Welcome to the doldrums of the offseason.
For NFL fans, that is. 
For the players, it's time to stretch. Exercise. Train. Rehabilitate. And play football.
You see, this is the time of year when the OTAs (organized team activities) take place. Broncos corner Chris Harris Jr. is ready. New DC Wade Phillips brought a new scheme with him when he came to town, and Harris can't wait to learn it. 
"We've just been walking through the defense and learning that," Harris commented. "We haven’t been able to go against anybody, so it’s about that time to be able to compete and try to make each other better and really go out there and try to learn the defense going against somebody. I think that’s going to be great for us. We need a head start with this new staff.”  
The Denver Broncos are a different team from the one in their 2013-14 Super Bowl run. Key departures include Champ Bailey, Terrance Knighton, Orlando Franklin, Eric Decker, and Rahim Moore. Elway has ushered in all-stars Aqib Talib and TJ Ward, as well as underrated shutdown corner Bradley Roby, to compete with Harris for backfield spots. 
None of this daunts him, of course. "You know me, I'm always ready to compete."  

People talk about the Raiders moving to LA. But how about expanding the league?
No, seriously. I think that in order to reach all regions of America, we need to expand the league. I've created an expansion plan that, if used, would result in 8 new teams.

Locations and Divisions
NFC West: Las Vegas
AFC West: Los Angeles
NFC South: Mexico City
AFC South: Birmingham
NFC East: Tokyo
AFC East: London
NFC North: Portland
AFC North: Toronto

Now, how do we make this all work? 
We create a giant pool. It includes all college players, all unsigned free agents, all players on waivers, all players on practice squads, and eight players from each current team. After each new team has hired a staff, they draft ninety players from that pool. Then, they go through the preseason cuts just like all the other teams and then just play football. Such a plan would put an NFL presence in four foreign countries. Plus, an LA team would be a wise investment in alien planets.    

AFC Playoffs:
1: Indianapolis Colts (15-1)
2: Denver Broncos (13-3)
3: Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4)
4: Miami Dolphins (11-5)
5: Oakland Raiders (13-3)
6: Jacksonville Jaguars (10-6)
Best Non-Playoff Team (BNPT): Tennessee Titans (9-7) 


Wild Card Round
JAX beats MIA
OAK beats PIT (2OT)


Divisional Round
DEN beats JAX
IND beats OAK


AFC Championship
DEN beats IND


My Thoughts:
Whoa, WHO was that at Wild Card? The Jags and Raiders?
Yep, you read that right. Those are probably the two best young teams in the league right now. I especially love Blake Bortles and Amari Cooper. And Keith McGill is the NFL's most underrated corner.
And WHERE are the Pats?
Probably in a urinal-free bathroom at Gillette Stadium, doing strange things with an air pump. 
No, seriously. Why are they not even the best non-playoff team?
Because that title belongs to the Mariota-led Titans, who were VERY hard to leave off. Besides, Vince Wilfork, Stevan Ridley, and Darrelle Revis are gone. Tom Brady is 38 and will miss 4 games anyway. I'm not sure about him. If he doesn't retire next year, he will continue to change the way we think about football(s).

NFC Playoffs:
1: Green Bay Packers (14-2)
2: St. Louis Rams (14-2)
3: Dallas Cowboys (13-3) 
4: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7)
5: Arizona Cardinals (12-4)
6: Detroit Lions (13-3)
BNPT: Vikings, Eagles and Redskins (10-6)

Wild Card Round
DET beats TB (obviously)
DAL beats ARI 

Divisional Round
STL beats DET (2OT)
GB beats DAL 

NFC Championship
STL beats GB (OT)

My Thoughts: 
What an awesome NFC postseason. I am watching this. 
Whoa-just a minute. The Rams? The Rams and the Broncos in the Super Bowl? The Rams? With Nick Foles? 
Yep. All the Rams needed was a quarterback. If Foles can't stay healthy (aka if water is wet) than they can always go with Sean Mannion. A few of these (STL vs. DET, STL vs GB) were like Mini-Super Bowls. I'm predicting an exciting NFC postseason full of the best teams in the league. 
And if you're wondering where Seattle is, I'm predicting a down year for them.
If only they were in the NFC South.


