EURO 2016 BANDWAGON INDEX

EURO 2016 begins today, and even though Canada obviously can’t participate, the tournament never fails to draw loads of interest, being that we are a nation of immigrants. Since Canada has only made the World Cup once in their history, traditionally, most Canadians are still able to enjoy the tournament by going back to their roots, and cheering on the nation that has the biggest stake in their family heritage. For example, with my Dad being born in England, my allegiance always lies with the Three Lions.

Of course, some people aren’t so fortunate. Maybe they don’t come from a strong football nation, or they do, but just failed to qualify for EURO 2016 (Hello Netherlands!) They don’t have a rooting interest in any team, and that frankly kind of blows.

Luckily for them, I think I’ve solved the problem!

Based on a number of factors, I’ve ranked all 24 nations in the tournament and come to a conclusion on which country you should become an honorary citizen of for the next month.

These factors include the country’s footballing history, (How many tournaments have they won? Have they even appeared at a major tournament?) the nation’s most talented players, what their fan-base is like (Are they just the worst? Do you even know a person from this country? Is there something cool about this team I don’t know? Is there anymore room on the bandwagon?) and last but not least, their actual chances at winning the tournament, because you still want a team that has a shot at going far.

Without further ado, let’s begin with 24.

24. Germany (4/1 – 2nd)

History – Die Mannschaft. The defending World Cup champions are far and away the most successful country in Europe with four World Cups and three European Championships. On top of that they’ve been finalists four times at both tournaments. The last time they failed to even get to the semi-final was EURO 2004. So you can pretty much always bank on Germany to go far.

Fans – Unless you’re German, or are just a super big fan of German football, you should not be cheering them on at Euro 2016. They’re the defending World Cup Champions. Nobody likes watching teams win back-to-back trophies, and it’s not like the nation doesn’t have a history of success, they’ve been winning big tournaments since 1954. They’ve ALWAYS got a shot at the title. There’s no room on the bandwagon, pick another team.

Stars – Where to start. They have the best goalkeeper in the world with Manuel Neuer. Sami Khedira and Mats Hummels (if he’s healthy) in the back four, Mesut Ozil and Toni Kroos in the middle, with the always deadly Thomas Muller leading the way up front. Some of the 2014 World Cup squad has left, but they’re still strong as ever.

Odds – Germany is AT LEAST getting to the semi-finals, where the real competition for them begins. You really want to be the guy cheering on the reigning World Cup champion? And on top of that it’s Germany, who’s just going to remind you a million times about how perfect they are? I’m sure you’re great at parties.

23. Spain (5/1 – 3rd)

History – The last time we saw La Roja at the 2014 World Cup, it wasn’t a pretty sight. They were decimated by the Dutch, 5-1, and decidedly beaten by Chile 2-0. Knocked out at the earliest possible moment.

It was quite a humbling experience for a nation which had grown accustomed to watching a team that dominated the rest of the world for half a decade, having won the last three major tournaments, EURO 2008, the 2010 World Cup, and EURO 2012.

Fans – Don’t even think about it. To some, it might be cool to see one nation win a major tournament for the third time in a row, something which has never happened. If Spain did win, it would be a testament to the strength of the Real Federacion Espanola de Futbol. Personally however, I’d like to see someone knock them off their pedestal. Spain’s enjoyed their time in the spotlight after 40 years of coming close but having nothing to show for it. Let somebody else bask in the glory.

Stars – Being at the end of a golden era in Spanish football doesn’t mean the team is lacking talent. Players like Diego Costa, Juan Mata and Santi Cazorla didn’t even make the squad! Ike Casillas is still in between the posts, with David De Gea waiting in the wings any moment now for his chance in the spotlight. The back four is solid with the likes of Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique and an otherworldly midfield which retains names like Cesc Fabregas, Sergio Busquets and Andres Iniesta. They are however, without a world-class striker.

Odds  – Despite getting run over in Rio, Spain is still seen as one of the favourites in EURO 2016, and even though they’re going through a period of transition, they have a great shot at winning it all, yet again. I don’t know how much joy you can actually get from rooting for them though.

Cheering for Spain at EURO 2016 is like showing up to the party at 1:45 AM. The best part of the night happened two hours ago, most people are about to head home, and anyone still there probably isn’t coherent enough to enjoy what’s left. The bandwagon’s been jam-packed since ’08. Why are you getting on now?

Don’t cheer for Spain. Unless you really like Doritos.

Then, be my guest.

22. Italy (16/1 – 6th)

History – Oi, here we go. Everyone’s favourite bunch of footballers, the Italians. The four-time World Cup champions (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006) and one-time Henri Delaunay Cup holders (1968) have made their way to France. Once again, they’re not the favourites to win it, but everyone knows who they are, and the Azzurri are trying to find a way to go deep in this tournament, just like they did in 2012, finishing as runners-up.

Fans – If you live in the Greater Toronto Area, you always know when Italy is going to be playing because all the Italians in the area seem to make a point of letting you know it’s match day. Looking at you, Vaughan, Woodbridge, Maple, and King City. And if they haven’t told you, you’ll soon figure it out after wondering what that noise coming from Little Italy is for so long.

Just like the English, the Italians are brash. They’re pretty confident the Azzurri are going to come away with the victory, and they’ve certainly got more right to say anything than England, since the only nation to have more World Cups than them is Brazil.

But are these the faces of people you want to see gloating about Italy’s triumph in France?

Didn’t think so.

Stars – It’s not pretty. Yes, Gianluigi Buffon is making his curtain call, and a defensive line featuring Suarez-biting survivor Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci, and Andrea Barzagli is strong as always. But their two best players in Marco Verratti and Claudio Marchisio are injured and going to miss the tournament. On top of that, they’ve got a manager in Antonio Conte who will be leaving for Chelsea at the end of EURO 2016, so his mind might be in West London when it should really be in Paris.

Odds – Recently, Italy has been boom or bust, there is no in between. Out at the group stage at the past two World Cups. The prognosticators seem to think 2016 spells doom and gloom for a lack-lustre Italian team as well. Once they run into the big boys in the quarter-finals, Italy’s going to flop. Thiago Motta at No. 10 is inspiring to no one.

Italy doesn’t need anymore trophies, at least their fans certainly don’t need something else to brag about.

21. Albania (250/1 – T-22nd)

History – This is the first time Albania has qualified for a major international football tournament! Ever! But the EURO new-comers didn’t come this far, to come this far. They plan on shocking the rest of the continent at EURO 2016.

By scoring a single goal.

Fans – I’ve never actually met an Albanian in my life, so I did some investigative reporting and asked my good Serbian friend Slav, who’s come across many an Albanian in his lifetime, to tell me what they’re like.

He proceeded to go on a 12-minute tangent, of which I took away two things.

1. They have an inherited belief that all of Eastern Europe is rightfully theirs, which means…
2. Everyone hates them.

In order to prevent myself from encountering these types of people, I then asked Slav

“What do most Albanians look like?”

“They’re just going to talk a lot about how they own all of Europe”

“But I don’t want to get close to them, Slav, I need to know what they look like”

“Don’t worry, they’re always shouting about how they demand Europe”

All right then.

Maybe Slav’s a little biased because Serbia didn’t qualify for EURO 2016. You can be the judge on that one.

Stars – Their captain is Lorik Cana, most caps in Albanian history and plays for Nantes in Ligue 1. Their most interesting game will be against Switzerland, when Taulant Xhaka faces off against his younger brother Granit.

It’s Albania. They care more about conquering Europe than football. Apparently.

Odds  – They snuck by Denmark to qualify for the tournament. They’re not sneaking by anybody else. But if you’re the type of person that votes for the Rhinoceros party in the Federal election, then yeah, cheer for those diabolical Albanians.

20. Iceland (150/1 – T-20th)

History – FIRST EVER MAJOR TOURNAMENT!

Fans – I still feel bad for Gunnar Stahl after how he was mistreated in ’94.

Stars – Really couldn’t tell you, I’ve never seen an Icelandic football match. I’ve heard they are wild.

Odds – As long as they manage to get past Hungary (I can’t believe that’s an actual matchup this go-round) they have a shot at the round of 16. Any further is just blind optimism.

19. Northern Ireland (250/1 – T-22nd)

History –

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Wait they qualified?

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Are we sure about this?

I’ll be damned.

Safe to say this is Northern Ireland’s first time at the Euros, and first appearance in a major tournament since the 1982 World Cup. Their best performance came in 1958, when they made the quarter-finals. That was quite a while ago.

Fans – Just as party-hearty as their island neighbours.

Stars – I didn’t even know they qualified, you think I could name more than one player on their roster? All I know is George Best isn’t there anymore.

Odds – They’re a scrappy team and they’d be fun to cheer for, but they’ve got a VERY small chance of even making the knockout stages. Then again, Leicester City had a 5000/1 shot of winning the Premier League, so you never know.

18. Hungary (250/1 – T-22nd)

History – Those rap-scallion Hungarians; they managed to upset Norway in the play-off stage of qualification to find their way into a major tournament for the first time since the 1986 World Cup and first European Championships since 1972. Many years ago, Hungary actually made the World Cup Final in 1938 and 1954, when they were known as the Magical Magyars.

Fans – Did you see that up above? The Magical Magyars is an AMAZING nickname!

Stars – They haven’t made a tournament since ’72. So none.

Odds – Really just happy to be here. 

17. Slovakia (100/1 -T-17th) 

History – It’s their debut at the Euros! Slovakia has only technically existed as a football nation since 1993 after separating from the Czech Republic.

They’ve only qualified for one other major tournament, the 2010 World Cup, and they did pretty damn well for a first-timer, progressing to the knockout stages by eliminating the defending World Cup Champions, Italy, 3-2. So maybe the Slovakians aren’t the minnows everyone thought they were.

Fans – Seems like they know how to party when they win something.

Stars – Their captain and best player is Marek Hamsik of Napoli, truly the heart of this Slovakian side. He’s got a shark fin haircut however, and you know what they say about sharks. Can’t trust ‘em. They’ve also got a decent defence with Martin Skrtel and Robert Vittek, but much like Russia, they’re not the fastest guys on the pitch.

Odds – Slovakia has got pretty long odds to do anything in this tournament, simply getting out of the group would be a major achievement.

16. Romania (100/1 – T-17th)

History – For such a small nation, Romania has certainly had its moments. Along with France, Belgium and the former Yugoslavia, they were one of the only four European nations at the inaugural World Cup. The plucky Romanians also upset Argentina at the ’94 World Cup to reach the quarterfinal where they lost to Sweden in a penalty shootout. Haven’t made a World Cup since 1998, however.

In four appearances at the European Championships, they made the quarterfinals once in 2000, escaping a group that had England, Germany and Portugal. They famously advanced thanks to an 89th minute penalty from Ionel Ganea brought on by a clumsy tackle from Phil Neville, to defeat England 3-2.

Fans – Can’t say I’m that familiar with Romanian culture.

Stars – You can’t win without defence, and Romania allowed the fewest goals (2) of any team during qualification. They also only scored 7 in that same span, which might be a slight problem.

Odds  – They’re ranked 22nd by FIFA headed into the tournament, and on paper they seem to be heavily mismatched against France and Switzerland. A round of 16 appearance would be an accomplishment.

If 0-0 draws are your type of thing, then you’ll love the Romanians.

15. Russia (66/1 – T-12th)

History – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U06jlgpMtQs

Since becoming the unified nation of Russia, no longer the Soviet Union, they’ve appeared at the European Championships four times. The only time they made it out of the group stage was 2008 when they actually claimed 3rd place after upsetting the Dutch in the quarterfinals and then beat Turkey in the consolation game.

In their three World Cup showings in that time as well, they failed to make it out of the group stage. (1994, 2002, 2014)

Fans – Two words. Vladimir Putin. The more Russia wins, the more you’ll see of him.

Stars – They’re without their best player, Alan Dzagoev, but luckily Artem Dzyuba should be able to cover for him in attack. Unfortunately their defence has some aging veterans, and if they run into a team with some young, fast-paced, attacking midfielders, they’re going to be in trouble.

Odds – A lot of people are leaning towards them flopping completely and not being able to make it out of the Group. They’re not the same team they were eight years ago. I don’t think I’ve ever felt an ounce of sympathy for Russia in my life, so I’d be happy to see them in Group B’s cellar.

14.Turkey (80/1 – T-14th)

History – So, Turkey is a very weird football nation. They’ve made the World Cup twice, the last time in 2002, and they wound up finishing third place (?!?). You can account that to the favourable bracket they got, getting to face Japan and Senegal, not exactly powerhouses in the football world.

At the European Championships, they’ve appeared three times, most notably in 2008 when they pulled off miraculous comebacks against Switzerland, the Czech Republic and Croatia in the quarter-finals before their magic ran out against Germany.

Fans – I knew a kid in elementary school that was Turkish. Total prick. Hated them ever since.

Stars – Arda Turan ain’t quite what he used to be, but he’s still got enough of a reputation that opponents will have to keep an eye on him at all times.

Odds – Turkey has not been given much of a chance in EURO 2016. They also weren’t given much of a chance in 2002, and 2008.

Don’t think it’s going to go quite as well as it did in those years however, with group foes like Czech Republic and Croatia looking to enact revenge for the shenanigans they pulled in 2008.

13. Croatia (25/1 – 8th)

History – Croatia’s history in major tournaments really only dates back to 1996 after they gained their independence from Yugoslavia in 1993. At the European Championships they’ve been a bit unlucky in the past, especially in 2008 when they won all three group matches, and were seemingly headed to the semi-final after Luka Modric’s 119th minute winner in extra time. That is until Turkey equalized on the last kick of the game in the 122nd minute, even though the referee only signalled for 1 added minute. Turkey went on to win in a shootout and I’m sure Croatians still lose sleep over the game until this day.

Their best showing internationally was their debut at the World Cup in 1998. Led by Golden Boot winner Davor Suker, they wound up finishing in third place where they upset Germany in the quarter-finals before falling to eventual champions, France in the semis.

Fans – The Croatians have a history of going absolutely bananas during matches. Like way over the line. Fascist salutes and such.

Croatia does consistently have one of the best kits in the tournament though, so at least they’ve got that going for them.

Stars – Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic will form one of the best midfields in the tournament. Modric’s full contributions always go unnoticed at Real Madrid, and he’ll be the man tapped to guide Croatia to Euro glory. Mario Mandzukic is also still up front, Croatia just better hope it’s not the Mandzukic that scored only once in qualification.

Odds – I’d put Croatia as one of my dark horses entering the tournament, they seem like a much better team than people are giving them credit for, maybe because most critics see Spain on their schedule and write them off of winning the group.

At the end of the day, whether the team wins or loses, the fans are going to be out of control. Way too out of control for me to encourage you to cheer for them.

12. Czech Republic (100/1 – T-17th)

History – The Czechs don’t have a great history at the World Cup, but they’ve done fairly well for themselves at the European Championships.

As the former Czechoslovakia, they only made 3 appearances, but were the victors in 1976 over West Germany, where the ‘Panenka’ chip was created. They also went on quite a run in 1996, surprising everyone and making it the finals where the Germans got their revenge for 20 years prior on an Oliver Bierhoff golden goal.

Fans – Show me another Karel Poborsky scoop goal and you’ll win my heart, Czechs.

Stars – Old veterans Petr Cech and Tomas Rosicky, who played zero minutes this past season, are entering what is their final major tournament with the Czech team, so they’ll be looking to go out with a bang.

Odds – They could honestly finish anywhere from dead last in the group, to making the quarterfinals. The team’s a complete mystery. Hope that answered your questions.

11. Switzerland (40/1 – T-9th)

History – There haven’t been many huge victories in Switzerland’s history. Their best result at the World Cup was three appearances in the quarter-finals, the last of which was in 1954. Then they proceeded to go 28 years between playing in World Cups, from 1966-1994. They managed to make the round of 16 in 2006 and 2014 but fell to Ukraine and Argentina, both in extra time.

They’ve also made the European Championships three times but have never made it past the group stage, the last in 2008 when they were hosts.

Fans – They’re not the best football fans, but they’re not the worst either. I’d say they’re pretty neutral.

Stars – The Swiss are a very ‘meh’ team, as they have seemingly always been. If there’s a player you want to watch out for in EURO 2016, it’s Granit Xhaka, who recently signed with Arsenal for 30-million pounds. Xherdan Shaqiri of Stoke City also deserves mentioning.

Odds – With the expanded format this year, you can bank on the Swiss getting past the group stage for the first time, only needing to defeat Romania and new-comers Albania. Don’t really expect much else.

10. Republic of Ireland (150/1 – T-20th)

History – Oh Danny Boy, here come the Irish for the 3rd time in their history. Their best showing at a major tournament was in the 1990, their first of 3 World Cup appearances when they managed to get to the quarter-finals. Will they be able to make it out of the group stage for the first time in their history? Unlikely, since they’re in the certified ‘group of death’.

Fans – Are you kidding me, it’s the Irish! Who parties like the Irish? Nobody that’s who!

See this man?

This is Roy Keane. Remember this man, because starting Friday, this man will be the toughest S. O. B.  in Paris until Ireland gets eliminated.

I can pretty much guarantee you, you’ll be hearing about Keane getting into a spat, whether it’s with someone from another country or his own squad.

Stars – They’re quite old. As in the oldest team in the tournament. Shay Given is still kicking at 40 and Captain Robbie Keane, Ireland’s all-time most capped player and leading goal scorer can get it done. Their best player remains to be Shane Long, and the Southampton striker should be counted on to score most of the nation’s goals.

Odds – On their day, the Irish can actually compete with anyone in the world. They beat in Germany in qualification after all. Most people see the Irish as the odd team out in Group E, but if they can show up like they did against Die Mannschaft, a knockout stage appearance is very likely.

9. Sweden (80/1 – T-14th)

History – Sweden’s always a nation that holds some talented players yet seemingly enters each tournament as a bit of a dark horse. They’ve made 11 World Cup appearances and 5 European Championship showings, and come close to winning both in the past, each time when they were hosts. Sweden were runners-up at the 1958 World Cup to Brazil who won their first of five titles, and semi-finalists in 1992.

Fans – Zlatan is Sweden. Sweden is Zlatan. Simple.

Stars – Zlatan. Zlatan Zlatan Zlatan. That is all.

Odds – Zlatan Ibrahimovic is everything about this team. Once he goes, so does Swedish football. EURO 2016 is Zlatan’s swan song, but I’m sure we’re all in store for one final legendary performance from Ibra in the yellow-blue kit. In the group stage. Not the knockout-round.

8. Ukraine (66/1 – T-12th)

History – The Ukes are back! Making their second appearance at the Euros after co-hosting the tournament with Poland back in 2012 where they were knocked out in the group stage by England and France.

The country’s best performance on the international stage came back in 2006, where led by Golden Boy Andriy Shevchenko, they reached the quarter-finals in their lone World Cup appearance getting past Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and Switzerland in the round of 16. The team that enters EURO 2016 isn’t quite as strong as the team that shocked Germany 10 years ago.

Fans – I’ll be pulling for them since I’ve got some Ukrainian blood in me, thanks to the man, the myth, the legend, my grandfather; Fast Frank.

If that doesn’t give you enough reason to cheer for Ukraine, I don’t know what will.

Stars – If Ukraine is going to make it to the knockout stages, they’re going to need Andriy Yarmolenko to step up. They won’t get any clean sheets with Andriy Pyatov in net.

Odds – There’s more Ukrainians in Canada than any other place in the world (except Ukraine) and I’ve never met a person that doesn’t love perogies. Will they make the knockout stages? Who cares! They’ve got moxy, and really that’s all that matters in the end.

7. Austria (40/1 – T-9th)

 

History – The Austrians have shown up at the World Cup seven times, the last being 1998. 40 years prior they finished in third place, their best showing ever.

Other than co-hosting with Switzerland in 2008, and not winning in those three games played, Austria hasn’t really accomplished ANYTHING at a major international tournament since making the knockout round at the 1982 World Cup.  As Staind would say, It’s been a while.

Fans – That guy from the Mobile Strike ads.

Stars – Austria’s going to move the ball through David Alaba, and Marko Arnautovic has got an outside shot at the Golden Boot. Expect EURO 2016 to be a coming-out party for both of them.

