Game Day Thoughts

The Philadelphia Eagles visit the Minnesota Vikings today. The Eagles are starting to soar. The Vikings are limping to the offseason. There was a terrible run of injuries throughout the league during training camps. The Vikings were lucky as they saw few players fall. That luck has ended. The heart of the offense, running back Adrian Peterson, is out for this game. Toby Gerhart is a terrific backup. He's out too. The respective fortunes of the Eagles and Vikings is a poor combination. There was a similar combination in 2010. Everything screamed blowout then. Michael Vick had his team rolling. The Vikings were a disaster. Brad Childress had been fired earlier in the season. Rookie quarterback, and current receiver, Joe Webb replaced Brett Favre. A blizzard moved the game to Tuesday. Nothing looked pretty going into this game. Webb and the Vikings defense were brilliant. The Vikings stunned the Eagles 24-14.

Maybe, a sad Vikings season gets happy for a day. This day.

Eagles quarterback Nick Foles has been fantastic since he secured the starting job. He may not be the mobile quarterback that everyone assumes Chip Kelly's offense needs but he can throw the ball. I never understood why so many assumed that Kelly would carry every part of his Oregon offense to Philadelphia. Kelly is a football scientist. He's always tinkering. He had an offense that works in college. He would certainly bring aspects of that offense to the NFL but he's smart enough to know that not all of it will work. He'll adjust to the defenses that he faces. He'll adjust to the talent that he has. Chip Kelly and Nick Foles have found some common ground.

I was never sold on Nick Foles while in college at Arizona. When I think of Foles, I'll always think of the kid that attempted two forward passes on a single play against Cal. I was shocked that he'd even try such a thing. Foles threw about two passes that traveled more than eight yards that entire game. They weren't on the same play. It's easy to have a completion percentage over 70% when nearly every throw is really an extended handoff. Foles has shown in a handful of professional starts that he can stretch the field.

Congratulations Jameis Winston on winning the 2013 Heisman Trophy. The voting wasn't even close. 19-year old Heisman Trophy-winner.

Congratulations to Navy on their 34-7 win over Army. It was the twelfth consecutive victory in this outstanding rivalry for Navy. They also won the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy, awarded to the service academy with the most victories in games between Army, Navy, and Air Force, for the second consecutive season. Ninth in the last eleven seasons. Head coach Ken Niumatalolo has Navy rolling. They will play Middle Tennessee in the Armed Forces Bowl.

While watching Towson-Eastern Illinois in the FCS quarterfinals, I can't help but think of the possibilities of a playoffs with the football big boys. The bowl games have provided a lifetime of thrills. It's hard to ditch that past but I think that the need for a clear-cut champion trumps the tradition. The four game playoff coming next year is an improvement but I'd rather see something like the FCS.

I would love to see Eastern Illinois quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in the Vikings training camp next summer. I'd heard about his quick release but seeing a live game is the best view. His recognition to throw reaction reminds me of Jeff George. It's immediate. Almost shocking with the ease at which the ball is gone. George may have had his issues but he had one of the best releases and throws that I've ever seen. Garoppolo's release is NFL-ready.

Towson running back Terrance West yanked the spotlight away from Jimmy Garoppolo. 39 carries for 354 yards and five touchdowns. My goodness.

Nick Saban is going to coach at Alabama for a little longer. I'm not sure why anyone thought that Saban would jump to Texas. Alabama is at the top of the NCAA food chain. Everyone assumes that Nick Saban is a football-coaching nomad. He's never been in one place too long. If he wants to stay in college, Alabama is the place to be. Or, Cal.

Former Vikings head coach Mike Tice has been keeping busy. He hasn't been coaching for about a year but he's seen success at the race track. He walked away with $100,000 when he scored on a Pick Six this past summer. Tice and Chicago Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville are among the owners of two-year old colt Midnight Hawk. On Friday, their horse won a race at Hollywood Park and a $27,000 purse. Tice has longer dabbled in horses and horse racing. It was the jet of a horse racing friend that whisked free agent cornerback Antoine Winfield away from the New York Jets and to Minnesota in 2004.

There are several games today that looked much better a few months ago. They don't look as great today. It's amazing what injuries can do to a team and a season. Green Bay Packers-Dallas Cowboys usually grabs headlines. An injured Aaron Rodgers changes his team and this game. Washington Redskins-Atlanta Falcons now appeals more to tabloids and the top of the draft order than to those interested in football. Seattle Seahawks-New York Giants feels like a slaughter. One of the great things about the NFL is that the least appealing games can easily become very entertaining. The Houston Texans-Jacksonville Jaguars game a couple of weeks ago was great. Go Football!!

