NFL Wild Card Sunday Live Blog

Here's hoping today's games don't get too ugly......

Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Giants  1:00 (Fox - Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, SR: Pam Oliver and Chris Myers)

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Denver Broncos  4:30 (CBS - Jim Nantz and Phil Simms)

NFL Wild Card Weekend Schedule

The NFL Playoffs are back, and I guess it will be more relaxing because the Eagles are not playing.  Also, more depressing.  Anyway, here is the schedule with announcers.  No surprises, but I post this anyway because I like having this handy resource available.

Saturday, January 7

# 6 Cincinnati Bengals vs. #3 Houston Texans  4:30 (NBC - Tom Hammond and Mike Mayock, SR: Alex Flanagan)
# 6 Detroit Lions vs. #3 New Orleans Saints  8:00 (NBC - Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth, SR: Michele Tafoya)

Sunday, January 8

#5 Atlanta Falcons vs. #4 New York Giants  1:00 (Fox - Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, SR: Pam Oliver and Chris Myers)
#5 Pittsburgh Steelers vs. #4 Denver Broncos  4:30 (CBS - Jim Nantz and Phil Simms)

Karma: Packers Win Super Bowl XLV, Steelers Fans Whine About Referees

For starters, that was not pass interference as you can clearly tell by watching the video. Secondly, even if it was a missed call (which it wasn't; refs got it right), then maybe, just maybe, this is a little thing called karma. Remember Super Bowl XL? These things have a way of rearing their ugly head again, and for the Steelers and their, this is just a small dose of their own medicine.

Unfortunately, the 2005 Seahawks fans will never have what some would argue is rightfully theirs. But possibly five years and 1 day after the controversy in Detroit, there is perhaps a sense of payback to the Steelers.

But I digress. Congratulations to the Green Bay Packers!

Super Bowl XLV Live Blog

CLICK HERE TO GO TO LIVE BLOG!

Super Bowl Sunday Schedule

Super Bowl Sunday is always the day of the big football game. But this year, there are two. Hours before Green Bay and Pittsburgh even arrive at Cowboys Stadium, another football game on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, one that very well may get more international press attention than the Super Bowl. Obviously, I am talking about the Chelsea-Liverpool "Torres Bowl," that will air at 11 AM ET on Fox Soccer Channel.

For those that do not follow soccer, 26-year old superstar forward Fernando Torres started the season with Liverpool. Then days before the January transfer window closed (comparable to an American trade deadline), Chelsea put in a bid for Fernando Torres, Torres then put in a formal transfer request. Then hours before the transfer window closed, the move was finalized. Liverpool agreed to send Torres to Chelsea for 50 million pounds (Liverpool would go on to send 35 million of those pounds Newcastle's way for young, unproven striker Andy Carroll). Think of this game as the English edition of Favre Bowl, only with no sexting and the center of the controversy is 14-years younger. Now being a Chelsea fan, I hope they pummel Liverpool at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. For the much longer version of how this while Torres thing went down, check this out from SI.

But enough about English football, here is Fox's schedule for Super Bowl XLV Sunday.

Road To The Super Bowl 12:00 (Fox)
Inside The Rings with Troy Aikman 1:00 (Fox)
Fox NFL Sunday Super Bowl Pregame Show 2:00 (Fox)
Super Bowl XLV: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Green Bay Packers 6:00 (Fox - Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, SR: Pam Oliver and Chris Myers)

For a preview of Fox's Super Bowl pregame show, check this out from TV By The Numbers.

The Most Disgusting AFC Championship Game Ever

First up, during the opening drive of the game, Mark Sanchez was spotted on the sidelines by the CBS cameras picking a booger and wiping it on Mark Brunell's jaket.



And during the final series of the game when Ben Roethlisberger took his first knee, Rashard Mendenhall felt it necessary to give Ben a little payback for all his alleged rapings.



Nothing says celebrating an AFC Championship game quite like dry humping your quarterback.

I'll have more on the Green Bay-Pittsburgh Super Bowl as we get closer to the day, including my official prediction.

2011 NFL Playoffs Conference Championship Sunday Live Blog

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE LIVE BLOG!

