NFL Playoff Predictions

Looking back at my regular season predictions, I got 5 of 6 AFC teams but only 3 of 6 NFC teams. Not bad, right? Here are my post season picks through the Super Bowl:


NFC
Wild Card Round - Saints over Seahawks; Eagles over Packers
Divisional Round - Falcons over Saints; Eagles over Bears
NFC Championship - Falcons over Eagles


AFC
Wild Card Round - Ravens over Chiefs; Colts over Jets
Divisional Round - Steelers over Colts; Patriots over Ravens
NFC Championship - Patriots over Steelers

Super Bowl
Patriots over Falcons

Farewell, 2010 Giants

As I sit down in my living room at kickoff of the NFC West title game on NBC, I feel sick. I look forward to 4 or 5 comments from Cris Collinsworth ripping on both of these inept teams. Personally I am rooting for Spags and the Rams (and some former Giants) over cowardly Pete Carroll and the Seahawks.

Regardless of the outcome of this game, the Giants season ended in horrible fashion. Since the NFL moved to the 12-team playoff format in 1990, only six teams with 10 or more wins have missed the playoffs, the most recent being the 11-5 New England Patriots in 2008. The Giants and Bucs share that unfortunate feeling tonight. Today's game against a rejuvenated Redskins team summed up the season pretty well - the running game was non-existent, Eli Manning threw an interception on a tipped ball, the offensive line shuffled around after Seubert was carted off the field, the offense didn't capitalize on turnovers, the offense sputtered late when it could have churned out clock, the defense gave up a big play, and special teams were a disaster.

Although they must be unhappy with the Chicago Bears offensive line and Jay Cutler today (21 for 39, 2 INTs, 6 sacks), the Giants have no one to blame but themselves. They had two opportunities to get into the postseason and failed. They certainly did not deserve that 6th playoff spot after what they gave away to Philadelphia and Green Bay. The 2010 Giants will forever be remembered for their Meltdown in the New Meadowlands (or insert other cliched catch phrase) - surrendering 28 points in the final 8 minutes in a game that would have all but clinched the NFC East. That catastrophic loss carried ahead to Green Bay where they were sluggish and sloppy. It's amazing how quickly a season can change in the NFL - this season was 8 minutes from promise, but ended in epic failure. That loss will be unforgettable for every coach, player, and fan in blue, so it will be interesting to see if it carries over into next year.

Statistically the Giants had some impressive marks - 3rd in offense, 6th in defense. The Giants led the league in takeaways (16 INTs, 22 fumbles), but gave the ball away 42 times, the most in the NFL. The Giants are the San Diego Chargers of the NFC - big stats but nothing to show for it. After a sluggish 1-2 start, the Giants rallied off 5 straight victories. During that winning streak they looked like an offensive power with Hakeem Nicks and Eli Manning connecting for big play after big play. The defense was dominant and knocked out 5 quarterbacks. They put together two complete performances in dominating Houston on the road in Week 5 and destroying the lowly Seahawks away Week 9. Although they were 6-2, lots of sports writers questioned the integrity of this team with its tendency to give away the football. Also, the Giants have a recent history of limping to the finish. For example, the 2008 Giants started 11-1 and finished 1-4 (including the playoffs). The 2009 Giants started 5-0 and finished 3-8. Today the merits of those doubts were proven as the Giants finished the second half 4-4. Of course injuries can kill a team's momentum (i.e. Steve Smith/Hakeem Nicks in 2010, Kenny Phillips in 2009, Plex in 2008), but this trend is disturbing and Coach Coughlin has to correct it.

Looking back on every loss, each one was very demoralizing. All 6 losses came in pairs, so the team showed a lack of resiliency. The Giants always found ways to beat themselves and really only were outplayed in Week 2 at Indy.

-Week 3 versus Tennessee - 5 personal fouls, 3 turnovers.

-Week 10 versus Dallas - 8 penalties, 3 turnovers including a 101 yard pick 6.

-Week 11 at Philadelphia - 5 turnovers, the Pierre-Paul offsides that set up the 50-yd go-ahead touchdown by LeSean McCoy.

-Week 15 versus Philadelphia - see Manningham fumble in 3rd quarter, Celek 65-yd touchdown, onsides kick, Tuck offsides, Diehl false start, and The Punt.

-Week 16 at Green Bay - see Week 15, 6 turnovers, and the Terrell Thomas personal foul before halftime right after the game was tied at 14-14.

