First-half review: What went right, wrong, and what to look for

NFC

Arizona: Kurt Warner was clearly a great choice not only because of how he has played but also it showed that performance mattered over draft position i.e. Matt Leinart. That wins the locker room over. The addition of Travis LaBoy has helped the pass rush. Darnell Dockett and Karlos Dansby have had their usual positive impact on the defense. On offense besides Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin, two young players -- running back Tim Hightower and receiver/returner Steve Breaston -- have and will help the Cards in the second half. The secondary still remains a problem, but I think the Cards will win the West and be tough to beat at home in the playoffs.

Tim Hightower helps give Arizona a bright outlook down the stretch this season. (Getty Images)

Atlanta: The plan has worked perfectly. Michael Turner has paired with Jerious Norwood to make the run game effective enough to set up play action to Roddy White, who has matured into a fine receiver. This takes the pressure off Matt Ryan, who has been everything they believed he would be. John Abraham has been healthy and when he is, he is a force as a pass rusher. The weakness is in the secondary and lack of depth behind Abraham on defense. The schedule is tougher the rest of the season, but the Falcons will still end up having a successful season, but I don't think they will be in the playoffs.

Carolina: The draft moves to get Jeff Otah and Jonathan Stewart have not paid quite the dividends they thought, but the defense has been solid with very good performances from Julius Peppers, Jon Beason and Thomas Davis. Jake Delhomme is having an excellent year and DeAngelo Williams is having the type of year the Panthers expected of him when they drafted him in the first round in 2006. This is a solid overall team that has no glaring weaknesses. I think the Panthers will win the South and compete with Arizona, whom they have beaten, for a bye in the first round of the playoffs.

Chicago: Clearly the move to Kyle Orton as the starting quarterback was an excellent move this year. He has been the MVP of the team, but with him being out now we will see if Rex Grossman has matured as a QB in his decision making, which he told me he has when I visited with him in training camp. The lack of pass rush from the Bears' front four has been a disappointment. The loss of Orton and poor pass rush could cost the Bears the playoffs.

Dallas: They opened the season very impressively. But bad secondary play and injuries at quarterback, running back and in the secondary as well as the disappointing play of Flozell Adams have left them with a 5-4 record. The key for them will be if Tony Romo and Terence Newman can come back after the bye and play at the level they are capable of playing. The Cowboys have played hard and I think they still have a chance at the playoffs, but unless they can win at least two of the three division games they have left they will struggle to make it.

Detroit: No one would predict a team to be winless at this point and the Lions have played better in the past couple of weeks, but this is a team that will be picking at or near the top of the draft. After this Sunday the Lions do not play a team with a losing record.

Green Bay: The biggest questions facing the Packers were how Aaron Rodgers would play and if he would stay healthy. The Packers never questioned Rodgers was going to play well and they have been right. The Packers' No. 1 problem has been injuries -- to the defensive line, secondary, running backs and offensive line. The Packers have the best quarterback in the division and that gives them a shot at winning it.

Gus Frerotte has become a key in Minnesota. (Getty Images)

Minnesota: When I saw them in training camp, I thought the quarterback situation was going to hold them back. It did in the first two games. The move to Gus Frerotte saved the season and his play will determine if they make the playoffs. Frerotte can give them the big plays to Bernard Berrian that can keep defenses from loading up to stop Adrian Peterson. Frerotte must avoid interceptions. The offense is also going to have to carry this team because their secondary still struggles against good passing teams, and if they lose defensive tackles Pat Williams and Kevin Williams, they will struggle even more on defense.

New Orleans Saints: Drew Brees is not only the MVP of this team but is playing as well as any player in the NFL. No matter who he loses in his offense they still move the ball and score points. The disappointment for the Saints has been the pass rush. They thought Will Smith, Charles Grant and Sedrick Ellis would be able to mask their weak secondary but they have not been able to do it. If this does not change in the second half of the season the Saints will miss the playoffs.

New York Giants: No surprise to me how they played, but they have been aided by the easiest first-half schedule. They have played only three teams with winning records and two of them, Washington and Dallas, were at home and both those teams played their poorest games vs. the Giants. In the second half of the season the Giants do not play a team with a losing record and have three division games on the road. I think they will still win the division but are not a lock to do it because of their schedule.

Philadelphia Eagles: This team is simple. If Brian Westbrook stays healthy they make a run at the Giants. If he does not they will have a hard time making the playoffs because of the lack of playmakers on offense.

St. Louis Rams: Jim Haslett has them playing hard and they are getting good contributions from their rookie class: Chris Long, Donnie Avery and Derek Stanley. Steven Jackson's health will be the key to how many games this team will win in the second half. This team could be a spoiler.

San Francisco: A lost season for the 49ers. The biggest decision they have to make is who is going to be their head coach next season.

Seattle Seahawks: Not the way a potential Hall of Fame coach wanted to go out. A combination of injuries on offense and underachieving players on defense has caused the season to be a disappointment for the Seahawks. The biggest decision they have to make is when and if to play Matt Hasselbeck.

The Bucs must have a healthy Jeff Garcia. (Getty Images)

Tampa Bay: They have played two quarterbacks and have had very little contribution from Joey Galloway. The offensive line has played well, as have running backs Warrick Dunn and Earnest Graham. The defense has been consistently good all year, especially at home. Jeff Garcia's health will be a key to them making the playoffs. Their final two games are at home against San Diego and Oakland and will probably determine if the Bucs make the playoffs.

Washington Redskins: The schedule lightens up some in the second half. Jim Zorn has to be a candidate for Coach of the Year. The Redskins are a solid team on both offense and defense. Their season will be decided by their success or failure in their division games. The good news for the Redskins is those games will be played at home. If this team makes the playoffs, Clinton Portis has to be a candidate for MVP.