Odds – If they just manage to put in an average performance they’ll have a place in the round of 16 wrapped up, and don’t count them out of winning the group either. Quarter-finals is a possibility, but it’s also a best-case scenario.

6. Poland (50/1 – 11th)

History – Apart from an era of excellence in the mid-1970s / early 80s that saw Poland finish third at the 1974 and 1982 World Cups, their footballing history has been pretty bleak. They only first qualified for the European Championships in 2008 and co-hosted with Ukraine in 2012, both times bottoming out their group. They’ve yet to win a match at the European Championships in their history.

Fans – Never heard a bad thing about Poland. Not my place to judge.

Stars – Robert Lewandowski. Earlier this year, he scored five goals in under nine minutes for Bayern Munich vs. Wolfsburg. I think that’s good.

If their opponents decide to throw everyone at Lewandowski, there’s always Arkadiusz Milik who can contribute too.

Odds – Sure, Poland isn’t as flamboyant as their Ukrainian counterparts. But they’re pretty darn talented and many have pegged them as a team that’s flying under the radar who could sneak into the quarterfinals. If they get hot at the right time, Lewandowski and Poland could be the cinderella story everyone’s been looking for.

5. Wales – (80/1 – T-14th)

History – The Welsh are back! And in their first European Championship and international tournament since the 1958 World Cup when they reached the quarter-finals.

Fans – My old Rugby coach used to hate the Welsh: “All they F***ing do is shag sheep!”

Allegedly.

Their team nickname is also the Dragons though, which is pretty freaking sweet. Easily one of the best in the tournament.

Stars – Gareth Bale leads the way for the Dragons and is one of the world’s biggest international stars. He’s in better form than his club-mate Cristiano Ronaldo right now, and he may just be the best player in this tournament.

Some have labelled the Dragons as “Gareth Bale + 10”, but there’s still some strong supporting cast members in winger Aaron Ramsey and centre-back Ashley Williams.

Odds – The Welsh have suddenly become a trendy dark-horse pick after a strong qualification stage, and a lot of people are seeing them as the biggest threat to England winning Group B. Unless Bale gets injured during the group matches, Wales should make it into the round of 16, and depending on the opponent, could even make it to the final eight.

They’ve got Gareth Bale, a sweet name, and haven’t had a legitimate shot at a title in decades. What’s not to love about Wales?

4. Portugal (18/1 – 7th)

History – Despite much prominence in recent years, Seleccao don’t have much to celebrate in their past other a remarkable third-place finish at the 1966 World Cup, where the legendary Eusebio carried the nation on his back. Believe it or not, from 1934 to 2002, Portugal only qualified for the World Cup twice. Kind of hard to believe when you think of how they’ve performed in the past decade.

They’ve had much better luck at the Euros, making the semi-finals in three of the last four Championships, including 2004 when they were hosts, but were upset by the upstart Greece in the finals. Though again, before 1996, only one qualification in nine tries, where they finished third in 1984.

Fans – Personally, I’m not their biggest fan for a couple reasons, mostly because of their two penalty shootout victories over England in 2004 and 2006.

The other being that I’ve met a lot of Portugese supporters that aren’t actually Portugese, they’re just a “Ronaldo” fan. Give me a break.

Stars – Ever heard of some guy named Cristiano Ronaldo?

Apart from him though, Portugal seems to be a fading team that’s on its last legs. If they manage to make the final, there should no longer be a debate; Ronaldo is the best player on the planet.

Odds – Portugal’s in the second group of favourites right there with Belgium, England, and Italy, and it could be Ronaldo’s last legitimate shot at a trophy with some aging veterans like 38-year old Ricardo Carvalho. The Seleccao did pretty well themselves in their most recently friendly, a 1-0 loss to England despite having only 10 men for most of the match and no Cristiano Ronaldo.

They’ve got a great shot at the semi-finals. Can’t see them going any further though because by that point, Pepe will have found a way to screw it up for them once again.

3. England (9/1 – 4th)

History – It’s been 50 years of hurt since football came home for England in a major tournament. The 1966 World Cup was their last, and only victory when they defeated their long-time nemesis West Germany, 4-2, in front of their home fans at the old Wembley Stadium. Since then, it’s been disappointment after disappointment and a so-called ‘golden generation’ of players have come and gone without any major accomplishments.

The European Championships have not been England’s friend. Their best showing in eight previous appearance was as hosts in 1996 when they lost on penalties in the semi-finals to eventual champions Germany. They failed to qualify altogether half as many times, most recently being 2008.

Fans – If there’s one country that’s been the epitome of over-hyping expectations, it’s England. Every two years it seems like the fans get way too overconfident in their line-ups abilities, and every two years England fails to even make it out of the group stage or their sent home shortly after the knockout round begins (usually on penalties). Most of Europe, and the rest of the world, has gotten sick of hearing “This is England’s Year!” all the time, so there’s a lot of enjoyment when the once great British Empire is defeated far earlier than expected.

So, if everyone gets annoyed from the large number of delusional England fans that think it’s finally the Three Lions’ time to take their place as rightful champions BEFORE the tournament starts, imagine what they’d be like if England actually managed to miraculously string together a couple victories and win the whole thing.

Insufferable, that’s what.

Stars – The most recognizable name on this squad has to be Wayne Rooney, England’s captain, and last remaining member of the failed ‘golden generation’. Aside from ‘Shrek’ and Gary Cahill, England actually fields the youngest team in the tournament.

Their blossoming stars, players who would’ve never been considered for the national squad two years prior, will end up being the ones having the most impact on England’s performance. EPL Golden Boot Winner Harry Kane, runner-up and the guy who looks that sketchy drug dealer around the corner Jamie Vardy, PFA Young Player of the Year Dele Alli, and 18-year old sensation Marcus Rashford could all announce themselves to the world at EURO 2016.

Odds – A team with tons of history that hasn’t won the big one in 50 years, yet has a massive fan-base that consistently tends to exaggerate the team’s chances at winning at all. Kind of sounds like a certain Toronto sports franchise.

For all that talk about over-hype earlier, 2016 has been different for this England squad. Despite winning every qualification game in their group, expectations for England have been downplayed tremendously after consistently letting the nation down. Which might actually be a good thing.

They should end up topping Group B in a year where the European Championship field has been expanded and no nation looks invincible. A semi-final appearance is possible, BUT that’s an absolute BEST-CASE SCENARIO. As history has shown in the past, failing to win the group is just as likely.

Put them down for a quarter-final exit to say, Belgium. On penalties, obviously.

2. France (3/1 – 1st)

History – France has always been considered a European nation to watch out for, and their success has really followed the same path as a roller coaster.

They’ve got one World Cup (1998) and two European Championships (1984) with their last major tournament win was EURO 2000, which came on a David Trezeguet Golden Goal over Italy and they haven’t gone further than the Quarter-finals in the World Cup or EURO since they lost to those same Italians in the 2006 World Cup Final. A game which everyone remembers for a different reason.

Fans – They seem to be just past their golden era of football in the late 90s/early 2000s, which featured the likes of Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Lilian Thuram to go with Zidane. France has always been prominent but its been 10 years since they were in the international spotlight, probably a little bit more room to hop on.

Stars – France undoubtedly has one of the most talented teams in the Euros this year, even with the absence of Karim Benzema, they’ve got Hugo Lloris in net, Paul Pogba leading the way in midfield, and an attack that features breakout stars Antoine Griezmann and Anthony Martial.

Odds –  This year’s hosts are actually pegged as the leading favourites to win it all, and with good reason, as they won the 1998 World Cup and EURO 1984 when they also hosted. With the likes of Germany and Spain in a bit of a transition phase, this seems to be France’s time to strike and reclaim the European throne, it’s just a question of whether or not their squad is as strong as those of champions past. And whether or not they’ll start fighting each other after the first game.

1. Belgium (10/1 – 5th)

History – The Red Devils haven’t done well at a European Championship since they were runners-up in 1980 to Germany (who else), and despite having 12 appearances at the World Cup, they’ve only managed to make the semi-finals once, and that was 30 years ago.

You could make a case that apart from Portugal, Belgium is the most successful European nation that has yet to win a major international tournament.

Fans – They’ve got a population of 11 million, so their aren’t very many of them, which means in all likelihood they haven’t been a pain in your butt recently.

Stars – Belgium is LOADED with talent, especially in attack with Kevin de Bruyne, Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and Yannick Carrasco. Captain Vincent Kompany is going to miss the tournament which is a huge blow, but Jan Vertonghen and Thibaut Courtois in net should still be able to cover for the injured skipper. Belgium’s had a quality crop of players for some time now, it’s just about coming through when it counts and proving to the rest of the globe that they are one of the elite football nations.

Odds – Let’s see here:

Never won a major tournament: Check

Humble and likeable fanbase: Check

Squad packed with talent: Check

Tournament favourites: France, Spain and Germany are the big three most people are picking to win the tournament, but do you know who FIFA currently ranks as the best European football nation in the world, behind only Argentina in their rankings.

Damn right, it’s the Belgians. Check.

If you’re looking to get the most out of EURO 2016, back Belgium as your team. I hear it’s lovely in Bruges this time of year.

NFL Conference Championship Weekend: Preview and Predictions

Conference Championship Weekend doesn’t usually get as much build-up as it should, probably because it’s the two games before the big dance, the Super Bowl. But in the last two years alone, we’ve had another installment of the greatest quarterback rivalry in NFL history, a play and subsequent post-game interview that launched Richard Sherman into superstardom, a ludicrous comeback that was capped off by a 50-yard touchdown pass in overtime, and a scandal on of all things, the air pressure of footballs, which is still relevant today. Something big’s bound to happen, and with the top 4 teams facing off against one another for the first time since 2004, and you shouldn’t expect nothing less.

AFC Championship

(2) New England Patriots (13-4) vs. (1) Denver Broncos (13-4)

3:05 pm ET, CBS.

There’s never been a non-Super Bowl playoff game with as much hype as this year’s AFC Championship. There’s so much build-up that I can guarantee you Jim Nantz and Phil Simms won’t be wearing pants for the duration of the game! While this matchup is between the two best teams in the AFC, it all relates back to the quarterbacks at the helm of these two titans…

You know what? I could go on and on here about the legacies of both quarterbacks, the rivalry they’ve shared through the years, and how this could be the final time they meet on the field. But I’m not going to.

Why you may ask? Because you already know their story. Thousands of articles and videos that have been printed about this game are merely just dissections of their careers. There’s nothing else I could say about these two players. By now, you’ve formed your opinion on who you believe has had the better career, and it’s impossible for me to sway you in the other direction.

So, if you want another hack-job article about “______________ vs. ______________ XVII”  , I suggest you stop reading now.

 

New England Patriots

Offence: Total (6th) Passing (5th) Rushing (30th)

Defence: Total (9th) Passing (17th)  Rushing (9th)

Now that I’ve got that out of the way, let me talk about the players who will be much bigger factors than the guys under centre, starting with the defending Super Bowl Champion, New England Patriots.

Last weekend, New England had an excellent day offensively, carving up a Kansas City defence which were proclaimed as ‘hottest in the NFL’, for 27 points through swift, finite passes that erased the vaunted Chiefs pass rush.

Despite a couple of drops early on, Julian Edelman looked phenomenal in return from a broken foot, hauling in 10 catches for 100 yards, including a vital first down that sealed the Patriots win.

Edelman was injured when the Patriots met the Broncos earlier in 2015. So too was number-two option Danny Amendola, and tight end Rob Gronkowski left in the fourth quarter after hyperextending knee. That’s a lot of key cogs missing in a dynamic Patriots offence, which was handed their first loss of the season in Denver, after C.J. Anderson broke through for a  48-yard run in overtime.

New England will have all three come Sunday afternoon, and when the Patriots do, they are 10-0, average 33.0 points per game, 410.8 total yards, and 323.5 passing yards. Take it with a grain of salt though, because New England has only scored 30-plus points in one of their last 10 games, and only one quarterback has thrown for over 300 yards against Denver, Ben Roethlisberger, who did so last weekend.

The Patriots notoriously chose to not run the ball AT ALL against Kansas City, the “Clydesdale” had the longest run for the Patriots at 11 yards, and I would expect much of the same this weekend. However, be on the lookout for James White coming out of the backfield. He’s taken over the role of the departed Shane Vereen, and has the potential to turn nothing into something real quick. Expect him to get a lot of looks on screen passes to counter the Broncos pass rush.

The Patriots’ glaring weakness the last time they played Denver was their non-existent run defence. They were the equivalent of turnstiles in the second half, when Denver’s backs took over and rushed for 133 yards on only 16 carries. Of course, in that game the Patriots were without All-Pro middle linebacker Jamie Collins, and Dont’a Hightower did not play in the second half after spraining his MCL. 

In the secondary, the Patriots will not sit back and wait the way the inexperienced Steelers defensive backs did last weekend. Logan Ryan did a surprisingly great job covering Demaryius Thomas the last time these two met, holding him to one (36-yard) catch on 13 targets, the fewest receptions by one player with that many targets since 1991. They’ll also receive some help from Chandler Jones and an unheralded New England defensive line, which led the NFL in sacked yards lost (358), and should be able to disrupt a less-than-stellar Broncos offensive line that actually gave up more sacks than the Patriots this season (39).

Denver Broncos

Offence: Total (16th) Passing (14th) Rushing (17th)

Defence: Total (1st) Passing (1st) Rushing (3rd)

The New York Giants seemed to always hold the key to defeating the mighty New England Patriots in big games such as “That Game” and Super Bowl XLVI. A dominant pass rush. Well, what do you know, the Denver Broncos led the NFL this year in sacks with 52, and New England’s offensive line has been a point of instability, giving up 38 sacks (14th-most) and 95 hits on the quarterback (seventh most).

Problem is, no team gets the ball from the hands of the center to the receiver faster than the Patriots. It took New England just 2.16 seconds to pass the ball once snapped against Kansas City. That’s how much time Von Miller and the Denver D will have to break through the Patriots fragile offensive line.

For the past couple of seasons Denver’s also had a secondary that’s rivalled the Legion of Boom in Seattle. Aqib Talib and Chris Harris Jr, both have to step up and turn one of Edelman or Amendola invisible, in order to quell the Patriots passing attack. Harris Jr., a noted Future fan, has been battling a number of injuries, but seems to be ready to “F**k up some commas”. If at any point Harris leaves the game, expect to hear Bradley Roby’s name called a lot. The young corner has 10 defended passes and an interception in 2015, and if the Broncos come away with the victory, it’s very likely that Roby will have contributed in a big way.

Denver’s defence gets a lot of the credit, but you still need a decent offence to win football games (unless you are the ’85 Bears, ’00 Ravens or ’02 Buccaneers).

The Broncos will likely be playing smash-mouth style football against the Patriots; heavy doses of C.J. Anderson and Ronnie Hillman which will shorten the game and keep the New England offence off the field. Denver’s 179 yards on the ground against New England in week 12 was their second-highest total of the season, behind only the 210 yards they put up on San Diego in a week 17 win. The rushing attack will have to be at its best once again, otherwise Denver shall have to resort to passing the football, a strategy that has proven somewhat risky for the Broncos this season.

Prediction

The Broncos may have beaten the Patriots earlier in the season, a win which went a long way in earning them home-field for this AFC Championship, but as I mentioned above, New England was without a lot of playmakers on both sides of the ball. When the game was on the line, the Patriots were without both starting linebackers, and their three biggest offensive weapons. They’re all playing in the AFC Championship, and Chris Harper won’t be back there returning punts.

Denver’s number-one ranked defence gives the Broncos a chance to win in the waning moments of the game, but in the end, it’s their inability to move the ball vertically that does them in.

I know you’re sick of hearing it, but say it with me: The New England Patriots are AFC Champions and headed back to the Super Bowl.

Patriots 24, Broncos 18

NFC Championship

(2) Arizona Cardinals (14-3) vs. (1) Carolina Panthers (16-1)

6:40 pm ET, FOX.

You couldn’t really ask for a better game here. The teams with the two best regular season records facing off to see who gets to travel to Santa Clara, and play in their franchise’s second Super Bowl. It seems like we’ve been building up to this game for a while, as Carolina and Arizona have been the creme de la creme of the NFC since week 7, so let’s get into it.

Arizona Cardinals

Offence: Total (1st) Passing (2nd) Rushing (8th)

Defence: Total (5th)  Passing (8th)  Rushing (6th)

Before I get going here, what is it about University of Phoenix Stadium that causes every single game played there to end in otherworldly dramatic fashion? Here’s a shortlist of the football games that have been played in the stadium’s short existence:

2007 Fiesta Bowl – Oklahoma vs. Boise State

The 49th-best Super Bowl of all-time

2009 NFC Wild-Card Playoff – Green Bay vs. Arizona

2010 BCS National Championship – Oregon vs. Auburn

Super Bowl XLIX – Seattle vs. New England

2015 National Championship – Clemson vs. Alabama

Last week’s Divisional Round OT Thriller

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, this weekend they do not get to play in their comfort of their own home, they get to travel to snowy Charlotte, a place where they’ve had mixed results in the past.

Now Arizona’s been great all year long, but it’s doubtful they make the NFC Championship if not for the heroics of Larry Fitzgerald. With his performance against the Packers, Fitzgerald became the only player in NFL history to average 100 receiving yards and a touchdown per game, in the postseason. The long-time Cardinal will no doubt enter the Hall of Fame one day, and may yet ignite a debate with sports fans as to whether or not he is the “Greatest Larry of All Time”. Watch your back Bird, Fitzy’s coming for ya.

A common misconception going into this game is that Fitzgerald and Panthers pro-bowl corner Josh Norman will go ‘mano-a-mano’ in a battle for ages. That idea is just as false as believing that a black bear is the best type of bear. The reality is, Fitzgerald generally plays as a slot receiver, while Norman only covers the slot on 1.4 percent of his snaps, so the two will almost never line up across from one another. Instead, Norman will likely go up against one of Michael Floyd or John “I should dance for a living” Brown, who have put up spectacular numbers for second and third options in the passing game.

The Panthers are already without two of their best corners in Charles Tillman and Bene’ Benwikere and it showed last week against Seattle. Despite having a 31-0 lead at halftime, and knowing that all the Seahawks would do is throw the ball, Carolina still gave up 24 unanswered points and three Russell Wilson passing touchdowns. A blowout turned into a nail-biter, something which has become a frightening, re-occurring trend with the Panthers.  With the Panthers secondary a shell of what they were at the start of 2015, Fitzgerald will draw an incredibly favourable mismatch, and should be able to continue his ridiculous statistical output in the playoffs, just as long as Carson Palmer can get it to him.

Last week, I brought up how I believed that Palmer may have been the best quarterback in the NFL this season. Well, I must have jinxed him, because boy did he look nervous against the Green Bay secondary in the divisional round. Palmer threw two interceptions in Packers territory, and could’ve had a few more if not for some favourable bounces which went the Cardinals’ way. Palmer should have an easier time facing the battered Carolina defensive backs, he just better hope that his offensive line holds off Kawann Short and Star Lotulelei from pressuring him into bad throws.

Other than a few miraculous plays from Aaron Rodgers late, the Cards once again proved last week that their defence is just as strong as their offence. Arizona has kept its opponents to under 20 points in six of their last seven games. Since losing safety Tyrann Mathieu to a season-ending injury, the Cardinals have prevented every quarterback they’ve faced from throwing over 300 yards in one game. Patrick Peterson can take a lot of the credit for that; in coverage, Peterson allowed the lowest quarterback rating out of all cornerbacks that were targeted at least 50 times in 2015. Peterson will likely take away Ted Ginn Jr., leaving Greg Olsen as the only possible Panthers receiver that can really put a scare into the Arizona defence.

