Art by Sacha Irick
With fall finals now a distant memory and another semester of deserved (and possibly unwanted) grades on our transcripts, we can look forward to a fresh start this spring. Hopefully you’ll do better this semester than some of these guys:
San Diego Chargers: C+
An explosive offense, hindered by a terrible defense, all but wrote the Chargers out of any hopes for a playoff push. With the season on the line, the Chargers needed to win all of their final few games while simultaneously needing a number of teams to lose the rest of theirs. Unlikely as it was, the stars aligned perfectly for the Southern California team, who were able to not only make it into the playoffs in the most unbelievable fashion, but pushed through to the second round only to be beaten by the Broncos. A Cinderella story with a sad ending.
New York Giants: D+
An explosive offense, hindered by a terrible defense, all but wrote the Chargers out of any hopes for a playoff push. With the season on the line, the Chargers needed to win all of their final few games while simultaneously needing a number of teams to lose the rest of theirs. Unlikely as it was, the stars aligned perfectly for the Southern California team, who were able to not only make it into the playoffs in the most unbelievable fashion, but pushed through to the second round only to be beaten by the Broncos. A Cinderella story with a sad ending.
New Orleans Saints: B
The Saints welcomed back suspended Coach Sean Peyton this season, but it wasn’t enough to allow a team built for the Super Bowl to make it to the big game. Struggles with road games and games played in outdoor stadiums proved to be the biggest hurdle for the Saints this season, and though they were able to play through it and make it into the second round of the playoffs, they were defeated for the second time this season by the Seahawks.
Cleveland Browns: C-
An early season trade of star RB Trent Richardson to the Colts seemed to be one of the most foolish things the Browns could have done. Richardson’s less-than-stellar play for the Colts may have changed some opinions about the trade, and with solid draft picks, the 4-12 Browns may be able to rebuild and pose a threat next season. If only they could hang on to a head coach for more than a year…
Chicago Bears: B-
The tale of two QB’s has been the biggest story for the Bears this season. Both Jay Cutler and backup Josh McCown have proven this season that they have what it takes to be an effective starting QB, but the constant shuffling between the two may have been the Bears’ downfall as they narrowly missed the playoffs. With Cutler locked-in to start in the future and leading a fine-tuned and explosive offense, the Bears are set to bounce back next season.
Houston Texans: F-
The Texans were an amazing team last season, hurting teams with a powerful defense, solid running game and efficient QB play. So what happened? The Texans finished the season as the NFLs worst team with a 2-14 record. The facets of their game that made them so good last season have all but faded away, resulting in the firing of head Coach Gary Kubiak. The result of the season is an amazing draft position for a terrible team. You win some, you lose some.
Pittsburgh Steelers: C-
The Steelers had one of the worst starts in franchise history, going 0-4 before getting their first win. To their credit, the team was able to turn around their season but narrowly missed a playoff berth that hinged largely on a number of teams needing to lose. It was an odd season for a franchise that is used to being a playoff contender, and this season may just go down as a fluke.
Arizona Cardinals: B-
For all intents and purposes, the Cardinals had a great season, finishing 10-6 and narrowly missing out on a wild card playoff spot. The NFL’s division-based playoff structure may have hurt the Cardinals in the long run, who seemed every bit a solid football team but couldn’t fit the playoff puzzle. The team will be looking to make slight tweaks to better match up against their division rivals next season.
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Follow Chirag Patel on Twitter: @cbpatel86
