With the first kickoff of 2008 just two days away the tension and excitement that every off-season holds for million of fans and players is about to explode. Today's special Kickoff Edition of Last Minute Heroics offers a look at Week 1, the introduction of The Ten, a special look at the Denver Broncos, and as promised the Hero of the Week.

Week 1 - Who's in It and Who's Gonna Win It

Thursday, September 4th

Washington Redskins @ New York Giants

These division rivals are pretty evenly matched and this should be a very close game. It appears evident to most everyone that the Giants aren't poised to return to the Super Bowl this year, especially without either of their starting Defensive Ends from last season. Washington has a solid team but has to be more consistent and Jason Campbell has to be more effective or they will struggle. I think the Skins have a better all around team and I think they have a coaching staff with a program and system that they believe in.

Predicted Winner: Washington Redskins

Sunday, September 7th

Detroit Lions @ Atlanta Falcons

I believe these two teams are on similar paths for different reasons. Atlanta is a team that needs a lot of work and probably won't be a contender for at least three years. Detroit is a team that has made some strides but with the current schedule and the other teams in their division making strides toward being contenders this year, Detroit needs a lot of luck to do well and while I don't see them hitting a jackpot this season this is a game they should win.

Predicted Winner: Detroit Lions

Cincinnati Bengals @ Baltimore Ravens

The second of eight games featuring division rivals facing off in the opening week. The Bengals I see are a team on the rise back to what they were not all that long ago, a contender. The Ravens just seem to be falling apart and I don't feel they have done anything in the off-season that will help them. Cincinnati is the better team even if I have overestimated them so I am confident they will win.

Predicted Winner: Cincinnati Bengals

Seattle Seahawks @ Buffalo Bills

Buffalo showed a lot of heart last year and this year they are more confident and that heart isn't going anywhere. The Bills are the kind of team that will be underestimated and teams will pay for that mistake. Seattle is a team that seems to have missed their window and they are primed to be overconfident. Buffalo should be able to take advantage of that in a game where they may otherwise be pretty evenly matched.

Predicted Winner: Buffalo Bills

New York Jets @ Miami Dolphins

Division rivals face off with a twist; New York acquired Favre to replace Pennington who was quickly traded off to Miami. While I find the match up to be interesting I think it will be much more interesting in Week 17 when it's in New York, especially if the Dolphins get a chance to play spoiler. Both of these teams have a QB that is trying to pick up a system as fast as possible which is going to be a struggle but the Jets have the edge in talent and experience.

Predicted Winner: New York Jets

Kansas City Chiefs @ New England Patriots

The Patriots are not the team they were last year, not on offense and especially not on defense but they should still be able to score at will against most teams. The Chiefs are still not much to talk about and they will not do much of note this season. The Patriots are contenders and the Chiefs are just practicing, this is a no-brainer.

Predicted Winner: New England Patriots

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ New Orleans Saints

These rivals should be the top two teams in their division this year but there might be a big win loss differential between them none the less. Tampa Bay hasn't improved very much in the off-season and with Cadillac on the sidelines they will rely on Graham again. New Orleans has a lot of talent and with some luck staying healthy they should be a whole new team this year. It could be a close one but I think the talent on stage will be lopsided.

Predicted Winner: New Orleans Saints

St. Louis Rams @ Philadelphia Eagles

While I believe both teams will struggle this year, the Eagles will struggle in the best division and the Rams will struggle in the worst division. The Eagles aren't a bad team but without Kevin Curtis they will struggle to find their momentum and even when he returns they are not as strong as the teams they will have to face. The Rams haven't been able to stop the run for awhile now and nothing seems to have changed, opponents won't need a star running back like Westbrook to find the gaps, the Eagles will take advantage of that.

Predicted Winner: Philadelphia Eagles

Houston Texans @ Pittsburgh Steelers

The Texans look good and I have a hard time believing they will do poorly this season, until I look at their schedule. Houston's better than a lot of teams, unfortunately not many of them are on their schedule. The Steelers are what some may call reliable, I call them stagnant, and the team's biggest loss was Faneca. While I think they are prepared to move on without losing a step they certainly haven't gotten any better. In any case they are still among those better than Houston.

