The Detroit Lions are poised to make history as the first 0-16 team!
The 2008 season actually concludes in 2008 this year and what a year it’s been! From just minutes into the season with the severe knee injury suffered by New England Quarterback, Tom Brady, NFL fans knew this year would play out very differently from last. On “Judgment Day” New England will probably find itself outside looking in unless they win and Baltimore loses for the final wildcard berth. However, they could win and the New York Jets could defeat Miami then New England would assume their customary spot atop the division regardless of what the Ravens do.
The Steelers won the AFC North just as most rational fans thought they would; however, the team that will likely finish one game behind them or could even their record but lose due to tiebreakers is not the Cleveland Browns, it’s the Baltimore Ravens who with rookie coach, Jim Harbaugh, rookie Quarterback, Joe Flacco, the usual defensive bully tactics lead by Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, and then supported by a cast of improbable with a huge number of players out for the year could face them again at Heinz field having played them close in two loses earlier in the season. Meanwhile, Cleveland will have to win and hope Cincinnati loses against a weaker Kansas City at home to stay out of last place. Whom does Cleveland play? Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh. There will be dawgs put to sleep from Cleveland’s “Dawg Pound” on Sunday for sure.
The AFC South looks different this year. Many would have seen Jacksonville, the team that dominated Pittsburgh last year as the team that could knock off the Colts for that division’s top spot. Instead, it was the Tennessee Titans under the leadership of veteran journeyman Quarterback Kerry Collins instead of Vince Young who freaked out early in the season. Jacksonville is nowhere to be found scrubbing up the bottom of the division while Houston struggles for a win on Sunday to break even. The Colts will head to the playoffs as the fifth seed. Early season chaos and Peyton Manning far from 100% found the Colts not doing well in September, but after obliterating the Ravens who had far from proven themselves yet, the Colts have been one of the most dominant teams in the league.
Out west, the AFC is a disgrace. Odds are this division will be won by a team with only a .500 record. How does that make teams in other divisions with better marks feel that don’t get a wild card berth. The bottom line is that Oakland and Kansas City, two horrible teams, played even worse than expected. The San Diego Chargers expected to run away with the division stated off horribly and never hit stride becoming more and more like just another mediocre Norv Turner team, while the Denver Broncos at 8-7 had one hell of a flimsy defense and offense that was madly erratic. San Diego wins today in San Diego, they win the division at 8-8!
In the NFC, the New York Giants have dominated everything in the east but have turned a little soft in the final month of the season. Could this be partially due to star receiver, Plaxico Burris’s misdeeds and banishment for the season or just getting soft from being on top all year? Meanwhile, Dallas, who looked given up for dead after a stunning defeat in their last game at Texas Stadium against Baltimore last Saturday night had everything turn in their direction in Sunday to restore them to the last wild card seed. However, they will have to face the other team that has had the wildest soap opera going this year, the Philadelphia Eagles to contend with in Philadelphia to secure that bid. Given how poor they looked last week at home with some obvious weaknesses on both sides to be exploited, Tony Romo’s December record, and the new life shown by the Eagles aside from a stupid loss against Washington since all seemed to be lost in Baltimore in late November, this game belongs to the Eagles as does the final playoff berth. Meanwhile, what to make of the Washington Redskins who must win to maintain a winning season? They started off like gangbusters with Jason Campbell looking brilliant but in the second half of the season, they looked like they couldn’t beat an egg.
The most exciting division in the AFC turned out to be the AFC South where all four teams were in hot competition for most of the season before New Orleans faded and Carolina seemed to take some measure of control. Many would have picked New Orleans to runaway with this division, but they must win to assure themselves a winning season. Meanwhile, Carolina needs a win to stay atop the division. The winner of the South will be the second seed in the playoffs, but who is that possible division winner or number one wild card team? The Atlanta Falcons are! Here’s another story like Baltimore where a rookie coach and rookie quarterback have proven to be successful from day one. So much for the Michael Vick saga. Playing the bridesmaid roll is Tampa Bay who could be the final Wild Card team if Philadelphia beats Dallas. If they lose, it’s Philadelphia’s game should they win.