One of the season's key moments occurred right before the Week 10 home game against Dallas - disaster struck when Steve Smith tore his pectoral muscle in Thursday's practice. That injury took away Eli Manning's most reliable receiver. Smith is a great route runner and invaluable in 3rd down situations. Smith was sidelined with the torn pectoral muscle until the Giants’ 21-3 win over the Vikings on Dec. 13, when he returned but sustained a season-ending injury to the articular cartilage in his left knee in the fourth quarter. Success on 3rd down is critical for extending drives, wearing down defenses, and running out the clock (see Week 15). Losing Smith contributed significantly to the Giants collapse.

As disappointed as I feel tonight, there is a lot to feel good about looking forward (as opposed to the 2011+ Mets). First, the Giants have a QB. There are 14 or 15 teams that have uncertainty at this position, so the Giants should feel lucky to have the durable Eli Manning under center. The receiving core, when healthy, is as good as any group in the NFL. Injuries at receiver certainly disrupted the consistency of the offense in 2010, so a healed up group will be crucial for success in 2011. The offensive line did a terrific job battling through injuries. Kareem McKenzie and Chris Snee hung in there on the right side, but there were lots of different bodies at the 3 other spots. Whichever group played did a terrific job at pass protection, but run blocking was inconsistent. Shaun O'Hara likely needs offseason surgery on his foot/achilles and Rich Seubert dislocated his knee cap in Week 17. The entire group is aging and showing a lack of durability, so look for the Giants to draft some linemen for the future. On defense, coordinator Perry Fewell had a terrific season. The Giants had a dominant pass rush, stopped the run, limited big plays, and led the league in turnovers. Antrel Rolle, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Deon Grant were terrific acquisitions by Jerry Reese. Osi Umenyiora had a great season after being benched most of 2009 (11.5 sacks, 10 forced fumbles - tying the NFL record). Justin Tuck was also dominant and was a leading tackler. Looking ahead, I love this group although we could use improvement at linebacker. I imagine Mathias Kiwanuka is done as a Giant, and we'll see if Barry Cofield is re-signed. Special teams were a disaster all season - and helped cost them a spot in the playoffs. Tynes kicked pretty well, but all other units were unacceptable. On the bright side, it will be nice to get Domenik Hixon back for kickoff and punt returns.

So farewell 2010 New York Giants. Thanks for the awful memories. I just hope the Miracle at the New Meadowlands doesn't carry over into next season (i.e. 2007 and 2008 Mets). This team needs to learn how to protect the football, close out games, play 4 quarters, and bounce back from adversity. This team came up short on all fronts, so they are not worthy of a championship. Looking forward, they have promise and I am confident Tom Coughlin will get them back to the postseason tournament. Speaking of Coughlin, owner John Mara already announced that Coughlin will return next season. I imagine they will give him a one or two year extension. Sorry, Bill Cowher.

Weekend Pickoff

Atlanta
Pittsburgh
Minnesota
Kansas City
New England
New Orleans
Buffalo
Baltimore
Houston
NY Giants
Dallas
Arizona
Green Bay
Indianapolis
San Diego
Seattle

FDR:

Atlanta
Pitt
Detroit
KC
NE
TB
NYJ
Balti
SD
GB
Indy
Dallas
SF
Wash
Jax
STL

Smuckers

Atlanta

Pitt

Minn

KC

Miami

NO

Buff

Balt

Denver

GB

Indy

Phi

San Fran

NYG

Jacksonville

Rams

Bob Cobb: 146-93 (7-9 last week)
Smuckers: 139-100 (8-8 last week)
FDR: 132-107 (8-8 last week)

Week 16 Picks

Pittsburgh
Dallas
Jacksonville
Miami
San Francisco
Kansas City
Chicago
New England
Baltimore
Houston
San Diego
Indianapolis
NY Giants
Tampa Bay
Philadelphia
Atlanta

Smuckers

Pitt

Dallas

New England

NYJ

Balt

KC

Rams

Miami

Jags

SD

Houston

Indy

NYG

TB

Phi

NO

Bob Cobb: 139-84 (7-9 last week)
Smuckers 131-92 (8-8 last week)
FDR: 124-99 (7-9 last week)

Stadium Review - New Meadowlands Stadium

FDR and I hit up the New Meadowlands Stadium ("NMS") in beautiful East Rutherford, NJ December 5th for the Giants/Redskins game. We all know how the football portion of the day went, so I thought I could give a quick review on the new confines that the Giants and Jets share.

