Snowflake Series: Limbo Mode

Most of the readers of this blog have experienced it, are experiencing it, or will experience it.  It’s a time of limbo.  You are trying to cling to friendships that have been forged in high school and college but it gets harder and harder.  People are getting engaged or are locked into serious relationships.  You relocated for work or to have more fun.  You are either moving on to the next phase of life or clinging to college days.  There is no wrong answer but not everyone chooses the same thing. 

In the last year everyone writing on the blog has moved.  One of our readers said he felt like Smalls in The Sandlot when everyone moved away.  Some of us have changed jobs or will change jobs shortly.  Life is moving pretty fast and it’s hard to know what’s best.  When friends tend to drift from your life, people tend to cling to the few they have left around.  If they are running out of friends they may decide the single life is pretty lonely and start a relationship. Right or wrong who knows.  You try to catch up with people as much as possible but it’s never easy.  People say they will catch up or hang out but it’s not the same.  It’s no one’s fault because everyone has to do what is best for them.

I’m going to choose to enjoy the drift.  I have some ideas of what I want to do next but nothing is in stone. The key is to be open to whatever may be next and just try to do what you think will make you happy.  Keep in touch with your good friends the best you can but do what’s best for you ultimately. 

Building the Perfect League Structure

"The real season doesn't start until the playoffs" This has been said by countless players, fans, and media type about most sports.  Yes the playoffs matter the most, but this statement condemn the leagues themselves.  The regular season should matter, but unfortunately this is not the case in some professional leagues. Here are the current playoff systems in the major sports leagues and my suggestions to improve them.

NBA
Now: 82 game season, 30 Teams, 2 Conferences of 15, Top 8 in each conference make the post season.

It's hard to argue that the regular season matters all that much for probably 8 teams a year that could walk their way into the postseason.  Sure there are team that's are fighting at the end of the season to be a 7 or 8 seed, but how often does a 7 or 8 seed make it past the second round.  Cinderella does not exist in the NBA.  So many teams make the post season, so the interest doesn't really wane as much in some cities.  Or at least that's the NBA theory and it's short sighted.  Fans want to watch games that matter and few ultimately do in the NBA.  So you may have already tuned the league out all together. Gate receipts are important, but TV is where money is for the league.  Why would someone tune in to watch the Heat and Nets play 4 times a year?   Yes, the NBA has a bad reputation because of a perceived lack of effort and lack of defense but if the games matter more I would think the play would pick up.  You could also reward teams for finishing 9 vs. 10 in the league with monetary bonuses.

It will never happen proposal : Do away with conferences, play 58 games (each team home and away once)
8 Teams make the postseason. Every series is a best of 3.  1vs8 and so on. Same home court advantage rules apply.

NHL
Now: Same as NBA across the board, except silly shootouts to break ties.  84 Games instead of 82 though.

Hockey is probably most random for determining outcomes.  I would guess that in hockey more than any other sport, the team that deserves to win does not.  How often do you see a team doubled in shots and scoring chances and lose?  Usually its because of a deflection or something fluky too.  This makes it hard to determine a proper champion and the Stanley Cup playoffs rarely go according to script.

It will never happen:  I know I know the Stanley Cup playoffs are perfect, but they render the regular season virtually useless.  I'm in favor of keeping series at 7 games and cutting the playoff teams to 12 incorporating byes for top teams, or simply dropping to 8 teams. 

NFL
32 Teams with 12 making the playoffs, 16 game regular season for now

The NFL playoff system is one of the better ones but no playoff system is perfect year in and year out.  Sometimes the most deserving team is not going to win, but that is what makes sports interesting I suppose.  Is it really fair that the Giants beat a previously undefeated Patriots team to win the Super Bowl despite having lost to them at home in the regular season? To me it feels wrong no matter how yummy Belichick's tears taste.  The Giants still did the impossible and you have to give them a ton of credit. 

