The Crystal Ball 2012 The Super Bust

Ok, so last year Eli Manning says he's elite, everyone makes fun of him and then he goes out and beats Tom Brady and the Patriots in the Super Bowl, again. This year, Joe Flacco says he's elite and now he's in the Super Bowl. Hey, Matt Ryan, Sometime in August just announce to the media you're an elite quarterback. It'll be smooth sailing from there.

Opening Kickoff

How come when Tim Tebow quietly kneels in prayer after a touchdown or a good play, people rake him over the coals, but when Ray thanks God and kneels in the center of the field after a game in front of as many cameras as he can find, he's called an inspiration? Good thing he lined up that ESPN gig. I don't know what he'd do without the spotlight.

The Way It Was

Well, it came down to me talking myself into rooting for the Patriots.

Before the start of the AFC championship game I sat there trying to come up with the most palatable of the remaining teams to win the Super Bowl. And believe me, I had to scrape for good a reason. Finally, I settled on the Patriots.

As I figured, Brady and Belichick are sure bet Hall of Famers, whether I like it or not. Even if they tie Montana, Bradshaw and Noll with 4 Super Bowl wins, they would still have lost two and have the specter of cheating hanging over three of their wins.

Second, Brady is at least handsome and a proven post season winner. I could handle that more than Flacco's unibrow.

Third, in both execution, team building, winning ways and demeanor Bill Belichick is the closest person in today's NFL to Chuck Noll, a coach who gets not nearly the respect he deserves. Maybe if Belichick wins his 4th in 6 tries, Noll will finally get some due for winning 4 in 4 tries. That he's not talked about more often is a shame.

Lastly, and perhaps most important, the thought of one of those Harbaugh douchebags or Ray Lewis on the cover of every magazine, web site and TV show holding the Lombardi trophy makes me sick to my stomach.

Well, I'm now entering Week 2 of perpetual queasiness, since there's no good outcome. Either Baltimore wins and we have to hear about Ray Ray going out on top from now until the end of time, or San Francisco wins, they get 6 Super Bowl wins to match Pittsburgh. And no matter who wins, it'll be an arrogant, obnoxious Harbaugh hoisting the trophy. Woof. Thank goodness hockey's back.

49ers 28 - Falcons 24

San Francisco engineered the biggest comeback victory in NFC title game history. Or Atlanta choked away the biggest lead.

How do you lose a 17 point lead at home?

I felt the panic invade the Georgia Dome when San Francisco scored their second touchdown. But I had hope things would change when Matt Ryan and the Atlanta offense responded with a touchdown right before halftime.

Of course, the team never scored again and looked terrible in the second half, and the Super Bowl dreams of Tony Gonzalez disappeared into the Atlanta night. At least I was able to finally figure out why everyone calls Ryan Matty Ice; because he goes ice cold in the second half.

Don't worry, I'm not letting Mike Smith off the hook. Personally, I think when you're at home, in front of a jazzed up crowd and leading 17 - 0 yet lose, you should be fired. Smith's unimaginative play calling is not a new problem, and has spanned several coordinators. He was outcoached on his own field when it mattered most.

Matt Ryan and Mike Smith; they're like Peyton Manning and Tony Dungy pre-Super Bowl, but without the Q rating.

I wonder how good Atlanta would be if they could learn to live comfortably with a lead?

As for 49er fans, they're left gnashing their teeth over the one perceived weak point of the team's fortunes, the kicking game. Relax everyone, and stop vilifying David Akers for missing that field goal. He should be lauded for it. Think about it, who hits the top of the upright?? That's a heck of a kick. Of course that's not where he wanted it to go, but still.

Ravens 28 - Patriots 13

Andrew Luck. Peyton Manning. Tom Brady. All top NFL quarterbacks. At least two are headed to the Hall of Fame. The third had a scintillating start to what some project will be a Hall of Fame career. All hold NFL records, even the rookie, and accolades galore. And yet not one of them managed to do what old, third string, washed up Charlie Batch could do; beat Baltimore.

I had to wonder, did the Patriots just give up at some point? It looked like to me that a moment came when they just got tired of getting hit and stopped trying.

New England punted in Baltimore territory several times and Brady threw the ball away on 4th down late in the game. When did coach and quarterback become so timid? Where were the Patriots that mercilessly ran up the score on anyone and everyone? Or did we see what happens to any blustering bully; they only push around the kids who don't push back.

The oddest portion of the game came when Brady, sliding to avoid a tackle, kicked in the air in the general direction of a leaping Ed Reed's man parts. It was obviously blatant, and I say good on Bernard Pollard for calling out Brady and the NFL for the kick.

The NFL, not wanting to look stupid for raking Ndamukong Suh for the same infraction, fined Tom Terrific $10,000 for the kick. The same day, they fined Frank Gore $10,500 for wearing his socks incorrectly in the NFC Championship Game. So much for the NFL taking their own "player safety" initiative seriously.

Of course, thanks to that victory I can't get the hook from The White Stripes' Seven Nation Army out of my head, and it's driving me even more insane than that infectious Call Me Maybe. And it wasn't even a Baltimore home game! It's gonna be a long two weeks.

The Steel Pit

I watched the AFC Championship game getting increasingly agitated with each play. As the minutes ticked on, I knew we were getting closer and closer to Baltimore getting to the Super Bowl. It made me angry that this team I loathe the most could be so successful, that Ray Lewis could be close to his career ending swan song and that no one could expose this defense for it's many flaws.

But what angered me the most was that throughout the playoffs, Baltimore has been a paragon of tough, hard hitting, intimidating football. The kind I used to see out of Pittsburgh. The Ravens went into Foxboro and Denver and figuratively punched both teams right in the mouth and never backed down. And they coupled it with a hard rushing, high flying offense. If this were almost any other team, I'd love it. 4 years ago, it was Pittsburgh and I reveled in it.

But now, this is not the current incarnation of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and I say the blame for that falls at the feet of Art Rooney II and Todd Haley.

It starts with Rooney, who bizarrely fired Bruce Arians and directed the hiring of Haley. Haley's low wattage ball control offense did neither job for which it was intended, increase scoring and keep Roethlisberger healthy. The offense regressed horribly, especially late in the season when the team needed points the most.

For decades, the Rooney family has been looked upon as good people who run a high class operation that focuses on people. But Rooney's treatment of Arians betrays that image. Rooney was the impetus behind the dismissal of Arians, which the team announced was a retirement. A retirement Arians most certainly was not planning on taking.

Look Art II is the president and owner of the team. If he does not like how things are going, that's his prerogative. Much like any business owner, he has the right to make whatever change he sees fit to make his business more competitive and successful.

