, offensive line is a definite weak spot.

Overall: The Ravens will make the playoffs not necessarily because they're the best team in their division, but because they're the least flawed. They have more pieces that are more reliable than any other AFC North team and, thus, I have more confidence in them than I do in the Bengals, Browns and Steelers.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, but it might be tough.

Team: Buffalo Bills

Division: AFC East

Strengths: The Bills boast one of the best defenses in the NFL, have some talented wide receivers, and will likely have an improved running game with LeSean McCoy in the backfield behind a decent-enough offensive line.

Weaknesses: All of the above strengths could be undone thanks question marks at quarterback. As of this writing, the Bills are set to go with Tyrod Taylor under center, who's never started a game in his career. And if Taylor doesn't work out the other options aren't very promising in a shaky E.J. Manuel and Matt Cassel, who is still getting NFL jobs.

Overall: If the Bills can get even average performances from their QBs, they'll be a scary, scary team. As it is, I wouldn't bet on a team with those kinds of question marks. And even if they do play well under center, they still need to get past the Patriots and (probably, see below) the Dolphins.

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: No, quarterback is just too much of a question mark.

Team: Cincinnati Bengals

Division: AFC North

Strengths: Geno Atkins is a year removed from his torn ACL and will likely bounce back to his pre-injury form. The defense is good in general and on offense the Bengals boast some good receivers (and A.J. Green, one of the league's best) and two good running backs.

Weaknesses: Andy Dalton is still hard to get a handle on as far as if he's good or woefully average. He's probably just fine, which is okay, until the playoffs start. Dalton has been awful come playoff time with a career passer rating of 57.8 in four playoff games. The Bengals also haven't won a playoff game since 1991, the longest streak in the NFL.

Overall: The Bengals, as has been the norm recently, are a strong enough team to make the playoffs. The problem is once they get there, can they actually do something about it other than going one-and-done? That may be a moot point this year, as the rest of the conference has gotten a bit tougher. I don't think they'll make it all this year while still being a very good team.

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: No, but just barely.

Team: Cleveland Browns

Division: AFC North

Strengths: They changed their uniforms a bit. Depending on your point of view that can be a strength.

Weaknesses: Except for Joe Thomas and Alex Mack on the O-Line and maybe Joe Haden at corner, every position on this team is a weakness.

Overall: The Browns are the worst team in their division and it's not even close. Actually, they're one of the worst teams in the conference, and it's only kind of close.

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: Do you really have to ask? No.

Team: Denver Broncos

Division: AFC West

Strengths: Peyton Manning, despite being the oldest starting quarterback in the league, is still Peyton Manning. Which means that the Broncos' offense will likely still be one of the best in the NFL, at least for one more season. The defense is also pretty good.

Weaknesses: Running back may be an issue. The Broncos liked C.J. Anderson enough that they cut Montee Ball (it helped that Ball really, really sucked), but Anderson has never had a full workload in his NFL career. And even though I called him a strength, Manning pushing 40 likely means his days as a top-flight quarterback are probably coming to an end. Although, I said that same thing about two years ago, so what do I know?

Overall: This is probably the last hurrah for the Broncos as they are currently constructed. A Super Bowl appearance might be a bit much to expect, but a division title? That's as easy it gets.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes; Peyton Manning reigns supreme for at least one more year.

Team: Houston Texans

Division: AFC South

Strengths: The defense, led by J.J. Watt, is great. Brian Cushing and Jadeveon Clowney are relatively healthy.

Weaknesses: Offense. They're banking on Brian Hoyer being a decent starting quarterback, Arian Foster is out for the foreseeable future and offensive line looks like a ravaged mess.

Overall: While there are a couple receivers that could be fun to watch, the Texans are defensive team and nothing more. They're the second-best team in the AFC South, which is like bragging that you won a game of chicken with most of your limbs intact. Despite that lofty claim, this team is nowhere near good enough to threaten for a playoff spot.

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: No. And it won't be close.

Team: Indianapolis Colts

Division: AFC South

Strengths: They have Andrew Luck. They also added Andre Johnson and Frank Gore on offense, and Kendall Langford and Trent Cole on defense. Also, they play in the AFC South, which is terrible.

Weaknesses: The defense, as always, is still a weak spot, even with the above mentioned additions. Also, the players I mentioned they added through free agency may or may not work out (they are all older players after all).

Overall: Thanks to playing in a crap division and getting some other powerhouse teams at home, the Colts will likely run away with the AFC South crown and probably threaten for the top seed in the playoffs.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, easily in fact.

Team: Jacksonville Jaguars

Division: AFC South

Strengths: Okay, we've come to my favorite annual passtime; trying to find something positive to say about the Jaguars. Okay, um... maybe Blake Bortles will be better than his rookie season. Okay, good! One kind of positive thing! Moving on.