NMS is located within the Meadowlands Sports Complex, which is owned by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority ("NJSEA"). The Jets and Giants financed the project via New Meadowlands Stadium Company, LLC, which is presumably a bankruptcy remote entity that is owned by the Jets/Giants 50/50. While the land is owned by the NJSEA, the improvements are owned by the Jets/Giants entity through a long-term leasehold. Apparently the lease is 25 years with extension options that could carry the term out to 97 years. After year 15 and every 5 years thereafter, each team can opt out of the lease with 12 months notice.

NMS is about 2.2 million square feet - about twice the size of the now demolished Giants Stadium - 30 feet higher and has about 2,500 more seats (capacity of 82,500). The price tag was just as robust at a cost of $1.6 billion (compared to the $78 million it cost to build Giants Stadium). Most days the stadium will look sterile with its razor blade facade and gray seats, but on Sundays it is lit up in blue or green depending on who the home team is.

Obviously the owners of the Giants and Jets decided to build this palace to make more money. The old stadium had 142 club seats while the new one has 9,300 club seats (and 130,000 square feet of club lounges). Per the NFL's current revenue sharing agreement, luxury box revenues are of course exempted. So the Mara and Tisch families saw piles of money vanish when the Giants choked to the Eagles on Sunday.

To the common fan, the experience is marginally better than the old Giants Stadium. The high definition video boards in the four corners of the stadium are a nice amenity. Yes, there are more bathrooms, but they are poorly designed and get filled up quickly. Concessions are not important for football fans as most tailgate prior to kickoff, so I cannot comment on food options - besides, I didn't eat anything. The new seats are rather cramped and the upper deck seats are much farther from the action than before. I found the crowd noise was average, but the game wasn't exactly competitive.

I find the New Meadowlands Stadium to be a tremendous waste of money for the typical fan. I'm sure the players have significantly improved facilities and the club seat holders must enjoy the wood paneling, fire places, and plasma televisions, but this was an unnecessary project. Non-club section PSL's cost $1,000 to $20,000 per ticket (game tickets range from $85 to $160). That's a lot of cash to spend on watching football live; club seats cost significantly more. PSL holders committed to buying tickets through the 2011 season. If there is a lockout next year, I bet lots of fans try to dump their PSL's. Fortunately this project was privately financed, but the infrastructure improvements (train service from Secaucus, improved roads, etc) were paid by tax payers.

All I care about now is a win at Lambeau Field on Sunday.

Week 15 Picks

San Diego
Cleveland
Dallas
Houston
Indianapolis
St. Louis
Miami
Tampa Bay
Arizona
New Orleans
NY Giants
Atlanta
Pittsburgh
Oakland
New England
Chicago

Bob Cobb: 132-75 (10-5 last week)
Smuckers: 123-84 (8-7 last week)
Bob Cobb: 117-90 (8-7 last week)

Week 14 Picks

Indianapolis
Cleveland
Pittsburgh
Green Bay
NY Giants
Tampa Bay
Atlanta
Jacksonville
San Francisco
New Orleans
NY Jets
Denver
San Diego
New England
Dallas
Baltimore

Smuckers

Indy

Cleveland

Green Bay

Pittsburg

Tampa Bay

Atlanta

Oakland

New Orleans

Seattle

New England

NYJ

Denver

KC

Phi

NYJ

Balt

FDR:

Indy

Cleveland

GB

Pitt

Washington

Atlanta

Jax -- this might be the worst 8-5 team of all time

NO

Seattle

NE

NYJ

Denver

San Diego

Dallas

Minny

Baltimore

Bob Cobb: 122-70 (11-5 last week)
Smuckers: 115-77 (12-4 last week)
FDR: 109-83 (11-5 last week)

Week 13 Picks

Philadelphia
New Orleans
Chicago
Green Bay
Jacksonville
Kansas City
Miami
Minnesota
NY Giants (Bob Cobb and FDR will be attending)
San Diego
Seattle
Atlanta
Arizona
Indianapolis
Baltimore
New England

FDR:

Houston

New Orleans

Detroit

Green Bay

Jacksonville

Kansas City

Cleveland

Minny

Washington

San Diego

Indy

St. Louis

Seattle

Atlanta

Pitt

New England

Smuckers

Phi

New Orleans

Chicago

Green Bay

Jacksonville

KC

Cleveland

Minnesota

NYG

SD

Indy

St. Louis

Seattle

Tampa Bay

Baltimore

New England

Dear readers, have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. Why do we have to watch Dallas/Detroit/Cinci today?

