As the NFL embarks on a new season, it's the year of the "yutes" -- as my good friend Joe Pesci likes to say. With the salary cap and free agency, teams have to depend on young players more than ever.

St. Louis added youth to its defense. Mike Holmgren is counting on young talent in Seattle. Whichever team has the most young players contributing may be the team we are talking about at the end of January.

Here's my division-by-division look at the upcoming season:

AFC Central
Because this division is where the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens reside, it's the best place to start. Can the Tennessee Titans beat the Ravens? Talent-wise, the Titans are better. But psychologically, the Ravens have found ways to win games, beating Tennessee three of the last four times. Often in sports, the psychological part is more difficult to overcome than the physical.

	Elvis Grbac threw 28 TDs last season.

The Jamal Lewis injury hurts the Ravens because they lack a breakaway threat and Priest Holmes is gone to Kansas City. Terry Allen is a pounder who will no longer run away from defenders. However, with Elvis Grbac at quarterback, the Ravens should get more big plays out of the passing game, compensating for Lewis' loss. Led by Ray Lewis, the best middle linebacker since Dick Butkus, Baltimore's defense is good enough to get the Ravens back to the Super Bowl.

If the Jacksonville Jaguars can stay healthy, they are a sleeper team with star power -- Fred Taylor, Jimmy Smith, Mark Brunell and Tony Boselli on offense; Tony Brackens, Kevin Hardy, Aaron Beasley and Hardy Nickerson on defense. That's eight Pro Bowl-caliber players. Already, though, Brackens is out 4-6 weeks with a knee injury, and the Jaguars cut another former Pro Bowler, Carnell Lake. Still, the Jaguars have enough talent to contend for a championship. Nobody is picking them, but at the end of last season, they were as good as any team in football.

The Pittsburgh Steelers will be a much better football team than people think. The Steelers got really close to making the playoffs last year. This is a critical year for Kordell Stewart, who should have a solid season. The Steelers are capable of making the playoffs; in fact, they could be one of four playoff-bound AFC Central teams.

The Cleveland Browns and the Cincinnati Bengals may upset a team like Baltimore or Tennessee. They will no longer be automatic wins for most teams. Even though he still lacks weapons, a healthy Tim Couch makes a big difference for the Browns. I always felt their defense played well, but their offense was horrendous. For the Bengals, new starter Jon Kitna played well the first half of the year last year in Seattle. He has the ability to do it again in Cincinnati.

AFC East

	Jay Fiedler was 31-for-47 in the preseason.

The Miami Dolphins are ready to make a run for the Super Bowl. Jay Fiedler, if healthy, will have an outstanding year. Lamar Smith is a strong runner to go with added speed at receiver in rookie Chris Chambers and James McKnight. The offense will score more points, and the Dolphins smartly kept everyone on their defense. They focused on re-signing their own free agents as opposed to getting other players.

Before I consider the Indianapolis Colts before the Dolphins, the Colts' defense must prove it can keep up with the high-scoring offense and get the job done. They have the highest-paid kicker in football, Mike Vanderjagt. If they get close, the Colts will have a chance to score. But the jury is still out on the defense.

The Buffalo Bills shouldn't challenge for a division this season because they are a team in transition. However, behind Randy Moss, the Bills' Eric Moulds is the second-best receiver in football. He's big, strong, fast and acrobatic. He has great ball skills and is tough off the line. Like the Bills, the New York Jets could also be in transition. We may see a lot more of Chad Pennington at QB than the Jets anticipate. They have running back Curtis Martin, but their receiving corps is still somewhat small. The Jets' defense should be solid and look like Tampa Bay's because Herm Edwards came from the Bucs and had great success.

Robert Edwards was the feel-good story of the season until the New England Patriots released him. With neither Terry Glenn nor an appreciable running game, the Patriots will struggle. Coaches need talent to win, and Bill Belichick will not have two of his best players -- Glenn and linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer.

AFC West

	Jerry Rice feels rejuvenated as a Raider.

