Week 17 Recap:

For The Week:
Vs. W/L: (9-7)
Vs. Spread: (11-5)
Vs. +/-: (8-8)

For the Season:
Vs. W/L (149-107)
Vs. Spread: (121-133-2)
Vs. +/-: (120-128-4)

Ending the season with an 11-5 week was a nice way to conclude the rookie year of prognosticating the NFL games. The cbs.sportsline.com expert winner had 126 wins, there was a two-way tie for second with 125 wins and the fourth place expert came in at 124. I came in at 122, beating the fifth and sixth place experts who came in at 116 and 114, respectively.

Week 17 presented more than its share of surprises. Denver lost their shot at a Wild Card slot by tanking it against the 49ers. Kansas City knocked off Jacksonville to earn the 6 Seed against Indy. The Patriots got down and dirty with Tennessee, and resoundingly stuffed the Titans’ trash talk back where it belongs. The bad news was the “quasi-cheap shot” laid upon Rodney Harrison in the first half which may keep him out for the rest of the year. New England plays the Jets on Sunday after Coach Mangini’s boys put the Raiders out of their misery for this season. Detroit went into Big D and put a big hurtin’ on the Cowpokes. Unlike Oakland, the Lions actually have a core of players on which to build a contender. Did you happen to see the touchdown catch Roy Williams made on Sunday? This kid is a major league receiver. Despite Dallas losing, they still backed into the tournament against the dreadful Seahawks.

It was no surprise to see the Denny Green Era come to an abrupt end about four seconds after the final gun went off in Arizona’s 27-20 loss against the Chargers’ JV team. He’ll undoubtedly get another shot somewhere down the line. It wasn’t much of a surprise when Jim Mora was shown the door in Atlanta, either. Considering dealing with an erratic quarterback and an overbearing owner who wants to “play with his toy”, it’s a wonder that Mora lasted three years down there. Not to worry about him, though. He’s got millions stashed away and will get the call from some Big Time college program.

The Eagles proved to be the best story of the year. From a team given up for dead after McNabb’s injury to winning the NFC East is one tremendous accomplishment. They pulled away from the Giants and Cowboys in the closing weeks when both New York and Dallas basically collapsed coming down the stretch. That these two teams also made it into the tournament really demonstrate the competitive disparities between the conferences. If there were a way that someone could beg or plead Tiki Barber to reconsider retirement, that person would be The King of NYC. What an incredible effort he put forth in Saturday Night’s win at Washington. Too bad there were only about 17 people who caught the broadcast on NFL Network and had the pleasure of listening to “Brian Bumbo” belching his way through the broadcast…

Another sorry ending for the Redskins, it’s too bad that the fans can’t fire the owner and keep the coach. This really has to be tough for someone of the character of Joe Gibbs. Maybe Thomas Wolfe was correct when he said, “you can’t go home again.” Surely Gibbs deserved better than this. The owner (the prototypical snot-nosed genius who was hated by all in high school) has generated such ill will that the players cannot help but feel the bad vibrations.

If Sunday night happened to be Brett Favre’s last game, then, what a way to go out on top. It’s not that the Pack dismantled a Bears team that was looking forward to the bye week, it just appeared as if the Bears didn’t care. Historically, that doesn’t bode well for teams going into the playoffs. Perhaps Coach Smith will occupy the lads’ minds with something more substantial than reviewing their press clippings.

The top seeds in the AFC, Ravens and San Diego, are simply a cut above everyone else in the NFL. Steve McNair has to be the Comeback Player of the Year. He’s already been to the Big Dance, so playoff time’s no big deal. Maybe on a day where everything clicked just right, the Patriots might have a shot, but first they have to get by the Jets. Given the state of the rivalry, that promises to be one heck of a fight.

Before looking at Round 1 of the tournament, there are other stories to discuss.