Weaknesses: It'll be easier listing the strengths. Which I did above. There are no other strengths. This team is bad.

Overall: Really bad.

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: Not this year, that's for sure.

Team: Kansas City Chiefs

Division: AFC West

Strengths: Jamaal Charles is one of the best running backs in the league and the Chiefs defense is among the stingiest. Alex Smith, while unspectacular, doesn't turn the ball over very often and thus doesn't hurt the team.

Weaknesses: Receiver leaves a lot to be desired, since the Chiefs somehow went an entire season without any wideouts catching a touchdown. O-line is anther big if for the team. Basically, the offense in general is a big if.

Overall: The Chiefs are talented enough defensively to make games rough for their opponents, but unless the receivers play better, this may be a long season. Still, I think they have enough going for them to contend for the playoffs. I mean, the receivers can't go two-straight seasons without a touchdown through the air, right? Right?

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, but only just.

Team: Miami Dolphins

Division: AFC East

Strengths: Ryan Tannehill has quietly put together a good couple of seasons, despite throwing to cans of soup and getting ground to paste under opposing defensive players. The defense, which had been pretty good, got a whole lot better with the addition of Ndamukong Suh.

Weaknesses: Receiver is still an issue, as is the offensive line, which allowed Tannehill to be ground into paste. Also Joe Philbin is the head coach.

Overall: Defense will reign supreme in South Florida and will likely carry the Dolphins to victories they wouldn't have come by a year ago. I think they have what it takes to make the playoffs, but with Brady officially unsuspended, that might be a tougher go.

Divisional Rank: Second

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, but that unfortunately leads to another year or so of Joe Philbin.

Team: New England Patriots

Division: AFC East

Strengths: Tom Brady will play the entire season because a federal judge correctly ruled that Roger Goodell is a fucking moron.

Weaknesses: The defense, as has been the norm nearly every year since 2009, is a weak point. More so than usual as they lost most of their secondary from last season.

Overall: Without Brady for four games, the Pats would've probably still won the AFC East. With Brady for the whole season, they'll win it easily and contend for a top seed in the conference.

Divisional Rank: First

PLAYOFFS?!: Yes, they're still kings of the AFC East.

Team: New York Jets

Division: AFC East

Strengths: The Jets defense is likely to be really good. They also have receivers in Brandon Marshall (great) and Eric Decker (not as great, but still good).

Weaknesses: Quarterback, quarterback, quarterback. It was going to be rough enough with Geno Smith, but Ryan Fitzpatrick will likely be the starter for much if not all of the season.

Overall: The Jets may have a good defense, but every team in the AFC East save the Patriots has a good defense. The Jets could get some lucky breaks and win some games they shouldn't, but when has good fortune consistently blessed this team?

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: No, there's too much working against them.

Team: Oakland Raiders

Division: AFC West

Strengths: Holy crap, this team actually might have promise. I know, right?! Derek Carr looks like a keeper at QB. Amari Cooper has the potential to win Offensive Rookie of the Year. Michael Crabtree looks good. Khali Mack looks like a damn beast. And Charles Woodson is a cagey old guy now, which is pretty fun.

Weaknesses: With all that said, this team still has a lot of holes and they play in one of the tougher divisions in the AFC.

Overall: The Raiders can probably win six games this year; there are some pretty crappy teams on their schedule, and they might even be able to take a few games from better teams here and there. But as far as playoff chances go? They probably won't challenge for the postseason until 2017 at the earliest. It's definitely not going to happen this year.

Divisional Rank: Fourth

PLAYOFFS?!: No, but they'll probably be promising and fun for the first time in forever.

Team: Pittsburgh Steelers

Division: AFC North

Strengths: Antonio Brown is one of the best receivers in the NFL and Ben Roethlisberger is shockingly durable.

Weaknesses: The defense, often the strength of the team in the last 40+ years, is the definitive weakness on this team. They'll likely leak yards and points all season.

Overall: In addition to a bad defense, the Steelers can't expect Roethlisberger to replicate his fantastic 2014 in which he threw for career highs in touchdowns and yards and single-digit interceptions for only the fourth time in his career. Those were likely anomalies. He still may have a good season, but in the AFC North I don't think it will translate into the Steelers competing for a playoff spot.

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: No, but just by a hair.

Team: San Diego Chargers

Division: AFC West

Strengths: Keenan Allen, Antonio Gates and Eric Weddle are very good players.

Weaknesses: While I'm not about to call him a liability, Philip Rivers has been very herky-jerky the last few seasons, even with two Pro Bowls under his belt in that time. It's kind of important for Rivers to be more consistent because, man, does this team have holes. The defense is perennially disappointing, and aside from Allen and Gates (who, by the way, is suspended for the first four games), the non-quarterback skill positions leave a lot to be desired.