College Close

Today will mark the end of the 2013 college football season. The bowl season kicks off next Saturday with the New Mexico Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl, Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, and New Orleans Bowl. Until then, it's awards season. This week, we saw the following players honored:

Walter Camp(player of the year): Jameis Winston, QB, Florida St.
Maxwell(most outstanding player): A.J. McCarron, QB, Alabama
Dave O'Brien(top quarterback): Jameis Winston, QB, Florida St.
Doak Walker(top running back): Andre Williams, RB, Boston College
Bednarik(defensive player of the year): Aaron Donald, DT, Pitt
Outland(outstanding interior lineman): Aaron Donald, DT, Pitt
Lombardi(outstanding interior lineman): Aaron Donald, DT, Pitt
Nagurski(defensive player of the year): Aaron Donald, DT, Pitt
Thorpe(top defensive back): Darqueze Dennard, CB, Michigan St.
Biletnikoff(top receiver): Brandin Cooks, WR, Oregon St.
Groza(top kicker): Roberto Aguayo, K, Florida St.
Guy(top punter): Tom Hornsey, P, Memphis
Home Depot Coach of the Year: Gus Malzahn, Auburn

Aaron Donald needs a house just to store his hardware. At about 6' zero and 285 lbs, Donald will surely draw comparisons to Cincinnati Bengals terror Geno Atkins and Minnesota Vikings Hall of Fame defensive tackle John Randle. Many pro people will say that he's too small to man the middle of an NFL defensive line. That's likely a mistake. Atkins dropped to the fourth round but he wasn't nearly as accomplished as Donald entering the draft. Randle wasn't drafted at all.

"Aaron Donald is a one-man wrecking crew."
    -Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly

The above awards always take a back seat to the one given out today. The Heisman. This gets a day, time and show all to itself. The contenders:

Jameis Winston, QB, Florida St.
AJ McCarron, QB, Alabama
Tre Mason, RB, Auburn
Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M
Jordan Lynch, QB, Northern Illinois
Andre Williams, RB, Boston College

If the award went to the player that meant the most to his team, the 2013 Heisman Trophy might very well go to Jordan Lynch. Northern Illinois isn't 12-1 without him. Not even close. The Heisman had never gone to a first-year player until Johnny Manziel won it last year. It seems like a foregone conclusion that it will go to another first-year player this year. Jameis Winston is one of the best college quarterbacks that I've ever seen. It's difficult to believe that he's a redshirt freshman. There were moments when Andrew Luck looked like a redshirt freshman quarterback. His interception that sealed the 2009 Big Game for Cal was one of those. I saw no such freshman moments from Winston. E.J. Manuel was Florida St.'s quarterback last year. He led them to a 12-2 season and a victory in the Orange Bowl. A very nice season that got him selected in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Florida St. returned nearly all of the offense that Manuel led. Winston took that offense to a whole other orbit. Florida St. finished the regular season 13-0. The games weren't even close. The Seminoles' average margin of victory was 42.3 points. Winston should be holding a big ol' trophy tonight. If the voters waited until this week to vote, Tre Mason might make a run at the trophy. His performance in the SEC Championship, 45 carries for 303 yards and four touchdowns, was insane. Andre Williams made a late season run as well but he's hurt by Boston College's five losses. Johnny Manziel was dazzling last year. Even though his statistics were better this year, I think that many raised his bar so high that nothing short of weekly miracles would bring home a second Heisman. AJ McCarron doesn't get enough credit for Alabama's incredible success. There's Nick Saban and a team filled with NFL players. McCarron would have to be as electric as Joe Namath or Manziel to get any attention or a Heisman.

There's a game today!

Army-Navy
There was a time when this was one of the marquee sporting events of the year. It's been a while since the two service academies have had anything to say about the landscape of college football. For most of the first ninety years of college football, they had a lot to say. Army-Navy is a special rivalry. No other game has emotions run from hate to love so quickly and easily. The very best of college athletics will be on display today at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.

