The Last Dozen

The Wildcard Playoffs are in the bag and we look ahead to some great matchups/rematches this coming weekend. Before we do that, it truly looks like this will be the last season of 12 playoff teams and every winner getting a home game. Thanks to greed and injustice due to the overall incompetence of the NFC South, you can expect 2 more playoff teams next season and the overall playoff seeding to be based on record, not division winner. I agree with the latter. I see no need for more playoff teams...however, it will provide the NFL with more money for the owners to line their pockets with and throw away on bad contracts. It still won't stop bad teams from making the playoffs as division winners still have to get in.

Speaking of greed, did anyone stay tuned into the Sunday post-game show on CBS after Indianapolis beat Cincinnati? If so, were you as disgusted as me by CBS cowtowing to Subway and letting one of their pitchman losers shill new sandwiches in the studio? It harkens back to the on-air advertising of the 50s and 60s. I fully expected Terry Bradshaw to start showing the results from the Viagra that he took an hour before. It may have happened, much to Jared's elation, but I changed the channel as soon as I could. Maybe this is a regular segment and I have just missed it by turning in another game as soon as football ended on CBS. To make matters worse, I flipped over to the pre-game on Fox long enough to see Michael Strahan say one word and I turned the TV off until I knew the Dallas-Detroit game had safely started.

I generally spend my weekends in sports bars watching the games but laid low on Sunday after a long holiday celebration stretch; College Bowl Season absolutely rocks. Whenever I watch a pre or post game, it is always on ESPN. Speaking of which, every sports fans should have started their Sunday depressed. It saddened me greatly to see the report on Stuart Scott's passing when I first turned on ESPN. He was a pleasure to watch and will be missed. You really had to think about a Grand Plan when you heard the behind-the-scenes on his battles with cancer. When you "beat" something that has no cure TWICE, you should have a free pass until natural causes are the reason for your ultimate demise. Life is not fair, but, maybe that is the Grand Plan.

Recapping the games from this weekend:

• The writing was on the wall in Carolina before the game started but you have to feel sorry for Arizona. If the above playoff changes were in effect the past two years, they would have made the playoffs in 2013 and they would have hosted a wildcard game this year. The football gods do not smile upon them. They won most of their games this season based on the strength of their defense and could have won this past weekend if their offense could have contributed some. Losing their top RB and top 2 QBs proved impossible to overcome. Carolina repeated Seattle's 2010 season first round result after it won the NFC West by getting, and winning, and home game. It is fitting that these two teams square off in the divisional round of the playoffs. 
   
• Pittsburgh and Baltimore showed that, though their teams are more offense than defense nowadays, they can still dial up Old School defensive efforts when they square off against one another. No rivalry in this century compares to the intensity that these two teams take the field with when matching up. It was unfortunate that Le'Veon Bell had to miss the game cuz you want to see these two teams go against each other with all weapons at their disposal. I still think Joe Flacco gets too much credit for Baltimore winning in the playoffs but he does seem to elevate his game.
   
• Though the Colts limped into the playoffs and could not beat a top team this season, Sunday was theirs. The Bengals were short-handed with A.J. Green and Jermaine Gresham out so the Colts decided to try to make the game a fast-paced shootout and keep Cincy from running the ball and the Bengals fell for it. They couldn't stop the deep ball and decided to effectively bench their best weapon, Jeremy Hill, for the last three quarters. In this case, I think Andy Dalton is getting too much blame for Cincinnati losing in the first round each year, but I think questioning the coaching ability of Marvin Lewis is valid.
   
• In the final game pitting Dallas and Detroit, you had plenty of reasons to root against both teams as non-fans. You have Ndamukong Suh and the thugs of the Detroit defense on one side and many Cowboys past and present along with Jerry Jones on the other side. It is difficult not to talk conspiracy when you dissect the pivotal play of the game. Overriding a called penalty? How many times have you see that this year? I can recall only a handful of times and they where for justifiable reasons. Not in this game. On top of it, you had two other calls on Dallas that were ignored, not missed, ignored; defensive holding and unsportsmanlike conduct. I tells you, Jerry Jones and the NFL have a side deal as plain as Jerry Jones and Chris Christie have a side deal. How the people of New Jersey have not impeached that clown is beyond me.....but I don't mix politics and sports.