The Crystal Ball The Wildcards

Originally Posted on Quick Thoughts on January 6, 2007


It took 16 games and 17 weeks, but the real Bill Cowher finally showed up. Sunday in Cincinnati he was back to his old self. Spitting, cursing, scowling; the jaw protruding as he prowled the sidelines leading the team to victory. The shame of it was that unfortunately, it was only just a final appearance.

After 15 years and compiling an overall record of 161-99-1 (.619) including a 149-90-1 (.623) mark in the regular season, 10 playoff appearances, 8 division titles, 6 AFC championship game appearances, 2 AFC championships and 1 Super Bowl win, Bill Cowher stepped down as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. For only the second time in my life, I will see the search and appointment of a new head coach in Pittsburgh. Cowher walked away to spend more time with his family and just be a normal guy, which is admirable. I am of mixed feelings on this. I am sad to see him go, but I am happy that he left if he was not really into it. I applaud him for spending so much time with one team and living a dream of coaching his boyhood team to the ultimate prize. I applaud him for wanting to focus on real priorities, family, and not created ones, grown men playing games for a living. I applaud him for walking away with class and style and being gracious to the Rooney family until the end. But it is an end of an era, and I have become accustomed to seeing him prowl the Pittsburgh sideline. I will miss Cowher, and all the fire he brought to the Steelers. I am excited to see who will be the next coach, and reluctant to accept that probably one day Cowher will coach again somewhere else. But for now, I would like to think of the good times he brought to the team, to the fans, to Pittsburgh and to all of us, and look forward to seeing who will next bring that passion and fire. Good luck Bill, we will miss you.

In other Steelers news, Willie Parker was named the Team MVP. It is a well deserved honor, despite his little fumbling problem from time to time. If we could just get someone to spell him every now and again, Willie could soon compete for a rushing title.

Also, I was correct on my assumption of the team this year, but just off by one loss. Ironically, if I had been dead in predicting their record, they would have made the playoffs, screwing up my prediction in a much more pleasant way. But, you cannot win the Super Bowl every season.

So now, the season is over, and we are left with nothing but the memories. Pack everything up and dream of a day when the proud warriors will once again take the field of battle, to fight over small sections of turf, each trying to acquire or defend them. Until that day, we have but our memories. So, how about a little bit of season wrap up, just to tie up a few loose ends. I was shocked with how poorly so many teams played with something on the line. The Giants barely won over a crappy Washington team. Cincinnati and Denver both lost at home when a win would have helped their playoff chances, and the Broncos only had to win and they were playoff bound. Baltimore had trouble with the lowly Bills while fighting for seeding. Dallas lost while trying for a home game. If you cannot get fired up now, you are gonna blow everything when the games are win or go home.

Detroit screwed their fans yet again by winning, and taking away their chance at the number 1 pick in the draft. Sure, they have screwed up picking first many times before, but at least it gives the fans a modicum of hope. And to further kill that hope, Matt Millen is keeping his job. Just exactly how stupid is the Ford family? I am 100% convinced now he has dirt on them. Either that or they can write off losing on their corporate taxes. Stupid Lions.

Brett Favre had a teary interview with NBC after the Sunday night game, saying that if this is it, it is a good way to go out. Now, no one knows for sure whether or not he will retire but him, but it sure seemed likely to me. But then again, Favre said he was done after the last game last year, and you see how that worked out.

My condolences go out to the family of Darrent Williams. Bronco cornerback Darrent Williams was killed early Monday in a drive by shooting. Just a tragic and senseless act for which there does not seem to be any motive. Unfortunately, it is merely another horrible example of some people feeling the only way they can settle a dispute or to demonstrate their manhood is by brandishing a gun. I wonder about our world sometimes.

That damn NFL Network needs a new sponsor. I saw that stupid Wendy’s $2.99 commercial at least 935,642 times watching two hours of pregame, 3+ of actual game and 1 of post game on Saturday night. That grating whistling from the commercial has haunted me in both waking and sleeping hours ever since.

Moving on, let’s take a look at the potential coaching changes of the NFL. And it has been a busy first week.