This is the best division in football. The Oakland Raiders are still the favorite in the AFC West. The Raiders got the perfect running back, Charlie Garner, for their West Coast offense. Rich Gannon is more comfortable at the QB spot and proved his durability. The addition of Jerry Rice is intriguing. Rice has a standard of excellence he has been unable to meet the last two years. Plus, the 49ers were phasing him out, making things more difficult for Rice. He seems to be re-energized. Jon Gruden's offense will allow Rice to catch the ball on the run like he used to, and Tim Brown will keep the chains moving. Everybody should remember receiver Jerry Porter. If he decides he wants to play the game and work hard, he could be the next Rice or Sterling Sharpe. He's big, strong and fast. It's a question of how good he wants to be.

The Denver Broncos will be back in the hunt. They have a plethora of quality running backs and quarterback Brian Griese. The offense is one of the most balanced in football, scoring points on the ground and through the air. On defense, they added Chester McGlockton and Leon Lett, two tackles who will be a big key to their success. McGlockton and Lett are like having a more athletic Tony Siragusa and Sam Adams. If McGlockton and Lett decide to make Denver their home, the Broncos' defense can be as dominating as anybody.

The Seattle Seahawks are a sleeper team led by Mike Holmgren, one of the two best coaches in football (with Shanahan being the best). New quarterback Matt Hasselbeck knows what Holmgren is about. In the West Coast style of offense, the quarterback must make good decisions and get rid of the football -- things Hasselbeck will do. Their defense is improved with John Randle, Chad Eaton, Levon Kirkland and Marcus Robertson -- four Pro Bowlers right up the middle. And Randle is back playing his natural position, defensive tackle.

The San Diego Chargers will be better with offensive coordinator Norv Turner and quarterback Doug Flutie. Don't count on them winning only one football game again. The Chargers open the season in San Diego against Washington and could be 1-0. The Kansas City Chiefs will have to grow into the season. Don't be surprised if the offense doesn't look good at the start. The quarterback, Trent Green, is the key, and running back Priest Holmes helps a lot. To go with All-Pro tight end Tony Gonzalez, the Chiefs added former receiver Mikhael Ricks as a tight end. They need another big offensive year from receiver Derrick Alexander and a contribution from rookie Marvin Minnis. Kansas City will be competitive.

NFC Central

	Daunte Culpepper had a preseason-best 114.2 QB rating.

The Minnesota Vikings jump out as the team to beat because of quarterback Daunte Culpepper and receiver Randy Moss. Moss plays at another level, like Deion Sanders once did. His athletic gifts put him in a category all by himself. Like a cat playing with a mouse, it's just a matter of time before he eats a defender up. Another key for the Vikings is the addition of Willie Shaw to the defensive coaching staff. Everywhere he has coached, he has been the master of creating turnovers. Shaw can teach average personnel to be special.

The Vikings will be able to replace Robert Smith. But instead of Smith running up the middle for 50 yards, they might dump a screen off to Michael Bennett or hit Jake Reed with a hitch pass. They need to replace 10 big plays from Smith, and the plays may not come from one person.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers may have upgraded the quarterback position with Brad Johnson, but they still need to prove it. The receiving corps has trouble putting points on the board. Keyshawn Johnson is a good receiver, but he's not in the class of Moss or Moulds. Minnesota has the ability to score points in a hurry, while Tampa Bay will be more methodical. But can the Bucs score points? If they could ever get ahead by 14-17 points, forget it. The Bucs will turn loose their pass rushers, who will go after the quarterback and beat them into submission.

As long as the Green Bay Packers have Brett Favre, they will be contenders. Favre is in the perfect situation; his team's a wild card, and he is a wild card. The Detroit Lions are in a transitional mode. Marty Mornhinweg brings in a West Coast offense, but its effectiveness will rely on some personnel adjustments. Can Charlie Batch handle it? How will running back James Stewart, a north-south runner, adjust? How well can Germane Crowell fit into the system? Crowell would stretch the field, but in the West Coast offense that's not what they do. Matt Millen has a plan of what he wants to acquire and what he wants his team to look like.

The Chicago Bears are rebuilding. They are whatever "re-" word you want to put to them.

NFC East
The New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles are the best teams in the division. The Giants get absolutely no respect in the NFC East. They are the defending NFC champions, they have beaten the Eagles eight straight times, and everybody picks the Eagles to win the division. The Eagles are probably a better football team, but they haven't beaten the Giants.

	Tiki Barber rushed for 1,006 yards in 2000.

