Basically, they’re just a year-end version of the weekly team releases we publish during the season. But, as always, football junkies, stat mavens and the average indigent like you will find them quite informative. We suggest you savor the data like succulent off-season beef-bone marrow.

 

Some were published right after the end of the regular season, some after the Super Bowl. New England, meanwhile, just recently released theirs, perhaps because they had to completely re-write the one they had prepared before the Super Bowl. Our inside source tells us there was one guy in the Patriots organization who had to go through the release and change a bunch of 0s to 1s and it took him an entire fitful, tear-filled month of agony to complete the job.

 

We have releases for just the teams listed below. If we get others, we’ll add them here.

 

No one can say Bills fans aren’t passionate: they banged out all eight home games and ranked ninth in the NFL in attendance last year. Dick Jauron, meanwhile, is tied with Mike Mularkey for the sixth best coaching record in franchise history (.438). That’s not exactly encouraging.

 

Rookie MLB Jon Beason’s 160 tackles in 2007 was a franchise record.

 

A shitty season was highlighted by the fact that the Bears swept their bitter rival Packers, handing Green Bay two of its three losses all season.  

 

Even the Bengals themselves acknowledged that 2007 was a disappointment. “Team leaders were unanimous in sounding a call for change in 2008,” the release says.

 

Jay Cutler’s 63.6 completion percentage was the third highest in franchise history, while Brandon Marshall’s 102 catches were among the most ever by a second-year player.

 

Brett Favre will be an obvious hole, but the Packers of 2008 will look much like the Packers of 2007: 20 of Green Bay’s 22 starters last year are under contract for 2008.

 

Fans in Houston certainly love their football. The NFL’s Houston franchise, dating back to the days of the Oilers, has sold out 60 straight home games, including all 48 since the Texans joined the league in 2002. The Texans reached .500 for the first time last year, including a franchise-record six home victories.

 

Indianapolis (check back soon)

The Colts boast a league-best regular-season record of 102-42 (.708) since 1999, Peyton Manning’s second year in the league. It’s that pesky playoff thing that always seems to get in the way.

 

The Jaguars set franchise records for points (411, 25.7 PPG), TDs (50), TD  passes (28) and yards per play (5.6).

 

Hard to make Miami’s 2007 season look pretty, and even the year-in-review media guide is tough to swallow. There’s no truth to the rumor, however, that Bill Parcells is going to axe the entire publicity staff. On the bright side, the Dolphins were 1-9 outside of the division.

 

Apparently the Vikings had this pretty good rookie named Adrian Peterson who rushed for a bunch of yards or something.

 

Plenty of historic highlights, but it all seems so empty, doesn’t it? One surprising stat: Only two franchises boast more than one 17-win season in their entire history: San Francisco, which won 18 games in 1984 and 17 games in 1989; and New England, which has now done it three times: 2003 (17), 2004 (17) and 2007 (18).

 

Philadelphia (check back soon)

The Schuylkill Birds are 83-45 (.648) since 2000, trailing only AFC powers New England and Indy for the league’s best mark. But they’re actually better away from Philly: 43-21 (.672) since 2000, tied with the Patriots for the top road record.

 

The Chargers have topped 2,000 yards rushing in a league-leading six straight seasons. It’s purely a coincidence that LaDainian Tomlinson has been with the Chargers for seven years.

 

A look at “Allenitis” – the series of ailments that often overcame guys who had to play against 49ers guard Larry Allen.

 

The Titans improved from 32nd in total defense in 2006 (369.7 YPG) to 5th in total defense in 2007 (291.6 YPG)