The bye structure for the playoffs work well.  The best teams are appropriately rewarded with a an easier path to the Super Bowl and a home playoff game against the a opponent based on seeding.  The only issue I have with the NFL playoffs are guaranteeing a playoff spot to a 4-team division.  Divisions should probably be larger but its hard to do that evenly with 32 teams.  So instead I would like to see the there not be an automatic births and home playoff game for divisional winners.  It would seem cold not to allow a divisional winner into the playoffs but the Seahawks getting in at 7-9 can't happen.  You also have to question the point of divisions when the Raiders can run the table (6-0) in the division and not make the playoffs.  Perhaps I can concede that the divisions remain in tact to protect some rivalries but perhaps you are not guaranteed the post season for winning your division.  Finish with a winning record or watch someone else take your place.

MLB
162 games, 30 teams, 8 make the playoffs

Some people on this blog would say the baseball playoff are perfect.  It is true that it works well but I terrified of the prospect of the playoffs getting expanded.  This would further harm the integrity of the regular season.  I am not even a fan of the Wild Card but I can deal with it.  The marathon season in baseball is a thing of beauty and I'd hate to see it harmed by more teams polluting the post season.  I want it to be a big deal when the Yankees and Red Sox are fighting for the post season.  Expanded playoffs would farther guarantee their appearance.  It could also mean that a red hot team could pick off the team with the best record in baseball in round 1.  The league season is long enough to decide who the best teams are so I prefer them to be exclusive.  Baseball feels different in the postseason because your weaknesses are exposed (usually pitching).  Thoughts on if this is a good thing?

College Basketball

345 Teams, 68 make Tournament

The ever expanding NCAA Tournament will continue to be fun but for the elite teams the regular season becomes more and more meaningless.  Some of the elite teams can get bounced from the tournament making them feel like they have accomplished little on the season.  This is often harsh, but it makes the tournament exciting to the casual viewers of the sport.  While the NCAA tournament is insane and the best team may not always win, the champion is always deserving for having marched through 6 straight games victorious.

NCAA Football
12 Games + Conference Title Game, BCS Title Game

This is a playoff system that people can't stand. To hell with you casual fan.  The BCS is far from perfect.  The old bowl alliance may be better still, but the bottom line is every week in the season matters right now.   When actually determining a National Champion, how often does the best team win it? Most of the time? Say 2 out of 3? Can we at least agree that this is on par with other sports if not better. Does anyone think the Giants were the best team this past season? But yet they won the World Series.  How bout the 2006 Cardinals? The majority does not argue who wins professional sports titles because there is a playoff, so the winner of said playoff must be the best.  Bullocks.  Muckrakers like Dan Wetzel can bitch all they want and drum up controversy for book sales and to further their careers but a 16 team playoff with all league champions is dumber than any playoff, in any league. 

The BCS can be improved upon though.  If I said otherwise I would be as big a dolt as the people that argue for a 16 team playoff.  I argue against a playoff in college football because I know that when it does come, it will bastardize the regular season and be as poorly constructed as everything other playoff system in America.  However, here is my official endorsement for you college football playoff to be constructed and never changed.

6 teams make the post season. #1 and #2 receive a bye. #3 hosts #6 and #4 hosts #5.  The championship game is at the Rose Bowl and it never rotates to an indoor NFL stadium.  Neutral bowl sight games deep in the south get shot straight to hell.  Ohio Stadium hosts a game in December and the Florida Gators will freeze because the Buckeyes earned that home game in the regular season.

This year's system
#6 Ohio State @ #3 TCU
#5 Stanford @ #4 Wisconsin
#1 Auburn and #2 Oregon receive byes.  (This idea is not my own, it was created by MGoblog.com)

In this system marquee games have meaning, unlike the annual Orange Bowl match up.  The BCS essentially dies but the bowl system remains in place and bowl match ups are just as meaningful or meaningless as before.  

Conclusion

The biggest problem with professional sports organizations and the NCAA (if you think there is difference)  is that they crave the casual fan.  The casual fan is where the money is made.  Dumbing down regular seasons and banking on explosive TV contracts for post season is something that has been picking up steam for years.  This is always going to harm the integrity of the game.  I think it harms the long term viability of the leagues but that's based on nothing.

No playoff system is perfect year in and year out.  Some years the BCS gets the title game right, like this year.  Some years its hard to say who deserves to go over who.  The NCAA Basketball Tournament is fun, but makes the regular season meaningless for elite teams because does it really matter if your a 3 or 4 seed.  The NBA and NHL playoffs are too long and too drawn out because too many teams make the playoffs.  MLB and the NFL work pretty well but could use a few tweaks or at least could be stopped from getting out of hand.  It has been touched on before but I love the idea of English Premier League Soccer where you play each team once home and away, team with the best record at year end wins it.  This isn't always perfect either if the second place team sweeps the first place team it feels cheapened.  The reality is no playoff system will be perfect year in and year out.

