-- and then the Magic won the Eastern Conference Finals

This morning proves once and for all the media is a widely broadcast group of bandwagoners. All month we said that the Magic would storm through the East and now because of one game against Boston suddenly the Magic are a bus full of weaklings?

How about we settle down some? Now granted, the big comeback from Orlando doesn't prove anything except Boston has the tendency to let up with a big lead.

Otherwise, you can't conclude *anything* from Game 1! Magic were rusty, Celtics happened to play very well and summoned a lot of effort despite the short rest. C's played good defense in the first half and well there you go.

so?

That's why we suddenly throw the Magic under the bus and proclaim the series over? and trust me, this isn't just Herd, Herd's just piling on. its all these other commentators and other fans who are giving up on the Magic. The same two teams met a year ago minus two players: KG and Jameer Nelson. And despite these deficiencies, the Magic won the series... and won game 7 AT BOSTON.

So it's very very short sighted to award the Celtics the Eastern Conference championship... after ONE GAME! A little early fellas...

Magic will be fine. They'll bounce back here in Game 2, and then we'll have a series.

Why I'm still not convinced by the Trail Blazers

I'm sorry... but even though the Trail Blazers won last night, I have no confidence in them winning the series against the Rockets.

Take a look at the game last night at the Rose Garden. It took the game of Brandon Roy's life to beat the Rockets last night. Roy scored 39 points (clearly a career high for a playoff game), and the Blazers STILL only won 107-103.

It took Roy's greatest scoring performance to win by only FOUR?! This series is done. The Blazers still have no answer for Yao Ming in the paint, and most of their front court was in foul trouble. I can't see the Blazers pulling this out.

Take your souvenir pictures on the way out, Portland.

I *knew* the Colts weren't that good!

In life and in football, perseverence is key. I can't believe how many people jumped on the Colts bandwagon. Then about three weeks ago, I raised the possibility that their schedule made them look better than they were.

Dave on December 19, 2008:

My feeling is, the Colts have been getting well on bad teams, including the Jaguars and Lions, and I am still not convinced.

Then last night, in the big AFC Wild Card game of the Week, Darren Sproles piled up 328 all purpose yards on the Colts "hot-streak" defense. How about that? Maybe the Colts aren't so hot when they play a team above .500. The Steelers game was a good performance for the Colts, but everybody else... meh... Let's break down the 9 games they won going into last night's game.

New England (11-5)
at Pittsburgh (12-4)

These two games were legitimately strong wins. The Patriots, although out of the playoffs, were one of the better teams in the NFL. The Steelers, of course, had the best defense in the NFL *and* a psychological edge that went back to the 60's.

then they beat

Houston
San Diego (although SD had them by the throat and let them out of it)
Cleveland
Cincy
Detroit
Jacksonville
Tennessee with none of their starters

Not exactly a "battle tested" schedule, is it? Imagine now the Dolphins going into today's game against the Ravens. I see almost the same pattern... build up a lofty record with wins against lots of lousy teams, only to be exposed in the playoffs. The only thing stopping Baltimore is their lack of knack for getting into the end zone... and perhaps a rookie QB.

In any event sometimes one has to call a spade a spade... you had two mediocre teams playing each other in San Diego last night, and it was a great game! But going forward, it's clear that San Diego was the better team this time around.

Now what? The Colts look old, overmatched, and outwitted. They stayed pat to make one more big run at the prize to go with their Super Bowl from 2006, but it might be time to break up the band now...

The BIG Wild Card Weekend Preview

Here it comes! From select NFL stadiums all across America, it's the FABULOUS 48 hour NFL WILD CARD ROUND...!

Arizona Cardinals, COME ON DOWN!!!

The Cardinals will play their first home playoff game since 1947. They didn't finish the regular season strong, going 1-2, including a 47-7 loss at New England. Lots of high flying receivers (Boldin, Fitzgerald and the rest) led by a born-again Kurt Warner (no pun intended). They'll face the...

Atlanta Falcons, COME ON DOWN!!!

The Falcons have made a huge return to glory, finishing 11-5 after going 4-12 the year before. By the way, Dave will toot his horn and let EVERYBODY know he picked the Falcons to win 10+ games this season. Sure, it was a long shot, but I'm proud to say I'm the only guy that got it right :-)

Ok anyway, the Falcons are 2nd in the NFL in rushing yards per game led by Michael Turner who really took off after leaving the San Diego Chargers. Let's not forget Matt Ryan, who's exceeding everyone's expectations in his rookie season. Ryan has thrown for 3,440 yards along with 16 TDs and 11 interceptions.

So the Falcons play at Arizona at 4:30 ET Saturday afternoon. This game ought to be fairly close but I wouldn't be surprised if either team won. Should be fun!

Saturday night features the best matchup of the weekend:

San Diego Chargers and Indianapolis Colts, COME ON DOWN!!!

Hard to fathom an 8-8 team being much of a threat to anybody in the playoffs, but the Chargers present some mystifying matchup issues for the Colts and have been for the last five years. Remember how the Colts faded against these Chargers in last year's Divisional Round? That may have been an even bigger upset than the Giants beating Dallas.

So many big names make this matchup a good watch: On one side there's Manning, Harrison, Wayne, Addai, Rhodes, Sanders, and Clark (ok Jeff Saturday should make the list too). On the other side there's Rivers, Tomlinson, Gates, Chambers, Cromartie, and Jackson. While last year's playoff duel was in Indy, this year's fracas takes place in beautiful San Diego. For all we know, this game could be a blowout, but on paper, it appears to come down to a last second field goal.

