Last week: 3-1 straight picks; 3-1 vs. the spread
If you've been following the Commish's picks since the playoff preview's inception, you know that I should avoid Las Vegas like the plague. So 3-for-4 in the first round has to be a new all-time high! I finally found something that works: pick against the Jayhawks.
| AFFC: (4) CAROLINA KILLERS (5-8, 770 points) at (3) THE SEQUEL (5-7-1, 828 points) | |||
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The Storyline: The Price was right in his postseason debut! Now the Sequel takes its coveted two-TE formation against another Cinderella story, the Carolina Killers. Hodges, of course, brought his good buddy Mike into the league back in 2003. Usually you can count on making money off new guys for at least a couple of years, but Mike's beginning to push for some dough already! All-Time Head-2-Head Results: It's been all Killahs in two seasons, as Hodges owns a 4-0 advantage. This year's wins came by 16 points in Week 5 and 60 points in Week 11. Postseason History: As mentioned above, this is the Sequel's first trip to the playoffs, so these two have obviously never met this late into the season. Da Killahs have won one Tech Bowl crown (1997). The Line: The Sequel by 4 |
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| Options | Who Has the Advantage? | Options | |
| QBs | D. Brees, M. Hasselbeck |
Killers ... Drew Brees is above Philip Rivers on the Chargers' depth chart. I mean, do I really need to say anything more? Not even inept Wolfpack offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone could hold Rivers back, but Brees is doing it. | B. Favre |
| RBs | C. Martin, N. Goings |
Push ... It's been a good Christmas season already for Steve, as "Saint Nick" has turned Hodges into a jolly old booger. Goings netted another TD and yardage bonus last week as the Panther RB continues his rags-to-Warner story. Shaun Alexander is no slouch either, though, leading all running backs with 151 points on the year. After watching T.J. Duckett bowl into the end zone four times last week, Mike went down to Atlanta and went Jeff Gilooli on T.J.'s knee just so Dunn would get to carry the load for the remainder of the TFFL playoffs. | S. Alexander, A. Green, M. Faulk, S. Jackson, W. Dunn |
| WRs | C. Johnson, I. Bruce, J. Porter, N. Burleson, L. Coles |
Killers ... Chad Johnson, Jerry Porter and Darrell Jackson all find themselves facing their former teams -- the three were thrown into the Curtis Martin-Ahman Green deal. By the way, whatever happened to Anquan Boldin? Guess it's hard to get noticed when you've got one of the Brothers McCown throwing you the pigskin. | D. Jackson, A. Boldin, D. Givens |
| TEs | E. Johnson | The Sequel ... No one has ever gone with the coveted two-tight end formation two weeks in a row. Will Mike make history? | R. McMichael, T. Heap |
| Ks | M. Stover, K. Brown |
Killers ... Stover kicked a 46-yard field goal in Week 14, and 46-yarders, as we all know, are worth four points! If that field goal attempt is one yard shorter, da Killahs get three points and lose to the Jayhawks 60-59. OK, I'm done ranting ... really ... I'm over it ... cry. | S. Graham |
| Ds | Seahawks, Giants |
The Sequel ... All this talk about how suffocating the Bills defense has been lately is, well, suffocating. So they held an abysmal Browns team to seven points last week. The week before they gave up 32 to the Dolphins! | Dolphins, Bills |
| Prediction: This is almost as good as N.C. State facing off against Virginia in 1983 with a berth to the Final Four on the line. It just seems fair that it comes down to these two teams with a good chunk of history between them in a short amount of time. Sure, the Killers have a lot to be concerned about, being four-point underdogs. Plus seeing two tight ends in the opposing team's lineup is enough to scare anybody. The problem for Mike is that, Steve brought him into this fantasy world, and he can take him out. That's just what will happen, as Steve's miracle run to the Tech Bowl as a No. 4 seed will continue. | |||