In the interest of fairness, I think most of us would like to see the best team win the title.  The most deserving team should win it all and it should be clear.  The regular season should matter and you should be rewarded for finishing atop the standings in the regular season.  Playoffs should be exclusive and it should be a big deal when you reach them.  The teams that reach the playoffs should all feel they have a legitimate chance to beat anyone and win the title. 

Patrick's New Haircut

Well, I typically lambaste remakes. However, the "My New Haircut" remake craze on YouTube is just too tasty to resist. People with no lives have flocked to join this craze as if it were the western US during the gold rush. I too have packed my wagon and have gone west in search of gold. Recently, I had the idea of putting together an American Psycho rendition of our dear "My New Haircut". Without any further ado, I give you "Patrick's New Haircut":

Sussudio playing in background at a yuppie bar

You know what this is? This is my new $500 Christian Cora haircut. You know what that means? I'm getting two $1000 hookers tonight. My associates, they have the same haircut, they're getting $1000 hookers tonight. I have the best seating arrangement in here. I'm going to talk about my job to every piece of ass that comes through that door. I'm gonna talk about it until everyone knows I work on Wall Street for Pierce and Pierce. If they've never heard of it, they're fucking ugly bitches. (cut to scene of Patrick doing the "fuckin skanks" gestures except he says "fucking ugly bitches"). If one dickweed in here mistakes me for that dickhead Marcus Halbestram, I'm gonna return some videotapes.

Cut to scene of Patrick working out to Texas Chainsaw Massacre, then freaking out when he's rejected by Dorsia's maitre dei

Cut to scene of Patrick in his office:
I'm in control! I'm in control baby. (picks up empty mineral water bottle) Fuckin mineral water! Where's the god damn mineral water Jean??? I told you to get me some mineral water!!! And limes!!! Fuck!!

cut back to fancy restaurant

Yes I do cocaine and psychiatric prescription drugs. I eat that for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I don't workout at a gym. People aren't worthy of seeing how jacked and tan I am. Every morning do my stomach crunches,I can do a thousand now.

Cut to scene of Patrick at his apartment
ORGANIC MILKKKK!!!

ROOFIES!!!!

SORBETTTTT!!!

WALKMANNNN!!!

Back to bar
I'm gonna get high and have obscene fantasies of brutal, rough sex tonight. I'm drinking J&B straight and vodka on the rocks. J&B straight...I don't shower in thatshit. Because alcohol dries your skin out and makes you look older. J&B straight! J&B straight! J&B straight!

The Big Game

We've reached the Super Bowl and all the glitz, glamor and Dallas ice storms that come with it. You know how I feel about the event in general, but once the coin is tossed there may not be a more anticipated four-hour stretch of the sports year. Between the lines, Super Bowl XLV may actually live up to its hype, despite the overload of "storied franchise" headlines we've been fed over the past two weeks. At the very least, the game is assured to be pleasing from a visual standpoint, as the Packers and Steelers have two of the NFL's best uniform combinations (and for a shameless plug, check out your boy getting his name mentioned in Uni Watch here). Anyway, with a little bit of luck I'll crack the dreaded .500 mark for the postseason and end up with a (barely) profitable NFL season.