But to fire a long time coach, one who brought much success to the organization, and then tell a bold faced lie that said coach "retired" is wrong. It's the wrong way to treat people, especially someone who helped your team win two Super Bowls and reach a third in a six year span. It's not the way the Steelers or the Rooney family publically operate through the years.

To know that Art II so callously discarded someone who meant so much to the team, and his highly paid franchise quarterback, and then lie about how they treated him embarrasses me as a Steeler fan. The only good thing about this bad situation is that Arians was able to do so many good things in Indianapolis this season.

Art II should still issue a public apology for his shoddy treatment of Bruce Arians.

What frightens me is the seemingly foolishness with which the team is run. As an example, the team is planning to part ways with Max Starks and Ramon Foster. Now I understand it's time for their young highly drafted offensive linemen to take the reins. But with no experienced backups behind those young men, and combined with the fact that Starks and Foster were the only linemen to stay healthy and start every game, it seems foolish to dump both of them without thinking of depth and experience. With decisions like this piling up, I wonder as many Steeler fans do if Art II has the proper temerity to run this team as successfully as his father.

As for Haley, we mentioned his main jobs were to resurrect the running game, fail, keep Big Ben healthy, fail, and increase scoring, fail. The offense only scored 30 points more than once and that was in a loss to the woeful Raiders.

When your franchise quarterback throws for only 134 yards against a 5-10 team with 75 % of its starting secondary out injured, when you have no running back hit 100 yards in a game for 8 straight games, when no receiver  has a reception over 30 yards against one of the worst teams in the NFL, then there's a problem with your offensive philosophy

But these two should not shoulder all of the blame. The team itself did plenty of damage on its own. After all, no matter what ownership, management or the coaching staff does, the players must execute on game day. And this year, the Steelers did not.

Now, I'm not sure if it's a selfishness, a lack of unity, a lack of leadership, too many older players, too many younger players or a lack of understanding of the Steeler Way. But something is missing. An anger, an edge, a no holds barred, take no prisoners attitude. This team needs a desperate pep talk from Joey Porter.

Hopefully, with the whimpering end to the season, the younger players will realize sitting home in January sucks. Maybe now after sitting at home they'll start making their actions back up their words and egos.

From a coaching standpoint, the team need a special teams coordinator and an offensive line coach. From a player perspective, there are multiple holes to fill.

Ok, that's my rant on this pathetic excuse for a season. Next week, we'll play King for a Day, and I'll share how I would fix the woes of the Steelers, you know if someone were crazy enough to give me that kind of power.

Only In Faux NFL Reality…

Remember the 2008 AFC Championship game? Willis McGahee surprisingly does. Even though he still doesn't think the concussion he suffered qualifies as an injury. See how much more serious you need to take your player safety campaign Roger Goodell?

My consolation for such an awful results during Championship Weekend? At least people are starting to call the Patriots done. That's nice.

After the 49ers/Falcons tilt, two fans from each team got into an escalating argument that resulted in the Falcon fan being stabbed and taken to the hospital. Relax Ravens fans, I have proof that Ray Lewis was nowhere near Atlanta when this happened.

Roger Goodell has been busy trying to create a pleasant visit to New Orleans in the lead up to his week in the Big Easy. First, he reinstated suspended Saints head coach Sean Payton. Then he made sure the NFL public relations machine was well oiled, with this wonderfully timed piece about how hard he worked to make sure the Saints stayed in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Heck they should give him a hero's welcome. But as a nice final touch, Sean Payton also urged the city to show Goodell some hospitality.

Despite all this preemptive leg work, something tells me that Roger should probably stick to NFL approved and sequestered areas, lest he enjoys getting booed mercilessly.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones stripped head coach Jason Garrett of his play calling duties. Keep going Jerry, strip power from the general manager too!

Jets owner Woody Johnson blamed recently fired general manager Mike Tannenbaum for acquiring Tim Tebow, with the owner saying he didn't want Tebow. Hey Jets fans, your team is owned by a man who can be coerced into decisions he does not want to make. Good luck next season!

Surviving the HarBowl

Great. Just great. The 49ers and Ravens made it to the Big Game. Now we get to watch both Harbaugh brothers throw temper tantrums like petulant children on the sidelines in the same game. I bet this will make their mother feel nostalgic.

Between the Harbaugh boys and Ray Ray painting his face, bouncing around like a crack head in need of a fix and crying into every camera he can find, you might as well rename this the Gerber Bowl. So let me ask you, do you hate the Ravens? Do you have trouble swallowing Ray Ray's phony act? Are you willing to stand in line to punch Jim Harbaugh in his whiny face?

Yeah, I'm with ya. Just the thought of rehashing how Ray Ray turned his life around for the umpteenth time, or hearing abut Jim and John's childhood for two straight weeks or listening to their scheduled joint press conference is enough to make me wanna vomit. Luckily, I have an alternative to puke. We at the Crystal Ball have compiled a few ideas to help you make it through the most obnoxious sports media week of the year.

Exercise

This could be one of the best things for you this week. A good workout will do a body good, help get rid of unwanted stress, be a welcome outlet for the pent up frustrations of the week and possibly be the start of a great lifetime habit. There are many great ways to exercise, and many people find dancing both fun and fulfilling. Who knows, you may get in such great shape, that you find yourself with an overly positive body image.

Shopping

Now maybe some of you find yourselves with a bit of a bigger entertainment budget due to cancelled Super Bowl travel plans. Well, now would be a good time to spread the wealth, and pick up a few gifts for your favorite 49er fan or even a few ideas for your favorite Raven fan.

Reading

This is always a great way to pass the time, and one of my favorite hobbies. Reading can take you to far away world, major moments in history and expand your knowledge and imagination. My only question is, what to read first? Well, I've always found tales of how history can repeat itself very interesting. And I know that personal accounts of true life crimes are always a popular choice.

Alternate Programming

Ok, let's get a little serious. After all, no matter how many ways you distract yourself, at the end of the week the Super Bowl will still be here. So how do you avoid it on television? I mean, it's not like you can turn off the TV, right? Of course not!

You're best choices, other than Netflix or On Demand, are any NHL game, Puppy Bowl IX, World's Strongest Man Competition, and on Hallmark Channel a Golden Girls marathon. Yes, there are other marathons on, including NCIS, Roseanne, Law & Order, Snooki and JWoww and something called Wives with Knives on ID Network. But if you're gonna avoid the Super Bowl, I say the best way would be with a saucy Rue McClanahan.

If you are craving the commercials, and who isn't, utilize your DVR and just fast forward through the game. And if you do not have a DVR, then you had better be quick on the draw with your mute button.