Predicted Winner: Pittsburgh Steelers

Jacksonville Jaguars @ Tennessee Titans

It may not be the most interesting but I think this will be the best of the divisional rivalry games this week. The Titans look to have a great rushing game and the Jaguars are very well rounded on offense with the additions they made at receiver. This game should come down to defense and the Jags are simply better on that side of the ball.

Predicted Winner: Jacksonville Jaguars

Dallas Cowboys @ Cleveland Browns

Dallas is poised for a run at the Lombardi Trophy and Cleveland is finally able to believe they have a shot. Tony Romo seems ready to take the next step and the Cowboys have added some quality players to the defensive side. The Browns made an impact last season but they'll have more trouble reaching the playoffs than Dallas will have advancing in them. It should be a good one but the outcome seems pretty clear.

Predicted Winner: Dallas Cowboys

Carolina Panthers @ San Diego Chargers

San Diego is a team being touted as the most talented and predicted widely as the next Super Bowl Champions. There are some questions that silently surround them after injuries plagued their post-season and now with Merriman playing with his career on the line. Carolina remains as inconsistent as ever, they might find a rhythm somewhere in the season but don't expect it to start here.

Predicted Winner: San Diego Chargers

Arizona Cardinals @ San Francisco 49ers

San Francisco might just be the biggest disaster on the field this year. They have QB controversy that is between a younger QB who could be a solid player one day and a QB who should probably never start in this league. The Cardinals have a different controversy at QB, a young star QB and a veteran star QB. The only way that playing Warner hurts them is in the future when they need Leinart. Anyway you shake it with these division rivals, the Cards should have a big year and the Niners are on their way to rock bottom.

Predicted Winner: Arizona Cardinals

Chicago Bears @ Indianapolis Colts

Sunday Night Football returns with a rematch of Super Bowl XLI. The Colts are dealing with a lot of injuries and they might open with a rough start. The Bears are opening with Kyle Orton as their starting QB, a move that makes them better on offense. The game should be close but I don't think the result will change.

Predicted Winner: Indianapolis Colts

Monday, September 8th

Minnesota Vikings @ Green Bay Packers

Monday Night Football brings us a big double header. The first game features heated division rivals, the Minnesota Vikings and the Green Bay Packers. Minnesota is ready to make an impact on a Favre-less NFC North and they have an explosive running back in Adrian Peterson to give them an edge. Green Bay is dealing with the end of an era, and it wasn't a pretty end. Rogers and the Pack will struggle with the Vikes.

Predicted Winner: Minnesota Vikings

Denver Broncos @ Oakland Raiders

In part two of the double header and the final game of Week 1, the Broncos head to Oakland for a rivalry game with the Raiders. Oakland made some big moves in the off-season and spent big money but it's hard to say they made a big enough improvement. The Broncos got better with a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes for Jay Cutler finally made and some big changes in the coaching staff as well as key additions in the draft and free agency. This should be clear-cut.

Predicted Winner: Denver Broncos

The Ten

1. New England Patriots - After last season everyone is gunning for them and they are going to be ready.
   

2. Indianapolis Colts - I'd like to believe they will not be as dominant but they have yet to fall.
   

3. Dallas Cowboys - The Cowboys might be the toughest team to beat this year.
   

4. Jacksonville Jaguars - The Jags just keep getting better and it could take more than Indianapolis to keep them from a division title.
   

5. Denver Broncos - Denver is the team to beat in the West this year, Cutler looks like a Pro Bowler and that's because he is.
   

6. San Diego Chargers - The Bolts aren't far behind in the West and as always are dangerous.
   

7. New Orleans Saints - They could be the biggest threat to the Cowboys down the line but only time will tell.
   

8. New York Giants - The G-Men can't be forgotten yet but don't seem to be a threat, although that's what most people thought last year.
   

9. Pittsburgh Steelers - The Steelers may or may not be the team to beat in the North but for now they are.
   

10. Minnesota Vikings - Minnesota seems to be ready for a big year and they have an explosive run game that will be responsible if they do.

