It's been a long season and hopefully its been a good one for you and your teams (both reality and fantasy). Surely there was a few enjoyable Sundays for even the least fortunate football fans this season whether it was that one thrilling upset they pulled off in fantasy - or whether it was during that brief moment in the season where they saw actual potential for success from their reality team - there had to be some positives even for the most pessimistic footballer this season. So give yourself a pat on the back and thank yourself for making it this far without giving up on either (or both) of your teams.
Now prepare to enjoy a relatively stress free Sunday and get back to watching the game for the game itself. Enjoy the spirit of competition and admire some of the teams or players you will not get a chance to watch for nearly 9 months. Also be ready to say goodbye to familiar faces as players and coaches prepare for the dreaded "Black Monday" in the NFL which occurs TOMORROW! Lots of Head Coaches job's essentially could be on the line during today's action as their teams on field performance will dictate whether or not they return to the sideline next season.
Three divisional rivalries are highlighted in this Week 17 edition of 613's NFL Preview including the Bills at the Patriots, the 49ers travelling to Arizona, and the Packers headed to Soldier Field to battle the Bears. Playoff seeds and implications are on the line in all contests - the Cardinals could go 11 - 5 and miss the playoffs - and there is plenty to play for no matter which sideline you are on. The last Sunday of NFL regular season action hopefully will be the best.
Now prepare to enjoy a relatively stress free Sunday and get back to watching the game for the game itself. Enjoy the spirit of competition and admire some of the teams or players you will not get a chance to watch for nearly 9 months. Also be ready to say goodbye to familiar faces as players and coaches prepare for the dreaded "Black Monday" in the NFL which occurs TOMORROW! Lots of Head Coaches job's essentially could be on the line during today's action as their teams on field performance will dictate whether or not they return to the sideline next season.
Three divisional rivalries are highlighted in this Week 17 edition of 613's NFL Preview including the Bills at the Patriots, the 49ers travelling to Arizona, and the Packers headed to Soldier Field to battle the Bears. Playoff seeds and implications are on the line in all contests - the Cardinals could go 11 - 5 and miss the playoffs - and there is plenty to play for no matter which sideline you are on. The last Sunday of NFL regular season action hopefully will be the best.
Lot's of questions for Doug Marrone and the Bills to address heading into the offseason. BILLS @ PATRIOTS
- Playoffs are not an option. Progressing the rookie QB is not an option. Playing for a draft pick should be an option, right? Wrong! Doug Marrone still has something to prove as this season will conclude with the Bills missing the playoffs for the 323rd consecutive straight season. To Marrone's credit the team did play much better than their record indicates. Mix in a few costly injuries, a couple games that they handed away, and having 3 different 1st year starting QB's under center during the course of the season and I'd say it ain't all Doug's fault. The team showed a new energy, especially on defense, and there is some reason for optimism heading into 2014. On the negative side rookie QB EJ Manuel's first season in the league was far from ideal as he battled injuries all year and didn't get as much game experience as you'd hope for a young signal caller. Season two for Manuel will be even a bigger test as opponents will have plenty of game tape on him from his games this year. A strong off-season is a must for the Bills QB if Buffalo wants to be a playoff threat in the AFC next season.
- The Patriots came out firing last week blowing away the Ravens and reminded everyone that you do not want to face Brady & Belichek when they are coming off loss. Poor Baltimore found that out on Sunday and may have cost themselves a playoff spot. On the other hand New England re-established themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the AFC playoffs. (You know Peyton Manning surely doesn't want to have to meet Belichek again). Look for the Patriots to continue to move the chains and put up enough points to cruise by the Bills. Although it may not look pretty Brady should be able to avoid the Bills pass rush enough to convert 3rd downs and score touchdowns or at least set up Gostkowski for multiple FG's. Patriots likely will try and use this game to establish their rhythm on offense heading into the playoffs. Last time these teams met at the beginning of the season RB Shane Vereen notched double digit catches and racked up over 100 receiving yards.
- The Bills have nothing to lose in this one but unfortunately they don't have much to win either. An upset win may spoil some postseason plans for the Patriots but Buffalo's young team on the road in a pretty much meaningless game isn't much for Bills fans to get excited about. Look for Brady and the offense to carry over some of the momentum from last week as they use this game to progress the offense further for the playoffs. Buffalo's only hope (as usual) will be forcing turnovers, pressuring the quarterback, and winning the special teams battle. If the Bills are able to do all of those things they could steal this game - but it's unlikely as many Bills probably are already booking their plane tickets for the off season.
- Players to watch: Thad Lewis, Stephon Gilmore, Shane Vereen
"Nobody said anything about the playoffs." - Carson eager to get back to Golf. 49ERS @ CARDINALS
- Those pesky, frisky, hungry, and now angry Birds want in the playoffs. Too bad no one told them they likely will be the first 11 - 5 team to miss the playoffs this year. What is more surprising, that the Cardinals are 10 - 5, or that Carson Palmer is Quarterbacking a winning team? Well it should be the latter. The Cardinals defense is probably the best in the league overall unless Seattle is playing at home. But wait! The Cards just went into the Seahawks home and beat them! Arizona is no joke on the defensive side of the ball and although their D may be fun to see in the playoffs their offense certainly is NOT! Carson threw 4 ints in the Win over the Seahawks last week - how is that possible? The once MVP candidate QB Palmer is two seasons removed from retirement and you have to question his desire after signing big money with the Cards in the off-season. Carson likely didn't imagine playoffs as part of the plan when he signed and he probably would rather work on his golf swing in January than be dodging defenses like the Panthers, 49ers, and the Seahawks. It's too bad that at the game's most important position the Cardinals find themselves needing more. Aside from the QB concerns Rashard Mendenhall and Andre Ellington form an average backfield at best, and Larry Fitzgerald has to be exhausted from carrying this offense for another entire season. Overcoming the deficiencies on the offensive side of the ball is very impressive and being the only team to defeat Seattle at home this season is an accomplishment of it's own - so yes they may deserve to be in the post season but the question is; do we really want them there?
