SportsCrack

NFL 2007 NIT Divisional Round (w/ What if Sports)

Well, the Wild Card round is in the books of the NFL NIT Tournament, with the favorites sweeping the board. Only 8 teams remain, battling it out for the coveted title of ‘Best team that didn’t make the actual playoffs!’

Simulations have been done with the excellent http://whatifsports.com as well as taking some weather averages from the equally excellent http://weather.com – and I used some dice to factor in precipitation. But enough talk! Time for zee games:

(3) Buffalo @ (2) Houston (55 degrees, clear skies)

Houston continues the favorites undefeated run in the NFL NIT 2007 tournament, winning this one 25-22 after being down by a touchdown with less than three minutes remaining. The Texans tacked on a 2 point conversion just to be safe and be up by a field goal, but the Bills never got downfield to do so. The Texans D held Buffalo to a four and out and player of the game Ron Dayne took care of the rest, sending Houston to the AFC NIT Championship game.

Player of the game: Ron Dayne 14 attempts 100 yards, 1 TD

(4) Carolina @ (1) Philadelphia (30 degrees, moderate snow, moderate winds)

Although the game was all tied at the end of the 1^st quarter, the Eagles defense would make sure the Panthers did not score any points after that. Vinny Testaverde did nothing to help his team’s chances with 3 interceptions and Deshaun Foster fumbled in the third quarter, as the Panthers were driving inside Eagle territory. Two Donovan McNabb to Brian Westbrook TD’s in the second half would finalize this one 21-7 and send the Eagles onto the NFC NIT Championship game.

Player of the game: Donovan McNabb 23/34 284 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT

(4) Cincinnati @ (1) Cleveland (25 degrees, clear skies)

In what seemingly has become an NFL NIT trend, this game also went right down to the wire as well as going in favor of the favorite. Derek Anderson showed poise in the pocket as well as cool under pressure, driving his team 78 yards with less than two minutes to go in the game. A 19 yard teardrop to Braylon Edwards made it 26-23 Browns with 32 seconds left. That score would also be the final one, with the Bengals unable to mount a substantial drive or even an attempted field goal.

Player of the game: Derek Anderson 16/23 189 yards 1 TD, 0 INT

(3) Arizona @ (2) Minnesota (Dome, but the weather outside is frightful!)

The Arizona Cardinals ended the underdogs losing streak in the NIT playoffs, with yet another down to the wire finish. Down by a TD at the start of the 4^th quarter, Edgerrin James took the team on his back and accounted for 63 of the game tying 76 yard TD drive. The Cardinals D answered the call, forcing the Vikings into a three and out, followed by Kurt Warner driving the offense just far enough for Neil Rackers to kick a 26 yard go ahead field goal. A Tavaris Jackson interception gave the Cardinals hope and although they did not score again, they ran out enough of the clock and stopped the Vikings offense yet again to come away with the victory 20-17.

Player of the game: Edgerrin James 23 attempts 114 yards, 1 TD

NFL NIT Championship Matchups

(3) Arizona @ (1) Philadelphia

(2) Houston @ (1) Cleveland

Arizona is obviously the story of the tournament so far. Will they continue their Cinderella run or will they be knocked off by my un-simulated prediction, Philadelphia? In the AFC, will Cleveland prove that they could have had a better run than Tennessee in the actual playoffs, or will Houston continue their surprising season and show they are a force to be reckoned with next year?

Stay tuned!

2007 NFL NIT Tournament (w/ What if Sports)

For anyone who read the previous iteration of this idea I had, you know I took the 6 best teams in each conference that didn’t make the playoffs and pitted them against each other in a runner’s up NIT style tournament. Unfortunately, I did this a week or so before being informed about the fantastic What if Sports. In version 1.0, I picked all the games myself – and as we all know, I have a tendency to be a bit daft at times. So, without further ado here is what would have REALLY happened in the 2007 NFL NIT Tournament.

First off, let’s take a look at the seeds:

AFC

1.) Cleveland

2.) Houston

3.) Buffalo

4.) Cincinnati

5.) Denver

6.) Baltimore

NFC

1.) Philadelphia

2.) Minnesota

3.) Arizona

4.) Carolina

5.) Detroit

6.) Chicago

The first part of this series will detail the Wild Card games. As stated before, all games will be simulated using http://whatifsports.com and normal NFL playoff seeding/home field advantage rules. Standing injuries from the end of the season and who was starting will be taken into account (e.g.: unfortunately for the Ravens, Troy Smith will be leading them at QB through the tournament). Also, I took a look at the average temperature in the given home cities during January and rolled dice for precipitation (1, 3, meant there was precipitation with 1 being light, 3 moderate and factored in wind with the given precipitation… I’m a dork, I know this).

(6) Baltimore @ (3) Buffalo (25 degrees, clear skies)

The first game of the NFL NIT playoffs proved to be a thrilling one, with overtime needed to decide a victor. With less than six minutes to go in the 4^th quarter and Troy Smith bowing out of the game with an injury, Kyle Boller led his team 53 yards for a touchdown as well as the 2 point conversion to tie it at 21. Baltimore’s defense couldn’t hold Buffalo in overtime though, allowing a 29 yarder by Ryan Lindell to catapult the Bills into the NIT Divisional round with a 24-21 victory.