But if you must punish yourself with the Super Bowl itself, you might as well dive in with both feet and take advantage of all of CBS' week of Super Bowl programming.

Schadenfreude

Finally, reality sets in and you realize, well, there's no getting away from the Super Bowl. And now you're desperate to find some way to enjoy it. If you're in this boat, and I believe a few people are, your best bet is to find joy in the suffering of others. And the top three ways to enjoy the misery of the Super Bow are:

3 - Future holidays at the Harbaugh house will be uncomfortable, at best.

2 - No matter what happens Sunday, Ray Lewis will no longer be playing football.

and Number 1....

No matter what happens over 60 minutes of game time, one of these two teams will lose.

And there you have it, the best ways I can come up with to survive the HarBowl. Personally, I'll be watching old episodes of America's Game and humming Memories. Hey, it's better than three hours of close ups of Jim and John Harbaugh.

He Said He Said

"What a complete and utter sideline hissy fit he threw after the replay review failed to overturn the Harry Douglas catch in the fourth quarter. I used to have meltdowns like that once in a while, but my mom always wound up sending me to my room to calm down for an hour or two." - Si.com's Don Banks

Yeah, get ready for double that this coming Sunday.

“We’re disappointed in the results. What else do you want me to say?” - Patriots head coach Bill Belichick

How about I'm sorry!

"Tell the Patriots to have fun at the Pro Bowl! Arrogant f------." - Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs

That's not true. Losing twice in the Super Bowl to Eli Manning will knock you down a few pegs.

“All B.S., ego, and arrogance aside, that is one hell of a ball club. You’ve got to play perfect to beat them. We did damn near just that to win this game.” - Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs

Wait, what? Arrogance aside? Suggs, you just called your team and yourself damn near perfect. That comment by itself highlights your arrogance and ego. So much for a firm grasp of the obvious.

"I love Andy Reid, but I think near the end it was a little bit depressing. I think there was a little bit of a loss of focus from Andy Reid.'' - former Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski

I completely agree, which makes me wonder why he jumped into a new job so fast.

"And don't throw baked beans at me for saying this, Boston faithful -- but Belichick won three Super Bowls when he was cheating, and has not won since being caught." - ESPN.com's Gregg Easterbrook

Hee hee hee. At least making fun of Belichick and Spygate can still make me smile in these dark times.

"Proud of my husband and the Pats. By the way, if anyone is bored, please go to Ray Lewis' Wikipedia page. 6 kids, 4 wives. Acquitted for murder. Paid a family off. Yay! What a hall of fame player! A true role model!" - Anna Burns Welker, wife of Patriots receiver Wes Welker

How dare she talk so negatively about God's linebacker!

Or...

Man, Patriot wives should be put under a gag order after playoff losses. Hmmm, I have an idea for a new reality TV show....

Or...

Today Roger Goodell fined the Patriots $100,000,000,000,000.00 for allowing Anna Burns Welker to speak publically and ruin their carefully crafted image of Ray Lewis, which the NFL has been selling relentlessly for the last month.

Or...

She's not wrong.

"Racism is real bro & anger makes people forget they shouldn't be publicly RT @D_VanDyke8: Did welker wife really put that on Facebook? Wow" - Steelers safety Ryan Clark on Anna Burns Welker's Facebook post

Ryan, come on man. Her comment is only racist if you believe in and perpetuate the stereotype that this sort of behavior is limited to and performed solely by the African American community. Her comment never mentioned race, just her questioning his character.

Idiot of the Week

Oh my goodness, it's like there's some sort of prestige involved in being named Idiot of the Week. There were so many good choices, I had such a difficult time picking just one, but alas, only one can be chosen, and this week, we give the award to former NFL receiver Tim Brown.

Brown, not wanting Manti Te'o to be the craziest sports story of the year involving a Notre Dame player, announced this week he believes former Raiders head coach Bill Callahan purposely sabotaged the team's appearance in the 2002 Super Bowl to allow friend, and former Raider head coach Jon Gruden, to win with the Buccaneers.

Most rational thinking people asked a few questions immediately. First, Huh? Second, wait, what? Third, who cares? Fourth, huh?

When the initial confusion died down, the real questions came. How would such a thing be possible? If there was a conspiracy, wouldn't someone have talked before now? This happened 10 years ago, why now?

So he didn't just seem like a lone nut, former teammate Jerry Rice chimed in and agreed with everything Brown had to say.

Unfortunately, that just makes them both look stupid, since Callahan and a slew of former teammates including Lincoln Kennedy and Bill Romanowski all basically called bullshit on Brown.

Usually a player will make an accusation like this if there is something to gain. But the only thing I can figure out Brown had to gain was the label of idiot. So Tim Brown, for starting the second craziest story involving a Notre Dame player last week, you are an idiot.

The Super Bust

Welcome one and all to this year’s Super Bust! I still await the official inception of this great game, but alas Commissioner Goodell seems too busy giving lip service to player safety, trying to find a new angle sell expanded playoffs and angering the good people of New Orleans to be bothered with this gem of a game. No matter, the game will go on, if only in the twinkling lights of our imagination. And perhaps one day, we can all sit in a stadium far off and witness this beautiful game in actuality.

As stated upon its inception, The Super Bust would match the two consensus pre season favorites to play in the Super Bowl, yet failed to get there, against each other. This game allows a great many things to happen. As we detailed in the past, here is a partial list of everything the Super Bust would provide.

§         A chance for two fan bases to see their team in action one more time before next season

§         An added opportunity for one team to end their season with a win.

§         Some extra earnings for players

§         A chance for each organization to strengthen their team monetarily and physically with added income as well as additional draft choices

§         An opportunity to show how futile picking Super Bowl winners before the season really is

§         An extra football game when we really need one

§         A weekend of football and fun in Las Vegas

§         A perfect excuse to go to Las Vegas (like you need one anyway)

§         An excuse to have another big game party, this one where the game really does not matter

§         A chance to use the game as a warm up to your real party the next week for the Super Bowl. Try out those far out recipes you think may not work on the real game day.  Almost like a Party Pre Season.

§         Staving off football withdraw for another two weeks

§         Another game for the NFL Network to air, giving more practice to both their broadcast crews and technical crews as well as increasing demand for the network itself

§         Something for the sports media to talk about during the dead time when all other Super Bowl stories and angles have been beaten to death

§         food and service industries seeing a bigger bump in production and sales, thus adding more stimulus to the economy

§         Businesses around the world that have a stake in football seeing an increased profit, adding even more stimulus to the economy

§         The advertising industry having another forum to debut killer commercials, almost like an exhibition commercial season

§         Better play from the preseason favorites during the regular season, since none of them would want to play in the Super Bust

Just to refresh everyone’s memory, since it is a long season, here were our preseason picks to make it to our big game.