Overall: The Chargers are the Giants West Coast, in that they're boringly mediocre. The only difference is that the Chargers have a better quarterback and the added distraction of relocation hanging over them. Weeeeeeee!!!!

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: No, there's too many question marks on this team.

Team: Tennessee Titans

Division: AFC South

Strengths: The Titans took Marcus Mariota in the Draft and not Jameis Winston, so that's good from a P.R. perspective (though, if the Bucs took Mariota instead, the Titans probably would've still taken Winston). Mariota looked good in the preseason, which I'm sure means something to someone. And Dick LeBeau came in as a defensive consultant. Maybe he needed a change of scenery after spending so much time in the same place and the defense will improve as a result.

Weaknesses: Once all of the above-mentioned hope is extinguished, it will become unavoidable that this is as piss-poor a roster as any in the league. Coached by Ken Whisenhunt. Yeah.

Overall: The Titans will not be good, but they still have more going for them than the Jaguars at the moment. Which is to say, they have a shiny, new quarterback to play with and that will make Titans fans hopeful for the future. But as far as contending in the here and now, it's not going to happen.

Divisional Rank: Third

PLAYOFFS?!: Are you kidding? No.

***

That'll do it for now. Swing by here tomorrow for the NFC Preview.

Most of the roster transaction stuff was obtained through various SB Nation articles.
Most of the player data was obtained through pro-football-reference.com.

POTENTIAL 2016 PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME CANIDATES

Gonna be real here- there aren't a lot of obvious, slam dunk, hall-of-fame caliber players up for induction this year, with only a couple exceptions. So I'm just going to fill this list with players with obvious shots at induction and big names who have next to no chance of getting in. Mostly, this is just a scrapbook where you can say "Damn, he's been retired for five years already?".

Anyway, let's take a look at the prospects.

Alan Faneca (OG)

1998-2007 Pittsburgh Steelers, 2008-2009 New York Jets, 2010 Arizona Cardinals

Accomplishments: 9x Pro Bowl selection (2001-2009); 6x 1st Team All-Pro (2001-2002, 2004-2007); 2000s All-Decade Team (1st Team); Super Bowl Champion (2005)

Pros: Among the most dominant guards of his era, Faneca only missed one game from 2000 to 2010. In fact, he started more games during the length of his career (201) than any other offensive lineman. Teams that had Faneca on its line finished in the top 10 in rushing 11 times, twice as the league's best.

Cons: Guard is a weird position. Since 1990, 11 players that were exclusively guards have been enshrined in the hall of fame, a whopping 7.5% of all inductees. And of those 11, only John Hannah and Larry Allen went in on their first ballots. History isn't exactly in Faneca's favor in that regard.

Overall: Faneca was an excellent player and helped his teams win a lot of games. He's definitely going to be inducted at some point, whether it's this year or shortly thereafter. I think he has the credentials to go in on his first ballot, but because of recent precedent I can't say that he's a lock, even though his play says he is.

HoF Projection: Pretty Good

Brett Favre (QB)

1991 Atlanta Falcons, 1992-2007 Green Bay Packers, 2008 New York Jets, 2009-2010 Minnesota Vikings

Accomplishments: 11x Pro Bowl selection (1992-1993, 1995-1997, 2001-2003, 2007-2009); 3x 1st Team All-Pro (1995-1997); 3x NFL MVP (1995-1997) (co-MVP in 1997 with Barry Sanders); Super Bowl Champion (1996); 70,000 passing yards club; 500 passing touchdowns club

Pros: Where to start? Besides his credentials above, Favre ranks second all-time with 508 touchdowns and first all-time with 71,838 passing yards (though barring some unforeseen circumstance Peyton Manning will top that mark this season). He was surprisingly accurate with a career pass completion of 62%.

He also started a record 321 games between the regular season an playoffs. That's a streak that lasted more than 18 years, despite being sacked 525 times (which is also a record).

Finally, he aged remarkably well, culminating in his 2009 season with the Vikings where he had, statistically, the best season of his career (4,202 yards, 33 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, 68.4 completion percentage- all career highs or lows).

Cons: Of the 19 seasons Favre was the main starting quarterback for his teams, he threw single-digit interceptions just once. Indeed, he also holds the record for most passes intercepted with 336 (he's the only player in NFL history to throw over 300 in regular-season play). His 30 interception in the playoffs are also a record. And he had a 23-13 record against the Bears, which means nothing but makes me sad.

Overall: The interceptions are a meaningless knock- Favre threw so many INTs because he had the confidence of his coaches to throw so much. His TD/INT ratio isn't quite 2:1, but he obviously threw significantly more touchdowns than picks. Did he throw some games and potential championships away with errant throws? Yeah. But every quarterback, great or otherwise, has done that in the past and will do that in the future.

Bottom line, Favre is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game and is a lock in every sense of the word. He's going in next year.

