Well, it has taken me three days to recover from Miami's loss to the Baltimore Ravens...sorry folks, but that has perhaps had some of you think that:
Snorky had a heart attack around the 4th quarter or Snorky collapsed when she realized her Fins would lose the game or Snorky didn't get to watch the game but when she saw the final score, she got into her car and wrapped it around a tree!
None of these are true, except I didn't watch the game (I never get to watch 1 pm games on Sundays, because after Church we go visiting relatives...like they did in the old days before televised NFL football! My husband is not a football fan anyway, and neither is my daughter, much. When our college Aggie son was here over the holidays he watched enough Bowl Games to make her never want to watch football again! And anyway, the team she likes didn't make the playoffs this year. Would you believe she likes (dum dum dum) the PATRIOTS?!?
So, I am fine, and said after I found out they lost, "Oh well, better luck next year. Lets the Ravens get creamed by the Steelers!"
Only, of course, they are playing the Titans. So I say, "Let the stupid Ravens get creamed by the Titans!"
But just in case you think Snorky is completely out of it now that the Fins are out, forget it, because now I get to commune football spirituality with Bolt Backer 21 and channel all sorts of tough love onto the Chargers, who will have to play the Steelers instead!
Soooooo....
Chargers over Steelers. No I'm not kidding! You all do realize that the Steelers only beat the San Diegans by 1 point last time, 11-10. So don't tell me or Bolt that the Chargers can't win.
Titans over Ravens. Because just as they said the
Ravens are a better team over Fins, the Titans are a better team,
period. Besides, I am in no mood to root for Poe's pusillanimous
poppycocks.Quoth the Titan, "Nevermore!"
Panthers over Cardinals: Because there is no way the Cards are going to get lucky again, beating a rookie QB. Delhomme has all kinds of weapons, and it's at home in Charlotte.
Giants over Eagles: Because I just can't see the Eagles beating the Giants again this football season-post season. And Brandon Jacobs should be well this time.
And, BTW, I was 3-1 with my wildcard picks...unfortunately, that one loss was my Fins! (on the other hand, my BTD picks are all wins!)
I picked the Cardinals and Chargers to beat the Falcons and Colts, respectively, and I was right for a change! I knew the Cards had it in them despite the lack of respect over their rather poor showing three of the last four weeks...I also knew that Warner could outplay a rookie. I told you doubters that it is very hard for a rookie, historically, to win his first playoff game, and I still believe that the same fate will befall Flacco tomorrow, especially against a cool, collected, and icy-veined QB in Pennington.
Further, I also knew that the Phillip Rivers Band had Peyton Manning's number. Kuddos to the inspired performance by the Bolts Defense, Antonio Gates who played injured, LT, and especially Sprouls, who was amazing! I switched back and forth between the game and the Sci-Fi movie "Serenity", and when I saw the Colts offense there was nothing "awarding" so to speak about Manning's play.
And especially congratulations to Bolt Backer 21! Bolt, you may not remember that back after Miami beat 'em in week 5 that I thought the Chargers would make the playoffs even though they were 2-3 at the time (check back in the archives, but I did say this! Somewhere, maybe on a comment on your site, if not on mine). You did say once "Snorky knows best" and I was right again! You gotta have faith! Your Bolts will probably play the Titans, and the way they played tonight (except for Sproul's goal line fumble), they will beat the Titans. But the same goes if they play Steelers...
...Which I hope not because that will mean Ravens beat my Fins!
Bolt, I rooted for your Chargers, now you root for the Dolphins tomorrow! If they win, they play Steelers (and if they can beat Ravens they can beat Steelers, who are the same defense-oriented team, but without an offensive line to keep Big Ben out of trouble, and you know former Steeler Joey Porter will be trouble!)
Then, if your team beat Titans and mine beats Steelers, it means you and me get to have a keyboard "duel" so to speak!
But the best thing?
Those #### "experts" who said all the visiting teams would win because they were "better" teams...Cards wouldn't win because they had become flat lately, and Bolts wouldn't win because they were only 8-8 from a weak division...WERE WRONG! AND THEY'LL BE WRONG TOMORROW TOO!
BTD, besides the Dolphins, that is. Since I am a Fins fan do not expect me not to pick them to beat Ravens. I wouldn't pick against them if they were playing the Steelers. Or the Titans. Or anyone. But that's me, and, who knows, this might be the only wrong pick of the weekend. But I'm gonna back my team anyway! Checking the yearly stats, the Ravens are better in every category except turnover-takeaway, with Miami at + 17. The Ravens are no slouches either. And, wouldn't you know it, the primary reason Baltimore won the Oct. 17 game, 27-13, was because Chad Pennington did something he has rarely done this season: Chad threw an interception at the score of 3-3, and the Ravens didn't look back from that. And other miscues from the home team, especially on special teams. The Ravens also have more talent but I usually don't count what's "on paper." So that, all else being equal, provided Miami does not turn over the ball (they have had lots of practice at that) to a team that can easily capitalize on turnovers, and provided Chad is his usual calm, poised, leadership self...and Porter and Co. can say "hello" to rookie phenom Flacco a few times, and Bess and Ginn and Fasano can overcome the awesome Ed Reed just enough to score, then the Fins will win. And then there is the "Rodney Dangerfield" factor...the Ravens claim no one respects them, but they have nothing on the lack of respect the Fins have had to put up with all year. CB Andre Goodman, who was on that 2007 joke, has repeatedly said other teams' players have looked at this 2008 team with the same jaundiced eye as they looked at the 2007 team. Further, as the season was coming to a close, most everyone said that the Jets would win this past Sunday because the Patriots "deserved" the AFC East title over the Fins because the Pats "are better" and are "more respected, thus teams won't want to play them" (as to infer everyone wants to play "weakest link" Miami!!! I bet you the Chargers don't!!! Chargers haven't beaten Fins in Miami since the 1981 overtime thriller won by Bernichke FG in OT. Sorry Bolt but I had to say it). I've said it before and I'll say it again, loud and clear: THE DOLPHINS THRIVE ON LACK OF RESPECT!!! Keep disrespecting them! PLEASE!
That is why, in case you couldn't figure out my last post, I want every blogger who is not a Fins fan to pick the Ravens!!!
And another final thing: Revenge. Not necessarily on the Ravens because of that Oct. 17 game. No. The holdovers from that 2007 team want to beat Cam "1-15" Cameron in the worst way. Those holdovers include Porter, Holliday, Roth, Tim Allen, Jason Allen, Reinaldo Hill, Yeremiah Bell, Andre Goodman from the defense and Ronnie Brown, Ted Ginn, Dave Martin, Vernon Carey, Samson Satele, and others on offense. Nothing motivates like motivation, and if Miami wins you can chalk it up to a greater motivation.
On to the rest.
Cards over Falcons. No I'm not kidding. Again, the Falcons are a better and certainly more balanced offensively...basically, the Cards are the only playoff team with a paultry running game. One can assume that the Cards will have some difficulty stopping Michael Turner. But one can, if Atlanta's defense stats bear things out, expect Warner and the Boldin-Fitzgerald duo to do very well, well enough to overcome any kind of Atlanta lead should they not turn the ball over. Falcons are -3 in the giveaway department. But yes, it'll be close.
