State of the Union: Three Rivalries that Explain the NFL

In the sports world, rivalries are everything. Championships are great, the playoffs are exciting, but nothing gets a fan quite as amped up as a game against a rival. Nowhere is this truer than in the NFL. Everyone gets a piece of the flashier rivalries like Cowboys vs. 49ers in the 80’s, or every time that Tom Brady and Peyton Manning face off, but the real value lies in divisional opponents. Domination of divisional rivals can make even a 7-9 season a successful one in the eyes of fans. For Chargers fans, doing better than the Raiders each year is the only thing fueling their hopeful delusion. New England takes great pride in winning the AFC East 10 of the last 12 years. Ahead of the Patriot’s Thursday night meeting with their division villain Jets, let’s look at how three divisional matchups this week are ushering in the new age of the NFL.

We’ll start with the aforementioned contest between Patriots and jets (purposefully omitted capitalization). It’s no secret that New England has sat atop this division with a crown and scepter for some years now. That’s why New Jersey brought in brilliant defensive coordinator Rex Ryan four years ago in hopes of unseating them. How’d that work out? Well, Ryan’s squad was featured in the AFC Championship two years in a row, even beating the Patriots en route, though they lost both games. In those two seasons, the Jets were 2-2 against the Patriots in the regular season, with each team winning at home. However, in the past two seasons, Rex Ryan wanted asnack and New England logged sweeps in back to back seasons, including the infamous Buttfumble game. Now as these two teams face off tonight (8:30 pm eastern on NFL Network), both are having identity issues. The jets are trying to bring along a rookie quarterback, while Tom Brady is throwing to rookie receivers. After an offseason that wasn’t kind to either group, this game will be our first indication as to whether these teams can regain the respect they once garnered across the league and, more importantly, who will be victorious in this division.

Next up, we have the Bengals and Steelers going to head-to-head. This game represents a changing of the guard in the AFC North, whether Pittsburgh likes it or not. For the casual NFL fan, Cincinnati is probably not a big blip on the radar, and the stripes most likely conjure images of outspoken receiver Chad Esteban Ochocinco Johnson. As for the Steelers, they have long been an AFC powerhouse and Super Bowl contender. Besides a few good games by ex-Bengal Carson Palmer, the Steelers have good memories in Cincinnati. The tables have turned up north as the Bengals have used two very good draft classes to replace Johnson with silent star A.J. Green, find their franchise quarterback, and bolster the defense. On the other hand, Pittsburgh has watched its best players grow old gradually leave the team, and even Super Bowl XLIII hero James Harrison has joined the revival in Cincinnati. When these two squads face off, it will be a testament to the youth movement currently taking the league by storm. Also, James Harrison running down Ben Roeslithberger, which will be awesome to watch. But anyway, youth movement!

Speaking of youth, that brings us to our third and final match, the Sunday night showdown between the Seahawks and 49ers. The amazing thing about this game is that three years ago, it would have been just about the most irrelevant thing happening on any given Sunday. However, both teams experienced resurgence, beginning with their hiring of rival collegecoaches Pete Carroll and Jim Harbaugh, respectively. Preaching his “competition everywhere” mantra, Carroll patiently guided the Hawks back to form, winning the division and an upset playoff game in 2011. Upon his arrival, Harbaugh forged a strong bond with maligned quarterback Alex Smith and led San Francisco to the NFC Championship, coming one worst return man in the world away from meeting New England in the Super Bowl. The craziest thing? These coaches aren’t even why this game is important.

No, this game stands out because of who the rosters feature. Mainly, the quarterbacks. Seattle’s Russell Wilson and Frisco’s Colin Kaepernick represent everything that’s right in the NFL world. Young, dynamic, humble, Christian athletes who make play after play with their legs as well as their arms. Last season Kaepernick was handed the keys to the offense when Smith went down with an injury, and the 9ers never looked back. They ended up a few botched calls away from winning the Super Bowl. Wilson was drafted in the third round in 2012, and nobody expected him to start. After beating out Matt Flynn in the preseason camp, Wilson showed us all what he could do tying Peyton Manning's rookie record by throwing 26 touchdown passes. These two are now the most exciting pair of players in the NFL, and it will be a great privilege to watch them square off on Sunday.

What’s that, are we done yet? Why, of course not! I haven’t even mentioned the defense yet! Where the 2012 draft yielded the leader for Seattle’s offense, it did the same for its defense with linebacker Bobby Wagner, taken in the second round. He joined a unit that included the VERY confident Richard Sherman and silent-but-deadly safety Earl Thomas. In San Francisco, 2011 pick Aldon Smith took his place among a unit that already featured football’s best linebacker Patrick Willis and football’s other best linebacker, Navarro Bowman. With Justin Smith dominating the trenches, they wreak havoc week after week. In a league that has seen the decline of defenses and a rise in offense, particularly the passing game, these squads are a breath of fresh air. Between Seattle and San Francisco, they feature the best young EVERYTHING in the league and will most likely determine who represents the NFC in the Super Bowl. This will be a great rivalry for years and years to come.

Whew, there it is! It feels like I’ve been holding my breath over here people! Do you know how hard it is not to mention that the Patriots are playing their home opener or that Wilson and Kaepernick have bet an eyebrow on this game or the fact that Bobby Wagner will be the 2013 Defensive Player of the Year? No sir, not from me. Only solid analysis in this blog. However, there’s plenty of non-hard-hitting reporting swimming around in this noggin of mine, so feel free to drop a comment or get at me on Twitter @GSRudy. Don’t forget to catch the Patriots and Jets tonight on NFL Network at 8:30 pm eastern time!