Category: football

Not that this is really news now, but the New York Giants have won the Super Bowl and have become the NFL Champions.

I could make some comments about it, but everyone else is already doing that. One article I particularly enjoyed was this one talking about Bill Belichick’s poor sportsmanship at the end of the game.

Now that it’s all over, only two things stick in my mind.

1. The Patriots self destructed and DID NOT achieve that perfect season they were chasing.
2. Eli Manning was Super Bowl MVP giving us back to back Manning brother MVPs

Really a game for the ages. One of these days I’ll give my selections for top Super Bowls ever.

Playoffs are almost over, one game to go, the SUPER BOWL.

So far, I’m 3-3 in the games I’ve picked. So who’s my favorite for Sunday’s championship game?

Of course, I’m picking the New York Giants (or anybody but the Patriots).

I sincerely think that Eli’s team can win. Will they? I guess we will find out. This game has been analyzed more than any in recent memory, so you can read the opinions elsewhere.

One comment I do want to make about this year’s New England Patriots. In spite of their record, their accomplishments, their multiple titles, in spite of everything they have accomplished, they are NOT the greatest team to ever play the game of football.

Why do I say such a thing? It’s simple, there is NO greatest team in the game of football. The 2007 Pats are one of the greats, but they are a product of their time. They are the greatest team of this year, and I don’t doubt they could beat most historically great teams in history if you could magically move said team to 2007 and make them play be 2007 rules with 2007 technology. This does not mean the 07 Pats could beat those same teams on their home turf. Take away Free Agency, Salary Caps, Replay Officials, Two Point Conversions, K Balls, Radio Headsets and any number of other modern additions to the game and the Pats as we know them wouldn’t even exist, let alone dominate.

We all just need to stop racking our brains and discussing who is the greatest of all time, and just experience the moment. Like the Patriots or not, this year has been a legendary season when many records have been broken. We will all be telling our children or grandchildren about this Sunday’s game – either because the Pats went undefeated, or because they almost did and went down in flames to the Giants.

OK, so anyone who read my previous post will understand why I don’t bet on Football. I can’t pick a winner, let alone cover a spread.

To summarize, I was 2-2.

My Packers/Seahawks pick was right on. Even after the Packers spotted them two touchdowns, the Seahawks were still beaten badly. As much as I like Holmgren I think he made a bad decision moving to Seattle, I don’t think he’ll ever win a championship there.

My Cowboys/Giants pick was also correct. The ‘boys peed down their leg and looked pathetic. The Giants, while not stellar, were consistent and held on for a win.

The AFC picks were another matter altogether. Either the Chargers are better than I thought, or other worries clouded the Colts. I can’t help but wonder if all this speculation about Dungy retiring was a bit of a spectre in everyone’s mind. That coupled with Harrisons obviously sub-par performance and lingering injury must have been a hit to the Colts moral. Speculate all you want about the cause, the result was that the Colts just didn’t look like the offensive powerhouse we’ve come to expect. As a result, the Chargers are headed to Foxborough.

The Jacksonville/Patriot pick was also WRONG. I wish the Jacksonville team we saw last week had showed up. Give credit to the best quarterback-protecting offensive line that the NFL has ever seen for this win. Until someone figures out how to pressure Brady, New England is probably unbeatable.

OK, with last week’s analysis done, here are my picks for the AFC and NFC Championship games.

AFC Championship

Chargers travel to Massachusetts and face the mighty Patriots. As much as it pains me, I will be rooting for Norv Turner and the Chargers, but I have no illusions about them winning this game. With LT coming off an injury and Rivers probably out, a banged up Chargers will most likely give a pathetic showing and the Pats will ascend to yet another Super Bowl.

NFC Championship

Favre and the Packers have the Giants right where they want them. New York will be traveling to the great metropolis of Green Bay Wisconsin to play the NFC Championship game on the Frozen Tundra of Lambeau Field. The Giants could put on a good showing, but this is a year of destiny for the Pack. With mounting pressure from the world for Favre to retire, this might be their last chance to attain a world championship in some time. I expect this to be a good game, potentially close, but at the end of the day I can’t see anyone but the Packers going to the big game.

As always, this is a sad time of year. Next Sunday is really the last weekend of real football for the next 9 months or so. The Super Bowl is played in a nice warm friendly location, and the media coverage is more about the sponsors and unique advertisements than it is about the game itself.

After this weekend’s game watch for part III of my NFL predictions. Oh, and feel free to comment and put a shout out for your favorite team or player.

So playoffs are upon us. In just over three weeks the 2007 NFL season will be in the books. Been a tough year for many of us. If you live in Colorado, like I do, watching the Broncos has been a tough pill to swallow. Same thing for so many teams around the country, Chicago, Miami, KC, Oakland (although I feel no sympathy for them), St. Louis, etc..

