2015 NFL Team Preview: Dallas Cowboys

Everything went right for the Dallas Cowboys during the 2014 regular season. DeMarco Murray was a beast, Tony Romo played like an elite quarterback and their defense showed up for the first time in years. It was a perfect storm leading to a 12-4 record. They fell short in the postseason thanks to a bogus referee call.

It will take another season of the Cowboys getting a Pro Bowl-level from the running back, Tony Romo and their defense for them to get to double-digit wins this year. DeMarco Murray is now in Philly, so Dallas could have some issues moving the ball on the ground. Their offensive line is great, so it could all happen again.

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Dallas Cowboys.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Cleveland Browns

The only news that came out of Cleveland this offseason was been about Johnny Manziel. It shouldn’t come as a surprise since he’s been a media magnet since college. He seems to be getting his life in order. He spent time at a rehab facility and moved to the suburbs. We may not see Manziel much on the field this season, but he took steps off the field to make it possible.

Cleveland will be without arguably their most talented players on offense from last season. Tight end Jordan Cameron took his talents to South Beach via free agency and Josh Gordon has to sit out this season after failing a drug test. Their offense could struggle at times, but luckily their defense didn’t lose any key players. I actually think they are better than last year on that side of the ball.

How will Josh McCown fare as the starting quarterback?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Cleveland Browns.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Cincinnati Bengals

No matter what the Cincinnati Bengals do in the offseason, they seem to always make the playoffs (at least this decade). They never win in the playoffs, but at least they make it, right?

The Bengals will once again rely on A.J. Green to make ridiculous catches and carry most of the offensive load. A full season of Jeremy Hill as their starting running back will help keep quarterback Andy Dalton from ‘doing too much’ and throwing interceptions. Cincinnati could be better than many are predicting.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are nearly the consensus pick to win the AFC North. Their offense could be the best in the league. Can Cincinnati keep pace and upset the Steelers as division champs?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Cincinnati Bengals.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears season is barely underway and they may have already lost their first round draft pick for the season. It’s not the ideal way for new head coach John Fox to begin his tenure.

Jay Cutler has thrown 93 interceptions in 82 games in Chicago. Hopefully new offensive coordinator Adam Gase can implement a system to help guide Cutler away from throwing so many picks. It will be a huge undertaking since all those who tried, have failed.

The Bears made some nice additions to their defense this offseason. Pernell McPhee and Antrel Rolle are upgrades at their positions. Can the defense step up and live up to the proud tradition of stout defenses in Chicago?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Chicago Bears.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Carolina Panthers

The Carolina Panthers only made news signing one player this offseason. They signed quarterback Cam Newton to an extension for crazy money.

Is Newton worth $100+ million dollars? Most would say he isn’t, since he hasn’t really won anything in the NFL. You can also look at the garbage some NFL teams trot out as their starting quarterbacks and it makes you ponder that he could be worth a big contract.

The NFC South still appears to be one of the worst divisions in the NFL. Each team has at least one major flaw. The Panthers have the best defense in the division and they will carry them in many games, but is their offense up to the task?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Carolina Panthers.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Buffalo Bills

Rex Ryan is the new sheriff in town. He has experience in the AFC East and it will be an interesting season, especially when he faces the New York Jets, twice.

There are a lot of new faces that followed Ryan to Buffalo. They made some trades and signed some good players for his system. The most important acquisition was the trade that netted them former Pro Bowl running back LeSean McCoy.

The AFC East is expected to be a fun race for the division. The Patriots are always the favorite until a team knocks them off. The Dolphins looked to be improved across the board and Buffalo should keep the race tight. We will omit the Jets from this discussion.

Are the Bills Mafia happy with Matt Cassel as their starting quarterback?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Buffalo Bills.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens are on a nice run. They have been a perennial playoff team and haven’t had a losing season since 2007. It’s one of the longest streaks of efficiency in the NFL.

