[Sylvanfan]

In terms of the NFC here are my nearly midseason observations.

The NFC East is bad. It's hard to call any one team out of it. Dallas I think is the best of that sorry bunch, but with Romo and Garret, they seem to find ways to blow chances that are handed to them on a silver platter. Still the Boys likely run the Division and finish with 8 wins. Dez is a strange creature, but he is exceptionally talented. The Eagles can't keep a QB healthy, and their defensive backfield is not good. So long as Matt Barkley is under center, Santa Clause should avoid getting pelted with snow balls, the fans will be tossing them at Barkley. The Red Skins defence has been awful, and really so has RG3 in the 5 losses for the Skins, they would need to go 7-2 to closethe season to beat out a 8-8 Cowboys team...not happening. The Giants have won two in a row, but Jacksonville would have been 50-50 to win those games. The defence is still suspect, the running game is bad, and Eli is playing badly. Not a formula to go on a run.

The Saints are in good position to claim the South. The defence is leaps better than last year, and the offence is still potent. Two bad minutes is theonly reason they're not 7-0. Home field will be huge for them, so they need to keep winning. The Panthers are starting to get it together. They are a bit like the Chiefs where they have a tough front 7 on D, and when the offence gets 20 points they have a great chance to win. I think they will be there for a wild card spot. The Falcons have fallen apart. Both their offensive and defensive lines need to be revamped. Tampa Bay...so long as Schiano sticks they won't win. The players hate him. Add a QB and a coach, plus some disinfecting supplies to the locker room and they will improve drastically.

I think the Packers will claim the NFC North even with their injury woes. Rogers is getting a pretty good run game and the defence is playing good enough. This is another team who would love a top two seed. The Lions are tough to figure out, they show signs of being an upper end team, than blow a game. Maybe yesterdays win propells them to finally push forward. They certainly do have some nice pieces in place and any team has to fear Megatron. The Bears aren't out of it, but a defence thats falling apart and McCown at QB could change that. The Vikings are bad right now. Their inept QB play draws ttention, but their defence has also been woeful.

At times the Seahawks really have not been that impressive in racking up a 7-1 record. Still 5 road games down puts them in a position to win 12-13 games. They do need to get healthy on the offensive line though, as they can get shut down for stretches. The 49'ers got beat down in Seattle, and than had Indy run all over them but have rallied back well. Power running and letting Kaepernick run a bit more has let the string a few wins together. They need to keep winning and see if they can edge ahead of Seattle by year end. The Cardinals are better than I expected. Their defence is solid, and when Palmer isn't awful they've been able to win some games. Still 8 wins will be a good year for them. The Rams are a bit of a disappointment, and with Clemons at QB won't get better. Their D-Line can be dominating, but unless they can score a defensive TD they won't have a chance to win.

I think New Orleans, and San Fran will be the top two seeds. Green Bay will be 3 seed, and Dallas gets the gift 4 seed. Seattle gets the on WC spot, and I will say Carolina edges out Detroit for the other one. Anyone of New Orleans, San Francisco, Seattle, or Green Bay will be hard to beat at home.