There’s a secret that most good fantasy football owners don’t want you to know: Knowing how good (or how bad) an offensive line is could be the difference between you making the playoffs in your league, and winning the whole damn thing.

The bottom line is that the offensive line is the key to whether or not an offense is going to be successful in any given season. They’re the reason why guys like Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brews are able to rack up terrific passing yards year in and year out, and why Brandon Jacobs, Michael Turner and Adrian Peterson continue to be solid fantasy backs. So knowing which O-lines are quality and which act like revolving doors to their team’s backfield will give you an edge on draft day.

Below is a ranking of the top five best lines, the top five most improved lines and the top five worst lines in the NFL heading into the ’09 season. Use these rankings as a tool to help you make better decisions on draft day and to also aid you when you’re stuck between a couple of players in later rounds.

Granted, we’re not advocating bumping certain players to the top of your pre-draft rankings just based on these rankings. The Lions offensive line is the worst in football, but if Kevin Smith is there for the taking in the 5th round, by all means jump on him. This article is purely meant to be a helpful aid; obviously you still have to use solid judgment on draft day.

The Five Best:

1. New England Patriots
One of the biggest reasons that a highly inexperienced quarterback like Matt Cassel can step in for a multiple Pro Bowl and Super Bowl winner like Tom Brady and still win 11 games is because New England’s offensive line is the best in the business. No O-line works better together than the unit that comprises of Dan Koppen, Logan Mankins, Nick Kaczur, Stephen Neal and Matt Light. All five know their assignments and carry them out with near flawless execution.

2. New York Giants
One of the best-kept secrets in football is how good the Giants’ offensive line is at run blocking. Thanks to Pro Bowlers Chris Snee and Shaun O’Hara, running backs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw should have no problem finding running room once again this season. Simply put, this is one of the most cohesive offensive lines in football that rivals only the Patriots in terms of stability.

3. New Orleans Saints
Drew Brees, Reggie Bush, Marques Colston, Pierre Thomas and Jeremy Shockey get a lot of credit for how good the Saints’ offense is (and deservedly so), but the backbone of New Orleans’ offensive success lays with one of the most underrated lines in the NFL. Led by tackle Jammal Brown and outstanding young guard Jahri Evans, the Saints’ line gave up a league-low 13 sacks last season and might just be the best pass blocking unit in the league. Hopefully mauler Carl Nicks will continue to develop and help this unit improve even more in the run-blocking department.

4. Denver Broncos
If the Broncos take a step back in 2009 after going 8-8 and coming up one win short of a division title, it won’t be because of their offensive line. Denver has one of the best units in all of football, led by their pair of young tackles Ryan Clady and Ryan Harris, who were both outstanding in ’08. Throw in a pair of underrated guards in Ben Hamilton and Chris Kuper – as well as the veteran presence of center Casey Wiegmann – and you have the makings of a solid all-around unit.

5. New York Jets
The addition of free agent guard Alan Faneca was pivotal to the Jets’ offensive line last year, not only in terms of strengthening the interior of their O-line but also lifting the production of youngsters D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold. Veteran Damien Woody also played surprisingly well after getting out of football hell in Detroit, and meshed well with the rest of the unit. As long as guard Brandon Moore recovers from the sports hernia surgery he underwent this offseason, the Jets should once again have one of the better offensive lines in all of football.

Offensive lines that also deserve mention: Carolina, Tennessee, Indianapolis, San Diego, Tampa Bay (see below), Philadelphia (see below), Miami, Baltimore, Minnesota and Cleveland.

One could make the argument that either Carolina or Tennessee deserve to be in the top 5 and the rest of the lines mentioned above are definitely top 15 material. One thing to keep in mind about Minnesota, however, is that they lost center Matt Birk (who signed with Baltimore). The Vikings should still have one of the better offensive lines in the NFL, but it’ll be interesting to see what kind of an effect not having Birk will have on the success of Adrian Peterson.

The Five Most Improved:

1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I struggled with whether or not I should list the Bucs in this category given how they’re already at a top level, but I wanted to talk about them because they have one of the best up-and-coming offensive lines in football. Right guard Davin Joseph is a Pro Bowler, tackles Jeremy Trueblood and Donald Penn continue to improve with each passing season, left guard Arron Sears is a force to be reckoned with and center Jeff Faine is a steady presence in the middle. This unit is already solid and there’s still room for improvement, which is why I feel I’m justified in listing them in his category.