New England
New Orleans
NY Jets NY
Giants
Minnesota
Baltimore
Houston
Cleveland
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Atlanta
Miami
Seattle
Denver
Indianapolis
San Francisco

FDR:

New England
New Orleans
New York Jets
Atlanta
Pittsburgh
Cleveland
Jacksonville
Washington
Tennessee
Oakland
Seattle
Philadelphia
Denver
Baltimore
San Diego
San Francisco

Week 11 Picks

Bob Cobb (via Brazil):
Miami
Cincinnati
Dallas
Tennessee
Kansas City
Green Bay
NY Jets
Baltimore
Cleveland
Pittsburgh
Tampa Bay
New Orleans
Atlanta
New England
Philadelphia
San Diego

FDR:

Miami

Cinci

Detroit

Tennessee

KC

GB

NYJ

Pitt

Baltimore

Jax

Atlanta

NO

TB

NE

NYG

SD

NFL Picks

Bob Cobb:
Atlanta
Buffalo
Minnesota
NY Jets
Indy
Tennessee
Tampa Bay
Houston
Kansas City
NY Giants
Arizona
San Francisco
Pittsburgh
Philadelphia

Smuckers:
Baltimore
Buffalo
Minnesota
NYJ
Indy
Miami
Tampa Bay
Houston
KC
NYG
Arizona
St. Louis
Pitt
Philly

FDR:

Atlanta

Detroit

Chicago

NYJ

Tampa

Jax

Indy

Tennessee

Denver

NYG

Arizona

San Fran

New England

Washington

Bob Cobb: 79-51 (10-3 last week)
Smuckers: 77-53 (9-4 last week)
FDR: 70-60* (9-4 last week)

Weekend Pickoff

So FDR was the first participant to miss the pick submission deadline. As commish, I decided to give him 0-13 for the week. If any of our readers have differing opinions, feel free to voice your arguments in the comments section.

Atlanta
Buffalo
NE
NY Jets
New Orleans
Baltimore
San Diego
Minnesota
NY Giants
Philadelphia
Kansas City

Green Bay
Pittsburgh

Franklin Delano Romanowski:

Atlanta

Chicago

New England

New York Jets

Minnesota

New Orleans

Miami

San Diego

Seattle

Oakland

Indy

Green Bay

Pitt

Smuckers

Atlanta

Chicago

New England

Detroit

Minnesota

NO

Baltimore

San Diego

NYG

KC

Indy

Green Bay

Pitt

Bob Cobb: 69-48 (8-5 last week)
Smuckers: 68-49 (9-4 last week)
FDR: 61-56 (**0-13 last week) -- Running the table. Book it.

Week 8 Picks

Detroit
Dallas
Miami
Kansas City
St. Louis
Denver
NY Jets
San Diego
Arizona
New England
Oakland
Pittsburgh
Indianapolis

Smuckers

Miami

Jacksonville

Washington

KC

St. Louis

Green Bay

Denver

San Diego

Oakland

New England

Tampa Bay

Pitt

Houston

Bob Cobb: 61-43 (7-7 last week)
FDR: 61-43 (9-5 last week)
Smuckers: 59-45 (9-5 last week)

Week 7 Picks

San Francisco
Tampa Bay
Baltimore
New Orleans
Miami
Philadelphia
Kansas City
Chicago
Atlanta
Seattle
New England
Denver
Green Bay
Dallas

FDR:

Atlanta

Washington

Tenn

KC

Pitt

NO

St. Louis

Carolina

Baltimore

Seattle

Denver

San Diego

GB

Dallas

Smuckers:

Atlanta

Chicago

Ten

KC

Pitt

NO

TB

Do I really have to pick this game? Fine, um Carolina.

Baltimore

Seattle

Denver

San Diego

Green Bay

Dallas

Bob Cobb: 54-36 (10-4 last week)
FDR: 52-38 (7-7 last week)
Smuckers: 50-40 (6-8 last week)

This is never a good sign

It's week six, not the preseason:

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/columnists/20101015_Les_Bowen__No-huddle_offenses_like_Falcons_giving_Eagles_trouble.html

I'm not optimistic about this game at all.

