NFL Season Starts Tonight

NFL News - September 10th, 2009 - Written by John

There are as many high notes leading into the 2009 NFL season as there are low ones (several others have yet to be determined). The league is coming off one of it's highest-rated years, capped off by the Pittsburgh Steelers' dramatic run to the Lombardi Trophy in the waning seconds of the game. The game drew in a record 98.7 fans and achieved a rating of 47.1. Teams have been wrestling for position ever since, scrounging through waiver wires and scouting reports for the gem that will take them over the top. Like when Kurt Warner went from Iowa City Barnstormer to Super Bowl legend. Or when David Tyree went from selling drugs just to make ends meet, to catching one of the most memorable passes is postseason history.

However, there is a giant cloud looming over head with the news that as many as 12 teams will have some of their schedule blacked out from regional broadcast because of waning ticket sales. The San Diego Chargers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Cincinnati Bengals were named in that report, even so far as saying the Jaguars will not announce attendance numbers this year. The team said it sold a "record low" 32,000+ tickets for their preseason finale against Washington and plans to see problems in the regular season.

The NFL is buckling a little bit from their stance that they would not reconsider their black out policy. They will re-broadcast the games on NFL.com starting at midnight of the day of the game, and will feature live in-game peeks on the NFL Networks' Red Zone show.

But it helps to have hype everywhere you look. The preseason was a roller-coaster until the very end when Brady Quinn was the last starting quarterback to be identified. Head coach Eric Mangini decided on the three-year veteran over 2007 Pro Bowler, Derek Anderson. It would probably still be a secret if not for Terrell Owens tweeting his congratulations to Quinn for all to see.

Michael Vick, Brett Favre and Jay Cutler have all gone a long way to create buzz in the league all on their own, joining new teams amidst off-field controversy. Cutler and Favre will be part of the gutted NFC North. Rookie Matthew Stafford will be the other new starting QB in the division and will probably become a saint even if he wins only one game all year.

The NFC South was one of the toughest divisions to win last season with all four teams winning at least eight games.

The NFC West was not.

The Arizona Cardinals managed to make it to the playoffs despite going 3-7 outside of the conference. Much of that comes because the rest of the West was abysmal. The other three teams (49ers, Seahawks and Rams) combined to win 13 games total and only won six total games on the road.

The AFC East was, in contrast, a shark tank of sorts. In fact, New England became the first team in NFL history to win 11 games and watch the playoffs at home. All four teams retooled for another run at the title, except for the Patriots, who lost four of their defensive leaders and future star quarterback, Matt Cassel, via trade and retirement. The Buffalo Bills have installed a no-huddle offense to better utilize Terrell Owens, but will have to wait four weeks to get back at full strength when Marshawn Lynch returns from his suspension. Meanwhile, Miami added another dimension to it's Wildcat offense, drafting versatile quarterback, Pat White, to take some of the snaps under center.

The new formation sparked an interest for Michael Vick, who signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in mid-August. His signing helped jersey sales soar for the NFL. In only 14 days as an Eagle, Vick's no. 7 jersey was 4th on the sales list. He will resume full eligibility in week three.

The Patriots are favored to win the Super Bowl as of now, according to Bodog. They have a line of 7-to-2 to hold the Trophy, and behind them are the Chargers at 9-to-1. After that, teams start reaching double-digits in a hurry. The Philadelphia Eagles are at 10-to-1 before two teams (Indianapolis and New York (N)) are at 12 to 1 and two more (Dallas and Chicago) are at 15-to-1.

The Steelers open their title defense Thursday night against the Tennessee Titans in the NFL Kickoff Game. No Super Bowl winner has ever lost the Kickoff Game since it was instituted in 2004. Pittsburgh is given 19/2 odds to win the big one again.

Odds found at: Bodog Sportsbook

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