2012 Preseason Consensus Super Bowl Favorites:

NFC – Green Bay Packers

AFC – New England Patriots

Strangely enough, both teams were the 2011 Preseason consensus favorites as well.

Alternates:

NFC – San Francisco 49ers

AFC – Baltimore Ravens

Weird.......

So this year, the NFC entrant will be Green Bay Packers, who battled through injury issues all season but could not overcome the 49ers in the Divisional round.

The AFC entrant will indeed be the New England Patriots, who could not manage to pull it together to stave off Baltimore at home. So very sad, such a once glorious franchise left in tatters.

My Super Bust pick this year will be….New England! I cannot wait to see how it turns out!

The actual "results" will be revealed in our big Super Bowl blowout. Stay tuned.

The Crystal Ball 2012 The Championships

New year, new team, new receivers, new lease on life, new career. Same results. Peyton Manning, one and done in the playoffs.

Opening Kickoff

Oh come on universe! Start balancing out as you're supposed to! I mean really, the Harbaugh's championship weekend again???? Man!

The Way It Was

What is with teams anymore? Does no one have the temerity or gumption to stand up and exact revenge? Does no one have the desire and want to smite those who previously defeated them? The Packers had perfect chance to stick it to 49ers for humiliating them on their own field in Week 1, yet they went out and played like they haven't practiced in weeks. Plus, the 49ers passed on Rodgers. shouldn't his blood have been boiling at the chance to stick it to them, on their field, in front of their fans, for passing on him in favor of Alex "all but forgotten" Smith? And Houston, you were no better. So much for getting back at the team that humiliated you a month ago. Yeesh.

Broncos 35 - Ravens 35 Double OT

At kick off the temperature was 13 degrees. At the beginning of the third quarter it was 11 degrees with wind chill of -1. Brrrrr.

For a while, I did enjoy this game. I found it hilarious that John Harbaugh, the former special teams coach, was getting burned by Trendon Holliday and the Broncos special teams units. That was hilarious.

But what I didn't enjoy was watching the Ravens defensive unit getting away with everything. Paul Kruger and Haloti Ngata both had late hits on Manning after he released the ball. Neither were called for the obvious penalties. At least now Peyton Manning knows how Ben Roethlisberger feels twice a season.

The Ravens defense was given such ridiculous leeway, I'm convinced that during Wild Card weekend, when Goodell and Lewis had their uncomfortable bro hug, Lewis whispered in Roger's ear "if we don't win the Super Bowl, I'll cut you."

And then in overtime, the calls against Denver were more questionable. Heck, even Dan Dierdorf was openly questioning a few of them. They were obviously wrong, and so obvious that it got to the point where you had to wonder, what was the payoff?

Regardless, as I often say good teams will overcome such things. Denver, however could not, and it was their own fault. I ask how, if you have 8 men in coverage, do you allow a long touchdown pass with less than a minute to play in the game when the only play for the losing team is to score a touchdown? Jack del Rio's defensive calls late in the game were questionable, at best.

And speaking of questionable, can we all just say that questionable should be the status granted to John Fox as a head coach? Why not at least take a shot at winning the game in regulation? Everyone knows you can get Tebowed in overtime, why take that chance of playing for a tie? Fox had the better quarterback and was at home. why not take a chance to win the game outright?

49ers 45 - Packers 31

Woof.

Damn it Dom Capers, its no wonder you failed everywhere as a head coach. At this point I'm shocked you were ever successful as a defensive coordinator. You cannot heavy blitz a mobile quarterback, because if they break contain, they'll gain 20 yards before anyone stops them. And that's how a second year quarterback with a total of 8 career starts gains 181 yards rushing and the opposing offense games almost 600 total yards.

I like the Packers and Mike McCarthy, but he had best rethink his defensive philosophy after that horrific performance.

Patriots 41 - Texans 28

Was this the same game from a few weeks ago? If not it sure looked like it.

Well there was one difference. All wonderful defensive end J.J. Watt danced and stomped on the Patriots' logo before the game. Watt, who must have been celebrating a chance to get back at New England for whipping the Texans' ass, then proceeded to do next to nothing of impact throughout the game. Good job Swatt.

The only surprise to me was that New England stopped at 41 points.

Falcons 30 - Seahawks 28

Well, that was an exciting ending, no? Atlanta tried their darnedest to give that game away to Seattle. And to the Seahawks credit, they tried as hard as possible to take the game. Taking the lead with less than a minute left in the game was epic, especially considering they were down by 20 points at the beginning of the 4th quarter.

But Mike Smith did something John Fox didn't. He sent his offense out and put them to work, Atlanta got a few quick plays in and then the game winning field goal. It wasn't pretty, but it was effective. And now they finally know how it feels to win in the playoffs.

The Steel Pit

This week, general manager Kevin Colbert hit the airwaves and made the big announcement that change is coming to the Steelers, and pretty much no one's job is safe. Hopefully that foreshadows a very interesting off season in the Burgh.

In the next few weeks, I'll have my own take on such things.

Only In Faux NFL Reality…

Stevan Ridley rocks moon boots in the Patriots locker room. Now that's style!

While he expects to be released from the Jets, Tim Tebow does not know what the future will hold for him. Come on, there has to be one quarterback coach in the NFL who can mold this potential into something special.

Well, the Patriots will be without Rob Gronkowski for the remainder of the playoffs. I guess Tom Brady will have to throw it to one of his other dozen targets.

The big story of the playoffs seems to be Ray Lewis' impending retirement. Well, I prefer to follow the story of the potential retirement of Tony Gonzalez, who in his storied career finally last week experienced his first playoff victory. It's nice to see a good guy have a good day.

Jovan Belcher was drunk when he died. S let me guess, he got hammered, got in an argument with his girlfriend, lashed out like a child and killed her. When he realized what he did he figured its jail or death and he chose death. What a waste.

The Chargers have opted to not explore this Los Angeles market this year and will remain in San Diego for the 2013 season. Whoopee.

Upon Further Review

John Elway risked everything in order to get rid of fan favorite media sensation Tim Tebow. He risked alienating his fan base, hamstringing his franchise for the next five years, losing out on the multitude of media opportunities having a player as popular worldwide as Tebow on his team. He even took a risk on a damaged goods Peyton Manning to make the deal palatable. He did everything possible to rid himself of Tim Tebow, the man he didn't think was worthy of filling his shoes as quarterback for the Denver Broncos. Well, everything except helping Tebow become a better quarterback.

