Posts about AFC

49ers and Ravens both have comeback victories to reach Super Bowl

 in the middle of the afternoon by 10

AFC Championship - Baltimore Ravens v New England Patriots

Both games were a tale of two halves. Behind great plays on defense and great quarterback play, the 49ers and Ravens were both able to come from behind on the road to secure their spots in Super Bowl 47. Both the 49ers (favorites) and the Ravens (significant underdog) came into the title games in different situations but it was the perseverance to make changes at halftime and absorb blows that was the difference. Even if they weren’t brothers, the Harbaugh coaches both have to be recognized for excellent coaching adjustments throughout the game. Combine that with excellent play from the players and it’s a recipe for success. Players of the game go to Frank Gore (21 car, 90 yds, 2 TDs) in the NFC and in the AFC to Joe Flacco (21-36, 240 yds, 3 TDs) who definitely looked elite yesterday.

The 49ers were very impressive in the second half, shutting out Atlanta’s potent offense and recovering from an early deficit to finally take the lead in the 4th quarter. Kaepernick wasn’t as dominating as last weekend’s game against the Packers but he was effective enough, particularly late in the game to put drives together that put the Niners in scoring position. For the Falcons it simply wasn’t enough and this time around, the lead was just too great to overcome. Statistically Matt Ryan had a great game overall but the problem was that his turnovers (fumble and interception) came at critical moments. Right when the Falcons were going to score either keep the lead or take it back, there was a mistake and the Niners defense was there to take advantage. Also, I was pretty impressed by how loud the Georgia dome got.

Out east, the Ravens were able to play in a similar fashion. The biggest difference was that the Ravens were a pretty significant underdog and note, for the second week in a row they were able to win. Baltimore shutout New England in the second half and also scored 21 points to advance to the Super Bowl for the first time since their title in 2000. 21 unanswered points and they made Tom Brady look pretty average; not bad for a defense that was supposed to be old and worn out for most of the season. Ray Lewis will get headlines as usual but it was a collective group effort from start to finish, even after the slow start. The Patriots were already injured and they suffered a couple of key injuries in this game but it’s very surprising that the offense only managed to score 13 points at home.

So we have a Super Bowl dubbed as the “Harbowl” and it looks to be a good one. Tons of headlines to go over in the next couple of weeks.

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Previewing the conference championships in the NFL

 after a late four martini lunch by 4

AFC Championship Patriots Ravens Football

In the middle of trying to figure out this weekend’s conference title games it dawned on me, there are only three games of professional football left for this season. Yes, i’m discounting the Pro Bowl next weekend because none of the players try and it’s a terrible game that I only glance at occasionally. While it’s a little discouraging that there’s such little football left, at least it’s known that championship weekend can provide plenty of fireworks. Last weekend was an excellent weekend of football and I expect Sunday’s games to keep the momentum. Let’s take a look at how things will down:

Biggest factors and match ups: Last week the Patriots were able to cruise past Houston because of the Texans’ inability to make big plays and keep up with the offensive firepower of the Patriots. That won’t be a problem for the Ravens, who have plenty of big play making ability on offense and defense. It’ll be interesting to see how Joe Flacco performs because despite all the “elite” jokes that are thrown his way, he does have the ability to make big plays and take big risks. The Ravens defense and special teams will have to play a big part in helping take the blows from the Patriots offense. How much will the Gronkowski injury affect the Patriots on offense? No doubt he’s a major part but chances are that Brady (watch him go to Welker early and often) will find a way to make it work.

It’s incredible to think that the Falcons are a 4 point underdog at home, as the top seed in the conference. That’s what happens when teams do what the 49ers did last weekend, where they looked like clear favorites. The Falcons finally have the playoff monkey off their back but how will they respond as the stage gets bigger and the pressure mounts? Matt Ryan will have to make big plays to his big time receivers because I don’t see the Falcons running game being that effective against a Niners defense that doesn’t really allow big plays on the ground. Can the Falcons get enough pressure on Kaepernick? At least to keep him from getting outside and running wild. The 49ers offensive line is among the best in the league and versatile QBs have given Atlanta fits throughout the season.

Prediction: The Ravens aren’t a team that’s going to back down when the pressure is great. In fact, the Ravens welcome the pressure and have played the Patriots very well in recent years. It’s going to take some big plays and late game magic from the Ravens to beat the Patriots in Foxborough. Do I think the Ravens can slow down the Patriots offense enough? No, but I think the game will be closer than most people expect. The Patriots edge out the Ravens at home. In the NFC the Falcons are being disrespected a bit but it’s not surprising when they’re up against Kaepernick, who looked looked like the greatest football player of all time last week. I expect Kaepernick to regress a bit but I still expect him to give Atlanta’s defense plenty of problems all game. I just don’t see the Falcons thriving on offense against a 49ers defense that’s too fast, too big and too tough. Falcons keep it close but the Niners make a play on defense late in the game to seal the deal. Patriots-49ers will be Super Bowl bound after Sunday’s games are over.