Carolina Panthers

Offence: Total (11th) Passing (24th) Rushing (2nd)

Defence: Total (6th) Passing (11th) Rushing (4th)

As the Cardinals try to burn the Panthers through the air, Carolina will look to employ the converse strategy, by pounding it down Arizona’s throats. The Panthers have gone 30 consecutive games with at least 100 rushing yards. Their last game might have been their best performance yet, as even with Cam Newton’s dual-threat abilities, Jonathan Stewart became the first player to rush for over 100 yards on the Seattle defence, which was ranked first in the NFL at stopping the run, in 26 games. Green Bay’s Eddie Lacy needed only 12 carries to rush for 89 yards against the Cardinals. Under-sized linebacker Deone Bucannon has been a stud for Arizona in coverage all season long, but according to Pro Football Focus, he was Arizona’s worst run defender in 2015. Expect Carolina to test Arizona’s run defence early and often.

On top of that, Carolina’s been able to exploit a big component of Arizona’s defensive gameplan all season long. The Cardinals have had success this year by blitzing frequently, in fact they blitz on 44.5 percent of all pass plays, more than any other team in the NFL. Meanwhile, Cam Newton has thrown 18 touchdowns when facing a blitz this season, more than any other quarterback. I’m sure Bruce Arians has been contemplating how to respond to his ability to escape the pocket and we’ll discover what that answer is on Sunday evening.

The Panthers still have a couple defensive stars of their own, Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis. Kuechly had an enormous pick-six early on in the divisional round, and Davis, who’s fought his way back from two torn ACL’s, and was last season’s Walter Payton Man of the Year, had the game-sealing play when he caught Seattle’s onside kick attempt. The two middle linebackers were two of the three players in the NFL this season that had over 100 tackles and four interceptions. Both Kuechly and Davis will likely shut down Cardinals running back, David Johnson, as the versatile rookie couldn’t do much of anything against the Packers.

Prediction

Much like last week (though it didn’t look the part to start), Carolina’s in for another tight battle between two NFC powerhouses. I’ve got a gut feeling this comes down to several external factors. First, the weather. It’s supposed to be cold, and the field will be sloppy when these two butt heads on Sunday evening. That’s something the Cardinals really aren’t used to.

Second, these two teams force more turnovers than anyone else in the NFL. The Panthers have 39 takeaways, while the Cardinals have 33. One takeaway could swing the tide instantly, and since Newton has thrown 27 touchdowns to one interception in his last nine games, my money is on Palmer or Johnson to make the mistake.

Carolina claws tooth and nail to get back to the Super Bowl for the first time in 12 years. Awaiting them? Their previous opponent in Super Bowl XXXVIII.

Panthers 36, Cardinals 30 (OT)

NFL DIVISIONAL ROUND PREVIEW AND PREDICTIONS

Last week, I was 3-1 in my Wild-Card predictions, and if it wasn’t for the Bengals pulling off a classic Bengals-like move, I’d be sitting at 4-0. But that’s life. I should’ve known to NEVER pick the Bengals to win anything. Thankfully, they’re not playing this weekend. The eight true contenders are. How do I think they’ll do? Keep on reading to find out…

Kansas City Chiefs (5 – AFC) (12-5) vs. New England Patriots (2 – AFC) (12-4)

 

 

“Uh oh, the Patriots fan talking about his favourite team again. Here we go, I wonder who he picks… How’s the shrine for Tom Brady coming along, Nolesy? How much Pats porn did you watch before writing this?”

Yeah, yeah shut up I like the Patriots. If you know me, you’ve probably heard me say one of these things at some point in the season.

They’ve definitely got their hands full facing a Kansas City team riding high into Foxborough, with an 11, I repeat, 11 game winning streak after pulverizing Houston, 30-0, last week.  Also, I might be slightly biased, but I was right in every Patriots playoff game I picked last season, so what do you and your cranberry juice have to say about that?! That’s what I thought.

Kansas City Chiefs

Offence: Total (27th) Passing (30th) Rushing (6th)

Defence: Total (7th) Passing (9th) Rushing (8th)

Eric Berry and the Chiefs defence effectively ended any hopes Brian Hoyer had of having a career as a starting quarterback in the NFL. Kansas City forced six turnovers and allowed only 226 total yards in their victory in Houston. Cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Sean Smith will have a much taller task in Foxborough this weekend however, trying to slow down New England’s speedy receivers. If they can jam them at the line of scrimmage and cover them up long enough  for edge-rushers Justin Houston and Tamba Hali to get to Tom Brady, then Kansas City will be in good shape. Historically, Brady has struggled mightily against teams like Kansas City, which constantly get pressure on quarterbacks and are able to disrupt them in the pocket. Houston is still battling knee issues, so someone like Dee Ford will have to step up and make a play or two for the Chiefs to win.

With a hampered Jeremy Maclin who suffered a high ankle sprain against the Texans and hasn’t practiced all week, the Chiefs offence will look very ‘vanilla’ on Saturday, without a legitimate wide receiver. Travis Kelce, might need to have another career day for the Chiefs to win. Chris Conley is another guy who should hear his number called a bit more after scoring a touchdown in the Chiefs win over the Texans last week.

But the Chiefs know they’re not going to get very far with the passing offence. That’s never been the Kansas City way, and you’ll very rarely if ever, see Alex Smith throw the ball more than 20 yards downfield The Chiefs have always been about the rushing attack, and though their star, Jamaal Charles has been out a majority of the season, the combination of Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware have done an excellent job in replacing him. The two combined for 93 yards and a touchdown last weekend against a vaunted Houston front seven. Kansas City will need West and Ware to consistently move the chains, with their receivers and short passing game likely being bottled up by corners Malcolm Butler, Logan Ryan and their now-healthy safeties, Devin McCourty and Patrick Chung.

New England Patriots

Offence: Total (6th) Passing (5th) Rushing (30th)

Defence: Total (9th) Passing (17th)  Rushing (9th)

In November, it seemed as if the Patriots had the #1 seed in the AFC all locked up after starting the season 10-0. But while their record had stayed intact, the injuries began to pile up, and it was only a matter of time before they took their toll. New England fell apart down the stretch, going 2-4 in their final six games, and lost home-field advantage in the playoffs to the Broncos.

New England believes their decline has been mostly brought on by injuries. A lot of injuries. The Patriots have the most players on Injured Reserve of any other playoff team. They lost both starting running backs, and their left tackle to season-ending injuries in Dion Lewis, LeGarrette Blount and Nate Solder. The Patriots just got their number one wide receiver in Julian Edelman after he broke his foot in week nine against the Giants. Rob Gronkowski missed time with a knee injury, and is still feeling the after-effects of it. The list is almost never ending.

Tom Brady once again had a phenomenal season, finishing third in passing yards (4,770) in the league with a 36:7 touchdown to interception ratio. Ho-hum, it’s become the norm for him. He’s still got the machine that is Rob Gronkowski (72 receptions, 1,176 yards, 11 touchdowns), the best tight end in the NFL, and a mismatch that very few have been able to contain. Gronkowski is supposedly playing through several nagging injuries, but luckily, Brady’s other favourite targets of Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola are also healthy enough and back in the lineup with the season on the line. No more hoping for Keshawn Martin and Chris Harper to catch passes.

Prediction

The Chiefs are a very trendy upset prediction this week, and for good reason. Kansas City’s defence is a force to be reckoned with and they will surely limit the New England offence. Kansas City’s pass rush matches up against a weak Patriots offensive line that’s had 13 different combinations this year, and their top-tier secondary could give Tom Brady and his receivers fits.

The real question is, how is Alex Smith and the Chiefs offence going to put up points against New England. Their number one target Jeremy Maclin, won’t be one hundred percent and their offensive line gave up the 6th most sacks in the league (46). While Kansas City’s pass rush might get all the attention, New England’s is no joke either. The Patriots quietly finished with the second most sacks in the league this year (49), two more than the Kansas City Chiefs (47). On top of that, the rush defence led by a now-healthy Jamie Collins and Dont’a Hightower, has averaged less than 100 rush yards allowed per game this year, and should be able to contain Ware and West.

Unlike previous seasons, this year it’s the defence that’s carrying the Patriots to the AFC Championship game. For the fifth straight year.

Patriots 23, Chiefs 16

Green Bay Packers (5 – NFC) (10-6) vs. Arizona Cardinals (2 – NFC) (13-3)

Last week’s game against Washington was more like the Packers we’ve known from previous years. Green Bay was able to establish the run game, something they’ve struggled with all season, in the 2nd half where the Pack rushed for 124 of their 141 rushing yards. Rodgers had it easy against the Redskins and their porous secondary last weekend. This week he’s got his work cut out for him against a Cardinals defence which had the 4th most interceptions in the NFL in 2015 (19). If you remember less than a month ago, Arizona pummelled Green Bay at University of Phoenix stadium, 38-8, and the score could’ve been a whole lot worse. Should we expect another bloodbath in the desert?

Green Bay Packers

Offence: Total (23rd) Passing (25th) Rushing (12th)

Defence: Total (15th) Passing (6th) Rushing (21st)

Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers looked like a rejuvenated team when they beat Washington last Sunday, putting up a 35 spot, albeit on a rather weak Redskins defence. Green Bay had difficulty accomplishing anything the last time these two teams met, with the Cardinals keeping the Packers to under 200 total net yards. The one member of the Packers who was somewhat effective against Arizona in that game was running back Eddie Lacy, totalling almost half of Green Bay’s total offence (88 of 178 yards) and their lone touchdown. Lacy put on his best Fat Albert impersonation early on this year but has picked it up of late, and he and Starks will need to produce like they did last Sunday, for Green Bay to have a chance versus Arizona.

The Packers receivers haven’t been their best without number one option Jordy Nelson drawing defenders off them, and their situation gets a whole lot worse having to face a tough Arizona secondary. James Jones, Randall Cobb, and Davante Adams need to find a way to get open, something they’ve been mostly unable to do in the second half of the season. The good news, the Packers get tackle David Bakhtiari back after a three-game absence, which should help give Rodgers more time to throw the ball rather than take a sack, something he did 46 times this season.

For as disappointing as the Packers offence has been, the defence has done their best to pick up the slack. In the wild-card round, Nick Perry, Mike Neal and Clay Matthews combined for six sacks, and the Green Bay secondary of Damarious Randall and the best name in football, Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix, did a decent job limiting Kirk Cousins last weekend, as a majority of the Washington quarterback’s contributions came when the game was out of reach. Against Palmer however, they’re going to get burnt worse than marshmallows around a campfire.

Arizona Cardinals

Offence: Total (1st) Passing (2nd) Rushing (8th)

Defence: Total (5th)  Passing (8th)  Rushing (6th)

Carson Palmer has had an MVP-caliber season in getting the Cardinals to a 13-3 record. The best regular season finish for the Cardinals since 1948 when they were the Chicago Cardinals. That year they went 11-1, and lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL Championship. It was a very long time ago. If it wasn’t for a sensational season from Cam Newton and his near-perfect Panthers (more on him tomorrow), there’s a case to be made for him as the MVP of the league. Palmer’s had a renaissance in 2015, posting career-highs in passing yards (4,671), touchdowns (35) and quarterback rating (104.6).

Speaking of comebacks, Larry Fitzgerald has returned to an All-Pro level in 2015 (109 receptions, 1,215 yards, nine touchdowns), terrorizing corners and often earning double coverage in games this year. It helps that the Cardinals also have viable secondary options in the passing game such as Michael Floyd and “Smokey” John Brown, who compiled his first 1,000 yard receiving season in 2015. To pile on, the Cardinals also have a respectable ground game with rookie David Johnson coming alive in the second half of the season, totalling over 100 all-purpose yards in four of his last five games.

It doesn’t get any better for Green Bay, as the Cardinals defence may be just as loaded as their offence, even with the loss of safety Tyrann Mathieu. Patrick Peterson has proven to the rest of the National Football League time and time again that he is one of the top corners in football. Rashad Johnson (five interceptions) and Jerraud Powers (nine passes defended) have been able to keep opposing receivers in check. Meanwhile in the trenches, Calais Campbell and Dwight Freeney (yes, the same Dwight Freeney that played for the Colts so many years ago) do a solid job at pressuring the quarterback, and Deone Bucannon has quietly been one of the best run-stoppers in the game, totalling 112 tackles. The cardinals might well be the only team in these playoffs without an obvious weakness.

Prediction

All-around, the Arizona Cardinals are just a better team than the Green Bay Packers in every facet of the game. They have one of the scariest offences in football that can beat you with their quarterback or their running backs. Their secondary makes receivers invisible and their front seven has stonewalled seemingly every running back they’ve faced. At 36, and nearly 13 years after being selected with the first overall pick by the Cincinnati Bengals, Carson Palmer gets career playoff win number one.

Cardinals 28, Packers 18

Seattle Seahawks (6 – NFC) (11-6) vs. Carolina Panthers (1 -NFC) (15-1)

What does a 15-1 record in the NFL get you? Oh I don’t know, how about a date with the Seattle Seahawks, the two-time reigning NFC champions. If you want to win in the playoffs, no matter how talented and skilled your team may be, you need a little bit of luck on your side. The Seattle Seahawks must have had a horseshoe stuck up their ass last week when the Minnesota Vikings grasped defeat from the jaws of victory as Blair Walsh missed a 27-yard field goal to win 10-9 in frigid Minneapolis. Hope they brought their horseshoe their to Carolina.

Seattle Seahawks

Offence: Total (4th) Passing (20th) Rushing (3rd)

Defence: Total (2nd) Passing (2nd) Rushing (1st)

As I mentioned last week, Russell Wilson has really picked it up in the second half of the season, he led the league in passer rating at 110.1, something surprising since the three QBs everyone’s talked about this year have been Newton, Brady and Palmer. Oddly enough, the top two receivers for Seattle that day were Jimmy Graham and Ricardo Lockette who are both out for the season. Wilson will probably look to his go-to guy, Doug Baldwin who’s caught 13 of the quarterback’s 25 touchdowns in the Seahawks last nine games. Baldwin should go toe-to-toe with Josh Norman on Sunday, who’s been soundly beaten the last few times he’s been forced to face a standout wide receiver, like Julio Jones in the Panthers lone loss.

Marshawn Lynch is scheduled to come back this week, but it’s not like it will matter much for the Seahawks, their offence has been on a tear without him for all of 2015. Lynch only averages 2.5 yards per carry when playing Carolina, and a top run defence headed by Luke Kuechly and the very underrated Thomas Davis have the ability to keep the bruising back contained. Kuechly and Davis both had over 100 tackles this season for a team that only gives up an average of 88.4 rushing yards per game. That’s even if he plays, who knows, he could pull a selfish stunt like he did in the wild-card round.

Michael Bennett has blown up everyone he’s faced this year, as shown through his 10 sacks and 11 tackles for loss in 2015, statistics which he leads the Seahawks in. He and Cliff Avril are two of the best players in the league at making quarterbacks uncomfortable, by hitting them again, and again, and again. It’ll be a game of cat and mouse between these two rushers and Newton on Sunday.

The big issue for Seattle’s D, which has a renowned secondary and been dominant against the run this season will be trying to defend Greg Olsen (77 receptions, 1,104 yards, seven touchdowns), who torched the Seahawks last time. Olsen came up with the big 26-yard touchdown in the final minute to beat Seattle earlier in the season. The Seahawks will likely need to stick a linebacker like Bobby Wagner or K.J. Wright on Olsen, with Kam Chancellor helping out over the top. Single coverage won’t be the solution, as Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph gashed the Seahawks during the final drive of their wild-card tilt.

Carolina Panthers

Offence: Total (11th) Passing (24th) Rushing (2nd)

Defence: Total (6th) Passing (11th) Rushing (4th)

Let’s start with the guy everyone’s considering the league’s MVP, Cam Newton. While leading his team to the 4th 14-0 start in NFL history and “dabbing on them fools”, Newton threw for 3,837 yards, 35 touchdowns, compared to only 10 interceptions. Newton also led all quarterbacks in rushing with 636 yards and 10 touchdowns. Mind you, he also did all of this without his leading receiver from 2014, Kelvin Benjamin, who tore his ACL in training camp. Newton’s made something out of nothing with a receiving corps of, Ted Ginn Jr., Devin Funchess, Philly Brown, and 33-year old Jerricho Cotchery.

The Panthers need their no-name receiving group to make some plays, and it won’t be easy having to deal with the “Legion of Boom” secondary. Both Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas, intercepted Newton the last time these two met. Of any of the receivers, Ginn and his 10 touchdown receptions, is the most likely to have an impact. The problem with Ginn is he could probably have challenged Randy Moss’ record for most touchdown receptions in a single season if he was able to hold onto the ball more often.

But the running game is where the Panthers flourish, headed by Jonathan Stewart, otherwise known as the “Daily Show”. Stewart finished 8th in rushing this season, totalling 989 yards, and likely would have had his second career 1,000 yard season if he hadn’t sat out the last couple games due to injury. Stewart had quite the showing last time he played the Seahawks (78 yards and two scores). Only one other rusher has gained more yards against Seattle since then, Todd Gurley of the then-St. Louis, now-Los Angeles Rams, who picked up 83 yards the ground in week 16. The Panthers are one of a VERY small group of teams that’s been able to run on Seattle. Stewart and Newton will need to muster up that kind of magic on the ground again if Carolina has any hopes of winning.

Prediction

This is easily the hardest game to pick this weekend, so I’m going to say this one gets into overtime. Both teams are just so evenly matched, even though the Panthers are technically the NFL’s best by record. I see both quarterbacks having trouble scrambling out of the pocket and saving plays like they usually do, since they’ll be shadowed by two of the best linebackers in the game with Wagner and Kuechly. It’s going to come down to a crucial turnover, a lucky bounce. The Panthers have got the best turnover differential in the league at +20, but the only teams that give the ball away less than Seattle are Kansas City and New England.

*Sigh*

I have no confidence picking either team. Just give me the Panthers. Seattle’s got to lose some time.

Panthers 19, Seahawks 16 (OT)

Pittsburgh Steelers (6 – AFC) (11-6) vs. Denver Broncos (1 – AFC) (12-4)

The Steelers barely escaped Cincinnati alive, and now they’re fortunate enough to travel to Broncos country and the Mile-High altitude of Denver. At one point in week 16, it looked as if the Denver Broncos might miss the playoffs altogether. Instead they are sitting atop the AFC with the number one defence in football. There’s actually quite a fair bit of history between these two franchises, as Pittsburgh’s had some memorable playoff games in Denver (2005 AFC Championship) and some not so memorable (2011 AFC Wild-Card “The Tebow Game”). I wouldn’t be shocked if this game came down to the wire either.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Offence: Total (3rd) Passing (3rd) Rushing (16th)

Defence: Total (21st) Passing (30th) Rushing (5th)

Pittsburgh walks into Denver handicapped without the two players that have carried their offence so far this year, DeAngelo Williams, who will miss his second straight playoff game, and their best player, and possibly best wideout in the NFL, Antonio Brown.

Ben Roethlisberger will have to put on a vintage performance if he wants to get past Denver, as he’ll be running out there with Martavis Bryant, Markus Wheaton and Fitzgerald Toussaint as his best options on offence. Pittsburgh needs to get more out of Bryant, who made an unbelievable catch last weekend against the Bengals, but overall, only had 5 catches for 29 yards. That will not cut it as a number one option. Matching up against Aqib Talib or Chris Harris Jr. will be tough for Bryant who usually draws the number two cornerback, this time he’ll need to break free from one of the top corners in the game no matter who he faces

Roethlisberger will also be playing with all types of drugs being injected into his shoulder, after he tore ligaments in his shoulder in Pittsburgh’s win over Cincinnati. How well can Roethlisberger throw the ball downfield? If he can’t toss a pigskin further than 20 yards without serious pain, it’s going to be tough for the Steelers to do anything offensively.

On the other side of the passing game, the Steelers secondary has been their achilles tendon all season long, as a majority of their losses have come against teams with enough offensive fire-power to go back and forth in a shootout. Guys like Cameron Heyward, Stephon Tuitt and Lawrence Timmons will have to step up and make sure Manning doesn’t have enough time to get the ball out and find an open receiver.

Pittsburgh did a fantastic job at stopping the run in their win over Cincinnati, limiting Hill and Bernard to 78 yards on 18 carries (4.3 yards per carry), and also forcing a massive fumble late in the game. They’ll be taking on something similar with Denver’s Ronnie Hillman and CJ Anderson. When these teams met in Pittsburgh earlier in the year, the Broncos longest rush of the game came from Emmanuel Sanders. If the Steelers stick to the formula they had against Denver previously, they can erase the Broncos run game, and put it all in the hands of their 39-year quarterback.

