The Pats: Brady looked mortal in their final game, but how much did injuries play into that? They made the second round of the playoffs despite all the personnel upheavals and never really being at full strength. Next year should bring a return to health (women across the nation have offered to assist Brady with his groin rehab). This is not a team that lacks emotional fortitude. My guess: They are back in top form and kick some serious booty from the get go.

The Broncos are talking to Terrell Owens. Plummer and Owens. A QB with a rep for choking and a loud-mouthed locker room cancer. Yeah, that oughta work. My guess: Tinkerbell is doing time for a minimum of two counts of 1st degree murder before the season is out.

Washington: Fear the Redskins. Already with the killer defensive coordinator and a top five defense, they finished the season strong, added a potential killer offensive coordinator, and they have Joe Gibbs who is smart enough to know that his coordinators have a better grasp of the current game than him and that his job will simply be to keep everyone on the same page and smooth out the egos. My guess: They make the second round of the playoffs, with an outside chance at the conference championship in the crap-shoot that is the NFC. (And I am really hoping the odds on their taking the NFC get set at around 10-1.)

The Dolphins: Some good came out of the season. Ricky Williams seems to be coming back into pre-bong-binge form and they put together an impressive six game win streak to close the season. Nick Saban looks sharp, but I'm not all that comfortable with the former head coaches of Houston and Buffalo as defensive and offensive coordinators, respectively. Obviously he saw something beyond their track record. Still, there is unquestionably playoff potential here. The defense should be better than solid. The team will go as far as Gus "Hammerhead" Frerotte can take them. My guess: Wild card berth.

The Bears didn't double team Steve Smith. (I say that occasionally just to work on my scrunchy face.) This year's upside defensive surprise will likely turn to downside surprise next year as the league figures them out and the players that overachieved revert to the mean, but the offense can't help but be better. My guess: Still the team to beat in the NFC Norris.

Green Bay: For their head coach, the Packers hired the offensive coordinator of the 49ers, one of the worst offenses in history. They'll either stink with Favre or stink without him. My guess: Without.