FanHouse Preseason Predictions: A Retrospective in Hilarity

You're a football fan, so inevitably you're inundated with mock drafts, weekly game picks, and preseason predictions. We are no different here at FanHouse, of course, except while other outlets shift their views to match reality and try to distance themselves from their prognosticating flaws, we're willing to look back at our predictions, warts and all. Because no one's perfect, am I right?

While our aggregate ranking came in 14th among the major players in the field (we're proud to have crushed Bill Simmons, but the sports media world is shamed for falling at the feet of Mike Greenberg) in terms of accuracy, our individual picks are a mixed bag, a testament to brilliance in spots and utter folly in others. Last week, while reviewing our four-month old picks, we had a good laugh. You should too.

It's only fair to my colleagues here to note that the biggest embarrassment comes in my picks, which have the Lions winning the NFC North (ouch) and the Titans finishing last in the AFC South. Then again, none of us had the Titans winning the division. Five of us -- Will Brinson, Stephanie Stradley, Matt Moore, Bruce Ciskie, and MDS -- all got one division entirely correct, and it was the same division, the AFC West. A few of us bought the hype on the Cowboys -- they appeared five times in our Super Bowl picks (including three Patriots-Cowboys matchups), yet none of us had any faith in the Dolphins or Falcons. You can also see a fair bit of homerism, as Brinson (the Panthers), Ciskie (the Packers), and I (the Saints) had our favorite teams in the big game.

So, without further ado, go back in time after the jump and take your best shot at us.

Tom Mantzouranis

NFC North: 1. Lions, 2. Vikings, 3. Packers, 4. Bears
NFC South: 1. Saints, 2. Panthers, 3. Bucs, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Rams, 2. Cardinals, 3. 49ers, 4. Seahawks
NFC East: 1. Redskins, 2. Cowboys, 3. Eagles, 4. Giants
Wild Cards: Cowboys, Vikings

AFC North: 1. Steelers, 2. Browns, 3. Ravens, 4. Bengals
AFC South: 1. Jags, 2. Colts, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Broncos, 3. Chiefs, 4. Raiders
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Bills, 3. Dolphins, 4. Jets
Wild Cards: Bills, Colts

Super Bowl Pick: Colts over Saints

Matt Snyder

NFC North: 1. Vikings, 2. Packers, 3. Bears, 4. Lions
NFC South: 1. Saints, 2. Panthers, 3. Bucs, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Rams, 2. Seahawks, 3. Cardinals, 4. 49ers
NFC East: 1. Cowboys, 2. Giants, 3. Eagles, 4. Redskins
Wild Cards: Packers, Giants

AFC North: 1. Steelers, 2. Browns, 3. Ravens, 4. Bengals
AFC South: 1. Colts, 2. Jags, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Raiders, 3. Broncos, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Bills, 3. Jets, 4. Dolphins
Wild Cards: Bills, Jags

Super Bowl Pick: Chargers over Cowboys

Will Brinson

NFC North: 1. Packers, 2. Vikings, 3. Lions, 4. Bears
NFC South: 1. Panthers, 2. Saints, 3. Bucs, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Cardinals, 2. Rams, 3. Seahawks, 4. 49ers
NFC East: 1. Cowboys, 2. Giants, 3. Redskins, 4. Eagles
Wild Cards: Vikings, Saints

AFC North: 1. Browns, 2. Steelers, 3. Ravens, 4. Bengals
AFC South: 1. Jags, 2. Colts, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Broncos, 3. Raiders, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Bills, 3. Jets, 4. Dolphins
Wild Cards: Bills, Steelers

Super Bowl Pick: Panthers over Chargers

Matt Moore

NFC North: 1. Vikings, 2. Packers, 3. Bears, 4. Lions
NFC South: 1. Saints, 2. Panthers, 3. Bucs, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Cardinals, 2. Seahawks, 3. 49ers, 4. Rams
NFC East: 1. Cowboys, 2. Giants, 3. Redskins, 4. Eagles
Wild Cards: Panthers, Giants

