2020 Proceed With Caution: D

San Francisco 49ers

Analysis: My worries for the Niners defense lies in their secondary. Richard Sherman is coming off a fantastic season, but he’s 32 and speed has never been his strong suit, which only makes things worse the older he gets. They also didn’t add anyone to compete at Corner. You can have all the pass rushers you want, but if the Corners can’t hold down the Receivers long enough for your guys to get after the QB it won’t make a difference. Maybe I’ll be wrong, maybe Sherman will continue to play at a phenomenally high level and Emmanuel Moseley will take a big leap forward. If that doesn’t happen this Niners unit will take a step back.

Minnesota Vikings

Analysis: Low hanging fruit here. The Vikings lost Everson Griffen and Linval Joseph; those are the losses that are going to hurt them. Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes and Mackensie Alexander were nothing special last season, so my concerns about what will happen with Mike Hughes, Holton Hill and Jeff Gladney running the show are minimal. I like the Pierce signing to replace Joseph, but they’re going to need Odenigbo to step up and for Wonnum and Lynch to have a big impact right off that bat if they’re going to continue their defensive dominance. Another words, the Vikings defense may be in for a long year since they’re relying on so many unknowns.

New England Patriots

Analysis: More low-hanging fruit? Not as much. Even with all the players the Pats lost on this side of the ball it’s still difficult to doubt a Belichick defense. The reason why I’m listing them anyway is because of the Pats offense. They’ve been able to count on an efficient Tom Brady led system that rarely gave the ball up in unfriendly territory. They don’t have that guarantee this year and that could lead their defense down the path of destruction.