After a somewhat uneventful divisional round weekend, the NFL has on paper at least, two compelling conference championship games.
In the earlier start, the AFC one seed, Denver Broncos have been established as four and a fraction favorites vs the New England Patriots. The game is scheduled for 3 p.m. eastern time which I believe is 1 p.m. in Denver which is the venue.
Later in the day, the NFC one seed Seattle Seahawks are about a three and a fraction favorite vs the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC title tilt. The game is scheduled for six thirty p.m. in Seattle (three thirty local time) on Sunday.
Both the 49ers and Patriots will be playing in their third straight conference title game. Each team is (1-1) in the previous two games. Neither team won the Super Bowl after its victory in the title game/semi final round.
In 2011, the Patriots won the AFC Title game vs the Baltimore Ravens but lost to the Ravens in last year’s game. After beating the Ravens in 2011, the New York Giants beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl.
The Niners’ fortunes the last two years are similar. They lost to the Giants in the 2011 NFC championship before beating the Atlanta Falcons in last year’s game. However, as was the case with the Pats in 2011, the Niners were denied the big prize, losing to the Baltimore Ravens in the Super Bowl.
The New England Patriots advanced to a third straight AFC championship game for the first time in franchise history, with a (43-22) win over the Indianapolis Colts in the Saturday night game.
New England will either play at Denver vs the Broncos, or host the San Diego Chargers on January 19th in the AFC championship game.
If the Chargers upset Denver today it will produce a rematch of the Chargers (51-10) win over the Patriots 50 years ago in the AFL title game in next week’s AFC championship game.
The Pats are (6-0) in home Saturday night playoff games, five of them divisional round games.
After the previous Saturday night home divisional round game victories, the Pats played at home and won the AFC title game.
This year will they play at home? Will they win? First question is answered today, the second next week.
The 44th year of the divisional round since the AFC/NFC format was instituted begins today. There are two games and the round concludes tomorrow with two more.
The NFC top seed Seattle Seahawks are favored by 8 points vs the New Orleans Saints in the first game. Three years ago in the wild card round, a (7-9) Seahawks team played at home as a divisional winner, and beat the defending champion Saints, who were a similar favorite.
Seattle is a conference top seed for just the second time in its 38 year history. They rode the top seed to a Super Bowl appearance in 2005. The Seahawks are just (2-6) in divisional round games. They have lost 4 straight in this round.
Three of the eight remaining teams–the Seahawks, Carolina Panthers and San Diego Chargers, have never won a Super Bowl. Each team lost in its only Super Bowl appearance.
The latest inductees to the Baseball Hall of Fame were announced yesterday. Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas were elected.
Excuse me if I am not doing cartwheels over any of them and I strongly object to Glavine as a choice.
This summer three members of the incredibly underachieving Atlanta Braves, who won so many divisional titles but only one World Series, will stand together as among the newest inductees to the Hall.
That will not be a welcome sight for me as one is manager Bobby Cox and the other two pitchers; Maddux and Glavine.
The Braves’ failures were in short series and that is where managing and pitching mean even more and the Braves did so much less.
Opinions are like (you fill in the blank) but I have strong memories of the Atlanta failures. It’s odd that Cox will go into the Hall with the manager whose team defeated his in both the 1996 and 1999 World Series,–Joe Torre, who managed the New York Yankees.
In ’96, especially in game four, when Cox and the Braves dissipated a (6-0) lead, the poor managing by Cox was the key. He panicked early, arguing with umpires and not leaving in Mike Bielecki who calmed the game down after the Yankees cut the (6-0) deficit in half.
Cox brought in closer Mark Wohlers for two innings instead and he did not have it. In game 3 Cox with a (2-0) Series lead managed so passively, conceding outs with sacrifices.
Please look up how many times Glavine, who by far is the worst choice, was the losing pitcher in a last day of the season or post season game in which his team was eliminated. I believe at least four.
Also there were some other horrible efforts in near must games, one being game three of the ’99 World Series when he could not hold a (5-2) lead with his Braves already down (2-0) in the series.
New York Mets’ fans remember him being bombed, not losing (1-0) but taking the Mets out of the game on the final day of the season in 2007 vs the Florida Marlins.
His line for that game: 1 batter retired, 7 runs allowed. The Mets tied for playoff position going into that final day, were eliminated as the competition, the Philadelphia Phillies, won.
The Marlins scored 7 runs off Glavine, 4 in the first inning in Atlanta, when they beat Glavine and clinched the 1997 NLCS.
Glavine was not as bad the following year but still was the losing pitcher again in game six at home, when the San Diego Padres clinched the 1998 NLCS. Did this not matter to those who voted for him?
Trust me, take Casey Stengel’s words to heart and “look it up,” there are a plethora of Glavine failures in big games.