Player of the game: Trent Edwards 20/29 298 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT

(5) Detroit @ (4) Carolina (40 degrees, clear skies)

Although this game got off to a slow start in the first half the second half could go down as perhaps the best in the NFL NIT history. Down 10-6 at the half, Carolina stormed right out the gate, quickly making it 13-10. Each team would go back and forth scoring on each consecutive drive. At the 1:30 minute mark, Detroit was up 31-10. Veteran Vinny Testaverde (filling in for an injured Matt Moore) would have none of that – marching the team down field and allowing John Casey to knock through a 42 yarder to send the Panthers into the next round.

Player of the game: Vinny Testaverde 19/28 267 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT

(6) Chicago @ (3) Arizona (70 degrees, clear skies)

Although they were only up 10-3 at halftime, the Cardinals wasted no time in the second half cushioning their lead. Two unanswered touchdowns and a field goal later, the score was 27-3 and although the Bears mounted somewhat of a comeback, scoring 10 more points of their own, they were never really in it. Both Kurt Warner and Edgerrin James had great days and it seemed they could score at will. The Cardinals won this one without too much difficulty 30-13.

Player of the game: Anquan Boldin 8 receptions 165 yards, 2 TDs

(5) Denver @ (4) Cincinnati (25 degrees, flurries, light wind)

Although rallying to within 3 points after being down by 18 with less than eight minutes left, the Denver Broncos just couldn’t get the ball back at the end of the game to tie it up. Cincinnati appeared to have the game in hand 31-13 at the eight minute mark of the fourth quarter, trying to cruise through the rest of the game. The Bengals almost let the Broncos back in it, although in the end, they were too much for Mike Shanahan’s team. The Bengals complete the Wild Card round favorites sweep 31-28.

Player of the game: Carson Palmer 21/35 289 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT

NFL NIT Divisional Round Matchups:

(4) Cincinnati @ (1) Cleveland

(3) Buffalo @ (2) Houston

(4) Carolina @ (1) Philadelphia

(3) Arizona @ (2) Minnesota

Stay tuned!

A Patriot Fans Manifesto

Instead of pretending to be fair and balanced like Fox News, I am instead going to write in the henceforth ‘Pats-person.’ It is similar to first person and third person, except that I will in no way hide my undying allegiance to the most hated team in sports.

It was a mere seven years ago the Patriots were the underdog darling of the entire country. Since then, it’s been quite a journey. Back then they were the team that no one gave a chance to and were a general feel good story (except in St. Louis of course).

After a year off the Patriots were in the Super Bowl yet again, this time against the Carolina Panthers. Suddenly, the word ‘dynasty’ was being thrown around and although the underdog tag could no longer be applied to them, they were still respected by the majority of NFL fans.

The very next year, 2004, the Patriots were yet AGAIN in the Super Bowl. The Philadelphia Eagles were the next victim and around this time people were starting to see the Patriots a bit too much. Almost like ‘Hey, it was cute at first guys, now you’re annoying – cut it out!’

Two years and two gut-wrenching playoff losses later, we arrive at the beginning of the 2007 season. The Patriots had added a plethora of weapons including but not limited to Randy Moss, Wes Welker and Adalius Thomas. Then, during Week 1, the shit hit the fan.

It went by many names, the favorite appearing to be Spy Gate. The Patriots were caught red handed taping the defensive signals against the New York Jets. I’m not going to get into how Eric Mangina is a snitch and all that because it would go nowhere. You either agree with what he did or you don’t. Personally, I think it’s a bit more widespread than everyone made it seem, but oh well. The damage had been done. The ‘Patriot darlings’ were suddenly labeled as cheaters and everything they had accomplished up until then came under question.

Explaining the feelings upon hearing this, as a Patriots fan since childhood would be too difficult. The only thing I can equate it to is if the star player on your team was caught using steroids, but even then it’s like comparing apples and bananas. If you live in an NFL city that was once considered a dynasty, imagine Spy Gate happening to them right at the peak of their greatness. It sucks, let me tell you.

It didn’t necessarily suck because I believed it was such a horrible thing to do. Again, I think that every single NFL team in the league does what they need to do to gain a competitive advantage. It sucked because the New England Patriots had become the New York Yankees/Dallas Cowboys/Place a Successful Disliked Team Here, all rolled into one. Pretend that that team killed your dog and you’d have the general consensus of the new look New England Patriots.

However as the Patriots began to tally win after win each week, I began to feel less and less ashamed of what the Patriots had done. After all, they didn’t even get to use the ‘cheating intel’ from Week 1. Every win that they added to their record was legit and I became less and less concerned that I was rooting for the criminal of the NFL.

