The Redskins are a mystery to me. Two years ago, we were a 10-6 playoff team. Last year, we were a 5-11 team that had no identity for much of the season, suffered many injuries, and had a defense that just crumbled.
This year it is hard to tell what will happen. I can see us being anywhere from 11-5 to 5-11. Almost every play will be unpredictable. There is talk of the 'Skins looking to trade/find a good DL that would be available. We'll see if that pans out. Still, we seemed to have strengthened the LB corps and the secondary and the D-line should be better just because they are healthy. Still, there is talent issues on the D-line but again, I think they will be improved just because they will be healthy. I also think the defense will benefit from a tough, long training camp. Gibbs has said that he wants to become more physical like they used to be on defense. We seemed to forgot to do the bare essentials and fundamentals of tackling, positioning, and gap control last year. I expect all of those things to be addressed in training camp as well as conditioning.
I don't see much of an issue on the offensive side of the ball. We were solid down the stretch last year and I expect us to pick right up where we left off and continue with the "Redskin football." The NFC East is up for grabs. Dallas seems like the front runner but all in all, it's up for grabs.
The Bears are coming off of a great year and should be right there at the top of the NFC again. However, they aren't going to sneak up on anyone this year. We'll see if they play with the same kind of passion as last year or if success has brought about egos and selfish play. Will Briggs play? If so, will he be a distraction? The same with Tank "thug" Johnson. When he gets out of the clink, will he be able to step in and play effectively? Rexy is inconsistent. He is coming up on a contract year and he has to have a good year to prove to the Bear brass that he is the Bear QB for the future. If not, he will be gone and they will have to turn the reigns over to someone else. Is Cedric the man? Will he start crying if he doesn't produce/get enough carries?
Whatever happens, I love the NFL and we'll see how things shake down. However, nothing would make me happier than a successful Redskin season, coupled with a disappointing Bears one resulting in a sad RobObs.