Peyton Manning and the Colts are still contenders at the #5 seed.

Setting up one of the most wide open Playoffs in a long time, the last week of the NFL season was no different then the previous 16. Heading into week 17, the NFC was still up in the air. The Philadelphia Eagles had to have had the least amount of hope to get into the playoffs. Their fate layed in the hands of the Oakland Raiders defeating the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay and themselves defeating the Dallas Cowboys at home. Chucky and Monte laid huge eggs in Tampa and all of a sudden the Eagles’ fate was in their own hands and they took full advantage. Even though the Eagles’ record looks like one you would see in MLS (9-6-1) they will start their road to the Super Bowl in Minnesota to face off against the Vikings. Does it surprise anyone that the road teams are favored in all the games this weekend? As we say goodbye to our weekly column Revelations From the NFL until next season, JIB Sports will be giving a rundown of the weekly matchups with our picks. Hold onto your hats and glasses, ’cause this here will be the wildest bunch of Wild Card games…ever!

NFC

Saturday, 01/03/09 - Atlanta Falcons at Arizona Cardinals – Anybody who predicted this Wild-Card matchup before the season started might have been referred to a mental institution. A rookie coach and quarterback with a host of up and coming players on one side and the Cardinals on the other. Look up “Cardinals” in an NFL encyclopedia and you will read “noun – a group of players that underachieve, choke, and let other teams off the hook.” Believe it or not, the Cardinals are hosting a playoff game, on the field where The New York Giants upended the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl last year. With Kurt Warner and his Michael Jackson glove on his throwing hand, the Cardinals have got to feel confident that they can score, the only thing they need to worry about is their defense. If the Cardinals can keep Falcons running back Michael Turner in check they will win their first playoff game in 10 years.

Sunday, 01/04/09 - Philadelphia Eagles at Minnesota Vikings – Vikings head coach Brad Childress was highly criticized when he benched quarterback Tarvaris “I wear my bling during games” Jackson in favor of Gus “I Like to head-butt walls” Frerotte. The Vikings went on a roll and put themselves into Playoff position only to have Frerotte get injured and Jackson help the Vikings limp into the Playoffs. The Eagles lived on a prayer to make the playoffs and it was answered. Eagles head coach Andy Reid was also heckled greatly for benching quarterback Donovan McNabb around midseason, but look where the Eagles are now. I’m guessing the first coach to bench their starting quarterback for at least one series and then putting him back in will win this game. Football is after all a great deal mental over physical. The goal with the coaching strategy mentioned above is not to intimidate, but rather to confuse.  

AFC

Saturday, 01/03/08 – Indianapolis Colts at San Diego “Super” Chargers – The Colts and Chargers are two of the hottest teams in the league, although the Chargers have had a much easier path to the Playoffs. The Colts started the season 3-4 and rallied off nine straight victories, four of which were against playoff teams. The Chargers started the season 4-8 and ended with four straight wins, including wins over the streaking Chiefs and Raiders (not the good kind of streaking). The Colts knocked off the Chargers in week 12, but the Playoffs are a whole different story. Peyton Manning is still in MVP talks and he had a down year by his terms. Manning is only getting healthier and stronger as the year has gone on, and he plays considerably better when he’s not in cold weather. The Chargers are hoping a cold front moves through San Diego, or that Manning breaks his arm in a freak accident. 

Sunday, 01/04/08 - Baltimore Ravens at Miami Dolphins - The same thing could be uttered about this game as was mentioned above regarding the Falcons and Cardinals. The Miami Dolphins completed the biggest turnaround in NFL history on Sunday when they beat the New York Jets and won the AFC East Division. The Patriots and Jets were all the talk going into the season, but Chad Pennington quietly led the Dolphins to their first playoff appearance 2001 (when they also faced the Baltimore Ravens and lost). The Ravens took a road almost identical to the Falcons with a rookie coach and quarterback. The Ravens have always been a tough defensive team, but quarterback Joe Flacco and the offense have diverted from typical Raven offenses in that they can actually put up points in bunches. The Dolphins will have the luxury of a raucous home crowd and all the confidence in the world. Watch for a wildphin sighting on Sunday.