Arizona – This happened Monday when Denny Green was fired. No big surprise there. Who did not see this coming?

Giants – Not a change that is being talked about, but overdue since Coughlin lost the team a while ago. Plus he prefers to throw players under the bus than to take the rightful blame for losses. Who wants to play for a guy like that? I imagine the team will be looking for a new coach sooner rather than later.

Atlanta – This happened Monday also when Jim Mora was fired. This also was no big surprise. When your star player throws you under the bus, you should probably start stocking up on boxes and updating your resume.

Pittsburgh – Odd to see them in this discussion, but here we are. Also, in another coaching change in Pittsburgh, Dick Hoak, the running backs coach who has been either a player or coach on the team, except for one year, since 1961, retired Tuesday. You rarely see that sort of longevity with one team anymore, and may never see it again.

Oakland – This happened Thursday, and honestly, I’m surprised it took that long. Maybe Al thought there was one more game left, and when he finally realized the season was over, it was Thursday.

Miami –Saban abandoned the mess he further made in Miami for Alabama on Wednesday. Also no surprise, but did he have to lie about it over the last few weeks of the season?


Now, I have managed to cull from tons of sources a few potential candidates for the open head coaching jobs in the NFL. If I was able to find the teams interested in them, I listed those as well.

Pittsburgh OC Ken Whisenhunt – Atlanta, Arizona, Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh AHC Russ Grimm – Atlanta, Arizona, Pittsburgh
Chicago DC Ron Rivera - Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Arizona
Iowa HC Kirk Ferentz - Pittsburgh
Former Green Bay HC Mike Sherman – Arizona, Miami
Titans OC Norm Chow – Arizona, Miami
Indianapolis AHC Jim Caldwell
San Diego OC Cam Cameron
Giants HC Tom Coughlin - Oakland

Oddly enough, Oakland is going for who may be the worst coach on the list. Figures. There is a lot of talent on this list; it will be intriguing to see who lands where. More updates as they are warranted.

Jim Nantz and Phil Simms are idiots. They spent the entire game on Manning’s jock, talking of how great he is and how the Colt offense is unstoppable. How next to impossible it is to sack Manning and how he makes such brilliant decisions. Hey, morons. 4 teams this season have figured the Colts out. Plus, last time I checked, there was one team last January that managed to sack Peyton not once, but five times, all in one game, if you can believe it. He must not be that elusive if they sacked him 5 times. I know Peyton is an excellent quarterback, and a fantasy football wet dream, but he is no god on that field, just another player.

This constant fawning over Peyton reminds me of the never ending argument about the best quarterback in the NFL. Each year, and probably every year from now until the end of time, the debate rages about who is the best signal caller amongst the 32 starters, and in some cases the numerous back ups, in the league. Personally, I think the argument should start and end with championships. The ultimate goal is not to break records or pad stats; it is to win that ring. Right now, there are only a handful of quarterbacks in the league that can be put into this discussion. Below are all of them, in order of how they should be ranked as the best in the league.

1) Tom Brady – Woof does this pain me, but the truth is the truth. He has three rings, and before everything is said and done, he could have a few more. Plus, he puts up some pretty decent stats.

2) Brett Favre – One ring, another appearance, and working on grabbing all of Marino’s passing records. A first ballot hall of famer for sure, he lands in second only because of his lack of multiple rings.

3) Ben Roethlisberger – Yes, kiddies, Big Ben should be ranked higher than Peyton. Why you may ask? Because he got the job done, plain and simple. Plus, he will be entering only his fourth season next year, and is just starting to bloom as a quarterback and team leader. He could have a few more rings by the time everything is over as well.

4) Brad Johnson – Ok, he kind of blows this theory out of the water a bit, but the truth is he won a ring in Tampa Bay. You have to make that part of the discussion.

Everyone else, well, they line up at fifth spot and roll down from there. Sure, I would put Peyton at 5, unless someone else wins one this year, then the line starts at 6. And if Peyton goes all the way, then I will put him at two, and we can start an argument between who is better, him or Brady. But until then, he, and everyone else without that ring, is no better than fifth, period.

