2012 NFL Wild Card Preview

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Cincinnati Bengals (9-7) vs. Houston Texans (10-6)
Ranks
Offense
Bengals – 20th
Texans – 13th
Defense
Bengals – 7th
Texans – 2nd
You have to love a good underdog story.  You have two with the Bengals and the Texans.  Cincinnati has a rookie quarterback in Andy Dalton and a rookie wide receiver in A.J. Green leading the way on offense.  RB Cedric Benson isn’t a terrible option as a runner, but the Bengals bread and butter this year has been through Dalton and Green.  The Bengals have also had one of the leagues best defenses this season.  They are a stellar run defense and have been above average against the pass.  They will have to stop the Texans rushing attack to have any chance of moving on.
Houston would be favorites to go farther if QB Matt Schaub was healthy.  Also WR Andre Johnson has been limited by hamstring injuries.  Either way their identity is through their running backs Arian Foster and Ben Tate.  They will need both of them to play up to their capabilities to win a playoff game.  Rookie QB T.J. Yates has a banged up shoulder, but the good thing is that it’s his non-throwing shoulder.  He has been adequate for Houston, but the Texans need to rely on their backs and defense to win this game. They also need Yates to stay in the game because if QB Jake Delhomme has to appear in the game they will most likely lose.
Matchup to watch for: Bengals D vs. Texans RB Arian Foster and RB Ben Tate
Detroit Lions (10-6) vs. New Orleans Saints (13-3)
Ranks
Offense
Lions – 5th
Saints – 1st
Defense 
Lions – 23rd
Saints – 24th
The most exciting matchup had better not disappoint.  The Lions were on a roll to finish the season.  QB Matthew Stafford was nearly perfect throwing the ball.  And why wouldn’t he when he has WR Calvin Johnson to throw the ball to.  The one major flaw with the Lions offense though is their lack of a running game.  I don’t know who their main running back is.  Jahvid Best went down with a concussion early in the season and they haven’t had any rushing attack since.  The Lions also have no secondary either to help stop the Saints passing attack.  They will have to outscore the Saints to win this game.
New Orleans has Drew Brees and a slew of weapons at his disposal.  It won’t be an easy task for any team to stop the Saints this year, but if you can pressure Drew Brees you might have a chance.  The Saints know that and they will try to run the ball more to help keep the Lions defense honest.  Defensively the Saints will do their best to contain Calvin Johnson, but it will be hard to keep him out of the endzone.  New Orleans hasn’t lost a game at home this season and they will look to keep it that way.
Matchup to watch for: Lions WR Calvin Johnson vs. Saints secondary
Atlanta Falcons (10-6) vs. New York Giants (9-7)
Ranks
Offense
Falcons – 10th
Giants – 8th
Defense
Falcons – 12th
Giants – 27th
Atlanta is in a new position this year.  They are flying under the radar.  Last year they were the favorites and were beaten by the eventual Super Bowl champions the Green Bay Packers.  They hope it works this time as they take on the sneaky New York Giants.  One thing the Falcons must do is establish their running game with Michael Turner.  If they can involve him early then they can open up their passing game with QB Matt Ryan throwing to Roddy White, Julio Jones and Tony Gonzalez.  
With New York it all comes down to their pass rush.  If they can disrupt Falcons QB Matt Ryan for most of the game, then they will win easily no matter how badly the may play on offense.  That’s the x-factor for the Giants.  QB Eli Manning has a not so secret weapon in WR Victor Cruz who has been the toast of New York. The Giants would welcome a consistent rushing attack from Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs.
Matchup to watch for: Falcons QB Matt Ryan vs. Giants pass rush
Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4) vs. Denver Broncos (8-8)
Ranks
Offense
Steelers – 12th
Broncos – 23rd
Defense
Steelers – 1st
Broncos – 20th
This is setting up to be a defensive struggle.  The Steelers will be without their best running back Rashard Mendenhall for the entire playoffs.  QB Ben Roethlisberger is still limping around in the pocket.  Their offense has become stagnant to end the season. They won’t need to score a lot of points to win this game, but they will need to put it away early.  Pittsburgh doesn’t need to keep the Broncos in this game for another Tim Tebow come from behind victory.  
Denver needs to have a short leash for Tebow.  I’m not downgrading Tebow so much as I’m being honest.  If he continues to struggle like he was at the end of the season Denver needs to think about replacing him.  But their only other option is Brady Quinn.  What the Broncos will need to do is shutdown the Steelers offense and do just enough on offense to get Matt Prater in position to win it for them with a field goal.  
Matchup to watch for: Steelers D vs. Broncos QB Tim Tebow
Predictions
Texans over Bengals
Saints over Lions
Giants over Falcons
Steelers over Broncos