With this being Christmas week, there wasn’t a lot of action around the NBA. However, there was just enough to hand out one more report card:

A - The Lakers Stopping the Celtics - Eyeing 20 straight wins, the longest in NBA history, and on pace to break the record for most wins in a season, the Celtics were pretty confident that nobody could stand in their way. Heading into a Christmas day rematch of last year’s Finals, I’m sure the Lakers were pretty sick about their tremendous start being overshadowed. I wouldn’t exactly call it “David slaying Goliath,” but the Lakers took down the Celtics in what could be better known as “Little person Goliath slays normal sized Goliath.”

The Orlando Magic is one team not far behind the Celtics this year.

B - The Emergence of the Eastern Conference - It was only a year ago that teams in the Western Conference were crying bloody murder that they were left out of the Playoffs, but would have been a 4-5 seed if they played in the Eastern Conference. Droves of people petitioned the NBA do a playoff simply with the 16 best teams, regardless of conference affiliation. NBA Commissioner David Stern said that it was cyclical and the East would bounce back. Boy, is he ever patting his own back right now. Trudging along behind Boston are the Cleveland Cavaliers (25-4) and the Orlando Magic (24-6), for those of you geographically challenged, they are in the East as well.

C -All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk Contest - The NBA Dunk Contest was at it’s peak in the 80s with stars like Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, Clyde Drexler, and even our favorite midget Spud Webb taking the stage. It had been running on fumes ever since last year when Dwight Howard stole the show. I said “wow” more times in that dunk contest then I had in the previous 15 or so. This year Howard will defend his title against Rudy Gay, Spud Webb wannabee Nate Robinson and a fan choice. The fans choices include a token white guy, an international guy, and a short guy. 

D – Dirk’s Flagrant Foul - The last two times the Dallas Mavericks have played the Utah Jazz in Utah, two things have remained consistent. The Jazz have beat the Mavericks in both meetings and Dirk Nowitzki has been whistled with a flagrant foul and suspended one game. Sounds like somebody needs some anger management. After this past game, when Dirk backhanded Jazzman Matt Harpring in the face with a closed fist, Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle said, “I don’t believe it was an intentional thing. I think it was a reactive thing.” If every player’s “reactive thing” was to backhand another player when there is pushing and shoving then you might as well call the NBA “UFC.”

F – Shaq’s Free Throw Shooting - Shaquille O’Neal just surpassed 5,000 free throw misses in his career. It is yet to be seen if the phrase “Hack-A-Shaq” will remain after Shaq retires. For someone getting paid millions to play basketball, it seems a little silly that he stinks so bad at this one area of his game and has never gotten better. This year, so far, has been Shaq’s best in five years, he’s shooting a blistering 52%!

With the bowl season over half way over, the best is yet to come. With the exception of a few diamonds in the rough, this slate of games will prove to be some of the most enterataining and competitive. This college football season has been wonderful, we look forward to pick up where we left off next fall with more Sunday Headlines.

-01/01 – Gator Bowl ~ Clemson – Nebraska – “Storm Finally Arrives at Clemson” All pre-season we heard about Clemson’s running back tandem of “Thunder & Lightning,” which has been spotty all season. Nebraska has had their fair shares of up and downs as well. The Tigers will have a hayday running the ball against the Husker defense.

-01/01 – Rose Bowl ~ USC – Penn State – “Trojans Show Penn State the Door” Talk about a “central” site, USC will have to travel a few minutes up the road while Penn State will go thousands of miles to reach the Rose Bowl. Both these teams had bad losses to unranked teams, they both had “what could have been” seasons. There’s always next year, and Joe Paterno will be as well barring a heart attack or broken hip.

-01/01 – FedEx Orange Bowl ~ Cincinnati – Virginia Tech – “Hokies Get Clawed” If there ever was a bigger joke in the BCS, please reveal it to me. The fact that the Big East and ACC get automatic bids is an outrage, no doubt the officials for each BCS bowl were fighting over who had to take these two teams. The BCS will explain this phenomenon as “cyclical,” they would make good politicians.

Heisman winner Sam Bradford is ready to put some points up on the Gators.

-01/02 – Cotton Bowl ~ Texas Tech – Mississippi – “Red Raiders Roll Rebels” Texas Tech got snubbed by the BCS in a big way. As opposed to a rematch with Texas, which was one of the best games of the year, the Fiesta Bowl opted to take a 2-loss Ohio State. Texas Tech will take their frustrations out on Mississippi, it gets old being the ugly smart kid that gets looked over in favor of cute blonde for Class President.

