Pick Six: Divisionals posted by Randolph Charlotin

1. Regular season or post season. It doesn’t matter. The Patriots keep on breaking records. QB Tom Brady became the first player to throw five touchdown passes in one half of playoff football. He also tied a post-season record with six touchdown passes in a game. Brady did this while throwing for 300 yards in a playoff game for the first time. To top it off, Brady executed a well placed 48-yard quick kick to Denver’s 10-yard line.

2. With the win, Brady and head coach Bill Belichick became the winningest head coach-quarterback combo in NFL playoff history. They surpassed Pittsburgh coach Chuck Noll and QB Terry Bradshaw. Not that the record matters to Belichick and Brady. They are still behind the Steelers tandem in Super Bowl wins, four to three. Brady and Belichick still have work to do to be most successful tandem.

3. WR Deion Branch did not play against Denver in the regular season, but he certainly made up for it. He finished with three receptions for 85 yards, including a huge 61-yard TD as Denver was thinking the Patriots were going to run their 2-minute offense. New England started the drive with 2:27 left in the second quarter. An 11-yard Woodhead run followed by the TD pass equaled a 30-second scoring drive. The defense forced a Denver three-and-out and the offense scored again in five plays, and the game was over with the second half still to play.

4. Talking about the defense, they turned in a dominant performance. When they first faced Denver, they allowed 252 rushing yards. On Saturday, they gave up 252 total yards. They forced 14 negative plays and sacked Denver QB Tim Tebow five times. It was easily the best game the defense played all year long.

The Final Drive: 2012 Divisional Round posted by Joe Anello

I have to say, I was skeptical that these four games could live up to the hype, especially after last weekend. But I’m happy to say I wasn’t disappointed in the slightest. I even gave myself a cushy lead for later poor postseason predictions. But I’ll tell you about that later. Right now it’s time for The Final Drive of the Divisional Round!

I’m not sure I can put into words how freaking EPIC this game was. It was such a fantastic start to the weekend’s action. The Saints came out embarrassingly flat, with three turnovers early, including a horrendous pick over the middle from Drew Brees, who never saw the safety coming. The Niners turned those possessions into points, notching 17 with not even a minute gone by into the second quarter. Brees fought back as you knew he would, finding his big targets Jimmy Graham and Marques Colston on consecutive drives to pull within three at the break. It was hard to say the Niners had the momentum though. I mean, when the other team turns it over four times in a half and you’re only up a field goal? That’s a problem. San Fran’s special teams even got another turnover from Darren Sproles early in the third, but they could only manage to put up a field goal. Eventually that was going to come back to bite them. San Francisco wasn’t even trying to run the ball for the first three quarters, an offensive plan that befuddled me, to say the least. Alex Smith was getting all sorts of pressure from the Saints, who were simply sending more rushers than the Niners had blockers. (Just math, really.)

The Opening Drive: 2012 Divisional Saturday posted by Joe Anello

After six long days of waiting, the NFL playoffs are back today with a great match-up in the NFC and a highly publicized showdown between Jesus and Satan in the AFC. It’s a great day for some football. That means it’s a great day for The Opening Drive!

(13-4) New Orleans Saints at
(13-3) San Francisco 49ers
4:30 PM ET, FOX

Off for a week, it’s easy to have forgotten about the Niners and their tremendous regular season which earned them that rest. Alex Smith had a solid year (finally), but he hasn’t been all that impressive to me when I’ve gotten the chance to see him. He has a few decent weapons, but the Saints’ focus should be on running back Frank Gore and tight end Vernon Davis, Smith’s main outlets. ‘Frisco’s offensive line is underrated and should have the clear advantage in the running game, but how are they going to put up points? Michael Crabtree is (sorta) good, but he’s not dangerous enough to put up a monster game and abuse the Saints secondary all day. If they’re going to win, Jim Harbaugh’s defense will have to contain this next man.

Drew Brees is pretty freaking good. However, he still has the ability to toss an interception or two while trying to get the big play deep. If he can avoid those turnovers against the Niners, he’ll keep his Saints on top. He’ll have a lot of resistance on the front though, as San Fran can get up the field and rush the passer. Definitely keep your eyes on the two Smith’s, Justin and Aldon, who can both get pressure on the outside where the Saints’ line is weakest. Where the Niners are going to have issues defensively is in the secondary, Carlos Rogers has had a great year, but he doesn’t have as much support at corner. That’s not a recipe for success against Brees, who has Robert Meachem, Marques Colston and Devery Henderson. Still, that’s not even the Niners’ biggest problem. They like to keep linebackers Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman in the game as much as possible, which is going to create ugly match-ups with Jimmy Graham and Darren Sproles. I think the Saints win those battles more often than not.

Hours Before Kickoff: Divisionals posted by Randolph Charlotin

Bill Belichick doesn’t do reunions. The Patriots head coach is not the sentimental type. Only if he feels someone can make the team better, then Belichick will welcome a familiar face back.

Josh McDaniels, formerly the Pats’ offensive coordinator from 2006-2008, is back after a failed head coaching stint in Denver and escapes St. Louis before probably getting fired by new head coach Jeff Fisher. McDaniels will be an offensive assistant to outgoing OC Bill O’Brien, who’s leaving New England for the Penn State head coach job after the playoffs.