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Is a Brady vs Manning AFC title game inevitable?

 after a late four martini lunch by 1

1-10

This isn’t a guarantee by any means but i’m sure you can guess which teams i’m leaning towards to advance to the AFC championship. It’s surely what the NFL and it’s money-hungry hands want. I’m not speaking for all NFL fans but i’m positive that most non-Ravens/Texans fans would prefer to see Brady face Manning next weekend. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves because as we know, crazy things happen in the NFL. Particularly this week where teams with the bye week can get caught off guard by being a little too confident. Then again there’s a reason that Vegas has the higher seed favored by more than one score (+9.5) but let’s take a closer look at how the Ravens or Texans can spoil some parties.

Biggest factors: Baltimore faced Denver not too long ago (week 15) and it was a lopsided affair in favor of Manning and co. Baltimore is a different looking team this time around with previously injured players not named Ray Lewis being much healthier and ready for action this time around. Can that be enough to slow down Manning? The Ravens need a couple of big plays on defense to help their offense keep up with Denver’s firepower. The Ravens must score quickly because being down by a TD against the Broncos in Denver is a death sentence. I know Ray Rice had 2 fumbles last week but look for screens and things of that sort to neutralize Von Miller’s pressure on Joe Flacco.

A big reason the Texans are playing this game in New England is because one month ago today, the Texans played against the Patriots on to road and it wasn’t pretty for Houston. Tom Brady and co laid the smack down. So what can Houston do to slow down the best offense in the league? Remember, this time Gronkowski is playing. For starters the Texans can’t get into such a big hole. The Patriots are susceptible to teams that can pressure Brady and control the clock. The Texans can do that but only if they score early. Playing catch up is not an option. The Texans biggest stars (Foster and Watt) both need big games and need to influence the game or else it’s going to be a long night for Houston.

Prediction: Like I said earlier, there’s a reason the Broncos and Patriots are favored so heavily at this stage of the season. They’re just better teams. It doesn’t take stats or extensive film study to figure that out, just watch the teams from week to week. That doesn’t mean that I don’t give the under dogs a chance this weekend. There’s always a chance for an upset and if I had to chose one, i’d take the Ravens. They’re not intimidated by any means and the Baltimore offense can catch fire at any moment. Also, Denver did have an extremely easy regular season schedule. I wouldn’t put my money on it though. Denver wins closer than expect and the Patriots roll. Get ready for an enitre week of Brady-Manning hype.

NFC tomorrow.

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Regular season ends in the NFL as playoff contenders make final push

 in the middle of the afternoon by 3

12-31

Writing this up wasn’t the easiest of tasks. Not to say a few hundred words is difficult to write but after the way last night’s game ended, I can’t help feeling a little bummed out about the way the Cowboys season ended. It’s also because the NFL regular season ends on the night before we turn to 2013 and it’s hard to think that an entire season came and went just like that. Now there are 10 teams with a chance to make to New Orleans for the Super Bowl but let’s not get ahead of ourselves as there is still lots of football to be played. Let’s take a look at yesterday and how things went down.

AFC playoffs: One of the things that I can be proud of predicting before yesterday was that Houston was going to lose their spot and have to play in the wild card. The Texans have some glaring issues and have quietly been getting worse as the end of the season unfolded. Houston is going up against a Bengals that has been a bit underwhelming but Cincinnati has the defense and offensive potential to take Houston down. The other match up has the Colts, who continue to surprise against the Ravens, who most people feel are very lucky to even be in the postseason. The Ravens are limping as badly as a playoff team can but it’s going to be very interesting to see how a rookie QB does in Baltimore.

NFC playoffs: Things shook out a little more dramatically in the NFC as Adrian Peterson nearly broke a 30-year old record (only 9 yards short) as he led the Vikings into the playoffs. Peterson officially gets my vote for MVP because of how much he carried the Vikings throughout the season and we’ll get to see how he does against the Packers in what should be an NFC North classic. Other dramatics included the Redskins defeating my Cowboys to take the NFC East title and a date with the Seahawks. How amazing is the RG3/Russell Wilson battle going to be?

I’ll keep my rant short on why the Cowboys lost. First and foremost it was the defense’s inability to do anything about stopping or slowing down Alfred Morris. Romo should carry a lot of the blame after two bad plays and one terrible play that was too much for the Cowboys to recover. I can’t point to injuries too much because RG3 clearly didn’t look 100%.

Thank you to everyone that read anything that I wrote in 2012 and especially to Moe and Jackson for giving me this opportunity. Everyone have a wonderful New Year’s with family/friends but remember to stay safe. AAA is giving free rides tonight. See y’all in 2013.

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NFL division/playoff races in tight battle with two weeks left

 while eating a Bastardly Certified lunch by 2

12-19

It’s getting to the time of the NFL season where the experts begin to use phrases like “crunch time” or that every single game is a “MUST win” even though technically it’s not a must win unless your team will be mathematically out of the postseason. So for many teams (yes, including my Cowboys) what they do these last two weeks will significantly alter their position or lack of position in January. You know, the playoffs in the NFL or when “the real season” begins. First things are first, let’s take a look at the teams that have either clinched their divisions or have a good enough record to clinch a definite spot.