He's Back

Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith has fast become the team's best defensive player. The Vikings traded up to draft Smith out of Notre Dame in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He was an immediate starter and an impact player as a rookie last year. A playmaking safety has been missing from the back of the Vikings defense since the days of Joey Browner over twenty years ago. Darren Sharper brought a couple of years of big plays but that vanished too quickly. Smith's rookie season brought hope that the days of tight ends running free through the Vikings defense were at an end. While the 2013 season has been something of a disaster in Minnesota it wasn't helped when Smith hurt his foot in week 6 against the Carolina Panthers. Not much had gone right even before the injury. Even less has gone right since the injury. The Vikings are at the bottom of nearly every defensive statistic. Harrison Smith has been missed.

Turf toe. I've always found turf toe to be a strange injury. It doesn't really sound like much. Too often we take the "little piggies" for granted. If one's not well, it's really tough to be mobile. From what I hear, turf toe injuries are pretty painful injuries. It's kept Harrison Smith out of action for about eight weeks. Fortunately, the NFL has a new rule that allows a team to put an injured player on an injured reserve list that allows for him to return before the season is done. Players placed on the list can return to practice after six weeks. They are eligible to return to the active roster after eight weeks. The Vikings can activate Smith after today's practice. Unless something goes awry, that will happen. He'll be able to play in Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Chasing LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson and Nick Foles passes around the field all afternoon might not be the best thing for a player returning from a turf toe injury. Smith's full return to the playing field may be a gradual process. There's only three games left. Each is a game that poses a serious challenge to the health and stamina of a safety. The Eagles players and their up-tempo offensive style. The Cincinnati Bengals next week with A.J. Green, Marvin Jones, Tyler Eifert, and Jermaine Gresham. To close the 2013 season, the Vikings face the Detroit Lions and their defensive delight, Calvin Johnson. Fun stuff.

Harrison Smith has become a fan-favorite as quickly as he's become an impact player on defense. The two are often connected. Smith's energy and love of football are obvious. It's infectious for his defense and for the fans. It's a joy to watch Harrison Smith play football. Even for three games, it's great to have him back.

Throwback Thursday: There's Snowing In Football!

The NFL had their first snow days of the 2013 season this past week. The snow looked deepest in Philadelphia as the Eagles and Detroit Lions frolicked. I worried that a loose ball might be lost for a while. Pittsburgh had snow for the game between the Steelers and the warm-weather Miami Dolphins. The officials had more difficulties than the players in the snow of Baltimore. Washington D.C. presented the Redskins and Kansas City Chiefs with a mix of snow, ice, and rain. This snowy, wintry weather has been the talk of the league since the games. Some saw the fun of football in the snow. Most saw it as an acceptable way to play week 14 regular season games. None seem to think that it is an acceptable way to play a Super Bowl. This year's Super Bowl will be the first to be played outdoors at a potentially cold-weather site. MetLife Stadium in New Jersey will be the site of Super Bowl XLVIII. Many people are starting to fret over the weather at an event that is about two months away. There's about as much chance now for a snowy Super Bowl in February as there was last week. The only thing that's changed in the past week is that we saw a few games played in the snow. What happened last Sunday has nothing to do with what might happen in New Jersey in February. Everyone wants a clean playing field for a game as big as the Super Bowl but it's never a guarantee. We can pick all the warm weather cities that we want but that doesn't mean that the weather will cooperate. We've had rainy Super Bowls. We've had some cold Super Bowls. We've even lost power at a Super Bowl. There's always the potential for something to alter the dynamics of the game. One of the greatest things about football is the strategic aspect of the game. The team that best prepares and/or responds to a certain set of events is often the one that wins. Sometimes it's the weather.

Adverse weather conditions haven't ruined football games. One of the greatest, most iconic games in football history was played in possibly the most brutal conditions. The Ice Bowl. Dallas Cowboys-Green Bay Packers in Green Bay. Packers quarterback Bart Starr snuck in from one yard for Vince Lombardi's last NFL Championship. The weather impacted the game but didn't keep it from being great. A referee had a whistle stick to his lips. The same two teams played another terrific cold-weather Championship game the year before in Dallas. When the NFL started playing Championship games in 1933, all the teams played in the Midwest or the Northeast. Nearly every Championship game was played in a cold weather site. It wasn't until the AFL-NFL merger and the resulting Super Bowl that championships were decided on a hopefully bright and sunny day at a neutral site. No one complained during those four decades because football was supposed to be played in any kind of weather that presented itself. Teams just dealt with the conditions. Those that dealt with it the best were usually crowned champions. In the 1934 NFL Championship game the New York Giants went and found themselves some sneakers to gain better traction on the frozen field of the Polo Grounds. With sneakers on their feet they ran around and past the heavily favored but slipping Chicago Bears in the fourth quarter and won their second NFL title. Every football game is a challenge. Sometimes the weather is part of that challenge. It's part of the game and it always has been.