-01/02 – Autozone Liberty Bowl ~ East Carolina - Kentucky – “Pirates End How They Started” Skip Holtz was looking to be a household name like his father early this year with East Carloina’s great start. Then the Pirates started losing and Holtz became an afterthought. Kentucky played tough this year, but toughness doesn’t always equate to wins.   

-01/02 – Allstate Sugar Bowl ~ Alabama – Utah – “Tide Rolls Utes” Take a fish out of water and they die. The Utes water is not the southeast, this is a home game for Alabama. If this game was played in Tempe it would be much more competitive. The Utes belong in a BCS bowl, but they got shafted with this bowl selection.

-01/03 – International Bowl ~ Connecticut - Buffalo – “O’ Turner Gill” Head coach Turner Gill has done wonders in Buffalo, but UConn has always done wonders since it became a 1-A football program in 2002. Buffalo is on a hot streak after defeating Ball State in the MAC Championship Game and will continue streaking against the Huskies.

-01/05 – Tostitos Fiesta Bowl ~ Texas – Ohio State - ”Buckeyes Get Mack Attacked ” I think Mack Brown is upset about being left out of the National Championship Game, and rightfully so. The Longhorns did in fact beat the Oklahoma Sooners earlier this year. On the flip side, the Buckeyes are grateful to be playing in this game, but they won’t after what happens to them.

-01/06 – GMAC Bowl ~ Ball State – Tulsa – “Golden Hurricane Rips Through Ball State” The questions remains if Ball State has the will power to bounce back from their loss in the MAC Championship and be able to regroup after losing their head coach to San Diego State. In terms of offensive power, Tulsa will be Ball State’s toughest oppenent of the year, we will defeinitely see what they are made of.

-01/08 – Fedex National Championship Game ~ Oklahoma – Florida – “Bommer Sooners Break Streak-Win BCS Title” The Florida Gators are one of the hottest teams in college football, but Oklahoma is one of the most talented. The record of Heisman winners in their bowl games is poor, but the Sooners will ride that ship with a huge win.

"How about a nice foot-ball?"

Once a year we celebrate Christmas, the one time of the year where we can forget ourselves and reach out to others in a spirit of goodwill and peace. We also give our bosses a nice gift and not a flaming brown bag that we thought about giving them so many times during the year. Not to mention, we act like raged maniacs in stores and fight over parking spots with our car blinkers. With the NBA season starting, the NFL playoff push winding down, and the college football Bowl season in full force, there aren’t exactly feelings of goodwill and peace in sports. That’s why we love them though, we love the competition. The NBA has been trying to incorporate basketball into the Christmas tradition, similar to what the NFL has done with football on Thanksgiving. In just a matter of a few years, the NBA has gone from no games on Christmas to five games this year. The initial Christmas rivalry was Kobe vs. Shaq, but that wore off once Shaq turned very old very fast. Before being shipped to Phoenix, Shaq played Santa at the Heat Christmas Parties. This year the best game will probably be last year’s Finals rematch, it helps that the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics are a combined  50-7. Whether you are watching basketball or trying to figure out your kid’s Transformers without breaking them, have a safe holiday and check back on Friday for College Football Bowls Preview: Part III. Merry Christmas!

Heading into Christmas, there are a lot of teams heading in completely different directions. Some are going up and passing with flying colors, others are free-falling and about to flunk out:

A – The Celtics Run for History - The Boston Celtics are currently sitting at 25-2, thier only two losses coming to the Indiana Pacers and Denver Nuggets. The Celtics are chasing history, trying to post the best season in NBA history. The current record is 72-10 by Michael Jordan and company of the ‘95-’96 Chicago Bulls. Staying to their current pace, they could finish at either 75-7 or possible 76-6, but there is a lot of basketball to finish. When they started the season 2-0, they were on pace to finish a perfect 82-0…

Chris Paul has picked a lot of pockets lately.

B - The Jazz’s Amazing Comeback - This past week against the New Jersey Nets, the Utah Jazz start just a little sluggish. At the end of the 1st quarter, the Jazz were down 27-7 and were shooting just a shade over 15% from the field. Nets point guard Devin Harris was running circles around Deron Williams and the Jazz. When the second quarter started, the game changed in favor of the Jazz, they outscored the Nets 96-65. If only the Jazz could have played that good for four quarters, and the Nets would have stunk in that same duration, that would have been a rout.

