The Best Time Of The Sporting Year
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A huge trade by the Dallas Cowboys gave the start of the new NFL season a major boost it didn’t really need.
Anytime a new year gets underway there is more than enough of a groundswell of excitement and anticipation, but this particular deal really spiced things up.
The Cowboys, who haven’t been America’s Team as they’ve been labeled forever, sent one of league’s finest players and best pass rusher to the Green Bay Packers. In exchange, the Cowboys received Green Bay’s #1 drafts pick the next two years and Kenny Clark, a superior defensive lineman superb as a run stopper.
Micah Parsons, only 26, now takes his immense talents at getting to the enemy quarterback to the Packers after a tense and lengthy contract dispute.
Jerry Jones, the owner and caller of all the shots in Big D pulled the trigger on the deal after he apparently soured in having to negotiate with Parsons’ agent. Jones may also be correct in pointing out how weak his team has been defending the run. It may not matter.
The Cowboys were unable to go far in the playoffs with Parsons and won’t go far without him either. The Packers have certainly improved with their new star but still not likely to be around at the end. Every season there is tremendous hope that this is the year the Cowboys will deliver and every year they disappoint. Sooner or later Jerry Jones has to come to grips that his moves haven’t worked.
But that will never happen as long as he and his son Stephen own the team.
So who has the best chances of being crowned Super Bowl champion?
You always have to start with the defending champs, in this case the Eagles.
They may have the best General Manager in Howie Roseman. His job is to put the roster together and he’s been brilliant for the most part. Even this off-season he has made many changes which make many uncomfortable. Why change what’s working? But Roseman has astutely learned that standing pat rarely pays off, that looking to upgrade with fresh and younger talent keeps you ahead of the game.
Still, it’ll be a challenge for Philly to get everything just right for a repeat.
The team that has become the sentimental hope are the Buffalo Bills. They possess one of the two finest quarterbacks in Josh Allen and have been on the brink for several seasons. This may be their best opportunity.
Same for the Baltimore Ravens, who are well-constructed and have an MVP quarterback themselves in Lamar Jackson who nobody originally wanted. Baltimore has been knocking on the door as well. While the NFC Eagles may be the league’s titleholders, the better teams seem to be in the AFC. Maybe it’s because most of the sharper young quarterbacks are in that conference. Remember, without a franchise or stellar QB, the chances of winding up on top are virtually impossible.
It is more likely a playoff surprise would come out of the NFC as we saw with Washington in 2024. Sparked by the amazing rookie play of QB Jayden Daniels, who appears to be destined for stardom, the Commodores bear watching, especially having added some experienced and savvy vets. But now they are among the hunted and won’t be sneaking up on anybody anymore. They did just that in a playoff upset victory against the Lions in Detroit, making you wonder whether the Jared Goff-led Detroiters are still a team of destiny. They will have new coaches running both the offense and the defense. The improved Packers make the Lions mission even more of a problem.
One team I believe can stage a significant rebound and become a dark-horse Super Bowl challenger are the San Francisco 49ers. Coming off a shocking 6-11 campaign and a last-place finish in their division, the 49ers will now have their outstanding do-it-all back Christian McCaffery ready for a full season and fully healthy, along with the return of their masterful defensive coordinator, Robert Saleh. Saleh was the architect of a remarkable 49er defense before he left to become head coach of the Jets.
It’s the kind of combination that could take the Niners far.
Back to the AFC which has more genuine contenders. You never can ignore the teams with established quarterbacks who can win and win big. The Bengals, with Joe Burrow, and the Chargers armed with Justin Herbert, always bear watching.
Cincinnati in particular, can be a so-called dark horse for a long run.
The Steelers are gambling with 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers to not only get them out of their inability to win a playoff game, but to carry them beyond. I doubt it’ll work out with a once great but fading graybeard who must avoid the injuries that befall all players in all sports at that age.
If you asked me point-blank who I would pick to get to the Super Bowl and wear the crown; I might go with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Yes, the team that got crushed in the last one. Patrick Mahomes is still on top of them all, with the uncanny ability to ad-lib, improvise and adjust on the run. Their head coach Andy Reid is a phenomenal play-caller and while the Chiefs don’t have the ‘big names’ their past championship teams have had, they come up with players who execute when it counts. Reid quietly fixes what’s wrong, dials out the noise from the outside, and gets his team to focus. He’s the perfect guy to engineer a comeback from last year’s disaster in New Orleans, and we know his teams not only win the close ones but usually win the big ones.
Other thoughts: The Giants will be better. Jaxson Dart looks to be their quarterback of the future. But the schedule is brutal. No playoff team this season, but 2026 should be different. I like Aaron Glenn as the new head coach of the Jets. He brings a spirited sense of leadership. But Justin Fields has to prove he can handle the role as starting quarterback. Beyond the Chiefs, it’ll be a fascinating duel in the AFC West. The Broncos with a championship coach in Sean Payton and a franchise QB in young Bo Nix fighting it out with new Raiders age-old coach Pete Carroll, and his veteran leader Geno Smith at quarterback should command attention.
Tampa Bay figures to survive the weaker NFC South. The AFC South, also the weakest division of their conference will see the Texans on top. That means the playoffs for those two, but that’s about it. The surprising Vikings may miss out on the post-season this time with a rookie, J.J. McCarthy replacing veteran journeyman Sam Darnold leading the attack. The one thing I like about the Browns is their head coach Kevin Stefanski. The one thing I really dislike is their owner Jimmy Haslam who meddles too much.
Some of the others will stage some upsets as they always do. It’s impossible for even the elite to avoid them in the week-to-week marathon season.
I’m talking about the Falcons, Seahawks, Colts, Jaguars, and the Dolphins, who many have waited for that bust-out season that rarely has materialized.
We’ll be keeping an eye out for how the top draft choice, Cam Ward does in taking over the Titans, and of course, the Patriots, with their new head coach Mike Vrabel.
A word to the wise, don’t be influenced by the results the first few weeks. The NFL season is always a story of ebbs and flows. It all takes shape the last month.
But the on-going story of the pro football season week-to-week will, as usual, provoke reaction that makes it the best time of the sporting year.