The story in the NFL North is not about who will win the division as much as it is about who is losing. The Detroit Lions will probably become the first team since the league went to a sixteen game season to lose every game. The Lions have lived up to their reputation as the worst franchise in professional sports where they play in a parity crazed league where it’s almost impossible not to look good every once in awhile. Though they fired General Manager, Matt Millen, who was obviously not suited for the job, nothing has shown any sign of better things ahead since then. The theme of losing also crosses Lake Michigan to Green Bay where the most drama was in the preseason as to whether Brett Favre would be retained. Brett’s gone to be Brett the Jet, and Aaron Rodgers has had mixed results at best. Green Bay will have a losing record regardless of how the last game turns out. They have been particularly weak in the second half of the season. That leaves the winning to either Chicago or Minnesota looking like Chicago facing Houston has a better shot than Minnesota who must travel to face the Giants. If all the other wildcard contenders lose, and both teams win, Chicago goes to the Wild Card game as Minnesota has the tiebreaker.
The NFC West has belonged to Arizona practically all season long but they are limping into January requiring a win to maintain a winning season. San Francisco will finish with at best a 7-9 mark if they beat Washington. Seattle has turned into a sad embarrassment in Coach Mike Holmgren’s last year while the St. Louis Rams have been part of the pack of worst losers this year.
A sad reflection on the 2008 season might be a matter of how bad the bad teams were more than how good the best teams were. There is no clearly dominant team this year. Pittsburgh and Tennessee might be a bit stronger than the field in the AFC, but things look much wider open in the NFC unless the Giants return to the killer status they enjoyed earlier in the season. On the losing end, the late season boost in Cincinnati does not disguise what a miserable failure they’re franchise truly is. The Cleveland Browns have rejoined the bottom feeders showing an operation that seems to respond more to talk show abuse in Cleveland than sound football judgment. The Oakland Raiders have become so desperate fans can only hope for the day Al Davis relinquishes the team for better days while Kansas City has been rebuilding its organization since the death of founding owner, Lamar Hunt. They’re going nowhere until new proven leadership is in place. The Detroit Lions are beyond any kind of intelligent conversation for establishing a blueprint for what it will take for them to ever compete again. This organization needs to do better in every facet of the game and its operation. So much for their fancy new downtown home at Ford’s Field. Of the miserable, St. Louis is probably best poised to escape as their needs are more a matter of finding a new head coach and continuing to reassemble what was the “Greatest Show on Turf.” A team to keep an eye on who could fall into the abyss is Buffalo. Owner, Jack Wilson, is in his 90’s. His guidance for the team’s future is limited, but the plans for the future have not been well established. Ralph Wilson stadium is an obsolete dump that still attracts decent local crowds but lacks all the goodies like luxury suites that are a part of today’s football picture. That they played one game in Toronto earlier this month could be an omen for the future. There’s lots of money in Canada’s richest and largest city that could care less about loyalty to the CFL. The Rogers Center is the perfect spot for millionaires to rattle their jewelry. Meanwhile, what other teams might be in worn out stadiums with no team in Los Angeles?
Stories like the Los Angeles saga and many more keep NFL talk going year round. Meanwhile, the focus is on the field for this final week of the 2008 season with three divisions and two wild card spots up for grabs. Let’s look at the games and pick some winners and losers.
St. Louis at Atlanta (-14)
Atlanta will crush St. Louis requiring Carolina to win to stay atop the AFC South.
Oakland at Tampa Bay (-13)
Oakland will do its part folding to their former coach in Tampa. Now other teams must fall just right for Tampa to get the final Wild Card spot.
New England (-6.5) at Buffalo
New England will cream Buffalo and do its part to stay alive for a play off spot. The rest depends on Baltimore losing and the outcome of the Jets versus the Dolphins.
Kansas City at Cincinnati (-3)
Cincinnati will win to give them a three game winning streak to finish the season. Some will take comfort in that but given of the three teams beaten, only Washington was a sure pick to beat them, it means nothing. Both these teams suck.
Detroit at Green Bay (-10)
C’mon, does anybody think Detroit, regardless of how well they’ve played in the first half of some of their games could pull an upset. They are an accident waiting to happen and their rendezvous with football history is secure.