C – Chris Paul’s Steal Record - Chris Paul broke the NBA record for most consecutive games with a steal against the San Anotnio Spirs, Paul is now at 106 and counting. It’s gotten to the point that we have stats for everything, I wonder who has the most consecutive games with a rebound, or a 3-point basket, or the most cups of Gatorade drinken during a game. No, I don’t care, because all these records and streaks are trivial. The real record Chris Paul should be chasing is all-time assists, currently held by John Stockton. Chris Paul is still 16 years and about 3,000 steals away from that record.

D – The Thunder’s Run for History - While the Boston Celtics are attempting to reach greatness, the Oklahoma City Thunder are attempting to prevent their names from being mentioned as the worst team in NBA history. The title is currently held by the ‘72-’73 Philadelphia 76ers, with a record of 9-73. Oklahoma City is currently a thundering 3-24. If the Thunder do run the crap tables and break the record, they could have a dinner party with the Detroit Lions and share war stories like old Vets. Instead of popping champaign, they will be drinking Diet Cokes and sparkling cider.

F – Carlos Boozer’s Ego – Carlos Boozer is in the last year of his contract with the Jazz, and he has a player option for next year. As expected, Boozer announced that he will not pick up his player option and will test free agency. After making his proclamation, Boozer had enough nerve to say, “I deserve a raise.” This is coming from Carlos Boozer, one in the same that has missed over 1/3 of his games with the Jazz because of injury and was non-existent in last year’s Playoffs. Boozer has not made a lot of fans in Utah lately, most of them hope the door hits him in the butt on his way out, and injures him for all of next year.

This week the NFL announced it’s Pro Bowlers. The best part about the Pro Bowl is the free trip to Hawai’i for the players, because it couldn’t be fun to practice a generic playbook with a bunch of guys that are not teammates. Consequently, it’s not much fun for the fans either. Fans will probably see better football at the Hawai’i Bowl between Hawai’i and Notre Dame. We’ve had 14 solid weeks of revelation, it certainly didn’t stop this week:

Dallas Hanging on a Prayer

Rumors swirled that T.O. was jealous of Romo and Witten getting too "buddy buddy."

After last week’s 4th quarter melt down in Steel Town, the Dallas Cowboys were all but counted out of the NFC Wild Card race. Throughout the week there were rumors and a soap opera atmosphere surrounding the Cowboys. Housewives around the nation bypassed “Days of Our Lives” to watch ESPNews around the clock every morning to see what new stories developed. First there were the rumors of owner Jerry Jones basically calling Marion Barber a wimpy little kid and a pansy. Then there were rumors swirling about quandaries in the Cowboys’ love triangle of Tony Romo, Jason Witten, and Terrell Owens.  T.O. was jealous that more balls were being thrown to Witten, and that really ruffled his feathers. They apparently hugged out their problems, because they all looked on the same page Sunday as they beat the defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants. Playing in front of their home crowd in the second to last game in historic Texas Stadium, the Cowboys played inspired and got a great win. Cowboys still have a chance to make the playoffs if they beat the Ravens in Baltimore and the Philadelphia Eagles at home. The Cowboys are kind of like the spider you find in your bath tub that you can’t get to go down the drain. You keep pouring handfuls of water on it, but it keeps fighting, bet you haven’t heard that analogy in sports before. I heard it on ESPN, or did I??

Outside of his family friends, nobody could have fathomed the great season QB Matt Ryan would have.

JIB Sports is Wrong Sometimes

Although very credible and dependable, JIB Sports can be wrong sometimes. You can’t put all your eggs in one basket all the time.  Along with many others out there, we discounted the Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins before the season even started. One of the biggest reasons was the uncertainty at quarterback and new coaches for both teams. With two weeks left in the season, both teams are sitting at 9-5 with two very confident quarterbacks and two head coaches worthy of Coach of the Year honors (although it is almost certain Jeff Fisher of the Tennessee Titans with garner that award). Coming out of training camp the Miami Dolphins didn’t even have a starter. They traded their would be starter Josh McCown to the Carolina Panthers and signed “washed up” quarterback Chad Pennington after the New York Jets let him go and started their current love affair with Brett Favre (the league leader in interceptions this year mind you). Pennington has done very little to really win games, but he has done nothing to contribute to them losing, he’s been consistent and solid. Meanwhile, over in Atlanta, Michael Vick is out and rookie Matt Ryan is in. Wide receiver Roddy White is helping lighten the load, being a reliable target for Ryan, and running back Michael Turner is keeping defenses honest. With both teams in the playoff hunt, it is safe to say each team has far exceeded expectations, even ours (and we have pretty high expectations for people getting payed millions to kick, throw, and catch a pigskin).