After a wild season where Peyton looked 10 years younger and Tebow rotted on the bench in New York, the results for Denver between 2011 and 2012 were exactly the same. Eliminated in the Divisional Round. Well, one thing is different. This year they have Tim's brother Peter tweaking the team through Twitter.

How's that trade working out now, John?

Ok, it's as simple as this. I was actively rooting for Denver. They had a strong, likeable team, a pretty good fan base and if they put together a run, they could eliminate 3 of my least favorite teams, and two of my most hated. Just an awesome setup to an exciting post season. But they blew it. Badly. And I'm ticked at them. So now, I'm gonna tweak them.

So, the Broncos secondary gets fooled by Baltimore's offensive alignment and gets burned for a bomb pass play for a touchdown. Hmmm, funny, just like last year in the playoffs, but from the other side.

John Fox made more than a few curious calls. But we'll save them for later. Oh yes, you know what he's getting.

Peyton Manning's career record as a playoff starter 9-11

Tim Tebow's career record as a playoff starter 1-1

Sure you made the right call there, Elway?

See how Colin Kaepernick's doing it in San Francisco? A little instruction from a former Super Bowl winning QB on how to improve passing accuracy and Tebow could have been the same thing in Denver. Now, if Denver only had any of those in their employ...

I checked his driver's license, and his official legal name is Chump Bailey.

I loved how all last season Elway kept harping about how terrible a passer Tebow was, how he couldn't complete passes, make the big throws and wasn't good enough to shine in the big moments. And then this year Manning, the high priced savior, makes the worst throw at the worst time, is picked off and blows the game.

Peyton had to use gloves to keep his hands warm. No surprise there, but I find it curious this article stated that his grip on the ball becomes more challenging in cold weather due to nerve damage. Hmmmm, you would think home stadia temperature should have been in Manning's decision on where to play last off season.

When the shocked team returned to clean out their lockers, Manning did not make himself available to the members of the media present for interviews, like most of his teammates did. Peyton, you turned the ball over three times, with the third turnover being the back breaker. You're the leader of the team and the man everyone looks to for answers in good times and bad. You had best make yourself available and stand tall before the man.

The call has been out for years to anoint Peyton Manning as the greatest quarterback of all time, better than others more proven in the post season. I have resisted this call in the same way I have resisted the call to anoint Dan Marino the same crown. I have never denied either being a great quarterback, but there has to be something more in the post season to be considered the greatest, at least in my opinion. And I have discussed this issue previously at length.

Well, now, after this latest defeat, his 8th one and done in the playoffs, 2-9 in playoff games that came down to the final few minutes, and his overall 9-11 playoff record, everyone now is starting to say what I pointed out years ago. Peyton Manning is a great quarterback, but he cannot get it done when it matters most, like Tom Brady, Joe Montana or Terry Bradshaw.

Duck Duck Coach

Jacksonville Jaguars - Jacksonville introduced Gus Bradley, the former defensive coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks, as their new head coach. Was that a good idea? Did you see Seattle's defense give up all that yardage on 2 plays in 20 seconds last week? Woof.

Philadelphia Eagles - The Eagles, as it's been said, got their man. After interviewing with Cleveland and Philadelphia, then saying he was staying at Oregon, Chip Kelly changed his mind again and accepted the Eagles head coaching job. Wow, I wonder how the Browns feel today.

Chicago Bears - Chicago went north of the border and hired Marc Trestman, who had been coaching in the CFL, as their new head coach. Good luck with Jay Cutler Marc.

San Diego Chargers - San Diego hired Mike McCoy, former offensive coordinator for Denver, as their new head coach. McCoy then hired Ken Whisenhunt as his new offensive coordinator. Dang.

Arizona Cardinals - Arizona once again looked to Pittsburgh's offense for their new head coach, and hired former offensive coordinator.....Bruce Arians. No! Wrong one! Oh well. Hey good for Bruce, especially since he retired last January.

And with that, all the head coaching vacancies have been filled, and this little nugget disappears until next season, when different head coaches will be canned and the merry go round begins anew.

He Said He Said

"Tim Tebow won an overtime home playoff game in Denver 12 months before Peyton Manning lost an overtime home playoff game in Denver. And he won it on an 80-yard touchdown pass. This happened. We were there." - Grantland.com's Bill Simmons

Insert maniacal snickering here.

"I was on the ground crying, like a little baby." - Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez after his first career playoff victory

Now how can you not root for someone like that to go all the way and win the Super Bowl?

"And, of course, Flacco threw the 70-yard answered prayer of a touchdown to Jones to force overtime. Pittsburgh has the Immaculate Reception. Baltimore, it's on you now: Name that play." - Si.com's Peter King

Oh come on, you are seriously not comparing Denver's blown coverage, and Flacco hoping to get lucky with a pass interference call, to one of the greatest plays in NFL history, are you?

"Contrary to reports, I have no plans on coaching. I plan on being with one team, and that is this team here at CBS." - CBS analyst Bill Cowher on The NFL Today

Ummm Bill, those reports came about because you said, I will return to coaching. What a jagoff.

"I don't want to be categorized." - 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick when asked if he was a running or passing quarterback

Sorry Colin, but people are going to want to do that. It's the nature of how the media treats star players and guess what, you're a star now.

"It is my fault. When the play was on the line, I didn't make it for our team. If I would have made that play, we'd have been in here rejoicing. I'm speechless right now. I don't even know what to say." Broncos safety Rahim Moore on the blown coverage that allowed Baltimore to tie the game in the 4th quarter

Got himself Flaccoed.

"I kept playing it back in my head. It's like a bad dream that keeps playing over and over." - Broncos wide receiver Brandon Stokley

I couldn't agree more.

Idiot of the Week

There were some tasty choices this week. But no surprise there since everybody brings it for the playoffs.

My runner up, and almost winner, was this video from the good men and women of the Baltimore police department cheering on their Ravens. No, the absurdity and irony of law enforcement officials cheering on Ray Lewis was not lost on me.

But the real winner is Denver head coach John Fox. Twice in last week's loss to Baltimore, Fox had Peyton Manning kneel on the ball to end a quarter. Twice. Each time there was 30 + seconds on the clock and at least 2 timeouts available. Yet each time, instead of a few quick passes from one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history to get into field goal range, Fox chose to kneel.

Worse, near the end of the 4th quarter, the Broncos had a three play sequence in which all they did was run the ball three times, barely scraped time off the clock and gave the ball back to Baltimore with time left. Then, with that time, Baltimore proceeded to do the only thing they could, and the only thing Denver should have been defending against, throw a deep pass for a touchdown.