It’s unknown what McDaniels will do as offensive assistant, but he won’t be positioned to step on O’Brien’s toes, that’s for sure. But looking at what they did in their separate terms as New England’s offensive coordinator, the offense can be more consistent with McDaniels around.

Comparing their total bodies of work is like apples and oranges. To simplify, we’ll focus on their best statistical seasons, McDaniels’ 2007 and O’Brien’s 2011.

This is a fair comparison because both offenses were record-breaking in their own rights: ’07 for Brady’s 50 touchdown passes and WR Randy Moss’ 23 TD receptions, and 2011 because Brady eclipsed Dan Marino’s 27-year-old passing yards record and Rob Gronkowski shattered tight end records for receiving yards and touchdowns in a season.

In just two categories is there a big difference between seasons. Total points are 589 in 2007 to 513 in 2011. That is due to the TD passes being 50 to 39, respectively. Rushing TDs was almost identical, as the present day squad edged 2007, 18 to 17.

The Final Drive: 2012 Wildcard Weekend posted by Joe Anello

Are you exhausted yet? There was TOO MUCH DRAMA! (That’s a lie. There’s never too much.) Both nights of Wildcard weekend ended in tremendous excitement, wrapping up with a dramatic overtime ending that didn’t even warrant explanation of the new rules. I’m still appalled. Let’s just get The Final Drive started.

The first game of the weekend started off awfully sloppy, with plenty of penalties and “jitters” as described by Nessler and Mayock. As the game drew on though, the Texans clearly established themselves as the better team by man-handling Cincy. Rookie lineman J.J Watt, who has shown an inherent talent and awareness to deflect passes at the line of scrimmage made the play of a game by boomeranging Dalton in the second quarter. Watt timed his jump perfectly and made the catch and rambled 29 yards to paydirt. Then he sacked Dalton to end the first half as the Bengals were driving. It was hilarious afterwards to see Dalton with the “Why didn’t you tell me that lineman wasn’t actually fat? I never would have thrown it his way had I known” face. I blame the scouts on that one. The Bengals performance could be encapsulated with their second half opening drive: they were stopped on second down for a loss, then flagged for 12 men in the huddle, then Dalton wasted a time-out as he couldn’t hear the play-call in Reliant’s noise. Those wheels came off. Missed chances to take away the ball from Houston, poor tackling on defense allowed Houston to let Arian Foster loose and control to flow of the game. T.J. Yates never had to make a big play, so the Texans got the win.

The Opening Drive: 2012 Wildcard Sunday posted by Joe Anello

If Saturday’s games were any indication, then Sunday’s remaining Wildcard action should be entertaining as hell. Who’s got time for lengthy introductions though? Let’s break down this action!

 


(10-6) Atlanta Falcons at
(9-7) New York Giants
1:00 PM ET, FOX

Even more of a toss-up than Texans-Bengals, this game seems like it could go either way. Matt Ryan and the Falcons have been hot of late, winning five of their last seven games. However, all of those wins except one (Tennessee) came against sub .500 teams. Atlanta’s been kicking the crap out of crappy teams in 2011. Ryan hasn’t looked as sharp against quality defenses, but he hasn’t been getting help from receivers Roddy White and Julio Jones in those outings. Too many drops in an inconsistent passing attack. As always, the key to their success is the production of Michael Turner. The Falcons have a very aggressive offensive line that excels at run blocking, but their pass blocking hasn’t been as dependable. Defensively they’ve struggled to produce any sort of pass rush, even with Ray Edwards. John Abraham needs to have a big day.

Eli Manning may have just completed his best season as a professional quarterback. It came at a great time too, as the Giants wouldn’t have even been competitive this season without Manning’s heroics. Their running game hasn’t been as dominant as in years past, which is a direct result of the decline of their offensive line. Still, Manning’s put up points this year thanks to a stellar receiving crew, fronted by Victor Cruz, who looks like most explosive receiver in the game. On defense, the Giants are weak in the secondary, but those deficiencies are masked by the outstanding play of the defensive line. They still have Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora, but the emergence of Jason Pierre-Paul this year has really elevated their chances this postseason. Their front four has the type of talent they had when they won the Super Bowl and is a key to beating these high-powered offenses.

The Opening Drive: Week 17, 2011-12 posted by Joe Anello

I’ll bet you thought week 17 in the NFL was meaningless! Well I call shenanigans on that premise entirely, as I’m ready to touch on ELEVEN games going on New Year’s Day. How’s THAT for an Opening Drive?

 

(10-5) Detroit Lions at
(14-1) Green Bay Packers

We pretty much know the story here. Detroit wants like hell to avoid losing and dropping to the sixth seed in the NFC, because that would mean a trip to New Orleans in the wild card round and a quick trip back home after a swift kick in the ass from Drew Brees and company. Green Bay has absolutely nothing to play for, so they’ll likely sit Rodgers and any banged up skill players early. Lions should win this one.