There are two popular schools of thought when it comes to approaching bowl games. The first is that you want to win to end the season on a good note and send the Seniors out the right way. The second is that you want to win to springboard your spot in the next season’s preseason polls. Why not both? I guess it would overload some coaches and players, they like to keep it simple. In traditional fashion of Sunday Headlines, here are the matchups of the second portion of bowls with a headline you might see attached to it and the JIB Picks are bolded:

Nevada QB Colin Kaepernick will be on display for the whole nation to see in Boise.

-12/29 – Valero Alamo Bowl ~ Missouri – Northwestern – “Tigers Pounce Wildcats” Missouri started the season in the top 5 with National Championship aspirations, it ended very badly with back-to-back losses to Kansas and Texas. Chase Daniel will go out on top with a win over Northwestern, who will look at of their zone in warm Texas. Northwestern is used to snow and freezing temperatures.

-12/30 – Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl ~ Nevada – Maryland – “Terrapins Seeing Blue” Nevada will be right at home, playing on the “Smurf Turf,” it has forced them all to go colorblind so they think it’s green. Nevada’s quarterback Colin Kaepernick is the best kept secret of the WAC. Kaepernick ran passed for 2,479 yards with 19 touchdowns and ran for 1,115 yards with 16 touchdowns, Maryland better spy him. 

-12/30 – Texas Bowl ~ Rice – Western Michigan – “Don’t Mess With Rice”  Rice is a pass happy team, Western Michigan ranked 96th in pass defense. Anybody else seeing what I am? The Owls should have no problem dispatching the Broncos and getting their first bowl win in 50+ years. It always helps to play a bowl game in your backyard as well, Rice is in Houston, the site of the Texas Bowl.

-12/30 – Pacific Life Holiday Bowl ~ Oklahoma State – Oregon – “Cowboys Lasso Ducks” Oregon ended it’s season with a nice win over rival Oregon State, but Oklahoma State will pose a larger offensive threat to the Ducks. If this turns into a shootout then the Cowboys will win, the Ducks’ roster isn’t deep enough or good enough to hang with them offensively.   

-12/31 – Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl ~ Air Force – Houston – “Cougars Get Redemption” It’s to vote against an Armed Force in the Armed Forces Bowl, but this one only makes sense. If Houston plays a smidgen of rush defense they will win. Air Force won in their first match-up this year, in which they had 380 rushing yards and didn’t attempt a single pass. 

-12/31 – Sun Bowl ~ Pittsburgh – Oregon State – “Pitt Fails Pop Quizz” Oregon State had the chance to make it to the Rose Bowl and they blew it against their rival Oregon. The difference in that game was their dynamic running back Jacquizz Rodgers was injured. The Beavers will have him back for the bowl game, Pitt will have to look hard to see him behind the offensive line.  

Beavers RB Jacquizz Rodgers is like a mini Barry Sanders.

-12/31 – Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl ~ Boston College – Vanderbilt – “BC Scores A+” In a match-up of two schools that are pretty good academically, BC will smother the fire of Vandy’s once promising season. Vandy was in the top 25 for consecutive weeks, but then midterms started and there was a sudden drop off. It was a nice season for Vandy, but will be a better one for BC. 

-12/31 – Insight Bowl ~ Minnesota – Kansas – “Jayhawks Keep Gophers Reeling” Kansas and Minnesota combined lost 8 of their last 10 games coming down the stretch. While the Gophers got thumped at home against Iowa 55-0, the Jayhawks beat Missouri in the Border War. While this game will be a springboard for Kansas, it will be a nosedive for the Gophers. 