New Records!

In this dismal football season for the Minnesota Vikings there is some joy to learn that the team was part of new NFL records. New records that are mostly positive. The NFL record for least time to score five touchdowns in a game was five minutes, 40 seconds. Records are kept for pretty much everything on a football field. I was still a little surprised that someone bothered to keep track of the least time to score five touchdowns. The Minnesota Vikings and Baltimore Ravens shattered that record on Sunday. The two teams combined to score five touchdowns in two minutes, five seconds. The Ravens started those rapid fire touchdowns when Joe Flacco took the snap with 2:09 on the clock. He connected with tight end Dennis Pitta for a 1-yard touchdown pass. The Vikings got a 41-yard touchdown run from Toby Gerhart. The Ravens got a 77-yard kickoff return from Jacoby Jones. The Vikings answered with a 79-yard catch and run from Cordarrelle Patterson. Flacco found enough time to complete the scoring with the winning 9-yard touchdown pass to Marlon Brown. A play that ended with 4 seconds remaining on the clock. Two minutes and five seconds of furious football excitement. The negative for the Vikings in all of that scoring was that they had only two of the five touchdowns.

The quick touchdown record wasn't the only NFL record set by the Vikings and Ravens that day. They also broke the record for lead changes in the fourth quarter. They combined for six lead changes in the final quarter. All but one of those lead changes took place in the final two minutes, five seconds of the game. I believe that the game would have had a much better ending if there was one fewer lead change.

"Houston '93"

NFL Network continues it's excellent "A Football Life" series tonight with "Houston '93." With the creative genius of NFL Films, every episode of this series is a keeper. This one, in particular, intrigues me as the 1993 Houston Oilers were one of those football teams that makes you wonder what might have been. After a shaky start, losing four of their first five games, the Oilers dominated. They won their next eleven games and most of the games weren't even close. Then Cleveland Browns head coach Bill Belichick said that this Oilers team was "one of the best, most talented teams I've ever faced in the National Football League." Despite being the hottest team in the league, the Oilers were stunned by the Joe Montana-led Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional round of the playoffs. Warren Moon was fantastic his entire career in Houston. The team peaked around him in 1993. Unfortunately for Oilers fans, the team was pretty much dismantled the following offseason. Moon was traded to Minnesota and the 1994 Oilers finished 2-14.

As a fan of the Minnesota Vikings, I am far too familiar with great football teams that couldn't quite finish the deal. Four Super Bowls. Three of those in the span of four years. No Super Bowl wins. The 1998 Vikings were one of the most explosive teams in league history. That team lost in the NFC Championship game. Personally, I think that the Brett Favre-led Vikings of 2009 was a better all-around team than the 1998 team. That team also couldn't make it to the Super Bowl. There are so many teams like the Vikings and the '93 Oilers. Great teams that are sometimes forgotten because they didn't win it all. The Detroit Lions of the early 1960s couldn't get through Lombardi's Packers. The New York Giants of the same era went to three straight NFL title games and lost all three. The Cleveland Browns of the late 1980s  couldn't get past John Elway. Much like the Giants of the '60s, the Buffalo Bills of the early 1990s went to four straight Super Bowls without a single win. Some of these teams are among the best in league history but couldn't find a way to win a game when it was win or go home. Some didn't even make it to the biggest game.

The 1993 Houston Oilers are a very memorable team. I'm glad that NFL Films is putting their art to that legacy.

Week 14 Thoughts

That was nuts. The Minnesota Vikings and Baltimore Ravens battled in the snow in Baltimore. It was 12-7 Vikings with just over two minutes to play. The Ravens won 29-26. There were five touchdowns scored in the final 125 seconds. The Vikings thought that they had scored the winning touchdown twice. The Ravens thought that they had scored the winning touchdown twice before their third actually did win the game. 

Dennis Pitta catches a 1-yard touchdown pass with 2:05 left. 15-12 Ravens.

