What a huge weekend it was in the NFL.  However, after many thought the playoff picture would look a little bit clearer after this weekend, it’s actually looking a little bit more unpredictable for a number of reasons.  It’s time for my breakdown of the NFL as it stands right now.  I think it will be easier if I go conference by conference. 

 My semi-breakdown of the NFC:

As of right now, the Seattle Seahawks (12-2) are the best team in the conference.  After that, it gets a tad bit murky with the New York Giants (10-4), Chicago Bears (10-4), and Carolina Panthers (10-4) all on a very similar level.  Whoever takes homefield advantage between those 3 teams will have a huge advantage.  The strongest homefield advantage, in my opinion, would be that of the Chicago Bears.  We were able to see a great example of the effects of Soldier Field on opposing teams in tonight’s Bears vs. Falcons game.  This was a game with an intense playoff atmosphere, between two of the better teams in the conference.  The arctic weather, combined with those loud, crazy, bratwurst and Budweiser inhaling fans really provides for an intimidating experience for the opposing team and it’s easy to see how easily they can be taken out of their game.  The atmosphere at Soldier Field also makes the Bears defense (which is probably the most intimidating defense since the 2000 Ravens) that much scarier.  They are so fast, so physical, and so smart; I just can’t explain how impressed I am with their defense this season, if there ever was a well-oiled machine, this is it.  I wish I could watch them play every week.

Now while I say the Seahawks are the best team as of right now, that does not mean that I am handing them the NFC title.  The NFC is there for the taking for any of the top 4 seeds in my mind, and I will not be making my final predictions until the seedings are set.  Instead, I just wanted to give an evaluation of the conference at this point as the playoffs draw nearer.  The Seahawks are very solid and their defense is one of the more underrated groups in the league (featuring two of the most underrated defensive players in the league as well – perhaps the most impressive rookie in the NFC this season, former Maine Black Bear, Lofa Tatupu; and a top tier cornerback in Marcus Trufant).  We all know what the Seattle offensive line and Shaun Alexander can do (Alexander has my vote for MVP by the way – and this brings up another traveshamockery in sports which I am guilty of to some degree as well, the fact that it’s all but impossible for a defensive player to win MVP; what kind of nonsense is that?  I’m still waiting for somebody to explain to me why Ray Lewis didn’t win the MVP in 2000 – the Ravens didn’t score one offensive touchdown in the month of October in 2000 and still won 2 of those games while out gaining their opponents overall in that stretch and having more first downs in that time frame.  Also, three of the defenses they played were then in the Top 5 in the league... This is worthy of a column at some point so I will save the rest).  And we know what Matt Hasselbeck can do (as long as he doesn’t make any predictions during the coin toss at any Seahawks games), but the dynamic duo of Penn State Nittany Lions, Bobby Engram (one of the perennially underrated receivers in the league) and Joe Jurevicius (what a great free agent pickup), are also doing more than their fair share for the ‘Hawks.  The scary thing about the Seahawks is the fact that they have done most of their work this season without their best wide receiver Darrell Jackson, who is now healthy again, just in time for the playoffs.  They will be tough to beat, especially if they clinch the top seed. 