AFC North: 1. Browns, 2. Steelers, 3. Bengals, 4. Ravens
AFC South: 1. Colts, 2. Jaguars, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Broncos, 3. Raiders, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Bills, 3. Jets, 4. Dolphins
Wild Cards: Bills, Jaguars

Super Bowl Pick: Patriots over Cowboys

Stephanie Stradley

NFC North: 1. Vikings, 2. Packers, 3. Lions, 4. Bears
NFC South: 1. Bucs, 2. Saints, 3. Panthers, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Seahawks, 2. Cardinals, 3. 49ers, 4. Rams
NFC East: 1. Cowboys, 2. Giants, 3. Eagles, 4. Redskins
Wild Cards: Packers, Saints

AFC North: 1. Steelers, 2. Browns, 3. Bengals, 4. Ravens
AFC South: 1. Colts, 2. Jags, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Broncos, 3. Raiders, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Bills, 3. Jets, 4. Dolphins
Wild Cards: Texans, Browns

Super Bowl Pick: Patriots over Cowboys

Ryan Wilson

NFC North: 1. Packers, 2. Vikings, 3. Lions, 4. Bears
NFC South: 1. Saints, 2. Panthers, 3. Bucs, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Seahawks, 2. 49ers, 3. Cardinals, 4. Rams
NFC East: 1. Eagles, 2. Cowboys, 3. Giants, 4. Redskins
Wild Cards: Cowboys, Vikings

AFC North: 1. Steelers, 2. Bengals, 3. Ravens, 4. Browns
AFC South: 1. Jags, 2. Colts, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Raiders, 3. Broncos, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Bills, 3. Jets, 4. Dolphins
Wild Cards: Colts, Bills

Super Bowl Pick: Eagles over Jaguars

Bruce Ciskie

NFC North: 1. Packers, 2. Vikings, 3. Bears, 4. Lions
NFC South: 1. Panthers, 2. Saints, 3. Bucs, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Seahawks, 2. Cardinals, 3. Rams, 4. 49ers
NFC East: 1. Cowboys, 2. Eagles, 3. Giants, 4. Redskins
Wild Cards: Vikings, Eagles

AFC North: 1. Steelers, 2. Bengals, 3. Browns, 4. Ravens
AFC South: 1. Jags, 2. Colts, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Broncos, 3. Raiders, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Jets, 3. Bills, 4. Dolphins
Wild Cards: Jets, Colts

Super Bowl Pick: Chargers over Packers

JJ Cooper

NFC North: 1. Vikings, 2. Packers, 3. Lions, 4. Bears
NFC South: 1. Saints, 2. Bucs, 3. Panthers, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Cardinals, 2. Seahawks, 3. Rams, 4. 49ers
NFC East: 1. Eagles, 2. Giants, 3. Cowboys, 4. Redskins
Wild Cards: Giants, Cowboys

AFC North: 1. Steelers, 2. Browns, 3. Bengals, 4. Ravens
AFC South: 1. Colts, 2. Titans, 3. Jags, 4. Texans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Raiders, 3. Broncos, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Bills, 3. Jets, 4. Dolphins
Wild Cards: Titans, Jags

Super Bowl Pick: Patriots over Cowboys

Michael David Smith

NFC North: 1. Vikings, 2. Packers, 3. Bears, 4. Lions
NFC South: 1. Saints, 2. Bucs, 3. Panthers, 4. Falcons
NFC West: 1. Seahawks, 2. 49ers, 3. Rams, 4. Cardinals
NFC East: 1. Cowboys, 2. Eagles, 3. Giants, 4. Redskins
Wild Cards: Eagles, Bucs

AFC North: 1. Bengals, 2. Steelers, 3. Browns, 4. Ravens
AFC South: 1. Colts, 2. Jags, 3. Texans, 4. Titans
AFC West: 1. Chargers, 2. Broncos, 3. Raiders, 4. Chiefs
AFC East: 1. Patriots, 2. Jets, 3. Dolphins, 4. Bills
Wild Cards: Jets, Jags

Super Bowl Pick: Colts over Cowboys