Top Aerial offense in the NFC?

[Jay]

Who do you think will have the top aerial attack in the NFC? or how would you rank them

#1 St. Louis: with Bulger, Holt, Bruce, they just added Benett who will replace the loss of Kevin Curtis and Steven Jackson had 800 yards out the backfield with 3 touchdowns. They also picked up Randy McMichael who has averaged 65 catches and 671 yards in his last three seasons and If they can get a healthy Pace back to improve their pass blocking they could be the next "greatest show on turf"

#2 New Orleans Saints: Drew brees will be back in tow with another weapon in his belt in Meacham. They now boast Colston, Henderson, Meacham and Reggie Bush as aerial targets. They even have a reliable target in Cooper who will battle Meacham for the #2 spot. Eric Johnson is more a reciever than anything they had in the past and will be just another piece in the passing attack. All 5 starters are back from last year and the line will be solid.

#3 Detroit Lions: Kitna is a gunslinger and Marinelli will look to get the timing down with his recievers. The recieving crew made a lot of mistakes last year which led to a lot of interceptions. They have a good 1,2,3 attack in Williams, C.J, and Furrey. Dan Campbell is decent and rarely drops passes and Kevin Jones is a decent threat out the backfield. The O-line is atrocious and this may be their downfall.

#4 Arizona Cardinals: Matt leinart will have a year under his belt coming into a new coaching scheme that will focus heavily on the run game, but he still may have one of the best core of recievers in the NFC. Bolden is a deep threat and even more potent on short routes because he's very good at getting YAC. Fitzgerald is coming along and will improve on his route running. Bryant is a decent option at the 3rd slot. Edge had 200+ yards out the backfield but unfortunately no touchdowns but he should be more of a factor under Whisenhunt's scheme. The O-line is rather weak in pass blocking and this will also be their downfall.

#5 Phiadelphia Eagles: If McNabb can stay healthy he has all the tools to be successful coimng into the year.They lose Stallworth and replace him with Curtis in the lineup who has the speed to be a deep threat. Brown lacks speed but runs great routes and he knows how to get seperation. Hank baskett is 6-4 220 and has deceptive speed, this will be a coming out year for him. L.J smith will be a big factor in the passing game coming off of 50 catches last year and Westbrook is one of the best dual option backs in the league. The O-Line is probably the best out of the 5 and will make them an aerial threat.

[hit_'em88]

i agree with that except i'd replace philly with seattle they have better receivers and hasselbeck is less likely to get injured and the o-line is always very good

[NFL_WIZARD]

I'll take the Saints, I think there is a big gap between Brees and Bulger

[Saints Fan]

Me being a Saints fan all my life. I have to pick the Saints to have a great season all around. I hope anyways.

[JCD]

My picks:

1) Rams. By a wide margin. They, undeniably, the best top-3 WR combo in the NFC. Only the Colts or Cards present a case for a better trio in the entire NFL. Holt is arguably the best WR in the game. Bruce is starting to fade, but is still a quality player. Bennet may ursurp Bruce as the starter and gives them a big-bodied possession threat. Heck, for a 4th WR/deep threat, Hall is a quite a threat. At TE, they McMichaels (who has 485+ yards every season of his career). McMichaels is talented enough to push the 1000 yard envelope and could make the ProBowl in the NFC. But it does stop there... they also have Jackson at RB, who just broke Faulk's RB receiving record AND 3rd down back Minor backing him up.

Simply put, NOBODY can top that much talent for a QB to throw too. Colts are as close as it comes, but lack the depth the Rams do.

Now, it isn't just about the receiving talent. They also have a good starting QB who can use that talent to full effect. Plus, they have a solid offensive line that will give Bulger enough time to do so.

All-in-all, the Rams are a run-away winner here.

2) Philadelphia. The Eagles lack a true #1, but do have decent depth. Reid favors a spread-em-around passing game. Curtis, while overpaid, was a good addition and fits their scheme well. He isn't a prima donna that will demand 10 balls his way per game. Most people don't know who Reggie Brown is, he is a very under-rated WR and a solid #2. Speedster Lewis and wide-bodied possession man Baskett round out the depth. Neither are great and both have limitations, but are competent. LJ Smith is a merurical player whose production has never matched his supposed talent, but he remains one of the better receiving TEs in the NFC. What really sets the Eagles ahead is having Westbrook. Westbrook is a gamebreaking talent who is best receiving RB in the game today. He could be a starting wideout.

