Sure it’s only Week 3 and there is a lot of football left to be played, but who among division leaders are serious contenders and who are pretenders?
NFC East – New York Giants (3-0)
The Giants are the defending NFC East champions and are only two years off a Super Bowl championship. Eli Manning hasn’t missed a beat despite of the loss of Plaxico Burress, and proved it with a last-minute game-winning drive against the Dallas Cowboys.
Steve Smith and Mario Manningham have stepped up, combining for 66 percent of the Giants total catches. If the Giants continue getting this level of production from their offense and defense then the Giants have a serious shot at the NFC championship this season. Contender
NFC North – Minnesota Vikings (3-0)
Brett Favre answered a lot of questions with his 32-yard touchdown to Greg Lewis with :02 left to put Minnesota on top of San Francisco 27-24. The Vikings now have a passing game to compliment their rushing game, something they haven’t had for several seasons. However, two of Minnesota’s three wins have come against Detroit and Cleveland who have a combined 1-5 record. Favres longevity is a question, though, and without him the Vikings are lost. For right now.
Chicago and Green Bay aren’t both 2-1 and will be tough competition for the Vikings if Favre wears out.Pretender
NFC South – New Orleans Saints (3-0)
Drew Brees posted scary numbers through the first two weeks and then proved that he could still lead the team to a win in other ways. Pierre Thomas and Mike Bell are providing a bruising ground attack, something the Saints have lacked in recent campaigns. Gregg Williams has finally given them a defense that can give breathing room to the Saints offense, as the Saints have outscored their opponents 120-56 through three games. The Saints are ranked first in total offense and 12th in total defense.
The only challenger the Saints will face for the NFC South title is Atlanta. If New Orleans can avoid losing the close games like they did last year, then they should take the division. Contender
NFC West – San Francisco 49ers (2-1)
Frank Gore had an unimpressive first week against Arizona, but bounced back with 207 yards against the Seahawks. He left Sundays game against the Vikings early with an ankle injury that isn’t believed to be very serious. Shaun Hill is 24th in passing yards, but 11th in quarterback rating having completed 63.4 percent of his passes thus far. They are without rookie holdout Michael Crabtree and are relying on Vernon Davis and 36-year-old Isaac Bruce for their air attack.
The bad news for the 49ers is that if Gore’s ankle injury proves to be nagging throughout the season, then the weight will be placed on the shoulders of unproven rookie Glen Coffee. The good news is that St. Louis, Arizona and Seattle are struggling and seven of their remaining 12 opponents have started the season with losing records. If Arizona remains quiet, then San Francisco can win a weak NFC West. Pretender
AFC Contender or Pretender will be posted tomorrow.
