It’s wildcard weekend in the National Football League with four entertaining games. The one I think everyone is excited about the most will take place Sunday afternoon as the Washington Redskins take on the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC (FOX, 2:30 p.m.).
This is also a battle of two rookie quarterbacks with Russell Wilson of Seattle taking on Washington’s RG3. A lot of people are surprised Seattle is a three point favourite. I’m not, based on how well the Seahawks have played throughout December. However, don’t forget the Seahawks had a losing record on the road this season, and are much more comfortable in the Pacific Northwest.
Here are the other events I’ll be watching:
Saturday–World Junior Hockey Championship Final–Sweden vs. United States–TSN–6:00 a.m.–The 2013 Championship Final has two strong Calgary connections. The top American player, John Gaudreau, forward from Boston College, is a draft pick of the Calgary Flames (4th round in 2011) and one of Sweden’s top snipers is Victor Rask of the Calgary Hitmen. The American defense as a collective unit is exceptional. Seth Jones, Jacob Trouba and Jake McCabe have been excellent in the medal round in wins over the Czech Republic and Canada.
This week on the show we’re talking World Juniors, the NHL lockout (of course!), Adrian Peterson’s big season & we take a look at Wildcard Weekend in the NFL.
In the GABBYs: The London Knights, the LA Clippers, Adrian Peterson, US customs, the Atlanta Braves & Avery Johnson. The Punchline this week is the Memphis Grizzlies!
The Minnesota Vikings and the Washington Redskins are the last two teams to qualify for the NFL postseason.
On Sunday, Adrian Peterson ran for 199 yards as the Vikings upset the Green Bay Packers 37-34 at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, in what was quite possibly the very best NFL regular season game in 2012.
The ebb and flow of the game was fantastic throughout and guess what? The two NFC North foes will battle again next Saturday night at Lambeau.
Meanwhile, the Redskins qualified for the postseason with stellar running attack of their own. Alfred Morris had 200 yards rushing in Washington’s 28-18 win over Dallas. With the win, the Redskins won the NFC East and will host the surging Seattle Seahawks next weekend in the NFC Wildcard. This will be a great battle of rookie mobile quarterbacks. with Robert Griffin III playing Russell Wilson.
This week on 15 Minutes of Fame, we recap Super Bowl XLVI between the NY Giants and the New England Patriots, we take a look back at Sam Gagner’s eight-point night against the Blackhawks and we try to figure out if the Edmonton Oilers still have a shot at the playoffs, and who might not be on the team when the trade deadline hits.
In the GABBYs: NHL milestones, Shaun White, Rubellos, Zimbabwe soccer, John Foley and Alex Radulov. The Punchline this week is Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.
My hot streak continues everyone as I went 12-4 last week and am 154-70 on the season.Please note there is only one game Christmas Day and the majority are played during the day on Christmas Eve.
Here are my week 16 picks:
Thursday
Houston over Indianapolis–I know the Colts are on cloud nine after beating the Titans last week, but the Texans are getting enough from quarterback T.J. Yates to contend with most teams.
Saturday 11am
NY Jets over NY Giants–The Giants were terrible against the Redskins last week, and are more than capable of losing to a Jets team where their only weakness is at quarterback.
Arizona over Cincinnati–The Cardinals have won four in a row and are starting to get a strong defense together. Linebacker Daryl Washington has 20 tackles over their last four games.
In what is turning out to be a very popular column on www.anysportanytime.ca, here are my week six picks. Last week I went 8-5 and have improved my overall record to 49-28.
11am
Green Bay over St. Louis–The Rams just can’t match the Packers’ explosive offense.
NY Giants over Buffalo–I know the Bills have beaten the Eagles, Raiders and Patriots, but I’m not convinced that they’re an elite team yet. The Giants don’t beat themselves two straight weeks at home.
Indianapolis over Cincinnati–The Colts offense is coming together under rookie quarterback Curtis Painter. The question is will he be able to get by a stingy and underrated Bengals defense that has only given up 94 points? I say he does enough to win.
