Phillip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers getting ready for the season. AP Photo/Denis Poroy

The NFL season is a grind. Despite playing on 16 games, the ferocity of the action forces teams to rely on a bit of luck in order to get through the post season.

Look at the New York Giants last season. They looked awful and good as dead after the first five games of the season. But they clawed their way back into the playoff hunt and got their defense in order to go on their playoff run in January. Then they pounded the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl but still had to rely on a lucky catch by the improbable David Tyree.

This season look for the San Diego Chargers to do their best impersonation of the New England Patriots of last season. They won't go undefeated in the regular season, but they'll come close to their 14-2 record from 2006. Meanwhile New England will not be as dominating as they were last season. The Patriots wore down towards the end of the season, and that Super Bowl defeat was a template on how to disrupt the Patriots offense.

But besides that, there will be no surprises in the AFC. No the New York Jets are still not a playoff team, and the Cleveland Browns will prove last season was a fluke.

On the NFC side, look for the Philadelphia Eagles to be a good team. I can't say this is based on anything concrete, just a hunch. The surprise will be the Atlanta Falcons. They will win the division. Since realignment in 2002 the last place team in the NFC South went on to win the division the following season. I'm just following that trend.

So with that, here are my predictions for the season:

AFC East
1. New England Patriots
2. Buffalo Bills
3. New York Jets
4. Miami Dolphins

AFC North
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
2. Cincinnati Bengals
3. Cleveland Browns
4. Baltimore Ravens

AFC South
1. Indianapolis Colts
2. Jacksonville Jaguars
3. Houston Texans
4. Tennessee Titans

AFC West
1. San Diego Chargers
2. Denver Broncos
3. Oakland Raiders
4. Kansas City Chiefs

NFC East
1. Philadelphia Eagles
2. Dallas Cowboys
3. Washington Redskins
4. New York Giants

NFC North
1. Green Bay Packers
2. Minnesota Vikings
3. Chicago Bears
4. Detroit Lions

NFC South
1. Atlanta Falcons
2. New Orleans Saints
3. Carolina Panthers
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

NFC West
1. Seattle Seahawks
2. Arizona Cardinals
3. San Francisco 49ers
4. St. Louis Rams

AFC Seeds
1. San Diego Chargers
2. Indianapolis Colts
3. New England Patriots
4. Pittsburgh Steelers
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
6. Buffalo Bills

AFC Wild Card. New England Patriots defeat Buffalo Bills. Jacksonville Jaguars defeat Pittsburgh Steelers.

AFC Divisional. San Diego Chargers defeat Jacksonville Jaguars. Indianapolis Colts defeat New England Patriots.

AFC Championship. San Diego Chargers defeat Indianapolis Colts.

NFC Seeds
1. Philadelphia Eagles
2. Seattle Seahawks
3. Green Bay Packers
4. Atlanta Falcons
5. Dallas Cowboys
6. New Orleans Saints

NFC Wild Card. New Orleans Saints defeat Green Bay Packers. Dallas Cowboys defeat Atlanta Falcons.

NFC Divisional. Philadelphia Eagles defeat New Orleans Saints. Dallas Cowboys defeat Seattle Seahawks.

NFC Championship. Dallas Cowboys defeat Philadelphia Eagles.

Super Bowl. San Diego Chargers defeat Dallas Cowboys 34-19.