Zoneblitz officials this year decided we wanted to put out some sort of preview issue but that we also wanted to do something different. So we contacted bloggers who cover each NFL team.

We contacted close to 70 blogs asking if they’d like to participate. We heard back from some and were turned down by a few. But we worked too hard on putting this together to not publish what we did receive, as did those who put the time into giving us responses — in fact when asked for a few sentences or a paragraph, many submitted as much as a page.

A big thank you to those who followed up and followed through. I’m very appreciative of your time.

We’ll kick off our NFL preview with a look at the AFC South, the lone division where a representative from each team in the division answered our call. And over the next couple days we’ll get the rest of the responses up as well.

Thank you again.

Andy Tellijohn, www.Zoneblitz.com

Indianapolis
Houston
Tennessee
Jacksonville

The way I see it the Colts have been the star of the division so long that I won’t believe they aren’t until I see it. Houston is up and coming but they have been for the last couple years. I need to see them do it before I’ll pick them to do so.

Houston and Tennessee will battle for second. It’ll be neck and neck and I could see this one going either way. In the end I give Houston the edge, but it’s by a coin flip.

Jacksonville has a smattering of skill topped of course by Maurice Jones Drew. I think there are too many weaknesses in too many spots for them to emerge from the cellar this season.
For the celebrity blogger perspectives, click here:

Nate Dunlevy, Indianapolis Colts
www.18to88.com

Indianapolis
Houston
Tennessee
Jacksonville

The Colts will remain the class of the AFC South almost by default. The Texans and Titans have done little to upgrade their squads in the offseason and both face difficult schedules and question marks on defense.  The Jaguars are fighting just to stay alive in Jacksonville.  Indy returns virtually the same squad that made the Super Bowl last year and adds a healthy Bob Sanders and Anthony Gonzalez to boot.

John Hallam
www.texansbullblog.com

Houston
Indianapolis
Tennessee
Jacksonville

The Texans, not counting their kicker, have one 30+ year old player on the entire 53 man roster.  That kind of youth hurt the team in big moments last season.  However, this group has now been through those moments and now has the depth on the roster to compete with the NFL elite.  The Texans turned a major corner on defense last season with the acquisitions of Brian Cushing, Bernard Pollard, and Antonio Smith, along with an infusion of youth at cornerback (Glover Quin, Brice McCain).  Talent aside, those additions brought to the defense a physcality and aggressiveness it had lacked in previous seasons.  Second year defensive coordinator, Frank Bush, will be able to implement much more of his attacking style defense now that the group has been together for a season.  Bush comes from the Buddy Ryan coaching tree and believes in downhill, attack-style defense.  On offense, the Texans sought to repair an ailing running game with the drafting of Ben Tate and the addition of needed depth on the interior offensive line.  Despite Tate’s ankle injury, the Texans are thrilled with the development of Arian Foster (2nd year UDFA from Tennessee).  The Texans added Derrick Ward in free agency and will use Steve Slaton in a 3rd down role this season.  A huge key to the run game is the loss of Alex Gibbs.  While he certainly earned his reputation as a zone blocking guru, his militant stubborness and refusal to incorporate misdirection or man blocking in the run game allowed teams to scheme the run game to a hault.  Rick Dennison (former OC and OL coach in Denver) has taken over the offensive playcalling and the run game.  He has already showed his willingness to counter the defense with some misdirection and imagination in the run game and I believe it will have an enormous impact on the success of the offense.  The Texans and the rest of the AFC South face a difficult NFL schedule this year and it is unlikely any of them will be able to break from the pack early.

The Colts are the clear choice of many to repeat as division winners.  However, they have suffered a number of losses and have clearly (despite recent W-L totals) fallen back to the pack in recent seasons.  Tom Moore is no longer running the offense and Howard Mudd is no longer working with the patchwork offensive line.  The Colts have an atrocious situation at offensive tackle and Jeff Saturday (center) is aging and is likely to miss the first couple weeks of the season with a leg injury.  The Colts have looked out of sync this preseason and it is likely attributable to the coaching changes and offensive line woes.  Furthermore, while the Colts certainly have a number of playmakers on defense (Freeney, Mathis, Sanders), the success of that defense is dependent on the offense controlling the scoring and created constant pressure for the opposing offense.  If opposing offenses have an opportunity to stick to the run deep into the game, the undersized front seven of the Colts will wear down… not only for the game but also over the course of the season.  Factor in the age of those players as well as the extra football they have played the past five seasons in the playoffs, and one can expect them to physically breakdown.  Freeney and Mathis both struggled with nagging injuries late last season.  Peyton will continue to perform his magic, I am sure.  However, as his supporting cast dwindles, it is unlikely that they can continue to replicate the gaudy win totals of the past few seasons.

