Andy Richardson
For me, the most interesting thing about the NFL playoffs, next to the games themselves, is the postgame stuff. Take this week: Ryan Grant looked like he'd never seen so many people who wanted to hear what he had to say before. Wide-eyed. Peyton Manning looked ticked off (and he had a right to be -- his team let him down). Wade Phillips, ashen. Eli Manning, downright giddy. Tom Brady and the Patriots, well, smug. (And they, too, have a right to be -- no one can talk until they beat them.) If you normally only watch the games, I strongly recommend the postgame press conferences. Great theatre.
As for the games: The Giants winning in Dallas, sure. Not a huge shock -- the Cowboys hadn't played well for more than a month. But the Chargers winning in Indianapolis? "That's why they play the games." Let's get right to it, with a focus, of course, on the fantasy implications for next year....
Seahawks-Packers: I think some have wondered whether Ryan Grant would definitely be Green Bay's starter at running back next season. Wonder no more. He's the starter, some combination of Brandon Jackson and DeShawn Wynn, maybe, will be the backups, and there will probably be another body in there (because you can't have too many). Michael Turner, Justin Fargas, a top draft pick -- won't be in Green Bay next season. Grant's the guy. And then, Greg Jennings? Why Donald Driver is going to the Pro Bowl and Jennings (14 TDs in 15 games) isn't is a mystery. Nothing against Driver, but Jennings, clearly, is the No. 1 next year. The guy just keeps scoring. And oh yeah, Favre is probably coming back next year, too. He's having too much fun not to (even if the season ends on a down note).
Then there's the Seahawks. Let's see: Shaun Alexander is washed up. Maurice Morris is limited. Bobby Engram is 35. Deion Branch and D.J. Hackett get hurt all the time. Mike Holmgren might retire (for a year or two, anyway), realizing the Seahawks can't win a road playoff game and can't become good enough to get the No. 1 seed. Doesn't look good for this team next season, unless maybe they use their top pick on a running back (like Oregon's Jonathan Stewart) and see a running game revival.
And oh yeah, you've got to love football being played in a blizzard. I hope the FOX crew is looking forward to taking the dog sled to Lambeau Field next week.
Jaguars-Patriots: So the Jaguars took away Randy Moss and still lost. No surprise; the question for fantasy owners will be, is this Moss's future in New England? Get blanketed so Tom Brady has to work for all of his points on short throws down the field? Probably that will be the case some weeks, but if Moss remains in New England, the team will likely find ways to get him the ball anyway. Starting this week, facing a San Diego team that might not have anyone who can cover him. Moss will probably catch 2 TDs and the Patriots will win in a rout.
The Jaguars, surprisingly, look pretty competent offensively. Maybe they have enough good receivers -- okay, they might have some questions at tight end -- and clearly they're fine at running back. David Garrard will be a nice option on draft day for those who like to wait on quarterbacks but still get a reasonably productive guy. What hurt them against the Patriots? Well, their defense took away Moss, and nothing else. Good enough to keep them close, not good enough to win. Maybe next year they'll be a little better/healthier defensively, beat out the Colts in the division, and get to play a game or two at home.
Chargers-Colts: On the one hand, this game was a huge blow to those of us who wanted to see the Patriots' perfect season come to an end -- only the Colts, not the Chargers, seemed likely to have a shot to knock off the Pats. On the other hand, nobody thought the Chargers would win in Indy, either, so maybe they can surprise the Patriots next week. With Billy Volek at quarterback, Michael Turner at running back, and Antonio Gates on one leg? Yeah, I doubt it too. But hey, maybe those of us thinking Indianapolis would go into Foxborough and win were kidding ourselves. The Colts were banged-up all year; seeing them making it all the way back to defend their title was probably unrealistic to begin with. Maybe Manning, Addai, Wayne, Clark, and whatever is left of Harrison will be even more motivated next season to make sure they get back to the Super Bowl, and be better because of it.
Can the Chargers win in New England next week? Um. No, they can't. No chance. And I hope I'm wrong on them for the second straight week, but I'm not counting on it. I do think Michael Turner will be the week 1 starter for some team next year, however, and be a pretty good second- or third-round fantasy pick, too.
Giants-Cowboys: I really only had one reason for hoping the Cowboys would win this game: Protecting the rights of a young, single NFL quarterback to take his hot blonde girlfriend on a Mexican vacation. What's the world coming to when such a noble and understandable pursuit is frowned on by the national media? In any case, aside from that one reason I wanted the Giants to win, just because Packers-Cowboys isn't quite as old school as Packers-Giants, and also because I wanted the FOX crew to have to freeze their butts off in Green Bay (as well as cancel all their hotel reservations in Dallas, which you know they made about two months ago).
Moreover, as I think I mentioned a week ago, little brother Eli gets way too much heat for what's actually been a pretty good start to his NFL career. OK, sure, he was kind of a jerk in forcing a trade out of San Diego, that's true. And he's had some horrible games, including against the Vikings this season. But again, compared to other recent top-pick quarterbacks, he's done pretty well for himself. And winning consecutive road playoff games in the NFL is impressive, period, particularly when your head coach doesn't let you throw the ball in the fourth quarter with only a 4-point lead. Eli, and those Giants, are going to be fine for the next few years. And I wish I had Ahmad Bradshaw on my dynasty league team, because he looks like a pretty good young back. Steve Smith looks like he, not Dwayne Jarrett, is going to be the best wideout to come out of LSU last year, too. Some good talent on this Giants team; maybe that Eli trade wasn't so horrible after all.
With Dallas, well, they had a lot in common with the Colts down the stretch. Banged-up wide receiver corps. Offenses that did enough to win most of their games, but not clicking on all cylinders. Defenses that looked fine against most opponents -- but not all. And a season that ended at least a week earlier than everybody figured.
Personally, I don't have any worries about Tony Romo. He'll be back next year and he'll be pretty good again. So will Owens, Witten, and to a lesser extent Crayton -- maybe Terry Glenn, maybe somebody else, too. I worry more about their defense, which didn't make many big stops down the stretch (unless you count Brian Westbrook taking a knee at the 1-yard line). And their coaching staff, who's 0-4 record in the playoffs (Wade Phillips) is a lot more meaningful than Romo's 0-2. If Phillips can't get his team past a Giants team the Cowboys swept during the season, in a home game, then when IS he going to win a playoff game as a head coach? Tough to say -- and also tough to see things breaking well enough for the Cowboys that they're the No. 1 seed again next season.
What's old is new again: Conference Championship Games in New England and Green Bay this Sunday, just like they were 11 years ago.
I'll be hoping for lots of snow.
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