Conference Championship Games Preview

Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears: I am sure Soldier Field will be its normal crappy self as the Green Bay Packers take on the Chicago Bears in the NFC Championship game. In terms of DVOA, the Packers were the NFC team in the playoffs. And for my money's worth, they are much better than Chicago. Soldier Field might be the great equalizer in this one, but does anyone really see Jay Cutler picking apart the Green Bay defense? There is a reason the Bears played their starters Week 17, and it was to try and avoid the very situation they found themselves in. The overall match-ups in this game favor Green Bay, both offensively and defensively. If Chicago wins this game, I'll be shocked. Final prediction: Packers 24, Bears 14.

New York Jets vs. Pittsburgh Steelers:  For some, this game will be like watching hell on a frozen football field.  The temperature in Pittsburgh is forecast to be in the teens for game time and this game features two teams that outside of their respective fanbases are for the most part rather unlikeable.  Yes, I did root for the Jets last week, but yes, the Patriots are more loathesome than the Jets, and the same thing can be said about Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers in comparison to said Jets. Both teams have seen their share of luck over the course of the season. You've two conservative offenses going up against two really good defenses, so while this game could likely be boring in spots, it should also be very close making for a fun finish. All in all, the Steelers are the better team here and should take care of the Jets who were at an emotional high after they beat the Patriots. Can Rex Ryan come up with his 3rd straight brilliant gameplan against a team who has a QB significantly better than his? Doubtful. Final prediction: Steelers 16, Jets 13.

Live blog tomorrow at Keith's Sports Journal.

NFL Conference Championships Schedule

As fun as Super Bowl Sunday is, the conference championships are for my money the best Sunday in the NFL season. In roughly the same amount of time you watch one game championship game with added pageantry, you get to watch 2 championship games with little pageantry. Plus, the two host cities (Chicago and Pittsburgh) are cold weather cities in the midst of a weather pattern featuring below average temperatures. Also, after going all year without a sideline reporter, for whatever reason, CBS has once again seen a need to employ Steve Tasker as one. I don't get it either. But nonetheless, here is your schedule for Conference Championship Sunday in the NFL. (all times ET)

Sunday, January 23

NFC Championship Game

#6 Green Bay Packers vs. #2 Chicago Bears 3:00 (Fox - Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, SR: Pam Oliver and Chris Myers)

AFC Championship Game

#6 New York Jets vs. #2 Pittsburgh Steelers 6:30 (CBS - Jim Nantz and Phil Simms, SR: Steve Tasker)

2011 NFL Playoffs Divisional Saturday Live Blog

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE LIVE BLOG!

Bill Leavy returns to Seattle, no one slashes his tires

With all of the controversy swirling the last few months in pro sports because of poor officiating (NBA referees, Jim Joyce, Bob Davidson), controversies of the past tend to get swept under the rug, except, of course, in the cities that feel they were victimized by the stripes(Richie Garcia I’m looking at you). One of those controversies was revived Friday in Seattle, 1,644 days after Super Bowl 40, because NFL referee Bill Leavy made a (not so) triumphant return to Seahawks training camp!

And what did Leavy say about the game that night in Detroit?

"It was a tough thing for me. I kicked two calls in the fourth quarter and I impacted the game, and as an official you never want to do that," said the veteran of 15 NFL seasons and two Super Bowls.

"It left me with a lot of sleepless nights, and I think about it constantly," Leavy said of the game in February 2006. "I'll go to my grave wishing that I'd been better."

Look, if you’ve followed my comments on this blog, you know that I’m no fan of the Steelers. But even John Madden had to concede that the holding call on Sean Locklear was terrible. "I didn't see holding," Madden said after seeing the replay. "There may have been holding, but it wasn't in that picture." And I’m still trying to figure out how a chop block can be called on a QB after he throws an interception. Just 2 of several mystery calls that helped the Steelers win their 5^th Super Bowl.

Still, this is a good reminder the officials are human, and that Leavy acutely felt the pain of having made bad calls for months after that night. I’m just not expecting diehard Seahawks fans to be sending him cookies and holiday cards anytime soon.

Big Ben Has 2 Words For You

While in my opinion, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania is not exactly Steeler territory (I would even go farther and say they are 4th in this area behind the Eagles, Giants, and Jets), he was certainly over with the crowd at Wachovia Arena last night and even had a slight encounter with the 7'2" Big Show.



I'm pretty sure that was the most ghetto "If you ain't down with that, we've got 2 words for you" in the history of history. And correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the Steelers rank at the bottom in terms of sacks allowed last year? Nice one, Jerry, way to be up with your football.

