Article:The Sports Brief's 2008 NFL predictions

With tonight's Giants-Redskins season opener, the 2008 NFL season is finally upon us. Which can only mean one thing...NFL predictions from The Sports Brief! We've got division winners, our playoff predictions along with individual awards and Week 1 picks with the spreads. So check it out and let us know what you think. We'll be keeping a running tally on the weekly picks, and we've added in a random submission of picks every week to see if our "expertise" holds up against pure luck. That and my picks are the ones I submit to my father's office pool every week. So I'm hoping to bank on these puppies bigtime.

And so, here goes nothing...

Division winners:

' AFC East Besse : Patriots Keefe : Patriots ' AFC North Besse : Steelers Keefe : Browns  AFC South Besse : Jaguars Keefe : Colts

' AFC West Besse : Chargers Keefe : Chargers ' Wildcard Besse : Colts; Jets Keefe : Texans; Jets

Wildcard weekend Besse : Colts over Chargers; Jets over Steelers Keefe : Colts over Texans; Jets over Browns ' Divisional round Besse : Patriots over Jets; Jaguars over Colts Keefe : Pats over Jets; Chargers over Colts ' AFC Championship Besse : Patriots over Jaguars Keefe : Patriots over Chargers  NFC East Besse : Cowboys Keefe : Cowboys

NFC North Besse : Packers Keefe : Vikings ' NFC South Besse : Saints Keefe : Saints ' NFC West Besse : Seahawks Keefe : Seahawks  Wildcard Besse : Vikings; Giants Keefe : Eagles; Packers

Wildcard weekend Besse : Seahawks over Giants; Vikings over Packers Keefe : Eagles over Vikings; Seahawks over Packers ' Divisional round Besse : Saints over Seahawks; Cowboys over Vikings Keefe : Cowboys over Seahawks; Saints over Eagles ' N FC Championship Besse : Cowboys over Saints Keefe : Cowboys over Saints  Super Bowl Besse : Patriots over Cowboys Keefe : Patriots over Cowboys

MVP Besse : Tom Brady, Patriots (let’s face it, this team sucks without him) Keefe : Tony Romo Defensive POY Besse : Patrick Willis, 49ers Keefe : Mario Williams, Texans ' Coach of the Year B esse : Sean Payton, Saints Keefe : Romeo Crennel, Browns ' Offensive ROY Besse : Steve Slaton, Texans Keefe : Chris Johnson, Titans  Defensive ROY Besse : Vernon Gholston, Jets Keefe : Jerod Mayo, Patriots

 Sleeper team Besse : Carolina Panthers…to the Super Bowl if Jake Delhomme stays healthy. Keefe : Have Browns and Texans in the playoffs, but I think the Raiders will surprise as well, maybe 2nd in the AFC West.

As mentioned earlier, The Sports Brief is proud to announce that we will be submitting out picks every week for every NFL game on the schedule. We will keep a running tally for both Besse and Keefe, as well as include picks for the “test dummy.” The test dummy, whom we will call Random Ron, may vary on a weekly basis, but its picks will be made through various activities such as flipping a coin, throwing darts, etc. This week, the test dummy’s picks were made by the flip of a coin. Heads for the home team and tails for the away team. Without further ado, the picks for Week 1 are…

 Besse : Redskins (+3.5) Saints (-3.5) Jets (-2.5) Bengals (+1.5) Falcons (+3.5) Rams (+7.5) Seahawks (+0.5) Jaguars (-2.5) Patriots (-16.5) Steelers (-6.5) Chargers (-9.5) Cowboys (-5.5) Cardinals (-2.5) Colts (-9.5) Vikings (+2.5) Raiders (+2.5)

 Keefe: Redskins (+3.5) Saints (-3.5) Jets (-2.5) Bengals (+1.5) Lions (-3.5) Eagles (-7.5) Bills (-0.5) Jaguars (-2.5) Patriots (-16.5) Texans (+6.5) Chargers (-9.5) Cowboys (-5.5) 49ers (+2.5) Colts (-9.5) Vikings (+2.5) Raiders (+2.5) Random Ron: Giants (-3.5) Saints (-3.5) Dolphins (+2.5) Ravens (-1.5) Falcons (+3.5) Rams (+7.5) Seahawks (+0.5) Titans (+2.5) Chiefs (+16.5) Steelers (-6.5) Panthers (+9.5) Cowboys (-5.5) Cardinals (-2.5) Bears (+9.5) Vikings (+2.5) Raiders (+2.5)

Let us know what you think. You can check out more at http://sportsbrief.blogspot.com, and feel free to e-mail us [mailto:sportsbrief@gmail.com sportsbrief@gmail.com]

-Bess