Boogatt checks in with a great fan post that I just had to bump to the main page. Optimism is always high during the preseason but there's just something different about this year....cgolden

It’s been the buzz of the Cardinals every approaching regular season for as long as I can remember, "This is our year.  This is the year we make the playoffs!"  That kind of optimism has only set a true Cardinals fan up for further ridicule and disappointment in seasons past. Whether it’s the Bears game in 2006 (I’m nauseous just thinking about it), or the surreal moment when Rackers came out to finish the game against the Chiefs with a routine chip shot.  You almost knew before the ball was kicked that he would somehow, nay, he would pull a Ray Finkle and blow it.  The laces were out RACKERS!  Yet this year has a different feel, or should I say vibe to it that has been circulating ever since the end of last season.  There is an excitement that is justified by the first non-losing season in 10 years, in which they seem to have picked up right where they left off at the tail end of last season.  We have heard nothing but positive things about the Cardinals since camp has started, from how promising our young first and second year players are shaping up to more seasoned players getting back in the shape of their careers to make a legitimate run for an eventual playoff birth.  It definitely starts from the top, and I think that we finally have the right chemistry between staffing and players to do something really special in 08-09.

Now I know it’s probably a tad premature to go spouting off any 12 or 13 win seasons at this point, but I am going to go out on a limb.  Barring another freak rash of injuries at key positions, I am predicting clinching their division at 10-6 or maybe even 11-5.  So let me pose a few questions to you.  How many games will it take for a playoff birth?  Who will win the NFC West?  Is this the Cardinals year, and if so how deep will they go?  Feel free to pull no punches and get as ridiculous as you would like.  After all, isn’t that the point!