In fairness, in his one exemplary big game outing, he pitched one hit ball for 8 innings and was the winning pitcher the lone time Atlanta did win it all, in 1995.
In that game 6 of the ’95 World Series, Glavine was masterful, beyond great. Of course as with almost all of today’s pitchers he did not pitch 9 innings. Wohlers pitched the 9th inning.
It is my strong opinion that Glavine does not deserve to make the Hall of Fame. His many, many failures in big games and the fact his team so woefully underachieved in its championship count, are the reasons.
Of course, I feel even stronger he should not be a first ballot Hall of Famer.
The New England Patriots will be playing in the Saturday night slot of the divisional round for the seventh time in eight possibilities.
Additionally New England will be playing at home for the sixth time in the game.
The first and most famous of the Saturday night divisional round games was in 2001 when the Patriots won in the snow vs the Oakland Raiders.
In that game the Patriots’ kicker, Adam Vinatieri, made an incredible tying field goal. He also won the game in overtime.
This Saturday night, 12 years later, Vinatieri returns to the Saturday night divisional round in New England as the opposing team’s (The Indianapolis Colts) kicker.
This weekend there are four divisional round games in the NFL.
The eight teams are hoping to make it to the Super Bowl at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, which is the regular home field of two NFL teams, the NFC Giants and the AFC Jets.
This is the first time ever that the host Stadium is home of two teams–one from each conference.
Four of the teams played a regular season game this year at the stadium. The Broncos and the Seahawks won their games, and the Saints and the Patriots lost their games.
Florida State completed its first (14-0) season and won the college football title with a rousing (34-31) win vs Auburn University.
Heisman Trophy winner and Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston really showed his mettle, directing the Seminoles 80 yards for the championship winning touchdown in the last minute and nineteen seconds.
The play that won Florida State its third title and first since 1999, was a 2 yard pass from Winston to Kelvin Benjamin.
Two other key plays on the winning drive were Winston’s pass to Rashad Greene for 47 yards and a pass interference penalty against the Auburn/Alabama game hero, Chris Davis of Auburn.
The interference call gave Florida State a first down at the Auburn 2 and was immediately followed by the Winston to Benjamin, national title winning touchdown pass.
Auburn won two games with near miracle plays and was beaten by L.S.U.
Meanwhile the “Noles” completed a perfect title winning season for the second time. They also won the 1993 title with a one loss regular season.
Only one home team won in the NFL wild card round and that team, the Indianapolis Colts, had to overcome a 28 point third quarter deficit to do so.
The playoff woes of the Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati Bengals and Philadelphia Eagles, three teams without a post AFC/NFC format, Super Bowl win continued.
The Chiefs have lost an NFL record 8 straight playoff games and not won one since winning two in the playoffs 20 years ago.
Since winning it all in 1969, the last year of the AFL, K.C. has made nary a Super Bowl and been to but one conference title game/semi final.
The Bengals have now lost six straight playoff games, three at home. Cincinnati also has gone longer than any other NFL team sans a playoff victory, now 23 years.
Though the Eagles did not win a title in the span, they had a nice run of winning at least one playoff game in 9 of their 10 appearances from (1992-2008.)
However, they have now lost 4 straight playoff games, the last three in their first game.
Even the 2010 Super Bowl champion, Green Bay Packers have now lost three of four playoff games since winning it all 3 years ago.
Andy Reid
Among other manifestations of the Indianapolis Colts’ incredible comeback win vs the Kansas City Chiefs is the fact the Colts are likely to play on the exact 45th anniversary of their Super Bowl loss to the New York Jets.
The Colts were down (38-10) early in the third quarter yesterday vs K.C. but rallied to win (45-44). Thus if favored Cincinnati Bengals win at home vs the San Diego Chargers, the Colts will travel to Denver, to face the AFC top seed and big favorite, Broncos next Sunday.
If that happens, the Colts, who were overwhelming favorites vs the Jets in the third Super Bowl exactly 45 years earlier, will be big, though not as big, underdogs vs Denver.
If the Chargers win today, the Colts would face the New England Patriots next Saturday night.
After the favorites dominated in most of the pre New Year’s Day bowl games, there have been upsets galore in the last nine bowl games.
The biggest upsets were two 17 point underdogs, winning on consecutive nights, in major bowl games.
Following another upset, when touchdown underdog, Michigan State beat Stanford in the Rose Bowl, Central Florida, a 17 point underdog defeated Baylor University on New Year’s night.
The next night, Oklahoma also a 17 point underdog, defeated Alabama. That loss ended the fine college career of Alabama quarterback, A.J. Mc Carron, who led the Crimson Tide to national titles in the two previous seasons.
Starting with Duke’s near upset of Texas AM, on New Year’s Eve, the underdogs have either won outright or kept the game “close enough” in 9 of the 10 games played. Seven of the underdogs won outright.
Andy B Sports 