Eagles over Vikings. I was gonna pick the Vikes out of past love (I was a Vikes fan in the Joe Kapp era), but good golly miss molly, who in the blue blazes will their QB be? Neither Frerotte nor Jackson are likely to be effective playoff QBs, and the Adrian Peterson show is going to get old if the Vikes can't figure out another way to effectively move the ball. So based on the fact that McNabb has been effective in past palyoff games, I have to go with the Eagles...but the Vikes will win if either QB is effective and their outstanding defense makes Philly turn over the ball.
Chargers over Colts. By all rights, the Colts should win with Manning, but this is the Chargers we're talking about. I agree with Bolt Backer 21...the noise in SD will drive Manning crazy, the Chargers seem to have the Colts number, and the Philip Rivers Band appears to be peaking exactly as a playoff team should at the right time, 8-8 be damned.
And a final note to Pats and Jets fans:
Stop your whining!
So the almighty "dyansty" Patriots needed the Jets to win Sunday in order to back into the playoffs? YOU CALL YOURSELVES A DYNASTY??!!?? STOP YOUR STUPID WHINING and admit the Fins are a better TEAM (with the accent on TEAM. The "i' in the Patriots was more pronounced than the "i' in Dolphins).
So the Bretts...according to NFL GameDay..."expected" Pennington to go to the Packers in exchange for Favre and "did not want him going to Miami because Miami was so bad last year" and thus they "felt bad" for Chad after the Fins picked him up AFTER THE JETS THREW HIM AWAY...
You take the cake, Jettsies!! No wonder they call you "the Wets" in Miami! You people have excuses for everything, you CHOKERS! Imagine! Blaming Miami for their own success this year! Only from the Jets!!!
And don't get me started on the Pokes...I could write a week's worth of posts on this subject, but that would drive Hanahan crazy and we need him ready to root for the Dolphins Sunday, so I won't.
So far everyone, as of Monday, December 29 at 12:50 pm central time, who has picked for the wild card playoff round, in picking the winner of the Fins-Ravens game, has picked the Ravens.
Actually, I would not expect anyone to pick the Fins. If I wasn't a Fins fan, I wouldn't pick 'em! There is NO REASON, none whatsoever, to pick the Fins. The Ravens are a better team. Period. I know that. Awesome defense. Miami's is only good. Flacco is a wonder and has a "better arm" than Chad. (Now where have I heard THAT before! Like, ALL SEASON!) Cam Cameron, who coached the Fins into oblivion last year, has the Fins offernse number as shown by how his new team clobbered his old team this past October in week 7. In fact, the Ravens are so awesome that (given that Big Ben is at this point questionable for his Steelers division playoff game) I actually see them beating Pittsburgh for a change in two weeks. That is actually what I (if I wasn't a Fins fan) would say: the Ravens annihilate the Fins and do just enough to the Steelers to shut them down (because, hey, if Big Ben's not playing the defense can't do everything!). Then (assuming the Colts beat the Chargers...again, that is what everyone is saying...what say you, Bolt Backer 21?), then go on to clobber the overrated Titans again, it sets up the Colts-Ravens. Flacco against a defense that has come on very well in the last several weeks, and Manning against a defense that has not had to come on lately because they've been there all year. I would not hazard a pick for this at this time.
And just in case you think old lady snorky is using reverse psychology, ####eddaboutit! I never use reverse psychology on something so important as the NFL playoffs!
So, go ahead, pick Baltimore. I guarantee you old lady snorky will not badger you with "####, the Fins will win" garbage, because like I said I have NO REASON to believe the Fins will win. Simply, they have not shown all year they can beat Ravens (or Colts or Steelers or Titans or any of the NFC playoff teams)...Chad's lack of arm, Ronnie and Ricky's lack of 100 yard games, inferior defense compared to the other AFC teams, "the worst receiver corp in the NFL" as Alex Marvez keeps saying, inferior offensive line compared to the others. NO REASON. And not only that, but isn't it true that Miami is just happy to be here in the playoffs after 1-15? Sure it is! Their Super bowl was against the Jets yesterday.
But here's the thing...neither Cammat (is he a Jets or Pats fan?), Pittsburgh Mike, Snorky, Bolt Backer or anyone else on these blogs, the pundits on the NFL Network or on FOXsports, ESPN or anywhere else, actually gets to decide if the Ravens win or not. God does, and HE has already decided.
So, go ahead and pick the Ravens, and let God sort them out.
Fate. The Will of God....I had said in my last post. The Will of God, indeed, for nothing happens without HIS intervention! (But you atheists can call it FATE if you want, and don't give me that "God doesn't exist" ####-ola...denounce us Christians if you want but DO NOT SCREW AROUND WITH GOD!)
And to God's pleasure and HIS glory,
The Dolphins Moved The Dash! 1 - 15 to 11- 5!
What else can you call it when right after Favre (after Jets recover Chad's sack-fumble and score the game's first TD--with X-tra point snap #### up) throws his TD to Coles, and the Fins get it back, and, on a beautiful pass to Ginn in end zone after Chad got away from several potential sackers to throw to Fasano...and then 20 seconds or so later rookie DE Merling reads a "double screen" right for his interception TD. Fins 14, Jets 6, then 9 at the half. And, after the Jets go ahead in 3rd quarter (because Miami STILL has a couple fo speacial teams issues!), Pennington goes to Ginn again, who back tracks an underthrown pass for another beauty catch, which sets up Fasano's TD. Fins 21-17. Then it goes after a blocked punt (but not too many special teams issues!) that Carpenter FG. Fins 24-17, and just when Jets are taking it downfield for the tie, Goodman makes his 2nd interception.
In other words, the Jets played hard but the Fins played harder, with just enough flukey stuff to make the claim that God was on the side of the Dolphins this afternoon!
I'll get into comparing them with the 1970 team later this week.
And otherwise it was a great day! The Pats won but WON'T MAKE THE PLAYOFFS ANYWAY! I call it KARMA (do unto others as you would have them do unto you...Matt Cassel is paying for some of the liberties the Pats took last year when they continued to run up scores on their AFC East opponents, and "spy gate"...Maybe from now on Bellichick will spend time building character, not lopsided scores. And from what I heard at the Bills game, the Pats were up to their old tricks of not getting penalites when they deserved them. As for Mangini and Favre, will they or won't they be back?
and speaking of the Jets...a great big
thank you for chad pennington!
You could have traded him, but NOOOOOOO! You threw him overboard and Miami rescued him so that he could lead them to the playoffs for the first time since 2001, and the AFC EAST title!
In other games, I am also happy because the Pokes, who give a whole new meaning to OVER-RATED, got clobbered by the Eagles and will also MISS the playoffs! Good work, Tony Romo! when you turn into Troy Aikman, let me know!
and a great big CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CHARGERS! 52-21! GOOD WORK PHIL, LT, and the rest of the team...
and you too, Bolt Bakcer 21! Happy New Year! And Happy New Year to all Dolphins fans everywhere!