Denver Broncos

Offence: Total (16th) Passing (14th) Rushing (17th)

Defence: Total (1st) Passing (1st) Rushing (3rd)

Gary Kubiak and Wade Phillips have transformed Denver into a fortress, which few have been able to penetrate in 2015. This season, Denver has only allowed one quarterback to pass for over 300 yards in a game. Unfortunately for them, that quarterback is the guy they’re going to have shut down on Sunday.

The tandem of Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware will be need to be huge for the Broncos once again come Sunday. The Steelers allowed defenders to get to their quarterbacks 33 times this year, and three of those came when Denver travelled to Pittsburgh in week 15. Denver gets to the quarterback more than any other team with 52 sacks in 2015.

The real thing Denver should be concerned about is the play of their starting quarterback, the once great Peyton Manning. It’s an understatement to say that Manning has had a disappointing year. Before suffering his foot injury and being benched in favour of Brock Osweiler, Manning was on pace for career lows in a number of statistical categories like passing yards (2,249), touchdowns (9) and quarterback rating (67.9). He only started half of his team’s games and he still led the league in interceptions up until the final game of the season. “The Sheriff” has led many a comeback in his day, but if the Broncos are getting to a Super Bowl, it’s because of their defence, not their quarterback.

Luckily for Manning, if he throws it anywhere near his top two targets, Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders, they should be able to come down with it, as both had over 1,000 receiving yards this year and combined for 12 touchdowns. (Thomas with 1,304 and Sanders with 1,135 yards, both top 15 in the NFL). As long as he doesn’t start floating up balloons for the Steelers Defensive backs, Denver’s passing game will be alright.

Prediction

When healthy, the Pittsburgh Steelers are Super Bowl contenders, and may be the best team in the AFC. Unfortunately, they’ve yet to play a full game this season with a healthy starting quarterback, running back, and wide receiver. With Antonio Brown, the Steelers are capable of sliding past the top defence in the NFL, without him it’s pretty iffy.

Roethlisberger is able to keep it close, but Pittsburgh can’t hang around forever when the Broncos start to finally pull away in the late stages of the game with the offence clicking. Brady-Manning XVII in the AFC Championship Game, just like the NFL wanted.

Broncos 26, Steelers 21

NFL WILD-CARD WEEKEND: GET CRAZY GET WILD

So far the 2015 NFL season has been… well… it’s been something. A lot of injuries, a lot of inconsistent performances, a team that came two games away from a perfect regular season, a dance that has been beaten to death, an HGH allegation, and here we are. Playoffs.

No more Thursday Night Football-type games, the contenders have separated themselves from the pretenders, and the field has been narrowed down from 32 teams to 12. First up, wild-card weekend.

My biggest piece of advice to the eight teams in action this weekend: Never say “we want the ball, we’re gonna score.”  Never. Ever.

Kansas City Chiefs (5) (11-5) vs. Houston Texans (4) (9-7)

First off, it’s a rematch of a Week 1 tilt that saw Kansas City hold on for dear life to win 27-20. This game is gonna be sacks on sacks on sacks. If you like Defence, the first game of wild-card weekend is for you.

Kansas City Chiefs

Offence: Total (27th) Passing (30th) Rushing (6th)

Defence: Total (7th) Passing (9th) Rushing (8th)

In one corner, we have the game manager himself, Alex Smith. The Kansas City quarterback took a lot of flack early on this season (and has much of his career) for checking down in 3rd down situations when his teams need to get downfield. Luckily for Smith, this season he has a legitimate wide receiver in Jeremy Maclin. According to Pro Football Focus, Maclin had the best hands in the NFL this season, dropping just one pass on 120 targets.

Outside of Maclin though, that Kansas City receiving group is pretty bleak. Texans corner Jonathan Joseph will be assigned to Maclin, and should he shut out the Chiefs leading receiver, Kansas City better hope to get secondary production from guys like Travis Kelce and…Albert Wilson.

Smith’s been decent, but the real reason the Chiefs are here is their defence. Marcus Peters has very much inserted himself into the Defensive Rookie of the Year race, notching 8 interceptions this season. Eric Berry has fully recovered from being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and earned himself a spot on the pro bowl roster for his play.

For all the talk that the Texans defensive line may get, the Chiefs is just as dynamic. Justin Houston and Tamba Hali are a linebacker tandem that has haunted the dreams of quarterbacks for years now. However they’re a little bit banged up. Houston hasn’t played since week 12 when he suffered a hyperextended knee and Hali also missed practice time this week to knee and thumb injuries. Their absence has been noticeable, as the Chiefs have been scraping by against inferior teams like San Diego and Cleveland recently. Will Hali and Houston show up in Houston? That’s one of the biggest question marks heading into the wild-card matchup. Talking about Houston, in Houston, is also going to get incredibly confusing.

Houston Texans

Offence: Total (19th) Passing (18th) Rushing (15th)

Defence: Total (3rd) Passing (3rd) Rushing (10th)

I would like to start by saying the AFC South is an outright atrocity, so congratulations to the Texans for winning it. Literally all you had to do was be semi-competent and you did that. Good job, good effort.

Head coach Bill O’Brien has endured the quarterback carousel. Hoyer, Ryan Mallett, T.J. Yates, and Brandon Weeden have all started for the Texans because of injuries/awful quarterbacking, but Hoyer has been decent enough to get the Texans to a winning record. In other words, he’s the best at throwing it somewhere near DeAndre Hopkins (111 receptions, 1,521 yards, 11 TDs), which is the brunt of the Texans offensive game plan. 

Houston doesn’t have the best defence in the AFC, that’s Denver, but Southern Texas is also home to the most disruptive player in football today; J.J. Watt. The Texans defensive end is only the second player in NFL history to record three seasons of at least 17 sacks, placing himself along the great Reggie White (He finished with 17.5 to lead the NFL this season). On top of that, Brian Cushing seems to have re-found his form from a couple years ago, and Jadaveon Clowney’s face hasn’t been plastered on milk cartons this year, as the 2014 1st overall pick has begun making plays later in the season. A lot of that might have to do with Watt being double and even triple covered by offensive lines, but credit should be given where credit is due.(UPDATE: Clowney’s been downgraded to Out for today’s game)

Everyone knows J.J. Watt, he’s probably on his way to another Defensive Player of the Year award this season (whether that’s deserved, or on reputation, is another question) but a name a lot of people forget about in Houston is Whitney Mercilus. Besides having one of the best names in football, Mercilus and Watt have combined for the most sacks of any tandem in the NFL since 2013. The combo with the second most sacks in that time frame? Justin Houston and Tamba Hali of the Kansas City Chiefs. 

Prediction

Oddly enough, both teams have been without their starting running backs for a majority of the season, yet their strong defences have propelled them to the playoffs. Jamaal Charles tore his ACL in a week 5 loss to the Bears. In relief of Charles though, Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware have been dyno-mite.

Houston’s Arian Foster meanwhile, was lost for the season in infuriating fashion, when he tore his ACL in garbage time of a blowout loss to the Dolphins. Does the running back committee of Alfred Blue, Jonathan Grimes, Chris Polk and Akeem Hunt strike fear into anyone? Didn’t think so.

The Chiefs may not be the flashiest offensive team on paper, but there is one component of their game which they do really well: not turn the ball over. Kansas City has only given away the ball 15 times this season, second fewest in the NFL, and that could be vital against a team like the Texans, who rely on their defence to get the offence.

If West and Ware can get going against the Houston D, I can’t see any way the Chiefs don’t win. Peters will shut down Hopkins, the “Bulls on Parade” may get to Alex Smith, but not as much as the Chiefs rushers will hit Hoyer. The Texans situation didn’t get any better when Houston lost pro-bowl tackle Duane Brown to a torn quad. All signs are pointing to a field day for the Kansas City pass rush. The Chiefs picks up their first playoff victory since January of ’94, when they were led by… Joe Montana, and defeated… the Houston Oilers. It’s been a while.

Chiefs 23, Texans 13

Pittsburgh Steelers (6) (10-6) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (3) (12-4)

If you only get to watch one of the four wild-card games this weekend, this is the one you watch. The Steelers and Bengals are meeting for the third time this year, and these two teams DO NOT like each other.  

Pittsburgh Steelers

Offence: Total (3rd) Passing (3rd) Rushing (16th)

Defence: Total (21st) Passing (30th) Rushing (5th)

The Steelers may have just barely squeaked into the playoffs in the final week of the season, but if there’s any AFC team you don’t want to face, it’s these guys. They’re that team, you know, the one that’s “getting hot at the right time”, poised to go on a Super Bowl run. And they’ve got the offence to do it. The lethal connection of Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown will have to put the team on their shoulders.

What has Brown done for the Steelers? How’s 136 receptions (t-1st with Julio Jones), 1,834 yards (2nd, 37 yards behind Jones), and 10 touchdowns sound?  Brown’s near the top in almost every statistical receiving category and put up over 100 receiving yards in 9 games this season, including 284 against Oakland in Week 9. He also had the best end-zone celebration of the year, and styles his hair like he’s a LEGO man.

Mind you, in both previous match-ups against Cincinnati, Brown was kept under 100 yards. It’s not all about Antonio though, Pittsburgh still has Martavis Bryant who’s able to do some damage, and Markus Wheaton to open up the short passing game. Roethlisberger will be able to get the ball to his guys, he’s just got to make sure they show up, because he will not have a solid running back to take the pressure off. After Le’Veon Bell was lost to a torn ACL (Another One), DeAngelo Williams has been everything Pittsburgh could have asked for in relief. But now he’s out of action with a high ankle sprain. Pittsburgh will have to trot out Fitzgerald Toussaint on Saturday. No, I did not make that name up. He’s from Michigan, and has 18 total carries this season….

Would you want to turn to an unproven tailback with your season on the line? Timmy Smith is really the only example of something like that working out, and that was the flukiest of flukes.

There’s no ‘Steel Curtain’ this year, but one thing the Steelers do have going for them on defence; they finished third in the league with 48 sacks. It’s a scattered 48 however, as no pass rusher has more than Cameron Heyward’s seven. New defensive coordinator Keith Butler’s Bison Blitz formation has fooled offences in 2015, often by bringing up a corner, like William Gay, to rush the quarterback. Apart from Gay, a man who won’t stop dancing for anyone, there shouldn’t be anyone that McCarron should truly fear on the Steelers defence.

Cincinnati Bengals

Offence: Total (15th) Passing (15th) Rushing (13th)

Defence: Total (11th) Passing (20th) Rushing (7th)

For the first few years of his career, Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton was a “red rider BB gun”. That’s been different this year, as the “red rocket rifle” was one of the top passers in the NFL and is ready to take Cincinnati to the next level.

One problem. He’s out of the game with a thumb injury.

This has thrust AJ McCarron into the spotlight, known mostly for being a lucky SOB that got to quarterback dominant Alabama teams and have a smoking hot girlfriend.

I mean look at this guy. Top 10 most punchable face in the NFL.

McCarron’s been alright in relief of Dalton, and that’s all he really needs to be for Cincinnati to win. He’s still got guys like A.J. Green, Marvin Jones, and Tyler Eifert and his 13 touchdowns in 2015. The running back duo of Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard have each rushed for over 700 yards, a sporadic 1-2 punch in the sense that when one guy gets going, the other guy gets ice cold. It will be interesting to see how they fare against the strong point of Pittsburgh’s D. The Bengals will need at least 100 yards on the ground if they want to think about heading to New England next weekend.

McCarron’s also got a great defence. Carlos Dunlap and Geno Atkins each finished with double-digit sack totals this year. Vontaze Burfict, has come back from a possibly career-altering injury. Let’s not forget to mention the secondary, which has gone unnoticed for most of the year, featuring Leon Hall, Dre Kirkpatrick, Adam Jones a.k.a the artist formerly known as Pac-man, and second team All-Pro Safety, Reggie Nelson. Jones was also the only corner in the NFL this year to not allow a pass of more than 25+ yards, and Nelson was tied with Peters for the league lead in interceptions.

Prediction

I’ve flip-flopped on this game more than any of the four that are being played this weekend. For almost the entire 2015 season, I’ve believed a healthy Steelers team is the best of the AFC North. I picked them to beat Cincinnati both times they played one another this year. But this time around, things just don’t add up in their favour. Pittsburgh’s not going to have a running back this weekend, making their entire offence one-dimensional. On the other side of the ball, McCarron has had weeks to prepare for this game, and he’s facing a pass defence which gave up 272 yards through the air per game. The Steelers are ripe for the picking.

For the second time on Saturday, a major playoff drought ends, as Cincinnati earns its first postseason victory since 1991. Marvin Lewis gets playoff win number one in his seventh try. People who believed the Bengals would finally win a playoff game once Dalton wasn’t the quarterback are still “technically right”.

Bengals 27, Steelers 26

Seattle Seahawks (6) (10-6) vs. Minnesota Vikings (3) (11-5)

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin (89) looks back on a 53-yard touchdown reception against the Minnesota Vikings in the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 6, 2015 in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) MNPS118 (Jim Mone / The Associated Press)

Seattle comes into this one the heavy favourite, but there’s still a couple outside factors that benefit the Vikings, one the weather. This game will be reminiscent of the Bud Grant-era Vikings teams that would destroy opponents who couldn’t handle the cold. Second, the game-start time. Kick-off is 1:00 PM on Sunday or 10:00 AM in Seattle. The other three games this weekend start in the afternoon for the Pacific time zone, so it’s quite puzzling as to why the NFL would schedule this game for 1:00 PM. Don’t believe what all the prognosticators tell you, this one’s going to be a bit closer than you think.

Seattle Seahawks

Offence: Total (4th) Passing (20th) Rushing (3rd)

Defence: Total (2nd) Passing (2nd) Rushing (1st)

In case you haven’t heard, Russell Wilson is playing like a man possessed coming into the playoffs. Over the second half of the season, Wilson has thrown 24 touchdowns, to just one interception, the best TD:INT ratio over an eight game stretch EVER. And what do you know, they’re just about to add another element to their game. Marshawn Lynch. Lynch hasn’t been his explosive self in 2015, largely due to a rash of injuries which have befell him, greatly reducing his numbers of prior seasons. He’s scheduled to come back against Minnesota after sitting out almost the entire last half with an abdominal injury. WELL, so much for that chunk. Lynch has been declared out, and won’t be joining the Seahawks in Minneapolis. Christine Michael will get the rock for Seattle. It shouldn’t matter too much regardless, as the Seahawks have revamped their offence to centre around Wilson, rather than a power back like Lynch.

Wilson also helped make Doug Baldwin a super hero, as he is now one of the top receivers in the league, catching 11 touchdowns in his last six games. The Stanford grad, and rookie Tyler Lockett, have given Seattle another way to tear opponents apart.

The weak point for the Seahawks is their offensive line which is a little beat down. Russell Okung should be returning, but likely not at 100 percent. Garry Gilliam and Justin Britt are not world-beaters, and will likely struggle having to deal with the pressure of Everson Griffen and Brian Robison. Fortunately for Seattle, their offence has been all about getting the ball out of Wilson’s hands quickly and to their many different weapons, which should set them up nicely. How much the weather plays into their offensive production should be interesting. The Pacific Northwest isn’t used to lots of snow.

Everyone’s talked about this defence ad nauseum for the last four years, because they’re just THAT good. Richard Sherman’s not as dominant as he used to be but still one of the top corners in the league with 14 passes defended. Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor have been locking it down at safety. The Seahawks are known for their dominant secondary, but their rushing defence has been even better in 2015. Led by Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright, who both had over 100 tackles this year, Seattle is the only team in the league to not allow a 100-yard rusher this year, including the rushing champ they get to face this week.

Minnesota Vikings

Offence: Total (29th) Passing (31st) Rushing (4th)

Defence: Total (13th) Passing (12th) Rushing (17th)

The Vikings offence is all about “All Day”, Adrian Peterson. Minnesota’s running back became only the second player in history to win the NFL’s rushing title over the age of 30, joining the great Curtis Martin as he led the league with 1495 rushing yards in 2015. Of course, Peterson also had his worst day of the season against Seattle, as the Seahawks limited him to just 18 yards on eight carries. So I guess the Vikings will just have to get the passing game going a little bit right? Yeah, good luck with that.

Teddy Bridgewater only threw 14 touchdown passes this year, the fewest by any quarterback that started all 16 games. To be fair, he doesn’t have much to work with. Mike Wallace runs around for a bit, but doesn’t catch any thing. Charles Johnson was supposed to be the #2 option in the Vikings aerial attack. He finished the 2015 season with nine receptions. Kyle Rudolph has gone missing as well, and other than the break-out of Stefon Diggs, Minnesota’s downfield threats are pretty much non-existent. Combine that with supposed frigid temperatures in the St.Paul-Minneapolis area, pressure from Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril and you’ve got yourself a recipe for the toughest game Teddy Bridgewater’s had to play so far in his young career.

Good thing Minnesota’s got a tough defence that won’t lay down for anybody, not even the two-time NFC Champions. Last time these two teams met, Minnesota didn’t have Harrison Smith, Anthony Barr, and Linval Joseph, arguably the three most important pieces of that Vikings Defence. Smith and Barr both played at pro-bowl levels all season long, despite getting snubbed and Joseph has been one of the main reasons why opposing running backs aren’t torching Minnesota each game.

The magic number for the Vikings will be 20. Minnesota is 10-0 when holding opponents under 20 points, and 0-4 when allowing more than 20. If the Vikings can’t hold Seattle under 20 there is no way they win this football game, not with the mismatches the Minnesota offence will have to deal with.

Prediction

The Seahawks previously trounced the Vikings 38-7 at Minnesota earlier this year. A lot of people seem to think Seattle’s got this thing wrapped up before the game’s been played because of their previous matchup.

A lot of people said that about the Steelers going to face the Tim Tebow-led Broncos in 2011.

A lot of people said that when the Patriots were facing the Jets in a re-match in 2010, after beating them 45-3 in the regular season.

A lot of people said the 7-9 Seahawks were toast in 2010 having to take on the 11-5 Saints.

No games are won on paper, that’s why we play them.

Having said all of this, I’m still taking the Seahawks. They’re too strong to get knocked out by a young, inexperienced Vikings team.

Seahawks 20, Vikings 9

Green Bay Packers (5) (10-6) vs. Washington Redskins (4) (9-7)

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks over the line during the first half of an NFL football game against the Washington Redskins in Landover, Md., Sunday, Oct. 10, 2010. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivias)

Did you think the Super Bowl favourite Green Bay Packers we’re going to shred opposing defences this year? If so, I’ve got three words.

You.

Were.

Wrong.

Did anyone, ANYONE, think the Washington Redskins would be a playoff team, and not only that, finish with a record above .500? Didn’t think so.

Yet here we are, with the Packers and Redskins meeting in wild-card weekend. With Washington favoured by 1 point.

Green Bay Packers

Green Bay Packers outside linebacker Clay Matthews reacts after sacking Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder and causing a fumble during the first half of an NFL football game Monday, Nov. 14, 2011, in Green Bay, Wis. The Vikings recovered the fumble. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Offence: Total (23rd) Passing (25th) Rushing (12th)

Defence: Total (15th) Passing (6th) Rushing (21st)

Anemic is the best way to describe how Green Bay moves when they have the football. Aaron Rodgers has had his worst statistical season since he took over the Packers starting job in 2008, which can be credited to the fact that he has no one to throw to, and no time. Rodgers was sacked 47 times this season, including 13 times in the last two, the fifth most in the NFL.

The four teams that were worse than Green Bay? Cleveland, Tennessee, San Francisco, and Jacksonville. None of them had more than five wins this year. Starting tackle David Bakhtiari has missed some time of late, which could explain the recent surge in the amount of hits on Rodgers. Second team All-Pro guard Josh Sitton can’t block everyone.

Losing Jordy Nelson before the season began didn’t do the Packers any favours, but they are really struggling to do anything through the air. There’s a lack of communication between Rodgers and all of his receivers except Randall Cobb and James “Earl” Jones, and Cobb hasn’t had a 100-yard receiving game since week 2. Packers fans should be thanking whatever gods may be that Jones showed up or else Green Bay would be in dire straits. Davante Adams was supposed to be huge for the Packers this year, and he finished the season with one touchdown reception and in the top six in dropped passes.