But the final straw for me is in the ensuing week, Fox not only defended his decision to have Manning kneel at the end of the game, but John Elway agreed with his play call. So for his inexplicable play calling, foolish defense of it and making his boss an accomplice to his excuses, John Fox you are an idiot.

On Tap This Week

Please no Har-Bowl, please no Har-Bowl, please no Har-Bowl....

Well, from the standpoint of a Steelers fan, just about every bad thing that could happen last weekend did. Ugh. Plus, I didn't do so well.

Last week: 1-3

Season to Date: 165-95

Yeah, there's always next week. But I'm running out of weeks.

Sunday

San Francisco (12-4-1) at Atlanta (14-3)

Ok, I'm sick of everyone saying that Jim Harbaugh is bold for changing quarterbacks mid season. How is that bold? What it really is him trying to cover up a mistake. Bold would have been just coming out and saying, you know what, I should have went with the other guy from training camp on. I'm fixing that. Or bold would have been not resigning Smith and just going with Kaepernick in the off season. Using Smith's concussion as an excuse to change quarterbacks isn't bold, its sneaky and cowardly. Because of this he will not win.

And on the other side, Atlanta finally got past the first hurdle of winning a playoff game. Watch what kind of confidence that builds in this team.

Falcons over 49ers

Baltimore (12-6) at New England (13-4)

Joe Flacco is now 7-4 in the playoffs and playing in his third AFC title game in five seasons. Hey, he'll be a free agent after the season, perhaps John Elway should give him a call.

Now, as if New England needed motivation, which they don't, Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo provided it. Ayanbadejo tweeted a bunch of smack talk about New England, and basically provided the team bulletin board material. Then, like a big chicken, he backed off his comments and apologized. Man, that's not how this works. Brendon, if you poke the bear you had best be ready to wrestle.

It matters not, though. Back in Week 3, New England lost to Baltimore and got jobbed in the process. I'm willing to bet that Bill Belichick remembers that quite vividly and will not let this opportunity to humiliate the Ravens pass by.

Patriots over Ravens

The Crystal Ball 2012 The Divisionals

Due to his heroic performance Sunday, returning from a torn triceps muscle, jumping on the pile after the tackle a game high 13 times and bravely performing his seizure dance not once but twice, the NFL bypassed their normal criteria and immediately awarded Ray Lewis the Comeback Player of the Year Award.

Opening Kickoff

I don't know what's worse; having to hear the Ravens crowd chant the obnoxious Seven Nation Army like some drunken college crowd or enduring the following week of the Ray Ray farewell tour.

The Way It Was

Texans 19 - Bengals 13

Obviously the Texans haven't learned that when you let a bad team hang around, they will come back to bite you. And the Bungles almost had a bite.

Andy Dalton needs to learn he has other receiving options than AJ Green. As the game wears on, all a defense has to do is triple cover Green. Dalton seems to forget everyone else is there.

Mike Mayock needed to settle down. Yes, J.J. Watt is a great defensive end. Yes he's exciting. Yes, he's awesome at getting his hands up and batting down passes. But the man has played for two seasons. Are you serious in calling him the greatest pass blocker of all time?

Oh and Mike, just for clarification. When the defense commits a penalty and allows the offense to keep the ball in what would have been an obvious punting situation is not like a turnover. It's like a defensive miscue that keeps a drive alive.

I think Mike had too much caffeine before the game. Perhaps he should have shared some with the teams playing.

Houston was so underwhelming in outlasting an ineffectual Bengal attack, that I'm not convinced they didn't just re-air last year's Wild Card game between these two teams. Prove me wrong.

Packers 24 - Vikings 10

Minnesota was hamstrung before the game even began when the team deactivated quarterback Christian Ponder due to injury. Not that Ponder is Aaron Rodgers, but he's a slight bit better than backup Joe Webb, who started the game in his stead.

The NBC pregame personnel drove me nuts trying to sell the viewing public on Joe Webb. To hear Tony Dungy talk, Webb was RGIII Lite. After watching his performance, Webb wasn't even one legged RGIII.

Minnesota would have been better off starting Adrian Peterson at quarterback and just putting in an extra blocker. It couldn't have been worse. As it stands, the Packers focused on stopping Peterson, the Viking offense could then do nothing and the game was never as close as the final score.

Ravens 24 - Colts 9

The Colts were riding high with Chuckstrong, but were derailed by the emotional return of Ray Lewis and the sidelining of their offensive coordinator Bruce Arians, who was admitted to the hospital with an undisclosed illness before the game. That is never a good sign for a team trying to win on the road. As it stands, the Colts did not win, nor did they even come close. Their offense stagnated and eventually Baltimore's defense just began blitzing like crazy, overwhelming young Andrew Luck.

I'm going to give Chuck Pagano some slack because he was at a gigantic disadvantage having been around the team so little all season and his right hand, Arians, was in the hospital. But more coaches need to recognize when you settle for field goals, you show your opponent you do not have the cajones to go for the win and are willing to accept a close loss. Any half decent opponent will pounce on that and stomp the tar out of you. Pagano settled for his 4th field goal, which promptly missed. The Ravens jumped on this and scored a touchdown putting the game essentially out of reach. Never settle.

Ray Ray returned for his last home game, and it was just like old times. Lewis played enthusiastically, jumping on the pile after the tackle like a man 5 years younger.

ok, I felt dumber for having watched Ray Ray's little pregame dance/seizure. But I have to ask, what s with the block of sod they bring out for him to rip apart? Do we really need props? Shouldn't that draw a penalty for celebration with props? Isn't that unsportsmanlike conduct? Is he a secret vegetarian and needs to graze before the game? Why doesn't he just throw around Joe Flacco? I don't get it.

Oh, and a quick note to everyone falling all over themselves to anoint Lewis as the greatest middle linebacker of all time. Ray Nitschke, Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert and Mike Singletary would all like to have a word with you about forgetting history. And Patrick Willis and Von Miller would like to remind you all of the present and future.

Seahawks 24 - Redskins 14

The Redskins tore out of the gate scoring touchdowns on their first two drives. Everything went drastically downhill from there.

I'm not going to bust Mike Shanahan's chops too hard. I think everyone has been teeing off on him pretty thoroughly all week. Actually I give him some leeway, because if he would have been cautious and sat RGIII, and Washington lost with Cousins at quarterback, people would have raked Shanahan over the coals for sitting RGIII.

But like everyone, I must wonder if Shanahan only screwed up this Redskins season by keeping a clearly hobbled RGIII in a game far too long until or did he screw up the Redskins for years to come by continuing to play their dynamic franchise player on what turned out to be a torn ACL and MCL and causing permanent damage that could forever alter his game.

