Saturday, January 20, 2007

NFL Playoffs Open Thread

Well it's time for the conference championships, tomorrow. This is the final four of the NFL, the winners play in the big dance, which is the Super Bowl.

New Orleans Saints at Chicago Bears

This is a "pick em" kind of game. the question is, which Bears team will show up? New Orleans is no pushover and if the Bears bring their A game, they won't be either. NO is not used to playing in the cold and that could very well be a primary factor. But the adrenaline sometimes warms the body. It's going to come down to whose defense can make the big plays, when it counts.

New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts.

We know that the Pats have Tom Brady, who I think is a great clutch QB, in the mold of Montana, Elway, and Bradshaw. But do they have enough oomph left to beat the Colts (whose resurrected defense has them in this game) in their own house? If the defense plays like they have been playing, it could be a long day for Brady. Peyton Manning (who Greg rightfully calls a great regular season QB) needs to step up his performance and put some points up on the board for the Colts to win. The Colts will not keep the Pats out of the end zone, like they did Baltimore's lackluster offense, last week. This too is a "pick em" game.

So, what do you think?

UPDATE:

In the Indy Star this morning are two stories about the two coaches in the Colts-Pats game. Both are good reads, both tell inspiring stories about how they got to this level.

Here they are:

Belichick-Pats

Dungy-Colts


UPDATE:

It's official, it's an I-65 Super Bowl. Indianapolis Colts Vs. Chicago Bears. Had NE beaten Indy, I'd have been for the Bears. But, I have to stay with the home team. Go Colts.

It will be a good one.

18 comments:

A.C. McCloud said...

I'm already on a limb with a published pick of Indy versus NO. Da Bares had a positive finish to their last game re Grossman, but can they win the big one? I won't be upset either way.

The Colts have a lot to prove. I think if they finally beat NE they'll win it all, but then again, predicting football is probably harder than predicting the next hurricane season..

LA Sunset said...

AC

I would say that any of the teams that are left have a valid chance of winning it all. It all depends on who plays their game and doesn't get sucked into playing the way they have not been accustomed to playing.

All_I_Can_Stands said...

The winning pass by Grossman just might be enough to boost his confidence. I of course am cheering on the Bears, but biting my nails at the same time.

LA Sunset said...

AICS,

//but biting my nails at the same time.//

What's the scoop in Chi-town. Are the locals hoping for a Colts-Bears Super Bowl?

Here in Indy there are some old-timers that were Bears fans long before the Colts came. So, there are a lot of people rooting for the Bears too. One guy across the street hangs his Bears flag out on game day.

(I guess ME is on vacation or something, otherwise she'd be here singing the Bears' praises.)

Mary Ellen said...

Bears will win today in OT with a field goal kick by Robbie Gould! Wait a minute....that was last week.

I have no idea how this game will go. We're predicted as the underdog by most. There's going to be a lot of pressure on Grossman by Will Smith and Charles Grant of the Saints, and I wouldn't be surprised if there will be an early sack in the first quarter. I think we'll be able to tell in the first quarter if Grossman will be able to handle the pressure.

Saints can run the ball on the ground, if we can stop them in their tracks, we're golden. It's snowing lightly and the weather is cold and hopefully that will be to our advantage. Bears weather!

This game is too tough to call, but nonetheless...Go Bears!!!!!!!

Mary Ellen said...

Chicago Bears win! What an incredible game!

Now I can't wait to see who we'll be playing at the Superbowl.

L'Amerloque said...

Hi LAS !

The French public TV channel (Antenne 2) broadcast the game live … Amerloque had quite forgotten just how often a game stopped for advertising. (grin)

Usually only two-hour summaries are shown here. The Bears match was broadcast, too. Hours of US football !!!

Hi ME !

Amerloque's prediction for the SB: Bears by 10. (grin) The spirit of Dick Butkus will hover over the field … (wider grin) …

Best,
L'Amerloque

LA Sunset said...

ME,

Now I can't wait to see who we'll be playing at the Superbowl.

I-65 Super Bowl. Colts-Bears, should be a good one.