If you are expecting me to make a pick in Sunday's moved-to-4pm Fins at Jets game...well, you know who I'm going to pick, and for once Street Cred agrees with me! I'd also like the Bills to beat the Pats but heck you can't have everything.
One of the ESPN (I think) pundits said that if the Dolphins won the AFC East it would be poetic justice after their 1-15 last year. Maybe, but IMHO it's a matter of the phlying phickle phinger of phate simply "moving the dash" from 1-15 to 11-5, Omar Kayyam style..."and the finger of fate wrote" or whatever.
And I never thought I'd say this but I really do think if anyone ought to win the Coach of the Year Award it should be--not Tony Sparano--but Bill Bellichick, who actually had to wrack his playbook brains this year to get this oft injured team to the point where they are after everyone else had given up on them after they went 3-2 and the Bills and Jets were leading the division. And another thing: the Pats showed a lot of character this year...I didn't think this was possible (and under Brady, I think, they would NOT have shown this much character. There are times I think Brady is too full of himself and his supermodel girl friends. This year, of course, the too full of himelf QB award is likely to go to Brett Favre. I did not think it was possible to play as poorly as he did in Seattle...snow? Heck, he played in Green Bay!).
Now, tell me again that the Dolphins can't win in bad weather??? Arrowhead Stadium, with the thermometer showing single digits, had the coldest game in Dolphin history, and sever players on the Fins sideline wore scarves over their mouths, while on the field you could see the frigid breaths on both sides, according to the highlights. But the sun was on the field keeping it from freezing and the sweat from congealing, from that beautiful Ted Ginn run out of a reverse...as close as he looked to the sideline he never stepped over it and risked big hits he is not supposed to be able to handle. And to the Chiefs' credit they didn't fold, being ahead at the half 31-24...and putting themselves in a position they might face in the playoffs. Well, they came back in the second half and held tough on defense (3 interceptions and a fumble recovery by Roth (I think)) and Chad did what he had to do on offense--and that gutsy Fasano TD dragging several Chiefs with him to make it 38-31. And they needed this bad weather game in preparation for the Jets--who happened to lose in the Seattle snow. In fact teh home field and the possibly bad weather were the only things strictly favring the Jets this coming game, and I don't think these advantages will mean as much now as before the KC game.
Don't ask me why the Jets appear to have given up (of course, they might win Sunday), but I think maybe Brett Favre has lost his attitudinal edge, or maybe the bloggers who claim he is thinking about retiring for good after this year are just being melodramatic. I mean, really, the Jets did not really deserve to beat the Bills, and had Trent Edwards played, they would not have beaten the Bills, period.
I'll have more to say about the Dolphins amazing turn-around in future posts, but suffice it to say that this season in so many ways is looking more and more like a deja vu of the Dolphins in 1970, and we all know what happened two years later.
And, this one is for you, Bolt Backer 21: the Chargers WILL beat the Broncos and Will win the AFC West. Something has to cause the Broncos to make amends for the fact that they were almost psychotic this year, and I'd never thought I'd live to see anyone beat the Bucs in Tampa Bay this year!
Fate. The Will of God. Call it what you want. Because I am convinced that, with just about a minute left in the Jets-Bills game with Bills leading 27-24 and having possession, only the Will of God could have caused Los(er)man to attempt to throw a pass ALTHOUGH HE KNOWS HES A PASSER OF INTERCEPTIONS TO THE OTHER SIDE as sure as Jauron knows this...though basically they could have just sat on it, or maybe run it.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: You DO KNOW, Bills, you have Marshawn (FOX censored)!
Well, maybe now this ridiculous play calling is THE KEY to why the Bills, 5-1 after the 7th week, have gone 1-7!
However, though Jauron must have told Losman to throw the ball with the game wrapped up (he thought), it was FATE, the Will of God, what have you, that caused to happen what could only be considered the AFC analogy of the terrible 1977 Giants play called "THE FUMBLE" against the Eagles, in which Larry Csonka, of all people!, fumbled the ball with about a minute left in a game they were winning (to finish 3-11 or something), with which the Eagles proceeded to take in for a score and win the game. (Note: After that game, two very good things happened--Head Coach Bill Arnsparger quit and headed back to the comfort of being Don Shula's Defensive Coordinater again, and Csonka pleeded to be returned to his old spot as FB of the Fins in 1978, which helped Miami to return to the AFC East title)
Need I recapitulate? Losman turns to throw and is hit by the Jets Elam, the ball comes loose and "Reefer" Ellis scoops it up for a TD, whereas the Jets, who were behind pretty much all day, win the game.
Yes, we know that Losman is not much of a QB and the Bills will never win with him. But FATE or God caused this, for one reason and one reason only:
Because it is the Jets destiny. The Football of Fate fell into the hands of Ellis, he scores, and this scenario sets up a Jets win that inexorably puts them into position that THEY MUST FIGHT for the AFC East title against a team that they, without realizing, helped immeasurably to put itself into the position to oppose them in that FATEFUL game.
ONLY FATE could have caused Losman's lost ball, and only fate could have caused the Jets this spring and summer to seek out Favre while telling Chad Pennington to not hit his head on the way out the door. And only fate could have caused the ever wise Bill Parcells to scoop up this well qualified but 2007-scapegoat QB to lead a 1-15 team to this edge of the playoffs, and to this game.
Farve beat Pennington in game one of the season in Miami. And, bad weather or not (will FATE supply unseasonably warm temperatures?), Chad Pennington is looking forward to a rematch.
Will Miami get to "move the dash" turning 1-15 into 11-5 and play out Miracle in Miami 2 (Miracle in Maimi 1 was Shula taking a 3-11 team to 10-4 and the playoffs in 1970)?
Now that I've covered the AFC East, what about the rest?
Don' t take my word for it because I generally don't follow the other divisions, but...
I really like underdogs, and, BTD (besides the Dolphins), who is a better underdog this year to make the playoffs than the Falcons?
Thus, I want to Falcons to make the playoffs. That means I DON"T WANT THE COWBOYS! Heck, I'm a resident of Texas and I don't want the Cowboys???? No, because in honor of my late dad I also root for the Giants, who before he died finally had some satisfaction from this bunch, what in the Lawrence Taylor years and now.
Besides, I've always thought the Pokes were overrated. America's Team? Gimme a Break! It is funny (sarcastic) how owner Jerry Jones is belly-aching about Barber and using that as an excuse for his team's giving up that game to Pittsburgh last Sunday. It is always excuses with this bunch! The Dallas Cowboys always seem to think the NFL "owes" them a playoff birth, and then when they get one they tend to screw up early in the playoffs.
Then, who do I like--Bucs or Panthers? I said in an earlier post that if I was just starting out watching NFL games and (being in a non-team market) had to pick a team to root for, it would be the Panthers. I like their balance between offense and defense--not overwhelming offense and not overwhelming defense (too bad the Steelers can't say that, especially now, but the Steelers have always, since 1972, been defense oriented, good offense or not. Now, I think their offense is mediocre at best). I do not dislike the Bucs, however. My relatives live in the Tampa Bay area and thus are Bucs fans. Thus, having to choose, I chose the Panthers not because of Monday night but because the Panthers would be a change.
I tend to want to root for the Bears, but way back in the late 60s under Bud Grant and with Joe Kapp I was a Vikes fan as well. I say the Vikes win out. Something has been eating at the Bears this season...they have not been consistent or effective the way they have been. I have a warm spot in my heart also for Gus Frerotte who played in Miami in their mediocre-before-the-2007-fall year (2005, leading them to 8-8 with a big finale over the Pats). and even if Frerotte doesn't play, Adrian Peterson is amazing and I don't see many remaining teams stopping him including the Bears. Third, I don't trust Kyle Orton, who is better than Bobby Douglass but worse than what's his name (you know who I mean, the guy who won the Super Bowl).
In the AFC North, I don't like the Steelers (because of their playoff rivalry with Miami and Oakland in the 70s...I mean, how can I possibly root for them???), but I have always respected them, don't have much against them now, letting by-gones be by-gones, for one thing because they have the goat of the Cowboys. Yet I still don't really like them, because as I said before they are all defense, and, as I said in another post, they are on TV just about every week and it would be nice to see someone else besides the Steelers on TV (you know, like the Dolphins?). As for the Ravens...I don't see why the Ravens can't overcome the Steelers to win the division and I hope they do. Their win over Miami has to count for something! But the Ravens have good offense and defense, both, I like the rookie Flacco, and the Ravens (who LOST to the Fins last year) are another "resurgent" "underdog", so goooooo Ravens!
In the AFC South which is already decided with the Titans, it would really be cool if the Texans could find their way to overcome the Colts. I don't like the Colts either. No running game..okay, no consistent running game and it's all Peyton Manning, who I am sick of hearing about. But I do like the Texans! Schaub, had he been healthy all year and they didn't have to rely on that god-awful Sage Rosenfels (gosh I wish Miami would have played the Texans with Rosenfels--they would have won easily), would have the Texans in the running and the run-less and often defense-less Colts on the run. NEXT YEAR, TEXANS! Peyton Manning will be wishing he'd stayed in bed Sundays!
The Jags? No comment!
I will say this for the AFC West: Dear Al Davis: PLEASE SELL THE RAIDERS! When I wasn't rooting for the Fins in the AFC back in the 70s and 80s I was rooting for the black and silver. It has pained me, since that Supe appearance fairly recently, for you, Mr. Davis, to have completely let this team go to pot. And, Dear Chargers: The past is prologue, and you need to start rebuilding that team. LT is a nice guy but he needs help. Antonio Gates? Who? Dear Broncos: Do you enjoy forcing people who bet on you to lose hundreds or thousands because you can't seem to get your act together, losing when you should win and winning when you should lose? Keep that up, and you just might win the Super Bowl! and, Dear Chiefs: I don't care what you say, do you really think the future is with a guy named Thigpen??
NFC West? Because they're another "resurgent" team (if you can call "resurgent" a team that hasn't been in the playoffs in 33 years!), GO CARDS! A few weeks ago on NFL Network Anquan Boldin gave an interview and was a real gentleman. But look out next year for the Niners, who are "talking spoiler" according to NFL.com. Actually, the 49ers have a history of playing spoiler when they weren't in the playoffs themselves. But it would seem Singletary has them going in the right direction at least and should challenge next year. The Seahawks might also challenge. If nothing else I am impressed by the play of Seneca Wallace.
NFC East: The Gaints have clinched, but can they get past that Plax BS? I mean I have fully expected them to win another Supe, but now I am not sure. If another NFC East team had to make the playoffs I'd go with the Eagles. The Skins are finished, and I wish the Cowboys were--stop hyping these turkeys! Romo isn't Aikens, or even Staubach, and their coach is no Tom Landry. They were lucky to have Bill Parcells when they had him. and yet, I have to thank the Cowboys for four things:
Tony Sparano, Jason Ferguson, Akin Ayodele and Tony Fasano. And, oh yeah, Bill Parcells. Go Dolphins!
In 2007 this division was called the AFC "Least", and I think that almost since the inception of the AFL this division has been consistently one of the weaker ones. From early AFL domination by either the Bills or the Oilers, to AFL-NFL joint era domination by Namath and the Jets, with the rest of the pack nowhere in sight at 7-7 or worse or a lot worse, to almost complete domination during the 70s by Shula's Dolphins which went into the early 80s, then after Dan Marino was exposed as a great thrower but another one of those "A-Rods" in the clutch, the East sorta tried to work itself out, winding up with a great Bills team which owned the AFC for four years, into the 90s. It seems the 90s were rudderless with all four (and yes the Colts were still in it then) teams vying for the top spot, but in the same decade all the teams had bad years as well. It was in this time that, without a TV and with a husband who could care less about football, I pretty much lost track of the NFL until the late 90s, when our son began to get interested in watching football games. Just in time to see New England become the dominant team...ironically, being named the Patriots, right after 9-11!
I have often thought wouldn't it be incredible if the 2007 standings REVERSED this year? Well, the standings will not reverse this year (although I fantasized about the Pats being last and the Fins being first), but they just might "almost" reverse...the Bills were second last year at 7-9 and they might still wind up 7-9, but that would be good for last place not second. The Pats were 16-0 last year but I can see them in third place by moving the 0 digit behind the 1 digit, then moving the dash behind the 0 and then the 6 (10-6, that is). For as impressed as I was with their win over a scrappy Seattle team, and even if the Cards who have clinched (Congrats Cards!) the NFC West do not play like they normally would which might let the Pats win, I can't see them going 11-5. Either the Raiders or Bills or Cards will beat Matt Cassel. As with the last post this would rightfully be the job of Fate: I do not want to think the Pats (who I despise but do respect after all) would have to make the decision to let go of legendary Tom Brady! Or Cassel, for that matter (who could, upon Brett Favre's retirement, be picked up by the Jets. If the Jerseyites learned anything from letting Chad Pennington escape to the Fins, it was this: one good turn deserves another!).
So that even if the Pats do wind up in the playoffs this year, "everybody" knows their time of dominating the AFC East is over, just a matter of telling Bill Bellichick!
Can a case be made for another team to pick up the mantle of domination? First of all, the Pats are NOT going to go into that good night easily. Several defenders are getting old and slow, but if they keep on taking players like LB Mayo in the draft, I can't see the Pats under Bellichick folding, even if they do let Tom Brady go.
As with Miami's dominating teams, it took many years for the Fins to sink to the level of doormat. Throughout the 90s they kind of took turns being either title winner or in the hunt until the last weeks. This was clearly because Dann-o could still throw it well, Shula was still coaching, and every year they drafted just enough good rookies to keep the lineup going. By studying Fins history it becomes clear that cracks in the cement began around 1998-2000: drafts got poorer, management and even ownership was changing; Huizinga had the audacity to take founder Joe Robbie's name off the stadium he built mostly with his own money and call it "Pro Player Stadium" (sounds like Huizinga's company, Blockbuster Video!), which thankfully he later changed to Dolphins Stadium. Also, the round robbin of head coaches...replacing the great Don Shula must have been difficult. It was the little things, like Brian Griese at QB, like alienating Ricky Williams, like terrible drafting from about 2001 to 2007 (more than half the players from this period of time on the 2008 team were drafted by others, including Williams by the Saints). In fact, a handful of starters only! They are (by round and year):
Ted Ginn, Jr. (1st, 2007), Samson Satele (2nd, 2007), Vernon Carey (1st, 2004), Ronnie Brown (2nd, 2005), Matt Roth (2, 2005), Channing Crowder (3, 2005), Yeremiah Bell (6, 2003) and Brandon Fields (7, 2007). Their first pick in 2006, Jason Allen, is okay but still sits behind Renaldo Hill, taken from the Raiders as a FA. In contrast, their 2008 draft sees two starters: Jake Long (1) and Kendall Langford (3), and undrafted rookies include Davone Bess (who has replaced the injured Greg Camarillo) and Dan Carpenter. Philip Merling (round 2) often steps in for Vonnie Holliday or goes in on the 4-3 defense. The rest of the squad are waivers and free agents, a number from good teams like Dallas (Ferguson, Fasano, and Ayodele).
And then there is the gift from the rival Jets: Chad Pennington, without which Miami simply would not be in contention, all else being equal. In fact I will state categorically here: Chad Pennington is the "reincarnation" of Bob Griese. Griese was never the pretty boy bomb thrower a-la Namath or Stabler or Staubach or Marino; he was a dink and dunk QB with an occasional bomb to Warfield just to let opponents know he could do it. Same with Chad to Ginn or Bess. Griese was the epitome of "field general" because he called many of his own plays and had a calming effect on the other offense players, especially the next generation of Dolphin champs (Delvin Williams, Andra Frankin, Nat Moore, Jimmy Cefalo). Pennington plays a similar role with the youngster linemen, Ginn and Bess, and new FB Lou Polite, who has done well picking up 4th and 1 type plays.
Still, it is too early to tell if Miami will regain the dominant position it used to have. As I said, the Pats will not just die. No telling with the Bills: clearly with having gone 5-1 after 6 games this team does have talent and reasonably decent coaching, but I think Trent Edwards's head injury did a number on this team. The Bills defense is big and is fine, in my opinion.
That leaves the Jets. I have said it all year: as foes Favre, so go the Jets, including on defense. Everyone and his uncle who watches the NFL has wondered if the Jets really are for real having gone 0-2 since beating the Pats and Titans. These two games were monumental. Clearly the Jets peaked around these two games and after, something has taken the wind out of their sails. They were uninspired against the Broncos and downright bad against the Niners. The Broncs of course are trying to sew up a playoff birth, and you know the Broncos...they lose when they should win and win when they should lose. It is the Niner loss that is most telling. Now we have Laveranus (spelling?) Coles griping that Favre doesn't use him enough. We have Thomas Jones not looking quite like the world beater he was in the big games, and we have Favre himself looking as if he was still playing the Packer in December, you know, not quite ready for the playoffs. And Gang Green is Gang Greenhorn!
It won't get easier for the Jets, with games in Seattle (Jets are 0-3 on west coast), vs. Bills (if Edwards plays in this game this week, the Bills will play considerably better than they did against Dolphins in Toronto), and finally, the whole enchilada vs. Fins in New York. This game WILL decide the AFC East, and, to hear "everybody" say, only one AFC East team will make the playoffs because the Colts and Ravens are on a roll. In fact this game is so important, CBS is considering putting it on in their evening slot on December 28 nationally, which would make it the first time all year the Fins will be on national TV!
While the Pats have the Raiders, the division-clinching Cards, and finally the Bills (as I said the Pats will likely lose one of these games...I just don't know which one) in successive weeks, the Fins have the Niners, then the Chiefs and the Jets. Folks are saying "Beware of the Niners." The same Niners who have beaten the Bills then the Jets in the last two weeks. I think the Miami players and coaches certainly do not consider the Niners an easy gimme win at all (as expressed on miamidolphins.com and in the Miami Herald)...further, except for that aberation (the Pats blowout loss), Miami's D has been very stingy on points as well as yards. In fact, except for that Pats game, the Dolphins have been the epitome of consistent: good offense (without all the scoring, as some TDs have been called back via penalty, vs. the Rams, Bills, and Raiders), and very good defense, top 10 in league (despite giving up all those points vs. Pats), and very very good at not turning the ball over (plus 12 differential). So that while the Niners faced a Bills team wondering what the fruit and a Jets team that still hasn't recovered from their peak weeks over Pats and Titans, they will not be facing a similar type of team this Sunday in Miami. They are facing a team which is working toward the playoffs at the right time on Dolphin Alumni Weekend. And Shaun Hill will be facing a secondary that has almost worked wonders since they let Matt Cassel run wild over them. Then the Fins go to KC Arrowhead; the Chiefs offense plays well, but Thigpen may not have his way, and the Chiefs defense should pose few problems for Pennington and Co. (Note: as the Fins get more confident and consistent, they have seldom used the Wildcat. This is a good sign they are thinking playoffs.) And, if they beat the Jets in New York in the cold, they will have proven they could play in any weather, a pre-condition for playoff caliber status.
One final note: whereas two weeks ago everyone was picking the Jets to win the division, more and more sports pundits are changing their minds. Wanna hazard a guess as to who they are picking now?
Of course it took my mother-in-law a minute to get the joke.
And speaking of jokes and bills, I probably had more Bills in my hand than Bills that showed up seriously to play football in Toronto against the Sparanos, er, the Dolphins Sunday. As I expected, Losman played poorly, Marshawn (Fox censored) and Lee Evans were barely noticeable, but the Bills D played reasonably well considering they were on the field most of the game...kinda like the 2007 Fins were!
With Trent Edwards out I expected a Miami win, but I really thought the Buffalos would keep it close (or that Miami would rout the Bills...but for some ridiculous reason this doesn't seem as if it is possible, after all, the Bills aren't the Patriots, and, therefore, there is no hatred here. I wonder if the Fins hate the Jets? We'll find out in a few weeks! Will Chad get some level or revenge?)
I've been trying, as an AFC East watcher, to figure out what has happened to the Bills this year. I figured earlier in the season that (what with the Fins in a tailspin going 2-4 after big wins vs. Pats and chargers) that if Miami couldn't win the division I would have no problem with the Bills or even the Jets doing it (ABP: anyone but Patriots!)
Since CBS or anyone doesn't have the wisdom to try to put the Fins on national TV this year (quite frankly I am sick of them putting on the Steelers, who it seems are on every week!) owing to their 1-15 last season, even though thanks to the Wildcat the Fins are one of the more innovative teams this year, and owing to their "resurgence" as the NFL Network keeps saying, I have to rely on video highlights. Now the pundits keep saying Edwards can't figure out a 3-4 Defense (now whose fault is that? Edwards or his coaches?), but it was Losman who lost it. It would be convenient to blame Edwards' injury and Losman's lack of starts, but even though Losman did not play well, who called that stupid pass play at the Maimi 3? The one Allen intercepted? You know, Bills, you do have Marshawn (FOX censored) and you do have other runners in case he is covered. so why in the blue blazes did you have Losman throwing it, on the Miami 3?
Fate, maybe? I wonder. Now the Bills contracted for 10 million dollars per game to have games held in Toronto. I would like to know who decided what team would play the Bills there this weekend, and when it was decided. But don't you think it is a bit precipitous to have chosen the only AFC East team that does NOT play well in cold climates in December? The Fins haven't won in Buffalo in December in may years, and have a 2-7 recent record for games played in December in cold weather. You should have heard the crew on NFL Network's AFC Playbook Saturday night joking about how the Fins get an automatic ten points for NOT having to play the Bills in the cold! Ten points is just enough to cover that Pennington-to-Fasano TD pass and Carpenter's 50 yard field goal!
Gee, when the Fins play the Jets in New York in early January, will it be unseasonably warm? What will Fate come up with, since this WILL be the game that decides the AFC East?!?
Because the Bills are out of it. The Jets have the Bills (a win likely), the Seahawks (will the curse of the west coast continue?), then the Fins at home. The Pats have it easier with the Raiders (if they can beat the Hawks in the last minutes in Seattle, they can beat the Raiders who looked horrible thursday night vs. Chargers in Oakland), then the Cards in NE (since the Cards have clinched they won't be playing their hardest so the Pats should win), and then the Bills. The Fins have the Niners at home on Dolphin alumni weekend (which is the same event that Fate "caused" the Fins last year to get it up enough to actually beat the Ravens in OT...meaning the Niners, who are playing THE spoiler role of the year, will be prevented by Fate from winning, and besides, Frank Gore is hurt and may not play), then the Chiefs in KC (a likely win even if it is cold, because the Chiefs Defense is bad enough to cover for Tyler "world beater--NOT" Thigpen and TE Gonzales' good play, then the Jets in New York.
I will not predict a winner of the Jets-Fins finale. But consider this:
Earlier in the season matchups, the Jets beat the Fins, the Pats beat the Jets and the Fins beat the Pats.
Recently in late season, the Jets beat the Pats and the Pats beat the Fins.
Does this mean Fate dictates the Fins beat the Jets?
"Everybody knows" that the Patriots will beat the Dolphins this week, week 12, in Dolphins Stadium...and there are all sorts of reasons (some of which I can refute and some I can't, because "everybody" has a darned good reason to pick the Pats, and, if I wasn't a "stupid female" I'd pick the Pats as well...)
1. Matt Cassel just threw for 400 yards against a darned good Jets defense as he took the Pats, down 24-6, to a tie as the clock ran out with an incredible (yes I saw it) pass to Moss as Ty Law, who was brought in precisely to defend Moss, seemed to just stand there and let him catch it. Further, Cassel is NOT the doofus QB that he was in that Fins rout, 38-13, in New England. Therefore, since Cassel is so much better now (and I admit he is), the Pats will win.
2. Revenge. Skipping over 2007 because the Fins couldn't beat a wet noodle in 2007 (does that make the 2007 Ravens lower than a wet noodle?), going back to 2003, when the Pats won both matches, both teams have won one match each, not always at home either. In fact you have to go way back to find a year the Fins won both, and it is too far back to matter in this case. Thus, the Pats should get their revenge as well. To heck with Joey Porter's diatribe about the Pats running up the score on his team last year...the Pats ran up the score on everyone else, too, and well...Joey Porter is just being Joey Porter. Not only do the Pats NOT take him seriously, his own teammates don't either!
3. The Fins special teams bleep. FOX Sports blogs won't let me say the word I want, so what the heck, bleep. I can't remember back to when they did not have good special teams (the late 60s, maybe??). Further, this issue of opponent TDs on punt and kickoff return coverage does not seem to bother Sparano much. Why? It would have driven Shula mad! And, Tony, you DO WANT TO BE thought of as the "next Shula", don't you? Now I do like Tony Sparano. But sometimes I do think he's a bit too laid back. Miami's special team woes should be making him as determined to correct them as it would Shula.
4. "Everybody knows" the Pats, who are in the "twilight" years of a truly great team (the term "dynasty" is arguable), "need" to win this game because if they don't they may not make the playoffs, and the Pats were picked to make the playoffs, so they must...and anyway, the Fins are an up-and-comer so they don't need it as much, and the Pats are old and the Fins are young, yadda yadda yadda.
5. The Pats will beat the Dolphins because the Wildcat will not be the surprise it was when the Fins won. Further, Bellichick will have the Pats stop the Wildcat, which the Fins can't win without.
6. Sure the Pats have lots of injuries, but they have the wisdom and depth as well as the will to playoffs to take care of that problem, and, oh yeah, the Fins have had few injuries because, well, just because. Luck, I guess.
7. Bellichick needs to have his team get revenge on Bill Parcells, for some reason. In the "Bill vs. Bill" matchup, Bellichick trumps Parcells. And oh yeah, Bellichick is a better coach than Sparano.
8. "Everybody knows" the Fins secondary isn't up to stopping Cassel should Cassel have another game like he did against the Jets. I mean, if the Jets couldn't stop him....
9. The Pats were looking ahead to the Chargers, and, further, it was at home and they had no idea what the Dolphins had in store for them in that 38-13 blowout, so the Pats can be excused for blowing that game, but now they know what the Fins are capable of so they won't make that mistake again.
10. The Pats are just a better team, more experienced, especially at making runs for the playoffs, more talented, better coached, and have more incentive on top of wanting revenge, and as with the old George allen Redskins, the "time is now"...and Miami is just gonna have to wait their turn.
Well, I might as well stop at ten reasons why those who are picking the Pats are doing so, at least as far as FOX Sports blogs goes. I could put more but then I'd be repeating myself.
As I said I can refute some and can't' refute others. I will say this. Reason ten is the only reason that makes sense, and, all other things being equal, this reason alone, ESPECIALLY the one about having the experience to make runs for the playoffs (which Miami hasn't been in since the beginning of the decade), would seem to indicate the Pats will most certainly win. And, yes, Bellichick IS a better coach than Sparano, whom the jury is still out on because he's a rookie HC and he has yet to fix Miami's special teams woes as he has been fixing the offense and defense.
But I'll try to refute most of them, anyway.
1. Cassel IS a MUCH BETTER QB now than he was in the early season, more poised and more prepared, and I doubt (Porter's rants aside) that the Fins D will have similar success against him this time. The Pats OL has also improved so Cassel doesn't seem to be getting sacked quite as much. But he is still very sackable. And, those of you who are picking the Pats (which is nearly everyone on this blog, even Bolt Backer 21!), explain to me why, if Cassel is so good, he had to pull a Tom Brady in the second half of that Jets game to pull to a tie when, if he really was Brady, that would not have been necessary and the Pats would have had the game sewed up by the third quarter at least? I mean, sorry, but the Pats made the Jets look like world beaters, and now "everyone" has the Jets winning the AFC East!
I will say this: if the Jets beat the Titans this Sunday, they DESERVE to win the AFC East!
So that, though Cassel is a better QB than he was in that 38-13 clobbering, the Fins D knows one thing: he is STILL no Tom Brady, and Matt Cassel still will not intimidate them. Advantage Fins.