At this point, any argument is moot. RGIII had surgery, his rehab will commence during the off season and Washington fans can only hope that RGIII has the same recuperative abilities as Adrian Peterson. Otherwise, 2013 could be a dismal season.

The Steel Pit

Not much going on with the boys in Black and Gold. But a few of the nuggets from around the Burgh.

Art Rooney II, who talks with the press about Steeler business and his thoughts on the team more often than I think his father and grandfather did combined, gave both Todd Haley and Mike Tomlin his vote of confidence this week. Usually, I would signal that as the death kneel for a coach. I'm not sure what to think now.

Running back Chris Rainey was arrested in Florida for simple battery after an altercation with a woman over a cell phone. The Steelers promptly released him from the team.

And finally, defensive end Brett Keisel will be hosting his third annual "Shear da Beard" event, with the proceeds going to Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. No matter how good or bad a season is, at least recently I always feel good about this event. Thanks Brett, and thanks as well to Brett's wife who puts up with that crazy beard for 6 months a year!

Only In Faux NFL Reality…

A bar in Green Bay put up a sign to taunt Adrian Peterson for coming up short in his quest to break the single season rushing yardage record. While funny, I have to ask, did any Green Bay running back even have 9 yards of rushing all season?

Ok, I believe we've all seen Rex Ryan's disturbing tattoo, that I'm sure more than a few therapists would love to talk with Rex about in great detail. At least it explains in part his unwavering support for Mark Sanchez.

Colts head coach Chuck Pagano wrote a letter to the city of Indianapolis, thanking them for their support. I hope Pagano turns out to be a good head coach, because if so, this could be the start of a beautiful relationship.

Colts offensive coordinator Bruce Arians, who missed the Colts/Ravens game due to being hospitalized for an undisclosed illness, was finally released from the hospital Wednesday. I feel bad for Arians, right at the pinnacle of a transcendent season for him, he gets felled by illness. The lesson here, everyone, is get your flu shot.

CBS studio analyst Bill Cowher announced that he will return to coaching one day. What fantastic news for the 12 people who still cared.

What's this? A rooting guide for the playoffs for fans of teams that didn't make the post season? Oh for the love of gravy, you're a bit late ESPN, I've had this covered for awhile.

The Vikings practiced for their Wild Card game indoors as head coach Leslie Frazier did not want to contend with the sub zero temperatures. Well, now he can watch the playoffs from his warm living room never fearing cold weather.

The Hall of Fame released their list of 15 finalists. It should be interesting who makes the cut in a few weeks.

New Jaguars GM David Caldwell stated in no uncertain terms the team is not interested in the services of Tim Tebow. Awwwww, come on Caldwell, don't suck the life out of the party as soon as you get there. Boy, this guy knows nothing about marketing or exciting a fan base.

This story about Peyton Manning's simplified offense and favorite play makes me think of the 1960s Packers, who did the same thing with the Power Sweep. My question, and not in a condemning fashion but out of genuine curiosity, is why didn't Indianapolis win more championships? The Packers ruled the 1960s running the Power Sweep. Was it something else lacking on the Colts, or was it increased games and competition that held Indianapolis back from more championships. Inquiring minds want to know.

Upon Further Review

The race for NFL MVP this season has been wide open, with more than a few worthy candidates throwing their helmets into the ring. The two favorites are also the favorites for Comeback Player of the Year, Vikings running back Adrian Peterson and Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning. And while I think both are tremendous players deserving of the honor, and there are no bad choices, I believe this year the award should be bestowed upon Peterson.

Undoubtedly Manning has had a remarkable year, reverting back to his all pro form of which we have become accustomed and doing it with a new team, coaches, teammates and fans. And his comeback is just as inspirational as Peterson's. However last season Denver was a playoff team. Yes, they were 8-8 and faded down the stretch, and they did not make it past the Divisional round, but they still did well and the talent was still there. Conversely, last season Minnesota won 3 games while breaking in a rookie quarterback.

This season in Denver, the addition of Manning added 5 wins to the team's record, equaled last season's division title and added a first round bye. So no matter what happens, they will at least progress as far as they did in last year's playoffs.

This season in Minnesota, Peterson recovered from ACL surgery in a way no player has ever done before, came within 8 yards of breaking the all time single season rushing yardage record, added 7 wins to the team's total and took them into the playoffs. This was done all while every opponent knew Peterson would be the focal point of the offense and geared themselves to stop him. They could not.

Peterson is the Vikings, if you take him away, I'd be shocked if the team won 2 games, let alone make the playoffs. Plus, for their playoff game, Peterson volunteered for punt blocking and kick return duties. That is the kind of desire and sacrifice you see from a winner, a leader and a most valuable player.

No one player is more valuable to his team than Peterson. He is the literal definition of MVP and the award should be his. The Vikings loss to the Packers in the Wild Card round solidified it for me. The Packers knew they did not have to worry about Joe Webb at quarterback, and sold out to stop Peterson. Despite this, Peterson still had almost 100 yards rushing.

At this time, the NFL is a quarterback league and most likely Peterson will not win the award in favor of Manning. And while Manning would be a great choice as well, and it would be hard to argue against him, I believe this year it should be given to Peterson. Manning's had this award, quarterbacks get it all the time. This year, I hope the voters do something a little different.

Duck Duck Coach

Jacksonville Jaguars - The team hired David Caldwell to be their new general manager. And his first act on the job was to fire current head coach Mike Mularkey. When the rumor mill stated Mularkey could be fired this year, I wonder if their assessments meant this year before next season.

Cleveland Browns - The Browns did the usual Brown stuff and hired Panthers offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski as their 6th head coach since 1999. Oh Cleveland.

New York Jets - In order to deflect more blame, the Jets also fired offensive coordinator Tony Sparano after one season. Keep going, there's one more coaching big cheese that needs to go. Don't stop now.

Philadelphia Eagles - No word yet on a new head coach, but Denver's Mike McCoy did interview with the team.

Chicago Bears - No word yet, although Bruce Arians has been mentioned as a potential candidate.

Buffalo Bills - The team tabbed Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone as the new head Bill. Hey, there's always hope.

San Diego Chargers - The team named Tom Telesco as their new general manager. With Telesco in place, I imagine the coaching search will begin in earnest.

Arizona Cardinals - Well, they interviewed Todd Haley. I wish they had just given him the job.

Dallas Cowboys - Jerry Jones vowed that changes would be made. So instead of doing the smartest change, firing the general manager, he fired defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. Not a bad move, but more could be done.

To fix all that ails the Cowboys, Jones rushed his search, ignored potential better available candidates and then hired Monte Kiffin as the team's new defensive coordinator. Kiffin was just recently let go from his position of defensive coordinator at USC, where he worked for and was fired by his son Lane.