Atlanta over Carolina–Even without Julio Jones with a hamstring injury, the Falcons barely get by the Panthers.
San Francisco over Detroit–The 49ers are just as good as the Lions, maybe even better. Their 48-3 convincing win over the Buccaneers last week showed me a lot.
Philadelphia over Washington–The Eagles won’t lose to the Redskins, will they? I need to go with Philadelphia here, thinking that Andy Reid has the Redskins figured out.
Heading into the weekend, there is one particular statistic that stands out to me over all the others.
After eight days in the NHL’s regular season, the Edmonton Oilers are tied with the Detroit Red Wings for the fewest goals allowed in the entire league! That’s right folks, the Oilers and Red Wings have only disallowed three goals each.
Oilers’ goaltenders Devan Dubnyk and Nikolai Khabibulin have actually only given up two regulation goals between them. Dubnyk gave up a softy to Kris Letang in the Oilers’ 2-1 shootout win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday, while Khabibulin gave up a regulation goal to Matt Cullen in Edmonton’s 2-1 shootout loss to Minnesota on Thursday.
On Saturday night, the Oilers will entertain the Vancouver Canucks at Rexall Place. They will have a tough time containing Daniel and Henrik Sedin though, who have combined for 114 points in 123 games in their career versus the Oilers. Game time is 8pm and can be seen on CBC.
In week one I was 10-6, and wrong with the Cleveland Browns, Denver Broncos, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Tennessee Titans, and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Here are my week two picks:
11am
Green Bay over Carolina–The Packers will win a tight one. Panthers’ quarterback Cam Newton raised eyebrows with how he was able to find instant success with Steve Smith last week.
Oakland over Buffalo–The Raiders defense impressed me significantly last week, and will pressure Ryan Fitzpatrick more than the Chiefs did a week ago.
Baltimore over Tennessee–The Titans don’t have the passing attack like the Steelers do, and the Ravens did a great job of pressuring Ben Roethlisberger last week. The Ravens’ defensive tandem of Ed Reed, Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs are still playing at a high level, and cornerback Lardarius Webb is starting to come into his own as a significant presence as well.
It’s a tale of two lockouts in the world of North American pro sports right now.
In the NFL, the season is fast-approaching as the work stoppage nears its 130th day, but there are rumblings that it may all be over soon. Not so in the NBA though, where players are being encouraged to find somewhere else to play to show the owners what’s up!
Lets start with football: ESPN reports that Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees are calling for the end of the lockout, but after another marathon session, the two sides aren’t ready to come together just yet.
There is a lot of talk that July 21st might be a big day in the CBA battle, but there are also rumors that the players still don’t feel like the owners are “giving” as much as they should be in negotiations. Another thing that could potentially slow things down is the legal action being taken by former players who feel they’ve been left out of the whole process. Could that affect a potential deal reached by the players and the owners? I suppose we’ll find out on August 8th when a judge hears the case! (After the Jump: Hilarious “lockout” video from the ESPYs!) (more…)
You’re a professional athlete, playing for a team whose first 13 games of the season can only really be described as a massive disappointment. You’ve been without your star player since mid-October, but your team is actually starting to come on a bit as you near the end of the year. You won two in a row and three of four, with a three point loss in there somewhere. This past Sunday, your team lost 30-27 for the second time in three weeks. Afterwards, do you:
A) Walk off the field
B) Shake hands and laugh with the other team
C) Ask for the winning quarterback’s autograph
D) Cry uncontrollably
If you answered “C,” you’ll find nothing wrong with what happened after the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Dallas Cowboys last weekend! (more…)
Tom Brady could possibly be playing his best football ever. Monday night at Foxboro, Brady was at his best. The former draft pick of the Montreal Expos (that’s right– he was drafted as a catcher in 1995) threw for four touchdowns and 326 passing yards in a 45-3 demolition of the New York Jets.
If this win won’t shut up the cocky Jets who guaranteed a Super Bowl win to begin the year, nothing will.
It’s a tale of two lockouts in the world of North American pro sports right now.
The Wrong Choice?
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