2. Philadelphia Eagles
With their addition of former Bills offensive tackle Jason Peters in the offseason, the Eagles have one of the most improved offensive lines in the NFL. As long as Peters’ play doesn’t drop off after cashing in on a new six-year, $60.7 million contract this offseason, the two-time Pro Bowler should dramatically improve Philly’s offensive line play. But this unit doesn’t come without some concern. Tackle Shawn Andrews continues to deal with back problems and brother Stacy (an offseason addition from the Bengals) is just eight months removed from ACL surgery. Still, if the Andrews brothers can bounce back, the Eagles have the makings of a great offensive line.

3. Atlanta Falcons
Entering last season, offensive line was supposed to be a massive weakness for the Falcons. But Atlanta’s O-line came together and formed a tight bond that should only aid in their success in 2009. Hopefully left tackle Sam Baker can stay healthy this year and improve on the success he had as a rookie last season, while guard Justin Blalock should continue to sharpen his game as he enters his third season. Believe it or not, the strength of the unit might be on the right side, where Tyson Clabo and Harvey Dahl form a nasty run-blocking duo (just ask Falcons’ opponents and running back Michael Turner) that should once again pave the way for Atlanta’s excellent running game. Veteran center Todd McClure also continues to be the glue that holds this underrated line together.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jags were absolutely ransacked by injuries to the O-line last year, which unsurprisingly had a negative affect on a team that many thought would contend for the Super Bowl. But all indications are that this line is healthy again and the additions of free agent Tra Thomas, as well as rookies Eugene Monroe and Eben Britton should only help. Jax also re-signed center Brad Meester in the offseason so as long as this revamped O-line comes together, the Jags should be in better shape than they were a year ago.

5. St. Louis Rams
It’s hard not to like what the Rams did in the offseason by signing the best young center on the free agent market in Jason Brown (formally of the Ravens) and selecting the best offensive tackle prospect in April’s draft in Baylor product Jason Smith. While this line still has a ways to go in terms of resembling a unit that can keep quarterback Marc Bulger upright and open enough holes for running back Steven Jackson, there’s no question that St. Louis has vastly upgraded its O-line. (Assuming of course that Brown pans out and Smith isn’t a massive bust, that is.)

The Five Worst:

1. Detroit Lions
This is by far the worst unit in the NFL and even though new GM Martin Mayhew upgraded other positions this offseason, he failed to add talent on Detroit’s miserable offensive line. Outside of selecting solid blocking tight end in Brandon Pettigrew in April’s draft, what did Mayhew do to upgrade this unit? Gosder Cherilus should develop more in his second year and Daniel Loper is an upgrade over Damion Cook at left guard, but Jeff Backus often resembles a turntable at left tackle and chances are quarterbacks Daunte Culepper and/or Matthew Stafford will be on their backs a lot this season. With how bad Detroit’s O-line is, running back Kevin Smith doesn’t stand to have that big of a year either, though he performed pretty well in ’08 behind a similarly bad line.

2. Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals certainly don’t have the worst collection of talent on their offensive line, but nobody really stands out and who knows how well they’ll play as a unit. Rookie first round pick Andre Smith has all of the talent in the world, but his work ethic and conditioning have been criticized in the past and therefore he remains a huge question mark. Cincinnati views him as a right tackle, so maybe that will take the pressure off of him in his first year. That said, is Andrew Whitworth the guy you want protecting Carson Palmer’s blindside? Can Kyle Cook overcome his lack of experience with good football IQ? There are a lot of question marks surrounding a unit that will have new starters at four different positions this year.

3. Buffalo Bills
There’s really not much to like about a unit that significantly under performed in 2008 and then lost its best player, tackle Jason Peters, in the offseason. Buffalo plans on starting two rookies (albeit, two promising rookies) in Eric Wood and Andy Levitre at guard and also has to shift Brad Butler to right tackle. That’s a ton of change for one unit and while there is some excitement surrounding Buffalo’s offense this year with the addition of Terrell Owens, I wouldn’t set expectations to high on quarterback Trent Edwards or even running back Marshawn Lynch. Granted, a case could be made that Wood and Levitre might blossom and the Bills’ line will be better than advertised, but it’s never wise to count on rookies excelling because don’t make a significant impact in their first years.

