Chicago Bears
Love - John Fox, Likely Coaching UpgradeHe may not be in the very top echelon of the NFL coaching ranks, but John Fox is pretty alright. I said as much when I blog-shamed the Broncos for letting him go in our AFC West post. For some of his flaws in big moments, Fox is certainly an upgrade for the Bears compared to recently axed CFL guru Marc Trestman. For one, Trestman bore an uncanny resemblance to Doom in Roger Rabbit, which gave everyone the eebie-jeebies. Fox, on the other hand, just kind of looks like a drunk uncle. Second, John Fox has some serious turnaround chops - he took both the Panthers and Broncos from mediocrity to Super Bowl contention almost immediately, and he's got the defensive acumen the Bears have sorely lacked since Lovie Smith and Brian Urlacher left. Chicago has an uphill battle ahead in a very competitive division, but I'd bet you $20 they'll be better than 5 - 11 this season, Jay Cutler and all...
Hate - Despite His Best Efforts, Jay Cutler Still Hasn't Been Eradicated
I'll probably never get tired of these anti-vaxxer retreads. I'll also never get tired of upholding Jay Cutler's ranking as the most hated part of the Chicago Bears - this is actually his unprecedented fourth season with such a Lady Blitz distinction! There are things about Cutler that have always been and always will be true to make him a most-hated candidate: his ability to look drunk and/or like a petulant teenager in any context, his aforementioned desire to give the city of Chicago measles, and his love of distributing the ball to cornerbacks across America. This past season though, we got peak Cutler with 18 interceptions, 38 sacks and QB performances that were collectively so bad they drove the Bears to start Jimmy Clausen--Jimmy Clausen!--instead amid late season trade rumors. But somehow, there were no serious takers willing to unsaddle the Bears from Cutler's 7-year, $54 million-guaranteed contract. I just don't get it - who could say no to this face?
Detroit Lions
Love - A Sudden Defensive JuggernautThe present-era Lions have mostly been known for the offensive pyrotechnics of Matt Stafford and Calvin Johnson for good reason. Golden Tate also proved very reliable last season and had a major hand in some of Detroit's most impressive comebacks. But we owe a great deal of that 11-win campaign to the Lions' suddenly great defense. Sure, they've had tons of individual talent in recent years with Ndamukong Suh, Nick Fairley, Ziggy Ansah and DeAndre Levy among others, but it all finally coalesced in 2014. Last season, the Lions were third in the NFL in points allowed, second in yards allowed, and first against the run by a considerable margin. Of course, there will be some big cleats to fill on this side of the ball in 2015, which we'll get to in a minute, but Detroit's defensive accomplishments last year were bigger than just a couple of Pro Bowlers. If they can maintain some semblance of this cohesion, they'll be fine as long as Stafford and Megatron stay healthy too.
Hate - A Suh-Less Defensive "Juggernaut"
Perhaps very smartly, the Lions front office decided that Ndamukong Suh’s monster free agency price tag had far bigger costs than benefits. But Suh's departure in tandem with Nick Fairley's move to the St. Louis Rams means Detroit has lost the anchor to its defensive line and more. Both players were instrumental to this team's success in the trenches against the run and keeping the pressure on in the pocket. The Lions picked up former Ravens great Haloti Ngata to help plug some of the holes, and he will be more than capable at stuffing the line of scrimmage. But given Ngata's age and a thinning roster of experienced linemen who can play every down, it seems inevitable that Detroit will take a step back after a superb defensive performance last season. It might be time to take a dip on the Jim Caldwell coaching coaster.
Green Bay Packers
Love - A Whole Lotta ContinuityOverhauls and rebuilds are par for the course in the NFL. From recent Super Bowl winners like the Ravens and Patriots to underwhelming busts like the Saints and Dolphins, it seems no team is immune to wiping the slate clean... except for the Packers. Year after year, they've managed to retain the vast majority of their top talent, and this offseason was no exception when Green Bay re-signed Randall Cobb, Brian Bulaga and BJ Raji among others. With guys like Aaron Rogers and Clay Matthews locked in for the next four to five years as well, the Packers remain a bastion of stability built to go deep in the playoffs without breaking the bank or trading away their future. It's no wonder they've made the playoffs six of the past seven seasons and won four consecutive division titles. Having that Rodgers guy might have helped too of course.
Hate - Mike McCarthy, January's Dr. Doom
Trigger Warning: Packers fans, I am going to open some wounds here, so if it's still too painful for you to rehash, you may want to skip this paragraph. For all of Green Bay's consistent domination in the regular season, this team has been nothing short of disastrous in the playoffs ever since they won the big one in 2011. There's plenty of blame and bad luck to go around, but at some point the buck stops with coach Mike McCarthy given the massive level of talent on this team. In 2012, the 15 - 1 Packers were stunned at Lambeau by the Giants. It was clear the Packers had no Plan B on offense or defense when New York was able to pressure Rodgers and move the ball at will against Green Bay's defense. 2013 and 2014 were hardly different. Each time, the 49ers won the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and utterly destroyed the Packers defense with the read option. It was confounding how little McCarthy or DC Dom Capers adjusted the second time around. But nothing compares to this team's nuclear meltdown this past January. Up by 12 against Seattle with four minutes to go, the Packers allowed two touchdowns and a Hail Mary two-point conversion and also botched an easy onside kick recovery to eventually lose in overtime. Those last few minutes may have been a series of unfortunate events, but they were made possible by Mike McCarthy's awful clock management and risk aversion early on. The Packers settled for field goals on the one yardline twice in the first half and called only four passing plays for Rodgers in the fourth quarter before the final drive. It's enough to make you wonder how many more mulligans McCarthy will get if he can't take this team to February this time around.
Minnesota Vikings
Love - Teddy! Teddy!Rookie QB Teddy Bridgewater might have flown under your radar last season and understandably so. On draft night, he was eclipsed by the glistening forehead of Johnny Manziel, and he didn't really find his mojo on the field until late November when the Vikings were all but eliminated from playoff contention. If Bridgewater's late-season ascension is any indicator though, he looks ready to make the leap this year. He had a passer rating north of 90 in four of his past five games and was deadly accurate in the pocket, a few interceptions aside. With Adrian Peterson [reluctantly] returning to the lineup and the Vikings bringing in one of the highest-lauded rookie classes of the 2015 draft, Teddy will have a well-balanced roster and a little more experience on his side to have a breakout kind of season.
Hate - Adrian "All Pout" Peterson
It’s no Ballghazi, she wrote sardonically, but another intriguing storyline this offseason has been Adrian Peterson’s very public desire to get the heck out of Minnesota despite having zero leverage and piles of money waiting for him on his current contract. There’s also the fact that the Vikings have stood by the face of their franchise even after he plead guilty to assault for whipping his child and major sponsors fled. It's always difficult to know how much of this kind of conflict is about contract gamesmanship and how much is genuine backlash against a team that kept Peterson at arms length while he was sidelined last season. Now that the beleaguered running back has decided to participate in OTAs, it seems to be more of the former, or more likely, that he came to terms with having exactly zero bargaining chips. In any case, it's got to be more than a little awkward at Vikings headquarters these days after Peterson telegraphed his desire to be traded to Dallas in the spring. Wouldn't you want to be a fly on the wall for that Thanksgiving dinner?
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