Tag: projections

ESPN’s Football Power Index puts Cowboys in top 10, with 6th-best chances to win Super Bowl

From @ToddBrock24f7: The Cowboys are behind Philadelphia and San Francisco in several key categories, but consistently rank third among NFC clubs for 2023.

The Worldwide Leader has released its initial set of Football Power Index (FPI) rankings, and the numbers put the Cowboys within striking distance of the top of the NFC heading into the 2023 season.

The predictive rating system uses win totals from Caesars Sportsbook and strength of schedule data, but also factors in past team performance and returning starters. What results is a crystal-ball projection of how each team stacks up against a statistically average team on a neutral field.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Eagles and 49ers are still considered the class of the conference, but if Dallas holds to the trajectory they seem to be on currently, they stand to be right in the mix of things come season’s end and perhaps primed to pull a one-game upset that catapults them deep into the playoffs.

Here’s how the Cowboys rank in the key categories.

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Rookie Projections: Detroit Lions’ RB Jahmyr Gibbs

Projecting the stats for Detroit Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs in his upcoming rookie season.

Former Alabama running back Jahmyr Gibbs is preparing to begin his rookie season in the NFL after being selected No. 12 overall by the Detroit Lions in the 2023 draft. Many believed he was selected earlier than he should have been, but the franchise is confident that they got their guy.

Gibbs only played one season at Alabama after transferring in from Georgia Tech, but he was a star for the Crimson Tide offense. On 151 attempts, he had 926 yards on the ground and seven rushing touchdowns. He was also an effective receiving threat, as he hauled in 44 receptions for 444 yards and three receiving touchdowns.

Natalie Miller of the Draft Wire put together projections for all Lions rookies ahead of the 2023 season and has high expectations for Gibbs.

Gibbs, according to Miller, will rush for 975 yards, have 500 receiving yards and reach the end zone a total of eight times.

“The Lions shocked just about everyone when they took running back Jahmyr Gibbs at No. 12 overall in the draft, but they clearly took him there with a plan in mind,” writes Miller. “Gibbs will likely not only be a primary running force in a rotation with David Montgomery, but will also provide plenty of explosion in the short-yardage passing attack. Should he hit the ground running, expect Gibbs to be in the race for offensive rookie of the year.”

Gibbs will be an important member of the Lions offense in 2023, the Detroit front office surely hopes to prove all of the doubters of their No. 12 overall pick wrong.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Gibbs and other former Alabama players getting started in the NFL.

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Chiefs’ defensive depth chart projections before OTAs

With OTAs beginning soon, we take a crack at projecting the defensive depth chart for the #Chiefs’ 90-man offseason roster.

The Kansas City Chiefs kick off their organized team activities on Monday, May 22.

This is the first opportunity for both rookies and veterans alike to get some on-field work together. However, this portion of the offseason workout program is strictly voluntary, so not everyone will be around.

These are what Andy Reid considers “passing camps.” They’re not particularly great for the defensive side of the ball, given that there isn’t any hitting or contact. The defensive backs and linebackers will get some good opportunities to work on coverage, but that’s about it.

With team drills being allowed during OTAs, we’re taking a crack at projecting the defensive depth chart for the 90-man roster down below:

Alabama Football: Projecting stat leaders for the 2023 season

Roll Tide Wire projects which Alabama Football players will lead in each of the major stat categories heading into the 2023 season.

Alabama will have no shortage of talent to choose from for the 2023 season. The Tide brought in five transfers and signed the No. 1 overall recruiting class in the country. Not to mention, the Tide will return several of its key starters from a season ago.

Altogether, Alabama is poised to be a contender in the SEC, and a College Football Playoff hopeful.

With quarterback Bryce Young and outside linebacker Will Anderson Jr. heading to the NFL, Alabama will have to rely on some new faces. Additionally, there could be some other new faces at different positions as well.

Roll Tide Wire projects the major statistical category leaders for the football team heading into the 2023 season.

Game-by-game predictions for the 2023 Detroit Lions schedule

Here’s an early prediction, going game by game through the 2023 Lions schedule and picking wins and losses.

The 2023 Detroit Lions are offseason favorites to win the NFC North division. Coming off a strong 8-2 finish that vaulted Detroit into second place a year ago, the returning core and augmented talent via free agency and the draft is expected to compete for a playoff berth. Maybe even a postseason home game…or two!

For that to happen, the Lions have to take care of business. The recently released season schedule is an interesting one, with some peculiarities that could slow down the franchise’s momentum. Can they prevail and get back into the postseason for the first time since 2016?

