Mickles: Questions to mull on first day

• By SHELDON MICKLES
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Sep 7, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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After a nice little appetizer on Thursday night (for those of you who were lucky enough to have electrical power that is), the NFL season really gets under way today.

I’m told the New York Giants opened defense of their Super Bowl XLII title with a 16-7 decision over the Washington Redskins in the first game of the season.

It was a good first step for the Giants, who were wobbling at midseason last year before riding a crest of solid play — especially on the road — to the Super Bowl and perhaps the biggest upset in NFL history.

The question this season is whether the Giants can find the magic again and make a run to a second straight title. The answer is that it’s unlikely, although their defense apparently wasn’t that bad without their star ends — Michael Strahan (retired) and Osi Umenyiora (injured reserve).

But many more questions have to be answered before NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell hands out the Vince Lombardi Trophy to a very deserving team in Tampa. Fla., on the night of Feb. 1. Here are 10 to think about for the next 147 days:

1. Can the New Orleans Saints shake off a 7-9 finish in 2007 and return to the playoffs?

There seems to be a consensus among the national media that it can happen, especially if the Saints defense can hold up its end of the bargain and help one of the more potent offenses in the league. If several moves made by the club pan out on defense, there’s no reason to believe they can’t win their second NFC South title in three years.

2. Who will be the surprise team in each conference?

In the NFC, the Minnesota Vikings will make a lot of noise if they can get good quarterback play. But who really needs a quarterback when you have Adrian Peterson? In the AFC, the Cleveland Browns don’t really qualify as a surprise because they won 10 games last year, but they could make the next step and challenge the Pittsburgh Steelers for the division title.

3. Can the New England Patriots bounce back from their disappointing Super Bowl loss?

In a word, yes. They may not go 16-0 again in the regular season, mainly because of some defections on defense, but they’re still going to be plenty good as long as Tom Brady and Randy Moss remain healthy.

4. Can anyone really challenge the Patriots in the AFC?

You bet. The AFC is loaded with a number of teams that can unseat the Pats. The long list includes San Diego, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Pittsburgh and possibly even Cleveland. So it won’t be a cakewalk by any means.