Time hasn’t exactly flown since the Saints’ Super Bowl XLIV upset in February.
The NFL has endured The Offseason From Hell, a dreadful stretch filled with arrests, suspensions and just about everything in between — all of it with the black cloud of labor trouble and a 2011 lockout looming.
But with the first training camp set to open Friday in Cleveland, actual games to break up the monotony of police reports and union negotiations are just around the corner. Here are 10 key questions facing the NFL heading into the season:
1. Is this the last season of NFL football until 2012?
The labor talks seem to get uglier by the day, and the owners continue to march in lockstep behind commissioner Roger Goodell when it comes to reining in payroll costs. We’ll see how much solidarity there is in the union ranks once the paychecks stop. Fans should enjoy this stoppage-free season while they can, because 2011 is going to be a roller coaster.
2. Are Drew Brees and the Saints a one-hit wonder?
Last season’s feel-good story didn’t exactly have the quietest of offseasons, but most of the controversy seemed to involve the Saints’ front office and coaching staff than it did the players who actually won the Super Bowl. Brees still has all his main targets. The key to a Saints repeat will be getting home field advantage again.
3. Will all the contract drama ruin the Jets’ Super Bowl hopes?
Owner Woody Johnson and general manager Mike Tannenbaum have a mess on their hands with Darrelle Revis and Nick Mangold, unless the Jets’ brain trust suddenly decides to whip out the checkbook. The Jets’ chemistry is still fragile enough to be blown apart by holdouts and the like. Coach Rex Ryan’s motivational skills are going to be put to the test.
4. Is Washington the right change of scenery for Donovan McNabb?
Probably not. The Redskins allowed 46 sacks last year, which means McNabb might have to become a runner again by default. And Washington fans can be just as brutal toward quarterbacks who don’t produce as their Philly counterparts.
5. Is the Patriots’ run finally over?
All the defections from the front office and his coaching staff combined with some curious personnel moves have left coach Bill Belichick looking a lot less like a genius than he did when Tom Brady wasn’t trying to come back from a serious knee injury.
6. How much will the Giants miss Antonio Pierce?
General manager Jerry Reese and coach Tom Coughlin will regret not filling Pierce’s middle-linebacker spot with a proven veteran. The competition in camp is between Jonathan Goff, Gerris Wilkinson and Phillip Dillard, with Goff — a fifth-round pick in 2008 — expected to get the nod. Ugh. New defensive coordinator Perry Fewell will have to scramble to hide this hole in Big Blue’s defense.
7. Will the Steelers finish above .500, much less make the playoffs?
Not only is Ben Roethlisberger suspended for up to six games, but Pittsburgh shipped Santonio Holmes to the Jets and lost key offensive lineman Willie Colon for the year to a torn Achilles. Empty seats at Heinz Field could be in the offing.
8. Is high definition becoming the NFL’s worst enemy?
The league and networks might have outsmarted themselves by making the games so perfect for sitting on your couch. It’s starting to hit the owners in the pocketbook through slow ticket sales and — as the Jets can attest — poor PSL sales. The NFL had 22 blackouts last year (the most since 2004), and that number is expected to rise this year.
9. Will Terrell Owens find an NFL home this season?
There are a lot of receiver-thin teams out there, and it’s hard to believe one of them wouldn’t take a flier on Owens — who averaged 15.1 yards a catch with the Bills last year — during the season.
10. Is Brett Favre coming back this season?
Does it snow in Minnesota? Attention is like oxygen for No. 4.