NFL 2008: A Look Ahead

As another season dawns on the National Football League, the New York Giants, not the New England Patriots, are the defending champions. There are no embarrassing scandals involving dogs or hidden cameras. We haven't heard much from Terrell Owens lately. And, can anybody tell us if Jessica Simpson still has the hots for Tony Romo?

Otherwise, how are things?

• Brett Favre is now a New York Jet. We believe this falls under the category of being careful what you wish for.
• Adam Jones has resurfaced in Dallas after a one-year suspension, and no longer wants to be known as Pacman.
• Bill Parcells, last seen coaching the Cowboys amid all the distractions, is trying to reshape the Miami Dolphins in his own image.
• The sudden death of Gene Upshaw, the man who helped bring labor peace to football, leaves the NFLPA with a gaping hole to fill.
• Because a major hurricane threatens to destroy New Orleans and the Gulf Coast for the second time in three years, the Saints may be forced to look for a home again.
• Indianapolis (with or without Peyton Manning) opens their first season at Lucas Oil Stadium. Dallas and the two New York teams will be in new digs by 2010. The Vikings? We'll address that later.
• The Buffalo Bills sign a deal to play one game a year in Toronto. Time to say goodbye to the Canadian Football League? Or, for that matter, Buffalo?

Our choices for division champions are as follows:

NFC EAST Dallas Cowboys WEST Seattle Seahawks NORTH Green Bay Packers SOUTH Tampa Bay Buccaneers WILD CARDS New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles.

AFC EAST New England Patriots WEST San Diego Chargers NORTH Pittsburgh Steelers SOUTH Indianapolis Colts WILD CARDS Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars.

Almost every major football publication thinks the Minnesota Vikings will go all the way to the Super Bowl. We're not going to go that far. In fact, we don't think they'll even make the playoffs. Yes, they have Adrian Peterson. But they're stuck with Tarvaris Jackson at quarterback, having lost out in the Brett Favre sweepstakes. Yes, they've got free agent Jared Allen from Kansas City to bolster the defense. But Bryant McKinnie will miss the first four games of the season for violating league policy. The Vikings have the fourth-toughest schedule in the NFL this year, so an 8-8 record sounds about right.

The Vikings' latest stadium plan is to build a retractable-roof palace on where the Metrodome sits now. It's easy to fall back into the same old arguments pro and con about a new stadium, but the clock is ticking. The lease ends in 2011. Los Angeles awaits. What are they going to do?