HoF Projection: Slam Dunk

Joey Galloway (WR)

1995-1999 Seattle Seahawks, 2000-2003 Dallas Cowboys, 2004-2008 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2009 New England Patriots, 2010 Washington Redskins

Accomplishments: 10,000 receiving yards club

Pros: Galloway was a decent receiver that had a fine, long career and was occasionally very good, specifically his 1997, 1998 and 2005 seasons.

Cons: Galloway was never a top player. He rarely had catch percentages (how many balls he caught compared to how many times he was targeted) above 50% (four times from 1998 on). He was largely injured and went six-straight seasons without topping 1,000 receiving yards. He never was in the top ten of a given season for receptions and was only in the top ten for receiving yards once and receiving touchdowns twice.

Overall: Galloway had a fine career, but he is not of hall-of-fame quality.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

Terrell Owens (WR)

1996-2003 San Francisco 49ers, 2004-2005 Philadelphia Eagles, 2006-2008 Dallas Cowboys, 2009 Buffalo Bills, 2010 Cincinnati Bengals

Accomplishments: 6x Pro Bowl selection (2000-2004, 2007); 5x 1st Team All-Pro (2000-2002, 2004, 2007); 1,000 receptions club; 15,000 receiving yards club; 150 receiving touchdowns club

Pros: Owens made 1,078 receptions (sixth most in history) for 15,934 receiving yards (second most) and 153 touchdowns (third most). During the length of his career, only Marvin Harrison caught more passes and only Randy Moss caught as many touchdowns (Moss caught exactly 153 touchdowns in two fewer seasons than Owens; by the by, how good was Randy Moss?). And he finished in top ten in receptions three times, receiving yards five times and receiving touchdowns ten times. With numbers that impressive, what could you possibly say to discredit his hall of fame candidacy?

Cons: Beyond the fact that wide receiver is in a dreadful quagmire with hall voters, Owens has a well-deserved reputation for being, well, insufferable. Like when he implied that Jeff Garcia was gay for no reason. Or when burned the entire city of Philadelphia to the ground before they told him to go away. Or when he cried saying that Tony Romo was his quarterback and proceeded to do nothing but complain about Tony Romo for the remainder of his stay in Dallas. Or the other dumb things he said/did.

Point blank, while the Pro Football Hall of Fame has no character clause like the Baseball Hall of Fame's much-maligned one, being a dick while playing at a high level still causes problems in getting inducted. Charles Haley was talented enough to go in on his first ballot in 2005. He just got inducted this year. Because he was an insane dick. It took Michael Irvin three tries. Point is, T.O.'s often self-aggrandizing, shitty behavior wore on people, which may hurt him.

Overall: Owens is of hall-of-fame caliber. Problem is, his past indiscretions (and it should be noted he was never arrested and committed no crimes, he's just a douche) plus competition from Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt and Marvin Harrison will probably dilute his chances of going in this year. Or maybe they won't. The Hall's weird. I mean, Warren Sapp went in on his first ballot. So who knows? Maybe T.O. will go in too.

HoF Projection: Pretty Good

Chad Pennington (QB)

2000-2007 New York Jets, 2008-2010 Miami Dolphins

Accomplishments: *Ahem* (looks back and forth awkwardly)

Pros: Pennington was better than you probably remember. He was surprisingly accurate, posting a career completion percentage of 66.1. Of all quarterbacks that have thrown at least 2,400 passes, only Drew Brees has a higher completion percentage in NFL history. And he was a steady hand for teams that were fairly successful.

Cons: Pennington didn't have the biggest arm and was often injured. He played a full season just twice. He only threw 64 interceptions, but against just 104 touchdowns. His career high in passing yards was 3,653. Mind you, this was in an era where quarterbacks routinely threw for over 4,000 yards. And going back to his lack of arm strength, I don't know how many throws weren't just easy screens or dump-off passes that bumped up his accuracy numbers (and I don't have a subscription to Pro Football Focus, so I have no way to verify that).

Overall: Pennington wasn't an embarrassment and should be happy with how his career went. When he was healthy, he had some borderline Pro Bowl caliber seasons (particularly his 2002 and 2008 seasons). But as far as his hall of fame candidacy goes? It's nonexistent. Though he is probably the third-best quarterback in Jets history. So there's that.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

Clinton Portis (RB)

2002-2003 Denver Broncos, 2004-2010 Washington Redskins

Accomplishments: 2x Pro Bowl selection (2003, 2008); AP Offensive Rookie of the Year (2002); 75 rushing touchdown club

Pros: What an underrated career. Portis rushed for over 1,300 yards five times in his career and had double-digit touchdowns three times. From his rookie season to his final Pro Bowl selection, only LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for more yards and only Tomlinson and Shaun Alexander rushed for more touchdowns than Portis. Only John Riggins tops Portis' numbers in Washington Redskins history.

