Week 17 of the NFL season, all divisional matchups, concluded with very few games that meant something to both teams. The Rams and Seahawks battled on Sunday night for the NFC West division title. That was about the only game that actually mattered. With that being said, the playoffs are here. With the exception of the Patriots' dominance throughout the regular season en route to a 14-2 record, this playoffs look wide open. In the NFC, the Falcons and the Bears have first-round bye weeks, but not many seems convinced that either one of those squads are capable of making a Super Bowl run. The Eagles, Packers, or Saints seem to be people's favorites in the NFC, with the Eagles playing the Packers on Sunday.
That Sunday night game that determined the winner of the NFC West title was the most important matchup of the day, which was why the NFL, under its flex-schedule rules, pushed that game to prime-time. The winner of the game won the division crown, while the loser was eliminated from playoff contention. Sounds like a pretty good game, doesn't it? Most people thought the Rams would win, simply because they have looked better this season and the Seahawks were without starting QB Matt Hasselbeck. This game was as dreadful as all of the other games with no playoff implications turned out to be. The Seahawks won the game, and the division, finishing out with a 7-9 record. They're guaranteed a home playoff game because they are division winners.
C'Mon Man! I can't even blame the NFL for this occurrence, because it's been that way for a long time but we have not seen such dreadful play from an entire division in a long time, probably not ever. When occurrences like this happen, this should catch the eye of the higher-ups in the league to come to the table and change the playoff format. Two seasons ago, the Chargers were 4-8. They won their final four games, including a romp of the Broncos in the final game for the AFC West division title. They ended up getting a home playoff game against the 12-4 Colts, and beat them in overtime. A lot of people have the Saints crushing the Seahawks in this opening round wild card game. However, it shouldn't be so that the Saints have to be inconvenienced to travel all the way to Seattle for a playoff game when they had the 11-5 record.
The NFL playoffs bring up a lot of questions and answers, and there is another question that needs an answer. Last year's playoffs provided a lot of excitement and entertainment, which culminated with the Saints finally bringing a championship to the city of New Orleans, still reeling from the devastating Hurricane Katrina, which ruined much of the city five years before. The Jets, who entered as a #5 seed at 9-7, advanced all the way to the AFC Championship Game and had an excellent first half in that championship game against the Colts before it all fell apart in the second half. The Cardinals and Packers battled in the NFC Wild Card round in a thriller that ended in a 51-45 overtime win for the Cardinals.
The playoff game that would affect this playoffs and possibly future playoffs to come occurred in the NFC Championship Game between the Saints and Vikings. It was a thriller, which ended in overtime when Saints' K Garrett Hartley kicked a game-winning field goal. The Vikings had a chance to win it in overtime tied at 28, but his interception on the border of field goal range ended the Vikings chances of attempting a game-winning field goal. The issue of this game was the fact the Vikings never received the ball in overtime. NFL overtime rules has the first team to score as the victor. After that game, some people felt that should change for the future. The NFL decided to change it for this year's playoffs. If a team who receives the ball first kicks a field goal, the opposing team has a chance to get the ball and match it or possibly win it. If the team who receives the ball first score a touchdown, they win the game.
C'Mon Man! For many football fans, they forgot this rule was even instituted for this year's playoffs. Why wasn't this rule put in permanently, even in the regular season? The game should not be changed from the regular season to the playoffs, even if it's a slight change. The players know how to play the game one way, so would you change something just for the playoffs even if it meant unfamiliarity for the players? This change for the playoffs may not necessarily affect the way the game is played. It certainly helps teams once in overtime. However, could it have helped some teams in the regular season also who slightly missed the playoffs?
Most New Yorkers were looking forward to the Tuesday matchup between the NBA's best San Antonio Spurs and the upstart New York Knicks. The Knicks came in the game with a 19-14 record, good for the sixth best record in the Eastern Conference. The Knicks, led by their prized free agent acquisition F Amar'e Stoudemire, have turned it up after their 3-8 start. The Spurs have been dominant coming into the game, with a league-best 29-4 record. Like earlier matchups for the Knicks against the Celtics and the Heat, this was a game where the Knicks get an indication of where they are and where they need to be at this point in the season. The Knicks ended up winning the game 128-115, as the Spurs could not contain the fast pace the Knicks were trying to maintain with their offense. The bizarre occurrences in this game is what lands this game in particular in this week's edition.
For New Yorkers watching the MSG telecast of the game, there was a bizarre sighting when commentator Mike Breen and analyst Walt "Clyde" Frazier were introducing the game. What caught people's eyes was the suit Frazier was wearing. To simply describe it, it looked like a suit only someone in the 70s would wear. It looked like Frazier wore a suit that resembled a dog's skin. After viewers were treated with the actual game instead of that horrible suit, more bizarre things happened. In the second quarter, F Dejuan Blair dunked the ball on C Ronny Turiaf, and it appeared as if he was just trying to get back on defense while admiring his dunk. Turiaf took exception to Blair and proceeded to throw his shoulder into Blair, drawing a technical foul. The Knicks tried to argue that Blair started it, but it was clear Turiaf was responsible for the occurrence. Then, with three minutes to go with the Spurs down 10, coach Gregg Popovich took out all of his starters and put it in his seldom-used bench players, handing the game to the Knicks. The Spurs had a game the next night against the Celtics, which was given as an explanation for his actions.
C'Mon Man! This game was very entertaining, but it was certainly strange as well. I wonder if Frazier knew the game would be televised nationally on NBATV as well. I think that's why he wore that ugly suit. Knicks fans know the kind of swag Frazier has. I guess he wanted to show the rest of the country. As for Turiaf, he has to tone down his behavior a little bit. He has certainly been a help to the Knicks defensively, but he has shown to be hot-headed and puts the team in the wrong position. If the Knicks lost by one, that technical free throw is the difference. As for Popovich, for those who don't know the Spurs, Popovich does this all the time. He usually pulls his guys as early as the third quarter if they're down 20. However, with the Knicks playing poorly defensively, a ten-point deficit probably isn't hard to overcome. Three minutes of rest is not going to help F Tim Duncan, G Tony Parker, G Manu Ginobili and F Richard Jefferson.
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