Week 17 Recap/Wild Card Weekend:

For The Week:
vs. W/L: (11-5)
vs. Spread: (11-5)
vs. Aggregate: (3-13)

For The Season:
Vs. W/L: (168-87-1)
Vs. Spread: (136-120-0)
Vs. Aggregate: (123-131-2)

Spread vs. “The CBSSportsline Experts”:

Richard: 142-113-0
Judge: 138-117-0
PFN: 136-120-0
Madden: 129-126-0
Harmon: 129-126-0
“SpiN”: 125-130-0
Prisco: 121-134-0

W/L vs. “USA Today Experts”

Sean Leahy 170-85-1 (.666)
Nate Davis 170-85-1 (.666)
PFN: 168-87-1
Jeff Zillgitt 164-91-1 (.643)
Jarrett Bell 161-94-1 (.631)
Jim Corbett 161-94-1 (.631)
Skip Wood 163-92-1 (.639)
Larry Weisman 157-98-1 (.615)
Tom Pedulla 151-104-1 (.592)

Congratulations to the Miami Dolphins for their incredible turnaround this season, going from 1-15 to 11-5 and winning the AFC East following their 24-17 win against the Jets. How sweet was it for Chad Pennington to return to the Meadowlands and sticking it to the Jets? He was tossed aside like a bad penny following Favre’s trade from Green Bay and responded as a true professional. Coach Mangini’s team won 9 games this year rebounding from a 4-12 campaign in ’07. But after having acquired Favre the expectations were so high that the Coach got canned after the Jets faded down the stretch. The Jets had the division in their back pocket for most of the season before letting it all slip away in December.

It’s hard to believe that New England will be outside looking in after having won 11 games, but that’s the way the wall bounces in this cutthroat sport. It was a cruel result for a team that gave everything they had and never made any excuses. Still, being denied a shot at the playoffs after having overcome such adversity will sting the team and their fans for awhile. The players and staff need not hold their heads in shame, as they played tremendous football without half of their starters on defense and the best quarterback in the League. It will be an interesting off season for the Patriots as they really need to upgrade the defense as the Old Guard is ready for retirement and they need more talent especially in the backfield. Recent reports have Brady’s rehab behind schedule, so the decision to retain Cassel may not be as complicated as originally contemplated.

From a construction standpoint, the most challenging project will be in Detroit (who is now on the clock for the #1 pick). They played their hearts out for the coach, but the former GM/President so mismanaged the roster for so long that the talent level requires a complete overhaul. The problem was not the coach; it’s the lack of talent. No coach (other than Lombardi or Knute Rockne) could’ve gotten more out of such an untalented group than this coach. It’s too bad because ownership made Marinelli walk the plank. The team requires a top-down shakeup starting with a successful executive who will hire a professional support staff who will build a competitive football team. Miami rebuilt themselves in a year, so it can be done.

There are other teams that need to be torn down and reconstructed as well. Starting with Cleveland where the coach and GM were axed. The Browns were down to their third stringer by year’s end and they have enough talent on hand such that there are not many pieces required to return to their form of 2007. The same is true with Seattle, who never recovered from injuries to their key starters. Holmgren will no longer be around to implement the changes as Mora gets a second shot to run an NFL team. In Kansas City, they have a group of young, talented players on defense and appear to be set at quarterback. It’s a question as to whether Coach Herm will be retained. Maybe he’s not the right guy to work with a young group. Another interesting situation to watch will be in Oakland. They won five games this year, which was a somewhat notable accomplishment considering how badly they played most weeks. Last year King Al threw a boatload of money at semi-useless free agents, who played about as badly as the experts predicted. Next year they have to determine whether Russell is a franchise quarterback or a bust. So far, he hasn’t panned out anywhere near the lofty expectations. The Packers had a tough year at 6-10, but it was more of a combination of a hangover after having lost the Conference Finals and the soap opera surrounding Favre in training camp. They have a good team with an up-and-coming quarterback and ought to rebound in ’09. In Cincinnati nothing will change so long as Paul Brown’s son remains on the scene. The sons of successful/gifted fathers carry a terrible burden to duplicate or expand their father’s work; sometimes the wiser course is engage in another vocation or hire professionals who actually have a clue about running a particular enterprise and stay out of harm’s way. The Bungles have talent, but it simply hasn’t jelled under Marvin Lewis. If ownership decides to retain the coach then the first order of business needs to be finding a taker for Ocho Stinko and start putting players in the team who are willing to commit to a team-first concept. Talent without character is wasted.