-12/31 – Chick-fil-a Bowl ~ Georgia Tech – LSU – “Georgia Tech Has Options” LSU’s defense is quick, but Georgia Tech runs their offense with just as much speed with their dynamic option offense. Many people scoffed at the thought of Paul Johnson’s option offense working at the higher level. I guess he proved them all very wrong, Georgia Tech is buzzing again.  

-01/01 – Outback Bowl ~ Iowa – South Carolina – “Green Runs Wild” Iowa running back Shonn Greene got some attention late in the season after he finished with 1,700+ yards rushing. He got a lot of attention actually, he won the Doak Walker Award. South Carolina has a good defense, but something has got to give and it look like it will be the Gamecocks’ defense. Good news is steaks for everyone after the game!

-01/01 – Capital One Bowl ~ Georgia – Michigan State – “” In a match-up of two great running backs in the Spartans Javon Ringer and the Bulldogs’ Knowshon Moreno, this game will be decided by air. Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford was leagues above Michigan State’s Brian Hoyer, which spells out a win for Georgia. The Bulldogs started as preseason #1 and might start there again with their QB and RB returning.

With no further delays, here is the fourth report card of the season with the usual props and slams which are both well deserved:

Jerry Sloan has never been one to withhold emotion.

A – Jerry Sloan’s Resilience - Utah Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan is the longest tenured coach in professional sports, he has now been the coach of the Jazz for 20 years. In that time, Sloan has coached over 1,600 wins and amassed well over 1,000 wins. He has lead the Jazz to two appearances in the NBA Finals with Karl Malone, John Stockton, and his short shorts. Sloan also lead the Jazz to 16 straight winning seasons, 18 playoff appearances and is currently 4th in all-time wins in NBA history. All while doing this, Sloan has not once won Coach of the Year honors, nor has he has asked for praise once. Sloan is fine being the one in the background, he doesn’t demand attention, but he does demand respect. Although under-appreciated, Sloan is leaving his mark on the Jazz and the NBA. Nobody coaches, nor cusses, quite like Jerry, congratulations!   

B – Cuttino Mobley’s Career – Before joining the New York Knicks, Cuttino Mobley had to take a physical, like every other player traded to a new team. In the physical, doctors found that Mobely’s genetic heart disease (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) was getting progressively worse and might endanger his life. Choosing his responsibility to family and living a more full life, Mobley decided to forgo his NBA career and retire. Mobley had a solid NBA career and was a dependable starter and bench player for the Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic, Sacramento Kings, and Los Angeles Clippers. In his 10-year NBA career, Mobley averaged 13.7 points and 2.6 rebounds. If there is a Mediocre Hall of Fame, Mobley might get in on the first ballot, but as it stands he was consistent. 

C – GMs Firing Coaches - The Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves each dismissed their head coach s last week. Maurice Cheeks and Randy Wittman became the 4th and 5th coaches to be fired this year. At some point you have to question the general managers that assemble the teams, the coaches can only work with what they are given. Few coaches can work with losers. If Larry Brown, the supposed Godfather of coaching, couldn’t win in New York and is not winning in Charlotte, then maybe there is more to winning than the head coach. Think back to ‘06 when the Boston Celtics were horrible. Their team was full of underachievers and head coach Doc Rivers was always speculated to be on thin ice with the Celtics. They decided to keep him and brought in Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett the next year. With the new additions we all know that The Celtics won the NBA Title and now Doc Rivers is an “awesome’ coach. 

Could Steve Kerr be purposely sabotaging the Suns?

D – The Jazz Surrendering Their Dominance - In 41 games last year, the Utah Jazz were 37-4 at home, the best home court record in the NBA. We are 25 games into the ‘08-’09 campaign and the Jazz have already dropped four games at Energy Solutions Arena. The Jazz have been bit by the injury bug in a big way this year, but they have simply not shown their usual tenacity that we are used to seeing. After taking a 10 point lead into halftime on Saturday against the Orlando Magic, the Jazz were outscored 32-14 in the 3rd quarter and the rest was history. What looked like a promising year for the Jazz is turning sour real quick, as it stands they would be a 7th seed in the Playoffs, definitely not where they envisioned themselves when the season started. 