Green Bay (-3) over Pittsburgh
I probably had this pick made up in my mind before the matchup was even set. I've picked both for Green Bay and against Pittsburgh this entire postseason. To me, winning a Super Bowl comes down to being able to put together four solid quarters and get a big-time, momentum-turning play at the right moment. The Steelers have managed to win both of their playoff games despite playing a putrid first half against the Ravens and an equally putrid second half against the Jets where they were quite fortunate that Mark Sanchez's helmet communication system stopped working down near the goal line. The Packers come in flying high, winning five straight games and getting near-flawless play from Aaron Rodgers and their defense. The two-week layoff between the Conference Championship round and the Super Bowl always intrigues me in terms of coaching and how each staff chooses to approach the game after they have 18-19 games out there on film already. The issue (as I've said numerous times) with facing Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh offense often lies with how much pressure you plan to put on him - forcing Big Ben to buy time outside of the pocket can often be a death wish. Fortunately for the Packers, the strengths of their defense play very well into that hand (similarly to the Jets, who only gave up just 17 offensive points in a valiant effort two weeks ago). You figure the Packer cornerbacks can deal with Mike Wallace and Emmanuel Sanders down the field, which leaves the linebackers and safeties to deal with Heath Miller and Hines Ward over the middle. If I'm Green Bay, I'll take my chances with the same approach the Jets used and hope that my secondary continues to play out of this world. On the other side of the ball, I won't be surprised if the Packers change everything up and go with a run-heavy approach early on (yeah yeah yeah I know the Pittsburgh run defense only gives up 62 yards a game), if only to try to keep the Steeler defensive backs from getting into a rhythm. In the end, covering the whole field when Green Bay does stretch it out will be too tall a task for Pittsburgh. My gut says a long Greg Jennings touchdown in the fourth quarter puts this one away. Packers, 31-20.

Last Week: 1-1-0
Postseason: 5-5-0

Shit I Like Doing

Hi, I'm John. I like to get up after about 6 or 7 hours of recuperative sleep, have great morning sex, go downstairs and eat a hearty breakfast while sitting on the sofa watching sportscenter and scratching my balls. My english teachers of yore would be appalled at the length of that run on sentence. That sentence ran a marathon. Anyway, after about 11 AM, I'd probably be ready for more sex so my head is clear for a solid workout. I believein working out and taking care of myself. Sex with a random hot chick at the gym mid-workout would be sweet, but not always necessary. Once I'm through with my workout, time to go home for a chocolate protein shake. I prefer chocolate protein powder. Once I'm showered, I like to sit in my boxers watching YouTube and listening to music played at the appropriate level. I like to do what I want when I want to do it. I don't want to hear any shit about being emotionally unavailable. I like to Guiness too.

The Great Escape

We've all heard the saying, "do one thing and do it well". This film does exactly that. It's an escape movie. Period. No contrite romances. No musical interludes, but it does include singing of Christmas carols which also qualifies this film as a holiday movie (a recent poll put This movie as the number 3 favourite Christmas movie in Britain). What's more, this was an all-star cast in 1963. Richard Attenborough as Big X, we know him as the old guy from Jurassic Park. Steve McQueen, who sadly passed well before his time. James Coburn, Charles Bronson, James Garner, David McCallum, and the list goes on. Personally, when I see The Great Escape on TV, I can't turn it off. It can't be ruined by what I call "cableization". To cableize a movie is to edit out all obscenities, violence, and nipples to make a feature more family friendly. The Great Escape is safe from that as it came out in the early 60's and was not directed by Stanley Kubrick.

No computer graphics. None. In fact, Steve McQueen performs most of his motorcycle stunts with the exception of the final jump which is done by a stuntman. For our younger readers, stuntmen were people who performed the more dangerous stunts called for in the production of a piece of cinema. Before computer graphics, filmmakers had to be innovative and skilled. Weird, right? Anyway, I think the point of this post was supposed to be why The Great Escape is awesome. It's awesome because it's understated, sharply written, simple in nature, and well executed. Have a look sometime.

Then There Were Four

This year's Conference Championships goes to show that lately in the NFL, all you need to do is just get in. Not only are both #6 seeds still alive, but both have a viable chance of winning this Sunday - and one of them (Green Bay) is even favored on the road. Home teams, as always, in CAPS.

Green Bay (-3.5) over CHICAGO
I'd at least like to think that I was on the Packers bandwagon for this entire playoff run, but I definitely didn't expect them to put together two defensive performances like they did against the Eagles and Falcons. The under seems like a decent bet considering these two defenses and the likely weather conditions in the Windy City. The networks have been fawning over Aaron Rodgers with good reason, but what I think wins this game will be Tramon Williams, Charles Woodson, and Clay Matthews. Should the Packers get ahead by more than 7 in the second half and trigger Mike Martz's worst pass-happy tendencies, the Bears could be in trouble. Green Bay has made its living off of turnovers and Jay Cutler may very well feed that appetite. I can't shake the image of a convoy of Green Bay defenders streaking down the sideline with an errant Cutler pass to ice the game. Packers, 24-13.