…which brings us to a discussion of this year’ biggest underachievers, the Dallas Cowboys. How does a team that was expected to compete for the Super Bowl fail to make the playoffs? It all starts at the top, with that meddling narcissistic fraud of an owner who continuously hires the best “names” in the business without an adequate foundation. This year’s crop included the reprobate Pac-Man and Roy Williams (who was acquired from Detroit for several draft picks). The combined production from these two: next to zero. The error is compounded by installing a weak “players’ coach” who has proven to be an effective and capable leader in several tours around the league. Son of Bum is a lousy coach. The HC-in-waiting has hardly proven to be an offensive genius. Son of Bum is not the sort of coach that should be given the keys to a Maserati. For all the hype, what exactly has Tony Romo ever won? In big games, he’s been the ultimate oh-fer. When the team finally rebounded late in the year and had a chance to make the playoffs, there was infighting between TO and Romo and the Cowboys were utterly humiliated in Weeks 16 and 17. The highly vaunted defense provided little more than token resistance. Somewhere, the “Doomsday” greats of old (Lilly, Howley, Jordan, et. al) must be in a state of disbelief. There was simply no excuse for the 44-6 defeat in Philadelphia.

Maybe the decision by Broncos’ ownership to give Shanahan the boot is not as shocking as the talking heads on ESPN portrayed things (devoting the first 14 minutes to Monday Night’s “Sportscenter” broadcast. Since Elway retired, the Broncos haven’t exactly set the league on fire and have been going sideways for the past couple of seasons. It was no surprise that they were blown out in San Diego. Besides, there are a lot of football aficionados who are not sold on Cutler. Maybe it was time to shake things up for all parties concerned. Should Shanahan be in the market for a job, there are plenty of openings available and he won’t have to wait long…

January Football Begins:

So, now it’s on to the tournament. It won’t be as much fun watching without a dog in the fight, but there are some intriguing matchups in the opening round. When was the last time that all our road teams entered as favorites by the Vegas Boys? Maybe they’ve got a point with respect to the Western Division teams, but the games back East could go either way…

Atlanta -2 Arizona 51

The Falcons are worthy entrants to the dance as Matt Ryan has had a marvelous rookie campaign and the team has played well under Coach Smith. The Cardinals host their first playoff game since the glory days at Comiskey Park. They were the best team in a very bad division and by no means should be considered a threat. While Kurt Warner may put up big numbers through the air, Atlanta is a more balanced team and should be able to control the clock with their running attack.

Projected Final Score: Atlanta 28, Arizona 24

Indianapolis -1 At San Diego 51

Don’t be fooled by the Chargers’ dominant win last Sunday. The quality of the competition is a serious upgrade this week. Indy has played some great ball coming down the stretch and now that they’ve arrived at the dance they ought to shine. Like Arizona, the Chargers are the beneficiaries of playing in a bad division. They do play well at home, but did any of their home wins this year come against playoff teams? Tomlinson is a question mark with a sore groin, so it looks like Rivers may have to throw the ball more than usual. Whatever the Chargers do on offense, Indy has more than enough firepower to match.

Projected Final Score: Indianapolis 31, San Diego 27

Ravens -3 At Miami 37.5

As previously mentioned, the Dolphins had a wonderful year and now get the chance to host a home game in January. This ought to be a fun game for the Dolphins as they’re playing with house money. The Ravens also had a great year under their rookie coach and quarterback, giving the team an identity on offense for the first time in the team’s history. This week, the Ravens’ defense will come to the fore. The Dolphins’ offense will throw a lot of looks at the Ravens’ D, but whatever they present the Ravens can handle.

Projected Final Score: Ravens 23, Miami 17

Philadelphia -3 At Minnesota 41.5

For a team that wasn’t far from the abyss a month ago, things are looking good for the guys from South Philly these days. They completely blew out Dallas last week while the Vikings needed a last second field goal to prevail against the Giants’ B-Team. What the Eagles have that the Vikes don’t is a quarterback who’s been to the dance. The Vikes have a very good defense and the home crowd will bring the noise but in the end a wily old pro like McNabb isn’t going to be denied.

Projected Final Score: Philadelphia 24, Minnesota 16