The Andrew Luck sweepstakes isn't over just yet
With the “Suck for Luck” power(less) rankings running the course, we look ahead to the all-important speculative draft order.
The final weeks of the season should be as interesting as ever with Indy’s surprise win over Tennessee on Sunday. The list gets slimmer as several teams join the likes of the 7 and 8 win hopefuls vying for a Wild Card. For that purpose we won’t include any of those teams already at 7/8 wins in our rankings this week. Here’s a look at a whole bunch of speculation:
1. Indianapolis Colts (1-13)
Strength of Schedule: .536
Remaining Games: vs. Houston, @Jacksonville
Forecast: Indy managed to make the Andrew Luck sweepstakes interesting in the final weeks of the 2011 season with a win over Tennessee. If they sneak out another win, it could be real interesting as St. Louis isn’t beating San Fran or Pittsburgh and Minnesota is not good. As I wrote on Monday, Minnesota is the team to watch in this race as their strength of schedule is close to Indy’s.
Projected Win Total: 1
2. Minnesota Vikings (2-12)
Strength of Schedule: .567
Remaining Games: @ Washington, vs. Chicago
Forecast: Minnesota is emerging as a legitimate player in the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. They have the easiest road to victory of the top three teams with Washington and Chicago left but they are pretty miserable. A healthy Adrian Peterson should help them to one more victory and keep them out of the Andrew Luck running.
Projected Win Total: 3
3. St. Louis Rams (2-12)
Strength of Schedule: .589
Remaining Games: vs. Pittsburgh, @ San Francisco
Forecast: The Rams chances of beating Pittsburgh and San Francisco are slim to none. Unfortunately, they will need Indy to win out to have a legitimate shot at the No. 1 pick. Odds of that happening are worse than STL winning one of their remaining games..
Projected Win Total: 2
4. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-10)
Strength of Schedule: .495
Remaining Games: @ Tennessee, vs. Indianapolis
Forecast: The way Tennessee played on Sunday, there might be a chance the Jags could win out. Ok, we won’t go that far but my guess is they take one of two to get to five wins. They are going to have an interesting decision to make if they are drafting in the top four with the season Blaine Gabbert has had. Does the new ownership and coach look to turn the page on the short-lived Gabbert era in Jacksonville?
Projected Win Total: 5
5. Cleveland Browns (4-10)
Strength of Schedule: .522
Remaining Games: @ Baltimore, vs. Pittsburgh
Forecast: Seneca Wallace played well and may have done in Colt McCoy’s tenure in Cleveland with a loss to Arizona. The Browns find ways to lose which doesn’t bode well for them with BAL and PIT remaining. The Browns end the season with four wins, so look for major changes in personnel in Cleveland. I expect Holmgren and Heckert to be aggressive in free agency and the draft.
Projected Win Total: 4
6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-10)
Strength of Schedule: .545
Remaining Games: @ Carolina, @ Atlanta
Forecast: The Bucs join the Browns as four win teams. They are sputtering in every facet of the game which will cost Raheem Morris his job. This team needs some speed at the skill positions. Their receivers don’t stretch the field and very rarely are open for Freeman to throw to them. On the defensive side of the ball, they will address CB, LB, and S early in this draft.
Projected Win Total: 4
7. Washington Redskins (5-9)
Strength of Schedule: .469
Remaining Games: vs. Minnesota, @ Philadelphia
Forecast: Washington is just doing enough to cost them a chance at a franchise QB. At this rate they may win one more and really separate themselves from any chance. If Washington wins 6 games, look for them to Ditka-it and trade their draft for a chance at one of the top QB’s.
Projected Win Total: 5
8. Carolina Panthers (4-9)
Strength of Schedule: .504
Remaining Games: vs. Tampa Bay, @ New Orleans
Forecast: Carolina put it to Houston by playing their best defensive game of the season. They should beat Tampa to finish at 6 wins.
Projected Win Total: 6
9. Miami Dolphins (5-9)
Strength of Schedule: .518
Remaining Games: @ New England, vs. New York Jets
Forecast: We predicted 5 wins for the Dolphins all season and that’s where it looks like they’ll end up. The one outlier is the Jets in Week 17. Mark Sanchez and Co. have been irratic to say the least and could give another lackluster performance to knock themselves out of the WC hunt. We’ll stick with two losses to end the season and finish 5-11
Projected Win Total: 5
10. Buffalo Bills (5-9)
Strength of Schedule: .522
Remaining Games: vs. Denver, @ New England
Forecast: The Bills may be playing the worst football in the NFL at this point after an electric start. Ryan Fitzpatrick has been non-existent after his new deal and the Bills look to be done. Fitzpatrick’s play has been so bad that some are questioning drafting a QB.
Projected Win Total: 5
11. Philadelphia Eagles (6-8)
Strength of Schedule: .500
Remaining Games: @ Dallas, vs. Washington
Forecast: Too little, too late but at least the Eagles are going out strong in a disappointing 2011 season. They can play spoilers again this week at Dallas and should win to end the season against Washington. My gut is telling me 8 wins for the Eagles.
Projected Win Total: 8
12. Kansas City Chiefs (6-8)
Strength of Schedule: .518
Remaining Games: vs. Oakland, @ Denver
Forecast: The Chiefs exposed the Packers this week and they played inspired football for interim coach Romeo Crennell. Crennell’s Cleveland teams always played hard for him, so I could see the Chiefs winning one more to finish with 7 wins.
Projected Win Total: 7
SO HERE IS OUR PROJECTED DRAFT ORDER:
- Indianapolis Colts
- St. Louis Rams
- Minnesota Vikings
- Cleveland Browns
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Washington Redskins
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Miami Dolphins
- Buffalo Bills
- Carolina Panthers
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Philadelphia Eagles
Tags: 2012 NFL Draft, nfl draft, nfl draft order