Okay, I think I’ve blown enough smoke up Baltimore’s wahoo. I don’t like their team this year. They’ve lost some huge pieces this offseason (Torrey Smith, Haloti Ngata, Pernell McPhee, etc). I don’t think you can expect a team to bounce back the following year after losing players of their caliber.

Former Chicago Bears head coach Marc Trestman takes over the offensive coordinator position from Gary Kubiak, who is now the head coach in Denver. Can Trestman regain his ‘quarterback guru’ reputation and make Joe Flacco’s naysayers admit he’s an elite quarterback?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Baltimore Ravens.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons come into the 2015 season with new head coach Dan Quinn, who was in charge of the Seattle Seahawks defense for both of their last two Super Bowl appearances. Defense is what Atlanta owner Arthur Blank hopes Quinn brings to the team. They have some weapons on offense, but their defense lacks a playmaker in the middle.

Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and Roddy White can’t do it all for Atlanta. They learned that lesson the last two seasons. They lacked an efficient running back. Their porous offensive line didn’t help either. Atlanta drafted Indiana running back Tevin Coleman and hope he and Devonta Freeman can help keep the safeties in.

The Carolina Panters won the NFC South last year with a losing record. Can Atlanta bounce back and make the division respectable again?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Atlanta Falcons.

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2015 NFL Team Preview: Arizona Cardinals

The Arizona Cardinals made it into the playoffs last season under head coach Bruce Arians. They didn’t have either starting quarterback Carson Palmer or backup Drew Stanton for the postseason, so they had to limp into the Wild Card game with quarterback Ryan Lindley. Things didn’t go Arizona’s way against Carolina and they were one and done.

The Cardinals made some upgrades over the offseason. They were able to add linebackers LaMarr Woodley and Sean Weatherspoon and stole three-time Pro Bowl guard Mike Iupati away from rival 49ers.

Seattle has been the toast of the NFL the last few seasons. Can Arizona push them and take the NFC West crown?

Here is the 2015 NFL team preview for the Arizona Cardinals.

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Betting Picks: 2015 NFL Over/Under Season Wins

We are a few weeks away from the start of the 2015 NFL season. You should start thinking about possible bets for over/under regular season team wins.

A lot can happen from now until the end of the season (injuries, coaching changes, etc). We will attempt to help you make a better decision on which teams to lay bets on.

We didn’t just look at the lines and guess at our over/under picks. We went through the entire schedule in the NFL and picked every game.

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Sweetbob’s Hipster Music Playlist: August 2015

I’ve went on ‘get off my lawn’ rants at the beginning of my Hipster Music Playlist posts the last few months. I’ve been on a campaign for bands to be authentic and not try to manufacture grime and use low-fi tricks during the mixing process. You will not lose your ‘indie cred’ by releasing crisp, clean records.

I always keep an ear out for new music. I love discovering new bands/songs, it’s a habit from my days as a music journalist. Even though this is mostly a sports blog, I still add quite a bit of music and pop culture content. Keep sending me tracks via email or Twitter. I love checking out all the recommendations you send. Keep them comin’!

I feel like this month’s list is fantastic. We super-sized the list once again with 20 tracks for your ears to drool over (also, don’t forget to check out our Spotify playlist).

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Toy Crazy: Mattel’s WWE Elite Series 37

I’m a self-confessed vintage toy nerd. I collect vintage wrestling action figures from the 80’s & 90’s. I started purchasing some vintage toys out of nostalgia. Well, WWE and Mattel sucked me into their new stuff. I now buy a few figures a month.

Every Elite series released this year have been great. The last dud was Elite series 32, but they made up for it with all the recent releases. I believe Elite series 36 was the best series this year, which is a huge feat in such a stacked year.

The WWE Superstars included in Elite 37 are Stephanie McMahon, John Cena, Seth Rollins, Brock Lesnar, Dean Malenko (Flashback) & The Miz.

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