Sunday, January 20, 2002
MAKE IT 8 FOR 8
It's too bad we don't pick the playoffs. Since making my playoff predictions before the wildcard round, I haven't been wrong yet. I correctly picked Baltimore over Miami last week, Philly over Chicago this week, with the rest of the home teams holding serve. Just as a reminder, I'm predicting a Steelers-Rams Super Bowl, with the Rams winning it all. The Rams still look unstoppable after demolishing the Packers. It makes me glad that the 49ers lost last week. It would have been humiliating and demoralizing to lose to these guys three times in a season.
As for the Raiders... I had turned the game off after the apparent incompletion that would have given the Raiders the ball and the victory. I was shocked when my brother-in-law called me to say the Raiders had lost. Now, I am an admitted 49er diehard, and, as a consequence, an avid Raider hater, but the Raiders were robbed. I saw the replays on the sports highlight shows. Brady had indeed pumped to throw the ball, but brought it back and was holding it with both hands when the ball was knocked loose. Once he had that second hand on the ball, it had to be a fumble.
That being said, I still felt the better team won. The Patriots would have had complete control of the game had they not played so conservatively. The Patriots were stuffed on the run most of the day. Abandoning the run earlier would probably have resulted in more points.
The Raiders have their work cut out for them this off season. They are very old in some key positions such as quarterback, receiver, and defensive back. They may have played at a high caliber in these areas this year, but I would be surprised if they are playing at the same level in two or three years. They also need help on the defensive line, especially with Darrell Russel's problems.
THREE MORE GAMES TO GO!!!
Junior Bro 5:58:00 PM
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