:: Life on Planet Dan-E ::
Thoughts, observations, and introspections from an
:: Sunday, January 18, 2009 ::
Labels: football, picks, playoffs, sports Labels: football, picks, playoffs, sports Labels: football, picks, playoffs, sports
:: Saturday, January 10, 2009 ::
That being said, there's the distinct possibility of going 0-2 this weekend just because there's way too many intangibles to consider in either game to make a confident, clear-cut pick. Despite their hot streak, Philly is favored by 4 points, which I think is the oddsmaker's way of saying "we have no idea how this game is going to turn out". Yeah.
Anyway, on to my picks:
Arizona over Philly:
Why not ride the hot streak? Arizona has a the best wide receiver tandem and Kurt Warner is playing like he's in his early 30s again, and they have a revived defense and running game. Philly's best playmaker Brian Westbrook is injured and QB Donovan McNabb still has a penchant for overthrowing his receivers. The game is in Arizona and Philly is 3-4-1 on the road. This is similar to what I was saying about the Cardinals last week except for some reason, these reasons seem to make more sense with this game.
There's also this: In Week 17, The Cardinals beat the Seahawks, then beat the Falcons in Round 1. Now they could beat the Eagles in the Division finals and depending on how the late game plays out, face the Ravens in the Super Bowl. That means the smallest, meekest bird might beat every other team named after a bird, and those are, at least in nature, larger, deadlier birds of prey. Don't ask me why but I find this very, very entertaining.
(On the other hand the Cardinals lost to the Jets in Week 4. Kinda ironic given the news about the river landing this week. I mean sure, the birds sucked into the engine died but they did after all, take down a jet-engine airplane, which was the point in the football sense. I'm overthinking this, aren't I?)
Pittsburgh over Baltimore:
This game isn't that much different, yet it's very different. Unlike the high-flying (can't let go of the bird analogy) passing offenses of the first game, this will be a drawn-out defensive matchup where you're going to see some big hits and a few key injuries. It'll be glorious.
The Steelers, like the Cards, are on a roll, except the excellent defense has been carrying a sneaky efficient offense capable of a big play or two. The Ravens have to know that they got lucky last week since Tennessee's offense suddenly got a bad case of butterfingers. For all the hype about rookie QB Joe Flacco, he's complete only 20 of 43 pass attempts. The Steelers don't have any big holes to exploit and Tennessee showed you could move the chains against the Ravens. Baltimore's their defense creates turnovers but I don't see their offense being able to convert those opportunities. This is the only game that seems to follow conventional NFL logic. I'd love to see an all-aviary Super Bowl but I just don’t see that happening.
:: Miscellaneous Ramblings by Dan-E at 1:06 AM [+] ::
|
0 comments
.....
:: Saturday, January 03, 2009 ::
That being said, these two still aren't as dormant as Miami's ball protection against Baltimore last week. Everyone was talking about how the Dolphins rarely turn over the ball. Having seen most of the games this season, I can say that a lot of that was sheer dumb luck. In literally every game QB Chad Pennington had at least a two or three passes that made people ask "what were you thinking?!" Every now and then it would result in a crippling interception.
Speaking of which, Ed Reed is the biggest stud right now. I haven't seen a ball hog like this since Kobe Bryant's rookie years and that's saying something for a guy playing on defense. Of course, this is the same Ed Reed that got jacked up by a wide receiver so I'm not surprised he's playing like he has something to prove.
I think the sleeping lady just drooled. With that note, and before I get distracted any more, on to the picks.
Titans over Ravens:
I'm going to be the 2,174,823rd person to say that the Titans remind me of the Ravens back when they won the Super Bowl: stifling defense, strong running game, and a veteran QB that doesn't make mistakes, and a very good special teams unit. Of course, the current Ravens look a lot like that as well; only they have a rookie QB with eyebrows that look like they could withstand a zone blitz by themselves. It's going to be low-scoring, physical, well-coached, smashmouth game that just might remind everyone why they became fans of football in the first place.
Cards over Panthers:
This one is almost too easy: The game is in Carolina, the Panthers are 8-0 at home, Arizona is 3-5 on the road and those losses weren't even close. That's why I think this game has "upset" written all over it. Arizona almost won last time they played and unlike then, the Cards actually have something resembling a running game now. It remains to be seen if the Running Back formerly known as Edgerrin James can continue his rebirth from Week 17 and Round 1. I was gonna pick Carolina but just barely; this might be closer than everyone thinks.