F – Steve Kerr’s Dismantling of the Suns - The Phoenix Suns were within reach of the NBA FInals for two years in a row. Mike D’Antoni’s run n’ gun offense was firing on all cylinders and it didn’t matter that the only person that knew how to play defense was Raja Bell. Raja was a tough, lock-down defender, he even clotheslined Kobe Bryant in the ‘06 Playoffs. Things started going south for the Suns in 2007 when Steve Kerr assumed the General Manager position and started by trading Shawn Marion for Shaquille O’Neal. They traded a key piece of their offense for an old Shaq that has a 6″ vertical now. The Suns instantaneously transformed into a different team. Kerr shook things up even more this week when he traded away Raja and Boris Diaw. Something tells me Kerr might not win GM of the year…and that he sucked at Monopoly as a kid. He probably traded Boardwalk for Baltic Avenue in a heartbeat every time.

Oh, and one more thing, Happy Birthday Mom!

The window of opportunity is closing for a lot of teams to make the playoffs. Meanwhile and few more teams are surging and gaining confidence. There are also a couple more revelations after week 14 in the NFL:

Old Sayings Never Die  

Deshea Townsend helped one saying live another day.

“Defense Wins Championships.” It doesn’t matter what sport you play, you are bound to hear this at least eleventy-billion times while watching and playing it. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, it was their defense that saved them against the Dallas Cowboys. With under five minutes in the game, the Steelers were stopped on 4th and goal and the Cowboys held on to their seven point lead. While the Cowboy coaches were picturing their “defense wins championships” inspirational speech for after the game, the Steelers stepped up and stopped the Cowboys’ stagnant offense. The Steelers ended up marching the ball straight down the field for a touchdown. On the Cowboys very next play, Tony Romo threw an  interception to Deshea Townsend, which was returned for a touchdown. Cowboys tight end Jason Witten took responsibility for the interception, saying that he ran the wrong route. I would have to agree with him, or be lead to believe that it was an awful throw by Romo, because Townsend was wide open. As the waning seconds of the clock clicked away, the Steelers had just outscored the Cowboys by seventeen in the final seven minutes and head coach Mike Tomlin was preaching “Defense saved our butts…I mean…wins championships!!”

Saints QB Drew Brees is in MVP talks despite his team's 7-6 record.

The MVP Race is Tightening

With the season coming to a close the MVP debates are starting. Here’s an MVP trivia question for everyone: who was the last non-offensive player to win the MVP and when did they win it? Answer: Lawrence Taylor – 1986!!! How about the last non-running back or quarterback? Answer: Jerry Rice – 1990!!! I think it’s safe to say that either a quarterback or a running back will win it this year. Since the AFL-NFL merger there have only been three non-offensive players to win the award. If football is truly a team sport, then how can two offensive positions always be the most valuable? Not to mention, if it’s defense that wins championships, then wouldn’t a defensive player be the most valuable? So as to not raise too much controversy, there are a couple defensive players being mentioned for the award, but we all know they have just as good of a chance of winning as O.J. does of getting parole. It’s kind of like how at least one African-American has to be interviewed for every head coach vacancy, there are protocols that need to be followed. Right now the names being mentioned are Drew Brees, Brett Favre, Kurt Warner, and Adrian Peterson. The mentioning of these guys defies the often used logic that the MVP should be the best player on the best team. Then Saints are 7-6, while the Jets, Cardinals, and Vikings are all at 8-5. How about Eli Manning on the 11-2 Giants or Jake Delhomme on the 10-3 Panthers? They might as well just pull a name out of a hat this year, debates will ensue no matter who is chosen.

All the drama is on hold for now in college football. While some teams bask in the glory that is theirs to play in a BCS Bowl, a sleuth of other teams prepare to face reality. Reality for a lot of teams at this time of year is that they have fallen short, teams like Texas Tech, Missouri, and BYU might be having those feelings (0-12 Washington started to have those feelings months ago). At the end of the day, we all know that it’s a 12-game season and then the good teams play in a fundraising event. That is the very reason why we won’t see a playoff in Division I football, a lot of people will lose too much money. In traditional fashion of Sunday Headlines, here are the matchups of the first portion of bowls with a headline you might see attached to it and the JIB Picks are bolded:

Fresno State has yet to match their success they had with David Carr.

