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2015 NFL Predictions: Atlanta Falcons, New England Patriots Final Unbeatens

By Dan Salem

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With over a half dozen unbeaten teams steamrolling through the NFL, only the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots will push the limits and stay perfect the longest. 2015 NFL Predictions go beast mode in debate. Dan Salem and Todd Salem debate in today’s NFL Sports Debate. Check out more of the brothers in Seesaw Sports Debate on BuzzChomp. Two brothers from New York yell, scream, and debate sports.

TODD:

Entering everyone’s fourth game of the NFL season, we have seven teams still undefeated. The seven are New England, Cincinnati, Denver, Green Bay, Carolina, Atlanta and Arizona.

It is an eclectic and somewhat surprising bunch. Most of the group has been dominant during the first quarter of the season, but a few have hung on for close win after close win.

Of the seven, which team will remain undefeated longest? Who will be the last to lose?

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For me, this exercise comes down to ruling teams out and seeing what’s left over. The Bengals have looked good but have a pretty rough schedule coming up. All of their next four games are going to be either-or battles when they take on Kansas City, Seattle, Buffalo and Pittsburgh one right after another. I don’t see Cincinnati surviving that run unscathed.

Denver has a much more breathable schedule, but the team doesn’t look good on offense. I don’t see it lasting past the beginning of November if it gets that far.

Carolina and Atlanta have both been scrounging for the victories they have gotten. Either could lose any upcoming game. The Falcons’ schedule looks easier, but the team looks shakier. This is an interesting division battle but neither is a contender for this exercise.

That leaves just the Patriots, Packers and Cardinals. After this week, Green Bay’s schedule looks sneakily tough. The same goes for Arizona, who will play a string of road games interspersed with tough opponents. As boring as it sounds, that leaves New England as the correct answer. I don’t see the likely loss coming up anytime soon…although the Pats were lucky to beat Pittsburgh Week 1! But that’s how crazy this league always is.

Sep 27, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback

Matt Ryan

(2) throws prior to the game against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

DAN:

Determining the final undefeated team based solely on strength of schedule during games 4 through 8 completely ignores the facts of each team’s first three victories. You touched on your feelings for each, but then tossed them out the window because New England has the easiest month of October football, in your opinion.

This debate comes down to who will enter November undefeated. Anything less than going 7-0 or 8-0 is meaningless here. The Patriots will likely fall into that 7-1 category, but they are certainly losing in the month of October. With two big divisional games, and a trip down to Dallas to face the Cowboys, I see a New England loss in the near future. Their first two games were way too close for comfort, against two opponents on track for the playoffs. I see similar troubles ahead against Dallas and the Jets. Both teams can slow down the Patriots enough to win a close game.

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I’d love to go with the Bengals here, as they have completely surprised me this season, riding high into week 4. But their schedule is way too hard in October. I’m giving them a loss at Seattle. Denver isn’t good enough to keep things going long enough to matter, and Carolina isn’t getting by both Seattle and Philadelphia in the month of October. I’m also eliminating Arizona, who has yet to play a good football team. I don’t know if they are actual contenders or not.

This leaves the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers. My brain tells me Green Bay is the best team in the league, but then my brain tells me that Atlanta has the easiest schedule of anyone, maybe ever. Both teams make it out of October undefeated, so who is the last standing?

The Packers could fall to Denver or Carolina in early November. Any other loss by Green Bay would be a fluke of the football gods. The flip side is Atlanta, who simply has to beat Houston on Sunday before riding high all the way into December. I believe the Falcons hold out against the Texans, then smash through their poor competition up until they finally face the Panthers in week 14. Quite frankly, the only two games remaining on their schedule after this Sunday which actually look challenging are when they face Carolina.

The Atlanta Falcons will be the final undefeated team this season. However, they are nowhere near the best team. But that wasn’t the question. After a bad season last year, Atlanta gets to feast on some bad football.

Dan Salem is a Staff Writer for NFL Spinzone. He’s also Lead Editor, Staff Writer, and Featured Vlogger at BuzzChomp, and a New York Jets Analyst for Pro Football Spot. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or Instagram.

Todd Salem is a Staff Writer for NFL Spinzone. He’s also a Contributing Editor at BuzzChomp, a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report, and an Analyst for Tipster Labs, among others. Follow him on Twitter.

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