Sunday, December 28, 2003
Week 17 reflections
The thrill of victory is still sinking in, but I thought I would take a moment to review the final week of the regular NawFuL season.
THE SURFY ... The Junior Bro offered a congratulatory phone call shortly after the Dolphins and Falcons wrapped up their wins. That was a very classy move from a classy fellow prognosticator. Thanks, Sean. I know how much defending that title meant to you and I am sure it will swing your way again eventually. You made me earn every one of those splits. With the vagaries of the NawFuL it could have gone either way, and for a while this afternoon I was unconvinced that we wouldn't be playing the postseason. Now with the picks finished and the Niners and Raiders both out of the picture, we can simply ignore the run-up to Stupor Bore XXXVIII. (My pick is the Patsies over the Eagles -- or maybe the Rams.)
THE GAMES... Hats off to the Seahawks. Everything that needed to happen for that team to make the playoffs did. They played the Niners well and reaped the rewards, thanks to Dallas and Minnesota collapsing. Now they get to travel to Green Bay again, where they got trounced earlier in the season. Will they exact revenge? Not against a peaking Packers offense.
The Raiders fizzled in San Diego, as they managed to do in every other road game this year. Pathetic! The ESPN gurus said coach Bill Callahan should be excused for the poor performance of his team on account of excessive injuries to key players. Perhaps that had something to do with 4-12, but that doesn't excuse the "healthy" players who could and should have stepped up. I saw every minute of that Monday night debacle against the Packers and, as Sean so aptly stated, the Raiders looked like they had quit. Can we say defense? The offense looked pretty shaky against the Chargers, too.
How about the Lions upending the Rams? What a way to go into the bye week before your playoff debut. St. Louis blew what should have been an easy shot at home field advantage. They'll miss it when they visit the Eagles next month.
And speaking of being upended, so long Vikings. There's just no excuse for losing an 11-point lead against the Cardinals with less than six minutes to play, regardless of where the game is played. After a 6-0 start they should have been division champs, not chumps.
Glenn 8-D 5:34:00 PM
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