This is a team that is lacking a legitimate starting quarterback and halfback. They have guys that are serviceable, but that isn't going to cut it in the NFC Central. For the first time in quite a while, the Bears have some young players that look like they are going to be exceptional players. Unfortunately there are too few of them right now. With the recent release of many of their veteran players, I don't see these guys winning more than five or six games this year.

The Detroit Lions are in a little better condition than the Bears, but they are still lacking consistency from the quarterback position. They are hoping the switch to a West Coast oriented offense will be good for Charlie Batch, but he is not real mobile and is prone to injury. Combine that with a questionable offensive line, and he may be spending a lot of time on the sideline again.

On defense, they lack overall speed and will be doing a lot of chasing this year. The defensive line is the strength, but they're not good enough to make up for the rest of the defense. I would be surprised to see this team above the .500 mark at the end of the season.

In Minnesota, the Vikings' offense is ready to rack up the yardage against opposing defenses again this year, and they could be in the hunt for the division crown, but they must overcome their biggest weakness... their defense. Their secondary is virtually the same as the much-maligned group that was ranked 28th against the pass last season, and they lost linebacker Dwayne Rudd and defensive end John Randle.

Randy Moss will continue to dazzle everyone with his dominance over defensive backs, but it won't matter if they can't keep opposing quarterbacks from lighting up the scoreboard. I think the Vikings will be a very good team this year, but they will have their struggles, and will have to settle for a wildcard appearance in the playoffs.

Tampa Bay appears to have made all the right moves during the off-season, and many are picking them as the favorite to win it all this year. The defense should be outstanding, but I have to take a wait-and-see attitude when it comes to the offense. I want to see if Brad Johnson can take this offense to the next level, and I want to see if he can stay healthy in the process.

If he adds a quick-strike ability to this team, they could be down right devastating. I think the Buccaneers will be in the division hunt all season, but I'm not sure things are going to work out as well as the Bucs' brass thinks they might. Along with being the favorite comes a lot of pressure... something they didn't handle well last year. Look for a quicker start and double-digit victories this year!

My pick for the division winner and surprise team of the year is the Green Bay Packers. I think they are a team that played very well at the end of last season, and are ready to re-emerge as an NFL force. The offense will be as good as ever with Brett Favre back at full strength, and the defense should show a marked improvement over last season's performance.

Anytime you have Favre running your offense, you have a good chance of winning the game. And now that he has shaken all of the nagging injuries that have plagued him over the last few seasons, he will be more dangerous than ever. I think he will have a great season and so will the Packers!

My Prediction