AFC

Baltimore: John Harbaugh is also a serious candidate for Coach of the Year. The Baltimore defense has been strong and allowed the Ravens to be conservative on offense. The Ravens have also been smart on offense. Like the Falcons they have taken the pressure off rookie quarterback Joe Flacco with an emphasis on the running game. The schedule gets tougher in the second half and I think it will be too much to ask Flacco to lead the Ravens to the playoffs in his first year, so the key to the Ravens' success in the second half will be the health of their secondary.

Buffalo: When I saw the Bills in the spring, I thought they were a year away. I thought that they had a number of good young players but it might be too much to ask them to go to the playoffs this year. The Bills will be in it to the end because they are a solid team and this division is too balanced for any team to run away with it, but their inability to have a consistent running game and pressure the quarterback with their front four could cost them the playoffs.

Cincinnati: The defense has improved this year but still lacks a playmaking defensive lineman. The story of this team has been the struggles on offense, which started in training camp with their injuries at wide receiver. This team was built to control the game on offense and when that did not happen in the first half of the season it meant it was going to be a long year for the Bengals.

Brady Quinn might make things more interesting in Cleveland. (AP)

Cleveland: Last season the offense carried the Browns but this year Derek Anderson, Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow have not had the seasons they had last year. Couple that with the loss of Joe Jurevicius and lack of production from replacement Donte' Stallworth and the Browns do not need any other explanation for their disappointing season. Shawn Rogers has been a bright spot. He has had a Pro Bowl season on the defensive line. I do not see the Browns making a big enough comeback in the second half to make the playoffs. The switch at quarterback will be interesting to see how Brady Quinn plays. On a short week it will be interesting to see what he does. He was not that impressive in the preseason.

Denver: Not hard to critique this team. Their defense has not been able to stop anybody. With Champ Bailey out and the loss of their second-best player on defense in D.J. Williams, I think they will continue to have problems on defense. There is too much pressure on the offense to be at a high level each week for the Broncos to make the playoffs.

Houston: Sage Rosenfels, filling in for Matt Schaub, has a winning record for the Texans at quarterback but he must cut the turnovers if the Texans are to make a run at the playoffs. Their offense can move the ball but their defense has to eliminate giving up the big plays for them to make that run at the playoffs.

Indianapolis: The Colts finish the season at home against the Titans in a game that might mean nothing to the Titans but which could have the Colts playing for a spot in the playoffs. With Bob Sanders and Joseph Addai back along with Peyton Manning I think the Colts will find a way to get in the playoffs. At 4-4 they are only one game back now.

Jacksonville: Probably the biggest disappointment of the first half. Their problems center around their failure to improve the pass rush and their wide receiver position as well as injuries to the offensive line. The players they acquired at those positions -- Jerry Porter, Troy Williamson, Derrick Harvey and Quentin Groves -- have not had the expected impact. I do not see them turning it around in the second half.

Kansas City: I thought this would be a rebuilding year for Kansas City and it has been. One disappointment for the Chiefs has been the fact that Brodie Croyle got hurt again. I would think that should answer the Chiefs' question about his durability. Considering the Chiefs are playing with their third-string QB, who has virtually no experience in the NFL, and without their best player in Larry Johnson, Herm Edwards should be commended for the way the Chiefs have played recently. The most important thing the Chiefs have to do in the second half of this season is get as many looks at all the quarterbacks in college who could in next year's draft.

Miami: When I saw the Dolphins in the spring I thought the best aspects of the team were the front office, coaching staff and draft class. I thought these three things would make them competitive this year. The signing of Chad Pennington gave them a chance to win and he is the main reason they are 4-4, because their other young quarterbacks were not ready to win games this year. They are a sleeper team for the playoffs because they play four teams with losing records, this division could be won with nine victories and they are 2-1 in the division.

New England: They are 5-3 without Tom Brady. With Tom Brady, they would be at least 7-1. They have changed their formula to run the ball first and play ball control. Every game will be close for the Patriots the rest of the way. I think the Patriots will make the playoffs, which considering the fact they are limited at quarterback and in the secondary would make Bill Belichick a serious candidate for Coach of the Year.

Calvin Pace has been one of the important imports for the Jets. (Getty Images)

New York Jets: If Brett Favre can eliminate half the bad plays he makes (I think he will) coupled with the Jets' ground game and their ability to stop the run, New York will make the playoffs. No team spent more money in free agency than the Jets and their acquisitions have put them in a position to make a playoff run. Players like Favre, Kris Jenkins (trades) and free agents Calvin Pace and Alan Faneca have made this team better.

Oakland: This team has better talent than its record shows, but there are three areas that have not played well all year -- pass protection, wide receiver and quarterback. They need better talent at wide receiver and on the offensive line. I do not see the Raiders turning it around in the second half.

Pittsburgh: I think they are the best team in the AFC. Their only two losses are to NFC teams. Their defense is excellent and I think they have more firepower than the Titans. Their game against Tennessee in December will be a preview of the AFC Championship Game.

San Diego: Despite their 3-5 record, they are a better team than the Broncos and with their offense they will win the West. The defense has struggled in the first half of the season, but it has been due to injuries more than coaching.

Tennessee: The Titans only play three teams with a winning record the second half and should end up with the best record in the AFC and have home field throughout the playoffs. This is a team that reminds me of the Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl team: strong defense and strong running game. Their defense is not as good as that Ravens defense but it is good enough to get them to the Super Bowl. I think Pittsburgh is a better team though, but I will hold my prediction until January.