- Everyone in San Fran went wild with "the Pick in Candlestick" celebration following last week's win over Atlanta on Monday Night. Navarro Bowman had reason to be excited, the San Francisco fans had reason to be excited, but as for the rest of you 49ers enthusiasts - Calm Down! You barely won a game you were expected to win to a much inferior opponent and it took a pretty miraculous play to seal the deal for you - far from the ideal plan of how the game should play out. Regardless, with that win Jim Harbaugh and the 49ers will be dancing in the post season for the 3rd straight year. Coach Harbaugh has to be hoping the third trip to the playoffs is the charm. Good thing for him the 49ers are peaking just at the right time, especially on offense. How happy is Kaep to have his boy Michael Crabtree back on the field - this offense could be the second most dangerous in the NFC playoffs.
- It's going to be too painful for Cardinals fans for them to come away victorious in this one and still miss the playoffs so for the sake of the fans, and players, please lose Arizona. Although they possess a lethal defense and could play the sleeper role in the NFC playoffs - they aren't winning the Superbowl. So take some extra time in the offseason, address your o-line, your quarterback situation, and come back stronger next season. Now luckily the Cardinals organization doesn't share the same thought process as me, instead they probably are planning to "shock the world" with a big win over the 49ers today - and a deep run in the post season. Bad news for 'Zona fans however, with both defenses playing at an extremely high level you have to go with the more consistent offense/QB and in this case Kaepernick will make more plays than Palmer. Phil Dawson and Jay Feeley prepare for the kicker battle of the ages - you guys could be busy today.
- Players to watch: Andre Ellington, Patrick Peterson, Michael Crabtree
Rodgers' return: Time to inflict some pain on those Bears PACKERS @ BEARS
Thanks for following along all season folks!
New Blog Columns Coming in January!
- DM
Twitter: @DampMoney
- The NFC North should just be removed from the playoffs this season. As Vince Lombardi would say "what the hell is going on out there?". Does anyone want to win the division? The Lions were practically handed the title when both Jay Cutler and Aaron Rodgers dropped with injuries but they didn't want it. They stumbled, tripped, and fell flat on their faces when they could have ran away with the division. The Bears actually got on a role with backup QB J.McCown and seemed like favourites in the division - then the Eagles hand them one of the biggest ass-kickings of the season. Mike McCarthy was pretty much ready to right off the season a few weeks ago but thanks to the Lions and the Bears struggles down the stretch they miraculously still have a chance. Now the news just got worse for Chicago as Aaron Rodgers announces his return for Week 17. Suddenly the Bears look like they may be on their way out of the post season as well. Hold on, Jay Cutler may still have one more win left in his tank. A home game vs. your biggest rival in the league, with a win-and-you-are-in opportunity, surely will inspire a few members of the Bears squad. Don't count the Bears out just yet - HC Marc Trestman is anxious to prove last week was just a minor setback.
- What the heck is going on with the Packers and their "organizational" decision to not play Rodgers. Don't you wish teams could just tell the media exactly what they were thinking. McCarthy could say "Well since we don't really have a legitimate shot of making the playoffs at the moment we don't want to risk Aaron doing any further damage to his injury." That would be an acceptable answer for me. McCarthy could even carry on to say "Not only are we without our MVP QB, but we recently lost our star OLB, and our blossoming playmaker Randall Cobb - we think it's better to shut it down this year and try again next season." This also would be a reasonable explanation. Anyways whatever is going on in Green Bay one thing is for sure - Aaron Rodgers is playing Week 17. Perhaps the Packers organization realized that with a League MVP under center anything is possible in the post season. Although the Packers may not be totally healthy - you can bet other teams don't want to see A.Rod and the Pack roll into town come January.
- The Media lives week to week and this week the Packers are the trendy pick. With the return of their franchise QB and following Chicago's dreadful performance on MNF vs. the Eagles the Pack seem to have the edge heading into this battle. However before you pick your winners do not underestimate the intensity of this division matchup. Not only are the playoffs and the division title on the line but the Packers and the Bears rivalry is arguably the biggest in the NFL's history and you can bet the players on both sides will be extra motivated. The return of Rodgers certainly does make Jordy Nelson and the other WR's in Green Bay happy but Marc Trestman has some weapons on his offense worth accounting for as well. Look for Cutler and Rodgers to go back and forth driving their teams down the field with pretty boy Jay Cutler surprising everybody and getting the upset vs. the Packers. Chicago and 1st year Coach Trestman are heading to the playoffs! Go Alouettes! (...what?)
- Players to watch: Jay Cutler, Aaron Rodgers, Jordy Nelson
Thanks for following along all season folks!
New Blog Columns Coming in January!
- DM
Twitter: @DampMoney