NY Jets (+3.5) over PITTSBURGH
I'll admit it - I drank the green kool-aid this week. The Jets punched with New England last week long enough to get Bill Belichick out of his element and now look to slay another recent champion on the road. I give Rex Ryan a ton of credit for changing his defense's approach against the Patriots by blitzing less and relying on his linebackers and secondary to cover for an extended period of time. He'd be well-served to do the same in Pittsburgh. Ben Roethlisberger is at his best when the play breaks down and someone is in his face, so blitzing would invite trouble. If Antonio Cromartie, Darrelle Revis, et al. can cover the way they've been over the past two weeks, they can definitely frustrate Big Ben into a mistake or two. I'll be particularly interested in the kickers in this game. We all know how I feel about Nick Folk, but the Steelers' Shaun Suisham somehow manages to render Folk only the second-worst ex-Dallas kicker in this game. Two more reasons to root for the Jets: no one wants to see Roethlisberger in the Super Bowl, and two weeks of Rex Ryan quotes and headlines could actually make the pre-Super Bowl bearable this year. J-E-T-S, 20-14.

Last Week: 2-2-0
Postseason: 4-4-0

The Beginning of the End

The Divisional Round provides the last true football weekend of the season. From next week until at least September, we will no longer be able to watch football over the course of both a Saturday and a Sunday. And if the NFL labor situation doesn't get ironed out, it could be much, much longer. Now that I've managed to brighten everyone's mood....home teams in CAPS.

Baltimore (+3) over PITTSBURGH
If you like physical football and happen to appreciate enough of the finer points of the game to not be turned off by low scoring, then Saturday's early game should have you on the edge of your seat. The Ravens pounded the Chiefs into submission on both sides of the ball during the second half of their 30-7 Wild Card win and looked every bit the complete team that the Anquan Boldin acquisition was supposed to make them. The Steelers are coming off a much-needed first round bye during which Ben Roethlisberger and Troy Polamalu supposedly regained full health. I'm taking the points in what must have been the easiest point spread to set in the history of playoff football - all four Ravens/Steelers meetings between 2009 and 2010 were decided by exactly 3 points. The deciding factor for me is the fact that Pittsburgh will always be a sack here or an awkward cut there from Big Ben or Polamalu getting hurt again. The Steelers remind me of Mike Tyson's Punch-Out! when you'd get a star punch in on Tyson right before the 2nd round bell and he comes out for the 3rd round really low on his life bar. Even better, these two teams are much more evenly matched than Little Mac and Mike Tyson. Ravens, 20-17.

Green Bay (+2.5) over ATLANTA
There seem to be a ton of people riding the Packers' bandwagon this week but a little research has shown that it is merely a product of the excessive hype that surrounds Aaron Rodgers and the Cheeseheads (by the way, not a bad name for a band). This line opened with Atlanta a 1-point favorite but it has since been bet up to 2.5. The Falcons took the Week 12 meeting of these teams, a 20-17 heart-thumper in Atlanta which featured a crucial fumble by Rodgers right near the goal line. Despite the money they cost me in Week 16 when they lost to New Orleans, I still don't like the idea of going against Atlanta at home. All things considered, though, the Packers are playing crisply in all phases in this most recent stretch, which has seen them go 3-1 against teams with a combined 45-19 record, the only loss being the memorable 4-point decision in Foxboro where Matt Flynn was forced to play in place of Rodgers. Expect a good deal of offense in the Georgia Dome, especially if Green Bay runs it remotely as well as they did against the Eagles. Packers, 28-24.

CHICAGO (-10) over Seattle
At first glance, this line looks 2.5-3 points too high. However, I'm going to stick with my anti-Seattle stance and go with Chicago for a few reasons. One- this is one of those two-week stretches that built Vegas. The betting consensus as of Thursday is showing 63% of ATS money coming in on the Seahawks. All the people who lost money on the Saints last week have been eagerly running back to the counter to take Seattle and the 10 points, and all the people who cashed in on the Seahawks last week have been....you guessed it, running back to the counter to take Seattle and the 10 points. You have to believe that the Bears' defense will give just a slightly more inspired effort than what the Saints showed in letting the Seahawks literally roll over them for 41 points. This is a make-or-break game for Jay Cutler as well; the Bears' temperamental quarterback can put a lot of his critics at bay if he gets them to the NFC Championship Game. If Mike Martz is smart (big if), he eases Cutler into the game with early screens to Matt Forte and short outs and drags to Greg Olsen. I have a feeling that a defensive or special teams play (Devin Hester, anyone?) will be the late dagger that puts Seattle away. Bears, 27-10.

