The shot is up...and its good! General Sports Discussion

[Sparky]

The first round of the NFL playoffs is now over. I was only two of four in my predictions, but I really don't mind that much, since I was pulling for several of the underdogs.
The Houston Texans beat the Cincinnati Bengals in convincing fashion, 31-10. The New Orleans Saints outscored the Detroit Lions 45-28. The New York Giants dominated the Atlanta Falcons 24-2. And the Denver Broncos stunned the Pittsburgh Steelers 29-23 in overtime.
Next week's matchups:
Texans at Baltimore Ravens
Saints at San Francisco 49ers
Broncos at New England Patriots
Giants at Green Bay Packers

[stargazer]

Congrats to the Texans on their first playoff win, and to the other teams for their victories. It'll be interesting to watch next week's round of games, with 2 of them in potentially cold places.

[FencerforJesus]

Actually three of them could be potentially cold. New England, Green Bay, and Baltimore can get quite chilly this time of year. I don't exactly picture San Fransisco being a place that gets cold typically.

That being said, New England better watch out. Denver is going to be dangerous as long as they don't beat themselves. Broncos controlled the first part of the game until they committed their three turnovers in the first match-up. Without those (and assuming they didn't score on those drives), it would have been a very different result. And Tebow just showed he can score on the best defense in the league and score big. He had three 50+ yard passes including the OT ender. New England can't play defense to save their lives. They have the 2nd worst defense. If Tebow does what he did today, New England better have a fully functioning offense because they will be out if not. Pats fans wanted the Broncos in this round. I think they better be reconsidering. I realistically think the Pats will win, but I won't bet against Tebow at the very least making this a close game.

[Elanor]

I had hope for Tebow and the Bronco's - I knew it was very, very, very unlikely for such a thing to happen, but somehow I could envision that miracle. Just to do that, and prove themselves. It was wonderful; I dislike the Steelers and to have them be beaten by the Bronco's - fabulous. I was watching it all, and nearly fainted on that ending. <3 <3
I don't think they'll win anything more, but that's okay. I'm satisfied, and thrilled.
Getting scared and pumped for the Packers game.

[stargazer]

You're right, Fencer, Baltimore may hold its own weather challenges for Houston, even though I've never thought of Baltimore as a really cold place - its average temperature spread this time of year is 24 to 41F, compared to 9 to 24F for Green Bay - though it could be blustery, wet and windy nonetheless.

Sunday's Green Bay forecast is for mostly sunny skies with temps around 27F, continuing the wildly warm weather this part of the country's been enjoying this month. New York can have blustery weather so I don't think it'll be a factor here. I don't know who'll win, but that home-field advantage will be significant.

Baltimore's forecast calls for sunny skies and 40F. The Texans will have their work cut out for them, but as this year's new team in the playoffs it'd be fun to see them advance.

The other two games - the Saints at SF and the Broncos at NE - look like they could be shootouts. (Denver can have cold weather as well, so the current forecast of upper 20s at gametime shouldn't be an issue). It'll be interesting to see if there's more Tebow time in the offing.

[stargazer]

It appears the weather was not a factor in the latest round of NFL playoffs. Of the 8 games now played in the tournament, the home team has won 7 (the lone exception was that surprising Giants victory at Lambeau Field).

I think the most exciting game this past weekend (as I don't have a home team to cheer for) was the 49ers' 36-32 victory over New Orleans. The last 4 minutes of the game were filled with lots of scoring and lead changes. Now the 49ers will take on the Giants at home for the NFC championship and a Super Bowl berth. Could be a high-scoring game. I'll pick SF.

In the AFC, the number-1 seeded Pats host the number-2 Ravens. This should be an entertaining game as well. I'll go with the Patriots.

[FencerforJesus]

on Broncos.

The one game the Patriots did show up on defense. But New England right now is in a separate class than Denver. Denver needed a perfect game to have a chance to win against New England. They didn't and got blown out. But Denver is not going to be a mediocre team for long. Tebow did much more than anyone (even myself) would have dreamed, especially after the 1-4 start. He will get better and I see Denver drafting to build the team around him.

The Saints/Niners game was incredible. Easily the best game of the playoffs so far with the Denver/Pittsburgh game right behind.

For Super Bowl, I'm rooting for Niners and Ravens. That will silence all the attention on the insane offense this year and continue with the addage "Offense wins games, but defense wins championships." Overall, I want the Niners to win the SB.

[Elanor]

Ah, the two teams I love both out. My poor darling Pack.
I kind of expected it, for both teams. I knew Bronco's would lose, and that didn't sadden me over much - I'm really, really, really proud of Tebow and what the team did. They proved themselves to the world (and they took the Steelers out).
As for the Packers . . well, what can I say. Super bowl Champs. 15-1, first time in franchise history. I'm horribly proud of them, and I love them so much. How sad they must be . . I get very VERY emotionally involved with my football, especially when it's the Packers.
I don't know who I'll root for - I probably won't watch anymore games except the Superbowl, and I'll just see which team I prefer.
I didn't find the Denver/Pittsburgh game of much interest, I'm afraid, Fencer. One of the most obvious, painful, boring games I've ever seen.