Cons: Sadly, injuries derailed Portis' career. He played only 13 games in his final two seasons and only played nine seasons overall.

Overall: Had he remained healthy and played another two or three seasons, who knows, maybe Portis would've put up hall-of-fame-like numbers. He definitely would've topped 10,000 yards, which would've done something. But as it is, Portis doesn't have a great shot at making it. Which is a shame, because his talent was undeniable.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

Trevor Pryce (DE/DT)

1997-2005 Denver Broncos, 2006-2010 Baltimore Ravens, 2010 New York Jets

Accomplishments: 4x Pro Bowl selection (1999-2002); 1st Team All-Pro (1999); 2x Super Bowl champion (1997-1998)

Pros: Pryce was a reliable stopgap on the Broncos' defensive line. The team was in the top ten in points allowed per game five times in Pryce's stay with the team. Individually, Pryce recorded at least 8.5 sacks six times in his career, including three seasons where he notched double-digit sacks (he recorded 25 sacks between 1999 and 2000).

Cons: Pryce's numbers don't really leap off the page; he didn't reach the 100-sack milestone which really bolsters most players' chances for induction. This is a problem whenever defensive players come up, as they don't have easily contextualized stats to look at when deciding their hall-of-fame fates.

Overall: Pryce was a pretty underrated D-lineman, but I don't know if he had a big-enough profile or sexy-enough stats that will distinguish him from any other D-lineman. Of his nine seasons as a primary starter, five of his teams were in the top ten in points allowed, including the league-leading 2006 Baltimore Ravens. So he undeniably could help a team be great. But I don't think that will put him over the top.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

Antwaan Randle El (WR)

2002-2005, 2010 Pittsburgh Steelers, 2006-2009 Washington Redskins

Accomplishments: Super Bowl champion (2005)

Pros: Randle El was an okay receiver, but he is notable for one reason. He played quarterback at Indiana and was occasionally used as a passer in games throughout his career (he attempted 27 passes in his career, completing 22 of them). Randle El has the distinction of being the only Steeler to throw a touchdown pass in Super Bowl XL. Which is great for him, but that's just another caveat to point out how God-awful Ben Roethlisberger played in that game.

Cons: Just about everything else.

Overall: He was a good third or fourth option in the passing game, but as far as hall of fame consideration goes, it's not going to happen.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

Darren Sharper (S)

1997-2004 Green Bay Packers, 2005-2008 Minnesota Vikings, 2009-2010 New Orleans Saints

Accomplishments: 5x Pro Bowl selection (2000, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2009); 2x 1st Team All Pro (2000, 2009); Super Bowl champion (2009); 60 interceptions club; 10,000 interception return yards club; 10 interception return touchdowns club

Pros: Sharper is tied for seventh all-time with 63 interceptions. He returned 11 of those picks for touchdowns, the second-most ever (tied with Charles Woodson, who is also great). He had a long, productive career as one of the best safeties of his era.

Cons: Shaper's a serial rapist. And that's not even accusation- he was convicted! He'll spend nine years in prison. Which is about 35 to 40 years too short given the sheer amount of evidence, but still, nearly a decade behind bars for a truly heinous crime. Think of any knock you could possibly have against his game and it pales, justifiably by the way, compared to this.

Overall: I mentioned earlier that there's no official character clause for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but even still, how many voters are going to die on the serial rapist hill and cast a ballot for Sharper? Honestly, if Sharper makes it in one day or never does, I won't bat an eye either way. On his game alone, he belongs in; still, I'll be very surprised if he ever goes in. But he does have a very special corner of Hell all to his own.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

Fred Taylor (RB)

1998-2008 Jacksonville Jaguars, 2009-2010 New England Patriots

Accomplishments: Pro Bowl selection (2007); 11,000 rushing yards club

Pros: Taylor was a pretty underrated running back, quietly rushing for 11,695 yards in his career (currently the 15th-most in history). He had seven 1,000+ yards seasons, going over 1,200 six times. He gained 4.5 more yards per attempt eight times. And he's probably the best skill position player in the history of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Cons: Taylor had some pretty stiff competition from other running backs. Marshall Faulk, Ladainian Tomlinson, Shaun Alexander, Clinton Portis, and Tiki Barber all put up similar or superior numbers than he did. Taylor was in the top 10 in rushing yards six times, but never in the top five. And he only scored double-digit touchdowns twice.

Overall: While Taylor was great, he'll probably have a hard time getting inducted. He got lost in the crowd with other great running backs, especially after the Jaguars slid into mediocrity for much of the 2000s. As such, I don't think he goes in, but maybe he'll get more support later.

