The Wild-Card Euphoria wears off...

Before I get into this week’s article about the weekend’s playoff games, I need to take a moment to lament the retirement of the best sportswriter I’ve ever read, Bill Simmons. He’s going on to write for the Jimmy Kimmel show, debuting after the Super Bowl, and if the show’s as funny as his sports writing, it’s going to be a success. Best of luck, Bill! But now, the pot of coffee is brewed, Swingers is on in the background, and the latest gambling numbers are in front of me. It’s on!

Pittsburgh at Tennessee (-4)…over/under 43.5

Quick, name five guys that play for the Titans. Unless you’re a hard-core fantasy baller, you won’t be able to do it. Name one guy for the Titans who’s going to be playing in the Pro Bowl in Hawaii…wrong, Eddie George or Steve McNair’s not going. In fact, they have the same number of Pro Bowlers as the Lions and the Bengals…none. Amazing for a team that’s coming off a playoff bye. Think this team’s got a bit of chip on its shoulder? Pittsburgh’s going into the second week after pulling off one of the greatest comebacks in playoff history (but not the greatest comeback of the weekend!), and intuition tells me there’s gotta be a bit of a letdown after that. It’s kind of like the letdown your fantasy team invariably has after a record-smashing weekend- one of my teams this season put up 171 points one week, only to follow it up with a 60 point performance the next week. Another friend of mine put up 199 in a week, only to flame out of the fantasy playoffs with an 80-pointer the week after. It’s like the Rule of Three…consistent as gravity.

Anyhow, I think the Titans are going to just outmuscle the Steelers in the second half. Don’t expect an insane comeback this week…and don’t expect this one to get to the over. Tennessee 23, Pittsburgh 10.

Atlanta at Philadelphia (-7.5)…over/under 38.5

Lots of questions in this game…how much weight can the Mike Vick bandwagon hold? Can Donovan McNabb handle the pressure of this no-win situation (kind of like Kurt Warner’s comeback in the middle of the season…if he wins, it’s expected, but if he loses, it’ll bring up a lot of questions)? How will the Falcons play in their second consecutive cold-weather game, this time against a team that’s not just a mere shell of themselves like the Pack was last week? Uh-oh…the wheels are getting shaky…it’s starting to slide a bit…the bandwagon’s off the road! I’m officially nominating this game for the “wild card hangover pick of the week”, as anyone who thinks Atlanta is actually going to win is still high from last Saturday. This one’s going to get ugly, and get ugly early. The only question about the outcome of this game is going to be whether the Eagles can cover the over all by themselves. Mike, it’s been a helluva run and you’re making my decision to keep you or LaDainian for my keeper next year really difficult, but the road’s ending here. Philadelphia 34, Atlanta 13.

San Francisco at Tampa Bay (-5.5)…over/under 39

For the majority of the game, New York looked like they were making geniuses out of everyone in Vegas who took the Giants on the money line…but we all know how that one ended. Then again, the game might not be over…maybe by Sunday the NFL will have allowed the Giants to kick their field goal over again and send them down to Tampa.

(Time out for a rant here. Why is it that every single week the NFL has to come out and basically say that the refs screwed a team out of a win? Is it to give the fans of the teams that got “screwed” a sense of vindication, that they were right when they argued with their friends at the bar that there should’ve been pass interference called? Is it to stoke even more heated rivalries between the teams? Nothing good comes out of this- the team that loses gets even more heated up, the team that wins basically gets told by the NFL that they shouldn’t have won the game, and the fans get riled up and start talking about conspiracy theories against their team. I do give the Giants brass credit…one of their first statements alluded to the fact they shouldn’t have blown a 24-point lead. Much classier than the Vikings organization that sent in a list of gripes to the NFL how they got screwed in their game at Lambeau. It wasn’t the refs fault they couldn’t get the ball in the end zone or hold the lead. Anyhow, I’m just saying that the NFL should defend their officials instead of hanging them out to dry.)

All right, rant done. The point is, whoever ends up going down to Tampa is going to get smoked. The Tampa offense is going to pass at will and light it up en route to Philly. Tampa Bay 34, San Francisco 14.

NY Jets at Oakland (-5)…over/under 47.5

Some people are calling this the real Super Bowl…I wouldn’t go quite that far, but it’s going to be the game of the weekend. The two hottest teams in the NFL squaring off in a huge battle that’s going to be a lot more defensive than you’d think. Both defenses are overshadowed by their teams’ outstanding offenses, but I’m thinking you’re going to see the D bringing their A+ games on Sunday afternoon. Oakland seems to be the pick by many to win the big one or at least make it there, as 10 different Oakland players were drafted in my playoff fantasy league (tops by a long way of any team). Of course, that was before the Jets romped all over the Colts last week and became the hot upset pick of the week…so much so that the Raiders are convincing themselves that they’re the underdog and the world’s out to get them (a perfect opportunity for another rant, but I’ll save it for later. Lord knows I’ll get another chance soon enough). Make plans to be around a TV for this one…it’s gonna be a classic. Oakland 16, NY Jets 14.

That’s it for this week...Heather Graham’s just about ready to make her appearance at the Del Rey. We’ll see how I do on all my bets this week and whether I should be spending conference championship weekend in Vegas or in Grantsburg! Until next time…