4. Seattle Seahawks
This was once one of the best offensive lines in football, but has since fallen off dramatically. Every starter in this unit missed time last season due to injuries, including Walter Jones, who is still a solid left tackle but is no spring chicken at 35. Rookie Max Unger is a good young talent, but he has to make the transition to guard after playing center at Oregon. Rob Sims showed flashes of potential in his rookie season two years ago, but last year was a disaster after he tore his pectorals muscle in September and was placed on IR. Chris Spencer is another player coming off season-ending surgery, so while Seattle has some budding youth on its O-line, there are still some major injury concerns surrounding this group.

5. San Francisco 49ers
I’ll make this quick: The Niners surrendered a league-high 55 sacks last year and then decided to concentrate on adding position players in free agency and the draft. Nobody is going to argue with San Fran taking dynamic wide receiver Michael Crabtree with the No. 10 pick in April’s draft, but this team shouldn’t have ignored its offensive line in later rounds.

Brandon Jacobs…not a fan of Tony Romo.

Brandon Jacobs, the Giants’ bruising running back, ranks among the NFL’s best trash talkers. The Cowboys, particularly Patrick Crayton, are his favorite target.

And Jacobs took aim at Tony Romo today on ESPN 1050 in New York, per Pro Football Talk.
“I don’t think he’s that good a passer, to be honest with you,” Jacobs said.

We could put together a pretty impressive statistical argument in Romo’s favor. But why ruin the fun?

“I’m not a fan of Tony Romo, no. Keep him in the pocket, he’s not that good. . . . His luck will be gone sooner or later. If you were to keep Tony Romo in the pocket he’s not that effective.”
We’ll be sure to revisit this subject in September, when the Giants come to town for the first regular-season game at JerryWorld.

Damn I miss football…

1. DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers—I know some players take a few years to develop, but I live in Tennessee and saw Williams play on TV a lot when he was with Memphis. I drafted him in 2006 because I knew what not everyone knew—his upside was tremendous. Of course, he had 501 yards and a TD that year. But once DeShaun Foster was gone, Williams exploded, and last year racked up 1639 yards from scrimmage and 20 touchdowns. Potential realized, and there’s more where that came from despite Jonathan Stewart sharing the load.

2. Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons—Turner “The Burner” finally got out from under LT’s shadow in San Diego and showed with his new team that he can be a #1 RB—in a big, big way. In fact, Turner out-rushed LT by almost 600 yards. Take that, AJ Smith.

3. Thomas Jones, New York Jets—Jones had a big year, with 1519 total yards and 15 scores. But something tells me to expect a substantial drop-off this year. I mean, this is the same guy who scored 1 rushing TD in 2007.

4. Matt Forte, Chicago Bears—A rookie in 2008, Forte was a pleasant surprise and was basically the Bears’ entire offense. Now they have Jay Cutler at QB, which could mean just a bit less focus on the running game. Still, it’s the Bears, and plus Forte is just as valuable a receiver as he is a runner. Don’t expect a re-run of 2008 (1715 yards and 12 total touchdowns) but don’t expect a crappy season either.

5. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings—He may be frequently injured but AP is about as explosive as any player in the NFL. In fact, he may be what everyone expected Reggie Bush to be. Who? Yeah, I know. Anyway, Peterson had 1885 all-purpose yards but only 10 TDs. This season, I’m looking for 2400 yards from scrimmage and 15-20 scores. I can feel it.

6. Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles—Off-season surgery is either going to hamper Westbrook or make him better. I’ll still take a Brian Westbrook at 70% than, say, a Willis McGahee at 100%. When Westbook is on the field (1338 total yards, 54 catches, 14 total TDs in ‘08), he’s fantasy money.

7. Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants—Jacobs seemed to perform best when he shared carries with Derrick Ward, who is now in Tampa. Jacobs will still share carries, but with Ahmad Bradshaw. Jacobs had his second straight 1000-yard season (Ward also topped 1000 yards) with 15 touchdowns, and there is no reason to believe he’ll fall short of that in ’09. Well, unless the injury bug bites again.

8. LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers—I’m still sick about drafting LT #1 last season in my league. I know that having the top pick doesn’t happen too often, and this guy just killed my season and probably everyone else’s that picked him first or second.
I mean, 1536 yards from scrimmage and 12 scores is not bad, but consider LT’s 2006 season—2323 overall yards and 31 TDs. Last year, LT was more like Thomas Jones in a good year.

9. Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville Jaguars—Streaky yes, but a solid player who can run and catch passes effectively. MJD had 824 rushing yards, and 62 receptions for 565 with 14 total touchdowns. With Fred Taylor in New England, expect those numbers to jump this season.

10. LenDale White, Tennessee Titans—This guy was the touchdown bogart for Chris Johnson, with only 773 yards but 15 scores. Should we expect an encore? It’s hard to say, but Jeff Fisher is definitely a creature of habit.

When asked recently about the idea of his team possibly adding wide receiver Braylon Edwards, Giants’ running back Brandon Jacobs emphatically said: “no.”

“I don’t want him,” Jacobs said yesterday on ESPN 1050 Radio. “There are great players in the league that I don’t want. I just think the chemistry between the teammates that I have now is great. We don’t need to add a new veteran to the whole group.”
Jacobs also said no to trading for Anquan Boldin.

“I’m good with where we are,” Jacobs said. “I’m glad that we didn’t go forward and get [Edwards] or Boldin. Those guys are great guys [but] I’m not interested in that idea.”

This shouldn’t be taken as a knock to Edwards and Boldin because Jacobs is flat out saying that both players are great. This is more of Jacobs being a team leader and giving a boost to the players already on the Giants’ roster. By saying that the Giants’ are good as is, he’s giving wide receiver teammates Steve Smith, Domenik Hixon, Mario Manningham, Sinorice Moss, David Tyree and rookies Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden encouragement that they can succeed next season.

If you’re a Giants’ receiver and you hear a captain like Jacobs say that the team doesn’t need to add a great player like Boldin, then that should give you tremendous confidence.

The Giants re-signed running back Brandon Jacobs to a very fair, very reasonable four-year, $25 million contract Wednesday night. The deal includes $15 million in the first two years and $13 million in guarantees.

The G-Men placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on Jacobs in mid-February, which meant he could have negotiated with other teams, although New York would have received two first round picks if he had signed elsewhere. Given his age (26) and bruising running style most teams covet, he could have easily gotten more than $25 million on the open market and may have even scored a five or six-year contract.

But he stated all along that he wanted to remain a Giant and this proves his loyalty to the franchise that selected him in the fourth round of the 2005 draft. And given his bruising style and injury history, the contract that he received is quite fair. The time of the deal helps the Giants, because by the time he becomes a free agent in four years, Jacobs will reach the dreaded age of 30 for running backs.

This deal was handled extremely well on both sides and it’s a shame more contracts aren’t constructed as intelligently.

Coughlin had a big decision to make when the Giants won the toss. He took the ball and went into the 20 mph wind in the first quarter. Manning has proven he can’t handle the wind at Giants Stadium, so Coughlin should have deferred and had the wind behind Manning to open the game. Manning never got into any rhythm after a tough first quarter.

After Ahmad Bradshaw returned the opening kickoff 65 yards to the Eagles’ 35, Manning dropped back to pass on first down. Steve Smith was wide open at the Eagles’ 15, but Manning’s pass was wobbly and Smith couldn’t get it.

The Giants eventually settled for a field goal. After holding Philly on its first possession, the Giants were forced to start on their own 13. After seeing the pass to Smith fail to navigate its way through the wind, Coughlin should have ordered Gilbride to give the ball to Brandon Jacobs to get the Giants away from the end zone.

Gilbride sent in a play-action pass. Manning rolled right and sailed it over the head of Domenik Hixon, right to Asante Samuel, who finally picked off Manning after dropping that huge one on the Giants’ game-winning drive in the Super Bowl. He returned it to the Eagles’ 2, setting up Donovan McNabb’s touchdown run.

It made no sense to throw in that spot.

When the Giants trailed 20-11 early in the fourth quarter, Coughlin lost a third down replay challenge when he thought Ward had a first down at the Giants’ 44. He went for it on fourth and inches. Manning failed on a quarterback sneak. Johnson anticipated it.

“A quarterback sneak is as elementary as it gets,” O’Hara said. “And to not be able to get a few inches on a fourth down, that is inexcusable.”