This is first time since 2010 that the Packers scoring defence is actually better than their offence. Clay Matthews has led the way and he may be assigned to the tall task of handling Washington tight end, Jordan Reed. That job could also go to safety Micah Hyde, who was spectacular last week in erasing Minnesota’s Kyle Rudolph, highlighted by a ridiculous pick, a proud moment for guys named “Micah” everywhere.

Sam Shields has been lights out in coverage for the Packers this year, a lone bright spot for a Green Bay team that’s fallen short of expectations thus far. The problem is Shields is doubtful to play Sunday, as he still needs to pass through concussion protocol. If he can’t go, it’s rookie Damarious Randall drawing the matchup against DeSean Jackson, who’s proven to be no slouch either. Randall is apparently battling a groin injury as well though, the extent of which is unknown. Washington won’t be afraid to test the rookie. (UPDATE: Shields has been downgraded to Out).

Washington Redskins

Sep 20, 2015; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) celebrates after a touchdown by Redskins running back Matt Jones (31) against the St. Louis Rams in the fourth quarter at FedEx Field. The Redskins won 24-10. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Offence: Total (17th) Passing (11th) Rushing (20th)

Defence: Total (28th) Passing (25th) Rushing (26th)

WASHINGTON REDSKINS. 2015 NFC EAST CHAMPIONS.

YOU LIKE THAT?!

Kirk Cousins just had to decide all willy-nilly that he wanted to become a decent quarterback this season. And so he did just that, finishing the year leading the NFL in completion percentage. Jordan Reed has finally developed into the stud everyone said he would be, creating chaotic mismatches for defences. It’s an understatement to say Reed exploded for 952 yards and 11 touchdowns. DeSean Jackson while not the game-breaker he once was, seemingly hauls in at least one deep bomb each game and is still able to stretch the defence and open up the field for Cousins to throw.

It’s been all about the pass this year in Washington, as the Redskins running game has been lacking to say the least in 2015. Alfred Morris has been quite mediocre, and Matt Jones comes out to play once in a full moon. Neither back rushed for more than 3.8 yards per carry this season, so it’s safe to say Kirk Cousins will be letting it fly more often than not this Sunday.

Ryan Kerrigan has led the way for Washington with nine and a half sacks, and is undoubtedly their best defensive player. The edge rusher will need to get by Green Bay tackle Bryan Bulaga, and put constant pressure on the former MVP. Rodgers hasn’t had a whole lot of time in protection behind a leaky offensive line this season, but when he has, the Packers are clicking.

Outside of Kerrigan, and the great play of Dashon Goldson at safety, Washington’s defence doesn’t seem to be strong enough to take them on a deep playoff run, as they’ve got the worst unit of any playoff team. Their secondary picked up all-around despised cornerback Cary Williams, which should prove how desperate they are in the defensive backfield. To this day, scientists are still trying to find the answer to one of mankind’s greatest mysteries: What is it exactly that Cary Williams does well?

Prediction

I think every single preview I’ve read for this game has said the same thing. The Redskins are on the way up, the Packers are on the way down, so take Washington. What they fail to mention, is that Green Bay is one of the best teams in the league at defending the pass and preventing teams from converting third downs. All Washington does is throw the ball. The Packers offence may be struggling, but Washington’s defence ain’t exactly the ’85 Bears.

Remember people, this is the Washington Redskins. They’ve been the laughing-stock of the league for quite some time, and now everyone’s ready to jump on the Kirk Cousins gravy-train to victory. Pump the brakes a little, folks. Much like the Vikings, Washington is headed in the right direction, but to quote the WORST election attack ad in the history of attack ads, they’re “just not ready.”

Packers 31, Redskins 24

This is the most exciting weekend in football every year. Enjoy it. The Road to Super Bowl 50 officially starts today.

A Meteor Didn’t Kill the Dinosaurs, Paul Pierce Did.

A Eulogy for The 2014-15 Toronto Raptors

Dearly beloved,

We have gathered here today to reminisce on what could’ve been, and put to rest a team that began the season with the best record in the NBA at 13-2, and then stumbled their way into mediocrity by falling to the 4th seed in a weak Eastern Conference and getting swept in the first round of the playoffs, your 2014-15 Toronto Raptors.

Their future seemed so bright at the beginning of the year as they continued the success they had at the end of the 2014 season, with a 24-8 start. Kyle Lowry was playing like a man possessed, leading to a much publicized all-star campaign. DeMar DeRozan couldn’t be contained either, and likely also had a shot at making the All-Star team as a reserve if he didn’t his groin. Lou Williams’ career was resurrected and Drake wrote a song about him. The Vintage Purple Jerseys were back for the team’s 20th season. All was right in Raptor land.

But once 2014 ended and 2015 began, everything changed. The Raptors went .500 over their final 50 games with a 25-25 finish, and struggled to win any games against teams with a winning record. The biggest problem with Dwane Casey’s team, a defensive-minded coach, was clearly their Defense. DeRozan’s injury forced Lowry to carry the brunt of the offensive load, and may have played a factor in Lowry’s back issues which turned him into a shell of the player he was earlier in the year. Terrence Ross continued to be terribly inconsistent and Valanciunas’ development stunted. Greivis Vasquez was still Greivis Vasquez.  Despite all of this, the Raptors still handily won the Atlantic Division, the weakest division in the league, and earned their second consecutive playoff berth.

Then the Washington Wizards came into town, and Paul Pierce proclaimed that the Raptors don’t have the “it” factor teams need to win in the playoffs. Since Pierce is nicknamed “The Truth” the Raptors proceeded to roll over and play dead for every game of the series, as Pierce became the King in the North. A fitting conclusion to a disappointing 2nd half of the regular season that was culminated in an embarrassing 1st round sweep by a team they went 3-0 against during the regular season.

This playoff series was incredibly painful to watch, like a car wreck in slow motion. You can get an idea of how lopsided it was just by looking at the numbers.

TORONTO VS WASHINGTON GAMES 1-4 (AVERAGE PER GAME/ RANKINGS OUT OF 16 TEAMS)

                                   TOR                                      WSH

FG%                          41.6 (13th)                               48.2 (1st)

3P%                          30.0 (14th)                              43.3 (1st)

FTA                             21.3 (15th)                               28.5 (3rd)

O-REB                         8.8 (15th)                                11.0 (7th)

D-REB                         29.8 (16th)                               37.3 (3rd)

REB                              38.5 (16th)                              48.3 (3rd)

  AST                               19.5 (12th)                              26.3 (1st)*

PF                                 25.0 (14th)                             20.5 (7th)

    PTS                              96.3 (11th)                              110.3 (3rd)*

*John Wall is currently leading the NBA for assists per game these playoffs with 12.5. The next closest player is James Harden with 7.8. Wall also became the first player since Steve Nash in 2010 to have 15 or more assists in back-to-back playoff games.

*Also the Wizards won each game by an average of 14 points, the largest differential of any first round series. That shouldn’t be a surprise, because as you can clearly see, the Raptors were dominated in nearly every facet of the game for the duration of the series.

If anything this series confirmed two ideas about this team. First, they’re absolutely horrendous defensively and can’t rebound worth a lick.

The Raptors made Randy Wittman look like a mastermind, which is nearly impossible to do.

The Wizards were able to find the openings in the porous Raptors Defense by spreading the ball around to get clean, open looks and knock down shots.

They got to the free throw line by driving to the basket and forcing the Raptors to commit stupid fouls.

Marcin Gortat completely owned the paint and the Wiz out-rebounded the Raps every night.

The Wizards came into this series as a below average offensive team, and yet they’ve come out of it looking like they have an unlimited amount of weapons. Otto Porter and Drew Gooden, now look like dynamic bench players that can completely change the outcome of a game. Just complete domination across the board.

Second, the Raptors are completely one-dimensional on Offense. The same three players seem to take all of the Raptors shot attempts, Lowry, DeRozan, and Williams, and teams are figuring out the Raptors simple offensive gameplay rather quickly. The three of them took far too many ill-advised, low percentage shots, something that happens more often than most people seem to notice.

Lowry’s injury problems certainly didn’t help his play, but my goodness he was terrible. In the first three games, Lowry shot 10/42 from the field, which amounts to just under 24%. Combined with his immature play which consistently got him into foul trouble, Lowry played his worst basketball as a Raptor in this series. 

You could see in stretches of this series DeRozan trying to put the team on his back, but that’s not necessarily a good thing. He often had great starts to each game, but once Wittman stuck Otto Porter on him, he had no answers, and virtually disappeared for the rest of the game.

Then Lou Williams started to suddenly go cold, and when he’s not doing anything on Offense, he’s not really doing anything. His ineptitude on Defense cost the team dearly, especially when he was left on the court with Greivis Vasquez, who gave John Wall his best impersonation of a revolving door.

The Raptors need to do a lot more than just put the ball in the hands of these 3, tell them to chuck up a prayer, and hope it goes in. At the very least get the big men more involved. Sure Jonas Valanciunas, Amir Johnson, and Patrick Patterson didn’t put up much of a fight on Defense in the series either, but all 3 had True Shooting Percentages north of 50% so at least they’re contributing when they get the chance the shoot.

People may say I am overreacting a little bit here,

“But the Raptors set the Franchise-record wins with 49!”

“But they won the Atlantic Division for the Second Year in a row!”

“But Kyle Lowry was a Starter in the All-Star Game!”

“But Lou Williams won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year!”

Whoop-dee-doo.

These are all hollow titles; they are irrelevant. At the end of the day, they mean absolutely nothing.

Do you think the San Antonio Spurs care about things like that? Do you believe Tim Duncan desperately wants to receive those individual accolades or Gregg Popovich wants to say they’re a better team than they were last year because they got one more win in the regular season? Of course not, they know what their goal is, to get into the playoffs and hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy at the end of the season.

Now by no stretch of the imagination am I saying that the Raptors are like the Spurs, they have a LONG way to go if they want to get anywhere near that franchise’s level of excellence, but the Spurs are the benchmark which every other NBA organization strives to be like, and they know that your success in the post-season is the only thing that really counts. It would’ve been nice for the Raptors to at least show up for the playoffs this season, something their undying fan base had waited all year for after the heartbreaking loss to Brooklyn last year.

No one expected the Raptors to get to the playoffs in 2014; most fans were ecstatic just to be there and see the series get pushed to seven games.

This season, the goal was to win at least one playoff series. They didn’t even win a game. There was no progression, if anything there was only regression. Changes have to be made, both to the roster, as well as the coaching staff, if this franchise wishes to take the next step. GM Masai Ujiri needs to back up what he’s been saying to the fans.

Masai, last week: "Playoffs make an impact in terms of evaluating for the offseason. 100% it influences everything". Should be a busy summer

— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) April 26, 2015

The ball is in your court, Mr. Ujiri, go find what “it” is that this team needs.

Sweet Sixteen Takeaways From March Madness Thus Far

March Madness is a magical time. A massive tournament of Non-stop basketball, with schools you didn’t even know existed becoming fantastic underdog stories that may just be turned into Hollywood movies.

Did you do a Bracket? Of Course You did! Was it busted after the second game? Of course it was! But what does it matter? You’ve just got to sit back and enjoy the best Basketball you’ll see all season.

Here are my 16 takeaways from the craziest basketball weekend of the season.

BRACKET BUSTER

1. Vill-OH NO-va. The Wildcats from Philly were the first 1 seed to fall in the tournament after a terrible shooting performance that saw them shoot a combined 31.3% from the field. Dylan Ennis was probably the most disappoint Wildcat of them all, going 2-12 from the field and 0-6 from beyond the arc. Besides the dismal effort, full credit to Darrun Hilliard, who essentially put Nova on his back in the waning moments. Hilliard finished with 27 points and hit back-to-back 3’s to bring the Wildcats within a basket.

Early exits aren’t new for Villanova. They haven’t been able to get past the opening weekend since 2009, but this one definitely stings more since the Wildcats were a No.1 seed in an easy region and were currently on a 16 game winning streak.

This game likely blew up your bracket, as 83.4% of all ESPN brackets had the Wildcats at least getting to the next round.

The silver lining in Villanova’s loss? It spawned the meme of the tournament: Piccolo Girl.

CINDERELLA OF THE TOURNAMENT: NC State Wolfpack

2. AWWWWOOOOOOOOO. The Wolfpack of North Carolina State have made the biggest impact of the tournament by far, upsetting Villanova on Saturday night. This game was not a Villanova collapse, it was a Wolfpack win. I would also like to say that I FREAKING CALLED IT.

No one had a bigger night than Trevor Lacey, who led the Wolfpack in points, assists and steals in the upset win over Nova. It wasn’t all Lacey though, as 3 other NC State players scored double-digit point totals: Cat Barber, Lennard Freeman, and Abdul-Malik Abu. Freeman and Abu owned the paint, collecting 12 rebounds each, and Cat Barber’s name is Cat Barber, which is just really fun to say.

As remarkable as the Nova victory was, the win over LSU was even more impressive. NC State was down 14 at half-time and 16 at one point in the second half, but with the help of some missed free throws from the Tigers, the Wolfpack were able to win on a buzzer-beating jumper from Beejay Anya.

STAT OF THE DAY: The last time NC State beat Duke, North Carolina and a 1-seed in the same season… the team went on to win the National Championship.

The legacy of Jim Valvano lives on.

3. BEST GAME OF THE TOURNAMENT: No. 14 Georgia State pulling off an incredible comeback in the 4th quarter, culminated in a miraculous 3 from R.J. Hunter, to upset 3 seed Baylor.

The Georgia State Panthers are a great story to begin with. The Panthers surprisingly won the Sun Belt Conference, and the resulting celebration was cut short when coach Ron Hunter, R.J.’s father, tore his achilles tendon. This forced Hunter to sit on a rolling chair yelling at players for both games of their tournament, which for some reason, reminded me of Patches O’Houlihan from Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. One of their players is also the recently transferred guard from Louisville, Kevin Ware. Yes, THAT Kevin Ware, who returned to tournament for the first time since ‘the incident’.

Anyway, the game itself; Georgia State was down 56-44 with only 2:44 remaining!!! To come back from something like that is nearly impossible. But R.J. Hunter just started making 3’s, and in the dying seconds, with the Panthers down by 2, Hunter chucked up a prayer.

DAGGER! LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! WOW!!

3 Things:

Look how far behind the line he is!

No one is there for the rebound! If he misses, that’s game.

Coach Hunter flopping like a seal in elation

Sure, Georgia State’s done now after being downed by the Musketeers, but moments like those are the reason I love March Madness.

4. No team has been a bigger letdown thus far than the Iowa State Cyclones. While I do have some bias in this (I had them in the National Championship Game), I most certainly was not the only one who had the Cyclones going deep.

Before March Madness began, the Cyclones had just won the Big XII tournament, the toughest conference in the NCAA (Not anymore: Only Oklahoma and West Virginia remain), off of three huge come from behind victories. They had also got to the sweet sixteen last year without their top scorer, Georges Niang, so it was pretty logical to think Iowa State was primed for a run.

The Cyclones seemingly wore out all their magic, as Iowa State proceeded to play probably its worst game of the season. The usually reliable Naz Long, only went 2 for 9 from 3-point range, and the much talked about Niang got into foul trouble early, which limited his time on the court, and clearly had an impact on ISU’s offensive strategy.

And thus my bracket was busted. After the second game of the tournament. THANKS A LOT IOWA STATE.

5. Speaking of Iowa, the rest of the state didn’t do much better. While it was reasonable to see the Iowa Hawkeyes get dumped by Gonzaga in the third round, the same could not be said for the Northern Iowa Panthers. UNI was a popular sleeper pick to get to the final four, coming in as the 5 seed in a weak east region.

Unfortunately, the Panthers were ousted by the Louisville Cardinals in the Round of 32. Terry Rozier was the story of this one, coming just shy of a triple double with 25 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. UNI could only muster up 53 and their leading scorer, Seth Tuttle, was held to 14 by a Cardinal squad determined to get to its fourth consecutive sweet sixteen appearance.

Northern Iowa just couldn’t channel the spirit of the legendary Ali Farokhmanesh.

6. If you thought the state of Iowa disappointed, well then let me tell you, Texas was something else. All 5 Texas teams, Texas Southern, Stephen F. Austin, Baylor, SMU, and Texas, lost their second round match-up. While the 15-seeded Tigers defeat was expected, very few predicted Baylor or SMU to be defeated by far inferior opponents, and as a big UT supporter, I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the lack-lustre, 48 point performance from the Longhorns. With the amount of talent this Texas team had, a team that upset the UVA Cavaliers earlier in the season no less, simply a ticket to the big dance is unacceptable. Time has come for coach Rick Barnes to be shown the door.

7. UCLA being in the Sweet 16 is an absolute joke. The Bruins had no business beating the SMU Mustangs, and they really didn’t deserve to win in the first place. The Mustangs were up large late before Bryce Alford, (a guy who looks like a cross breed of Neil Patrick Harris and the kid from Thunderstruck) decided to have the shooting performance of his life, going 9 of 11 from beyond the arc. If not for a controversial game-winning 3-point goaltending call at the end of the game, we’d be talking about a sexy sweet 16 matchup of the Mustangs and the Gonzaga Bulldogs. Instead, the Zags are going to tear UCLA to shreds.

Unless Tony Parker can conjure up another 28 point, 12 rebound performance. He’ll also hit on your girl and tell her she has a nice bracelet.

8. Yet again, the Jayhawks exit early, this time thanks to their in-state rival, the Wichita State Shockers.

To be fair to Kansas, this was a down year for them. Now most schools would consider a 27-8 record and a Big 12 title a season to remember, but to Kansas it was very forgettable. The Jayhawks didn’t take the next step, they didn’t progress, as they were denied of a Sweet 16 appearance for the second straight year. Even coach Bill Self admitted his dismay after the game, saying “Perspective-wise, there’s no way I’ll say it was a great year.”

The highlight of Kansas’ tournament probably has to be Perry Ellis continuing to play after getting an elbow to the nose. Other than that, not much to see here from Bill Self and the Jayhawks.

9. SHOCK TALK:  Last year’s Wichita State Shockers team came in an undefeated number 1 seed and were pronounced as ‘overrated’ due to their cupcake heavy schedule. They were promptly bounced by the 8-seed Kentucky Wildcats in the third round.

This year’s team, while lacking Cleanthony Early, who left for the prospects of the NBA (and got drafted by the Knicks, LOLOLOLOLOL), isn’t all that different from last year’s. The Shockers still have key pieces Tekele Cotton, Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker. The trio propelled Wichita State to an upset win over Kansas, Cotton scored 19, while VanVleet had one of the best individual showings of the day with 17 points, six assists, six rebounds, and four steals. Baker also seemed to finally break out of his shooting slump early on in the game, so it’s interesting to know that this team has another gear.

This game must’ve been pretty damn sweet for Shockers fans. They’ve been dying to play Kansas for quite some time, yet the Jayhawks have refused to put them on their schedule. This was the first time the teams have met since ’93 and I’m sure Kansas still won’t want to schedule a game against them after getting embarrassed the way they did.

Will Gregg Marshall’s team reach the final four and shock the nation like they did in 2013? We’ll have to wait and see. If they do get past Notre Dame in the next round, the Goliath of Kentucky will be waiting for them, and in an ironic twist, could get their sweet revenge by ending their undefeated season.

10. Irish eyes are certainly smiling as Notre Dame is off to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2003. The Fighting Irish played quite the thriller on Saturday night, dispatching the Butler Bulldogs in OT.

Notre Dame’s Zach Auguste double dribbled in the final seconds of regulation, giving the Bulldogs a final shot at the win.

But Pat Connaughton had other plans.

PLAY OF THE TOURNAMENT:

Connaughton’s last-second block of Kellen Dunham sent the game to Overtime, where the momentum from Connaughton’s play carried over into the extra frame. He hit his first and only field goal of the game, a 3 ball, which was followed by another 3 from the unsung hero of the night, Sophomore Guard Steve Vasturia, to clinch the Fighting Irish victory.