(By the way, isn't it weird how after all this time, that "The [Fill in the Blank] Known as [Name]" joke still kinda works? Forget his great music, I'll always appreciate Prince for this particular contribution to pop culture. Sorry, got distracted again.)
Giants over Philly:
This is the second year in a row where the last remaining Manning is Eli. Sibling rivalry being what it is, I have believe that on some level, Eli is loving every moment that big brother is up in the luxury box pretending to root for him while he's on the field defending his team's Super Bowl Title. If he does win this year, I have a feeling that Eli's going to rub his second Lombardi Trophy in Peyton's face and say, "you like that? You like that?! This is for talking me into doing those dumbass Oreo commercials. Bitch."
Steelers over Chargers:
I almost took San Diego in this game. Darren Sproles is awesome almost made LaDanian Tomlinson seem like an afterthought. Phillip Rivers did anything and everything to win that game while Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger spent the last two weeks trying to remember how to spell his name. (By the way, that's his third concussion - Non-motorcycle Injury Category.) Steelers have the better defense but the Chargers have a better O-line, running back (even minus LDT), and QB. Bad news is they're coached by Norv Turner so that cancels out some of those advantages. That and Pittsburgh has a unique homefield advantage: Heinz field is loud, the weather is going to be icy, and the field is going to be muddy, mangled, and slippery. It's exactly the kind of game John Madden would love if he were alive today.
EDIT 4:15: I already posted my pick but did I say that Arizona just might win this thing? I just have a gut feeling but... ugh. We'll see what happens when the game actually starts.
:: Miscellaneous Ramblings by Dan-E at 2:45 PM [+] ::
|
0 comments
.....
It's been a fantastic season so far. The Lions went an historic 0-16. The Cowboys soap opera of a season fizzled out worse than "Melrose Place." The Falcons and the Dolphins, after awful seasons, returned to playoff form thanks to new coaching and management. An 8-8 team (Sandy Eggo) is hosting their first playoff game while an 11-5 (New England) team gets to watch. My SanFran 49ers somehow Forrest-Gumped their way to a 7-9 season, setting up for a potential playoff run next year. (Of course, I said that two years ago and I've been punching myself in the stomach ever since.) Did I mention that Cowboys collapse?
(I only wish that someone had actually punched Terrell Owens in the face at some point. I'll freely admit my shadenfreude toward any rival team, by the way.)
Anyway, here are my picks for the first round of the playoffs.
Arizona over Atlanta:
I hate the Cards because they play in my division but I love Kurt Warner. I also really like Larry Fitzgerald because he reminds of a cool Irish guy I went to college with named Patrick Fitzgerald. He also had a nice cousin named Gerald Fitzpatrick. (I love that joke.) His wide receiver counterpart also came back from a broken face. (I mean literally a BROKEN FACE. Dude is a stud.) Gotta like that. Finally, given the choice between the QB who's actually won a Super Bowl versus a gifted but green rookie QB, I'll take the veteran.
Indianapolis over San Diego:
Everyone seems to be picking the Charger because they won four games in a row to close out the season, including a "playoff" elimination game against Denver. That's nice and all but Indy went ahead and won NINE games in a row to finish the season. So there goes the momentum theory. We're also talking coaching matchup of Norv Turner vs. Tony Dungy. Again, I'm taking the guy with a ring.
Baltimore over Wildcats:
While at the Dolphins this season, there were two guys wearing Miami jerseys sitting near me. When they fell behind, one guy said they needed to throw more long bombs. The other replied, "bro, Pennington's bomb is eight yards." That's Dolphans for you. Rookie QB over limp-armed veteran? I hate this pick but I have to go with the better defense. I really wanted to pick Miami since I still live here and I don't want angry Dolphans breaking down my door. Then I remembered they're somewhat apathetic fairweather Johnsons and none of them know where I live. That and I'm not even sure anyone from Miami reads my blog anyway.
Minnesota over Philadelphia:
I hate this pick even more. If this was a regular season game I'd probably call this game a tie and there’s a 30% chance of being right. Yeah Philly beat Dallas (which made me happier than I should have been) but it was as much a case of the Cowboys self-immolating. Since I can't think of anything else to say about this, I'm going to revert to my Nature Theory and pick the Vikes since in nature, I'm pretty sure a Viking can kill and Eagle.
There it is. Enjoy the games.
:: Miscellaneous Ramblings by Dan-E at 3:48 PM [+] ::
|
0 comments
.....