NEW ENGLAND (-8.5) over NY Jets
I'd really like to see the Jets pull this one out, but I can't think of any logical way for them to do it besides a ton of ill-timed Patriots mistakes. How do you beat New England? Well, you can pass on them, we know that. However, Mark Sanchez is clearly having arm trouble and won't have the climate-controlled benefits that he had in Indianapolis. How do the Jets win a lot of their tough games? Well, usually it's thanks to the jack-of-all-trades Brad Smith, but even he is a likely gametime decision with a groin injury. The Jets' other meal ticket involves Darrelle Revis locking on the other team's #1 receiver and reducing the rest of the field to a 10-on-9 or even a 10-on-8. The Patriots and their interchangeable receiving corps can make the efforts of Revis a bit of waste, because you can't say they have a true #1 receiver. You want to blanket Deion Branch? Fine, they'll throw hitches to Wes Welker and Julian Edelman until all of a sudden it's 2nd-and-4 on the opponent's 30. You want to blitz? Tom Brady will find one of the twin tight ends Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski over the middle. Oh yeah, and they can run the ball now too. It's no fluke that the Pats have averaged over 37 points per game during their current 8-game winning streak. How can you bet against something like that? Patriots, 31-17.

Last Week: 2-2-0
Postseason: 2-2-0

Eagles Sign New Player

In the aftermath of David Akers missing two critical field goals yesterday the Eagles have decided to sign a new kicker, Tony Danza.

I brought this up yesterday during the game and one person actually knew what I was talking about.  We wikipedia'd the movie and I have to share the description with you.  The ridiculous title matches the ridiculous plot.

"Barney Gorman (Tony Danza) works hard as a garbageman, but his career indirectly embarrasses his family. All the Philadelphia Eagles' coach wants to do is impress the football fans in Philadelphia, but having a team that lacks success makes that hard for them. But one day, when Barney and his friend are picking up garbage, Barney takes out his frustration and kicks a water jug at the city dump, which also happens to be a scouting location for the Eagles to buy land in order to build a new stadium, and the owner is present. The jug goes so far, that the Eagles' coach sees and asks Barney to be their new kicker, which the owner feels is an excellent publicity stunt in "giving an average Joe a shot at the NFL".

Barney joins the Eagles, but at first isn't really accepted by his teammates, especially his roommate, Bubba. But once Barney starts playing and makes a lot of game winning field goals, his teammates and football fans all over town begin to love him. They even dub him a nickname, "G-Man".

Unfortunately, the fame and popularity goes to his head, and he becomes spoiled and selfish. He begins to think that his teammates are his lackeys, and that they should all worship the ground he walks on. After all this, Barney misses a game-winning field goal attempt and a chance to make it to the playoffs.
Barney goes to a bar, depressed and lonely, when an attractive blonde woman approaches him. She asks him if he is Barney Gorman and if she could take a picture with him. She takes him to the photographer, but is caught off guard when the woman kisses him. She says thanks while giving him an alluring smile as she walks away.

About two days later, Barney is still depressed over the loss and gets kicked off the team. He then misses a date with his wife (Jessica Tuck), and she sees the picture of him kissing the blonde woman in the newspaper. When Barney tries to go home later, he sees that his suitcase is packed with the newspaper photo of him kissing the blonde woman outside the front door.

After a while, Barney comes to his senses and goes home to apologize to his wife, son, father, and his teammates. The Eagles let him back on the team, just in time for the final game of the season. At the end of the game, the ball placeholder fumbles the ball, and Barney grabs it and scores the game winning touchdown. Barney then remembers his roots as a garbageman, and at a press conference points out that garbagemen are deserving of respect as they work hard to keep the city clean."