The New York Football Giants are an enigma this season.  I believe that if they play to their potential, they can beat anybody (that includes AFC teams).  On offense, they can cause matchup problems all over the field with their big, physical wideouts Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer; they can stretch the field with Tim Carter; and let us not forget that the Giants also have one of the top 3 tight ends in the NFL, Jeremy Shockey, roaming all over the middle of the field, who creates even more matchup problems because of his ability to do just about anything a wide receiver can do.  And just in case you feel like dropping extra men to defend that passing game, Tom Coughlin and John Hufnagel can come at you with one of the better running backs in the game today, Mr. Tiki Barber.  On defense, they have one of the better up and coming middle linebackers in the game today, Antonio Pierce, as well as a solid defensive line, featuring Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, that is one of the best when it comes to getting to the quarterback.  That defensive line is making the job easier for a defensive backfield that seems to be improving and getting more comfortable with each other with every passing week.  However, playing up to that full potential on a consistent basis has been a tough task for the G-men.  Eli Manning still looks like an inexperienced rookie at times and I believe that he will absolutely be the key to any success the Giants expect to have in the playoffs.  Tiki Barber is playing like a legitimate MVP candidate, giving the G-Men amazing performances week in and week out (especially this week’s explosion against the Chiefs with a ####ed up offensive line).  Speaking of which, that Chiefs game and the Dallas v. Washington game, were two of the best examples of one team just wanting it more than the other that I have ever seen.  The Cowboys looked like a deer caught in the headlights from the get go, and the Chiefs put on the worst exhibition of tackling since the football game in There’s Something About Mary when The Neary Center for Exceptional People took on Matt Dillon.  I’m still waiting for either Tiki or “Well-Dressed” Amani Toomer to spike the ball in front of some Chief defenders and yell out, “Exceptional my a**!”  If the Giants play up to their potential (with Eli being the catalyst in helping to fulfill that potential), they will be coming out of the NFC, and the NFL may just get their dream of a Manning v. Manning Super Bowl.  However, in order for that to happen, Eli needs to play at a higher level than he is right now, and they need to get some of their key players like Pierce back from injury. 

The Panthers took care of business against the Saints, with Steve Smith putting on another show, which leads me to a question that has been pestering me for quite some time.  Why are there so many Steve Smiths who excel in so many different sports?  Is it because of the fact that since it is such a common and widespread name, the ratio of good Steve Smiths is proportional to any other name, or is there really something behind this?  We have Steve Smith of the Panthers; Steve Smith, a solid wide receiver for the USC Trojans; Steven Smith, a great under the radar NCAA basketball player at La Salle; Steve Smith, a very solid freshman NCAA baseball player at Bridgewater State College in Bridgewater, Massachusetts (my mother’s alma mater), who batted .445 and got a hit in all 39 of his games this past season (a streak that is believed to be the longest streak to begin an NCAA career in Division I, II, or II); and my personal favorite Steve Smith of them all, the former Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks, and Michigan State great Steve Smith.  Not to mention everybody’s favorite angry NBA analyst, Stephen A. Smith.  If there is anything to this, I am thinking of legally changing my last name to Smith so that I can name my son Steve in order to give him a better shot at becoming some sort of prominent sports figure.  I think doing that would be similar to buying up a ton of lottery tickets to increase your chances, and I don’t know anybody who wouldn’t do that if money wasn’t an object.  I think the only name that rivals Steve Smith when it comes to sports is Jason (including Jayson “I’ve had a little too much to drink and I’m angry at my limo driver”) Williams; and the only thing I think the Jason Williamses have over the Steve Smiths is the fact that they can claim a very solid NHL player (Jason Williams of the Detroit Red Wings) as one of their own as well. 

But back to the Panthers.  Even though the NFC is semi-wide open in my mind (I’d say there are 4 teams that have a legit shot to win, and I’m being nice and including the Panthers on that list of 4) there is just something about the Panthers that makes me think that they don’t have a huge run in them.  I think if they had Kris Jenkins, their defense would be dominant enough to do it themselves, but alas, he’s on IR.  I would say the main problem I have with the Panthers is the fact that their main (and virtually only) offensive threat is a wide receiver, and it is very difficult to win games in the playoffs with a wide receiver as your only threat.  Such an offense, makes it much easier for a defense to come up with an effective game plan.  The defense can go one of two ways.  They can concentrate extra effort on stopping Steve Smith and let the defense of the other receivers and the run game take care of itself without too much extra help; or the defense can say to themselves “Steve Smith is going to get his, let’s take care of him just as we would any other receiver and concentrate on absolutely shutting every other element of the offense down” as the Saints, Dolphins, Bears, and Bucs did this season in the only losses the Panthers have experienced (Steve Smith had 8 rec. for 138 yds. and 1 TD; 11 – 170 – 3; 14 – 169 – 0; and 5 – 103 – 0; in those games respectively).  The Bears and Bucs executed that game plan the best way because they didn’t let the speedster from Utah in the end zone during their games.  Come playoff time, the weak teams are weeded out, and the good teams get even better.  They have a great defense (the D and Steve Smith are the only reason I’m giving them any sort of shot), but I just can’t see the Panthers doing enough on offense to succeed in the playoffs and I wouldn’t be surprised if they are one of the teams that are weeded out in the earlier rounds.