Here’s an early prediction, going game by game through the 2023 Lions schedule and picking wins and losses. It’s an early guess at the outcomes for Dan Campbell’s team this coming season.

Full disclosure: In last year’s edition of this “schedule game,” I projected the Lions to finish 7-10. Here’s hoping I lowballed them again…

Watch: Breaking down the Lions schedule and picking wins and losses

The Detroit Lions Podcast break down the Lions schedule for 2023 and predicts wins and losses in each game

The Detroit Lions slate of games was released on Thursday night. That means it’s time for the “schedule game”!

The Detroit Lions Podcast broke down all the games on the team’s schedule, including the rise into four prime-time games and several kickoffs outside the typical 1 p.m. window each Sunday.

Then comes the real fun: picking wins and losses in each game. There is some disagreement on quite a few of the outcomes, but both paths lead to the postseason for Detroit.

Notre Dame baseball: Chances very much on the bubble

Will they get in?

It’s not a best-of-seven series that Notre Dame has to close the 2023 baseball season but their chances at a postseason berth certainly come to the final seven games.  The Irish are 29-16 overall and 14-13 in the ACC which is plenty respectable in one of the nation’s better baseball conferences.

Will that be enough to get them into the NCAA Tournament, though?

A couple of NCAA baseball tournament forecasters have updated their projected tournament teams and have Notre Dame in, pretty much by the skin of their Irish teeth.

D1Baseball projects the Irish to get into the tournament as a three-seed in the Lexington regional.  Kentucky is the projected top-seed in the region while Indiana State and Kent State are also sent there.

Baseball America has their own projections and also call the Irish a three-seed for the time being.  They send Notre Dame to the Terre Haute regional that would be hosted by projected top-seed Indiana State.  The Baseball America projection also calls for Tennessee (two-seed) and Central Michigan (four-seed) for Terre Haute.

Notre Dame has seven games remaining this season.  This weekend they host Kent State for a three-game series.  Then next week the Irish play a midweek affair at Wrigley Field against lowly Northwestern and then a three-game series at Boston College to close the regular season (the Friday game of that series will be played at Fenway Park).

From there the Irish will compete in the ACC Tournament where every win will only help their NCAA Tournament chances.

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Patriots’ way too early 53-man roster projections

Here are some way too early 53-man roster projections for the Patriots.

The New England Patriots just completed the 2023 NFL draft, and with their roster mostly filled with new picks, free agent signings and UDFAs, there is a sense of what the training camp roster could possibly look like.

The Patriots did a really good job of filling holes throughout the entire offseason, whether fans want to agree or not. I think they added quality NFL players at positions of need and found developmental and upside players on all levels.

Let’s get into a way too early 53-man roster projection with the roster as currently constructed. We won’t get into the why just yet, as that will come as we see how everyone looks come training camp.

Key:

PS= Practice Squad

FF = Foxborough Flu/Red Shirt/IR

FA = Cutting player and letting them walk.

Mock draft roundup: Who experts have the Saints picking in 2023 draft week

We’re just days away from the 2023 NFL draft, but there’s little consensus for the New Orleans Saints pick at No. 29 in the latest mock drafts:

We’re just days away from the start of the 2023 NFL draft, but there’s little consensus for what the New Orleans Saints will do with their first-round pick at No. 29. There’s widespread agreement that the Saints will look to add a defensive lineman — and a couple of prospects are popular, like Myles Murphy (Clemson), Adetomiwa Adebawore (Northwestern), Calijah Kancey (Pittsburgh), and Bryan Bresee (Clemson). But there’s no single name standing out from the pack.

But there’s some variance at play. Some outlets have the Saints bringing in another pass-catcher at tight end or wide receiver to surround Derek Carr with more weapons. That could be a smart play, but there’s no question that the defensive line is a greater area of need. Here’s a quick roundup of last-minute media mock drafts:

Comparing Saints picks in the latest seven-round mock draft projections

Multiple seven-round mock drafts have landed recently from different media outlets, so we’re comparing the Saints’ picks in each of them to see what we can learn:

We’re nine days out from the 2023 NFL draft, and various experts and analysts in football media are flexing their knowledge with a series of seven-round mock drafts — which introduce several unique scenarios for the New Orleans Saints.

By this point we’re pretty familiar with the names most commonly being projected to New Orleans in the first round. When you expand the lens to a full seven rounds, it increases the number of variables and directions the path can take. So let’s compare the picks in the latest projections from The Athletic, Pro Football Network, and CBS Sports round-by-round: