RECAP - NFL DIVISIONAL WEEKEND

This Week: 3-1 (6-2)

I wish I did this well in the regular season! With only 3 games left to play this year, I am guaranteed of a winning record in the playoffs. Nice. Now I have to decide which storyline I want to see in the Super Bowl. Let me outline them for you...

Ravens v. Cards: The one between two teams people would not have been surprised to see miss the playoffs entirely before the season started...

Ravens v. Eagles: The Battle of I-95, and the first, and likely only, #6 v #6 Super Bowl

Steelers v. Eagles: The Battle of Pennsylvania

Steelers v. Cardinals: Great defense vs. Great Offense...which wins super bowls? (I know, that one's a stretch...)

From Undefeated to One-And-Done
Baltimore Ravens @ Tennessee Titans (Sat Jan 10th, 4:30pm)
Line: Titans -3
O/U: 34.5
My Pick: Ravens +3. It's tough to beat an outstanding defensive team twice in one year. Ravens 16-13.
Result: Ravens 13-10
You knew it would be a low scoring, defensive battle. Anyone who took "the Over" is crazy, and deserves to have lost his or her money. In a dog fight, never bet against Ray Lewis and the Ravens. I actually may end up having to go against my own philosophy this week...so I guess we'll change the adage to "never bet against Ray Lewis and the Ravens in a dog fight, unless it's against the Steelers or is run by Michael Vick..." Yes, yes, that was in poor taste. But a pack of trained pit bulls would beat the Ravens in a true dog fight, so it had to be added. Sorry Tennessee, it was a great season, but when it was all said and done you proved the media right. You just weren't as good as you thought you were.

Shocker
Arizona Cardinals @ Carolina Panthers (Sat Jan 10th, 8:15pm)
Line: Panthers -10
O/U: 48.5
My Pick: Cardinals +10. Carolina should still win the game, 30-27.
Result: Cardinals 33-13
I wonder when the last time a playoff team beat the spread by 30 was...My thought is in 1991 when the Bills beat the Raiders 52-3...chances are that spread was not 19 or more! Anyway, how about the new-look Cardinals that can run the ball! Now Philly has to travel to the desert, where Arizona knows they can score a ton of points, and try to beat a very different Cards team than they faced last. Philly won the prior meeting by 28, but that was on the east coast, back when the Cards didn't travel well. They certainly showed up this week in Carolina. Consider that on the road, the run game is very important to control tempo and all sorts of other stuff, and without one, Arizona just couldn't put it together away from U of Phoenix Stadium. Their 3 road wins? SF, SEA, and STL. Nobody good. Now Edge is performing, taking the pressure off Warner a little, and even without Boldin, the Cards are one win away from the promised land.

No Way...
Philadelphia Eagles @ New York Giants (Sun Jan 11th, 1:00pm)
Line: Giants -4
O/U: 40
My Pick: Giants -4. New York wins 24-14.
Result: Eagles 23-11
I guess the loss of Plax really was that big a deal...And just when I was starting to believe this team truly was good! Philly is proving Skip Bayless right, in that he said 6 weeks ago that they were playing the best football in the NFL. Now only the "lowly" Cardinals stand in the way of an improbable Super Bowl run. Remember, if you will, that the Tampa Bay Bucs had to lose to the Oakland Raiders for the Eagles to even have a shot at the postseason with a win over Dallas. So if Philadelphia earns a trip to Tampa, they ought to stop in and thank the Bucs for being so inept... they'll be in the neighborhood anyway!

New Favorite
San Diego Chargers @ Pittsburgh Steelers (Sun Jan 11th, 4:45pm)
Line: Steelers -6
O/U: 38
My Pick: Steelers -6. Pittsburgh wins 23-10.
Result: Steelers 35-24
Pittsburgh won in decisive fashion, and all of the other high seeds lost. So naturally they're the new Super Bowl favorites. It must be nice to be a sports fan in that city right now....harboring the number one college basketball team in the country, and essentially the #1 NFL team in the country. We'll see what happens in round 3 of Steelers/Ravens, but the first 2 were decided by a total of 7 points, the Ravens are far better and more confident now than they were then, and it is VERY hard to beat the same team 3 times in one season. Then again, the Steelers looked REALLY good in the second half against San Diego. And they're at home. Thank god I have a couple of days to make up my mind!