You know it's never a good idea when the owner dictates who the coordinators should be. For an example, see the Pittsburgh Steelers, 2012 edition.

St. Louis Rams - Huh, I guess Rob Ryan was right. St. Louis hired him as their new defensive coordinator.

He Said He Said

"Everyone in America wants to see Brady and Manning rekindle a classic rivalry." - NFL.com's Adam Schein

No, everyone does not. The thought of 7 days of build up and non stop 24/7 of PEYTON TOM PEYTON TOM PEYTON TOM PEYTON TOM make me want to preemptively unplug my television until February.

"I love our crowd but they are getting spoiled. They're booing, and we're OK. We're OK, man." - Texans running back Arian Foster on the Houston crowd booing field goal attempts

Sorry Arian, but you're wrong. If your team is settling for field goals, your crowd knows that won't fly against better competition, especially New England.

"It's a tough decision, and you've got to go with your gut. I'm not saying my gut was right. I'll probably second-guess myself." - Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan on playing RGIII

Get in line Mike, because just about everyone is second guessing you right now.

"We wanted to make the day memorable for him. It was an emotional day, not just for Ray, but for everyone in the stadium, and we all wanted to send him off right.'' - Ravens receiver Anquan Boldin on Ray Ray's big day

Good gravy, he's just retiring, he's not dying.

"I love y'all to death! I love y'all to death!" - Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis after the game to his teammates

Too many jokes.....

"I've been a nervous wreck letting him come back as quick as he has. He's doing a lot better this week, but he's still recovering and I'm holding my breath because of it. He passed all the tests and all the functional things we do, but it's been a trying moment for me, to be honest with you." - Dr. James Andrews on RGIII's early return

I wonder if he just screamed I TOLD YOU SO at Mike Shanahan after the game for about three hours.

“I inherited a team that was 31st in the league in defense and made them better. I [expletive] made them a hell of a lot better. I’ll be out of work for like five minutes. I enjoyed my time here. I have no hard feelings. But it doesn’t matter if I coach here or not. I will find another spot. I’m too damn good.” - defensive coordinator Rob Ryan after getting fired from the Cowboys

Kids, remember. There exists a fine line between self confidence and arrogant douchebaggery. The Ryan brothers do not know this line exists. Please learn from their mistake.

Idiot of the Week

My goodness, so many good choices this week. To whom should we bestow the crown of idiot?

Oh, sure, this week we could give it to Mike Shanahan, for his terrible management of his injured franchise quarterback.

Or we could give it to Roger Goodell, for his uncomfortable man hug and obvious sucking up to Ray Lewis before the Ravens/Colts game.

We could even give it to Ray Ray himself for once again inflicting that spastic body heave he calls a dance on the football viewing public again last week, twice.*Shudder*

But this week I think we'll give the award to Seahawks fullback Michael Robinson for forgetting not only for what industry he works but also where he lives.

After the Seahawks/Redskins game, Robinson complained in the press about the field conditions at Fed Ex Field. No surprise there, this was a common sentiment amongst the game participants and the media as well. Robinson started his comments directed at commissioner Goodell, and at first, he had a great point.

"You care about us, but you don't mandate mouthpieces. You care about us, but we play on that field last week that was like, 'Really? Really?'"

Heck yeah! I've been preaching that for two years! I'm with you Michael! Goodell does not care about you. He also doesn't mandate concussion reducing helmets, which would show he does give a modicum of a damn! Preach on!

"That should be illegal. That's like working in a sweat shop to me."

Ummm, what? Did he really say that? Ok, it's my turn. Really Michael, really? First off, every physical job in this country has some percentage of crappy working conditions. Not dangerous, not against the law, just crappy. Just ask any logger, or coal miner, or locker room attendant. There's nothing illegal about it, it just sucks.

Second, allow me to ask you a few questions. Do you work more than 14 hours a day? Do you work 7 days a week? Do you receive less food than it would take to properly nourish a terrier? Are you not allowed regular breaks during your work day for food, water or usage of the bathroom? Are you not paid a living wage, or about 10 times more than a living wage? If you answered no to any of these questions, THEN YOU ARE NOT WORKING IN A SWEAT SHOP.

Just comparing playing professional football, making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to do so, on a unkempt field to working in a sweat shop might be the dumbest thing I've heard all season. Michael Robinson, you are an idiot.

On Tap This Week

Woof, rough start. Lost one of my playoff horses and the opportunity for an undefeated post season right out of the gates.

Last week: 3-1

Season to Date: 164-92

My favorite part of every playoff game during Wild Card weekend and Divisional Round weekend is the same moment. It comes late in the third quarter, the two teams have overcome their jitters and first half miscues. They have shaken off halftime and are playing the purest football they will play all game. It is at this moment, as the two teams are battling, that I have the same strangest moment of clarity. One of these teams have less than 20 minutes left in their season. I love that moment. The finality of the end game that is approaching is so poetic, so tragic for the vanquished.

There are only 4 of these moments left this season. Enjoy them to the fullest.

Saturday

Baltimore (11-6) at Denver (13-3)

It has taken until the divisional round of the playoffs. But finally, finally I have the elite quarterback I've needed all season to expose this crappy Raven defense. Well, I had one, but Kansas City made sure he was unavailable to play Baltimore. Stupid sack injury. Come on Peyton you red -foreheaded dingus, its high time you learned to play outdoors, in the cold, in January. The only problem with Denver eliminating Baltimore will be the endless Peyton Manning stories. I guess that's better than the endless Ray Lewis stories to which we've been subjected.

Broncos over Ravens

Green Bay (12-5) at San Francisco (11-4-1)

Green Bay will make up for their Week 1 embarrassment at home and continue on their inevitable march to a rematch showdown with Seattle. Conversely, Jim Harbaugh will finally look foolish and pay for his arrogance of switching quarterbacks mid stream. Come on, you knew that chicken had to come home to roost.

Packers over 49ers

Sunday

Seattle (12-5) at Atlanta (13-3)

Here's your upset of the week. But considering how few people are on Atlanta's bandwagon, is it really an upset? I'll tell you what. If Atlanta wins, then I'll believe in them. But they won't. Seattle has to face Green Bay again.

Seahawks over Falcons

Houston (13-4) at New England (12-4)

Ok, I know any given Sunday, and every team has a chance, and you have to be good to make it to the playoffs and every other platitude, motivational quote and optimistic viewpoint that can be applied to this game. But you know what? I saw what New England did to Houston a few weeks back. And I have yet to see anything from Houston that tells me they can correct and overcome that kind of butt whupping. Plus, it's inevitable that I must be annoyed for the next 7 days.

Patriots over Texans