The Ten will be back next week and it will not be taking this list into account. It will be based on performance and strength of opponent. During the season positioning on the list will be taken into account as teams rise and fall.

Back to the Broncos

Cutler and Marshall celebrate a touchdown.
Photo by Hyoung Chang and The Denver Post

Last year the Broncos entered the season with a new system and heavy hearts. Jim Bates came into town with a track record of great defenses in his trail and the Broncos were reeling from the tragedy plagued off-season that took Darrent Williams and Damien Nash. Bates' system failed in Denver and the team went 7-9 the Broncos looked like a shell of their old selves and missed the playoffs for the second straight year.

This year the Broncos have cast aside Jim Bates and his system and are going back to what has worked. QB Jay Cutler was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in the off-season and learned he was struggling with it throughout last season. The emergence of Brandon Marshall last year has been a sign of hope for the future. The draft brought new starters in the form of LT Ryan Clady and WR Eddie Royal. While free agency gave them players like Boss Bailey, Darrel Jackson, Niko Koutouvides, Marlon McCree, and Marquand Manuel among others. They lost players like Jason Elam, Matt Lepsis, John Lynch and Ian Gold who while important in their time with team had all lost a step or two.

The Broncos have assembled a team that looks a lot different than the one that went to the AFC Championship in 2005, and in most ways they are better off for it. These Broncos have more than what it takes to survive against the likes of the Colts, Chargers and Patriots. They have a team that can beat any of them, not just for now but for years to come. Jay Cutler is looking more and more like an elite QB and just might end up being the elite QB one day soon. With young talented receivers like Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal who should be the perfect targets for Cutler for years to come. A TE like Tony Scheffler adds not only an exceptional goal line threat but also an open field weapon. The O-Line is young and impressive and Peyton Hillis gives the Broncos their most exciting talent at FB in recent memory. The run game is as solid as any with guys like Selvin Young and Andre Hall who can take it the distance at any given time as well as Ryan Torain who might be the future star running back they have been without since Clinton Portis was traded.

The Defense is a question for many but the talent is there. CB Champ Bailey and Dre Bly are on top of a young group of talent at the position. McCree, Manuel and Hamza Abdullah are all solid safeties with experience. The linebacking corp is pretty exciting as far as I'm concerned, D.J. Williams is special and Boss Bailey should prove to be as well, Nate Webster is a much better MLB than he was an OLB. The D-Line will need to make some strides but they are more than capable and I look forward to seeing how they do this year.

As far as Special Teams are concerned Matt Prater will be a fine starter for many years to come and Brett Kern is an exciting young punter who has a great leg. The return game should also be improved with Eddie Royal and Andre Hall fielding kicks.

All in all the group that Shanahan has put together seem to be a far more exciting Denver Broncos team than any since the Elway years and in some ways even more so. These are your Denver Broncos and with any luck they will be for a long time to come.

Hero of the Week

This week's hero is none other than NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. I haven't always liked the way he has handled things *cough* Spygate *cough* sorry I'm a little under the weather. Seriously though he has handled things with much better decision making this season and I feel he's been more fair to organizations, players and most of all fans. Marshall's suspension was cut down to one week last Thursday and while it sucks that he'll miss the nationally broadcasted game against the Raiders on Monday, I don't think the Broncos need him for the Raiders. The Broncos will have him in Week 2 against the team they need him for the most, The Chargers. So I commend Roger on his benevolence and that's why he is the Hero of the Week.

What's Next?

Last Minute Heroics returns next week in its weekly Tuesday spot for its regular season premiere. It will include the following:

• A Look Back at Week 1
  

• Game of the Week
  

• Week 2 - Who's in It and Who's Gonna Win It
  

• The Ten
  

• Hero of the Week
  

I hope everyone enjoyed this special Kickoff Edition; I welcome any feedback and/or suggestions to be left as a comment below or sent by email to LoveHopeHero@gmail.com. It's been a pleasure, thank you for reading.

P|L|H

- Love Hope Hero -