McNabb, while injured, is a high-end QB and perfectly groomed for their system. More importantly, he plays behind what is likely the best offensive line in the NFC... if not the league.

3) Saints. Their strength is at QB. Brees is one of the best in the league today and plays in a system perfect for his limitations. Right behind QB, is their RBs. Bush could be another Westbrook-like multipurpose weapon. People also seem to forget that McAllister has very good hands in his own right.

A few notches below are the rest of the positions. WRs are the next best, but not exactly great. Colston is their new go-to man, but he can't stretch the field. More Keyshawn Johnson than Randy Moss, but a very good player on the rise none-the-less. Henderson is starting opposite him, he is a 1-dimensional and inconsistent player. He had his break-out year last season and compliments Colston well. Meecham is a rookie who blimped out between the draft and work-outs... not a good sign so don't expect big things this year. Solid slot man Patten (if healthy) and former starter Copper round out a deep unit.

TE is solid.. for now. Samuel L. Jackson based his portrayal of Mr. Glass on Eric Johnson. Johnson has missed 35 of the last 72 games due to injury. He doesn't have a lot of speed anymore, so is more of a good check-down and underneath threat than anything else. They do have another converted wide out in Billy Miller, who was a good 1-dimensional threat for the Texans a number of years back. Saints line is OK. Brown is the only exceptional player on it, but the other 4 spots are manned by passable starters.

4) Bears. An odd pick to many, but hear me out.

At WR, they have a good mix of talent and depth. Muhammed is the sure-handed possession guy who keeps the chains moving, Berrian and Davis the deep threats to stretch the field and force the safties back. A wildcard in the mix is former 2nd round pick Bradley, who is entering his 3rd (and often break-out season). That may be one of the more under-rated crew of WRs in the league. TEs are potentially excellent. Clark is solid receiver, but he will be pushed by uber-athlete Olson whose pedigree is impeckable (see: Shockey, Winslow). Benson has not shown much as a receiver, so they drafted Wolfe to play the 3rd down role. They even have a decent receiving FB to call on if needed in Oyanbedejo. The line is one of the best in the NFC, so no questions there either.

The one big question mark: Grossman. But what are the issues with him? It isn't that he can't make plays, it is that he tries to force them and that results in TOs. Thing is, teams STILL have to respect what that passing game can do in that situation. If they don't respect the pass, that is when Grossman doesn't have to force plays and that is when he racks up those 100+ QB rating games. Grossman is a gunslinger, which hurts his team but also makes that passing game explosive.

5) Cardinals. Starts with the wideouts. This team is right up there with the Colts and Rams in terms of talent. If Johnson shows last year was the real deal and Boldin/Fitzgerald continue to develop, then they can become #1. James is also a great threat out of the backfield. But after that, things get murky. Leinart is a 2nd year player who is still learning on the job. The line, while not nearly as bad as people seem to think, is still suspect at pass blocking (too many guards, too few tackles). TE leaves a lot to be desired with the lanky 2nd year Pope leading a back of nobodies with his whopping 16 career catches.

Notably absent: the Lions. Quantity doesn't mean quality folks. Lions passing dominance is an illusion brought forth by absurdly unbalanced play-calling. They have talent at the wide-out spot, but are suspect everywhere else.

[Jay]

Originally Posted by JCD

4) Bears. An odd pick to many, but hear me out.

At WR, they have a good mix of talent and depth. Muhammed is the sure-handed possession guy who keeps the chains moving, Berrian and Davis the deep threats to stretch the field and force the safties back. A wildcard in the mix is former 2nd round pick Bradley, who is entering his 3rd (and often break-out season). That may be one of the more under-rated crew of WRs in the league. TEs are potentially excellent. Clark is solid receiver, but he will be pushed by uber-athlete Olson whose pedigree is impeckable (see: Shockey, Winslow). Benson has not shown much as a receiver, so they drafted Wolfe to play the 3rd down role. They even have a decent receiving FB to call on if needed in Oyanbedejo. The line is one of the best in the NFC, so no questions there either.

You lost me with the Bears JCD.