The AFC is a little more simple because the top 3 seeds have clinched the division (Texans, Broncos and Patriots in order) and I don’t see the seeding changing because even though Houston has the toughest schedule, I don’t see them slipping up knowing that both Denver and New England are hot on their heels with two very easy games for each team. Now, the Colts aren’t going to win the AFC South but they have clinched a spot and it’s pretty incredible that this team can go from 1st pick in the entire draft to participating in the postseason in the same year. Something else that’s incredible is that the Ravens, in a complete tailspin, actually clinched a playoff even thought they’ve lost 3 straight games. So it’s up to the Bengals whether they would like to take the division, which could come down to the final game this season but first they’d have to defeat the Steelers this weekend. The Steelers have been up and down since the Big Ben injury but they’ve proven that they can get it done when it matters most and they have the easiest remaining schedule of the three AFC North contenders.

The NFC gets a little more complicated because there are only 2 teams that have clinched their division (Falcons and Packers) and one team that has a spot (49ers) but there are still 6 teams in contention with the NFC East still completely wide open. Teams not named the Eagles in the NFC East are all tied at 8-6 and conventional thinking would have most people leaning toward the Redskins. The Giants do have the easier schedule (at Ravens, Eagles) but they don’t control their own destiny and for that reason alone, they’re the least likely to win the division. My gut feeling is that the NFC East is going to come down to the Redskins-Cowboys games in the final week but it’s also going to depend what happens with Seattle/Minnesota/Chicago for the wildcard. The Bears are in completely disarray and if ever they needed two easy games to save their season, it’s now. Despite a grueling final two games, i’m not going to pick against the Vikings because Adrian Peterson is their RB, enough said.

Let’s all take a minute to thank whatever higher powers you believe in and say thank you that Thursday night games are finally over. I love the NFL but the every single Thursday game was mediocre at best because it was painfully (for the players, literally) obvious that it’s impossible to play at full capacity with only 3 days rest. Thanksgiving is a tradition but every single week, no. Just toss in a random Friday or Saturday games. Speaking of Saturday, this week the Falcons try to move closer to the best record in the NFC as they take on the Lions who are only playing for Megatron’s record breaking performance (only 182 yards being Rice) so keep an eye out for that if you watch the game.

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Bills take down Dolphins and looking to week 11 in the NFL

 late in the afternoon while still at work by 1

It’s becoming apparent that games on Thursday nights aren’t working out very well for the NFL this season. Before the regular season began, I thought it was going to be a great idea. More football is always a good thing, right? Doesn’t seem like it. Teams are tired, still fighting off injuries and not prepared to play two NFL games in five days. I know the Dolphins and the Bills aren’t exactly among the elite teams in the league but there’s clearly something when it takes until halfway through the third quarter for either of these teams to score a touchdown on offense. The Bills don’t have a good defense. In fact, i’d probably rank them among the five worst in the league but last night they looked like they belong with the Bears and the Texans defenses. Or how about I just admit that I was wrong and the Dolphins just aren’t that good. Either way, the Bills’ defense was able to pretty Miami the entire night to force turnovers and eventually take the victory 19-14. The Bills were able to force turnovers (one returned for a TD) and didn’t allow the Miami offense to get into any rhythm which is most likely going to turn into a success. The Dolphins actually has a chance for the lead twice in the 4th quarter but those two opportunities turned into easy interceptions for the Buffalo defense. While these two teams probably won’t be participating in the post seasons, both do have an outside shot of making some noise.

Here are a few things to keep your eyes on this Sunday as the games are going on:

Every single AFC division winner could be decided this weekend: The Patriots can take advantage of the Buffalo victory over Miami, beating a Colts team to be 3 games up in the division with a very favorable schedule. Consequently, if the Patriots do win, the Colts will have lost their 4th game. The Texans could very much take advantage of that while they face a bad Jaguars team in Houston. Out west, the Chargers and Broncos face off for what will essentially be the division title. The Chargers must win this if they plan on making the postseason. Up north the Ravens-Steelers slug fest will be going on but the Steelers are without their QB (their most important player) so the Ravens will definitely looking to take advantage of a depleted Pittsburgh team.

NFC teams trying to gain ground on the leader: The 49ers looked like they were going to run away with the west but all of a sudden they tie AND they’re missing their starting quarterback. Seattle is on their bye week but the 49ers have a very tough game on Sunday night against the Bears. Those same Chicago Bears are feeling the pressure of a red hot Packers team, particularly because Bears QB Jay Cutler is out of Monday’s game due to injury. Another team with a chance to gain some ground? That’s right, my Dallas Cowboys! After a big divisional win last weekend and the Giants on by this week, the Cowboys can take advantage of a bad Browns team in Cowboys Stadium but as most Cowboys fans know, nothing is for certain about this team.

This week my surprisingly close game pick will be the Raiders at home against the Saints (-5) mostly because I feel like people are a little too confident in the Saints now. Remember, their defense is still terrible and the Raiders offense has been looking better these past couple of weeks.

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