-12/20 – Eagle Bank Bowl ~ Navy vs. Wake Forest – “Wake Gets Revenge” The Deamon Deacons and Midshipmen met earlier in the season and Navy squeaked out a 24-17 win. In that game, Wake Forest had six turnovers. Wake Forest could conceivably commit about 3-4 turnovers and still come out of this one with a win. 

-12/20 – New Mexico Bowl ~ Fresno State vs. Colorado State – “Bulldogs Get Rammed” In what could have been the best season Fresno State has had since Davis Carr, the Bulldogs stumbled their way through the season. Nobody saw the Bulldogs being as bad as they were and their season will end on a sour note.  

-12/20 – magicJack St. Petersburg Bowl ~ South Florida vs. Memphis – “Bulls at Home in Win” When you are starved for bowl wins, it always helps to play one in your backyard. For those of you wondering, “magicJack” is a locally based telecommunications company in south Florida. I was hoping it was a new revolutionary and magical flapjack, in my dreams…  

-12/20 – Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl ~ BYU vs. Arizona – “BYU Prevails Again in Sin City” BYU might start sponsoring this bowl next year, it is their fourth appearance in four years. If there ever was a disappointing 10-2 season, this was the one. After back-to-back 10-2 seasons, the Cougars wanted more…maybe next year.

-12/21 - R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl ~ Troy vs. Southern Mississippi – “Troy Wins With Defense” Southern Miss and Troy are #26 and #20 in the nation in total offense, they are pretty evenly matched in that department. The difference will come on the defensive side of the ball as Troy will prevail in this yawner.

-12/23 – San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl ~ Boise State vs. TCU – “Broncos Have No Fiesta at Poinsettia” If the Poinsettia Bowl officials goal was to make a bowl with the longest name ever, than they succeeded. In a matchup that is just as good as some BCS Bowl games, Boise State will ultimately succumb to the quick and powerful TCU defense. TCU’s only losses are to #1 Oklahoma and #6 Utah. 

-12/24 – Sheraton Hawaii Bowl ~ Notre Dame vs. Hawaii – “” If Notre Dame’s boosters are hoping for a nice Christmas vacation to Hawai’i, they better not think about the football game. The Fighting Irish have backed themselves into a corner accepting this invitation. The critics were silenced when Notre Dame said that Charlie Weis will return next year, what will they say after this bowl loss? Stay tuned.

North Carolina head coach Butch Davis has made football relevant in December again.

-12/26 – Motor City Bowl ~ Central Michigan vs. Florida Atlantic – “Dan LeFevour Scorches the Owls” Central Michigan found itself out of the MAC Championship for the first time in two years as they took a back seat to Buffalo and Ball State. Florida Atlantic find themselves in their first bowl ever! Although unmemorable, it will leave them wanting more. 

-12/27 – Meineke Car Care Bowl ~ North Carolina vs. West Virginia – “Tar Heels Like Unfamiliar Territory” North Carolina hoops: epic, historic, and successful. North Carolina football: forgetful, mediocre, and disappointing. This year; however, seem to be a turning point for the Tar Heels, but is yet to be seen if they can sustain their success next year. This is only one year after all. 

-12/27 – Champs Sports Bowl ~ Florida State vs. Wisconsin – “Seminoles Don’t Get Badgered” Wisconsin started the season in the top 10 and fell hard and fast. They were a disappointment in a pretty weak Big Ten (with eleven teams). Florida State also fell, but only because the polls hyped them up too much, they never were and still aren’t that good. 

-12/27 – Emerald Bowl ~ Cal vs. Miami – “Bears Weather Hurricane” The ACC shows it’s stink with it’s bowl affiliations. Every year I am sure the BCS bowl officials fight over who has to take the ACC Champion. They are currently under contract with bowls in Boise, ID and San Francisco, CA. They can’t even get a bowl on the Atlantic coast!

-12/28 – Independence Bowl ~ Louisiana Tech vs. Northern Illinois – “And the Winner is zzzzzzz” How many people that watch this game outside of northern Illinois and Louisiana is yet to be seen, my guess is not a lot. 

-12/29 - Papajohns.com Bowl ~ Rutgers vs. North Carloina State – “Better Ingredients, Better Team: Rutgers” Seems that the whole reason for this bowl is to remind us that you can order Papa Johns pizza online at papajohns.com. They better pack the ads at the beginning of the game because it won’t be long before people flip the channel to a Rocky Marathon that I’m sure is on some channel.