Toby Gerhart runs 41 yards for a touchdown. 1:27 left. 19-15 Vikings

Jacoby Jones returns the short kickoff 77 yards for a touchdown. 1:16 left. 22-19 Ravens.

Cordarrelle Patterson takes a short pass 79 yards for a touchdown. 0:31 left. 26-22 Vikings.

Marlon Brown catches a 9-yard touchdown pass. 0:04 left. 29-26 Ravens.

It was nuts.

The Vikings have lost four games in the final seconds this year. A fifth saw a score in the final seconds to force overtime. The Vikings are about a minute or two from an 8-5 record and a game lead in the NFC North. Instead, they are 3-9-1. 

I can't remember the last time that I'd seen the Vikings play in so much snow. I saw it often in the 1970s when they called little Metropolitan Stadium home.

There were a few snow games around the league. The snow was even deeper in Philadelphia.

"It's like falling on pillows."
   -Eagles back LeSean McCoy on playing in snow

Vikings running back Adrian Peterson left the game in the second quarter. It looked like an ankle injury. Hopefully, it was only an ankle injury and minor at that. Some may bitch that Peterson shouldn't have been playing in the snowy conditions. He's been battling groin and hamstring issues for a few weeks. Adrian Peterson is a football player. If he's cleared to play, he plays. There's really no question or argument. 

Peterson's appearance on the Vikings bench in the second half was a great relief. 

In Peterson's place, Toby Gerhart ran well, ran tough.. He always does. His 41-yard touchdown was beautiful. Great play call. He wasn't touched for about the first fifteen yards then it was all power. 

Vikings quarterback Matt Cassel played pretty well considering the conditions. Completing 17 of 38 passes isn't terribly efficient. His passes were more accurate than his completion percentage would indicate. 265 yards and two touchdowns are nice numbers. No interceptions was huge. The Vikings only turnover shouldn't have been a turnover.

The Vikings offense seems to have more of a spark when Cassel  is playing. They didn't start scoring touchdowns until the fourth quarter but the offense threatened the Ravens defense throughout the game.

After reading Peter King's excellent series on a week in the life of an officiating crew, my respect was on the rise for the officials. That respect dropped quickly in the Vikings-Ravens game. I have no idea how the fumble by Gerhart was not overturned on review. Gerhart was clearly kneeling on the ground when the ball came loose. It wasn't even close to a fumble. An absolutely ridiculous call. Four plays later the Ravens had a 7-0 lead. 

Maybe the snow confused the officials. They couldn't quite see things clearly on the field or on replay. The officials gave the Ravens three first downs when they looked clearly short to me. The Vikings challenged the middle one and had it reversed. I kinda wish that they had challenged the other two. The third led to one of the go-ahead touchdowns in the fourth quarter. 

If the officials weren't the most hampered by the snow, it was probably the Vikings defensive line. All the players were playing on the same surface but the Vikings defensive line seemed to be more unsure of their footing. They had two sacks but they should have had many more. Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco had way too much time to throw. 

Fortunately, the Vikings secondary played well. Perhaps their best game. Rookie corner Xavier Rhodes has been terrific the last few weeks. He continued that level of play yesterday. He left the game in the fourth quarter with an injury. It looked like the trainers were checking his leg on the sideline. Hopefully, he won't miss any games. 

Little Marcus Sherels replaced Rhodes. He has a size disadvantage against pretty much every receiver in the league. He did get an interception. It was only the second interception by a Vikings corner this season. 

This might have been the Vikings best defensive game. I'm sure that the snowy conditions helped keep offensive production down but the Vikings defense played a nice game. They could have used a couple of stops at the very end but they played well. Three interceptions. A fourth was negated by a mysterious pass interference penalty. 

I would love for the Vikings to find a big guy like Ravens nose tackle Haloti Ngata. The Vikings have never replaced big Pat Williams. Three years and counting. 

With the snow, Vikings receiver Greg Jennings looked right at home. He only had five catches for 53 yards but they were five big catches and 53 big yards. One was a terrific one-handed grab. Cassel seems to have a nice connection with Jennings. 

Jerome Simpson scored his first touchdown with the Vikings. It took about two dozen games but he got one. 

Vikings rookie receiver Cordarrelle Patterson is a beast with the football in the hands. He's tough to tackle. He's tough to catch. He's a threat to run a long way on every kick return. His 79 yard touchdown to take that late, unfortunately fleeting lead, was a beauty. He's a dangerous football player with an incredible future. Percy who?