LA Sunset said...

Amerloque's prediction for the SB: Bears by 10.

I don't know, this is going to be a good game. But, I am thinking that it may closer than 10. The winner? Whoever executes their game plan, better.

Mary Ellen said...

Congratulations, LA! The Colt's played an amazing game! So did the Patriots, for that matter. Amazing, I was at the edge of my seat the whole game.

I'm not sure who is going to win the Superbowl, but I can be sure that the Colt's will fight to the end. I was really impressed with their play yesterday.

So....it's me and you, eh LA? I was wondering who I was going to be sparring with for the next two weeks. :-D

Hi L'Amerloque! So, you saw the Bears game? What did you think of that Chicago weather? I hope the Bears can play in that Miami heat.

Ok...my prediction (which will only be good for one hour, before I change my mind again)

I'm not good at predicting, but I'll take L'Amerloque's prediction. Bears by 10! ;-)

LA Sunset said...

ME,

The Colts and Pats played a game like it was supposed to be played, but the Pats certainly looked tired in the end.

There's a lot of talk that if NE would have won the whole thing again this year, they would be sealing their legacy as a dynasty. But I say, any team that wins 3 out of 4 Super Bowls IS a dynasty. The only other team that I can readily think of off the top of my head is the Steelers of the 70s.

Besides that, the final chapter on this NE team had yet to be written. They will be back next year, after some tweaking, I am sure. I think age is catching up to some of those on defense and their vulnerability in the WR department, showed tremendously.

Mary Ellen said...

LA

I agree, the Pats have nothing to be ashamed about. They did look tired in the end, but from what I understand, some of the guys had just gotten over a case of the flu and they weren't at their best.

We'll see what happens with the Colts vs Bears. I heard that the Bears are considered the underdog...again. We get no respect! :-) But that's ok, that just makes them more determined. If our defense plays like they did yesterday and force the turnovers, I think we have a good chance. In the meantime, the Bears hat stays on!

Anonymous said...

Congrats, LAS and Mary-Ellen.

I'm wicked depressed about the results, personally. Pats look kind of dumb for leaving so much cap money on the table this year. A couple extra linebackers or an extra safety would've helped in the 2nd half.

Alas, the Colts were the better team. Totally unstoppable in the 2nd half.

Anonymous said...

The good thing about this S-B matchup is the historic first it represents in race relations in America.

I'm speaking of course about the Bears' half-jewish quarterback. ;)

Anonymous said...

I'm very bad in US football, but there were some US football on a french channel and they explained the games, the rules etc .. it was Warriors vs Patriots. It is like Rugby but with different rules. Example, In rugby you can't pass the ball ahead ( always behind you), like in Soccer you can't be before the ball, and ... you can't "hit" ( ?, sorry no dictionnary) a guy who doesn' t carry the ball.

Mary Ellen said...

Greg

It's too bad that we missed the opportunity to play the Patriots. Remember I said that we should have had a bet, not money, but a dare of some sort?

I'm sure the Patriots would have had a good chance to beat us, and I was willing to wear a Red Sox hat to the White Sox opening game this year...and take a picture in front of the scoreboard to prove it. Oh well...opportunities lost. :-D

Mary Ellen said...

jph

I've been trying to find some videos with a rugby game to see how it's played. I tried reading the rules, but I couldn't make heads or tails from it. It looks like a game that I would enjoy. Of course, there are few sports I don't like....except Golf and Bowling. Yikes...boring. :-D

Baseball is by far my most favorite. Once you get to know the nuances of the game, it's great. If you're ever in Chicago, I'll take you to a game, but you have to buy me a beer. ;-)

Anonymous said...

OK for the beer ME. I would like to discover base ball too. I think US football can be very attractive. I could be a fan very quickly. For rugby there will be the world cup in France in September. There is a US team ( unknown at home, a pity) " the Eagles ". Here are the main nations : Australia, New Zealand , England, Wales, Scotland, Fidji, Samoa, Argentina, USA, Canada, Ireland, France, South Africa and others like Japan or Italy. The best team ( my opinion) is New Zealand, a fantastic team !