Week 17 Review of the NFL

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The 2011 season might not have been.  Thankfully we were able to see some amazing moments and record breaking quarterback play. For the final weekly review in the NFL, I’m going to look back at the previous weeks of the season.  You can say it’s a mixture of the good, the bad and the ugly moments of the 2011 season.
Week 1 
Carolina Panthers rookie QB Cam Newton arrived with a 400 yard passing performance in his first NFL game.  The New Orleans Saints and the Green Bay Packers opened the season with what many believed to be a preview of this years NFC Championship game.  The Dallas Cowboys showed us right from the start that they were destined to miss the playoffs.
Week 2
It was starting to look like the Buffalo Bills were destined for a magical season.  I was wrong about that one.  Philadelphia Eagles QB Michael Vick showed that he is the highest risk quarterback in the NFL suffering a concussion in Atlanta.  Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo breaks a rib and plays his best game of his career.
Week 3
The Buffalo Bills are riding high.  Once again, I was wrong.  The Oakland Raiders looked like a dangerous team.  That’s when RB Darren McFadden was healthy though.  Just like the Bills, the Detroit Lions were also on a winning streak to start the season.
Week 4
Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan opens his big mouth and actually said Lions WR Calvin Johnson wasn’t good enough to be the 3rd receiver in Dallas.  Try telling that to Tony Romo.  Besides the Bills, the Washington Redskins were also 3-1 at this point in the season.  Shocking I know.  We begin to wonder who will be the first head coach to be fired.  Quite a few of them were.
Week 5
Raiders owner Al Davis passed away.  His team lived up to his motto.  Tim Tebow was given an opportunity and almost lead the Broncos to victory.  Looking back it was too early to panic for Eagles and Jets fans.  
Week 6
Instead of the actual game everyone was talking about the little spat between Lions head coach Jim Schwartz and 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh.  Saints head coach Sean Payton was taken out on the sidelines.  Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett in one of his many peculiar decision making moments late in a game.
Week 7
Perhaps the worst football weekend ever.  Sorry to remind you. Tim Tebow made his triumphant return to Florida in a victory in Miami.  The fight to get Stanford QB Andrew Luck begins.
Week 8
At this point the elite teams were beginning to run away from the pack.  Aside from the Buffalo Bills all the good teams went on to make the playoffs.  Most of the other teams did not elevate themselves from their bad or ugly status.
Week 9
An almost exact replica of Super Bowl XLII between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots took place.  The Packers and Chargers had a shootout at Qualcomm Stadium.  The Ravens and Steelers had a good old fashion football game that went down to the last second.
Week 10
It was time to consider the San Francisco 49ers and Houston Texans as legitimate contenders going into the stretch run.  The Lions and Bills began to cool off after such great starts to the season.
Week 11
I participated in the ‘Tebowing’ craze.  ‘Da Bears’ were on a roll until QB Jay Cutler broke his thumb.  I was having trouble figuring out the NFC East.  I still am.
Week 12
Saints QB Drew Brees began to put his name into the MVP conversation with Packers QB Aaron Rodgers.  Lions DT Ndamukong Suh crosses the line.  Jacksonville makes a change as they fired their head coach Jack Del Rio
Week 13
The playoff picture starts to take shape as the 49ers and Packers clinch playoff spots.  The Lions as a whole couldn’t shake the ‘dirty’ label.  Trouble was brewing in Chicago.  
Week 14
The Texans and Saints clinch playoff spots.  It was more impressive for the Texans as they lost their top 2 quarterbacks to injury and were led by a rookie to the playoffs.  I finally figured out why the Cowboys struggle so much.  The Broncos success was not all because of Tim Tebow.  
Week 15
The AFC was up for grabs this late in the season.  The Green Bay Packers lost their first game.  I still think it was a good thing for them.  Calvin Johnson takes the top spot among the best wide receivers in the NFL.
Week 16
A front flip into the endzone for a touchdown.  What a surprise. The NFC East will be decided during the last game of the season. Move over Dan Marino.  Drew Brees is new record holder.

