NFL Playoffs-Stream of Consciousness

• I thought I could get home from the grocery store in time to see the end of Packers vs. Cardinals. I didn't. But that's ok. The stir fry was pretty good too. (grumble, grumble.)
• The Raven's D looked like their D circa 2002. They made Tom Brady look like Kyle Boller. But beware. Although that Pats team has a lot of holes, they still won 10 games. Brady still has a number of good years ahead of him. Just renovate the D and look out.
• From the Looking Old Department: Randy Moss and Chad Johnson. Moss has been absolute force in the league (save a two year nap in Oakland) since his rookie year in 1998. He even finished tied for TD catches for the fifth time this season at the age of 32. But he looked sluggish and absolutely coverable yesterday. Is this a harbinger of things to come? Johnson had a excellent five year run as a premiere playmaker in the league. Last season he hit 30 and seemingly hit the wall. He had a nice bounce back year this season, but Derrelle Revis pushed him around like a skinny rag doll two games in a row.
• The Saints were very fortunate that Sunday's games turned out the way they did. As a result, they draw the Cardinals, a team much like them, that wants to throw the ball if they can and has an opportunistic if not dominant defense. Whose better at it? It's arguable. But for the Saints it's preferable to facing the white hot Cowboys or the second ranked Packers defense (I know they yacked it up yesterday, but still.)
• Conversely the Colts couldn't have asked for a worse opponent than the Ravens next week. Baltimore rushed 52 freakin' times against the Patriots, steamrolling their way to 234 yards. This does not bode well for the lightweight Indianapolis D. Of course if the Colts get a quick lead somehow, that's a different story. But I think it's far more likely that the Colts get bullied in the playoffs like they normally do. I have a lot of admiration for the Colts, and I hope I'm wrong, but I smell disaster.

NFL Hyperbolic Statements-Week 11

Two so-called contenders punk out. The city of Baltimore holds a grudge. And looking forward to watching the Lions? Since we've got a short week, think of this as the Cliff's Notes version of "Statements."

Don't Rest On Your Laurels, Ever: Bengals and Steelers. Following a man-sized win against the Steelers, the Bengals turned into tabbies vs. the pathetic Raiders. The eyepatches did have one advantage; Demarcus Russell was on the bench. But still, if Cincinnatti wanted to think of itself as a contender, they needed to take care of biznass against the Faders. (Wow, two disparaging nicknames for Oakland in one paragraph). Meanwhile, halfway across the country, the Steelers were yacking it up against another AFC West ne'er-do-well. You would think they would come out pissed off and ready to kill the Chiefs after losing an important divisional game to the Bengals last week. I guess that's the difference between these two clubs and the Colts who seem to win under all kinds of circumstances, even when it appears they really don't deserve to win.

State Line of the Week: Robert Meachem, Saints. 2 catches, 10 yards, 2 TD's. Just don't confuse him with Robert Mitchum.

Cosmic Forces At Work: Two games ago, the Baltimore Ravens played the team that replaced them after they left Cleveland and changed names, the "new" Browns. Last Sunday, the Ravens played the team that they replaced in Baltimore, the Colts. Let that one marinate in your skull for a bit. Think of it as a football koan. By the way, the Colts are never referred to by name in Baltimore. The PA announcer introduces them as the Indianapolis professional football team. Bitter, anyone?

File This One Under WTF: Ah, Thanksgiving, that magical time of year that exists only to indulge in copious amounts of food and football. I was even looking forward to the Lions game this year. I was very curious to watch heralded rookie Matthew Stafford, especially in light of his heroic play last Sunday. But now he's injured, out for a couple of weeks at least with a separated shoulder. Now, I've got to deal with the likes of a washed up Daunte Culpepper. Damn! Oh well, the Packers will probably win 35-3 anyway.

Championship Sunday Round Up

• I usually know who to cheer for come Super Bowl time. But there are a lot of reasons to like both Arizona and Pittsburgh. Not least of which is that Warner and Roethlisberger are two of my favorite QB's.
• Roethlisberger can be maddening at times, the way he holds the ball ...and holds the ball. But yesterday he was at his slippery best without turning it over. His receivers, including Santonio Holmes in particular, did an awesome job of getting open once the play was busted. It was like sandlot football out there.
• People forget that in Kurt Warner's St. Louis days the running game was there to keep teams honest. They threw a lot obviously, but they also got huge chunks of yards on the ground and often had a team average of over 4.5 yards per carry. When Warner has that to help him, he's even more deadly. As opposed to Big Ben, he gets the ball out quick and is one of the most accurate passers in the game.
• This just in: Larry Fitzgerald is a monster. He's like Randy Moss without the baggage. Plus, as a bonus, he breaks tackles like Jerome Bettis. He is deceptively strong.
• It took Arizona this long to find a consistent winning formula. I don't know how, but the defense is playing much better. These certainly doesn't look like the same squad that surrendered 426 points this season. I kept waiting for an opponent to run all over them. It never happened. That combined with a commitment to the rush themselves are the reasons for their success.
• I can't help but feel bad for Donovan McNabb. The right thing to do is blow it all up now in Philly and get something in a trade for McNabb and even Westbrook. I can see a 5-11 season next year easily.
• I can envision McNabb having a lot of success on a team where he doesn't have to be the man. Minnesota would be perfect.
• Joe Flacco's inaccuracy finally caught up with him. As I said before, it was pretty remarkable how he was able to avoid turnovers with the way he sprays the ball all over the field.
• My thoughts and prayers are with Willis McGahee, who suffered a devastating hit yesterday. He was carted off the field on a stretcher. Fortunately, preliminary medical reports are that he is in good condition, but he will remain in the hospital for observations.
• I guess I have to stick with my pre-playoff Super Bowl Pick. Things didn't pan out exactly as I thought, but the Steelers seem poised to win their second championship in four seasons and their record setting sixth as a franchise. I think it will be a very close game with the Steeler defense making the one play they need. Steelers 24, Cardinals 17.

Eagles, Ravens Vindicate Dan

Well, I was 50% on Wild Card Weekend thanks to wins by Baltimore and Philly. The Eagles had a clear advantage in QB play, which I thought would be the difference and it was. Minnesota's D helped them hang around, but once they got down two scores, it took AP out of the game plan, and the Vikings were toast.

Miami's offense was just not able to challenge the Raven's defense at all. Joe Flacco, while he sprayed the football all over the field, didn't make the big mistakes and Chad Pennington did. Chad has a number of good qualities; intelligence, accuracy, leadership. But sometimes you just need a big gun. Chad doesn't have one. There was one deep ball he threw where he had a receiver open despite double coverage. Had he been able to get the ball out in front and toward the sideline, he may have completed it. Instead it was short and to the inside, easy pickings.

The results of the weekend festivities have created some unfavorable match ups for the top seeds in each conference (on account of the stupid seeding process placing division winners in a higher position than wild cards regardless of record). The Giants have to play division foe, Philadelphia, for the third time. The aggregate score from the two regular season meetings; Eagles 51, Giants 50. (Thanks Peter King.) They're probably the last team the Giants want to face.

Baltimore goes to Tennessee in the Ug Bowl. The first team to attempt a pass loses. It will result in an interception or a sack and fumble. Final score 3-0. Both teams rely on defense and getting lucky. The key to beating teams like these is to be patient and play mistake free. Even though I don't think much of Kerry Collins, I have to give the Titans the advantage at QB. Joe Flacco looked like Mitch Williams yesterday the way he was flinging it around.