It was certainly a special win, for Notre Dame coach Mike Brey in particular, whose mother died the morning of the game from a heart attack. It’s not easy to win a game of that magnitude, and it’s even harder when you’ve got something like that on your mind.

11. If I could take one pick back, it would be taking the Virginia Cavaliers to go to Final Four.

Going into March Madness, the Cavs, led by ACC Defensive Player of the Year Darion Atkins, were heralded as this great defensive team who could shut down even the most talented players in the country (No. 1 Scoring Defense in the Nation). They went 28-1 to begin the year, and were given a 2 seed in the East region, however many argued that could have garnered a  1 seed.

On paper, seems like a great pick right? WRONG. Red Flags galore.

1st Red Flag: They lost 3 times in the last two weeks of the season. Zero momentum.

2nd Red Flag: UVA had one of the worst offenses (219th, 65.4 PPG) and lowest possession rates in the Country. If you don’t have the ball much, and then have an off day shooting; that’s a recipe for trouble.

3rd Red Flag: The draw had them set to face the Michigan State Spartans in the round of 32 – The team that beat them last year.

4th Red Flag: They looked like trash against the Belmont Bruins.

It had evidently become clear at that point Virginia was definitely contending for a National title. Michigan State beat the Cavaliers at their own game, as UVA only shot 29.1% from the field, including 2 of 17 from 3 point land. Travis Trice, carved up the supposedly impenetrable defense  for 23 points. The team, to quote Atkins himself, ‘played like p*ssies’.

What might be more embarrassing for the Cavs is the fact that they’re only team from the ACC to not make the Sweet 16, as Duke, Notre Dame, North Carolina and of course the Scrappy NC State Wolfpack, all advanced.

Defense alone can only take you so far. 

12. Need a team to cheer for? Why not the Gonzaga Bulldogs?

The Bulldogs are the 2 seed in the South region (despite being located in Spokane, Washington), and they could realistically make a run to the Final Four and possibly the National Championship.

They’ve got the Canadian Connection with Kyle Wiltjer and Kevin Pangos. Wiltjer has dual Canadian and American citizenship, but is committed to playing for Canada at the national level, while Pangos grew up in Newmarket and his father has coached the York University Women’s Basketball Team for over 25 years. Wiltjer lit up the Hawkeyes for 24 points, going 10-12 and Pangos performed well, putting in 16. 

The Bulldogs ran over Iowa, a team who had looked great after beating Davidson by 31. Gonzaga shot 61.5 percent as a team, against an Iowa squad that had been holding opponents to 39.0 percent from the field.

Gonzaga just broke its lengthy sweet 16 drought, something they haven’t seen since 2009. The glory days of Adam Morrison might be coming back!

How can you not root for the Zags?

13. The Arizona Wildcats look as advertised, skilled on both sides of the ball. The PAC-12 champs dismantled the Texas Southern Tigers on Thursday,  and were able to shut down the Ohio State Buckeyes and their big threat, D’Angelo Russell, who only went 3 for 19 from the field.

The Wildcats couldn’t hit anything but the bottom of the net in the 2nd half, scoring 47 points, with guards Gabe York and T. J.  McConnell both dropping 19 points on the Buckeyes.

Arizona faces the Xavier Musketeers next before likely going toe-to-toe with Wisconsin in one of the most hotly debated games coming into the tournament.

THE REMAINING NUMBER ONES

14. Frank ‘The Tank’ Kaminsky and the Wisconsin Badgers have found their way into the sweet sixteen once again.

The Badgers easily got by Coastal Carolina, and then not so easily scraped by the Oregon Ducks. Sam Dekker came up with some clutch 3’s late to quell any Oregon momentum after Dwayne Benjamin had tied the game at 52. Kaminsky was able to rack up 16 points, but went quiet for long stretches.

Wisconsin can’t expect to play like that in the future, and they better get their act together quickly, as Wisconsin’s future opponents only get tougher. Next up are the Tar Heels of North Carolina and if they’re able to get through them, they’ll likely get Arizona.

I have the Badgers going out in the elite eight, but they’re a fun team to watch, purely because whenever the name ‘Frank the Tank’ is mentioned, I think of this guy. Also, they love to screw around with their stenographer.

15. Going into this tournament, Kentucky was the overwhelming favourite, and after the first 48 games there’s only one team I could see realistically challenging them for the title, the Duke Blue Devils.

Jahlil Okafor is a monster. The ACC Player of the year dominated San Diego State, scoring 26 points on 12 of 16 while getting six boards, two assists and three blocks. He also had 21 and was 9 for 11 against Robert Morris. Player of the tournament so far? I’d say so.

Justise Winslow was a brick wall, and finished with 13 points, 3 blocks and 12 rebounds against the San Diego State Aztecs, 11 of which were defensive.

Having trouble taking care of those two? Don’t worry there’s still Tyus Jones, who’s continuously feeding the two beasts, and Quinn Cook out in the perimeter who can always be counted on to nail a game-changing 3.

Duke beat up on SDSU so bad that I turned the game off before the first half was over. It was a slaughter.

This is the 22nd time that Duke has reached the Sweet 16 with Mike Krzyzewski as head coach. Never count Coach K out. Especially not with the talent he’s got on the team this year.

16. I just said that Duke is the only team I think that has a chance of beating Kentucky. The key word in that last sentence is ‘chance’. There’s a reason the Kentucky Wildcats are still undefeated, they pretty much look unstoppable (Note: The amount of high ranking teams in this year’s tournament named ‘Wildcats’ is TOO DAMN HIGH. The only team missing is this one.)

The starting five of Cauley-Stein, Towns, Aaron and Andrew Harrison, and Saskatoon’s very own, Trey Lyles, certainly has the West Virginia Mountaineers shaking in their boots right now.

How good is Kentucky? Their game against Cincinnati was considered one of their worst showings of the season. They were missing shots left and right and ended up only shooting 37 percent as a team. They were out rebounded by Cincinnati, 45-38. Everything was seemingly going right for the Bearcats and wrong for the Wildcats. THEY STILL WON BY 13 POINTS.

Lyles came up big with 11 points and 11 boards, and Aaron Harrison carried the weight offensively as Karl-Anthony Towns had an unmemorable night after pretty much single-handedly obliterating Hampton, and Willie Cauley-Stein didn’t have eye-popping numbers either, but he did do this.

DUNK OF THE TOURNAMENT

I really hope Quadri Moore said his prayers.

This team is on a mission. 4 wins away from perfection.

Picks for Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight:

SWEET SIXTEEN

Kentucky over West Virginia

Wichita State over Notre Dame

Wisconsin over North Carolina

Arizona over Xavier

Louisville over NC State

Michigan State over Oklahoma

Duke over Utah

Gonzaga over UCLA

ELITE EIGHT

Kentucky over Wichita State

Arizona over Wisconsin

Michigan State over Louisville

Gonzaga over Duke

The Basketball is only going to get better from here. Let the Madness continue.

Winners and Losers of NFL Free Agency

The NFL’s official new year began last Tuesday, with teams ringing in the start of another season by throwing as much money as they possibly could at players who totally didn’t deserve it. After one week of free agency, it’s become pretty clear who the Winners and Losers are:

Losers:

Dallas Cowboys:

Key Acquisitions/ Re-signings: RB Darren McFadden, OT Doug Free

Key Departures: RB DeMarco Murray, LB Justin Durant, OT Jeremy Parnell

Well, when you lose the league’s leading rusher to your divisional rival, it can’t exactly be considered a good week.

By the end of last season, the Dallas Cowboys offense was a force to be reckoned with. Tony Romo was playing at an MVP level, and for once was not getting scrutinized 24/7. DeMarco Murray was running circles around opposing defenses and Dez Bryant was making incredulous catches that NFL officials couldn’t even believe.

Murray, the guy who carried Dallas on his back for the first half of the season by rushing for over 100 yards in 8 straight games, left for more money with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Cowboys believe that Murray’s success came out of the incredible play of their Offensive Line. While that is partially true, it’s completely unrealistic to believe that the oft-injured Darren McFadden could easily replace him.

Although the Cowboys were able to franchise tag Bryant, he wasn’t exactly overjoyed with it. While this does buy Dallas some time to work out a contract extension with Dez, it doesn’t guarantee he’ll want to return next year.

But don’t worry Cowboys fans, we all know Tony Romo can get the job done anyway!

New England Patriots:

Key Acquisitions/ Re-signings: S Devin McCourty DT Jabaal Sheard, WR Brandon Gibson

Key Departures: CB Darrelle Revis, DT Vince Wilfork, RB Shane Vereen, CB Brandon Browner

I’m not going to lie, seeing Darrelle Revis choose to leave for his former team and New England’s arch-enemy, the New York Jets; it stung quite a bit. Not even a Super Bowl Championship could keep Revis. He is and always will be about the money.

Revis Island was enormous for the Pats this year. He was New England’s best defensive player, he consistently erased #1 receivers on a weekly basis, and ultimately, proved to be the final piece in the puzzle for New England’s Championship season. New England is now suddenly left with Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler at Cornerback with the departure of the over-rated, flag magnet, Brandon Browner. As incredible as Butler’s play was, which I know you want to watch again, that is not the cornerback tandem you want to roll with to start the season.

The other big concern for New England; every team in their division got significantly better. The Bills got LeSean McCoy, one of the best rushers in the game. The Jets did a complete overhaul of their secondary, which will greatly compliment the Pass Rush led by Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson. It was already scary facing the Dolphins with Cam Wake alone, but now they have Ndamukong Suh alongside him. I’ve always been the first Pats fan to tell the critics to “Shut Up” when they’ve claimed this would be the year the Patriots lose their AFC East crown. But next year they have resaons to back it up, and the AFC East is going to be more competitive than it has ever been in the Brady-Belichick era.

New Orleans Saints (Specifically, Drew Brees):

Key Acquisitions/Re-signings: RB C.J. Spiller, C Max Unger, CB Brandon Browner, LB Dannell Ellerbe

Key Departures: TE Jimmy Graham, WR Kenny Stills, G Ben Grubbs, LB Curtis Lofton

New Orleans’ days as the high-flying, pass-happy offense that revolved around Drew Brees look to be finished.

Dealing their biggest offensive weapon in Jimmy Graham, to the Seattle Seahawks for Max Unger and 1st proved that.

So did inking Mark Ingram and C.J. Spiller to 4 year contracts.

So did trading Brees’ top wide receiver, Kenny Stills, for Linebacker Dannell Ellerbe.

The Saints are completely transforming into a hard-nosed, ground-n-pound team, something I don’t think their 36 year old QB will be too thrilled about. Brees is now looking at throwing to Brandin Cooks and Marques Colston, who doesn’t seem to have much left in the tank.

A transition like this takes time, something that does not seem to be on Drew Brees’ side.

Oakland Raiders:

Key Acquisitions: C Rodney Hudson, DB Nate Allen, MLB Curtis Lofton, RB Roy Helu Jr.,

Key Departures: C Stefan Wisniewski, RB Maurice Jones-Drew, LB LaMarr Woodley

The Oakland Raiders had almost $70 million in cap space going into the off-season. They were expected to be right in the thick of things for top free agents Ndamukong Suh, Randall Cobb, DeMarco Murray, and Julius Thomas. They signed none of them. Suh decided to take his talents to South Beach, Cobb chose to re-sign with Green Bay for less money, Murray used the raiders as a tool to get a heftier contract from the Eagles, and the Jacksonville Jaguars just completely outbid Oakland for Julius Thomas’ services.

GM Reggie McKenzie seemed to be pretty satisfied with the players he acquired, which should be very alarming to Raiders fans. The fact that your GM is happy the biggest playmaker he signed this off-season is Roy Helu, Jr., demonstrates that this organization is OK muddling around as a mediocre team for several more years. “Just Win Baby” has become “Try Your Hardest, Have fun, and maybe we’ll be 6-10”. The Oakland Raiders are atrocious.

San Francisco 49ers:

Key Acquisitions: WR Torrey Smith, RB Reggie Bush, DL Darnell Dockett

Key Departures: LB Patrick Willis, RB Frank Gore, G Mike Iupati, CB Perrish Cox

Oh how the 49ers have fallen. You could realistically make the case that San Francisco is the 4th best team in the very competitive NFC West. After an abysmal 2014 season that saw the Niners finish 8-8 and miss the playoffs, most of the core pieces of their 2012 NFC Championship team have decided to leave for greener pastures.

Corners Perrish Cox and Chris Culliver both had career years, but decided to leave for more money. Frank Gore saw the writing on the wall when the Niners began to utilize Carlos Hyde, and he left for Indianapolis, a place where he could be of more value. 3x pro bowl Guard Mike Iupati moved onto Arizona, a move I’m sure Carson Palmer was ecstatic about. However, the biggest hole of all was left by Linebacker Patrick Willis, who sadly announced his retirement. Willis was more or less, the leader of the 49ers, and one of the best players in the NFL at his position for half-a-decade. It’ll be interesting to see whether he makes the Hall of Fame or not.

What’s worse is that the Niners are trying to replace these guys with players who are somewhat overrated. Dockett is known more for his Twitter account than his actual on-field play. Reggie Bush lost his starting job and became an afterthought in Detroit, and Torrey Smith is definitely not going to save the day. (Side Note: Who in their right mind gives Torrey freaking Smith a 5 year, $40 million contract? $8 million annually for a guy who averages 50 receptions a season? Insane. )

Jim Tomsula has got his work cut out for him, and somewhere in Ann Arbor, Jim Harbaugh has a grin on his face the size of Michigan.

Winners:

Atlanta Falcons:

Key Acquisitions/ Re-signings: LB Justin Durant, DE Adrian Clayborn, LB Brooks Reed, LB O’Brien Schofield

Key Departures: LB Sean Weatherspoon, RB Steven Jackson, WR Harry Douglas

Dan Quinn’s quest to turn the Falcons into a Defensive powerhouse is certainly off to a good start.

The Falcons pass rush last season was disgustingly bad and were key contributors into Atlanta’s dead last ranking in total defense. The Dirty Birds totalled 22 sacks in 2014, which was tied with the Raiders and only better than the Cincinnati Bengals (?!?).  Atlanta made the smart move of taking a flyer on Adrian Clayborn, who had accumulated 13 sacks in his two full seasons with the Buccaneers. If Clayborn recaptures his form, they’ve got a talented end, if not, he’s only a Falcon for one season.

The signing of Justin Durant was also low-risk/high-reward. Last year, Durant was leading the Cowboys in tackles and was on pace to have his best season as a pro until he was lost for the season with a bicep injury. Reed and Schofield are also serviceable linebackers that can be used as pass rushers or stand-up linebackers and CB Phillip Adams can help boost a very weak secondary.

It may take some time but Dan Quinn does seem to have this team moving in the right direction.

Green Bay Packers:

Key Acquisitions/Re-signings: WR Randall Cobb, OT Bryan Bulaga

Key Departures: LB A.J. Hawk, LB Brad Jones, CB Davon House

It’s odd to call the Green Bay Packers a winner, since they’re the only NFL franchise who didn’t sign a player away from another team, but by retaining two key components of their offense, the Pack can be pleased with the past week.

I was one of the many who believed that Randall Cobb had played his final game as a Packer after Green Bay lost to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game.  Cobb was insane last year, compiling 91 receptions, 1287 yards and 12 Touchdowns in a breakout season.  It seemed like he would get a contract that would have him living like Scrooge McDuck, and the Raiders were willing to do so. But Cobb, like any logical person would, concluded that signing with Oakland would be a terrible idea, and returned to Green Bay.

Bulaga also took less money in order to come back to Green Bay and his return to the Packers O-Line was similar to his stature, gigantic. The Packers Offensive Line was dominant last season, allowing its fewest sacks since the 2007 season while protecting Aaron Rodgers, and helping Eddie Lacy have another 1,000 yard season.

Don’t expect the Pack to fall back next year.

Indianapolis Colts:

Key Acquisitions: WR Andre Johnson, RB Frank Gore, DE Trent Cole

Key Departures: WR Reggie Wayne, RB Trent Richardson, DT Ricky Jean-Francois

Despite having one of the league’s top passers under centre and appearing in the AFC Championship game, the Colts were not looking too hot to end the season (as demonstrated by the 45-7 shellacking they received from the Patriots in said game). GM Ryan Grigson saw this and decided to sign several aging veterans in Andre Johnson, Frank Gore and Trent Cole.

Johnson is perfect for the Colts; a reliable #2 receiver who can challenge opposing secondaries and take some of the pressure away from T.Y. Hilton. Something tells me that next year Andre is going to prove to the league, and most certainly his old team, the Houston Texans, that he is NOT washed up.

Gore turns 32 in May, which is ancient for Running Backs in today’s NFL, but his hard-nosed style of running is perfect for the Offense which the Colts run. Hopefully Gore can do what Trent Richardson couldn’t, who is slowly turning into one of the biggest draft busts of all-time.

Cole can help a struggling Pass Rush that looked lost in the post-season and a defense that was only able to amass 992 tackles during the regular season, ranking them 26th.

The Colts certainly got older, but they can afford to get older when they’ve got Andrew Luck at Quarterback.

New York Jets:

Key Acquisitions: CB Darrelle Revis, WR Brandon Marshall, CB Antonio Cromartie, CB Buster Skrine

Key Departures: WR Percy Harvin, RB Chris Johnson

Mike Macaggnan had money to blow, and he used that money wisely, easily making the Jets the most improved team from this free-agent frenzy.

The New York Jets decided to totally revamp their secondary, starting with bringing back former Defensive Player of the Year Darrelle Revis, who some would argue is the best Corner in the game. Along with the return of Revis came his old partner, Antonio Cromartie, with head coach Todd Bowles from Arizona.

Those two alone would be a solid improvement to the Jets secondary, but just in case that didn’t work out, they also signed Buster Skrine away from the Cleveland Browns to play as the slot corner and acquired Safety Marcus Gilchrist from the Chargers. Those 4, combined with rookie Dee Milliner, is one frightening secondary. Good luck throwing the ball on the New York Jets. Their secondary nickname needs to be “The Danger Zone”.

The Defensive Back position isn’t the only place the Jets upgraded either, deciding to release troubled Wide Receiver Percy Harvin and then trading for Brandon Marshall. Marshall had a disastrous 2014 season (the entire Chicago Bears organization had a disastrous 2014 season), so a fresh start in the Big Apple is perfect for the 5x pro-bowler. He’ll now be lining up next to Eric Decker, something I’m sure opposing defenses aren’t looking forward to.

The only thing the Jets need now is a pilot (a competent QB) and look out, they could shock some teams in 2015.

Philadelphia Eagles:

Key Acquisitions: RB DeMarco Murray, CB Byron Maxwell, LB Kiko Alonso, QB Sam Bradford, RB Ryan Mathews

Key Departures: RB LeSean McCoy, WR Jeremy Maclin QB Nick Foles, DE Trent Cole,

To most people, it’s still undecided where the Eagles land in terms of Winners and Losers. A lot of people are still skeptical about some of the decisions Chip Kelly made this past week, wondering whether the Eagles actually got better with all these transactions.

Philadelphia started by making two humongous trades, dealing their franchise RB in LeSean McCoy to the Buffalo Bills for Kiko Alonso and then swapping starting Quarterbacks with the St. Louis Rams.

Some say the Eagles gave up too much for Sam Bradford, but he’s a definite improvement over Nick Foles. Foles has shown he’s not going to be one of the top passers in the league, he’s a game-manager, he does what he has to do to win games but that’s all you’re going to get. Bradford inherited a mess with the Rams, and barely had any Offensive weapons around him. Now he’s got players to work with, and as long as he stays healthy, I could definitely see him rekindling the Heisman Trophy winning Sam Bradford from Oklahoma.

The McCoy trade looked shady at first (See what I did there?) But then Philadelphia went out and got DeMarco Murray. So, in the end, The Eagles basically traded away LeSean McCoy for the NFL’s leading rusher last season in DeMarco Murray and one of the best up and coming Linebackers in the league with Kiko Alonso, while also saving an extra $1 million and slightly upgrading at QB.

They signed Ryan Mathews to a 3 year deal as insurance, giving them another valuable option in their backfield to go with Murray and Darren Sproles, subsequently forming the “Legion of Zoom”.