Week 16 Review of the NFL

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The most amazing play ever
There have been amazing catches.  Long touchdown runs.  And bone jarring hits.  But there hasn’t been a play like the one in Cincinnati made by Bengals WR Jerome Simpson.  My mind was blown.  I had never seen a more spectacular play.  I’m not going to say that this was the greatest play of all time.  It wasn’t in a playoff game or the Super Bowl, but it’s now in my top 10.  Simpson caught a pass from QB Andy Dalton over the middle of the field. He proceeded towards the endzone where he decided the only way to get into the endzone was to leap over the defender.  He made it into the endzone but he was going to be in for a rough landing, or so I thought.  All of a sudden he begins to turn himself upright in the middle of the air and sticks the landing in the endzone. Touchdown Bengals.  I’m sure it’s all over youtube right now. Either way you have to see it again and again.  It was a once in a lifetime kind of a play.
Showdown for the NFC East
It has come down to the final game of the season for the NFC East. Who could have seen this coming?  The New York Giants weren’t going to let the New York Jets beat them.  But the Dallas Cowboys laid a goose egg in their stadium against the Philadelphia Eagles. Nearly being shutout.  Now with Cowboys QB Tony Romo nursing a bruised throwing hand, the question all week will be about his health.  I would expect the New York Giants to win this game since it is being played in New York.  The Giants did beat the Cowboys a few weeks ago in Dallas.  But I don’t trust either one of these teams.  Just when you think they’ve figured it out, they fall flat on their faces.  Which Eli Manning will show up?  Will the Giants pass rush live up to their potential.  Will the Dallas Cowboys actually play defense for an entire game?  Can the Cowboys run the ball consistently?  Those are the most important questions for both teams.  Whichever team can successfully quell those questions they will have a NFC East title and host a playoff game.
A new record

Probably the one thing that most people love about football is that you don’t have to know a lot about it.  And that’s okay.  Some folks could care less about the historical records and statistical achievements of the games greats.  What Saints QB Drew Brees did on Monday Night Football was one for the ages though.  Hall of Fame QB Dan Fouts held the record for most passing yards in a single season with 4,802 yards.  That record lasted for only 3 years until another Hall of Fame QB Dan Marino shattered that record with 5,084 yards.  That record has stood for 27 years.  No one has come close to getting 5,000 yards passing since.  That is until QB Drew Brees arrived in New Orleans.  He came close to breaking it in 2008 when on the last pass play of the season it was an incomplete pass.  This year though he broke the record with one game to spare.  Chances are that this record will never be broken, but with the way the league is heading towards an offensive explosion.  It might not last as long as Marino’s record.  Either way it is quite an accomplishment.  To be only the second person to throw for over 5,000 yards in a season and do it twice is something to be proud of.