After a pretty good Saturday slate of Wild Card games, we move on to the Sunday Surprises.

MInnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles, COME ON DOWN!!!

Both teams were picked by many to make the playoffs during training camp, but they started off 2008 so badly, one feels like they're relieved to make the big playoff tourney. By week 8, we figured they'd be lucky to make the playoffs. The Vikings, just like last year, are in the top 5 in rushing and defense against the run. Unfortunately, they also have lousy QB play and turnovers will make the difference.

The Eagles? I can't figure them out. Phily loses a game they had to win at Washington two weeks ago, 10-3, and still sneaks into the playoffs. How? First, Tampa Bay does the unthinkable and loses at home to Oakland. Next, the Eagles take a weak-minded Cowboys team and clobber them 44-6.

The Eagles remind me of another "hard to figure out" team, the 2000 New York Giants. Nobody knew what they really had, yet somehow they were good enough for a 1 seed and they completely destroyed the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship game. Then they were manhandled by the Ravens 34-7 in Super Bowl XXXV. Granted, the Ravens forced many of Collins' 4 interceptions, but in the end, the Giants were outcoached and outplayed from start to finish. The Giants' only score was a fluke kickoff return for 97 yards.... which was answered by a Baltimore kickoff return TD of their own!

But enough about 2000, the Eagles and Vikings look like two teams made for each other. I'm willing to bet the game will be within 8 points and Vegas agrees. The Eagles, on the road, are favored by -3 despite having a mostly uneven season. On the other hand, the Vikings have looked really meager against the dregs of the NFL. For example, the Vikes played the Lions twice and beat them by a combined 6 points. Oof. This game could get ugly, but it'll be interesting to start.

Now to the real Sunday Surprises...

Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins, COME ON DOWN!!!

For a rookie, Baltimore QB Joe Flacco has done remarkably well. His QB rating is ranked middle of the pack for the NFL. The Ravens also feature one of the fiercer defenses in the NFL. After years of experts, myself included, counting the old gang out, the Ravens defense has held up for another season. They look good! Reed, Suggs, Lewis, and all the rest continue to harass opposing QBs.

Then there's the Dolphins, who made a big turnaround, having gone from 1-15 to 11-5. It's been a good season for Miami, but they've also struggled to win many of their games. They're only +28 in point differential which means they've been in a lot of close games. The problem is, these close games have been against bottom feeders such as San Francisco, Seattle, Oakland, and so on.

But nobody expected either of these two teams to be NEAR the NFL playoff race, let alone in them. It's great to see the NFL's beacon of hope at work. Neither team can come from behind. Neither team has a QB that can throw the ball down the field. However, seeing the strength of schedule for the Ravens (playing Dallas, Pittsburgh, NYG, and Tennessee) as opposed to the Dolphins, I'd figure Baltimore is a clear favorite, despite being on the road.

All 8 teams, you are the first contestants on the SUPER BOWL is Right!! Who's going to be the big Double Showcase Winner and advance to Tampa? It all starts this weekend!

Packers and Saints: playoff bound?

Monday Night Football was intriguing last night, if for no other reason than it showed two teams with potential to make the playoffs. Can either the Packers or Saints get to the 'offs? Let's break it down one by one:

The Packers

The Packers are really banged up on defense, with Nick Barnett the latest of victims, but if they could somehow patch it up, the Pack might be back!

The Packers have the Fifth WORST rush defense in the NFL, BUT they allow the 3rd fewest passing yards per game. The Packers, going into last night, were +7 in turnovers. They're fairly mediocre in passing AND rushing, but my guess is, Rodgers could recover from his shoulder injury and turn things around. Even now, Rodgers has a decent 94.5 QB rating. That's not bad for a guy in his first full year as a starter.

Best of all, the Pack have two things working for them. First of all, the rest of their division is a joke. The Bears are a mere 6-5 and still have to play the Saints themselves. The Vikings are flat-out LUCKY to be above .500 with their lousy +7 point differential and -2 turnover ratio. They're falling out quick. Secondly, the Packers have a very easy schedule down the stretch. They'll get to play Carolina, Houston, and Jacksonville all in a row. I like the odds.


The Saints

The Saints looked good last night, and offensively, they are very very good. The Saints lead the NFL in Passing Yards per game, plus they're the 5th best scoring team in the NFL (ironically, four of the top five are in the NFC!).

Unfortunately, NFL teams are required to play DEFENSE. The Saints are rather awful on defense: ranked 18th against the run and 24th against the pass. Let's face it, the Saints aren't fooling anybody.

To make matters worse, the Saints are -5 in turnovers going into tonight's game, and they're only +39 in point differential. For a team that is among the NFL scoring leaders, having a measly +39 point differential is down-right pathetic. For their six wins, that's equivalent to a lousy 6.5 point margin of victory per game. Note: The Packers have a similar point differential.

Finally, the Saints face a decently tough schedule down the stretch. The Saints play at Tampa Bay, vs Atlanta, and at Chicago in consecutive weeks.

On paper, it looks like the Packers have a better shot to make the playoffs. If somehow Green Bay can return most of its injured defense, they could be, *might* be, a dark horse in the playoffs. Frankly, I doubt either team has what it takes to get that coveted playoff spot. We'll see.