2. Revenge is a funny thing when you have the sometimes erudite Porter saying he wants revenge for that time last year when the Pats were up 21-7 late in the 4th quarter and, instead of sitting on the ball on the last drive of the game, the Pats used running palys instead as if (in Porter's mind) the Pats sought to run up the score even more. So what I am saying is the Pats aren't the only side wanting revenge here. Advantage even, slightly favoring the Pats, but considering Porter DOES have a lot of influence on the play of his defensive cohorts.
3. I will give no argument here as I am not happy with the Fins giving up all those TDs on punt/kickoff return coverage, almost one per game this year. Big advantage to the Pats.
4. I'd say this one is even, because "twilight years" or not, I can't think of a better reason for winning than being 1-15 last year and having won 4 straight. Advantage Fins.
5. This one doesn't wash, because, as I said in a previous post, Bellichick "wrote the book" on the Wildcat/single wing formation for the NFL, so that, if he couldn't defend against it (or, at least, make some adjustments during that 38-13 game, but he couldn't though he knew what he was up against), he had no excuse. And what makes "everybody" think he will be able to stop it Sunday? And, for that matter, do the Dolphins even NEED the Wildcat? Can it be assumed that they MUST use the Wildcat? Or that they will even USE the Wildcat? Oh, and BTW: the Fins lost to the Texans as well as the Ravens despite using the Wildcat, but they also beat the Broncos without it! (Note: So the Bronco defense is a wash? Then what so you call the Pats defense in that first half against the Jets, and the overtime?) Advantage none or even.
6. Here is the reason the Fins have had so few injuries this year: Tony Sparano's tight fisted training program combined with the fact that (as under Shula) the players don't mind playing injured. Turning it around to winning does that. Advantage Fins.
7. I won't even comment on this BS. Advantage none or even.
8. You can't make this claim because one has no idea IF Cassel will have that kind of game against the Fins he had against the Jets. And as long as we're at it, can one say that the Pats will be able to stop Ronnie Brown if Ronnie Brown has another game like he did against the Pats in week 3? So, this kind of argument is false. Advantage none or even.
9. As far as I'm concerned the Pats have NO EXCUSES for losing IN NEW ENGLAND, 38-13, to a team that went 1-15 the year before and had already lost their first two games, one by a blowout. This point of "the Pats didn't know what was coming" is especially ironic considering some of those who are making this claim also have made the claim that Bellichick is a CHEATER! So, which is it? Advantage Fins.
10. On paper, the Pats are a better team, but, as they say, games aren't played on paper but on the field. The game will be a here and now event and one can pretty much throw history out the window (which is funny for me to admit this because my picks usually have some history to back them up), because as they say this game is vitally important for both teams. In "must win" situations, with talent levels fairly even, good coaching on both teams, and both teams expected to rise to the occassion, is there really an advantage here? (I mean, why would the Fins NOT rise to the occassion? They were 0-2, beat the Pats and then the Chargers, another playoff expectant team...then lost ot the Texans and Ravens, and have beaten the Bills, Broncos, Seahawks and Raiders in sucession....all of which they could have lost! Thus they have been "rsing to the occassion" for at least four straight weeks! Why would they stop now?) As I said in the title, the Jets game was also a must win game, and the Pats lost (true, they had the bad luck of not winning the coin toss, but then again they could have stopped Dustin Keller on 3rd and 15, but they didn't.) Oh, and, BTW, this is also a must win game for the Dolphins, and it's in Miami. Advantage Fins.
So, that gives the Dolphins a 5-2 advantage with 3 even. And it is those "evens" that could determine who wins, so we might have a close one here.
If I missed anything or if readers can come up with some darned good reason why the Pats will win after all, let me know.
Does anyone actually believe Donavan McNabb, a several year NFL vet, didn't realize that at the end of an overtime period if the score was tied, that's how the game ended? The Bungles, who flubbed a possible game winning FG, surely knew, so what was McNabb's and Reied's excuse?
Did anyone actually expect (who saw the game, that is, cos I only saw highlights) that the Steelers, who had huge offensive yardage, would win by the improbable 11-10 and that officials regarding that forward lateral are now saying the TD should have stood?
The Packers beating the Bears 37-3??? We are not in the year 1938 are we (well, some say we are in terms of the economy...I'd say 1930 might be more like it)
Amd who doesn't think the Cowboys beat the Redskins ONLY because Romo was back and Portis was out? The two of you, let me know.
Did anyone really think the Jags really would beat the Titans? Does anyone really think the Jets will next weekend? As a fan of the 1972 Dolphins, I'd like to think someone will!
The Cards-Hawks, Niners-Rams, Panthers-Lions, and Colts-Texans games went about as expected. Some games had to!
Well, the Broncos, who would be the Bengals if they were a losing team, did it again! Everyone and his grandmother expected the horses to go down to the Ryan-Flyin' Falcons, plus Turner-Burner! BUT NOOOOOOO! Folks, the Broncos are one of the biggest reasons I don't do the "stupid female" picks anymore...they lose when they should win and win when they should lose, and, what with the Chargers loss, it looks like the Broncos are likley to pull off winning the AFC West. That;s too bad because they don't play like a playoff team consistently enough.
So, that, with Carolina over the Detroit crew and the Bucs over the Vikes, it looks as if the Falcons will now have their work cut out for them. That the Bucs stopped Adrian Peterson, though, is impressive. As for the Saints and Chiefs, all that biz about Thigpen (what a name for a QB!) must have had a lot of folks thinking the KC'ers would win it, despite their bad defense.
Speaking of bad defense, I think the Raiders showed their D isn't so bad after all, getting Mr. Sore Foot down for a safety (serves them right for passing that bull biscuit story along! Sore foot, huh...Chad sure didn't look like he had one out there the way he played, especially that last drive). Now, if the Raiders had a decent offense they probably would have won the game. The Fins had close to 400 yards of offense and only 17 points? Guys, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO DO BETTER THAN THAT NEXT SUNDAY AGAINST THE PATS!!! And for pity sake, WORK ON THOSE DARNED PUNT-KICKOFF RETURN TEAMS! There is NO WAY Oakland should have gotten a TD! But that was to be expected (?) with the Raiders having one of the better special teams and Miami one of the worst.
Oh well, at least they won, are now 6-4, a game behind the Jets and a game in front of the Bills. Did anyone actually think at this point in the 2008 season the Fins would be anywhere but last, and by that I mean DEAD LAST? And if I read ever again by Marvez or any of the other FOX Sports pundits that the Phins have the worst receiver corps in the league, or that Ted Ginn Jr. can't take a hit...
As for that Ravens-Giants game, I have no sympathy for the plight of the Ravens. Now I'd liek to see how well the Titans would do against the Giants...no, Titans, you will not go undefeaed! Get with the Pats about that for a clue.
And my dad up in heaven is smiling....
Which brings me to the Browns-Bills. Good for the Browns, who I have no opinion over, ever, and barely even acknowledge their existence theyre so mediocre, as usual. Except that it is the Browns who, after all, beat the Giants, and were in some quarters favored to beat the Bills. Weather was no factor as Buffalo and Cleveland are winter weather soul mates with the Lake Effect. It is clear now that Brady Quinn will be THE Browns QB for years to come. It is also clear that the Bills have only a prayer left to make the playoffs...their last four games are Dolphins, Jets, Broncos,and Patriots. Except for the Fins game and the cold weather factor (against the Fins in Buffalo), I expect the Bills to lose the rest and wind up 8-8, assuming they beat the Chiefs and Niners the next two weeks.
