2009 NFL Week 1 Predictions

The Bar was set in Shots Heard's first season of prognosticating winners of NFL games. In that 2008 regular season Shots Heard record was 152-101.

Tennessee Titans @ Pittsburgh Steelers

Winner: Steelers

Miami Dolphins @ Atlanta Falcons

Winner: Falcons

Denver Broncos @ Cincinnati Bengals

Winner: Bengals

Minnesota Vikings @ Cleveland Browns

Winner: Vikings

Jacksonville Jaguars @ Indianapolis Colts

Winner: Colts

Detroit Lions @ New Orleans Saints

Winner: Saints

Dallas Cowboys @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Winner: Cowboys

Philadelphia Eagles @ Carolina Panthers

Winner: Eagles

Kansas City Chiefs @ Baltimore Ravens

Winner: Ravens

New York Jets @ Houston Texans

Winner: Jets

Washington Redskins @ New York Giants

Winner: Giants

San Francisco 49ers @ Arizona Cardinals

Winner: Cardinals

St. Louis Rams @ Seattle Seahawks

Winner: Seahawks

Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers

Winner: Packers

Buffalo Bills @ New England Patriots

Winner: Patriots

San Diego Chargers @ Oakland Raiders

Winner: Chargers

Notes

The Patriots are no longer in the elite class of teams. An expert (like the kind you would find on Shots Heard) should realize that in advance. The Patriots do not have a go to clutch runner (not that they did) and now their defense is mediocre. Yet laughably, five out of eight so-called 'experts at NFL.com picked the Patriots as the top team in their power rankings. Those five guys should be fired, including Michael Lombardi. As if we do not know how a guy named Lombardi got a job writing about football.

Out of the three remaining 'experts' that did not pick the Patriots as the top team, only Bucky Brooks was smart enough to have the Vikings, Steelers and Ravens in his respective top seven. How is that? Teams with dominant defenses and fair to good offenses like the Vikings, Ravens and Steelers should always get high spots. That is a proven formula for winning.

In 2001 and 2003, the Ravens and Buccaneers each won a championship with great defenses and sub par quarterback play. Even the Bears came close to winning in 2007 despite their offense being only their third best scoring threat. Defensive touchdowns and returned kicks for touchdowns by Devin Hester almost scarred NFL history permanently. Can you imagine Rex Grossman getting a Super Bowl ring as a starting quarterback?

Of course there are many story lines. How long will the Lions continue the 17 game and counting losing streak for? Will Mark Sanchez be this year's Adrian Peterson? The guy that teams foolishly passed up on in the draft. Will Matt Ryan have a sophomore slump? Will the Eagles incorporate Michael Vick into a wildcat offensive scheme? Is Ledainian Tomlinson going to return to form as an elite running back? Will Aaron Rodgers be the Favre Apparent (There are doubters after a 6-10 season)?

But the biggest story is Brett Favre going to the Vikings. Shots Heard believes Favre coming to town, along with the brilliant draft pick of Percy Harvin will take the Vikings to NFC front runner status. Even in 18 years, Favre never had the best running back in the league (Adrian Peterson) to go along with a dominant defense. This is a story that Shots Heard will follow closely.