The Leading Authority of the NFL Draft

Below are the predictions of Rosstradamus, great-great grandson of Nostradamus. As a tribute to the former seer, each team is given a fitting quote from his quatrains. Enjoy, and remember…the Crystal Ball never lies.

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New England Patriots (12-4): This deed will be debated for a long time, strange and fearful for the citizens.

This team needed to make changes after losing to the Jets in the playoffs last season. Will those changes be positive ones, and will they be enough to propel the Pats to another Super Bowl title?

Offense: Will the offensive line remain one of the best in the game? Will Chad Ochocinco provide Tom Brady with a much-needed weapon, or will he distract that team?

Crystal Ball Says: The Pats finally got Logan Mankins locked up, Sebastian Vollmer is a soon-to-be fixture at right tackle, and ol’ reliable Matt Light is back to protect Brady’s blind side, albeit after some offseason shoulder surgery. Dan Koppen is as solid as they come at center. Dan Connelly played well as a 13-game starter last season. If Light begins to show any signs of breaking down, first round pick Nate Solder would fill in for him. In addition, they recently acquired veteran guard Brian Waters to further bolster this unit. The line is in tact, and there were no hold outs this season. Ochocinco has looked out of synch-o this far. He’s a hard worker, and I don’t expect him to struggle once the season starts…but right now, he’s not on the same page as his quarterback. Ocho must be the deep threat. New England is set in other receiving areas with Wes Welker and the two tight ends, but stretching the field is essential for the level of success to which they’re accustomed. I believe the pressure of real-game action will bring out the best in Ochocinco.

Defense: Will the new additions fit in, and will the new system help them do so?

Crystal Ball Says: The team needed to change something after finishing in the middle of the pack in sacks a season ago. They are expected to throw more 4-3 looks into their schemes, which is a wise decision. Newcomers Albert Haynesworth and Shaun Ellis have garnered the lion’s share of the headlines, and they’ll certainly be contributors. However, it’s Andre Carter who will have the biggest impact among the new faces. Carter, like Haynesworth, was woefully misused at the end of his time with the Redskins. In the system he’s currently in, his pass-rushing skills will be reborn, and that’s precisely what the team needs. New England plans to implement a mixture of defensive looks, which suits their personnel; they’re a versatile bunch, so why not use that to their advantage? That’s what good teams do.

Bottom Line: Listen, this team needed to change things defensively. They have. Will it help? I believe so. The offense will be the best in the league as long as Brady is healthy. They have a deep stable of running backs, a terrific O-line,Wes Welker is healthy, Ocho is in the house and hungry to win, and the two young tight ends are menaces to opposing defenses. This is a better all-around team than their division rivals from New York. Now they must prove that.

New York Jets (10-6): Shortly before sunset, battle is engaged. A great nation is uncertain.

Well, it’s time for more guarantees from Rex Ryan. Fast approaching a Patrick Ewing level of futile promises, Ryan’s group will certainly make the playoffs this season. But can they deliver the promise?

Offense: Will the Jets plan to replace Braylon Edwards’ 904 yards and 7 touchdowns with a player who hasn’t played a game in 2 years (Plaxico Burress) and a guy whose play fell off dramatically last season (Derrick Mason) because he’s now 37, work? Will Mark Sanchez and Shonn Greene make the leap this season?

Crystal Ball Says: I don’t see the receiving swap as an upgrade. Burress is going to be rusty and banged up all season, while Mason is sure to break down at some point. That leaves Santonio Holmes who, while a number one to be sure, is not Andre Johnson. He can’t carry an offense. And he’s going to have to. The Jets’ brass is crowing about Shonn Greene getting 300+ carries this season, but he had 185 last season and only nine carries in the Jets’ playoff loss, not exactly a heavy workload. He’s not looking like a bell cow back to me, and until I see it, I don’t believe it. As for Sanchez, it’s not going to be enough to throw 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions this season. He must improve, and not just by a couple of touchdowns. I just don’t see him having the weapons to do so.

Defense: Is there enough depth? Will the young players step up and make this an elite defense?

Crystal Ball Says: Rookie Muhammad Wilkerson is going to help eat up some space up front, which will in turn open up some pass rushing lanes. Wilkerson’s back-up, Ropati Pitoitua, is back from an injury and will be part of a very deep defensive line, a unit that might be the strength of the defense in 2011. Linebacker David Harris is a tackle machine, and an underrated one at that. One of the best moves the Jets made was to lock Harris up with a contract. The man is a stud linebacker, and that’s an essential part to any Rex Ryan defensive set-up. With Darrelle Revis and the resigned Antonio Cromartie, the Jets have arguably the best corner tandem in the league. But in the 2011 NFL you need more than two solid corners. Enter Kyle Wilson, a player who didn’t exactly shine in his rookie season. Wilson needs to rebuild his confidence, and quickly. I believe he will. To me, he looks like a different player this season. His improvement will turn out to be nearly as essential as that of Sanchez and Greene.

Bottom Line: I’m concerned about the offense. I don’t see Mason lasting the season and relying on Burress to be a major contributor and Greene to increase his carries by more than 50% is pretty dangerous for a team that is thinking Super Bowl. That being said, they’re clearly a playoff team and once you’re in that tournament, anything can happen.

Miami Dolphins (8-8): The fish that travels over both land and sea is cast up on to the shore by a great wave, its shape foreign, smooth and frightful.

This team has defense, a solid O-line, and a couple of very good receivers. If only they had a quarterback and an owner who knew how to stay out of his own way.

Offense: Will the addition of Reggie Bush kick-start a weak offense, or is that offense doomed because of the quarterback who leads it?

