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24 Hours 'Til Sunday — Andy Richardson

It's Saturday morning, which means we're just 24 hours away from the weekend's NFL slate. Depending, I guess, on what coast you live on and when you're seeing this. But let's call it 24 hours. As I plan tomorrow's attack -- what to eat, what to drink, which games to watch live, and how to keep my son from filling up all my TiVo space with "Curious George" episodes -- here's an advance preview of the No. 1 thing I'll be watching for in each game....

Seattle at Buffalo: I'm pretty sure the Seahawks will lose this game; the question is, how bad will their offense look? Two marginal running backs (three if you count T.J. Duckett). A sad wide receiving corps (Nate Burleson is the No. 1 right now; 'nuff said). A defense that doesn't travel well. If Seattle loses this game badly, and I think they might, the idea of Arizona winning the NFC West -- and the wheels falling off the Seahawks this season -- isn't so far-fetched.

Tampa Bay at New Orleans: I subscribed to the Pierre Thomas hype; here's where we find out if it was correct. Sounds like Aaron Stecker is hurting so Thomas will definitely be active. Will he have a role? I traded away Earnest Graham in the one league I had him in, but I'm still very curious as to how the Bucs use their backs, and how much work Warrick Dunn gets. My lean is, more than expected. I'm worried about Graham this year.

N.Y. Jets at Miami: I"m a believer in the transformative powers of a great quarterback, and in that guy Bill Parcells. So I think both these teams will be better this year. I'm curious, of course, about how Favre does, but also in whether the greatly hyped rapport with Cotchery comes to pass, and if Coles can put aside his resentment over the whole Pennington thing (Dude. He was released, he's not dead. He's now starting in Miami, which always looks pretty cool in Burn Notice. Get over it.) to catch a pass or two. Also, who doesn't want to see Ricky run?

Detroit at Atlanta: Rookie tailback Kevin Smith versus first-time starter Michael Turner. Will one of these guys be a top-10 fantasy back a year from now, or the next, I dunno, DeShaun Foster or Tatum Bell?

Cincinnati at Baltimore: I plan to count the references to Chad Johnson's new name. I want to hear the P.A. announcer say, "Pass complete to Ocho Cinco....uno down." Plus I want to see Ray Rice reward my dynasty league faith in him, since it sure sounds like McGahee isn't going to play.

St. Louis at Philadelphia: Will Donovan McNabb or Marc Bulger get hurt? I don't mean this season, since obviously the answer is yes, but this game? Odds are the Rams won't touch McNabb, but I'm not as optimistic about Bulger's prospects.

Jacksonville at Tennessee: How healthy is Maurice Jones-Drew? Considering I have the guy on basically every team, I'm quite anxious to see how "mild" his ankle sprain really is. And then there's Chris Johnson, who I also have on every team this year. Will he be the next Reggie Bush -- in the sense of, being a big part of the offense and catching a lot of passes, only better -- or the next Leon Washington -- in the sense of, not getting enough touches to actually help any of my teams.

Houston at Pittsburgh: I've been down on Pittsburgh all preseason, and then I realized: Baltimore and Cincinnati are horrible and Cleveland is a walking M.A.S.H. unit with a laughably hard schedule that begins with getting pummeled by Dallas. So maybe I should take the Steelers seriously -- unless they lose here, which I think they might. I'm curious to see how Houston uses their running backs, too. (Side note: I actually traded Darius Walker for something of value this offseason. Heh.)

Kansas City at New England: I really don't care much for the Patriots, or 30-0 blowouts, so I won't watch much of this game. I admit though, I'm mildly curious to see how frustrated Larry Johnson gets, how quickly.

Dallas at Cleveland: Dallas essentially has nothing healthy or good at wide receiver after Terrell Owens, Jason Witten, and Patrick Crayton (who I'm not convinced is any good, but he is healthy). Very curious to see how they handle that, although I guess Felix Jones at receiver isn't in the cards. For Cleveland, well, you have to enjoy watching Braylon Edwards play, 'cause the guy is great.

Carolina at San Diego: Ian believes strongly in Carolina this season. I feel like I've been burned by them a little too often in the past. With Steve Smith out two games, what if Jake Delhomme is injured before Smith returns? I'm curious to see if they don't get rolled in this game.

Arizona at San Francisco: Old Mike Martz quarterback (Kurt Warner), meet new Mike Martz quarterback (J.T. O'Sullivan). Gotta getcha popcorn for the sack and turnover-fest that seems sure to follow. Little bit of trivia by the way, both Warner and O'Sullivan were on the Green Bay Packers' roster at one point during the Favre era. I know, not that interesting. In all seriousness, I'm very interested in which San Francisco wideout is going to emerge, because I've got Bryant Johnson or Josh Morgan in most of my leagues. And I want to be there when Tim Hightower takes Edgerrin's job.

Chicago at Indianapolis: I'll be exhausted and drained when this game rolls around, but you can be sure I'll be there to see Peyton Manning look basically exactly the same as he's always looked: just fine. Of bigger concern: Will Indy's banged-up offensive line be a major detriment to this usually high-powered offense?

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