HoF Projection: Slim Chance

Mike Vrabel (LB)

1997-2000 Pittsburgh Steelers, 2001-2008 New England Patriots, 2009-2010 Kansas City Chiefs

Accomplishments: Pro Bowl selection (2007); 1st Team All-Pro (2007); 3x Super Bowl champion (2001, 2003-2004)

Pros: Vrabel was a key member of the great Patriots teams of the 2000s.

Cons: Like many other Patriots of this era, Vrabel didn't distinguish himself individually. He was a great piece of the greater puzzle, but as a player he was just kind of there.

Overall: See above.

HoF Projection: Not This Year

Brian Westbrook (RB)

2002-2008 Philadelphia Eagles, 2009-2010 San Francisco 49ers

Accomplishments: 2x Pro Bowl selection (2004, 2007); 1st Team All-Pro (2007)

Pros: Westbrook compares very well to Roger Craig; he was an all-purpose back that gained more than 1,200 yards from scrimmage in five-straight seasons, including a league-leading 2,104 in 2007. He scored double-digit total touchdowns four times in six seasons. And for a lot of his time with the Eagles (in which they went to four NFC Championship Games and one Super Bowl) he was probably their best receiver in addition to being their primary running back.

Cons: Westbrook played only nine seasons and was a primary starter for just seven. And the comparison to Roger Craig also may work against him, since Craig has received little support for his own induction. Westbrook only rushed for 1,000 yards or more twice, and because he was a running back voters will still likely hold that against him.

Overall: Westbrook was a 2000s equivalent of Roger Craig. Unfortunately, Craig has gone under-appreciated by voters, so Westbrook will likely go the same route. The hall hasn't put in dual-threat running backs unless they were great in traditional terms and happened to put up good receiving marks as a compliment to their ground games (see Walter Payton, Marshall Faulk, and, very likely in 2017, Ladainian Tomlinson). So it doesn't look good for Westbrook's chances.

HoF Projection: Slim Chance

***

Stats found on pro-football-reference.com.

THE SPURS ARE GOING TO BE FUN AND SCARY

The Spurs, who despite their first round exit were one of the best teams in the NBA last season, are primed to even better this year.

They're well on their way to locking up reigning-Defensive-Player-of-the-Year Kawhi Leonard with a max contract, they signed one of the best free agents on the market in LaMarcus Aldridge, who's averaged over 20 points and 10 rebounds the last three seasons, and Tim Duncan, who's old as hell yet can still play at a high level, will be back for at least one more season. All this before Manu Ginobili also decided to stave off retirement for a little longer as well.

In addition to that, they just signed David West, who was a potential second option if they couldn't close the deal on Aldridge. Now they have both of them, getting their cake and eating it in the process.

To recap: the Spurs will trot out their old big-three for at least one more year (Duncan and Ginobili will likely be signed to one-year deals on the cheap and Tony Parker is singed through 2018) and will also have a new big-three in Leonard, Aldridge and Danny Green to lead them into the post-Duncan wilderness when that time finally comes. Plus, Gregg Popovitch will coach out his contract which lasts until 2019. Simply put, one of the best teams on both ends of the court got better and will likely remain that way until at least the end of the decade.

Now how do the Spurs stack up against the rest of the Western Conference?

Starting with the 2014 playoff teams:

Golden State Warriors

Their only free agent that contributed significant minutes last season, Draymond Green, resigned with the team that has the rest of the core locked up for the next few years. They'll be formidable once again next season, though time will tell if they'll miss Alvin Gentry's offensive scheme (Gentry now coaches the New Orleans Pelicans).

Houston Rockets

Their core is locked up as well and they're likely to be good again as well. The Warriors and Rockets represent the Spur's greatest challenge in making it to the Finals.

Los Angeles Clippers

Here's where things get interesting. The team that knocked the Spurs out of the playoffs got significantly worse. They lost DeAndre Jordan to the Mavericks, meaning a team that worked its starters to the bone will not have a guy who averaged double-digit rebounds the last two seasons. Plus, they still haven't fixed their lack of depth. They're probably still a playoff team thanks to Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, but they'll be lucky if they make it out of the first round.

Portland Trail Blazers

In addition to losing Aldridge, they also lost Wesley Matthews to the Mavericks and Robin Lopez to the Knicks. The Blazers have Damian Lillard and not much else now. They're likely not even a playoff team next year.

Memphis Grizzlies

They'll still be a hard-nosed tough team, but depth will now be an issue having lost Kosta Koufos, one of the best backup centers in the game, to the Sacramento Kings. Also, shooting is still an issue.

Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks got better with the additions of Jordan and Matthews mentioned above, though they're still in the bottom tier of playoff-caliber teams in the West. In the next few seasons they'll probably be pretty formidable, but not this season.