Now, as we stand on the precipice of NFL history, it just boggles me how in a mere seven years the Patriots went from darling underdogs to hated villains. It’s interesting to say the least. With success comes jealousy and with jealousy comes hatred. I’m sure there will be a lot of articles covering the Giants/Pats Super Bowl in the upcoming days. I’m sure that many of them will spew anti-Patriot content and that’s okay. I don’t really expect non-Patriots fans to side with them and am pretty sure that 45 ½ out of the 50 states (Vermont might be half and half) will be rooting against the Pats in the Super Bowl. I mean, if I wasn’t a Patriots fan, I sure as hell would.

Due to the success of the season it was easy to shrug off attacks by suggesting jealousy or ignorance. But if you thought Boston area sports fans were obnoxious before? Just think of how bad we’re going to be when we get to give it all back to you when we win the Super Bowl in two weeks.

Championship Round Quick Picks

Real quick:

Pats 41 Chargers 28

L.T. whines after the game and uses the word 'class' at least 3 times. Also, Rivers gets into an argument with at least two fans in the crowd because he still thinks he's in Pee-Wee football.



Giants 31 Packers 30

Major upset in what will be a much better game than people think.

Miami Dolphins Year in Review

It was an eventful year for the Miami Dolphins, albeit a year that did not include much wins (one to be exact). Although next year does show some promise after the hiring of Bill Parcells as the ‘executive VP of football operations’ coupled with the first pick in the NFL Draft.

The Dolphins season started just like everyone else’s: with hope and a clean slate. With Trent Green under center, a confident Ronnie Brown in the backfield and an elderly promising defense, Dolphins fans were excited for the upcoming season.

The excitement continued even after a 16-13 OT loss to the Washington Redskins in Week 1. Over the next 7 weeks however, the Dolphins would rack up 7 more losses. They would lose Trent Green for the season after a Week 5 concussion (which gave the reigns to Cleo Lemon) as well as Ronnie Brown for the year in Week 7. Up until then, Brown had been running like a madman, piling up 602 yards on 119 rushes and 4 touchdowns. Going into the Week 9 bye, the Dolphins were 0-8 and had lost their starting quarterback and running back to year ending injuries.

It was perhaps at this time, as in Madden, that fans realized that even if they unrealistically won out the rest of their season, they would be 8-8 and would likely still miss the playoffs. The mood in Miami was dismal and the team members did not look happy. The depression would continue through Week 14, where the Dolphins stood at 0-13. During the 5 games since the bye week, the Dolphins had played in some close games (13-10 loss to the Bills in Week 10), some bad games (40-13 ass kicking by the Jets in Week 13) and the ugly (a 3-0 loss to the Steelers in Week 12, where we saw what was perhaps the worst playing conditions in the history of the NFL). The Dolphins were 3 losses away from being an immortal laughing stock in NFL history.

But then, something crazy happened. The Dolphins won a Week 15 game against the Ravens (surprise, surprise) and ended the entire nation’s dream of the defeated Dolphins ending the undefeated Patriots season in Week 16, which would have effectively imploded the universe. Still, the Dolphins organization as a whole was ecstatic that instead of being known as the ‘first team to go 0-16’ they would instead just be known as ‘that horrible 1-15 Dolphins team from 2007.’ The 2007 Dolphins were definitely a half glass full type team, that’s for sure. Even if they lost their remaining two games (which they did) they still won at least one game. Motivational coaches everywhere smiled to themselves.

The Dolphins ended the 2007 season 1-15 and once the good feelings of at least winning one game wore off, they realized they were still going to suck just as much next year. Then, something even crazier happened. Bill Parcells decided he was bored on NFL Sunday Countdown and wanted to get back into the NFL somehow. Parcells chose the Dolphins over the Falcons and Miami fans rejoiced. Perhaps they would not suck so much next year. Almost immediately, the new executive VP of football operations began to clean house, firing GM Randy Mueller and head coach Cam Cameron.

Dolphins 2007 Team Leaders

PASSING

Cleo Lemon: 173/309, 1773 yards, 5.74 yards per attempt, 6 TD, 6 INT

RUSHING

Ronnie Brown: 119 carries, 602 yards, 4 TD, 0 fumbles

RECEIVING

Marty Booker: 50 receptions, 556 yards, 1 TD

DEFENSE

Channing Crowder: 77 total tackles (60 solo), 1 sack (Jason Allen led the team in interceptions with 3)

Parcells would eventually bring in former Cowboys underling Tony Sparano as the new head coach a few weeks later. Considering the state of the team minutes after their season ended at 1-15, Dolphins fans have to at least feel good that the team is now on the right track with Parcells at the helm. Known for his keen eye for talent and no nonsense approach to the game, the team should look and play completely different next year, and for the better.

Who will the Dolphins take at #1? Will they trade down? Perhaps the only position the Dolphins don’t need to upgrade is running back, but with Darren McFadden available it would surprise no one if the Fins take him, considering his talent. LSU DT Glenn Dorsey is generally regarded as the best senior prospect in the entire draft and the Dolphins may very well take him. There are a bunch of different positions available with the number one pick, so it’s anyone’s guess as to which direction the team will go. But one thing is for sure, with Parcells steering them, they’ll be headed in the right direction.