FanHouse Roundtable: Who's the Worst Team in the NFL?

They decided that Daunte Culpepper wasn't good enough, nor drafting Brady Quinn, so they bring in an aging Trent Green who missed most of 2006 with a violent concussion. Now, none of them are there and the guy that is supposed to be "the future" ... John Beck ... is watching a guy named Cleo Lemon eat up his minutes.

The same team that decided Wes Welker and Sammy Morris weren't worth it. The same team that walked the tightrope with having nothing backing up Ronnie Brown, and are paying for it now. The same team that has the 2006 Defensive Player of the Year, yet are allowing the most points in the NFL. The same team that unceremoniously dumped their top receiver, Chris Chambers, to the Chargers. The same team that has a satellite named Ricky Williams still orbiting the organization. The same team that had its coach swear he's staying and then bolt for Alabama just weeks later.

The same team that has had one home game moved to London and another game delayed by lightning.

As for on the field ... this is an 0-8 team that hasn't reached its nadir. Their best player, Brown, is done for the season. The secondary is in shambles ... signing Lance Schulters to a 2-year deal because he had a passport ready to travel with the team to London. With Chambers dealt, the receiving corps is Marty Booker and Ted Ginn. Of their remaining 8 games ... only three are against losing teams. Two of them are the Eagles and Bengals, who are major disappointments in their own right.

At least last year's Raiders could take pride in their defense. The Texans are missing Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson. Ahman Green on one leg scored a TD on them. Backup Ron Dayne put up 122 yards. This is the same Texans team that hasn't been able to run on anyone since Johnson went down.

The Texans pass defense tends to make opposing quarterbacks look good, but Josh McCown had a QB rating under 20 for most of the game, and it might have been lower but for a fluky shanked punt. He ended up with a 36.6 rating after a Texans secondary that hasn't intercepted hardly anyone, intercepted him 3 times.

The good news and the bad news for the Raiders is that they have JaMarcus Russell. It is good and bad because they have no idea what they got, other than a #1 pick contract holdout and not wanting to see McCown on the field any more.

Josh Alper: It's hard to argue with SA's take on the Dolphins, especially since the only game the Jets have won is against that esteemed crew. That said, I'll give my Jets their props as the worst in the biz.

The scary thing is that I don't think the Jets themselves could run on the Jets. Their offensive line couldn't create holes in a tissue, which makes the 37th overall pick they traded for Thomas Jones something that they hardly miss at all. The line could have been better, of course, but they chose a principled stand on contracts over Pete Kendall. I'd say that will come back and bite them in the ass when another key player asks for a raise and forces a trade but its hard to see such a player anywhere on the roster.

Sportz: I'll throw this hat in the ring -- the Cincinnati Bengals.

Cincy has been, by far, the biggest disappointment in the NFL. How can a team that throws Carson Palmer, Chad Johnson and TJ Houshmandzadeh out there every week win just two games at the halfway mark? Housh leads the NFL in receptions and trails only Randy Moss in TD grabs. He and Ocho Cinco are in the top 10 in receiving yards. So why is this team 2-6?

Easy. Defense. No one has given up more points than the Bengals, and they are 31st in overall defense. Injuries have hurt this team. Willie Anderson, Levi Jones and Rudi Johnson have all missed time off that vaunted offense. On defense, the linebackers have been wiped out. Meanwhile, Odell Thurman and Chris Henry have spent the entire season on the NFL's suspended list (Henry can begin playing this week). The defensive line already wasn't that good ... and the secondary is very, very, very young. The injuries to the linebackers have given this defense no chance to make any plays. And because that defense sucks, the offense can't get on the field (only the Browns, Bears and Niners offenses have been on the field less). There is enough talent on offense to correct this .... and THAT is how bad this defense has been.

Stephanie: Based on preseason expectations, the most disappointing teams have to be the Bengals, Jets and Rams. At least Atlanta, Miami and Raider fans pretty much knew that the season was going to be a struggle.
I think some of the difference between the teams doing well this year and the ones who are not is the large number of teams who are inexperienced or are hurt at the quarterback position. When a team is trying to figure out who their QB is going to be, or are compensating for injured QBs, it's hard to win games. And if you look at the top of the standings, most of those teams have the quarterback position figured out. Yeah, I know that seems like a "no duh" statement, but 2007 seems to be a year where there are more quarterback troubles than usual from more teams.

Tom: I definitely agree that the out-of-left-field crappiness is the worst kind, and that should ostensibly eliminate the Falcons, Dolphins, and Raiders fans from laying claim (unless they came into the season with legitimate hopes, in which case, maybe the water in those cities should be tested).

I still think the 49ers have been worse than everyone. If you want to talk about preseason expectations, the 49ers are right up there. They were maybe the most-hyped team in the offseason, treated as a sure thing despite showing no evidence of such capability.

But should expectations be considered in a team's overall crapiness? Or should we judge each team's on-the-field performance without predetermined biases? That's a discussion for another day.