New Orleans Pelicans

Thanks to a tiebreaker with the Thunder, the Pelicans made the playoffs last season. With Anthony Davis locked up for the rest of the decade, it's up to Alvin Gentry to fix a defense which was in the bottom ten in terms of efficiency. If he can improve the defense then the Pelicans will definitely be an under-the-radar dangerous team, though good enough to advance past the second round.

And the Rest

The Thunder are sure to return to their playoff form with Kevin Durant likely being healthy again. Though aside from Durant and Russell Westbrook, the team doesn't seem as imposing as has in the past (the Thunder are in a watered-down version of what plagues the Clippers with a suspect bench, but it's not as grave as it is in LA).

The Jazz and the Suns will be fun teams vying for the last couple playoff spots, but neither of them are serious threats. That leaves the Nuggets, Kings, Lakers and Timberwolves, all of whom will be dreadful for at least one more season (though the Nuggets have a chance to improve to mediocre if Mike Malone is a wizard).

***

In conclusion, the moves the Spurs have made in the last month and particularly the last few days will push them to the top of the tougher conference in the NBA. Only the Warriors, Rockets and MAYBE the Thunder pose a threat to them. But the Spurs have to be considered the favorites to make it out of the West and win their six championship in franchise history.

MAN, LEBRON WAS AWESOME, BUT THE WARRIORS WERE AWESOMER

The Golden State Warriors are the NBA champions for the first time in 40 years.

For pretty much every year after that 1975 title they were an utter joke of a franchise. They wasted Chris Mullin, broke up Run TMC too damn early, and won a scant 42.8 percent of their games in the 35 years after 1975. For more detail, from 1976 to 2010 the Warriors had 11 winning seasons, went to the playoffs eight times and made past their first series six times, with only two of those coming after 1990.

Under Mark Jackson, the Warriors became a fun good team while Stephen Curry became perhaps the greatest three-point shooter in NBA history. But under Steve Kerr the Warriors became great.

Curry broke his own three-pointers-made record. Klay Thompson and Draymon Green came into their own, while Andre Iguildala and David Lee went to the bench. The Warriors led the league in defensive rating (points allowed per every 100 possessions) and only trailed the Clippers in offensive rating (points scored per every 100 possessions) by 0.8 points.

They were damn near unstoppable at home, losing only four games at Oracle Arena all season, playoffs included. Only the 1985-86 Celtics had a better home record. At one point, they won 16 games in a row. Since the 2003 postseason, when the NBA upgraded the first round from a best of five to a best of seven, only the 2006-07 Spurs had a better postseason record (16-4). The Warriors' 16-5 record in the playoffs was matched only by the 2010-11 Dallas Mavericks in the last 13 seasons.

Point is, this Warriors team was fantastic in every conceivable way and will likely go down as one of the best in NBA history.

Only the Grizzlies and Cavaliers gave the Warriors any real trouble in the playoffs, with the Cavs being particularly notable. The Cavs lost Kevin Love after the first round thanks to Kelly Olynyk, and Kyrie Irving, who had been hobbled for most of the playoffs, injured his knee in Game 1 of the Finals. Under those circumstances, the fact that the Cavs took two wins away from a team that will go down as one of the best ever is nothing short of remarkable. And most of that is thanks to LeBron James.

LeBron was simply astounding in these Finals- he averaged 35.8 points, 13.3 rebounds and 8.8 assists in the six games while playing 274 of the total 298 minutes these Finals lasted (45.7 minutes per game). If anyone besides Andre Iguodala (who was great offensively and defended LeBron like a champ) deserved to win Finals MVP, it was James. The only player in the last 30 years to put up a line that good in a Finals loss that went to at least six games is Charles Barkley in 1993 (27.3 points, 13 rebounds, 5.5 assists, per game) and LeBron's 2015 Finals line blows Barkley's out of the water.

LeBron looked exhausted after Game 6, and it makes sense why. Take LeBron off the Cavs, and as Jeff Pearlman tweeted, you have the Knicks. David Blatt only seemed to trust seven players besides LeBron and not counting Kyrie Irving all series - Matthew Dellavedova, James Jones, Timofey Mozgov, Iman Shumpert, J.R. Smith and Thristan Thompson, with Mike Miller coming in as a desperation reserve late in the run. That lineup played great defense, but offensively they're pretty scatter shot. The two wins in the Finals for the Cavs resulted in guys like Delly playing beyond their means offensively (though Mozgov had a great all-around series and Smith was invaluable when he got on a hot streak).

Even if Love and Irving were healthy, the Warriors would still likely have won (though it probably would've gone the full seven in that scenario). But with Love likely resigning in Cleveland and Irving back next season, this Cavs team is the favorite to make it out of the East once again in 2016.

But speaking of going back to the Finals, the Warriors are primed to be good for a long time. GM Bob Myers has already said that he has permission to match any offer Draymond Green receives in restricted free agency this summer, and the other key players on the team are all under contract for the next two seasons at least. Who knows, maybe we'll see both of these teams face off again a year from now.