Super Bowl
DEN beats STL (2OT)
Super Bowl MVP: Brock Osweiler


My Thoughts:
Brock who? 
The backup QB for the Broncos.
Not Peyton Manning?
He's 39.5 years old. He played through an awful quad injury last year. Gary Kubiak plans to use Osweiler more this year and will undoubtedly sit Manning if he starts throwing like he did last postseason. I doubt he makes it to the playoffs. 

Awards!
MVP: JJ Watt, DE, Texans
Offensive Player: CJ Anderson, RB, Broncos
Defensive Player: Khalil Mack, LB, Raiders
Coach: Gus Bradley, Jaguars
Comeback Player: Colt McCoy, QB, Redskins  
Rookie: Marcus Mariota, QB, Titans
Offensive Rookie: Amari Cooper, WR, Raiders
Defensive Rookie: Leonard Williams, DL, Jets

My Thoughts:
Isn't it about time? Shouldn't GigaWatt FINALLY be the MVP?
I think that this is his year. Picking Gus Bradley may surprise you, but the Coach of the Year award always goes to the biggest surprise team, and I am not a Jack Del Rio fan. I think Colt McCoy will have an awesome year, although his team isn't playoff caliber. 

Other Stuff:
Best QB: Andrew Luck
Best WR: Calvin Johnson


First Overall Pick: Connor Cook
Taken by: San Diego  

The better question is, Why did he NEED to be signed? 
I had him rated as tied for second-best offensive lineman (with Brandon Scherff, behind Cedric Ogbuehi, in case you're wondering). He was just questioned because he knew the victim and the suspects and could give them info about their relationships. He was NOT a murder suspect. 
     Furthermore, Jameis Winston and Randy Gregory, who had been convicted, not just interviewed, were actually drafted. He was drafted behind punters. Punters! He wasn't drafted at all!
     And why, of all teams, did the Cowboys sign him? They have plenty of offensive line. 
     This was a short blog post,but I think I got my message across. Thanks for reading.  

NFL.com released the Wells report today. In case you don't know, it is a report on Deflategate written by Ted Wells. Here, we will look at the key evidence. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I give you the following evidence:

Exhibit A: Five different times, our key suspect Jim McNally denied a second interview. Five times!!!


Exhibit B: Two bags of game balls were removed from the Officials Locker Room by McNally. He did not have permission from head official Walt Anderson, who says such an incident has never happened to him before.

Exhibit C: There is video coverage showing McNally entering bathroom carrying balls. After one minute and forty seconds (longer than it takes even Awkward Rob Lowe to use the urinal) he exited the facilities and took the balls to the field. 

Exhibit D: In his first and only interview after the game, he stated that he went straight from the locker room to the field. Later, he claimed that he used the urinal there. There is no urinal in that bathroom. Also, why would he change his story?


Who else might be in on it? The NFL community strongly suspects John Jastremski, a ballboy for the Pats. But why would they do it? What is their motive? Tom Brady or Bill Belichick may have offered them money. It would look suspicious if they both got huge pay raises the day after the game, but Brady or Belichick could slip them each a Ferrari and hardly notice it. 


Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the evidence is in. What verdict have you reached? Tell us in the comments!   

Just to clarify...
These are not projections for NFL Honors. These are projections for MY annual awards. These are who I think will impress me. I'm thinking that the season will be full of surprises. So, without further adieu...

MVP: JJ Watt (about time!)
Offensive Player: CJ Anderson
Defensive Player: Von Miller

Rookie: Marcus Mariota
Offensive Rookie: Amari Cooper
Defensive Rookie: Leonard Williams

Comeback Player: Colt McCoy
Breakout Player: Brock Osweiler
Jenga Piece (eliminate him, it all falls down): Derek Carr

Jameis Winston's greatest challenge will undisputedly be his character. He has been in legal trouble and has some other off-field issues. I love his arm, speed and durability, but his character may make him bust. Can he overcome his greatest challenge and save himself from busting?
First, his upsides. He's definitely smarter than some past QB busts. Ryan Leaf comes to mind. He's very kind to his family and teammates, so his reforms should start there. I think all it will take is determination and a great mentor.
He has plenty of determination. The question is whether he has a good mentor. Is Lovie Smith a good mentor for him? I think so. He's a good leader who in a lot of ways reminds me of Tony Dungy. I'm not sure, but I think he'll help.
So, yes, I think Winston has a good chance of turning it around. I really hope so, and if he does, the Bucs will make the playoffs.