They cut Cary Williams, who was terrible, and upgraded by bringing in Byron Maxwell. OK, they certainly overpaid for the guy, but at the time, he was the best corner on the market (until Darrelle Revis showed up) and although he may be a by-product of the talented Seattle Secondary, his play this season showed the rest of the league that he is no slouch.

In my opinion, the winner of free agency is always the team that makes the biggest splash. The team that forces you to double take when you see the headline flash on the screen. The team that makes a move which causes you to stop what you’re doing and say “Holy S%*#”. That team was undoubtedly, the Philadelphia Eagles.

Nolesy’s Notes: Trade Season & All-Star Weekend

After my 2 week sabbatical where I did nothing but celebrate the Patriots’ Super Bowl XLIX Victory over the Seattle Seahawks (which I’ll get into later this month), here’s my wrap up of the past week in Sports.

1. Obviously the biggest news this week was the NHL’s first blockbuster trade of the season, which saw the much scrutinized Evander Kane, finally getting his wish, and being shipped out of Winnipeg. Kane had never really endeared himself to Winnipeg fans and media due to his behaviour off the ice and his inability to perform while on it. Plus, it really just seemed like he didn’t want to play for the Jets. Well, the good news for Evander, he’s out of Winter-peg. The bad news? He’s going to Buffalo. Plus, the Sabres aren’t very good, so double whammy.

Going to the Sabres are Kane and former 3rd overall pick, Zach Bogosian, while the Jets haul in former Calder Trophy winning Defenseman Tyler Myers, along with winger Drew Stafford and prospects Joel Armia and Brendan Lemieux.

The Sabres pick up a guy who still has a shot to turn his career around and get back to scoring 30 goals a season, as well as a solid blue-liner in Bogosian. Both haven’t lived up to their potential to this point in their careers, but they’ve got a fresh start on a rebuilding team that’s all but guaranteed to get one of Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel, especially after trading Jhonas Enroth for Anders Lindback and a Conditional 3rd, giving them 2 goalies with a combined 5 wins on the season. Tim Murray really knows how to tank.

I’m most impressed with what Kevin Cheveldayoff and the Jets were able to come away with, despite the other 29 NHL Teams knowing Kane was forcing a trade out of Winnipeg. Most people believe that Bogosian and Myers wash each other out (they have posted similar numbers recently and both are 25), but I’d give the slight edge to Myers. The towering D-man has demonstrated his offensive capabilities in the past and now has far more talent surrounding him in Winnipeg. Besides that, Stafford gives the Jets more depth at forward, and the additions of Lemieux and Armia strengthen Winnipeg’s already formidable prospect pool that includes Nikolaj Ehlers, Josh Morrissey, Nic Petan, and Eric Comrie.

The jury is still out on who won the trade, and this will surely be one transaction that fans will follow closely for years to come.

2. Of course, another big trade occurred within the past 48 hours, and this one hits a little closer to home for me. Those crazy Toronto Maple Leafs, who seem to have finally accepted that they must start from scratch in order to be successful again, packaged offensive defenseman Cody Franson, and winger Mike Santorelli, to the Nashville Predators for veteran centre Olli Jokinen, prospect Brendan Leipsic, and a 1st round pick in the upcoming draft.

It seems like both teams got what they wanted in this swap. The Predators get a top 4 D-Man to bolster a unit that already has Shea Weber and Roman Josi, as well as a productive 3rd line forward in Santorelli. It should be interesting to see whether Nashville attempts to retain the two at season’s end, as both are pending Unrestricted Free Agents.

Meanwhile, the Leafs make the wise decision of trading their future UFAs, rather than holding onto them for the entire season and then letting them walk for nothing (See MacArthur, Clarke & Kulemin, Nikolai). It was all but certain the Leafs weren’t going to be able to keep either, so to be able to get a high draft pick is a nice change. They just better not draft another Tyler Biggs with the pick. Toronto also gets Brendan Leipsic who led the WHL in scoring with 120 points for the Portland Winterhawks a couple of years ago, and seems poised to become the next Brendan Gallagher. Hilariously, Olli Jokinen is headed to Toronto as well. Yes, THAT Olli Jokinen. He is well past his prime, and has made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t want to play in Toronto. He’s likely to be swapped for a mid to low round draft pick, so it’s OK Olli, we don’t want you here either.

All in all, can’t complain as a Leafs fan. This move is a step in the right direction.

3. Happy Birthday to Jaromir Jagr! The Most Interesting Man in the NHL! Jagr celebrated his 43rd birthday yesterday, and yes, he is the oldest player in the league. Let’s just look back on Jagr’s career a bit

• He’s 5th in NHL all-time scoring, that includes missing 2 seasons due to lockouts and choosing to go play in Russia for another 3, just cause he felt like it.
• He’s won the Art Ross 5 times (including 4 years in a row from 1998-2001!!!), the Hart once, and the Lester B. Pearson 3 times.
• He’s part of the Triple Gold Club
• He has a phenomenal mullet
• He’s been everywhere. A lot of people know him for his time with the Penguins, but Jagr has gotten around. After Pittsburgh, Washington, NY Rangers, Philadelphia, Dallas, Boston and now New Jersey
• He’s tough as hell and still in better shape than his teammates who are 20 years younger than him
• How much fun is it to actually say his name?
• He loves his Peanut Butter
• He rocked a Jofa
• The salute – which is an NHL celebration classic

So here’s to you Jaromir! The NHL salutes you! Including Danny Markov!

4. Remember Devan Dubnyk? Y’know, the Oilers former ‘Goalie of the Future’, who stunk up the joint, got traded to Nashville for an overpaid 4th liner, and then to Montreal for basically nothing? Whatever happened to that guy? Guess we’ll never know…

I’m only bringing this up because recently, the Minnesota Wild have been on an absolute tear. They looked to be well out of the playoff picture a couple of months ago; Head Coach Mike Yeo freaked out on his team in practice, and most were calling this season a write-off for Minnesota.

A few weeks ago however, they picked up this goalie from Arizona, and since then they’ve won 10 of their last 13 games, 23 of a possible 26 points, and are only 2 points out of a playoff spot. Most of that can be accredited to this new goalie, who’s posted a 10-1-1 record, with a .938 save percentage, 1.60 Goals Against Average and 4 shutouts! That’s incredible!

That mystery goalie? Devan Dubnyk. He never had more than 2 Shutouts in a season in Edmonton and his save percentage before getting traded last season was under .900. Dubnyk’s completely turned around his career, and who knows, maybe the Wild will sneak in after all behind Dubnyk’s resurrection.

5. On a sadder note, Steve Montador was found dead in his Mississauga home yesterday. He had a history of concussion problems and battled depression in the past, which may have contributed to his death. It seemed like Montador got along with everyone he met, and was also a bit of a character. Here’s a light-hearted anecdote on Montador in the wake of his tragic death.

Another NHLer that was taken from us way too soon.

6. This past weekend, the NBA held their annual All-Star festivities in New York/Brooklyn. The highlight of NBA All-Star Weekend every year is of course, the Slam Dunk Contest. Recently however, the Contest has turned into somewhat of joke; the best example being when the competition was entirely fixed in 2011 so that Blake Griffin would win.

This year was different.

Victor Oladipo had a sensational dunk in the first round that would’ve the best slam of the night in past years.

Then it was Zach LaVine’s turn to go.

And he absolutely blew the roof off of the Barclays Center.

LaVine plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who currently have the worst record in the Western Conference. But with Andrew Wiggins taking MVP of the Rising Stars game and LaVine winning the Dunk Contest, if you want to jump on the Timberwolves bandwagon, you should probably do that, right, about, now.

Also, I think Zach LaVine is a little bit happier now than he was when he got drafted.

7. While everyone always talks about the Slam Dunk Contest, this year the 3 point contest was getting just as much hype. The shoot-out contained 4 of the NBA’s top 11 in scoring, including James ‘The Beard’ Harden, Kyrie Irving and the Splash Bros., Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. It also had probably the best all-around shooter in the NBA right now, Kyle Korver.

If you’ve been around me recently, you’ve probably already heard me ramble on about Kyle Korver and how he’s on pace for the NBA’s greatest shooting season of all-time. His True Shooting Percentage, which takes into account Shooting percentage from the field, beyond the arc, and from the free throw line, is 73.1%! Kyle Korver is some type of android; he is as close to automatic as it gets.

But this was just Curry’s night. There’s a reason he got more votes than anyone else. 7th in scoring per game, 5th in assists per game, and the main reason why the Warriors have been so dominant this year.

He hit 13 in a row in the championship round and if he nailed that last 3, I’d have lost my mind. Stephen Curry is unreal, and not a day goes by that I don’t regret not buying a Curry Warriors Jersey in San Francisco.

8. The Celebrity All-Star game was another one of the highlights of the weekend. Kevin Hart looked to go for his 4th straight MVP by drawing as much attention to himself as possible by screaming nonsensically. He got it, unsurprisingly, because we all really just needed to see more of him. Getting a little tired of his schtick.

Team World beat Team USA in the Rising Stars Challenge, and Canadian Boy, scratch that, Toronto boy, Andrew Wiggins, took home MVP honours with a big performance. Alvin Gentry of the Golden State Warriors probably had the best quote about the game, saying “I think it should be North America against the World. Then that way, we get Canada.” There’s no denying the increase of Canadian talent in the NBA, with Wiggins leading the way.

Oh right, and then there was the actual game, the reason why all these events were happening. Kyle Lowry #NBABallot did start, so that ridiculous twitter campaign did mean something in the end, but the East lost to the West by a score of 163-158. Russell Westbrook won MVP and probably could’ve set the All-Star game scoring record if he didn’t get sat late in the game. No one’s more intense than Russell, and that’s one of the main reasons why he’s becoming one of the NBA next big superstars.

I just can’t wait until it all comes to Toronto next year.

9. Richie Incognito is back in the NFL, after signing with the Buffalo Bills to a one year deal worth 2.25 million. Now I get why the Bills would do it, their Offensive Line was one of their biggest weaknesses last season, and Incognito has shown in the past that he can play at a pro-bowl calibre level.

But how many chances are you going to give this guy? His entire career he’s had issues off of the field. When he was playing college ball at the University of Nebraska, he spat in players faces, got into fights at practice, was arrested for assault, and kicked out of the school. On talent alone, he was able to get drafted into the NFL, where he has been voted the dirtiest player in the league. Then of course, there was the Jonathan Martin bullying scandal. The things he said to Martin, who battled depression and contemplated suicide because of Incognito’s actions, were despicable.

This has to be Incognito’s last chance at the NFL, but the fact someone gave him another shot, pisses me right off. Incognito doesn’t seem to have changed one bit since his days at Nebraska, so why anyone would think this time will be different, is beyond me. I hope he’s a huge flop and is out of the NFL by season’s end. Incognito is the type of guy that needs the NFL, but the NFL doesn’t need him.

10. I’ll close by saying this: Pitchers and Catchers report for Spring Training in a couple of days. I think I speak for everyone when I say I’m excited that Baseball is only a few weeks away, because Baseball = warm weather, and let’s get real, NOBODY gets used to “Feels like -41” temperatures. The Boys of summer will be back soon. Go Sox.

Nolesy’s Super Bowl XLIX Extravaganza

This is it. Super Bowl Sunday. A day where millions gather around their televisions to watch stupid commercials, inappropriate half-time shows and shovel unfathomable amounts of food down their throats. Luckily, if you get bored with that, you could always turn your attention towards the biggest football game of the season, and boy are we in for a treat this year.

This NFL season started with 32 teams, all with the same goal; to hoist the Vince Lombardi trophy over their heads at season’s end. Only two teams remain, and it’s the two most hated franchises in the NFL right now; the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks. I’m sure there are quite a few people who would rather see a meteor hit University of Phoenix Stadium on Sunday, than watch one of these two be crowned champion.

It’s not even a question, these two teams deserve to be here. It’s not like one of them could’ve possibly cheated to get here. Neither of these teams needed to pull out trick plays in order to win their playoff games. And I’ve never seen a post-season with such high quality officiating.

Honestly though, they’re the two best teams in football. They both finished 12-4 and claimed the #1 seed in their respective conferences. For a stretch of the season, both teams looked unstoppable. They also both lost to the Kansas City Chiefs. Since those losses however, the two teams have a combined record of 20-2. This Super Bowl will be showcasing the best the NFL has to offer.

I can’t remember the last time a game was this close on paper. Despite the Patriots being listed as the 1.5 point favourites, this game is a complete toss-up. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many people torn on who they think will win this game.

While no one knows for sure who to pick, there is one thing that is certain, the footballs are going to be properly inflated.

Preview

New England Patriots

They’re baaaaaaaack.

The team of the 21st century will be making their 6th super bowl appearance since 2001, and are going to be looking to come away with their 4th win after being shut out in Super Bowl XLII and XLVI by the New York Giants.

New England started the year 2-2, while it looks average on paper, the Patriots got destroyed by Miami in Week 1 and in Week 4, were embarrassed on Monday Night Football by the Kansas City Chiefs, in what was the worst loss of the Brady-Belichick era. So-called experts claimed that this was “the end of the empire” and that Tom Brady was washed up. Didn’t exactly work out that way. Bill Belichick, in the press conference of the year, told the media that New England was “on to Cincinnati” and the Patriots won 10 of their next 11 games, clinching home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

In the Divisional Round, the Patriots won a game for the ages, coming back from down 14 points twice to beat the Baltimore Ravens, 35-31. The AFC Championship game can be summarized with this statement, the Patriots threw the Colts out of the club. New England demolished the Indianapolis Colts, 45-7, in what was one of the most all-around, dominant performances by a team this season. Then DeflateGate happened, and enough has already been said about that, so let’s focus on what could be one of the greatest Super Bowl games of all-time.

Offense (18th in Run, 9th in Pass, 11th total)

In the first 4 games of the 2014 season, Tom Brady looked like a QB that got taken 199th overall and people were legitimately saying that he needed to be benched for Jimmy Garoppolo.  Ever since then, he’s looked like a QB who led his team to 3 Super Bowl victories. Brady had another Pro-bowl calibre season, throwing for 34 TDs and over 4000 yards. Brady is 37, in the big game for the 6th time, the most of any QB in History. You know he will do whatever it takes to get one more and cap off his Hall of Fame career, and he’s got the weapons to pull it off. Admit it, you also secretly hate him, his Uggs, and the fact that he’s married to Supermodel Gisele Bundchen. It’s ok, jealousy is the best form of flattery.

GRONK IS BACK. The massive Tight End who always parties hard, had a monstrous year which earned him NFL Comeback Player of the Year honours, scoring 12 TDs and gaining 1,124 receiving yards after his knee got destroyed by T. J.  Ward in a game against the Browns last year. He is the biggest mismatch in professional football right now. He also loves kittens.

New England’s receiving corps has also put together a solid season. Julian Edelman and Brandon LaFell quietly had terrific seasons that saw both receivers catch 70+ balls and finish with just under 1,000 receiving yards. Danny Amendola has also greatly improved after his disappointing 2013 campaign and had his best game as a Patriot in the Divisional Round against Baltimore.

And let’s not forget about the Patriots backfield and the thunder and lightning duo of LeGarrette Blount and Shane Vereen, who have stepped up in the absence of regular starter, Stevan Ridley. Blount runs through you, like the Juggernaut in X-Men, as seen by his 3 scores against the Colts in the AFC Championship. Vereen on the other hand, is better known for being used as a screen option out of the backfield, who can also burn you like the Human Torch if you’re not careful.

New England’s Offensive Line has had a bit of an up and down year. After being unable to stop a nosebleed to begin the season, the group of Solder, Wendell, Stork, Connolly and Vollmer have begun to develop a lot of chemistry. They did struggle recently against Baltimore, but for most of the season, they did what they had to do in order to win football games.

The Patriots don’t rank extremely high in any offensive categories, but they can beat you in every possible way you can imagine. That’s why they’re here.

Defense (9th Run, 17th Pass, 13th Total)

In recent memory, the Patriots have been known for their high-powered, pass heavy offense but what people forget is that they won their 3 Super Bowls off the play of their outstanding Defense. This year’s D might be the closest that New England has come to recapturing their play from the early 2000s.

When Defensive Captain Jerod Mayo was lost for the season, the Patriots Defense looked like it might be in trouble, but the play from Linebackers Jamie Collins and Dont’a Hightower has been absolutely phenomenal. They’ve been two of the better linebackers in the league this season, no one’s talking about it, but these guys have been tackling everything in sight. Collins had 116 tackles, 4 sacks, 4 forced fumbles and 2 interceptions, while Hightower had 89 tackles and 6 sacks with a forced fumble.

The secondary has also been huge for New England, specifically Darrelle Revis, their big off-season acquisition. Revis was able to re-capture the form he had with the New York Jets that made him one of the best defensive players in the game. Besides “Revis Island”, New England got another exceptional year from former pro-bowl Safety Devin McCourty and DBs Kyle Arrington and Pat Chung came through when the team needed them the most.

New England’s Defensive Line hasn’t played spectacularly well this year, but have done enough to get by. Chandler Jones missing a majority of the season with a hip injury definitely made an impact on the group’s performance but he’s ready to go for this Sunday. Nose Tackle, and all-around amazing human being, Vince Wilfork, is getting up in age, but is still able to draw two defenders on him each play. Rob Ninkovich plays more snaps than almost defensive player in the league and had a solid season with 8 sacks, and Akeem Ayers has been big for the Patriots after being picked up from the Titans mid-season.

New England’s D did shut down the #1 ranked passing offence in the NFL 2 weeks ago, so if they can stop the #1 rushing attack, they are most definitely, a Super Bowl worthy team.

Seattle Seahawks

People hate the Seahawks for their loud mouthed players (other than Marshawn Lynch). I don’t. They have every right to talk all they want, they’re the best. You want to shut them up? Beat them. No one’s been able to do that, and the Seahawks are looking to win back-to-back Super Bowl titles. Funny enough, they could become the first team to repeat as champs since guess who? The New England Patriots.

The Seahawks didn’t get off to a fantastic start either. Seattle had consecutive losses to the Dallas Cowboys and St. Louis Rams early in the season, and all of a sudden, the defending champions are 3-3. People began to believe that the ‘Legion of Boom’ Secondary was supposedly gone and with a tough schedule coming up, the Seahawks may miss the Playoffs! Instead, Seattle claimed the #1 seed in the NFC, winning 9 of their final 10 and finishing the season with the #1 ranked Defense in the NFL once again. Oh, you writers and your silly narratives.

The Seahawks then disposed of the Carolina Panthers in the Divisional round somewhat easily. The NFC Championship was another story. QB Russell Wilson had the worst performance of his career by throwing not one, not two, not three, but FOUR INTERCEPTIONS and Seattle was down 16-0 at halftime. But thanks to a number of things, which includes Morgan Burnett sliding after an interception instead of going for a long return, the Green Bay Packers Defense forgetting how to football,  the ugliest 2 point conversion in the history of the NFL, Brandon ‘Boom’ Bostick flubbing the onside kick and most importantly, Mike McCarthy’s lack of cojones; the Seahawks pulled off the improbable comeback and advanced to the Super Bowl.

Offense (1st Run, 27th Pass, 9th Total)

Smash-mouth football is back.

Seattle’s Offense was deadly this season due to their dual running threat. Marshawn Lynch tore it up once again this year by having the 4th most rushing yards of any back in the league (1,306), 4.7 yards a carry and 13 Touchdowns, which tied him for the league lead. The man they call “BeastMode” has the ability to change a game in one play, something very few people in the NFL can do. Plus, the guy is hilarious.

Russell Wilson wasn’t stellar in his last game but he’s been excellent all season long. Wilson, while throwing for over 3,475 yards and 20 Touchdowns, also ran for 849, more than any other QB in the NFL this season. Wilson can do it with his arm or his legs and can find ways to turn nothing into something. Wilson’s only been in the league a few years, but he’s already established himself as a winner, and has even started getting comparisons to a Hall of Fame Quarterback, his counterpart, Tom Brady.

