TA's Take

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division 1. Boston Celtics 61-21 2. Brooklyn Nets 51-31 3. New York Knicks 45-37 4. Philadelphia 76ers 41-41 5. Toronto Raptors 20-62 Central Division 1. Indiana Pacers 55-27 2. Chicago Bulls 48-34 3. Detroit Pistons 44-38 4. Cleveland Cavilers 39-43 5. Milwaukee Bucks 30-52 Southeast Division 1. Miami Heat 64-18 2. Atlanta Hawks 46-36 3. Orlando Magic 36-46 4. Washington Wizards 25-57 5. Charlotte Bobcats 17-65 Eastern Conference Playoffs Round 1 1. Miami Heat over 8. Detroit Pistons 2. Boston Celtics over 7. New York Knicks 3. Indiana Pacers over 6. Atlanta Hawks 5. Chicago Bulls over 4. Brooklyn Nets Round 2 1. Miami Heat over 5. Chicago Bulls 2. Boston Celtics over 3. Indiana Pacers Eastern Conference Finals 2. Boston Celtics over 1. Miami Heat Western Conference Northwest Division 1. Oklahoma City Thunder 60-22 2. Denver Nuggets 53-29 3. Minnesota Timberwolves 46-36 4. Utah Jazz 41-41 5. Portland Trailbl...

The Patriots offense has not had a running game like this since 2004 when Corey Dillon was taking handoffs from Tom Brady. The Patriots have had a number of running-backs line up in the backfield over the last eight years from Laurence Maroney to Fred Taylor to BenJarvus Green-Ellis and none of them were able to replicate Dillion's production. The Patriots have been unable to find their next great running-back until now. Stevan Ridley has emerged as the Patriots lead rusher and he's running with it, pun intended. Ridley has 4 touchdowns and is currently fifth in the NFL with 490 rushing yards. He has back to back 100 yard games and 3 on the year. He is showing the ability to not only pound the rock up the middle but also bounce it outside and show his speed to the corner. He reads defenses extremely well, finds the holes and makes beautiful cuts. He is the most complete back the Patriots have had in a long time. Everyone has tried to come up with reasons why the Patr...

1. Tavon Wilson will supplant Steve Gregory at FS by Week 8. Wilson will be this team's starting Free Safety by Week 8. I've been extremely impressed by him in the preseason and think the Patriots found something in Wilson. I think Gregory will be solid and really help this Defense but Wilson will be better and they will switch roles by mid-season. Wilson will start and Gregory will play in sub packages. This move will be based on performance and not injury. Gregory will be healthy and a contributor all season long. 2. Jermaine Cunningham will have 10+ sacks. Whether he eventually starts at DE or strictly comes in on sub packages Cunningham will have a great year rushing the passer. I could see his role coming together exactly like Mark Anderson's did last season. First half of the year he played during pass rushing situations and recorded 5 sacks and then eventually started by December and continued his strong play and record another 5 sacks. Cunningham's 2012 se...

1. Aaron Hernandez will lead the Team with over 1,300 receiving yards and 12 Touchdowns. I expect Hernandez to be the focal point of this offense moving forward. I think Josh McDaniels will be able to utilize him like no other player. He will line up at TE, WR, and RB. Hernandez also has a chance to lead the Team in receptions, he should have over 100 but I'll still give the nod to Welker in that category. He might even add a couple hundred yards rushing. Hernandez is a special player and will show it in 2012. 2. Brandon Lloyd will have 75 catches. I believe Lloyd will have a pretty solid season for the Patriots but won't be off the charts. He is not the second coming of the 2007 Randy Moss. I can see him having around 75 catches for 1,000 yards and 7 Touchdowns. He is going to be the 4th option on this team behind Hernandez, Welker and Gronkowski so those numbers will be great for a 4th option. 3. Rob Gronkowski will have 10 Touchdowns. I think Gronkowski is going ...

AFC  AFC East  1. New England Patriots 15-1 The Patriots made sure to Improve the Defense in the Offseason adding Hightower, Jones and Gregory. Winning 13 games in 2011 with the 31st ranked Defense was Incredible, with an Improved Defense in 2012 15 wins is not out of the Question.  2. Buffalo Bills 9-7 Added Talent on Defense with Williams and Anderson will help but I still don't think they have the Coaching and consistency on Offense to make the Playoffs. 3. New York Jets 5-11 This is gonna be a train wreck. Tebow will start by week 10 but by then it will be too late. This Team will be lucky to win 5 games.  4. Miami Dolphins 3-13 Rebuilding is an understatement. This Team has very little talent, they have a long way to go. I believe Tannehill will be solid but he will have his rookie struggles and he has no weapons to work with.  AFC North 1. Baltimore Ravens 11-5 The Ravens Defense is aging and the Offense still needs to prove it can ...

Here's my Final 53-man Roster Projection for the 2012 Season. Quarterback - Tom Brady, Ryan Mallett, Brian Hoyer (3) Running Back - Stevan Ridley, Danny Woodhead, Shane Vereen, Jeff Demps (4) Wide Receiver - Wes Welker, Brandon Lloyd, Deion Branch, Julian Edelman, Matthew Slater (5) Tight Ends - Rob Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez, Daniel Fells (3) Offensive Tackles - Nate Solder, Sebastian Vollmer, Marcus Cannon, Matt Kopa (4) Interior Offensive Line - Logan Mankins, Dan Connolly, Dan Koppen, Brian Waters, Ryan Wendall (5) Defensive Tackles - Vince Wilfork, Kyle Love, Ron Brace, Brandon Deaderick (4) Defensive Ends - Chandler Jones, Jermaine Cunningham, Rob Ninkovich, Trevor Scott, Jake Bequette, Justin Francis (6) Linebackers - Jerod Mayo, Brandon Spikes, Dont'a Hightower, Bobby Carpenter, Jeff Tarpinian, Mike Rivera (6) Cornerbacks - Kyle Arrington, Devin McCourty, Ras-I Dowling, Marquice Cole, Alfonzo Dennard (5) Safeties - Pat Chung, Steve Gregor...

Here's my first Patriots 53-man Roster Projection for 2012. Quarterback - Tom Brady, Ryan Mallett, Brian Hoyer (3) Running Back - Stevan Ridley, Shane Vereen, Danny Woodhead, Jeff Demps (4) Wide Receiver - Wes Welker, Brandon Lloyd, Jabar Gaffney, Deion Branch, Julian Edelman, Matthew Slater (6) Tight End - Rob Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez, Daniel Fells (3) Offensive Tackle - Nate Solder, Sebastian Vollmer, Marcus Cannon, Matt Kopa (4) Interior Offensive Line - Logan Mankins, Brian Waters, Dan Connolly, Nick McDonald, Ryan Wendell, Donald Thomas (6) Defensive Tackles - Vince Wilfork, Kyle Love, Ron Brace, Brandon Deaderick (4) Defensive Ends - Chandler Jones, Jermaine Cunningham, Rob Ninkovich, Trevor Scott, Jake Bequette, Justin Francis (6) Linebackers - Jerod Mayo, Brandon Spikes, Dont'a Hightower, Bobby Carpenter, Jeff Tarpinian (5) Cornerbacks - Kyle Arrington, Ras-I Dowling, Devin McCourty, Sterling Moore (4) Safeties - Pat Chung, Steve Greg...