Wrong Part II

Well, at least with the Cowboys-Eagles game, I was relying only on my love for McNabb. I stated that the Cowboys were better. So, I picked the Eagles knowing they would lose anyway. And so they did, or are going to at this point. 34-14 with 3:20 left in the game. Nice season Eagles. I am happy that the Philly fans don't get any satisfaction, but sad for Donovan. Hopefully this is the year that he leaves the that ungrateful city and goes to somewhere that will appreciate a borderline HOF quarterback.

Ugh, I Hate Being Wrong

Well, the Jets won. I was wrong. The Bengals didn't show up at all. Credit to Shonn Greene for running wild, for Mark Sanchez being really efficient, and for Jay Feeley pulling punting and kicking duties. Oh, and Shayne Graham for missing two kicks...

My Picks for Wild Card Weekend

Here are my picks for the Wild Card weekend playoff games:

- I like the Ravens over the Patriots 20-14. Losing Wes Welker last week was a huge blow to the Patriots. With the exception of their game against the Jags, the past5 Brady has had more interceptions that touchdowns. The Ravens will hit him in the mouth and run all over the D.

- I understand that the Jets D is great. But I also know that they shouldn't be in the playoffs. They backed in against two opponents that laid down for them. Going back to Cincinnati, I think the Bengals come up big, dominate the time of possession and win by 14. Give me Cincy 28-14.

- The Cardinals have a bunch of injuries. Anquan Boldin has a high ankle sprain and a sprained MCL, but will still probably play. They didn't show anything to the Packers last week, except that Matt Leinart isn't that good. The Packers could have fits with Fitzgerald, but if they can ignore the hobbled Boldin then I think they can pull one out on the road. Give me a shootout, but a close one. 31-28 Packers.

- The Cowboys actually have been winning late in the season. So I am completely thrown for a loop on this one. I think that the Cowboys have more talent. I think Andy Reid is the most overrated coach in the NFL. But I love McNabb. So much. So I will just hope for an Eagles win, though I do not completely believe they will win. How does 17-14 Eagles sound?

Ray Guy: The Punter without a Leg to Stand On

It is unthinkable that Ray Guy, once again, was not a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. When the best player at a position ever isn't in the hall, it is a crime. Eventually, the voters will recognize that special teams is an amazingly important aspect of the game.

There would be no Tom Brady or Patriots dynasty if it wasn't for Adam Vinatieri winning two Super Bowls with his leg (and John Kasay kicking the ball out of bounds, setting up the Pats on the 40, cost the Panthers one of those rings). Would the Bears have made it to the Super Bowl without Devin Hester? Desmond Howard won a Super Bowl MVP for returning kicks and winning it for the Packers. Jermaine Lewis put away the Giants with a kickoff return and clinched a ring for the Ravens. If you don't have a good punter on the field, then you end up giving a short field to the likes of Brady, Manning, Brees or Rivers. The last thing your team needs is for those QBs to have a field position advantage.

Ray Guy deserves to be in the Hall, and hopefully will be soon. Until he is, I will view the Hall of Fame as incomplete.

Roll Tide

So Alabama managed to win the BCS National Championship by playing really conservative football. Obviously, the injury to Colt McCoy will forever cast doubt onto this game, because the best player on the field wasn't able to play beyond the second series of the game. Just a few of my thoughts after the game:

- Terrence Cody is the new Gilbert Brown, and I love him.

- I still have faith in Colt McCoy at the pro level. He can make every throw, can move, doesn't have a weird release and just wins.

- Loved the spin move from the big man, Marcell Dareus, on his pick 6. Any time you see a fat man score, your heart should be happy.

- Nick Saban: Great coach. Smile more. And that last touchdown was classless. Just kneel and win.

- The post-game interview of Colt McCoy was just mean. You know how he is feeling, there is no point to interviewing him. Interview the coach, sure. But the best player on the field, who is heartbroken because he didn't get to lead his team to a victory in the biggest game of his life? Shame on you, ABC.

- Kirk Herbstreet owes the Texas Longhorns offensive line an apology. They get the ball back, down 3 with 3 minutes left. Kirk says that the line, which allowed 9 sacks against Nebraska, hasn't allowed one all night. Next play- Gilbert is sacked, fumbles and Alabama recovers. Game over. Never say that Kirk. Never mention things like a line not giving up a sac, a QB not throwing an interception or a kicker not missing field goals, because you know that they will the second you say it. Kirk, you jinxed us out of a great finish.

- I think Boise State could have beaten the Alabama team we saw last night.

- Boise finishing 4th in the AP poll is insane. If you are undefeated and win a BCS bowl, you should either be #1 or #2.

So that was the college football season that was. Soon I will have a mini-preview of my expectations for next year. Tide-Broncos in the championship? A bowl game for Cuse? The fall of Florida without Tebow? Does Ingram get his second Heisman? I'll tell you my opinion then.

The Bowl Cup

It is kind of anti-climactic, really, when the yearly Bowl Cup is decided by New Years eve. The Mountain West Conference has already won this award by having the best record in the 32 bowl games. They are currently 4-0 with only one game remaining, TCU against Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. Now, I will not say that this means that the MWC is as good of a conference as any of the other BCS conferences, but I am sure that the top teams in the MWC belong in major conferences. TCU and Utah could fit in geographically with the Big XII, who might be losing Mizzou to the Big Ten (11, 12, 15, whatever).

Now, let us also not forget the conference with the second best record. The Big East has finished its bowl season with a 4-2 record. Its losses, West Virginia to FSU and Cincinnati to Florida can be easily understood. Rarely does an amazing career end with heartbreak or disappointment. This is the case for Bobby Bowden and Tim Tebow. Neither of them would go out on a sour note. To make matters worse for the Bearcats, they were against an amazing Florida team without any sort of coach. Brian Kelly left them in the lurch as he ran to Notre Dame. Their interim coach has already been named the new head coach of Buffalo, replacing Turner Gill after he took the Kansas job. There is no way that he was concentrating on the Sugar Bowl. Instead, he was only the coach in title, not in spirit.

As for the other conferences, they are hovering around .500 or worse. The Big Ten has made a minor statement by finally winning a Rose Bowl (helps when USC isn't playing in it), and they have a chance to win both of their BCS games with Iowa playing Georgia Tech. The Pac-10 has taken a huge hit, making the MWC look like the better conference. There are still a few more days to go this season. It will be interesting to see who can make the biggest and strongest statement for conference supremacy.

Happy New Year, and Edgar Martinez

First, a Happy New Year to you all. I for one can't wait to see what 2010 has in store for sports fans. One of the first big events of the New Year will be the Baseball Hall of Fame voting. One of my favorite players, Edgar Martinez, is up for the Hall this year. Here is an excellent column making the case for Edgar as the first DH in Cooperstown.