Answering the AFC’s FAQs

In case you missed it on Monday, here is the link to the NFC's most frequently asked questions. Today, we delve into the AFC.

AFC SOUTH

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (4-0)
Didn't we win the Super Bowl last year? Why don't we get more love?

Start cheating. Apparently, that is the only way to steal headlines in the NFL anymore. Being the defending champions, getting off to a 4-0 start, and beating opponents by an average of two touchdowns apparently isn't enough to take the limelight away from various "other" teams in your conference. If that doesn't work, I guess just go undefeated. At least at that point the '72 dolphins will talk about you.

TENNESSEE TITANS (2-1)
Is year two too early to think that Vince Young can take this team to great heights?

For anyone outside of Tennessee, I think so. There are still some inevitable growing pains he hasn't gone through yet. But if I were a Titans fan, I'd be expecting a Super Bowl very soon. What's not to like about Young so far? I was on the fence about him until last Monday night when I watched him destroy the Saints. About half-time, I actually broke down and sent out the "Vince Young is good" text message to my friends. I have never liked scrambling QBs and probably never will, but I like Young's game. He just makes plays when it counts. Unfortunately, he plays in a tough division, in an even tougher conference, and has an average-at-best supporting cast. But given the right situation one year, he can definitely lead a team to the Super Bowl. I say it'll take about three or four more seasons. Or he could go down the road of every other well-hyped scrambling QB and fizzle out after three seasons or so. We'll see.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (2-1)
If Baltimore won a Super Bowl with just a defense, why can't we?

Just the thought of David Garrard winning a Super Bowl makes me mad. It goes against everything I think a Super Bowl team should be. He is brutal. I like the defense in Jacksonville, and Jackson DeVille is a great name for the mascot, but that is all they have going for them. Four touchdowns in three games is exactly what you can expect from this offense. They can play .500 football because the defense is good enough to keep them in games, but not good enough to dominate completely and take over games. They are going to have to count on the offense to win them some games. It isn't likely to happen. This is the one team I can see tanking late in the year.

HOUSTON TEXANS (2-2)
How unfair is it that we finally get rid of David Carr and then our new and improved quarterback loses his top target?

It's a better problem to have than last year at this time when the question was, "Why is Carr still our quarterback?" I'd focus on the positives. You have a budding quarterback/wide receiver stud combination, the defensive rookie of the year last year in Demeco Ryans, September Rookie of the Month Amobi Okoye, and last year's number 1 overall pick Mario Williams. Throw in a good coach and you've got all the signs of a good football team for years to come. You are a running back away from being pretty good. Fortunately, if Andre Johnson stays hurt, you might get to draft high enough to get one.

AFC NORTH

PITTSBURGH STEELERS (3-1)
We've always had regular season success, but can we win in the playoffs with this new coaching staff?

I think so. Sometimes a team depends on its coaching staff to give them an identity, but not the Steelers. To quote Dennis Green, "They are who we thought they were!" They are going to win by playing tough defense, hoping Ben Roethlisberger plays mistake-free, and pounding the ball on the ground. Mike Tomlin has done a good job of making sure that the same style of play is being played under his watch. Their long-term success is dependant on their players getting the job done, not the coaching staff.

Cleveland Browns (2-2)
Should Brady Quinn play this year?

He should be nothing more than a backup. If HBO's "Hard Knocks" taught us anything, it is that most of us have no idea how much information needs to be absorbed during training camp. For Quinn to miss out on that time, coupled with the fact that Derek Anderson has been fine, there is no need for him to play. Let him learn, bring in a new coaching staff next year, and let him start fresh with an offensive-minded coach.

BALTIMORE RAVENS (2-2)
Why have some people called our defense overrated?

Because it is. I hate to break it to you, but giving up 22.5 points per game isn't exactly as intimidating as some people think it is. They are better than a majority of teams, but being a middle of the road defense and having an average offense isn't a recipe for rattling off a few wins in a row.

CINCINNATI BENGALS
For being an ex-defensive coordinator, Marvin Lewis sure hasn't had much of a defense the last few years.

That's not a question, Cincinnati, but worth addressing anyway. Isn't it about time he starts taking a little heat for what's going on there? The secondary gets shredded every week. They've given up the most points in the league. They show up on the blotter as often as they do in the win column, yet somehow no one seems to mention that Marvin Lewis had been exceptionally bad and underachieving over the past few years. How can he get a pass, but Marty Schottenheimer loses his job after a 14-2 season? It makes no sense.

AFC WEST

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (2-2)
Was it misguided thinking that despite the fact that every running back that has had 400 caries in a season has broken down the following year, our back was able to withstand it?

Obviously. The way he is lumbering around, there seems like at least a 60% chance Larry Johnson is shutdown by Thanksgiving.

DENVER BRONCOS (2-2)
Will Travis Henry finish the year with more touchdowns than children?

Definitely children. Henry has only one touchdown this year despite having over 400 yards. He has nine children by nine different women, so by my count, he would need two touchdowns every three games to even tie (assuming he was inactive during February and March of last year).

OAKLAND RAIDERS (2-2)
If we can manage to steal a few more wins and Daunte Culpepper stays healthy, is he our quarterback next year?

Probably not. Unless they win nine or more games this year and win the division, I can't see any reason why JaMarcus Russell won't be the guy next year. Even then, there is really no reason not to play a number one pick. You have to commit to him. To me it looks like Culpepper is just keeping a seat warm and auditioning for a starting job somewhere else next year.

SAN DEIGO CHARGERS (1-3)
How can we possibly have more losses already this year than all of last year?

Forget everything I said about the Steelers and their coaching moves earlier, this team screwed up big time by firing Marty Schottenheimer. There is absolutely no reason to change coaches after a 14-2 season. None. Norv Turner and his staff have taken essentially the same exact team and completely derailed it. I know that most owners give the GM complete control of the team, but if I owned a team and we went 14-2 and after the season my GM told me that we needed to fire our head coach, only we want to do it later in the offseason than everyone else even though all the viable candidates will have already been taken, let's just say that I'd be looking for a new GM, not a coach.

AFC EAST

BUFFALO BILLS (1-3)
What's worse, losing four Super Bowls or knowing that it looks like it's going to be decades before we get there again?

Never getting there again. Losing a Super Bowl sucks, but longing for the day of 2004 when they went 9-7 sucks a little more.

NEW YORK JETS (1-3)
Is Eric Mangini still a genius if we go 4-12?

He's a genius for ratting out his old boss and diverting attention away from the fact that his team has managed to put together quite a collection of losses already. Unless they can take advantage of a soft upcoming schedule, the Jets fans are going to have a hard time justifying calling their coach a genius while he boasts a career losing record.

MIAMI DOLPHINS (1-3)
When did Ronnie Brown become a total yards machine?

I found myself asking the same question. How happy is the guy who begrudgingly took him as a second or third running back in your fantasy draft? In the last two week,s alone he's put up 418 total yards and 4 touchdowns. He's all the sudden Marshall Faulk, if only Faulk had played for a terrible team, and on a baseball field instead of in a dome.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (4-0)
Can anyone beat us?

Not in September. But it is still way too early to tell if this is even a championship team. All it takes is one hit to the back of Tom Brady's leg to turn this team into just another team.

I'm not saying I haven't been thoroughly impressed this season. I honestly think they have put together the best four-game stretch to start a season I have ever seen. They are unstoppable right now. With that being said, a lot can happen in 12 games. Bill Parcells tried to warn us about this in part one.

Let's not get the anointing oils out just yet.