Now, before we go any further, I need to give a little help to those of you out there who, due to unfortunate circumstances, will not be able to watch your team in the playoffs. So, what is one to do? How do you keep the playoffs interesting if your team is sitting at home eating Cheetos? Easy, you pick your playoff horse. The best way to do this is to pick one team from each conference, and root for them all the way through to the Super Bowl. If one goes down, you still have the other team. If they both go down, well, then you gotta pick again. But if you follow one, and they make it, it is almost as tasty as if your team did. Ok, it is not nearly as good, not even remotely close, but it does give one a certain amount of satisfaction and it is a fun way to watch the playoffs. So, here is what you need to know.

1) Avoid teams from your division – This has too many incestuous ramifications, and could create bad karma for your team the next year. Plus, if they won it all, would you really be able to live with yourself? Avoid division teams at all cost.

2) Avoid teams that beat up on your team – Sure, your team had a bad year, but why rub it in by rooting for someone who tortured them. Plus, you could possibly look like a band wagon fan, and that is not what we are going for at all.

3) Look for teams that did not play yours. This makes it easier, since you cannot create bad karma or look like a band wagon fan.

4) Try to find some connection to your team – Does your playoff horse play in the same state as your team? That works. Are their former players from your team on their roster? Probably and why not root for those guys, you liked them at one time? Well, unless the player is T.O.

5) Look for the sleeper – This is a great one, since if you pick the right team, and they go all the way, you look like a genius. And if they lose, well, you have lost nothing. There is always one team lurking and ready to pounce; the only question is if they could go all the way. Maybe they just need some extra cheer.

6) Remember, this is only short term – This is the most important one of all. Always remember you are just rooting for a team so you can have a little vested interest in the playoffs. After the team is done, or the playoffs end, so does your cheering for your playoff horse. Any cheering for them after that means you are either gleaming off their success and that would compromise your own team, or you are a band wagon fan, and that would really hurt your team, your credibility and create some terrible karma.

Now that you know the rules, go pick a few teams and have fun.

Unfortunately, my bad week in week 16 hurt more than I thought. I ended up finishing 3 spots out of the money. But not bad overall.

Last Week: 11-5
Season to Date: 150-106

Still, I could do better, and next season, oh, I will. But in the meantime, let’s try to hone these skills with some of the wild card action.

Saturday


Kansas City at Indianapolis

Kansas City squeaked into the playoffs by luck and some bad play by quite a few other teams. Now they have a chance to show off their stellar running game on a larger stage. This game has been touted all week as Larry Johnson versus the Colts porous run defense. Larry could have a huge day. But what everyone is ignoring is Peyton will get the ball on occasion, and he is playing at home. A strong running game and run defense are important, especially now, but if the Colts get ahead early, I do not trust Trent Green on the road that much.

Indianapolis over Kansas City


Dallas at Seattle

Tony Romo has come way down to Earth in recent weeks, and it could not be at a worse time for the Cowboys. But, Seattle has a ridiculously banged up secondary, which could be beneficial to the Boys. The Hawks have looked inconsistent all season, and numerous injuries have not helped their cause. But despite their secondary, they are mostly back and fairly injury free. I just have trouble seeing Dallas winning in Seattle. Either way, I do not see this game as being very good. Mostly just some sloppy football.

Seattle over Dallas


Sunday


N.Y. Jets at New England

This could be a great game, or a complete stinker. I kept thinking that New England has lost a step, and I’m not one hundred percent convinced they have not. But after watching them take apart Tennessee last week, they may be better than most people, namely other Patriot haters such as myself, think. The Jets have done it all with smoke and mirrors and playing way above their heads. They split the season series with the Patriots and almost won the first meeting. Mangini will have them up big time for this game. I think they can do it. I am calling this an upset.

N.Y. Jets over New England


N.Y. Giants at Philadelphia

I have had enough of the dysfunctional, annoying and underachieving Giants. The Eagles, however, are my horse. They are peaking at the right time and just far enough under the radar. What do I say about this game? Enjoy your retirement Tiki; you’ve had a great career.

Philadelphia over N.Y. Giants