Why not let Jacobs, who is 6-4, 264, try to bully his way to the first down?

I find it rather ironic (and almost comical) that Myers criticized Coughlin’s decisions on Sunday, yet he was the one last week that prolifically wrote that there was no way that the Eagles would beat the Giants. It’s almost like Myers wrote his latest column in anger that Coughlin made him look bad on his prediction.

Either way, Myers is right in his observations. I fail to see why taking the ball at the start of the game is a wise decision when you know your offense will be working into the wind. Put your defense on the field first, force a punt and then you have momentum, field position and the ball first in the second half. And even if the Eagles march down the field and score, you have an entire game to come back. I also felt that Jacobs was underused and a sneak with Manning was questionable at best, but it’s also easy to play Monday morning quarterback and question everything a losing team did wrong.

Here are six quick-hit thoughts on the Eagles’ 23-11 divisional round playoff victory over the Giants.

1. Don’t be shocked – the writing was on the wall for the Giants.
There’s no question that this was an upset; No. 1 seeds rarely fall in the divisional round, although ironically both the Giants and Titans did just that this weekend. But while this was considered an upset, an Eagle victory was hardly shocking. The Giants haven’t played a complete game since beating the Redskins in Week 13, the absence of Plaxico Burress severely hurt Eli Manning and the passing game over the past month, and the Eagles were just flat out a bad matchup for Big Blue. Throw in the fact that Philly beat the Giants in East Rutherford in Week 14 and this upset was in the making as soon as the Eagles knocked off the Vikings last Sunday.

2. Plaxico Burress’s selfishness cost his team in the end.
I don’t care what the players or coaches say – not having Burress killed the Giants’ passing game and destroyed their overall offensive balance. New York was able to move the ball effectively on the ground against the Eagles but when it came down to the Giants making a play in the passing game, they couldn’t. Obviously a lot of that falls on Eli Manning’s shoulders, but it’s hard to make plays when your receivers can’t get create separation with the defenders. Burress cost his team dearly because he didn’t care enough about his teammates or his profession to not carry a loaded weapon into a club. The Giants should part ways with this selfish idiot in the offseason and rid themselves of this massive distraction.

3. Confidence is a scary thing.
The Eagles have been one of the most inconsistent teams in the NFL this season but when they play with confidence and momentum, they’re hard to beat. They’ve always been one of those teams (like the Ravens and Steelers) that have played with swagger. And when their opponents can’t mount up and punch them in the mouth right out of the gates, the Eagles gain confidence throughout the course of the game. That’s what happened today. The Giants held the ball longer, gained more total yards and had fewer penalties than the Eagles. But they never took control of the game and you just had the feeling that once the Eagles built a two-possession lead, the Giants wouldn’t recover. And they didn’t.

4. Donovan McNabb finally has another playmaker.
In both of their playoff wins, rookie DeSean Jackson has made big plays. Last week he had a huge punt return to set the Eagles up with great field position against the Vikings and today, his 48-yard reception essentially put the final dagger in the backs of the Giants. With a little more maturity, Jackson could develop into one of the best playmakers in the NFL. For now, he’s been an outstanding addition to the Eagles’ offense and he’s making up for the lack of postseason production by Brian Westbrook. There’s no doubt McNabb loves what Jackson has brought to the table and the veteran QB finally has weapon in the passing game again.

5. Stop it with the respect card.
I love Brian Dawkins. Love him. I think he has easily been one of the best safeties over the past decade and his leadership is unrivaled. But his on-field interview at the end of the game where he cried (literally) about the Eagles not getting any respect was ridiculous. The “respect card” is a tired act in sports and players need to stop using that as their go-to after games. No Brian, not everyone in the free world thought the Eagles could beat the defending Super Bowl champs on their home field. (Although for the record, I did.) Get over it.

6. Gary Myers screwed the Giants.
Local columnists should learn to play things a little more conservatively after Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Gary Myers of the New York Daily News jinxed their teams this postseason. Bradley predicted a Falcon win before their Wild Card game last Saturday in Arizona and earlier this week, Myers so boastfully claimed that there was no way the Eagles would beat the Giants on Sunday. Word to the wise for Philly and Arizona newspaper columnists – stay away from predictions next week.