Chargers Are Back In This Game....Your Impromtu SNF Open Thread

San Diego is magically back in this game, at least for now, so use this as an open thread to document if they can finish the job or not. Guido, if he is still awake, is probably regretting shutting that thread down now.

Tomlin may have a good record in challenges, but this is a touchdown, and this game is 28-14 Pittsburgh with 12:37 to go!

After seemingly putting them away once and for good by responding to that San Diego touchdown mentioned above, the Chargers drove right down the field, recovered the onsides kick, drove right down the field again, and all of a sudden the lead is down to 7, it's 35-28 Pittsburgh with 4:31 to go in the game.

Steelers are in field goal range with 3rd and inches at the 2-minute warning. San Diego has 2 timeouts, but unless they can force a turnover or a missed field goal, it will all be moot.

Steelers kick the field goal and hang on to win 38-28.

"If the Steelers lost this game, they would have to have kept the bars open all night." - Al Michaels
"That would have been all right with some people." - Cris Collinsworth.

2009 NFL Preview: Pittsburgh Steelers

By JFein:

After a thrilling win in Super Bowl XLIII, the Pittsburgh Steelers are not only the 1st NFL team to win 6 Super Bowls, but they are hoping to be the first team since the New England Patriots to repeat as champions. Something that is a whole lot easier said than done. Now before you discredit anything I say because I'm an Eagles fan, I do have a great deal of respect for the Pittsburgh Steelers and what they have been able to accomplish this decade at first with Coach Cowher and now Mike Tomlin all with Ben Roethlisberger at QB. That was a thrilling Super Bowl and a great win for the Steelers, but the keyword there is "was". This is a new year, a new season, and everyone is starting from scratch at 0-0 and the Steelers are no different (face it, this kind of insight is quite hard to come by). That being said, the Pittsburgh Steelers might just be one of the favorites to win the AFC and make it back to Florida and the Super Bowl. Here's a look at some of the keys to this season for the Steelers.

Willie Parker: Ben Roethlisberger may be the quarterback of the Steelers, but Willie Parker is the engine that gets it going. When he does well, the Steelers do well, but when he does not have a good game, chances are the Steelers as a whole are not having a good game as well. If Willie Parker stays healthy through the year and is as productive as he has been in past years, I have a hard time visualizing this team NOT making the AFC Championship game again.

The Steel Curtain: Last year, the Pittsburgh Steelers defense was the best in the NFL. This year, they retain the core group of that defense and even added to it by drafting Ziggy Hood in the 1st round of the draft. As a franchise as a whole, the Pittsburgh Steelers have always been known for their defense (except for a few years in the early 2000s with Tommy Maddox as QB). This era of Steelers is no different. And this year will be no different.

Big Ben Roethlisberger: Some Super Bowl teams would not have gotten there if it was not for superb QB play. Just look at the Colts in Super Bowl XLI and the Patriots in every Super Bowl they made this decade. And that's just naming the recent ones. And then there are the teams that all they need is an average passer to get the job done. Just look at the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXV. The Steelers under Roethlisberger are one of those teams. Despite leading a Super Bowl team, Big Ben only completed 59.9% of his passes last season. And while that is certainly not piss poor, you would expect different from a QB who has won 2 Super Bowls in 5 seasons. The trait that makes Big Ben special is his leadership ability, but perhaps more importantly, his performance in the clutch. All you need to do is watch the game-winning drive of Super Bowl XLIII for an example of that.

Video: Aspeaking of Super Bowl XLIII




Prediction: 13-3, 1st place AFC North. Bottom line: this is the team to beat in the AFC.

The People At EA Sports Are Extra Mean This Year

The official announcement of the new Madden cover came along and it turns out that EA is changing things up a bit this year. There will not be a person on the Madden cover this year. Wait......what??? Well the reason being is for the first time ever, there will be 2 people on the Madden video game cover! And the poor, unfortunate jinxed souls are And those 2 people are.........(drumrolll).........Troy Polamalu and Larry Fitzgerald!



Congrats to Troy and Larry and I wish you both a quick and speedy recovery on your future torn ACLs!

Polamalu, Fitzgerald to share Madden cover (Russakoff Rules)

Make Room For Big Ben's Ribs, Canton, Ohio

Sigh....get ready for ESPN's talking heads to go gaga over Big Ben's great courage and toughness. Because right now, sitting next to Curt Schilling's bloody sock and Jamie Moyer's toilet, is Big Ben's ribs (or seeing as they were broken, the lack thereof). That's right, Big Ben played in the Super Bowl with broken ribs. From Yahoo! Sports.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have no knowledge that Ben Roethlisberger played the Super Bowl with two broken ribs, as the quarterback told a Web site.