I spoke about Da Bears and how impressed I was with their defense earlier.  I was also impressed with Rex Grossman (who is the epitome of the old Harry Golden saying, “The only thing that overcomes hard luck is hard work”) against the Falcons in his first regular season action in 15 months.  I’m glad to see Rex back and I still think he can be a productive quarterback in this league if he can kick the George Jung-type luck he’s been having and remain healthy.  I certainly believe that he can be better than Kyle Orton (who I’m not knocking, because has done a decent job in managing the team this season while learning on the run, I just think Grossman has more potential. -- Also, somebody needs to let him know that he is beginning to look like Adrien Brody near the end of The Pianist).  Unlike the Panthers, I believe the Bears have that 2000 Ravens type of defense that can overcome a mediocre offense and win games for you as long as you control the clock (which Thomas Jones and their offensive line, featuring Olin “Hitman Hearns” Kreutz [ask Fred Miller about that nickname], can do), make a couple of big plays, and limit your mistakes (which Rex Grossman may be able to do both of).  Yes Grossman is still inexperienced (even though he’s a borderline veteran at this point), but he has had nothing to do for the past couple of seasons aside from study film and learn on the sidelines; and if he plays like he did in the 2^nd half against the Falcons, that will be good enough to win some games in the playoffs.  If the Bears gain the 2^nd seed, I believe they will be in the NFC championship game. 

I don’t think the Redskins could have asked for a better scenario than the one that has emerged as a result of Sunday’s games.  Before Sunday, the Skins’ position in the playoff race was not good, they were on the outside looking in and they needed help.  But with team Sex Boat, Atlanta, and the Cowboys all losing (the Cowboys losing at the hands of those very Redskins), the Skins find themselves back in the saddle with a playoff spot waiting for them.  I think I heard Daniel Snyder giving a Dr. Frankenstein-like scream of “It’s Alive!” from somewhere in the bowels of FedEx field.  I can’t stress enough the obvious disparity in the desire to win the game between the Redskins and the Cowboys on Sunday.  The Redskins absolutely housed the Boys on both sides of the ball.  Gregg Robinson’s blitz happy defense was at its finest and Mark Brunell managed the game beautifully.  But the man who stole the show was tight end Chris Cooley who caught 3 touchdowns and staked a claim to be included in the upper echelon of tight ends such as Jason Witten, Jeremy Shockey, Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates.  Cooley should really try to link up with Coolio and/or the Igloo cooler company for marketing purposes.  For instance, with respect to the Coolio thing, they could make t-shirts with Chris Cooley’s body [a head and torso shot with his jersey visible] and put the patented Coolio braids in place of his real hair; and then every time he catches a ball they could play “Fantastic Voyage” or “Gangsta’s Paradise”.  And with respect to the Igloo cooler company, they could make the Cooley Cooler, a cooler shaped like a big Chris Cooley jersey, with the sleeves serving as drink holders, and a helmet as the lid that can also serve as a bowl for dip and stuff like that.  I think that pretty much sells itself.  I'm somewhat surprised there haven't been any little Skins fan groups or nicknames involving something to the effect of "Cooley and the Gang", these Skins fans (and the King of nicknames Chris Berman) need to step their novelty nickname game up a notch.  I don’t really think the Skins are a contender, but I do think that they will find their way into the playoffs somehow and they could win a game depending on who they play. 

At this point, I don’t think Tampa Bay, Atlanta, or Dallas can really be thought of as contenders, especially considering that odds are none of them will get to play at home.

That’s it for the NFC for now, if I think of more, I will update it when I get a chance.