Bill Cowher has been an analyst for the NFL on CBS since 2007. He returns to CBS on September 8th, for The NFL Today, a pregame show now in its 46th season. This will be the 54th year that CBS has covered the NFL. He will be joined this season by Boomer Esiason, Shannon Sharpe and Dan Marino; with James Brown anchoring.
I had an exclusive with Cowher at NFL on CBS Media Day where I asked him to size up the Chicago Bears chances in both the NFC North and the NFC.
“I like Marc Trestman, I’ve actually coached with Marc. It’s a big year for Jay Cutler, it’s well documented. It’s a tough division,” Bill Cowher said.
“If they can get off to a good start that would make a really big difference for them. I think the defense will be okay, sure they lose a middle linebacker, but I’ll think they’ll be fine” he said.
To see who Cowher has as his AFC sleeper team go here.
“If they can get back to running the football with Forte it would take the pressure off the defense. Again when you look at the division, Minnesota, Ponder is the key to them. Is Jay Cutler better than Christian Ponder?
“I think Cutler has a better history than that. And you still have Stafford in Detroit. Obviously, the team to beat is the one with the best quarterback in football and that’s Green Bay,” Bill Cowher continued about the Bears.
“a lot of it will come down to how much Jay Cutler and Marc Trestman are on the same page, I think the defense will be fine, ” Cowher articulated.
So we know Bill Cowher thinks the Packers, not the Bears are the favorite in the NFC North, who does he like in the overall NFC? Does he stick with the Packers to take the conference?
“I like Seattle, when you look at everything on the docket, they’re one of the top 5 rushing teams in football a year ago, same people back. One of the top five defenses in the National Football League a year ago, and they’ve added people there. So the biggest thing you talk about is the quarterback, and I don’t know if there was a hotter quarterback in football the second half of the season than Russell Wilson,” Bill Cowher explained.
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. An analyst for 95.7 The Fan, he also writes on Chicago sports media for Chicago Now. President Obama follows him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)