Week 15 Review of the NFL

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The AFC is up for grabs
The New England Patriots, Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers all clinched playoff spots this past week.  The Patriots clinched their division with their victory over the Denver Broncos. Baltimore and Pittsburgh had playoff spots without even playing their games.  But they both lost.  Thus creating a debate about the AFC’s top team.  I don’t want to crown the Patriots just yet.  When you have Tom Brady the sky is the limit.  I don’t like their defense at all.  If Brady doesn’t get them 30+ points, they will lose.  The Ravens don’t seem to want to play their best game when it matters. And Pittsburgh can only go as far as Ben Roethlisberger’s ankle can take them.  It should be mentioned that I didn’t consider the Houston Texans as a top team once their QB Matt Schaub went down.  They will host a playoff game, but rookie QB T.J. Yates does have his limits.  Then there’s the AFC West. All four teams have a chance at the playoffs.  Honestly I think it’s down to the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos, but those pesky San Diego Chargers figured out that it was December.  Now they’re on a roll.  It figures that they revert back to their old ways.  After seeing how the AFC is panning out you can see why I’m not going to rush to any decision on who will be atop this conference once the playoffs start.
Perfect no more
Did I think the Green Bay Packers could finish the season 16-0? Yes.  Would it have been a good thing going into the playoffs? No. Not in the sense that they were going to run the table.  The New England Patriots went down this path before and didn’t win the one game that mattered.  The Packers could have ended up in a similar scenario.  Now I don’t believe for a second that they wanted to lose a game.  No team wants that.  But I bet you that on the plane ride back home they were all breathing a collective sigh of relief.  Now they can focus on getting that one victory to clinch home field on Christmas day against the Chicago Bears.  But they will need to protect Aaron Rodgers with a banged up offensive line. It’s a tough task, but if any team can do it, the Green Bay Packers can.
They call him ‘Megatron’

No running game, no problem if you’re the Detroit Lions.  When you have a guy in Calvin Johnson to throw the ball to, QB Matthew Stafford’s job is a lot easier.  Now I don’t know how you could lose Calvin Johnson on the football field, but the Oakland Raiders showed you exactly how to do it.  Calvin had a career game with 9 catches, 214 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the game winner. This was a must win game for both teams, but it was made even worse for the Raiders who could have tied with their division rivals, the Denver Broncos for the division lead.  Detroit showed that they are the comeback kids as they have done it before.  Remember their Week 4 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys?  They were down 24-3 when Cowboys QB Tony Romo threw back to back interceptions for touchdowns.  Then the Lions scored 17 points in the 4th quarter to complete their come from behind victory.  Calvin Johnson caught two touchdowns in that game as well.  They occurred in the 4th quarter.  Obviously the Oakland Raiders didn’t read or bother to write that in their scouting report for this game. Maybe now the rest of the league will grow wise to this guy nicknamed ‘Megatron’.