According to SI.com, Roethlisberger said his fractured ribs did not show up on X-rays taken before he led the Steelers to a 27-23 win over Arizona on Feb. 1, but were revealed only during a MRI test he had last week.

“Luckily, in the game, I didn’t take any big hits to make ‘em hurt,” Roethlisberger told SI.com. “But I knew all along there was something wrong. There wouldn’t have been anything that could have been done about fractured ribs anyway. It was just suck it up and play.

Roethlisberger did not miss any practices before the Super Bowl, although a pool report from the Wednesday practice said he attempted during the middle of the workout to stretch his torso. He missed one practice during the off week before the Super Bowl because of what the team said was a back injury.

Big Ben has a history of exaggerating his injuries so the claim may not be entirely true. However, if the MRI revealed broken ribs, then there's no disputing that. Once the A-Rod story has subsided a bit, be prepared for non-stop Roethisberger gushing on ESPN.

FYI, I'll be live blogging Marquette @ Villanova tonight at 7:30. Not only is it a big game for both teams, but it's also ESPN Interactive Tuesday! Which means be prepared for stupid poll questions and even stupider fan comments. Don't miss out on the big fun!

One For The (Other) Thumb

Well then, that was a fun little Super Bowl, wasn't it?

For what many people were saying would be a boring snoozefest, it turned out to be one of the most exhillerating finishes in Super Bowl history, all being capped off with one of, if not the greatest touchdown catch in Super Bowl history. Oh, and if I were a Cardinals fan I'd be a wee bit miffed at Terry McAulay. But first, courtesy of Awful Announcing and SSReporters here are a compilation of videos from the Super Bowl.

Tribute to the crew of US Airways Flight 1549 and the National Anthem (Awful Announcing)


James Harrison 100-yard interception return for a touchdown. (SSReporters)


Larry Fitzgerald's go-ahead touchdown catch (SSReporters)


Larry Fitzgerald's go-ahead touchdown catch with a special 30-seconds of porn interrupting! (Awful Announcing)


The Exciting Conclusion of Super Bowl XLIII including the Holmes TD catch and ensuing controversial finish (Awful Announcing)


What a game and a finish. But I must say, I just do not get how that last play is not reviewed. And yes I know that Al Michaels and ESPN said that the play was "reviewed", but hardly a minute of real time elapsed from the time of the Warner fumble to Big Ben taking a knee. There is no way they could have reviewed it that quick. And even if they did, how could looking at that play take a minute? It's at worst inconclusive and at best an incomplete pass. I tend to side with the latter. Having watched it several times, unless I'm seeing something that no one else is, I see Warner's arm moving forward with full possession of the ball. Plus keep in mind the physics of the play. Woodley came from the side and hit the front of the ball. How then, does the ball end up 5-yards down the field? The only logical explanation is that the ball had some forward momentum created by Warner's arm and shoulder beginning to move forward. Call me a conspiracy theorist, but something about that last play just does not sit-well with me. Now with 5-seconds left, a 50-yard hail mary is a very unlikely play, but with Warner's arm and Fitzgerald's height advantage over the Steelers secondary, with the perfect throw, you never know what kind of magic we could have seen. But alas, we'll never know.

Congrats to the Steelers for winning a fantastic Super Bowl. It was definitley a very entertaining game, and for me, a very scary game, because with less than 4-minutes left, the score was Pittsburgh 20, Arizona 16, the same score that I had predicted in my preview 24-hours before the game. Santonio Holmes' touchdown catch will be replayed over and over for years to come, much like the Tyree catch last year. Hopefully next year's game is just as exciting. Actually forget about excitement, I just hope the Eagles are in it (and win it)!

Update: Tomorrow I'll have a Keith Olbermann-esque special comment on the officating of this game. There's just no way that game should have ended like that.