[Sparky]

I think the most exciting game this past weekend (as I don't have a home team to cheer for) was the 49ers' 36-32 victory over New Orleans. The last 4 minutes of the game were filled with lots of scoring and lead changes. Now the 49ers will take on the Giants at home for the NFC championship and a Super Bowl berth. Could be a high-scoring game. I'll pick SF.

I don't see this being a high scoring game(assuming that by high scoring you mean something like 42-35). Until the last four minutes of the game against the Saints, the Niners offense didn't do much of anything, and the Giants defense is playing very well right now. On the flip side, the Niners defense is also playing extremely well, and even though they did give up some points against the Saints, they also forced 5 turnovers. This is really a hard one to pick, but I think the Giants have the better quarterback, and are looking a lot like the team that won the Super Bowl a few years back. Giants win 27-24.

In the AFC, the number-1 seeded Pats host the number-2 Ravens. This should be an entertaining game as well. I'll go with the Patriots.

I agree with you here. Ravens are 4-4 on the road, Patriots are 7-1 at home. Tom Brady and the offense are on fire right now. Patriots win 35-17.

[stargazer]

Your predictions were pretty spot-on, Sparky, especially with the Giants-Niners game. The wet weather there couldn't have helped either team much.

The Pats won, as we both suspected, but by a much lower score. The temperature was around freezing during the game, and while both teams are used to winter, that's still a bit cold.

So the Super Bowl is a rematch of Super Bowl XLII 4 years ago, which the Giants won 17-14.

[Sparky]

In hindsight, I probably should have given the Ravens defense more respect, even if they were playing Tom Brady. The Patriots really got pretty lucky to avoid overtime. Field goals... so important this time of year.

So the Super Bowl is a rematch of Super Bowl XLII 4 years ago, which the Giants won 17-14.

Should be a good game. Early impression is that the rematch will be higher scoring than the original. I'll be rooting for the Giants, but from a predictions point of view, my hunch is that the Patriots will win a close one, most likely by a field goal(so important this time of year).

[stargazer]

This evening's Pro Bowl (which one TV commentator called "Super Bowl Lite") was rather entertaining. It's not a serious game (more like an exhibition game with many of the best players), so there were a number of plays that you just don't see often in regular games (4th down conversion attempts, onside kicks, fake punts, etc - not to mention Drew Brees attempting a kick after the NFC's last touchdown). There were also some rugby-like moments and fun scoring catches.

In the end, 100 points were scored by both teams, and the AFC's 59 points were the most by a team in the Pro Bowl.

[AstroWolfD]

I didn't know that here was a sports section on this site! I'll be coming here a lot, especially when baseball season starts. Just to comment, the Pro Bowl turned out to be much better than I expected. I wish that was the norm. I'm not really looking forward to the Super Bowl that much, but I guess I'll have to pull for the Giants because I hate the Pats. I guess we'll see...

[wolfloversk]

Ok 1st off Daytona 500 is tomorrow!!!!!!!!!! I'm rooting for Burton, Montoya, and Stewart. (And my roommate is letting me watch it )

2nd Suny Oswego's Division III Ice Hockey Team (my school) will face the winner of Plattsburgh vs Buffalo State for the SUNYAC Championship. Currently Plattsburgh and Buff state are in their 5th (yes I said 5th) period tied 3 for 3. Plattsburgh is our biggest rivals so I kind of hope they win... that would be an amazing game to watch.

Also Oswego's Men's Basketball team won the SUNYAC Championship today.

[AstroWolfD]

Ok 1st off Daytona 500 is tomorrow!!!!!!!!!! I'm rooting for Burton, Montoya, and Stewart. (And my roommate is letting me watch it )

Good choices. I'm pulling for Terry Labonte and Denny Hamlin myself. Not like either of them have much of a chance though, but who knows.

2nd Suny Oswego's Division III Ice Hockey Team (my school) will face the winner of Plattsburgh vs Buffalo State for the SUNYAC Championship. Currently Plattsburgh and Buff state are in their 5th (yes I said 5th) period tied 3 for 3. Plattsburgh is our biggest rivals so I kind of hope they win... that would be an amazing game to watch.

Also Oswego's Men's Basketball team won the SUNYAC Championship today.

Congratulations to your teams. I didn't know that they played any extra periods in collegiate hockey, let alone five!

[wolfloversk]

Congratulations to your teams. I didn't know that they played any extra periods in collegiate hockey, let alone five!

Usually they only allow a fourth period for overtime (1 plus the normal 3), and after that it'd just be declared a tie. But because this game was a semi-final they had to declare a winner. And that winner was Plattsburgh after 6 periods! (I feel bad for those poor men )

They're playing us here so I just gotta figure out when to get tickets and not miss class