Chicago at Houston (-2.5)
That Houston is a slight favorite to win this game shows how little confidence football experts have in “Dah Bears.” They must play with all they’ve got to beat the Texans. We’ll pick Chicago to win, but it won’t be easy.
Tennessee (-3) at Indianapolis
Both teams have secured their post-season spots so it depends on which team still wants to win the most and which coach sticks with his starters the longest. We’ll go with Indy since Peyton Manning doesn’t know what “let up” means.
New York Giants at Minnesota (-7)
The experts pick the Vikings to cash in on home field advantage and that New York doesn’t have as much to play for. Don’t count on it. The Vikings need to continue to build momentum for January and the Vikings can’t be counted on when games count. We’re going with the Giants.
Carolina (-3) at New Orleans
Carolina needs this game to stay atop their division and the number two playoff spot. It won’t be easy as New Orleans is a tough home team, but Carolina has more at stake in this game. If they win, they’re resting pretty next week. They lose and Atlanta wins, they’re just another wild card.
Miami at New York Jets (-3)
The externals would support the Jets as the home team to win; however, the Jets have lost all momentum in the last few weeks of the season while Miami following Jets’ castoff, Chad Pennington, continues to develop as a franchise. Miami has more life left in them so they are the pick to host being clobbered by the Baltimore Ravens in round one of the playoffs.
Jacksonville at Baltimore (-12)
Doesn’t it feel good to see the Ravens a double-digit favorite for once? Jacksonville is so full of turmoil it will be remarkable to see if a full team reports to Baltimore on Sunday. As long as the Ravens don’t take this game too lightly which seems against the personalities of their leaders, Coach Harbaugh, Ray Lewis, and Joe Flacco, the hometown faithful will enjoy a love fest with their home team on Sunday.
Dallas at Philadelphia (-1.5)
Dallas had the life snuffed out of them on their home turf last Saturday night. They don’t seem like the kind of team that can pull itself together after a terrible embarrassment. Meanwhile, Philadelphia is a team that can bounce back from an unpredicted loss as they looked horrible in DC last week. The Philadelphia fans, those guys who once tossed snowballs at Santa, will be taunting Dallas from their warm-ups onward. The Eagles are a slight favorite but if they have the momentum early in the game, this could be a blowout.
Cleveland at Pittsburgh (-10.5)
The Steelers will treat their fans with a chance to get in fine cheering shape for the playoffs as they face their long time rivals, the Browns, in a game the Steelers should win with ease. Cleveland lost any life it had when Baltimore slaughtered them several weeks ago. They couldn’t even find the spark to beat their cross state rivals in Cincinnati.
Washington at San Francisco (-3)
Two teams that can only dream of what could have been square off in one of the few antique stadiums left in the NFL. To think, a post-season bowl will be held up the road in their baseball stadium! This game comes down to motivation and Mike Singletary probably can instill more in his boys than what’s left in the Redskins. Which team shows up to play wins this stinker. We’ll pick the home boys.
Seattle at Arizona (-6)
Arizona needs this game to secure a winning record. So what if they’ve had a lock on the playoffs since the end of the baseball season? Yes, it is a huge accomplishment for them to win their division, but from this point forward, every game counts again. They need to beat Seattle to show they will have any life in the playoffs.
Denver at San Diego (-8)
Here’s a grudge game if there ever was one. A blown call by an official gave their first game to Denver. San Diego has shown it can play well in the second half of the season. Both these teams are notorious choke artists. Still, San Diego has more to prove than Denver and it is in the Chargers’ house. Only some kind of insane moves by Norv Turner could ruin this game. However, Norv Turner is a bad coach for his lack of leadership and motivation not his play calling. Good-bye Denver.
Our choices lead to a post season that starts like this next week:
AFC
Baltimore at Miami
Indianapolis at San Diego
Pittsburgh, Tennessee stay home.
NFC
Tampa Bay at Arizona
Atlanta at Chicago
Carolina, New York stay home.
It looks like a good setup for all the visiting teams to win, more so in the AFC than NFC. The Divisional round could consist of three teams from the NFC South while the AFC would consist of three teams from the old AFC Central. Strange karma,…
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