Ad for my next trick, I'll show that it is very possible that the Dolphins can win the AFC East...but next time!
Just read this on Fox Sports "news"....Fins QB Chad Pennington has a "sore foot" but was probable for Sunday vs. Raiders. Funny this is coming out just now, when everyone and his uncle has plopped down God-knows-how-many bucks on a sure Dolphin blow out, minus 8 or 9 or whatever it is now, seeing as how the Raiders can't seem to average more than 12 points a game (sounds familiar with a certain team last year!)!
Sorry, but I, a "reformed NFL bettor," thinks this looks su####ious. I wonder if Parcells has ever been involved with this sort of possible conspiracy...and anyway, it is even funnier that if this is a conspiracy, it is being done to Mr. NFL Conspiracy, Al Davis! Or, Tony "Soprano" Sparano? ;-)
For instance, back in 1970 something I put down, on the Saturday before the game, a fairly large (for me) amount of dollars, on the Chiefs vs. the Raiders on the spread plus about 10 points or so (the Chiefs were mediocre to bad that year, under Hank Stramm) because it was announced Kenny Stabler had a sore arm or something but was "Probable"...naturally, Stabler played and it was "what sore arm?" and covered the spread to boot.
But Al Davis used to pull this nonsense all the time so that for me it was getting so I wouldn't even touch a Raiders game spread-wise!
Is it me, or do others think the Sparanos (likely NOT trying to influence betting at all) think that at least the Fins are playing a mind game on the Raiders, a la the old Al Davis?
I was almost ready to give up this blog to my son, "Son of Snorky," (who began his own blog on realsportsblogs but hasn't actually posted anything, so I may take that one over!), due to back injury, or rather, a lotta bit of arthritis mixed with a bit of osteoporosis...yeh, yeh, yeh, you men here don't wanna hear about it! So what the heck, it was too much you know what in the wrong position!
And, oh yeah, the Dolphins losing so horribly to the Ravens four weeks ago! I thought I was going to DIE! Now I can take losing by one point to the Texans--whom they have never beaten, so what else is new? But when it is a team the Fins have pretty much owned (except for a playoff loss), and when it is an improving pass defense against the rookie Flacco, and one of the best AFC defenses against the wonder of the Wildcat--well, the Fins couldn't lose, right? BUT THEY DID AND THEY DID HORRIBLY, so I thought I was going to die, and in an apoplectic fit of anger I guess I did a number on my sacri-iliac! No you know what that night! I had a headache!
Nor did it help the (as I expected) the Fins demolished the Bills the following week, reigned in the horses the week after that, and this past Sunday managed to survive a weak Seattle team. This brought me back to this blog! It was vitally important that Miami beat a weak team. Funny how a rebuilding, up and coming team finds a way to beat the "big boys" (Pats, Chargers, Broncos) but always struggles against teams that look (in the win-loss column) like losers (Texans, Seahawks). But they held off against Seattle (with Yeremiah Bell redeeming himself after letting Texan QB Schaub run it into the endzone in that one-point loss), and with a remaining schedule that mostly includes weaklings (like the Niners, Rams, Raiders and Chiefs) as well as their division rivals, the Fins had to prove to me that they could beat these kinds of teams, no matter which way.
So now we have the AFC East in a bind, with the Jets and Pats at 6-3 and the Fins and Bills at 5-4. Wha haappen to the Bills? According to most experts, it is the fact that beginning with the loss to Miami in week 8, then the Jets in week 9 and the Pats this past week, the problem for the Buffalos is that Edwards can't read a 3-4 defense. If that is indeed the cast, then the Bills are out of it...they have the Fins, Jets and Pats pretty much in the crucial final four weeks. One can assume that the Fins, Jets, and Pats will all still be in the running at that point, so the Bills will have to rely on the old reliables of home field (particularly against the warm weather Fins...one day soon I am going to rant on why the NFL insisted on keeping the Dolphins in the same division with three cold weather teams, and it doesn't get much colder than Buffalo in the late fall/winter!), and that they have played spoiler on the Jets since almost forever. Which could mean---guess what, all you Pats doubters!---Snorky was right to say several weeks ago that counting out the Bradyless bunch was a bad idea.
Now some might claim I made up that headline, "Go Pats" to flip off Jets fans and get Josh Q. Public to notice me. Josh Q WHO? But anyway, I still do not like the Patriots and probably never will as long as Bellichick is their coach. And I can still say I might be a Jets fan today had the Jets been able to ride their AFL success into the AFC in 1970 instead of cave to the newcomer Colts and upcomer Dolphins that year. But instead, Sonny Werblin sold the team to incompetents, and the Jets have been incompetent on and off since then. (It is one thing for the Fins post-Joe Robbie ownership to have gone downhill under Huizinga, who really is one of the worst sports franchise owners out there...I mean, look at the Marlins! and it is one thing for the Fins coaching to have been really lousy for the last 7 years or so. It is clear now that Hiuzinga is letting the football pros run the team now, Parcells and Co in the front office and Sparano and Co on the field, with good results so far. It is another thing for the Jets to have not even been close to a Super Bowl IN FORTY YEARS!!!)
And therein lies the edge to the Pats. As much as one cannot stand Bellichick, as much as one can downgrade Matt Cassel, as much as one can say that new runner of theirs won't make up for the ones who are injured, and as ####ed up as the Pats defense is, the Pats did not let their at home crushing by the Dolphins get ot them. The Pats--as so many had hoped--did NOT go away, did not let losing Brady get ot them, and did not let their fans get them down. As much as I can't stand the Pats, I gotta say this is definitely the team that has dominated the 2000s, that knows how to win when it counts and can come back to the point where (besides the Titans) has the best shot at winning the AFC! Besides Favre, Thomas Jones, and Ty Law (again!), what do the Jets have? So what if they clobbered the hapless Rams? As far as I am concerned, that game says more about the Jets lack of moral fiber than anything else (you know, like the Pats lack of moral fiber everytime they annihilated the Fins last year!)
Now don't take that "GO PATS" headline to mean I am actually rooting for the Pats. Perish the thought! It is just that the Jets are favored and I'm sorry, if Favre has a bad game, and he might because the Pats really are inspired (and not looking ahead to that rematch in Miami against a true nemesis, who outside of last year has always beaten the Pats at least once a season), the Jets won't win, period, no matter what Tom Jones does.
And don't look for anymore "Stupid Female Picks" because obviously my record so far is embarassing and I don't even want to think about it!
A note to Bolt Back 21: don't give up, the Chargers are still going to win the AFC West. Good golly, the Broncos surely don't deserve to!
This week I'm just gonna list my picks with no explanations...after last weeks's 6 - 8, I have to agree with slshusker...my picks deserved no respect! Rams over Skins?? Browns over Giants?? Jags over Broncos??? And kudoos to that Cards fan who lambasted my Cowboys pick!
Bills over Chargers (Because it's in Buffalo and their QB is back)
