Here we go. It’s almost time for the real games. Aren’t you always a little giddy when we get to this point? I mean I like baseball and all and I root for the Atlanta Braves but the summer can be pretty bland. Sure there’s other things to hold us over like the NBA Summer league, Wimbledon, USA Basketball, the XFL, the WNBA, the TBT, etc. But hey, after the NBA Finals, we all know we’re just biding our time and waiting for late July to come around and football camps to open up. And not only have they opened up, the preseason games have been played and it’s almost time for regular season action. Before that happens, I’d like to offer some predicitons. Some of them will be obvious and some of them may be sort of hot-takish. But here they are.

Hot Take I

Bill Belichick will be fired after this season.

He’s almost done. Maybe this isn’t a hot take. But it may be time for Bill to walk away. I’m not on the side of “he hasn’t done anything without Brady”. Personally, what NFL coach in the 2000s and later have won a Super Bowl or have won consistently without great QB play? Maybe Bill Cowher in the early 2000s and probably John Harbaugh. Not many. But I do think he’s out of touch. That “my way or the highway” stuff doesn’t exactly work with the new breed of athletes. And you can’t tell them to put some dirt on it or “you’ll be alright son, you just got your bell rung” like the old days. We, uh-um, I mean Bill has to be a little more delicate than we, um, I mean Bill, used to be. (Yes, a lot of young ones are soft and want everything handed to them without earning it.) Anyhow, I think this will be the swan song for ole Billy Belichick.

Hot Take II

Deshawn Watson is just an average QB. Maybe there was a time when he was considered a top 5 QB, and I don’t really know why, but that time has long passed. I see a QB who is still electric outside of the pocket but also a QB who’s late on reads if his first one isn’t open. I could be wrong but I think he’s just an average QB with good athleticism, like Daniel Jones.

Regular Take

Bye bye Dak and Kyler. Dallas fans and Arizona fans are tired of you. After Dallas fails to do any real damage again and Arizona tanks, both franchises will be looking to move off their “franchise QBs”. I wouldn’t be surprised if both fan bases started booing these guys at some point. It was nice knowing you but it’s time to move on. Holla at ya.

Not so Hot take

The Rookie starting QBs will struggle, big time.

Bryce Young, CJ Shroud and Anthony Richardson will all start for their respective teams. I think Bryce Young is the most NFL ready but I’ve seen him running for his life in Carolina’s preseason games. CJ doesn’t seem to have a very good team around him in Houston. Richardson is the starter because the owner wants him to play, immediately. He’s not quite ready to be in there either, in my opinion. But it will be entertaining watching how effective (or ineffective) each guy is, until the media starts tearing them apart, like they always do.

Very Hot Take

Tua Tagovailoa will play in all 17 games for the Miami Dolphins! Yep, I said it. It could happen. If he doesn’t, hopefully it’s not due to him sustaining another concussion. His career would probably be over.

By the way, I still can’t believe Demar Hamlin is playing football. Better yet, I can’t believe the Bills are putting him on the field. I’ll just leave it at that and hope for the best.

More Predictions for 2023

Jordan Love will take the Packers to the playoffs. Atlanta Falcons RB Bijon Robinson will rush for 1200+ yards. Despite the new talent around him, Justin Fields will continue to struggle to consistently lead the Bears offense. Stephon Diggs will ask for a trade out of Buffalo by week 6.

And that will do it. Drop a comment if you see something you like, disagree with or want to hear about next time. Later.