NFC thoughts entering the NFL season

There are a billion storylines in the NFC being followed closely by ESPN heading into the season ... and at least 2 or 3 of them don't involve Brett Favre. Some of my takes on the conference:

•   Division winners will be Dallas, Green Bay, New Orleans and San Francisco. You probably couldn't ask for a lamer set of picks, although I am picking two new division champions in that group. I think the competition in the NFC East will again be pretty heated but just don't see anyone catching the Cowboys. Atlanta could push the defending champion Saints in the South, as Minnesota could the Packers in the North. In the West, all the 49ers have to do to win their first title since 2002 is be decent, because each of the other 3 teams has a great chance to be terrible

•  Wild-card winners will include Philadelphia and the Vikings. I was so close to picking against Favre and Minnesota but just think their defense is too good to keep them from getting to the 10-11 win range. The Eagles will be pushed hard by the Giants and the Falcons for the final playoff spot. I still think the Bears have some chance to get in the mix, but am not picking them for anything in the wake of the way they looked during the preseason.

•  Everyone seems to love Carolina, but I'm not drinking the kool-aid. There are way too many holes in the Panthers' defense for me to expect a team quarterbacked by Matt Moore to compete. Washington should be better with Donovan McNabb and coach Mike Shanahan in town, but its division is just too tough for me to envision more than seven wins. And I really don't see who in the West gets to more than 6 wins other than Mike Singletary's 49ers. The drop-off from Kurt Warner to Derek Anderson is staggering for the Cardinals, the Rams will be terrible and I'm not buying whatever the Seahawks are selling the people that believe in them.

•  At the top of the heap, in my mind, are the Packers. Assuming their offensive line is at least passable, and even if it isn't, their offense has so many weapons that Aaron Rodgers should stake his claim as the best QB in football. New Orleans will again be scary good on offense, and the Cowboys are a threat to win the conference if they ever figure out how to play their best football in January. But as much as it pains me to say it, I think the Packers get to and win the Super Bowl. Let's all hope I'm as wrong as, well, as I usually am when it comes to making NFL predictions.