Wild Card Weekend

First, an update for anyone who was actually concerned about the friendly NCAA competition between me and Kevin. We both went 2-3 in last weekend's bowl games and thus were unable to break our virtual tie. As a result of Kevin being out of town all week and me being handcuffed to a cubicle for more hours than God (or Bog) ever intended, we've mutually decided to call it a tie for the NCAA season. Kevin ended up 41-32-2 and I ended up 40-31-4. So, without further ado, on to my favorite football weekend of the year - Wild Card Weekend. Home teams in CAPS.

New Orleans (-10) over SEATTLE
I cringe at the notion of laying this many points with the Saints going across two time zones to a loud Qwest Field in potentially adverse weather. However, what made me cringe even more was Pete Carroll and his smug postgame press conference (skip to the 4:00 mark) after the Seahawks beat the Rams to win the NFC West at 7-9. Pete, shut the hell up. Your team was one game better than the sad-sack Cowboys whose season ended on Oct. 25. Your team was 3 games worse than both the Giants and the Bucs, both of whom just so happened to plaster your team during the season. Your team does not deserve to be here, and if you had the chance you'd try to skip over to the Saints' sideline (just like you skipped out of USC) the second that Marques Colston or Robert Meachem catch their first 60-yard bomb of the day. I'm a bit concerned about the Saints' offense now that their two best power runners, Pierre Thomas and Chris Ivory, will miss the whole playoffs, but Reggie Bush and (can't believe I'm saying this) Julius Jones should be adequate for this week at least. A decent rule of thumb with playoff games is not to take the underdog if you don't think they have a chance to win outright. With that being said, give me the defending champs, 28-10.

INDIANAPOLIS (-2.5) over NY Jets
The rematch of last year's AFC Championship Game has a good chance to be the best game of the weekend. This would probably be a slam-dunk for Indy if their offense were fully equipped, but the absence of Dallas Clark and Austin Collie take away what would have been the bread-and-butter against the Jets defense, which is often overly aggressive in blitzing the passer but excels in covering the outer thirds of the field. The Jets should score 20-24 points here, and I have a gut feeling that Santonio Holmes will have about 125 yards and a touchdown or two, because once he's 20 yards downfield he shifts into a gear that few players have. I'm taking the Colts because of two men - one is obvious (Peyton Manning) and the other is almost obvious - Adam Vinatieri. In a game that figures to be close, give me the money kicker of the past decade over the human anxiety attack that wears #2 for the Jets. Nick Folk is at his worst when conditions are ideal - I can see him missing a field goal at some point in the dome in Indy and it having a huge impact on the late stages of the game. Colts, 27-21.

Baltimore (-3) over KANSAS CITY
It's been a great run for the Chiefs, but I think it ends here. The Ravens are too battle-tested not to win this game, and Kansas City's meal ticket of Cassel-to-Bowe doesn't look to operate quite as cleanly against the Baltimore secondary. Ed Reed, (WARNING: OBLIGATORY BALTIMORE/THE WIRE REFERENCE AHEAD) who for a while looked as gimpy as Omar Little toward the end of the show, has come back with 4 interceptions in the past two games and figures to wreak his havoc on this very young Chiefs offense. I know the Chiefs were great at home this year, but this Baltimore team is playing its 6th road playoff game in the past 24 months (versus zero home games) and should show everyone why they were 12-4. Ravens, 23-14.

Green Bay (+3) over PHILADELPHIA
The featured game on Sunday can be dubbed the We Don't Run the Ball Bowl in light of the play-selecting tendencies of these teams. We all know about Michael Vick's health status and the fact that of the past 180 minutes of football the Eagles have played, 8 were legendary and 172 were, well, not legendary. The Packers' ability to rush Vick is obviously a key factor, but equally as important will be how Charles Woodson fares with DeSean Jackson. If you take the big play away from the Eagles, the Delaware Valley ends up seeing a lot more of Sav Rocca on the field than they'd like to. On the other side of the ball, Greg Jennings presents huge matchup problems once he can get the ball in his hands, because we all know Asanté Samuel isn't tackling him in the open field. And if the Eagles roll a safety over to Jennings' side as much as they may need to, well, Donald Driver and James Jones aren't exactly slouches either. Packers, 31-24.

Last Week: 2-3-0
Regular Season: 42-41-2 (sigh of relief)