Tennessee is a well-coached team with a great running back.  However, they do not have an NFL-caliber passer.  Vince Young can certainly make plays.  Perhaps he is even a good leader.  However, he will never be a successful passing QB.  He simply doesn’t have the tools.  Special athletes at the QB position often find early success, but just as often, the NFL figures them out and they become ineffectual: Randall Cunningham, Mike Vick, Dante Culpepper.  Young’s greatest asset to the Titans is his ability to threaten the bootleg in the run game, which creates unnaturally large running lanes for Chris Johnson.  I just don’t think that is sufficient offense in the NFL.  Defensively, they are in decline as well.  Jevon Kearse, Keith Bullock, Kyle Vandenbosch all left this off-season.  While they were all aging and declining players, they were effective playmakers and veteran leaders that the coaches and team relied on.  Jeff Fisher is an excellent football coach and has enough talent to keep them competitive but the Titans do not look like a playoff team to me.

Jacksonville is a disaster! They have no homefield advantage.  The have a very young offensive line, poor wide receivers, a very mediocre QB, and one of the most underrated RBs in the NFL.  Maurice Jones-Drew is a great player and a joy to watch.  However, he is not enough to make this collection on offense anything beyond average.  Defensively, Jacksonville has a nice group of LBs, attempting to make plays in front of a poor secondary and a dreadful defensive line.  Years of first round draft pick misses (Quinten Groves, Derrick Harvey, Matt Jones, Reggie Nelson, Reggie Williams, among others) have left this team talent-depleted.  Jack Del Rio has been a successful motivator in the past but I think his act has worn thin with many of the players.  This is a basement team in the AFC south, without much doubt.

Andrew Strickert, Tennessee Titans
www.totaltitans.com

Indianapolis
Tennessee
Houston
Jaguars

The Colts remain the team to beat in the AFC South while everyone else is trying to overcome problems. Bill Polian has reloaded the roster in Indy and watched as the other teams in the division have made what looks like unsuccessful attempts to catch up.

The Titans’ defense is still suspect and the team will need more than just Chris Johnson on offense. Vince Young is starting to exhibit more maturity and better decision making and he’ll need to make the passing game go for Tennessee to contend for postseason play. A lot of things will have to go right for the Titans (an improved passing game, pass rush and secondary) to overtake the Colts, not to mention holding off the Texans and Jaguars.

It’s hard to imagine a team with so many stars underachieving so much, but such is the recurring tale of the Houston Texans. Weaknesses on the o-line, at defensive tackle and in the secondary, coupled with turnovers, red zone inefficiency and erratic kicking, have proved to be more than a match for studs Andre Johnson, Matt Schaub, Owen Daniels, DeMeco Ryans, Mario Williams and Brian Cushing. The Texans didn’t address their personnel weaknesses in the offseason; it remains to be seen if the turnovers, red zone efficiency and kicking will improve.

With the exception of Maurice Jones-Drew, the draft has not been a high point for Jacksonville in recent years. Free agency hasn’t been much better, though the Jaguars are hoping for much-needed help from Aaron Kampman and Kirk Morrison. Nobody is accusing David Garrard of outperforming his big contract and there’s no reason to think he’ll ever be much more than average. All in all, it looks like another long year, and perhaps the final one in Jacksonville, for coach Jack Del Rio.

Michael Correo, Jacksonville Jaguars
www.jacksonvillejaguarsblog.com

Indianapolis
Houston
Jacksonville
Tennessee

If I had to rank the AFC South, it would look something like: Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans. The reason I put the Titans last is because I predict a Chris Johnson slump and Vince Young to not finish the season.

The only team in the AFC South over the past 5 years that is a proven winner is the Colts. Other than that, what team in the South has done anything significant? The Titans had a good year in 2008, but they were kicked out of the playoffs in the first round. The Jaguars had a good year before, but have had trouble staying consistent. The Texans always flirt with greatness, but haven’t come close to achieving it yet. If you want a tough division, check out the AFC North. The Ravens, Steelers, Bengals, and Browns should all be tough this year.