24 posts tagged “football”
The Patriots finished with 4 wins in a row to go 11-5. Since the NFL went to 12 playoff teams, no 11-5 team has ever missed the playoffs. Until now -- D'oh! Even with a record as good or better than 7 of the 12 teams that did make the playoffs, the Pats will be golfing this January. Oh well, at least we broke the NFL record for least-penalized team ever!
The Patriots got to hold onto a small glimmer of hope, thanks to the Jets' pitiful loss in Seattle yesterday.
Unfortunately, the NFL brass may have crushed the Pats' chances today, when they announced a shuffling of the TV lineup for next weekend. They moved the Jets-Dolphins game that will decide the Patriots' fate to 4 PM on Sunday. But if the Patriots win their game at 1:00, the Jets will be out of the playoffs and have nothing to play for. Why would they play hard just to get their rivals the Patriots into the playoffs? I expect the Pats will win, then the Dolphins will kill a despondent Jets team, and the Patriots will miss the playoffs at 11-5.
But for now, they're still alive...
The Patriots have won 2 games in a row now and gotten to 9-5, but their chances of reaching the playoffs are rapidly reducing. Their magic number is 3 with only 2 games to go. That means someone has to lose, either the Ravens or both the Jets and Dolphins. Our best chance is the Ravens losing to the Cowboys in Dallas on Saturday. That would give us the wild card (and a winnable match-up with the winner of the Jets-Dolphins game in week 17). There is still a chance at the division, but it would require either the Jets losing to the Seahawks this week or the Dolphins losing to the Chiefs, neither too likely, and then the loser winning the next week.
Oh yeah, and of course, we have to beat Arizona this week and Buffalo next week.
Go Cowboys!
The Patriots are currently on the outside looking in on the playoff race, tied with the Colts and Ravens, but behind in the tiebreaker. Which is why our magic number to make the playoffs is 6, with only 5 games left. That means we need help. Oh yeah, and we play Pittsburgh next week... Not looking great.
More bad injury news for the already-decimated Patriots with the loss of Adalius Thomas, but still somehow they are tied for first in their division. Lots of work still to do, though...
For the Patriots optimists out there...
Well, that didn't last very long...
If you know what I am like as a fan, then you will have been expecting this...
I'm going to put my football genius on the line and predict the score of the game today:
Patriots 37, Giants 24
(but it will be even less close than the score seems -- some junk-time touchdown by the Giants.)
MVP: Tom Brady (of course) -- after he throws for 4 TD's but spreads them to 4 different receivers. (And don't be surprised if one of them is Mike Vrabel.)
My football genius is well-documented. Now here is some proof of the theory that Football Genius is innate, not learned (nature, not nurture).
I received this picture today from my mother and of course, I instantly remembered exactly what I was saying at the time the picture was taken.
