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2004 Regular Season

Drew is our quarterback. Saints coach Lovie Smith, after Week 3 when asked about rookie Eli Manning possibly playing over incumbent Drew Bledsoe. He'd repeat that mantra every time he was asked that season about playing Eli Manning.

Lovie Smith made New Orleans' no-name defense competitive right away. He brought his Tampa 2 but made a significant change due to the personnel he had in Louisiana. Instead of a traditional 4-3, Lovie pretty much ran his defense out of a base nickel but would often play three safeties instead of three corners if the situation called for it. His new “Bayou 2” defense kept the Saints in most games – they only lost by 14+ points twice, once to the Patriots in Foxborough and the other at home vs Mike Vick and the Falcons.

The Saints were undermanned though and Drew Bledsoe was just good enough to be annoying to Saints fans. He wasn’t bad enough to merit a benching but he wasn’t good enough to actually win very many games. That being said, New Orleans finished a respectable 7-9 overall and won two of the last three in convincing fashion over the Jets and the Buccaneers.

The cracks were starting to show in Tampa. Back in the 1980s, Lakers coach Pat Riley wrote about “The Disease of More” when teams would win a title. Every championship team ever – in any sport – had players who put their own interests and goals aside to help the team win. However, Riley wrote, many times those players wanted more – more playing time, more publicity, and especially more money. It was also harder to motivate players who were already champs than it was to motivate those who weren’t. This effect, combined with an aging roster and a laissez-faire coaching staff, meant the Bucs finished an underwhelming 8-8 and missed the playoffs for the first time in years.

It was Carolina, on the backs of all-world pass rusher Julius Peppers, who won the NFC South with a 10-6 record. Peppers was seemingly in the backfield on every snap and even held up well in the run game.

The bottom fell out for Chicago. They were a mirage the year before despite making the playoffs and in 2004 their offense fell apart. Head coach Dick Jauron was fired after a bad Thanksgiving Day loss at Dallas dropped them to 3-8 on the season.

Ben Roethlisberger won the Cowboys starting job in Week 6 (after the bye) and didn’t look back. Under him Dallas would win six of their last seven games and snag a wild card spot. Jon Gruden and Jim Harbaugh were back in the playoffs for the first time since winning the Super Bowl in their final game as Raiders.

We're on a roll right now, playing with a ton of confidence, and I feel that with the players we have here on this team there's no one in the NFC who can stop us! Ben Roethlisberger, on the field after a Week 17 win vs the Giants got Dallas into the playoffs.

Larry Fitzgerald lived up to his high draft pick and made an immediate impact on the Redskins. Philip Rivers was uneven for the Giants, throwing for 248 yards and three scores in Week 11 vs the aforementioned Skins (Fitz had 11 catches and 132 yards in that game) then following it up with a four-pick game in Week 12 vs the Eagles. Such was life for most rookie quarterbacks.

Over in the AFC, New England keep on rolling, easily winning the AFC East…again. Oakland was still bad but Charles Rogers was one of the best wideouts in the NFL. He had over a thousand yards receiving for the second straight year - no small feat given the hodgepodge of quarterbacks getting him the ball. Baltimore rebuilt their defense around Ray Lewis and Troy Polamalu and won the North.

AFC Playoff Teams

1. New England Patriots
2. Indianapolis Colts
3. San Diego Chargers
4. Baltimore Ravens
5. Denver Broncos
6. Jacksonville Jaguars

NFC Playoff Teams

1. Philadelphia Eagles
2. Green Bay Packers
3. Carolina Panthers
4. Saint Louis Rams
5. Dallas Cowboys
6. Atlanta Falcons

MVP --> Peyton Manning, Colts
Offensive Player of the Year --> LaDainian Tomlinson, Chargers
Defensive Player of the Year --> Ed Reed, Patriots
Coach of the Year --> John Fox, Panthers
Offensive Rookie of the Year --> Larry Fitzgerald, Redskins
Defensive Rookie of the Year --> Sean Taylor, Cardinals