Three Super Bowl Dark Horse Candidates for 2014

UK fans might have to wait until the early hours of Friday morning, but the NFL has officially returned. As tradition dictates, the defending Super Bowl champions will get the season underway, and Seattle will look to get their campaign off to a strong start against the Packers at home.

We can be sure that, in one year's time, we'll see the defending Super Bowl XLIX champion kick off their season. The location, however, is a completely different story. It's entirely possible we'll be back in Seattle, and if not there, then perhaps one of the many cities home to a powerhouse NFC team - New Orleans, Philadelphia and San Francisco, among others. The AFC also has a fair share of contenders, and Denver, New England and Baltimore could all be potential hosts for the season opener next year.

Call it a hunch or a gut feeling, but I think we could be looking another outsider Super Bowl champion. The past decade has been littered with improbable Super Bowl runs: the Giants in 2007 and 2011, the Cardinals in 2008 (even though they were denied at the death by Santonio Holmes), the Packers in 2010 and the Ravens in 2012. Many of those teams were Wild Card playoff teams, and there's no reason history can't repeat itself in 2014.

Chicago Bears

It's no secret that Jay Cutler needs to stay healthy if the Bears are to make anything resembling a Super Bowl run. Head coach Marc Trestman has created one of the best offenses in the league - filled with supremely talented skill players - but the whole thing falls apart without Cutler at the helm. No disrespect to Jimmy Clausen and David Fales, but the Super Bowl dream lives at dies with Number Six. Most championship teams contain a smattering of talent that you could describe as 'elite' - in Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey, the Bears have two unquestionably 'elite' wide receivers. Throw a healthy and revitalised Santonio Holmes in the mix and there aren't a better group of pass-catchers in the league, and they'll be a nightmare for the reasonably soft defences of the wide-open NFC North.
Speaking of defence, the Bears' was atrocious last season. They finished 30th in points differential, and subsequently underwent an overhaul in the offseason. The newly-acquired group of Jared Allen, Willie Young and Lamarr Houston make the front four a formidable unit, and subsequently they make their defensive team-mates' lives easier.
A solid defence capable of avoiding blowouts and a powerhouse offense capable of blowing teams away is a winning combination. But the Bears will only be a realistic contender if Jay Cutler avoids missing significant time off with injuries.

Indianapolis Colts

They may not make it as a Wild Card team due to a weak division, but the Colts are still an outside bet to win the whole thing this year. In 2011 they posted a league-worst 2-11 record; following the arrival of head coach Chuck Pagano and quarterback Andrew Luck they went 11-5 and made the playoffs, and in 2013 they posted the same record and progressed through the Wild Card round before losing to the New England Patriots. They've taken big steps over the past two season and it's not unreasonable to suggest that they improve further this year.
On offence they have added Hakeem Nicks and they regain the services of a healthy Reggie Wayne and Dwayne Allen. Trent Richardson has now had a full offseason to learn the nuances of the offense and develop a relationship with his offensive line. Even if he regresses further, the Colts still have a potent enough unit to challenge the best in the league. In 2013, without these components, they managed to beat Seattle, Denver, Kansas City (twice) and San Francisco. Imagine what they'll be capable of this year when they have the league's easiest schedule.

San Diego Chargers

Unlike the Bears and the Colts, who benefit from weak divisions and - in the Colts' case - the easiest schedule in the league, the Chargers are in the painfully tough AFC West. The presence of Kansas City and Denver make the Chargers' road to the Super Bowl the most difficult, but history suggests that this is no reason they can't win the whole thing. As I said earlier, the Giants, Ravens and Packers are all teams that got hot at the right time and won the Super Bowl as a Wild Card team. In 2013 the Chargers swept the Chiefs and beat the Broncos in Denver, but shot themselves in the foot with baffling losses against teams like Oakland and Washington.
In terms of the personnel, the Chargers are set. Philip Rivers is in the form of his life, Ryan Mathews has finally emerged into the lead running back the Chargers hoped he'd become, and the emergence of Keenan Allen in his rookie season finally gives Rivers a legitimate number one receiving threat not named Antonio Gates. Their secondary was dire but they drafted Jason Verrett and poached Brandon Flowers from division rivals Kansas City to shore things up there.
So a much improved Chargers team go into battle against Chiefs and Broncos teams not guaranteed to reach 2013's lofty heights, and an Oakland team in the process of rebuilding. They mounted a serious challenge last season, and mental toughness and consistency can carry the Bolts to a deep playoff run.