| NFFC: (2) JELLYPOP FIGHTERS (8-5, 1,009 points) at (1) THE GAMBLERS (10-3, 935 points) | |||
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The Storyline: In stark contrast to the AFFC, the NFFC pits the two teams that were favored to be there. All-Time Head-2-Head Results: The Gamblers are up 6-4 and bitch-slapped Jellypop in both 2004 matchups, winning by 26 in Week 6 and by 34 in Week 13. Postseason History: It's a rematch of the 2001 Tech Bowl! The mere mention of that game sends David into convulsions (Jellypop won 125-54 -- the seventh biggest blowout in league history). The Gamblers have their own Tech Bowl hardware, however, after last year's win. The Line: Jellypop Fighters by 5 |
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| Options | Who Has the Advantage? | Options | |
| QBs | T. Green, M. Vick |
Push ... Trent Green might want to go over to the visiting sideline and flip off Jake Plummer this week, since he might not get to flip a lot of touchdowns against a stout Broncos passing defense. Aaron Brooks might not be worth a flip this week either against a Tampa Bay defense that has allowed the fewest amount of yards through the air in the NFL. This may be the time to start backups: Brian Griese is coming off a 392-yard, 3-TD Week 14 and faces the Saints, while Michael Vick has owned the Panthers in the past. | A. Brooks, B. Griese |
| RBs | T. Barber, D. Blaylock, C. Brown, D. McAllister, A. Thomas, A. Smith |
Gamblers ... Julius Jones' hot streak finally came to somewhat of an end last week -- against the Saints of all teams. Luckily for the Gamblers, Domanick Davis is finally playing like a high second-round pick. Fraud Taylor couldn't find the end zone these days if you put him at the 1-yard line with a map, a compass and a flashlight. It gets worse for the Fighters, as Chris Brown's big toe now bears a close resemblence to a stewed tomato, Tiki has gone back to his old fumbling ways and Derrick Blaylock has traded the football for Larry Johnson's diapers. Deuce came alive in Week 14, but travels to Tampa Bay this week. | J. Jones, D. Davis, F. Taylor |
| WRs | T. Owens, D. Driver, D. Bennett |
Push ... The Fighters are kicking themselves for subbing Driver for Drew Bennett at the last minute in Week 14. The guy is on a major tear lately, tallying a would-be 34 points last week and 32 points the week before that (yes, those numbers are correct). If T.O. weren't hurting, Jellypop would have the advantage here. David has his usual assortment of solid picks at receiver, but picking who's going to score is a chore. Last week, Eddie Kennison's 19 points all went for naught. | R. Moss, J. Smith, C. Chambers, M. Clayton, E. Kennison, K. McCardell, B. Lloyd |
| TEs | J. Shockey | Gamblers ... You can make the argument that these two are similar in talent, but Gonzo has the sizzling Trent Green as his quarterback, and Shockey has a rookie who couldn't move the offense against a team of 11 clipboards. | T. Gonzalez |
| Ks | L. Tynes, N. Kaeding |
Gamblers ... How is it that David always ends up with the best kicker in the league? These are the questions that keep me up at night. | D. Akers |
| Ds | Chargers, Titans |
Gamblers ... Tough call for the Gambler this week. Does he want to watch the Steelers defense rape Eli Manning of his last shred of confidence, or see the Patriots defense ridicule Ricky Williams' old running mates in Miami? Not that the Chargers will have a difficult time stopping whichever McCown is starting at QB for the Browns. | Patriots, Steelers |
| Prediction: With all due apologies to Mr. T: My prediction? Painnnnn ... for the Fighters, anyway. It now looks like Blaylock won't even suit up, and T.O. and his B.O. may be standing around in street clothes as well. Last season the Gamblers rallied from 68 points behind the overall lead to win the overall title by a convincing 33 points. Can they turn the tables this season against NFFC-leading Jellypop, whom the Gamblers trail by 74? It starts this week. The Fighters have too much bad mojo surrounding them this week, and the Gamblers are on too much of a tear. It'll be a Gamblers-Killers Tech Bowl in '04. | |||