St. Louis is primed to snatch the number one draft pick away from Indy with another loss, meaning they’ll be the subject of so many “Should they draft Andrew Luck or trade (incumbent starter)” questions throughout the offseason. Seriously though, getting the number one pick twice in a span of only three seasons? Ouch.

There’s some mild playoff implications for the Jets here if they win and get a whole bunch of other (better) teams to lose on Sunday. Unfortunately, they probably won’t get past the whole “winning” thing on their own. Miami is one of those better teams.

Pick Six: Week 15 posted by Randolph Charlotin

1. Behind Tom Brady’s good looks and nice guy personality is a competitor with an incomparable desire to win. After a week of Tim Tebow this and Tim Tebow that, Brady wanted to make a statement. Mission accomplished: 23-34, 320 yards, two TD passes and a rush TD. Tebow is a nice story, but when it comes to the best in the league, Brady expects the list starts with him. Don’t you think Brady envisioned Tebow’s face on the spot Brady spiked the ball after his touchdown run? I think so.

2. New England’s tight ends would be tag team champions if they were pro wrestlers. Last week Rob Gronkowski had a career game while setting a single season record for touchdowns by a tight end. Because he drew so much attention Sunday, Hernandez was tagged to carry the offense. Hernandez responded with career highs in receptions (nine) and yards (129) and a touchdown. We expected a former University of Florida Gator to have a big game. Hernandez stole the show from Tebow this week.

3. I’ve been waiting since DT Ron Brace was activated from the physically unable to perform list to mention his name. He was credited with just one solo tackle, but he forced a pivotal fumble in the second quarter. The offense cashed the turnover in for just a field goal but it turned the momentum in the Patriots’ favor. It was Brace’s first career forced fumble.

4. LB Rob Ninkovich pounced on the loose ball forced by Brace, but it was one of the few times Ninkovick was sure-handed. Three times he failed to bring down Tebow for sacks. The first missed tackle resulted in Tebow’s nine-yard TD run. Ninkovich finally got Tebow for a 28-yard loss late in the game. Ninkovich wasn’t the only one that had a difficult time wrestling down Tebow. DT Brandon Deaderick couldn’t hold on to Tebow in the endzone. It would have been a huge play because Tebow fumbled in the end zone. A safety would had made the score 36-16, a touchdown 41-16 just seconds into the fourth quarter.

Victory Monday: Yea, I know it's Wednesday but I forgot to post but expect something new tomorrow posted by Amari Harris

Happy Victory Monday to everyone whom it applies:

It does apply to the Cowboys who handled the Bucs so well that they only needed 3 points in the second half to win by two touchdowns.  But is that slow second half foreshadowing for things to come?  I'll discuss later.

But yes, the Cowboys handled those Bucs in enemy territory, and put themselves in a position to make a playoff run.  Now the Bucs had lost seven in a row prior to Saturday night, but that was all the more reason for this game to be a trap game.  Fortunately for the Cowboys, they did not fall into this trap and now they are in the driver's seat of the NFC East...sort of.

While the Cowboys currently own the NFC East lead by a game, they are not the only team in the division they are not the only team who controls their own destiny.  The New York Football Giants, despite an embarrassing loss to the last place Washington Redskins, will still win the division if they win out.  It seems highly likely that week 17 will determine who wins this division.

Oh and have your  heard?  Philly is back in the mix, too.  The "Dream Team" has crept back into contention with a couple of solid wins and with some help could get back into the thick of the playoff discussion.

Well don't that just beat all.  The Cowboys, Giants, and Eagles will all be playing for their playoff lives against other teams (mostly each other) who are playing for their playoff lives.  In week 16 the Cowboys will play the Eagles, who blasted them 34 to 7 in the "I'm gonna piss on you like R. Kelly" Bowl (still have to explain that one) and the Giants will be playing the Jets.  No one can afford to lose, and that will make for some interesting drama the last two weeks of the season.  Let's hope that the 'Boys are up for it.

The Final Drive: Week 15, 2011 posted by Joe Anello

I’m not sure what else you could have wanted from week 15 in the NFL. Two impressive streaks ended, the “Trap of the Week” proved to be true once again and one win never mattered as much as it did for Indianapolis. (And Candlestick Park was sans light… for a few second before auxiliary lighting come on. Not as much drama.) Many a-loser won on this day. Oddsmakers be damned! Get ready for The Final Drive!

Oh Tennessee. How could you? You somehow managed to give their first lowly Colts a victory whilst in the midst of your own playoff hunt. For shame. While it’s nice to get a win (I’m sure), Jim Caldwell should still get effing fired.

Another streak brought to a necessary conclusion! Honestly, as much as we generally thought the Packers COULD do it, it’s probably better that they didn’t. Injuries to their offensive line killed them yesterday against the Chief pass rush, just one facet of a defense that made it difficult on Aaron Rodgers. Well done Romeo Crennel. Oh yeah, and the Chiefs can somehow still get into the playoffs.

BOOM! You got TRAPPED Eli! This was such an obvious upset to pick, even in a day that ended up with a metric ton of stunning results. How the Giants could come out and lay an egg like this when they had a chance to put some distance in front of the Cowboys is appalling. (And hilarious.)

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