SERIES LOSS BRINGS UNCERTAINTY TO BULLS

I picked the Cleveland Cavaliers to go to the NBA Finals, but one potential series that gave me pause was a match up against their division rivals, the Chicago Bulls. This season's Bulls team was more poised to make a deep playoff run than any Bulls team since 2011. Not coincidentally, this was the first season since the Bulls went to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2011 that Derrick Rose was largely healthy.

Rose's injury woes are well documented. He missed much of the the 2011-12 season due to injuries and tore his left ACL in the Bulls' first game of the playoffs. He missed the entire 2012-13 season, and played in only ten games the next season before tearing his meniscus in his right leg. All in all Rose missed 197 games over those three seasons, but he managed to play 51 this season even after re-injuring his right meniscus.

Rose averaged 17.7 points, 4.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds this season- a far cry from his MVP season, but still very good for a Bulls team that regressed defensively compared to years past. A healthy Rose, in addition to a breakout season from Jimmy Butler, an All-Star return to form for Pau Gasol, and a typically feisty campaign for Joakim Noah, plus a good bench with guys like Taj Gibson, Aaron Brooks, Kirk Hinrich and rookie Nikola Mirotic made this team a real threat come playoff time.

If any team was going to knock off the Cavaliers, it was these Bulls. And they had a lot going for them- Kevin Love dislocated his shoulder against the Celtics and was ruled out for the rest of the playoffs. Kyrie Irving was also banged up going into the series. J.R. Smith was suspended for the first two games of the Bulls series after hitting the Celtics' Jae Crowder in the head. And again, this Bulls team was healthy for really the first time since 2010-11.

But even with all of those advantages, the Cavs still came away with a series victory in six games.

The Bulls only had one convincing win over the Cavs in the whole series- their 99-92 Game 1 victory. Game 3 and 4 ended after last-second baskets that were, for all intents and purposes, lucky shots, and were otherwise even games that either team could've won. That leaves the other three games, which the Cavs won in convincing fashion.

I'm not about to say that this was a shameful series loss. After all, LeBron James is really, really damn good. But while James is phenomenal, again, he's one guy. And also again, the Cavs' version of the Big Three was down to one-and-a-half for pretty much this whole series. And also, also again, the Bulls, by contrast were healthy for the most part (injuries to Pau Gasol not withstanding).

And, unfortunately, that also leads to speculation about the future of Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau. In case you've been living under a rock for the last year or so, Thibodeau and Bulls' management have been involved in a rather public pissing contest with each other.

Management isn't happy about Thibs' prickly personality and his inability lighten up as far as working his players into the ground goes. Thibs' isn't happy, because he's been successful and those front office guys can go piss up a rope for all he cares.

And Thibs has every right to feel like his system is working- before he was hired, the Bulls were a complete mess. They went through four coaches from 1998 to 2010. They had a whopping two winning seasons in that same stretch. In that era's five postseason appearances, they advanced past the first round once.

With Thibs' arrival, the Bulls went from winning 39% of their games since their 1998 championship, to winning 64.7% of them in his full five seasons on the job. Like him or not, Thibs has made the Bulls one of the best teams in the NBA year in, year out. And this includes seasons where their best player missed 80% of his games in three years. But conversely, the front office deserves credit for drafting players like Rose, Noah, Butler and Gibson, to name a few, in the last decade to bring the Bulls back to relevancy.

Thibs is undeniably a good coach, but it is fair to question whether he's taken the Bulls as far as he, personally, can take them. They were so good defensively in the past, finishing second, first, third and first in opponent's points per game in Thibs' first four seasons, before dropping down to ninth this season. Obviously, finishing in the top ten defensively is still a major accomplishment, but that drop is disconcerting nonetheless.

The Bulls just seemed tired. Were they beginning to tune out Thibs, who has a well-deserved reputation for being a hard ass? They certainly seemed to in Game 6. After scoring 31 points in the first quarter, they only scored 42 the rest of the game, while losing to the Cavs by 21, the biggest margin of victory in this series for either team. All while on their home court in an elimination game. While Rose, Noah and Gibson all had Thibs' back after the loss, their and the rest of the team's actions sure spoke louder than words in that game, and really, the whole season.

I would be very surprised if Thibs was back in Chicago come October. I mean, hard ass coaches feuding publicly with the team's front office no longer being there the next year despite great success- where have I heard that before? I don't know who the Bulls would replace him with, but given the success of the Golden State Warriors this season under rookie-coach Steve Kerr, after firing player-favorite Mark Jackson, they're probably willing to try. Also, they really, really seem to want to get Thibs out the door as soon as possible.

I have no idea what the Bulls will look like next season or who will be coaching them. The uncertainty is the only guarantee for them all summer.