Tough thing about the NFL is most of us only have one favorite team. The home team is the usual pick, if you grew up in a place without a home team then it’s usually one of the other quintessental contenders (Cowboys, Steelers, Bears). I am as much a fan of the game as I am any specific team, so even though the Broncos will always be number one in my heart, I can definitely show some love for other great programs like the Colts or Green Bay.

All that said, I want to make some predictions for the remainder of the season. This is just my best case scenario, and no, I’m not interested in betting. I’ve learned the hard way that you never bet your heart. I love the game and these teams too much to make an objective wager.

This week’s predictions

AFC Divisional Playoffs

Jacksonville over the Patriots

I know, I know, the Patriots went undefeated in the regular season, and that’s an amazing feat. Thing is the Patriots are in, arguably, the WORST division in football. The Jets, and of course Dolphins, had horrendous years. The Bills had glimmers of greatness, but overall weren’t a playoff level team. This means that out of the Patriots 16 wins, six were gimmes. The remainder of their schedule wasn’t too hard with the exception of the Steelers and Colts. As the year progressed we saw a New England team that was accused of running up the score early in the season go back to barely eeking out wins of Philedelphia, Baltimore and New York. Difficult weather conditions and a long season have slowed down the Brady/Moss touchdown machine.

Jacksonville is on the opposite end of the spectrum. Rather than trying to keep their attitude up to win the last few games of the season, the Jaguars have been in must-win mode. They stood to lose more than just a spotless season record with a loss, they have been fighting every game for a post-season berth. The last few games have shown us two things about the Jaguars. First, Jacksonville is a tough, agressive, old-school football team. They are going to take the field and just smack their opponent right in the mouth. Both offense and defense is playing as aggressive as the rules allow (and maybe a little more). The other thing we have learned is that the Jaguars have heart. David Garrard and his teamates just don’t know when to quite. Sunday they faced a tough battle with Pittsburgh, but they fought down to the last play, and they prevailed. Both of these characteristics are what is going to enable them to defeat the mighty Patriots. The Jacksonville defense should be able to slow down the Pats offense, and Garrard, Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor should be able to pound their defense to dust.

San Diego falls to Indy

Everyone says that the San Diego ownership is vindicated for firing Schottenheimer, but let’s not be so hasty. Norv Turner beat the lowly Titans in a Wild Card game. Marty lost last year’s playoff game to the New England Patriots in the Divisional Round. Technically, if (when) San Diego loses to Indy, Turner will not have made it any further than Marty. Bottom line is, the Chargers are not the team they were last year. They have struggled all season, dropping from an 06 record of 14-2 to 11-5 this year. Overall, they just don’t look sharp. Sure, they beat a banged up Colts mid-season, by two points, but this is playoff football against a well rested, defending Super Bowl champion team that is as healthy as they have been all season. Throw in a home game at the RCA dome to boot, San Diego doesn’t stand much of a chance.

NFC Divisional Playoffs

Green Bay over Seattle

Sure, maybe Favre is too old (I don’t think he is, but that’s another discussion) and maybe Holmgrem’s got his number, but adding Mike McCarthy at the head coach position has breathed new life into this franchise. Playing at Lambeau in January, this game won’t even be a contest. A Seahawks team that looked rather pathetic in their win of Washington is going to have their hands full in Green Bay.

Dallas falls to New York

We’ve all heard about how great Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys are. Frankly, I’m tired of the hype. Dallas has had a good year, but ever since locking up the first seed in the NFC they have been pathetic. Between the Jessica Simpson fiasco and Terrell Owens injury, “America’s team” has fallen on hard times. With Owens possibly out, and definitely not at 100% for this weekends meeting with the Giants, the Cowboys will be at a disadvantage. Interesting how the Romo fan club falls silent when he’s missing his star receiver. Guess Terrell Owens can make anyone look good.

The New York Giants are on the upswing. A solid win against Tampa Bay showed everyone that they are for real. An emotionless Eli Manning seems to have finally connected with his team. Eli plays football like it’s in a schoolyard. Not the Brett Favre schoolyard where the teenage girls are swooning over the handsome kid that always gets picked first as quaterback. Eli plays like he’s just hanging out with some friends after school throwing the ball around. Sure, he can throw the ball, but it’s not that big of a deal. He almost plays like they aren’t even keeping score, every play is an entity to itself, every toss is just a moment in time, when the actions over it’s over. The Giants as a whole seemed to have accepted and even embraced this attitude. They aren’t like the Pats with their mock humility, or like the Colts with Dungy’s Quiet Strength. The Giants just seem to have this devil may care Eli Manning attitude, in spite of Tom Coughlin’s ranting on the sideline. They play their game at their own pace, take every challenge as it comes, and sometime mid 4th quarter they finally figure they should wrap everything up.

This won’t be an easy game for Dallas or the Giants, but I honestly belive Eli is ready to meet the challenge and New York will unseat Wade Phillps Texas boys.