I agree that Moose’s role is limited to a possession receiver, but you can see that he’s clearly in decline. He has failed to reach 1,000 yards in five of his last six seasons with the lone exception of the 04’ year which happened to be a contract year. This right there tells me more about his work ethic and commitment than anything else. Berrian may be a deep threat but he’s still vulnerable to the roller coaster that is known as Grossman which is evident by the modest 775 yards last season. He still lacks size and is a gamble because he has yet to hand in a solid performance for 1 complete season. The only other speedster to take pressure off of Berrian is Rashied Davis and he was injury plagued all last year. I do think Olsen will be a phenomenal mix match at the TE spot because he can stretch the field vertically, but lets don’t forget he’s only a rookie and will require a learning curve before he becomes truly effective. If I was a betting man I wouldn’t put any money on that receiving tandem especially with Grossman in tow.

Originally Posted by JCD

The one big question mark: Grossman. But what are the issues with him? It isn't that he can't make plays, it is that he tries to force them and that results in TOs. Thing is, teams STILL have to respect what that passing game can do in that situation. If they don't respect the pass, that is when Grossman doesn't have to force plays and that is when he racks up those 100+ QB rating games. Grossman is a gunslinger, which hurts his team but also makes that passing game explosive.

He does force too many bad plays because he locks on to his primary receiver way too much, but he is also wildly inconsistent. Coming into last year he was either very good or just down right benchable and he didn’t provide much of anything in the middle. He has decent mechanics and can get the job done, but the question mark is his decision making, similar to David Carr he makes a lot of bad decisions in the pocket. For every solid performance he had, Grossman had some flat out dog games like the Arizona (4 int/ 2 fumbles) game and the New England (3 int/1 fumble) game, not to mention 2 more games with zero touchdowns and 3 picks on top of those stinkers. The thing is you can’t trust him week in and week out.

[Goose]

There is a lot to read here, but did anyone mention the Pats? Brady now has a true #1 and will always spread the ball out, they need to be somewhere in the top 5.

[Jay]

Originally Posted by Goose

There is a lot to read here, but did anyone mention the Pats? Brady now has a true #1 and will always spread the ball out, they need to be somewhere in the top 5.

This is for the NFC

[Goose]

ooops... maybe I should read topics before I post. Goose has left the building.

[Jay]

Originally Posted by Goose

ooops... maybe I should read topics before I post. Goose has left the building.

LOL, It's all good. I've had my fair share of screw ups

[hit_'em88]

Originally Posted by NFL_WIZARD

I'll take the Saints, I think there is a big gap between Brees and Bulger

i wouldn't say a big gap. bulger is good quite good actually. there is a gap but its not very big.

the bears have good WRs but thats it. Grossman is awful (he'll be benched by week 10 mark my words) Benson hasn't proven he can catch out of the backfield and speaking of RBs they have no one else since they dumped jones. Olsen can be a great TE but he is a rookie and we cant say how he will affect this offense yet. the bears are barely in the top 10 in NFC aerial offenses

[Gzus]

1. Saints - Brees, Bush, Colston, Meachem.
2. Eagles - McNabb, L.J. Smith, Brown, Westbrook
3. Cowboys - Romo, T.O., Glenn, Crayton, Witten
4. Cardinals - Leinart, Fitzgerald, Boldin, Pope
5. 49ers - Smith, Davis, Jackson, Battle, Lelie

[TheGWH]

1. Atlanta Falcons lol

[Goose]

yeah I agree with Gzuz out of the NFC the Cowboy's need to be somewhere in the top 5. Romo is still unproven but looked great and TO lead the league in TDs Glenn is a stud and Witten is still one of the top TEs in the conference.

...and none of that is the homer in me talking...

[BigdaddyQH]

Originally Posted by Gzus

1. Saints - Brees, Bush, Colston, Meachem.
2. Eagles - McNabb, L.J. Smith, Brown, Westbrook
3. Cowboys - Romo, T.O., Glenn, Crayton, Witten
4. Cardinals - Leinart, Fitzgerald, Boldin, Pope
5. 49ers - Smith, Davis, Jackson, Battle, Lelie

Strictly a homer pick right? Are you trying to say that the Cowgirls have a better passing attack than the Rams? Romo proved to be a collosal flop at the end of last season. You are telling me that he is better than Bulger? The Ram WR's are just as good as The Cowboys WR's. My List:

1. Rams
2. Saints
3. Cardinals
4. Eagles*
5. Seahawks

*If McNabb stays healthy the entire year.