Of course that great ground game wouldn’t be what it is without the Seahawks Offensive Line.  J. R.  Sweezy and James Carpenter are serviceable as Guards, there aren’t many Centers I would take over Max Unger, and Russell Okung and Justin Britt are two of the better Tackles in the league. This group could open up the edge for Lynch to get to the second level and run rampant.

A lot of people have referred to Seattle’s receivers as ‘pedestrian’. Though they’re probably the weakest part of the Seahawks’ Offense, they’re not to be taken lightly. Doug “Nobody believes in us” Baldwin and Jermaine Kearse can come up with a big play at any time, even if they’ve been playing terrible all game. People do actually believe in you Doug, you’re the defending champs, so relax a little bit. The big surprise for the Seahawks this year has been Tight End, and CANADIAN, Luke Willson coming in to relieve Zach Miller. Willson adds another element to the already dangerous Seahawks Offense and he could have a huge impact in the game on Sunday.

Seattle pounds the ball down your throat with a healthy dose of Lynch and Wilson and once you’re tired, they can burn you deep. The Seahawks D may take all the headlines but the Offense isn’t too bad either.

Defense (3rd Run, 1st Pass, 1st Total)

This Seahawks Defense is probably the best Defense the National Football League has seen since the 2000 Baltimore Ravens. 

The Defensive Line for the Seahawks has some great pass rushers. Michael Bennett is the probably the most well-known of this group, his versatility to play as an end or tackle is something teams have to worry about and I’ll get to him in just a bit. Seattle also has Cliff Avril and Bruce Irvin, a LB who is predominantly used as a pass rusher, coming off the edge. The trio itself has 18.5 sacks on the season, and the battle between them and New England’s Offensive Line will be one of the key match ups to watch.

Seattle may have the next great linebacker in the game with Bobby Wagner. Wagner only started 11 games this year but he was still able to make 104 tackles and 2 sacks. The Seahawks struggled early on, but since Wagner came back in week 12, Seattle hasn’t lost a game, earning him an MVP vote for this season. K. J.  Wright also had a solid season for the Seahawks with 107 tackles and 3 forced fumbles. Wagner and Wright form a tag-team duo that can be a nightmare for running backs.

Then of course, there’s that #1 Pass Defense, the best secondary in the league, the Legion of Boom. Pick your poison. On one side of the field, you’ve got Richard Sherman, who many would argue is the best Cornerback in the game today. While he didn’t have an incredible statistical season like he’s had in the past, that can mostly be accredited to the fact that Quarterbacks today are absolutely terrified of Sherman. You want to go to the other side of the field, you’ll find that Byron Maxwell is no slouch either, and he’s proven that to the rest of the league this season. Then up top you’ve got safeties Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor, who are both incredibly talented and freaks of nature. The Seattle Seahawks Defense. They’re better than you, and they know it!

You can talk about match-ups all you want but no Offense is going to have an easy time against the Seahawks Defense. Right Peyton?

X-Factors

Patriots – Jamie Collins

Collins is one of the most under-rated players in the NFL right now, and he has filled in admirably for Jerod Mayo, the Patriots Defensive Captain who went down with a torn ACL earlier this year. The Pats secondary should be able to handle Baldwin and Kearse easily, the way Seattle beats NE is through Marshawn Lynch, Russell Wilson and the ground game. People forget the great year that both Collins and fellow linebacker Dont’a Hightower have had for New England, they’ve shut down some good backs, though Lynch will be the best they’ve faced. If Collins contains Lynch, it’s very likely New England leaves Arizona with a victory

Seahawks – Michael Bennett

Bennett might be the Seahawks best pass rusher and it has long been known that the key to beating the Patriots is to get the pressure on Brady as seen through the Giants two previous Super Bowl victories. Bennett’s got 7 sacks on the year and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him get another on Sunday. If the Seahawks are able to disrupt Brady in the pocket and force him into making bad throws, the Legion of Boom secondary will eat the Hall of Fame Patriots QB alive. New England’s Offensive Line has been it’s biggest issue all season long and has struggled against teams with strong defensive fronts like Miami, Kansas City and Baltimore. If Seattle can throw Brady off his game, there is no way they don’t win the game.

Prediction

At the beginning of this year, whether you believe me or not, I predicted that the New England Patriots would go 12-4, claim the #1 seed in the AFC and win the Super Bowl. “Well, Nolan, you’re just a stupid Pats homer, so of course you’d do that, you probably pick them to win every year”. Not true, I expected them to lose in the AFC Championship the past 2 years. And they did.

This game is going to be a low-scoring game, similar to the past two Super Bowls which New England has played in.

Seattle’s Defense is going to show up, as they always do. LeGarrette Blount will not have the game he had against the Indianapolis Colts. Expect him to get the ball in lots of short-yardage situations where they need a power back to move the chains but not more than that, the Seattle D will stop the interior rush.

The biggest matchup of this game is between the two Monsters that are TE Rob Gronkowski and SS Kam Chancellor. When these two collide on Sunday, the impact may create a second coming of the ‘Big Bang’. I give Gronkowski the slight edge in this matchup, Seattle’s performance against Tight Ends this year hasn’t been stellar, and Gronkowski is the best of the best. Gronk doesn’t go over 100 yards, but he scores a TD. If he does happen to make a few big plays early on, and I think he will, expect a LB like Bobby Wagner or K. J.  Wright to help neutralize him. I’m sure the Seahawks will be all over the Seam pass to Gronk that Brady has thrown interceptions on in back-to-back games.

If Seattle wants to win, Marshawn has to get the ball A TON on sunday, I’m talking 20+ carries. To me, the Seattle rushing attack is obviously the key to them winning this game and he’s going to need at least 100 yards rushing if he wants to get them the victory. The Patriots will counter this by bringing a safety down and putting 8 guys in the box, forcing Seattle to try to beat them without BeastMode.  Lynch is one of the best backs in the league, but I don’t see him having consistent success against 8 defenders and Collins and Hightower can get to the edge fast enough to prevent him from having a signature BeastMode run. Expect Russell Wilson to take some keepers as well, he should have time in the pocket to pass and will try to  create something out of nothing a few times in the game.

To me, the biggest mismatch is the New England Secondary versus the Seattle receivers. Revis, Brandon Browner, McCourty, Chung and whoever else comes in whether it be Kyle Arrington, Logan Ryan, Duron Harmon are superior to the Seattle Receiving corps; they can afford to go into man-to-man the whole game. Revis is going to be all over Doug Baldwin, everyone expects Browner to cover Jermaine Kearse, and don’t be surprised if McCourty helps out up top in case Kearse is able beat Browner with his speed. I just can’t see Seattle’s receivers winning their matchup at all, especially not after the way they played against Green Bay, specifically Kearse, who was targeted six times, but only caught one deep pass and was partially to blame for Wilson’s four picks. Those deep passes late aren’t gonna work this time with better DBs in coverage.

New England’s got more talent on the offensive side of the ball, and the Legion of Boom isn’t at it’s healthiest right now. Sherman, Thomas, and Chancellor are all battling injuries and I don’t think they’re going to be 100% on Sunday. The Patriots will use their patented “death by a thousand paper cuts” attack, quick and short passes which the Seattle Secondary, ultimately, won’t be able to stop. We saw this strategy earlier in the season when the San Diego Chargers defeated Seattle, and QB Philip Rivers threw for almost 300 yards and 3 scores, yet his longest throw of the game was for only 21.

Everyone keeps bringing up DeflateGate and how all the controversy surrounding New England is going to throw them off their game going into Sunday. Are you kidding me? How pissed off do you think the New England Patriots are right now? And remember Spygate? The scandal appeared after the first game of the 2007 season. What did the Patriots do? Oh I don’t know, just absolutely obliterated every team in their path. They have the “us against the world” mentality and they want this way more than Seattle. They lost their last two trips to the big game and I’m sure they’re still thinking about how 19-0 got away from them. Tommy and Bill want one more to silence the haters.

This has surely been the darkest NFL season in my lifetime; a year whereas soon as one scandal finished, another one began. A season which has been marred by controversies ranging from domestic violence, to racially offensive team names, to poor officiating decisions, to deflated balls, it should only be fitting that the New England Patriots, the organization which has had its competitive integrity questioned since 2007, and is currently the most despised franchise in the National Football League, finish as the Super Bowl Champions.

Patriots 17, Seahawks 16.

Bold Prediction: Darrelle Revis wins Super Bowl MVP on a huge performance highlighted by a pick-six. The man is going to get PAID this offseason.

GO PATS.

The Night Football Broke My Heart

Have you ever had your dreams crushed?

It may be hard to believe, but in my somewhat short, inexperienced, 18-year life, I’ve had my dreams crushed more times than you would expect. Being obsessed with Sports can do that to a person, and the endless amount of times my sports teams (specifically one in general) have disappointed me would take hours to recap. So I’m just going to talk about one of those events, and it is without a doubt, the worst loss I’ve ever experienced as a fan.

Super Bowl XLII.

A lot of people fondly remember Super Bowl XLII, you know what I say to them? Shut up.

Back in the fall of 2007, I was 11 years old and in the 6th grade. I had really been into football for a while now and had begun to watch Patriots games on a weekly basis the year prior. You could definitely say that I was a big fan going into the 2007 season. The Patriots merchandise had begun to take up space in my room and one of my most prized possessions was a Blue New England Patriots #12 Tom Brady Jersey, which I wore every Patriots Game Day (something that I still do to this day, different jersey however since I outgrew the other one) and if the Patriots won, I would also wear it to school the following day.

2007 was also a great year to be a New England Patriots fan. While it did start off with a scandal that cost them a 1st round draft pick and according to some, tarnished their legacy, it sparked something that nobody wanted. Giving a team which already tons of talent, even more motivation. The 2007 New England Patriots were a team on a mission: to completely and utterly destroy every franchise in the National Football League.

Tom Brady was a passing machine, throwing for 50 Touchdown Passes in a single season, an NFL record at the time. He would also win League MVP. Randy Moss resurrected his career and caught 23, a record which still stands today. The Patriots scored more points than any franchise in NFL history with 589. And of course, became the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins, to go undefeated in the regular season, 16-0.

You could not possibly understand how much of a thrill this season was for me. It was like I was playing as the Patriots in Madden, win every game no matter what, and most of the time it was by a ridiculous score. During that fall and winter, my friends and I would mostly play pick-up football at recess ( I don’t mean to brag or anything, but I was basically the Jerry Rice of the Miller’s Grove Public School Playground). A lot of my buddies started watching the NFL a lot more and it became a big topic of discussion (especially since the team that always had our attention, the Toronto Maple Leafs, stunk, and had so for a couple of years). So every Monday that fall, I walked into my classroom, wearing my #12 Brady New England Patriots jersey, and people began to notice. A lot of times I’d walk to school and hear something along the lines of,

“Hey! Pats won again! Brady’s unstoppable!” Later that year, we started to chant:

“13-0! Go Pats Go!”, and it would be updated after every win.

As the season progressed, and the Patriots continued to win, almost every single person in my grade 6 class became a New England Patriots fan. 

The week leading up to Super Bowl XLII, I was pretty confident the Patriots were on their way to completing the perfect 19-0 season, and I had every right to be. This was the most dominant Offense in the history of the NFL at the time; obliterating teams by scores of 38-7, 52-7, and 56-10. While they hadn’t looked very hot against Jacksonville or the Chargers in the post-season, New England was going to face the New York Giants in the Super Bowl, which reassured my confidence. I wasn’t expecting the beat down which some analysts were predicting, since the Patriots had only beat the Giants by 3 points in the regular season, but I still reasonably believed that Patriots had it all locked up. Beat them once, they can beat them again right?

I don’t think I’ve ever been as edgy and paranoid as I was watching that game. The opening drive of the game got me infuriated right off the bat. New York marched down the field for 77 yards in 10 minutes and came away with a field goal, the longest opening drive in Super Bowl History. Just like that, the Patriots only had 50 minutes to put points on the board, not as much as it sounds. It was at that moment I figured out that the Giants had come up with a brilliant strategy that could get them the victory; keep the ball out of Brady’s hands. I discovered how they would do that shortly after.

The Patriots would score on their opening possession, a 1-yard TD rush from Laurence Maroney, but after that opening play of the 2nd quarter, both defenses began to take over. Each team was held scoreless for the remainder of the first half and the entire 3rd quarter. This was mostly highlighted by the Defensive Front Four of the New York Giants, led by long-time veteran and future Hall of Famer, Michael Strahan. The Giants were able to sack Brady 5 times for a loss of 37 yards and force a fumble in a key drive to close out the first half. Big performances from Pro-Bowler Osi Umenyiora and relative unknown at the time, Justin Tuck, helped to swing the momentum into the Giants favour.

Tom Brady doesn’t lose often, but if there’s any secret to beating him or pattern in his defeats, it’s in the pass rush. Don’t get me wrong, Brady excels when he faces the blitz, but if you’re able to pressure him before he can get his feet set, you will throw him off his game. We’ve even seen it happen this year in New England’s blowout losses to Miami and Kansas City. Both those teams had top-tier NFL pass rushes and to say the New England O-Line was uncomfortable and inexperienced would be an understatement. Simply put, if the pocket collapses around him, Brady is not Brady. And he certainly wasn’t himself on the night of Super Bowl XLII, because after 3, the Patriots had only scored one touchdown. The lowest offensive output they had all season was 20 points. They currently had 7, with 15 minutes left.

Once again, the New York Giants knew exactly what they had to do in order to have a shot at defeating the “invincible” , 18-0, New England Patriots.

Then, with 11:05 left in the 4th quarter, New York broke the scoring deadlock with a touchdown caught by David Tyree. I didn’t really notice who the receiver was at that time, I just knew the Patriots were behind late. I’d sure know who he was not long after that TD though. 10-7 Giants.

Through all of this, I was staying calm. The Pats had faced adversity all season long, coming back in dramatic victories over the Colts, Eagles, and Ravens earlier in 2007. So despite the ominous signs, I was still pretty optimistic that New England was going to pull it out with just over 11 minutes left in the game.

And it very much looked as if I was going to be right. Tom Brady marched New England 80 yards downfield and threw a dart to Randy Moss in the back of the end zone with 2:42 remaining. 14-10 Patriots.

Just imagine, it would’ve the perfect ending to the perfect season. The dynamic duo of Brady and Moss, the greatest single-season QB-WR combo, who had absolutely annihilated opposing defenses all season long, would score the final touchdown to cap off the best season by any team in NFL History. Undefeated. 19-0. The ultimate team accomplishment.

As excited as I was that New England had retaken the lead, it was when they scored, that for the first time all season, I had some doubts about whether New England would be able to win the game or not. They left way too much time on the clock. 2:42 is an eternity in Football, and that’s what the ensuing drive would feel like for me.

The Patriots had 3 chances to close out the game, be crowned Super Bowl Champs for the 4th time in 7 years, and finish the season 19-0. They managed to blow it all 3 times.

The first was when they couldn’t prevent power back Brandon Jacobs from converting on 4th down. This one I totally expected. On that night, nobody was slowing down Jacobs on close-yardage situations, and unsurprisingly, he picked up the first down.

The second chance the Patriots had to finish the job was entirely on one guy, Asante Samuel. Samuel had an outstanding season, he led the league in interceptions and was named to the Pro Bowl and All-Pro teams. But on 2nd-and-5, two plays after Jacobs’ conversion, Eli Manning threw in Samuel’s direction. The pass bounced directly off Samuel’s hands; a gimme interception, dropped by the NFL’s leader in that category. At that moment, I was disappointed, but I sort of laughed it off. So far in the drive, the Giants hadn’t made a ton of progress, and it was now 3rd and 5 with only 1:15 left.

The next play… is something that has been implanted in my brain. It still pops up in my nightmares and sometimes wakes me up at night. I am dead serious when I say this.  It’s “The Helmet Catch”.

When the play started to develop, I stood up and thought “We got ‘em”. Adalius Thomas came flying around the edge and looked to get Manning but he just missed as Manning moved up in the pocket. But Richard Seymour AND Jarvis Green were both there and got their hands on Manning, in fact Green starts to make a move to bring him down. But somehow, SOMEHOW, Manning escaped the grasp of both linemen and rolled to the right.

At this point, I’m just unable to comprehend how Manning was able to get out of a game-killing sack.  And now he’s throwing up a bomb downfield, a hail mary, to god knows what he sees because no one watching the game on TV could tell.

“Please be incomplete. Please be incomplete. Please be incomplete.”

And at the end of Manning’s reception, is David. Freaking. Tyree. A guy who had 4 receptions all season long. The same guy who caught the Touchdown earlier in the game. Out-jumping Rodney Harrison and pinning the ball to his helmet at the New England 25-yard line. For his final career NFL reception.

“No… No way there’s gotta be… No. You’re kidding me. How? No…”

Disbelief. The best word to describe how I felt following Tyree’s helmet catch.

So many different things happened on that play. The Patriots could’ve sacked Manning 3 separate times on that play. Manning may have seen Tyree, but if you watch the play again, Manning kind of floats one up for grabs and hopes for the best. And then even after all that, Tyree’s waiting downfield for Manning’s heave and has to make an absolutely spectacular catch in order to haul the pass in. It’s a miraculous sequence. You could run that play 100 times, only one time would Tyree make that catch.

But the Giants knew that if they played the perfect game, they’d have a chance at pulling off the upset. They had to be perfect, to beat the team that was trying to be perfect.

The next drive was pretty much a blur for me. When Tyree made that catch, you just knew the Giants were going to score, and they did. Plaxico Burress ran a Sluggo route and caught Manning’s fade to the corner of the end zone. 17-14 New York Giants. 35 seconds left.

Game Over. Season Over. The New York Giants had done the unthinkable, they had defeated the undefeated. They were the Super Bowl Champions.

And the Patriots, my beloved New England Patriots, the team I had pretty much followed on a religious basis that season, finished 18-1. They tripped at the finish line. All those wins, suddenly, they meant nothing. The Perfect Season was gone. They wouldn’t be known as the greatest team EVER, they’d be known as the greatest team to NEVER win the Super Bowl.

I sat there in front of the TV, in silence, for a solid 5 minutes after the game had ended. Then, after finally taking in everything I had just witnessed, I went to my room.

And while almost everyone was celebrating the fact that they had just witnessed David beat Goliath in one of the most incredible football games of all time, I sat down on my bed, alone, and I bawled my freaking eyes out.

The next day, I went to school. I did not wear my #12 Brady New England Patriots Jersey. There were no “19-0! Go Pats Go!” chants. In fact, there were no more Patriots fans at my school except for pretty much myself. I guess before the game most of my friends decided that they would become Giants fans because I got absolutely torn to shreds.

“Let’s Go Giants!”,

“Patriots Suck! 18-1! HAHAHA”

“CHOKERS” followed by a choking sign. Then I’d usually respond

“Weren’t you a Pats fan on Friday?”, and the reply would be something like

“Pfft, NO, Why Would I cheer for those Losers?” Such is the life of a 6th grader; kids have got a new favourite team every week. I was unable to pull myself to watch TSN or Sportsnet for two weeks, because the only thing they kept showing was the stupid David Tyree catch. It made me sick every time I saw it. It was basically torture for me to re-watch the game-winning drive from Super Bowl XLII for this article. I still hate watching it. I always will.

Looking back on the game today, I’m not as bitter or as devastated as I was on February 3rd, 2008. The Giants really deserved to win that game, they were the better team on that day. New England only scored 14 points; that’s not going to win you the Super Bowl.

I also kind of wish that the Patriots had lost one game during the regular season. If they had, I don’t think there would have been as much pressure on their shoulders as their was going into Super Bowl XLII, to tell you the truth, they likely would’ve dominated. 16-0 is a cool feat, but it’s nothing compared to winning another Super Bowl.

Super Bowl XLVI in 2012 would go on to give me a bit of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The rematch of XLII would feature Wes Welker’s Drop and Mario Manningham’s sideline catch, two events that are eerily similar to what happened in 4 years earlier.

But with New England returning to the Super Bowl for the 6th time since the turn of the century this upcoming week (against a new opponent, THANK GOD), the excitement that I had back in 2007 has returned. The Patriots have a chance to re-establish themselves as the best in the NFL once again, and hopefully help me get over the traumatizing night that was Super Bowl XLII.