2011-12 NBA Season Preview

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* – indicates playoffs
(R) – indicates rookie
# – indicates new to team
MVP – Kevin Durant – Thunder
Rookie – Kemba Walker – Bobcats
Coach – Scott Brooks – Thunder
Defensive Player – Dwight Howard – Magic
Most Improved – DeAndre Jordan – Clippers
Sixth Man – James Harden – Thunder
Executive – Neil Olshey – Clippers
Playoffs
Eastern Conference Finals
Miami vs. Chicago
Heat in 6
Western Conference Finals
Dallas vs. Oklahoma City
Thunder in 7
NBA Finals
Miami vs. Oklahoma City
Thunder in 7
Finals MVP: Kevin Durant 
Eastern Conference
1. Miami Heat*
2. Chicago Bulls*
3. Boston Celtics*
4. Orlando Magic*
5. New York Knicks*
6. Atlanta Hawks*
7. Indiana Pacers*
8. Philadelphia 76ers*
9. Milwaukee Bucks
10. Charlotte Bobcats
11. Toronto Raptors
12. Detroit Pistons
13. Cleveland Cavaliers
14. Washington Wizards
15. New Jersey Nets
Heat – 1st in Southeast
Starters
C Joel Anthony
F Chris Bosh
F LeBron James
G Dwayne Wade
G Mario Chalmers
Three Man Rotation
F Udonis Haslem, F James Jones, F Shane Battier#
Bulls – 1st in Central
Starters
C Joakim Noah
F Carlos Boozer
F Luol Deng
G Richard Hamilton#
G Derrick Rose
Three Man Rotation
G Ronnie Brewer, F Taj Gibson, G C.J. Watson
Celtics – 1st in Atlantic
Starters
C Jermaine O’Neal
F Kevin Garnett
F Paul Pierce
G Ray Allen
G Rajon Rondo
Three Man Rotation
F Brandon Bass#, G Marquis Daniels, G Keyon Dooling#
Magic – 2nd in Southeast
Starters
C Dwight Howard
F Ryan Anderson
F Hedo Turkoglu
G Jason Richardson
G Jameer Nelson
Three Man Rotation
G J.J. Redick, F Glen Davis#, G Chris Duhon
Knicks – 2nd in Atlantic
Starters
C Tyson Chandler#
F Amare Stoudemire
F Carmelo Anthony
G Landry Fields
G Toney Douglas
Three Man Rotation
G Bill Walker, G Iman Shumpert (R), F Jared Jeffries
Hawks – 3rd in Southeast
Starters
C Al Horford
F Josh Smith
F Marvin Williams
G Joe Johnson
G Kirk Hinrich
Three Man Rotation
G Jeff Teague, G Tracy McGrady#, G Willie Green#
Pacers – 2nd in Central
Starters
C Roy Hibbert
F David West#
F Danny Granger
G Paul George
G Darren Collison
Three Man Rotation
F Tyler Hansbrough, G George Hill#, G Dahntay Jones
76ers – 3rd in Atlantic
Starters
C Spencer Hawes
F Elton Brand
F Andre Iguodala
G Jodie Meeks
G Jrue Holiday
Three Man Rotation
G Louis Williams, F Thaddeus Young, G Evan Turner
Bucks – 3rd in Central
Starters
C Andrew Bogut
F Ersan Ilyasova
F Stephen Jackson#
G Mike Dunleavy#
G Brandon Jennings
Three Man Rotation
G Shaun Livingston#, F Drew Gooden, G Beno Udrih#
Bobcats – 4th in Southeast
Starters
C Boris Diaw
F D.J. White
F Corey Maggette#
G Gerald Henderson
G D.J. Augustin
Three Man Rotation
G Kemba Walker (R), C Byron Mullens#, F Derrick Brown
Raptors – 4th in Atlantic
Starters
C Amir Johnson
F Andrea Bargnani
F Rasual Butler#
G DeMar DeRozan
G Jose Calderon
Three Man Rotation
F James Johnson, G Leandro Barbosa, F Ed Davis
Pistons – 4th in Central
Starters
C Greg Monroe
F Jonas Jerebko
F Tayshaun Prince
G Ben Gordon
G Rodney Stuckey
Three Man Rotation
G Damien Wilkins#, G Brandon Knight (R), F Jason Maxiell
Cavaliers – 5th in Central
Starters
C Anderson Varejao
F Antawn Jamison
F Omri Casspi#
G Anthony Parker
G Kyrie Irving (R)
Three Man Rotation
G Ramon Sessions, G Daniel Gibson, F Alonzo Gee
Wizards – 5th in Southeast
Starters
C JaVale McGee
F Andray Blatche
F Rashard Lewis
G Jordan Crawford
G John Wall
Three Man Rotation
G Nick Young, C Ronny Turiaf#, F Chris Singleton (R)
Nets – 5th in Atlantic
Starters
C Johan Petro
F Kris Humphries
F Damion James
G Anthony Morrow
G Deron Williams
Three Man Rotation
C Mehmet Okur#, G Sundiata Gaines, G DeShawn Stevenson#
Western Conference
1. Oklahoma City Thunder*
2. Dallas Mavericks*
3. San Antonio Spurs*
4. Los Angeles Clippers*
5. Memphis Grizzlies*
6. Los Angeles Lakers*
7. Portland Trail Blazers*
8. Denver Nuggets*
9. Houston Rockets
10. Utah Jazz
11. Phoenix Suns
12. Golden State Warriors
13. Minnesota Timberwolves
14. New Orleans Hornets
15. Sacramento Kings