For the Giants, can they keep their old offensive linemen -- Glenn Parker, Dusty Zeigler and Lomas Brown -- healthy? Which other receiver will take the pressure off Amani Toomer? Ike Hilliard is injured, and running back Tiki Barber has a broken hand. Joe Jurevicius has to be huge, and Ron Dixon has to make sure he wakes up for every meeting. If everybody's healthy, the Giants will compete for the division title. For the Eagles, Donovan McNabb will be great, but their young receivers need to make plays. Andy Reid is starting James Thrash and Todd Pinkston, with Freddie Mitchell in the mix. They will have the ability to go down the field. I see the Eagles being a better team in November and December than in September and October.

Under Marty Schottenheimer, the Washington Redskins are a question mark, especially at quarterback (Jeff George is always a question) and receiver, where they have one, Michael Westbrook. Defensively, Darrell Green joined the Redskins in 1983, the same year I was MVP. Since then, I've had two career changes, and he's still playing football. Champ Bailey is one of the top three cornerbacks in the league. The Redskins will be what the Chiefs were over the last three or four years -- good enough to win eight or nine games. But will they have enough to get to the next level? Health is critical at the running back position because they only have Stephen Davis.

The Arizona Cardinals should ruin someone's Christmas. Jake Plummer falls into the same category I had Elvis Grbac and Steve McNair in last year. Both players stepped up and proved they are legitimate NFL stars. Plummer has been all hype, but there are no excuses anymore. Offensive coordinator Rich Olson runs the same system I played in. He should complete 60-65 percent of his passes. If he doesn't and he has more interceptions than TD passes, he will never make it in the NFL.

The Dallas Cowboys are a contradiction. At receiver, they have Raghib Ismail and Joey Galloway, for whom they gave up two No. 1 picks, yet they are starting a rookie quarterback, Quincy Carter, who probably wouldn't have started at Georgia. If the Cowboys think they can run the option in the NFL, they had better have a dozen more quarterbacks. It may take Emmitt Smith now four years to break Walter Payton's career rushing record.

I never understood why they didn't sign Steve Beuerlein, who is familiar with the Dallas organization. He would have given Carter a chance to grow into the starting role. Look at Peyton Manning, who was as ready to play professional football as anybody, and he struggled miserably his first year. Now Carter has to lead a football team that has less talent around him than Manning had? That's a lot to ask.

NFC West

	Rookie Adam Archuleta should be a hit at safety.

The St. Louis Rams are still the class of the division. Teams have to try and outscore them. The Rams' defense may have been terrible last season, but they still managed 51 sacks. I like the youth they have added to the defense, in particular Damione Lewis, who has compared himself to Warren Sapp. Adam Archuleta could be like John Lynch. They also got former Florida State teammates Brian Allen and Tommy Polley at linebacker; the third No. 1 draft pick, Ryan Pickett, at defensive tackle; and Jerametrius Butler at cornerback. I think they can handle the pressure because they all came from large Division I-A programs, playing in front of massive crowds.

People find it hard to give respect to the New Orleans Saints. I'm sold on the Saints, but they need to prove themselves one more year before they will be mentioned with the league's other elite teams. The Saints made the right decision to go with Aaron Brooks at quarterback. Their skill players have the ability to get the ball down the field. Jim Haslett's players are a reflection of him; they will fight you to the death and beat you up. Defensively, their front four is the best in football.

Two years ago everybody looked at the San Francisco 49ers and their salary-cap problems and wondered how long it would take them to rebuild. The 49ers committed themselves to the draft, providing defensive coordinator Jim Mora Jr. with a young defense. Offensively, Jeff Garcia has come on and lit the world on fire. He has two big stud receivers in Terrell Owens and J.J. Stokes. Look at how Garcia took command of the offense a year ago. With another year in the system, Garcia should be even more productive. Garrison Hearst and Charlie Garner are interchangeable at running back if Hearst is healthy. The 49ers are my sleeper team in the NFC.

The Atlanta Falcons will be interesting with the growth of Michael Vick. Same thing for the Carolina Panthers with Chris Weinke. If I were coaching the Falcons, I would play Vick in goal-line situations. Chris Chandler must know the handwriting is on the wall. How much effort does he want to put into the season? Meanwhile in Carolina, Weinke is a smart kid who understands the offense. He's much like Beuerlein; he has the ability to throw the ball down the field. Weinke won't be affected by hype. I look for him to be successful.

Former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann is an analyst for ESPN Sunday Night Football.