Dare to dream

[bengaldee]

si.com
Fans of 32 teams have reason for hope as camps open

I'm really ready for some football. Not saying I don't love vacation, but it feels like about 16 months since the stealers beat Seattle in the Super Bowl. (And be careful saying that to Seahawks fans, because they still don't believe they lost the game.)

So today I'll drive 79 miles west to Eagles camp in Bethlehem, Pa., on the hilly campus of Lehigh University. That starts it. A couple of days at the Iggles, then a day home, then on to Orlando for the start of Bucs camp on Friday. A month and 22 team visits later, I hope to be educated enough to tell you who to take in your fantasy drafts. If you're lucky, I won't advise you to bypass Favre for Wuerffel again.

I'm the same as you this time of year. I've got questions. Will the stealers repeat? Will Reggie Bush sign in time to play one down in training camp? Will enough Bengals stay out of jail so Cincinnati can field a team?

But mostly, this time of year I get caught up in the renewal of it all. When I meet fans of different teams, it impresses me how excited they are. A guy at a softball game a couple of weeks ago said to me, "Big Vikings fan. We winning the division this year?'' In Manhattan last week a guy at a crosswalk said he was a Raiders fan and thought they were the big sleepers and loved the acquisition of Aaron Brooks. He asked what I thought.

"You never know,'' I said, because you really don't. "Aaron Brooks makes an awful lot of mistakes. But that's what's great about this time of year. Everyone has hope.''

The Raiders are a great example of that. I think it's lunacy for any team to be excited about Brooks lining up under center. He's the classic guy who looks good in practice, runs fast and has a good arm but always does enough to lose you the game. But in the offseason I kept hearing that Randy Moss and others believe that Brooks is a big improvement over Kerry Collins and how the Raiders finally have a mobile guy with a big arm who can fully capitalize on the greatness of Moss.

Crazy logic, if you ask me. But that's what's great about July. Everyone has hope. And who am I to pop bubbles? I mean, who liked Atlanta in July 1998, the Rams in July 1999, the Ravens in July 2000, the Pats in July 2001 or Carolina in July 2003? No one that I recall.

I enter these six weeks of undue optimism thinking of two upstarts: Miami and Detroit. The Dolphins aren't a stretch; they finished strong last year, winning their final six, and they'll have a much better quarterback situation with Daunte Culpepper in the fold.

still think the Patriots are the class of the AFC East, but I also think Miami will split with New England and have a big schedule advantage down the stretch -- Patriots at home, at Buffalo, Jets at home and at Indy. Keep in mind, the Colts may not be playing for anything other than to get Jim Sorgi some snaps in the final pre-playoff tuneup. Either way, you have to love what Nick Saban is doing with the Dolphins. I always thought he was one of the five best football coaches on the planet, and in the past 18 months he's reinforced that belief.

Detroit. A stretch, I know. But this is a combo-platter pick. I really like Jon Kitna to steady a rotten offense. I like Mike Martz to shake up said rotten offense and make those spoiled-brat receivers straighten up and fly right. I like Rod Marinelli battening down the disciplinary hatches. And I really, really like the schedule. After opening with Chicago and Seattle, Detroit faces two '05 playoff teams in the final 14 games. The Lions' opponents in Games 3 through 10 had these win totals in 2005: 4, 6, 9, 5, 4, 8, 4 and 5. Teams change from year to year, obviously, but playing the 49ers and the Cardinals back-to-back is still a luxury.

You can hang me out to dry on those picks around Thanksgiving, when the Lions and the Dolphins play in Detroit and both are 3-7 and we're all marveling at the Jets, led by cinch offensive rookie of the year Kellen Clemens, cruising along at 9-1. For now, though, it's the dreaming time of year. The NFL created this paradigm of parity, and 32 fandoms couldn't be happier right now.