Week 6 Pickoff

Chicago
Green Bay
San Diego
New England
New Orleans
NY Giants
Atlanta
Pittsburgh
Houston
San Francisco
NY Jets
Minnesota
Indianapolis
Tennessee

Smuckers

Chicago

Green Bay

San Diego

Baltimore

New York Giants

Atlanta

Pitt

Denver

NO

KC

San Fran

Dallas

Indy

Tenn

FDR:

Chicago

GB

San Diego

NE

NO

NYG

Atlanta

Houston

Pitt

Oakland

Indy

Dallas

Tennessee

Denver

FDR: 45-31 (7-7 last week)
Bob Cobb: 44-32 (5-9 last week)
Smuckers: 44-32 (8-6 last week)

Weekend Pickoff

Indianapolis
Buffalo
Cincinnati
Atlanta
Detroit
Baltimore
Carolina
Green Bay
Houston
New Orleans
Dallas
San Diego
San Francisco
NY Jets

Smuckers

Jacksonville

Cinci

Hotlanta

Detroit

Indi

Green Bay

Chitown

Baltimore

Houston

N.O.

Dallas

San Diego

Philly

NYJ

FDR:

Jacksonville

Cinci

Atlanta

St. Louis

Indy

Washington

Chicago

Baltimore

Houston

New Orleans

Tennessee

San Diego

San Fran

Minny

Bob Cobb: 39-23 (8-6 last week)
FDR: 38-24 (8-6 last week)
Smuckers: 36-26 (10-4 last week)

Week 4 Pickoff

Atlanta
Cincinnati
NY Jets
Seattle
Denver
Green Bay
Pittsburgh
New Orleans
Indianapolis
Houston
Philadelphia
San Diego
Chicago
New England

FDR:

Atlanta

NY Jets

Cinci

Green Bay

New Orleans

Pittsburgh

St. Louis

Tennessee

Indy

Houston

Washington

San Diego

Chicago

Miami

Smuckers

Atlanta

NYJ

Cinci

Green Bay

Denver

St. Louis

New Orleans

Pit

Houston

Indy

Washington

San Diego

NYG

Miami

Season Total:
Bob Cobb: 31-17 (10-6 last week)
FDR: 30-18 (10-6 last week)
Smuckers: 26-22 (11-5 last week)

Week 3 Pickoff

NY Giants
Pittsburgh
Cincinnati
Baltimore
Dallas
San Francisco
Minnesota
New England
Atlanta
Washington
Philadelphia
Arizona
San Diego
Indianapolis
Miami
Green Bay

Franklin D. Romanowski:

Kansas City

Minnesota

New England

New Orleans

Tennessee

Pittsburgh

Cincinnati

Baltimore

Washington

Houston

Philadelphia

Indy

Arizona

San Diego

Miami

Green Bay

Smuckers:

Minnesota

Kansas City

New England

New Orleans

Tenn

Pitt

Cinci

Baltimore

Dallas

Washington

Michael Vick!

Indy

Oakland

San Diego

New York

Green Bay

Season Total:
Bob Cobb: 21-11 (10-6 last week)
FDR: 20-12 (11-5 last week)
Smuckers: 15-17 (8-8 last week)

Much Faster and Slightly Less Accurate

than DMac, Michael Vick, in his prime, was the best athlete to ever play the quarterback position. And watching him play the last two weeks, if he's not quite the specimen he once was he's pretty darned close. The Eagles offensive line is beyond terrible. They weren't any good to start with , and once J Jackson got lost for the year at center look out. The defense is awful as well, but that's a subject for another post.

Considering how well Vick played (and the likelihood of this being an at best mediocre season for the birds), if Reid put him back on the bench he'd have a quarterback controversy for the rest of the year. This way, if Vick falters or gets hurt, Reid can go back to Kolb without worrying about any fan or player fallout. It's an unfortunate situation for Kevin, who is probably still having nightmares about forcing the ball into double coverage in Green Bay, but Smuckers understands.

What Smuckers does not understand is why Reid all but announced that Kolb would start on Monday, allowed Kolb to give a news conference under the context that he was still the guy, then pulled the rug out from under him on Tuesday. My guess is that Vick so far has so drastically outperformed expectations, and Kolb was so clueless and terrible in the preseason and against Green Bay, that the more footage Andy watched the more he sat there chewing on the end of his fabulous grey and red moustache. People like to talk about how Kolb only had a 3o min audition, but they didn't score a single first team offensive touchdown in the entire postseason.

Still, how hard would it have been to just pretend Kolb's head was still bothering him? At least for another week to see if Vick can keep this up? That would have saved everyone what's turning into a terrible public relations headache, no pun intended. And it's a shame to throw a good guy under the bus in this manner.

PS This offensive line is going to get someone killed eventually, regardless of who plays QB.