Your Exclusive Super Bowl XLIII Preview

What: Super Bowl XLIII
Who: The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Arizona Cardinals
Where: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
When: Kickoff is at 6:28
What Channel: NBC
Announcers: Al Michaels, John Madden, Andrea Kremer, Alex Flanagan
Announcers Talkng Point of the Game: The Arizona Flippin' Cardinals are in the Super Bowl???
Weather Forecast: 62 Degrees, Partly Cloudy

Analysis: Well then, if you said at the beginning of the season that the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers would play each other in the Super Bowl you would have been labeled stockraving mad. Hell, if on New Years day you said that the Cardinals and the Steelers would be in the Super Bowl, you would have been called certifiably insane. But alas, that's what we got. It's the Cardinals and the Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII!

Larry Fitzgerald has been on fire this post-season. He has set the record for most receiving yards in a post-season. He has made sensational play after sensational play just ripping through anything the opposing team's defense has thrown at them. So the question becomes, can the Pittsburgh defense contain Fitzgerald? If the answer is yes, the Steelers should have no problem winning this game, but containing Warner-to-Fitzgerald is so much easier said than done. Then again, if there's one defense in the NFL that is capable of such a feat, it's the #1 ranked defense in the NFL, the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The success of the Steelers' offense comes with the running game. Ben Roethlisberger is an efficient quarterback, if he is not passing it all the time. Which is why the Steelers cannot fall behind early in this one. The Cardinal defense has been picking balls off left and right this post-season, and if it becomes obvious passing situations, the Steelers will be in trouble.

Prediction: It should be a very entertaining game, to say the least. And one in which, quite frankly, I'm not quite sure what to expect. It's not like last year's Super Bowl where it had all the appeal the network would want to the causal fan. But to someone like me who is a diehard NFL fan, it presents an interesting matchup with a guaranteed historic outcome. Either Kurt Warner will be the first quarterback in NFL history to win a Super Bowl with 2 different teams or the Pittsburgh Steelers will be the first team in NFL history to win 6 Super Bowls. As much respect as I have for the Cardinals and the fact that I've picked against them 3 times and have been wrong all 3 times, I have to go with the latter of the historic events occuring. Pittsburgh 20, Arizona 16

NBC's Cast of Characters Tomorrow From Start To Finish

Believe it or not, we are only 1 day away from the showdown in Tampa.

And now let me introduce you to the cast that will be talking about all of this. Ladies and gentlemen, those that will be supplying us with over 9-hours of Super Bowl coverage on NBC.....

Bob Costas (Studio Host)
Al Michaels (Game Play-by-Play)
John Madden (Game Analyst)
Andrea Kremer (Sideline Repoter)
Alex Flanagan (Sideline Reporter)
Keith Olbermann (Studio co-host)
Dan Patrick (Studio co-host)
Cris Collinsworth (Studio co-host/studio analyst)
Tiki Barber (Studio Analyst)
Jerome Bettis (Studio Analyst)
Matt Millen (Guest Studio Analyst)
Mike Holmgren (Guest Studio Analyst)
Tony Dungy (Guest Studio Analyst)
Rodney Harrison (Guest Studio Analyst)
Peter King (Reporter)
Bob Neumeier (Reporter)
Tom Colicchio (Chef)
Jim Cantore (Weatherman)
Maria Bartiroma (Financial Update perosn)**
Matt Lauer (Today Show Host* - Conducting Live Interview with President Obama)
Al Roker (Today Show - Hosting Pregame coverage from the NBC Super Suite)
Meredith Viera (Today Show)
Ann Curry (Today Show)

And unless I develop different plans, I plan watching NBC's coverage from 9 AM to end of post-game coverage. Should be a fun day!

*He's the host of the Today Show but I can't find anything that says he will actually be hosting the Today show special.
**What a CNBC business news anchor with no sports experience is doing in a Super Bowl pre-game show is beyond me.

Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick discuss the Super Bowl Pre-Game Roster (MSNBC)
Super Bowl XLIII Viewing Guide (Awful Announcing)

The Gloves Have Officially Come Off Between the Cardinals and the Steelers

If there's one thing that offends a Pittsburgh Steeler fan, it's the other team desecrating the Terrible Towel. So naturally, if you're the Cardinals, you'd stay away from it? I mean, if you're the Cardinals and you're the underdog, you don't want to get the other team and their fan base angry at you, do you? Well, apparently the mayor of Phoenix and the Cardinal mascot know nothing of this. I, now present to you, the turning point of Super Bowl XLIII


Gotta love that little "look at the Tennessee Titans" at the end. Can't you tell this is a video from Pittsburgh's local NBC affiliate?

And while it all seemed to be in good fun and no disrespect was intended, don't be surprised if the Steelers somehow try to use this as motivation.