Thunder – 1st in Northwest
Starters
C Kendrick Perkins
F Serge Ibaka
F Kevin Durant
G Thabo Sefolosha
G Russell Westbrook
Three Man Rotation
G James Harden, F Nick Collison, G Eric Maynor

Mavericks – 1st in Southwest
Starters
C Brendan Haywood
F Dirk Nowitzki
F Shawn Marion
G Vince Carter#
G Jason Kidd
Three Man Rotation
G Jason Terry, F Lamar Odom#, G Delonte West#

Spurs – 2nd in Southwest
Starters
C DeJuan Blair
F Tim Duncan
F Richard Jefferson
G Manu Ginobili
G Tony Parker
Three Man Rotation
F Tiago Splitter, F Matt Bonner, G James Anderson

Clippers – 1st in Pacific
Starters
C DeAndre Jordan
F Blake Griffin
F Caron Butler#
G Chauncey Billups#
G Chris Paul#
Three Man Rotation
G Mo Williams, G Randy Foye, G Eric Bledsoe

Grizzlies – 3rd in Southwest
Starters
C Marc Gasol
F Zach Randolph
F Rudy Gay
G Tony Allen
G Mike Conley
Three Man Rotation
G O.J. Mayo, F Sam Young, F Quincy Pondexter#

Lakers – 2nd in Pacific
Starters
C Andrew Bynum
F Pau Gasol
F Matt Barnes
G Kobe Bryant
G Derek Fisher
Three Man Rotation
G Steve Blake, F Metta World Peace, F Troy Murphy#

Trail Blazers – 2nd in Northwest
Starters
C Marcus Camby
F LaMarcus Aldridge
F Gerald Wallace
G Wesley Matthews
G Raymond Felton#
Three Man Rotation
G Jamal Crawford#, F Nicolas Batum, F Kurt Thomas#

Nuggets – 3rd in Northwest
Starters
C Timofey Mozgov
F Nene
F Danilo Gallinari
G Aaron Afflalo
G Ty Lawson
Three Man Rotation
G Rudy Fernandez#, G Andre Miller#, F Al Harrington

Rockets – 4th in Southwest
Starters
C Jordan Hill
F Luis Scola
F Chase Budinger
G Kevin Martin
G Kyle Lowry
Three Man Rotation
F Terrence Williams, G Courtney Lee, C Samuel Dalembert#

Jazz – 4th in Northwest
Starters
C Al Jefferson
F Derrick Favors
F Gordon Hayward
G Raja Bell
G Devin Harris
Three Man Rotation
F Paul Millsap, F Josh Howard#, G Earl Watson

Suns – 3rd in Pacific
Starters
C Marcin Gortat
F Channing Frye
F Grant Hill
G Jared Dudley
G Steve Nash
Three Man Rotation
C Robin Lopez, G Shannon Brown#, F Markieff Morris (R)

Warriors – 4th in Pacific
Starters
C Andris Biedrins
F David Lee
F Dorell Wright
G Monta Ellis
G Stephen Curry
Three Man Rotation
G Brandon Rush#, G Klay Thompson (R), F Ekpe Udoh

Timberwolves – 5th in Northwest
Starters
C Darko Milicic
F Kevin Love
F Michael Beasley
G Wesley Johnson
G Luke Ridnour
Three Man Rotation
G J.J. Barea#, G Ricky Rubio (R), F Derrick Williams (R)

Hornets – 5th in Southwest
Starters
C Emeka Okafor
F Carl Landry
F Trevor Ariza
G Eric Gordon#
G Jarrett Jack
Three Man Rotation
C Chris Kaman#, G Marco Belinelli, G Greivis Vasquez#

Kings – 5th in Pacific
Starters
C DeMarcus Cousins
F Chuck Hayes#
F John Salmons#
G Marcus Thornton
G Tyreke Evans
Three Man Rotation
F J.J. Hickson#, F Travis Outlaw#, G Jimmer Fredette (R)