Crystal Ball Says: Coach Tony Sparano maintains Bush will have the most touches and the most carries out of the Miami backfield. That might be more a testament to how poorly rookie Daniel Thomas has looked—the team didn’t bring in over-the-hill Larry Johnson (released) for no reason. But recall—even if Miami refuses to—the fact that over the past 4 seasons, Bush has missed 20 games, and been playing at less than 100% in countless others. In addition, Bush had 117 touches last season and 70 in 2009. Last year’s Miami touch leader was Ronnie Brown, who had 233. So the Dolphins are going to essentially double Bush’s touches in 2011. Good luck. Oh, he’ll get 15 touches a week…until he breaks down. That wouldn’t be such a problem if the team had a solid signal caller. The team tried (sort of) to bring in Kyle Orton as a replacement, but it didn’t work out. So Chad Henne is back. He had 15 touchdowns and 19 interceptions last season. The team hopes a new offensive coordinator, Brian Daboll, will change things around for Henne. However, Daboll was formerly the OC under Eric Mangini in Cleveland, and I don’t recall that team being anything other than dreadful offensively. In this division, a Henne turnaround is too big an “if.”

Defense: Will the defense be as good as it was last season, or will they get tired of watching the offense stink up the joint and mail it in once the playoffs are no longer possible?

Crystal Ball Says: It’s a shame that the offense isn’t as good as the defense. Mike Nolan’s 3-4 is an underrated unit, led by an underrated nose man in Paul Soliai. If the big man can keep his weight under control, he’s a dominant player. With Karlos Dansby the Fish have one of the better ILBs in the game, and they brought in Kevin Burnett from San Diego to complement him. It was a wise move. Former Dolphin Channing Crowder couldn’t cover me, but Burnett excels in that department and is one of the most underrated LBs in the league. Throw Cameron Wake and his 14 sacks from a year ago on the outside and you have an impressive corps of linebackers, including pass-rush specialist Jason Taylor, who returns to South Beach. The secondary boasts rising star Vontae Davis and sneaky good Sean Smith at the corners. Strong safety Yeremiah Bell is an improving player, and one who can lay the wood on opposing receivers. This defense is sound, and should improve this season after finishing 13th in points allowed in 2010.

Bottom Line: Miami is putting its offensive faith in two players who don’t deserve it, in Bush and Henne. To rely on both of them is ridiculous, and it’s costing the team a playoff spot because they have a playoff-caliber defense. But what would you expect from a team run by Stephen Ross? Here’s a guy who flew across the country to woo Jim Harbaugh while Tony Sparano was still under contract and allowed his team to half-ass their pursuit of Kyle Orton while Chad Henne—already lacking confidence—sat and watched it. It always starts at the top…a place Miami won’t be this season.

Buffalo Bills (4-12): Oh, what a loss! But two great good-natured ones by land and sea will relieve all parts.

The Bills were fun to watch in 2010, a season in which they seemed to always play just well enough to lose close games. They drafted what they think is a stud defensive player and believe his presence and a reduction in turnovers can right the ship.

Offense: Did the Bills make the right move in sticking with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick? Does it even matter with such a poor offensive line?

Crystal Ball Says: Quick, if I asked you “Did the Bills finish 28th overall in offense or defense last season?” would you guess that the answer was “both”? I doubt it. For whatever reason, Fitzpatrick gets credit for being a success. Perhaps it’s the fact that the Bills were in a ton of close games (they lost almost all of them), or that Fitzpatrick is gutsy…but the reality is the Bills were a poor offensive team in 2010. I thought a change at quarterback was needed, but there’s plenty of time for that. It’s not as if bringing in Cam Newton was going to make this a playoff team in 2011. Stevie Johnson is going to be an elite receiver, and allowed the team to jettison Lee Evans. However, now they have unproven talent opposite Johnson. Fred Jackson is a terrific running back, although his touches will be cut back so rookie flop C.J. Spiller can give success another shot. All of that would be OK if the offensive line could hold everything together. But they haven’t, and won’t. It begins at left tackle, where Demetrius Bell shouldn’t be playing. He’s consistently overpowered and simply isn’t left tackle material. Erik Pears isn’t much better on the right side, which begs the question: why didn’t the Bills take an offensive lineman before round 4 of the draft? They grabbed Marcell Dareus in the first, OK, I can live with that. But after that? Aaron Williams and Kelvin Sheppard might turn out to be useful defensive players, but no team has ever turned their fortunes around without a competent offensive line.

Defense: Will the defense improve with Dareus and a reversion to a hybrid system after the catastrophic move to a 3-4 last season?

Crystal Ball Says: There are some pieces in place—nose tackle Kyle Williams, Dareus, free safety Jairus Byrd—but hardly enough. They brought in guys like LB Nick Barnett, who’s solid…when he isn’t on the trainer’s table, and Shawne Merriman, who’s looked shot for years. This is the player on whom the Bills are relying to improve their pass rush, which was ranked 30th last season. True, Dareus should help bump the sack totals, but teams don’t find themselves having to put it up against this team because the Bills can’t stop the run. The team finished dead last in the league in that department, which all but eliminated their defensive strength in the secondary. Until the front 7, however they’re arranged by new assistant coach Dave Wannstedt, proves it can stop the run this team is going to be yielding points, non-stop.

Bottom Line: I see no way this team escapes the cellar of the division. It’s the old axiom: If the Bills could score points and stop teams from doing the same, they’d be good. There’s simply not enough talent on this roster to win games.

Photo Courtesy of Dennis Hubbard (Marcell Dareus)