It's a little strange to watch the Ravens without Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. 

Ravens running back Ray Rice has been one of my favorites. He's a treat to watch run with the football. 

There were a lot of punts in the snow of Baltimore. The Vikings Jeff Locke punted nine times. Sam Koch punted six times for Baltimore. 

Undrafted out of Georgia, Ravens rookie receiver Marlon Brown looks like a nice find. At 6'4", he has excellent size. He made a terrific, toe-tapping catch for the winning touchdown yesterday. 7 catches for 92 yards, he made some plays, broke some tackles. Playing opposite Torrey Smith, the Ravens may have a nice receiving combo going forward.

The Vikings departure from Baltimore was delayed for a few hours after their plane was struck by the catering truck. 

It doesn't get any easier. The Vikings host the surging Philadelphia Eagles next week.

Also playing in the snow, the Eagles cut loose running back LeSean McCoy for 217 yards on 29 carries. 97 of those yards came on touchdown runs (40,57). 

I haven't seen the Indianapolis Colts play for a while. I'd like to see them play because I'd like to know what is wrong with the team. Their prolonged funk is mystifying. Andrew Luck seems to be pedestrian. The Cincinnati Bengals were all over them 42-28. 

The scoring excitement at the end of the Vikings-Ravens game kept me glued to my seat. It kept me from seeing how in the hell the New England Patriots came back against the Cleveland Browns. 27-26 Patriots. An onside kick recovery allowed Tom Brady the opportunity to throw two touchdowns in the final 61 seconds.

Huge loss for the Patriots if tight end Rob Gronkowski does, in fact, have a torn ACL. 

Browns receiver Josh Gordon has been playing out of his mind in recent weeks. 498 receiving yards in the last two weeks. He had seven catches for 151 yards against the Patriots. One of those catches was an 80-yard touchdown. He also added another 34 yards on a run.

Congratulations to Denver Broncos kick Matt Prater on his NFL record 64-yard field goal. Tom Dempsey kicked a 63-yard field goal for the New Orleans Saints in 1970. That stood by itself until 1998. Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos equaled that distance. It was matched by Sebastian Janikowski of the Oakland Raiders in 2011 and David Akers of the San Francisco 49ers in 2012. Elam, Janikowksi, and now Prater all made their kicks in Denver.

The Denver Broncos had some early difficulties with the Tennessee Titans. Considering that, it's surprising that the Broncos ended up with 51 points. Peyton Manning can score a lot of points. The 51-28 win got them a spot in the playoffs.

The Washington Redskins looked great in the first half of their game against the Vikings in week 10. They've been a mess ever since. 

I find it very entertaining when Seattle Seahawks corner Richard Sherman questions the sportsmanship of another. Sherman's never-ending antics shows that he has none. He's a fantastic football player. He's also an ass. 

I didn't know that Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett and Chicago Bears tight end Martellus Bennett were brothers. They just seemed to be so different that I never would have guessed a relation.

Sports Illustrated had an eye-opening article about Martellus Bennett. I've known for a while that he wasn't much like most football players. I didn't realize that he was so....interesting. 

The San Francisco 49ers are a very different team with Michael Crabtree on the field.

Good game in San Francisco. The 49ers defeated the Seahawks 19-17. If the 49ers could have scored touchdowns rather that field goals, this game isn't close. Four Phil Dawson field goals. Two were reasonably long kicks. Two were snapped from inside the ten-yard line. Those short ones should be touchdowns.

Heated rivalries are usually the best rivalries. 49ers-Seahawks is a heated rivalry. These teams really don't like each other. Jim Harbaugh and Pete Carroll have had issues since their Stanford and USC days.

The Carolina Panthers and New Orleans have a battle going for the NFC South title. They may not have the venom of the 49ers and Seahawks but they are very talented teams eyeing the same thing.

The field goal thing plagued the Panthers as well. They opened the game with two effective drives. They settled for field goals on both drives. The Panthers didn't get a touchdown until 5:15 was left in the game.

The Saints controlled this game after those quick Panthers field goals. 31-13.

The Saints and Panthers meet again in Carolina in two weeks. It's great that the schedule-makers have division games at the end of the season but I don't like having both games so close together.

Others have said it and I agree. This was a pretty wild day of football. There was fun in the snow. There were some big plays. There was another great Patriots comeback. The furious ending to the Vikings-Ravens was the wildest action of all.