We beat last year’s NFC champs. We gave the NFC runner up niners all they could handle. We had the Bengals on the ropes.

Health is they Key like you say Rugs. As an example Lattimore coming back last year was huge! The Defense is a total different beast with him out there. Seeing as how he finished the year healthy, there’s no reason to think he’s not ready to go!

I think even the national media would agree that we have, on defense, top five (maybe ten) players at every level. Jordan is a force on the Dline and a possible HOF player. Davis is one of the best LBs in the league. Lattimore is the same at CB. That’s the makings of a D that will keep any team in a game.

I think even the national media would agree that we have, on defense, top five (maybe ten) players at every level. Jordan is a force on the Dline and a possible HOF player. Davis is one of the best LBs in the league. Lattimore is the same at CB. That’s the makings of a D that will keep any team in a game.

I know!! Right? No one thinks we drafted well, have a good coach, or will be competitive with such an "old roster". But they still think we could be competitive if we don't set another record for games missed by starters again. The ball really hasn't bounced our way since '09 and we've definitely been on the wrong end of some terrible calls since then, but the odds should be back in our favor now. I'm a big fan of playing the odds.

Like Clint Eastwood said in Dirty Harry "are you feeling lucky punk? Well? Are you?"

I am. My magazine holds 16+1. So, yeah, I'm feeling pretty lucky about right now. Who Dat!

I do, however, have bad feelings about how Carolina beat us twice last year and now have the QB they wanted. Can’t take you opponents lightly.

I am not scared but I think we will lose more games than we win. Those losses will not physically injure me or cause me pain, they will validate my beliefs on roster development. And I expect we will get a high first round draft pick. I wish we would win a lot, but I just don't see it this year, and that doesn't make me scared of anything. People can say we just need to be healthy, but our roster is a year older and we brought back Thomas, Peat, etc and used our 1st round pick on a player who hasn't been healthy in 2 years. Thats not how you get healthier. If we have injuries and lose games, we have a built in excuse of bad luck that can never repeat, which is Mickey Loomis' plan every year. I would like us to win, but I feel like Derek Carr is a reclamation story after 9 years of almosts with the Raiders, and Dennis Allen is a reclamation story after a lot of 4-12 with the Raiders and now 7-10 with the Saints, and I just have trouble believing an old roster coming off many injuries pulls of a double reclamation of a coach head coach with 4 seasons in the NFL where he never had exceeded a .412 record stacked with a starting QB who went 9 years without a playoff win. They all have excuses for the past, and maybe those excuses are valid, but the problem is that all the excuses need to be valid. A couple years ago Derek Carr had a head coach who had winning seasons and won a Super Bowl and that didn't save Derek Carr bc the uniform was still the wrong second color. Last year Dennis Allen inherited a winning team but still didn't win. But this will be the year. Maybe. But not so likely. Sorry.