AFC/NFC Championships

So, trailing 14-0 with 1:23 to go in the first half, the Colts faced 4th and goal on the Steelers 3. And as the field goal unit trotted in, the Colts fans cried "Aaaaiiiyyyyyeeeeee!!!" If I was sitting up in the press box for this game, I would have scribbled "Game Over" in my notebook at that point and went home. Sure, they came back to nearly tie it, but the football gods, still angry at Tony Dungy and the Lucky Charms for that earlier decision, forced Hunter Smith to fuck up the hold on Mike Vanderjagt's 46 yard attempt with 0:21 in the 4th quarter and it sailed wide right. Also on that drive, I watched in rapt fascination as Peyton frantically tried to quiet the crowd...Indy fans should be the most devout followers of the "QUIET PLEASE! OFFENCE WORKING!" rule, since Manning always seems to audible through the entire playbook on every play. Yet on 3rd and goal from the Steelers 1, the flags fly, false start on the Lucky Charms, backing them up to the 6. It actually reminded me of watching CFL where people don't get that it isn't hockey and that you have to sit down and shut up when the offence is on the field. Simply astonishing. This isn't the first time a Dungy coached team has come into the playoffs with high expectations and then wheezed out. Dungy is now 102-58 in the regular season and 5-8 in the postseason.

Enough on that...let's get to the games which are always better than the Super Bowl itself...all the great game action without the 8 million commercials and 40 minute halftime.

PITTSBURGH at Denver: Denver sure was lucky to win...Brady overthrew or underthrew receivers when Denver big blitzed and Vinateiri honked a pressure kick...two things which never happen for the Patriots. Additionally, the Patriots were the victim of some pretty bad officiating, specifically the phantom pass interference by Samuel on Lelie and the Champ Bailey fumble which actually went out of bounds in the end zone but was ruled out at the Patriots 1. So instead of New England getting the ball on its 20, it's Denver ball on the Pats 1. But enough on that...this one actually doesn't look too good for the Broncos. The Steelers run defence is going to take away the most important part of their game and if the Steelers get their trick passing plays going again, then there's little hope for the Broncos. As anticipated, the Broncos pass defence allowed Brady to pass for 341 yards, but they managed to snag two picks anyway. The Broncos scored 17 points off turnovers last week, so the Steelers are going to have to keep their turnovers under control. To this point, they've only had two giveaways in the playoffs. Steelers by 3 in OT, but go Broncos.

PIT #16 total offence vs. DEN #15 total defence
PIT #4 total defence vs. DEN #5 total offence

PIT #9 scoring offence vs. DEN #4 scoring defence
PIT #3 scoring defence vs. DEN #7 scoring offence

PIT #5 rushing offence vs. DEN #2 rushing defence
PIT #3 rushing defence vs. DEN #2 rushing offence

PIT #24 passing offence vs. DEN #29 passing defence
PIT #16 passing defence vs. DEN #18 passing offence

PIT #11 takeaways vs. DEN #1 giveaways
PIT #7 giveaways vs. DEN #3 takeaways

PIT #3 punt returns vs. DEN #10 punt coverage
PIT #23 punt coverage vs. DEN #11 punt returns

PIT #20 kickoff returns vs. DEN #29 kickoff coverage
PIT #17 kickoff coverage vs. DEN #25 kickoff returns

Carolina at SEATTLE: The Seahawks appear to have the advantage in total offence and defence and scoring offence and defence. The only thing stopping me from guaranteeing a Seahawks win is that Chicago's pass defence is much, much better than the Seahawks and the Panties had their way with it. But then again, Smith was frequently single covered and was let loose deep 3 times by the defence that boasted they were just as good as the 1985 Bears. Having said that I'm still not sure about the Marcus Trufant-Michael Boulware/Steve Smith matchup. If the Panties passing attack can be controlled, the rest will fall into place. If anyone is concerned about Carolina's vaunted run defence, look back to the last meeting between these two teams in 2004 at Qwest Field...Alexander ran for 195 yards and a TD on 32 carries. The 'Hawks won 23-17 in a season where the 'Hawks defence was absolutely god-awful. And now that I mention the Seahawks running game, why don't teams ever shift their front seven to the left side of Seattle's offence? Don't be surprised if the run comes to Steve Hutchinson and Walter Jones' side or anything...And if Peppers doesn't play, it's probably going to be much worse than 195 yards and a TD. DeShaun Foster is already out so that leaves Nick Goings to carry the load, thus I wouldn't worry too much about Carolina's running game. Seahawks by 10.

CAR #22 total offence vs. SEA #17 total defence
CAR #3 total defence vs. SEA #2 total offence

CAR #8 scoring offence vs. SEA #7 scoring defence
CAR #5 scoring defence vs. SEA #1 scoring offence

CAR #19 rushing offence vs. SEA #5 rushing defence
CAR #4 rushing defence vs. SEA #3 rushing offence

CAR #17 passing offence vs. SEA #25 passing defence
CAR #9 passing defence vs. SEA #13 passing offence

CAR #2 takeaways vs. SEA #2 giveaways
CAR #15 giveaways vs. SEA #18 takeaways

CAR #2 punt returns vs. SEA #18 punt coverage
CAR #5 punt coverage vs. SEA #30 punt returns

CAR #26 kickoff returns vs. SEA #19 kickoff coverage
CAR #11 kickoff coverage vs. SEA #18 kickoff returns

Super Bowl XL
Sunday, February 5, 2006
Ford Field, Detroit MI

Pittsburgh vs. Seattle

*shudder*